Rift Widens Over Mining of Uranium in Virginia

[phantom power]

A fight over whether to drill beneath the oak hedgerows, an undertaking that would yield 1,000 jobs and a bounty of tax revenue in addition to nuclear fuel, has divided the region. The bitterness is reflected in competing lawn signs that read “No Uranium Mining” and, on the other side of the road, “Stop whining. Start mining.”

Now, after years of government reports and hundreds of thousands of dollars in political donations that included a trip to France for state lawmakers, the issue has reached the crucible of Virginia’s General Assembly.

Bills introduced last week would lift a moratorium on uranium mining at the site here, known as Coles Hill. Political supporters say that the mining would bring economic benefits and that risks from radioactive wastes, or tailings, can be safely managed. Opponents fear the contamination of drinking water in case of an accident, and a stigma from uranium that would deter people and businesses from moving to the area.

The politics of the issue do not divide neatly along party lines. Opponents include most state lawmakers from the region, all of whom are Republicans. A prominent supporter is the minority leader of the State Senate, Richard L. Saslaw, a Democrat, who lives in the northern suburbs. Asked about buried uranium tailings that remain a risk for hundreds of years, Mr. Saslaw, who is known for unguarded statements, said in a radio interview, “I’m not going to be here.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/20/us/rift-widens-over-mining-uranium-in-virginia.html?_r=0

[bananas]

1. "A National Academy of Sciences report in 2011 stopped the momentum..."

A National Academy of Sciences report in 2011 stopped the momentum in last year’s General Assembly for lifting the ban, imposed three decades earlier in the wake of the Three Mile Island nuclear plant accident. The report warned of “steep hurdles” to safe mining and “significant human health” dangers if a capped tailings pile leaks because of the state’s “frequent storms.”

[Nihil]

2. Minority leader of the State Senate, Richard L. Saslaw, a Democrat: "I'm not going to be here."

"not a dime's worth of difference"?

If they're dumb enough to do it, go for it ... it's not as if they actually care about
the environment that they've been raping for decades (centuries) for the greed
from other minerals ...

[bananas]

3. He's the very modern definition of a DINO-saur.

(Sung to the tune of "Major General&quot

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Major-General%27s_Song

Major-General's Song
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Henry Lytton as the Major-General (1919).

I Am the Very Model of a Modern Major-General (often referred to as the Major-General's Song or Modern Major-General's Song) is a patter song from Gilbert and Sullivan's 1879 comic opera The Pirates of Penzance. It is perhaps the most famous song in Gilbert and Sullivan's operas. It is sung by Major-General Stanley at his first entrance, towards the end of Act I. The song satirises the idea of the "modern" educated British Army officer of the latter 19th century. It is one of the most difficult patter songs to perform, due to the fast pace and tongue-twisting nature of the lyrics.

The song is replete with historical and cultural references, in which the Major-General describes his impressive and well-rounded education, but he says that his military knowledge has "only been brought down to the beginning of the century." The stage directions in the libretto state that at the end of each verse the Major-General is "bothered for a rhyme." Interpolated business occurs here, and in each case he finds a rhyme and finishes the verse with a flourish.[1]

Contents
1 Historical basis
2 Lyrics
...
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