“End Nuclear Insanity Before Nuclear Insanity Ends Humanity”

LLAW’s COMMENTARY:

As randomly planned in order to provide an expanded term of understanding to what this nightly Post is all about, especially for new readers who may have missed most of the first year-plus of the cometary, this article from October 5th, 2023, is posted here tonight as what will become a usual Sunday review in general, but more importantly because of the daily increasing concerns about AI (Artificial Intelligence) and its rapidly growing ties and technical relationships to dangers related to operational controls and administration of nuclear power plants as well as, perhaps, nuclear weapons up to and even including nuclear war. ~llaw

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LLAW’s “ALL THINGS NUCLEAR” #410 (10/05/2023)

“End nuclear insanity before nuclear insanity ends humanity”

________________________

Tonight, while I’m working on the “Organization” plan for beginning a step-by-step “blue print” about how humanity might prevent “All Things Nuclear” from existing in the future, I am turning the Post over to “The Bulletin’s” evaluation of a growing AI/nuclear relationship.

There are six steps, as described in my Post #409 from last night that I will be working on. I will post each one of them in a draft form as consideration for convincing a majority of humanity to turn against all things nuclear in order to survive. The basic outline (brief and unedited) is described in last night’s Post.

Always keep in mind that the only way this proposal would never work is through the vocal or functional discontent or disconnect of a majority of planet Earth’s already divided human World(s) that I refer to as the “Organization”. If we can’t accomplish that then the rest is a futile dream not worth thinking about. I suspect the “Blue Print”, when completed will read much like or resemble an outline for a novel or a screenplay because it will seem like ‘science fiction’ to most of us. But to guarantee our survival as well as other life on our only home, it has to be more than imaginary and it has to happen. We could also use some unknown help from somewhere.

So, in that light I am going to post a recent “Bulletin” article that deals with the relationship of the advancing romance between AI and nuclear management that human beings may not be able to control. This article places an even more questionable light on the issue of human capability and expertise to deal with and control “All Things Nuclear” than ever before.

And it should be noted that we have not done a very good job of shepherding nuclear arms nor nuclear power and the heated issue of ‘all things nuclear’ is growing more frightening by the day. ~llaw

The following article is from “The Bulletin’s” September edition by Jingjie He, Nikita Degtyarev on September 11, 2023 (Please note that images are not shown, although some descriptions or captions are presented. Also, the references in the footnotes are not shown.

AI and Atoms: How Artificial Intelligence is Revolutionizing Nuclear Material

By Jingjie He and Nikita Degtyarev, September 11, 2023

Over the last decade, there has been an accelerated integration of artificial intelligence (AI)[1] into both the civilian and military fields. As a result, rising attention to the challenges of AI governance has manifested in three ways. The first challenge lies in the dual-use nature of AI in the civilian and military domains, which renders it difficult to monitor and oversee its militarization. The second derives from the policy-influencing power of the private sector, which has traditionally been limited to utilizing lobbying instruments. The final difficulty results from the changing nature of government-industry relations, where industries are leading the development and application of AI, and governments are falling behind industry in understanding its technological potential and regulating military applications.

A review of existing literature demonstrates that AI is well discussed within the military and broader strategic stability domain[2], including discussions surrounding AI use within the nuclear sphere to hack cyber systems, poison AI training data, and manipulate its inputs (Avin and Amadae 2019). The expert community further addresses AI and its applicability to nuclear safeguards.[3] However, current available research largely ignores nuclear material production (NMP), which is an essential phase in the development of nuclear weapons

This article bridges that gap by assessing the potential role of AI in nuclear material production while considering industrial practices.[4] In employing an industrial approach to technology scouting, we argue that AI has significant potential to improve nuclear material production by enhancing system efficiencies with the aim of optimizing output, reducing costs, and boosting safety in production associated with the development and production of nuclear weapons. A comprehensive list of the existing AI applications to nuclear material production-critical equipment and to related non-nuclear industry applications integrable to the nuclear material production is presented in Appendix 1, (immediately below the main text).

The AI-powered nuclear material production process raises concerns of the illicit and covert development of nuclear weapons. Therefore, a three-fold solution with feasible action plans is discussed in the final section. Although nuclear material production is the focus of this article, the findings, concerns, and solutions being addressed are also applicable to the broader debate on the production of material used to build weapons of mass destruction, including radiological, biological, and chemical weapons.

Proliferation-sensitive stages in nuclear material production

Nuclear material production consists of several steps, including mining and milling, conversion, enrichment, fuel fabrication, electricity generation, spent fuel storage, and reprocessing.[5] While each production step is important, the enrichment and reprocessing phases are the most proliferation sensitive phases. These phases provide the basis for enriching uranium and/or the separating the uranium and plutonium isotopes that are pillars[6] integral to the development of a nuclear weapon; thus, improved accessibility to these technologies through AI presents both horizontal and vertical proliferation risks[7] (Gartzke and Kroenig 2014).

Although the application of AI within the enrichment and reprocessing phases is an ongoing effort to further the application of nuclear science and technology for good, AI as a dual-use technology within nuclear material production space has been largely neglected within the academic and practitioner communities. Therefore, a widening opportunity for AI to aid in illicit and covert non-peaceful applications exists.

AI’s potential applications in the nuclear material production

Industrial applications of AI can be broadly divided into three categories: anomaly detection, automated optimization, and automated discovery. Each of these techniques has functioned and been applied in civilian industries, and each can affect proliferation-sensitive stages of nuclear material production. A summary of the key potential application of AI in the nuclear material production is illustrated in Table 1 with potential use cases specified in Appendix 1.

Table 1. Key potential applications of AI in nuclear material production

Anomaly detection. An AI anomaly-detection algorithm is trained to recognize machine or system data featuring “normal behaviors.” When real-time data deviates from the normality pattern, the AI algorithm will identify the anomaly. Early-stage defection alarms make inspection and fixation possible before mechanical or system breakdown.

The use cases of AI anomaly detection fall into two categories. First, AI is used by industries to monitor, detect, and diagnose faults in machines. An example is the anomaly detection of centrifugal pumps (Al Tobi et al. 2022; Nabli and Hassani 2009). Second, AI is also widely applied in cyber defense products to detect anomalies led by cyberattacks or infections, which is a growing threat to sophisticated nuclear programs (Al Tobi et al. 2022; Nabli and Hassani 2009). An example is General Electric’s AI cyber defense solution, Digital Ghost, which serves the US Department of Energy, an agency responsible for managing the nation’s enriched uranium supply, in protecting critical infrastructure (General Electric n.d.a).

The aforementioned applications can be readily integrated into the nuclear material production process, provided that the training, testing, and verification data of the critical machines and computer systems involved in the producing process are accessible. Specific applications include adopting AI anomaly detection solutions to prevent failure of critical nuclear material production equipment (like centrifuges) and computer systems (such as management or cyber defense systems). Similar AI solutions can also advance efficiency and safety in human-centric knowledge production processes that facilitate nuclear material production (like advanced fissile isotope separation methods[8]).

Automated optimization. Automated optimization solutions train AI algorithms to analyze data with predefined parameters in an industrial process. Based on this analysis, the algorithms can predict product quality and correct problematic parameters to improve it. When applied to complex systems, AI algorithms can set up many factors at different levels, simulate their performance, and identify the best combination for achieving optimized solutions.

The use cases of AI automated optimization in civilian industries are three-fold. The first is industrial production. For instance, artificial neural networks, a type of deep learning algorithm, are used to monitor and adjust the performance of centrifuges in the separation processes (Funes et al. 2009; Jiménez et al. 2008; Menesklou et al. 2021). The second is industrial design. Examples include determining the optimum configuration for race cars used in different races (Monolith AI n.d.), the optimum design of computer chips (Mirhoseini et al. 2021), and the optimum shape for the crown of a piston in a diesel engine (Bogaisky 2019). The third is logistic planning. Examples of this include the reduction of the airplane turnaround time and the optimization of delivery fleet routing (General Electric n.d.b; Google n.d.).

These AI optimization solutions can also be integrated into the nuclear material production with the availability of machine or system data. This has already been applied to optimize the dimensions of a rotating baffle in gas centrifuges for uranium enrichment (Migliavacca et al. 2002). Further potential nuclear material production use cases include improvement of machine, such as nuclear centrifuges, configuration; the design of machine (including centrifuge) parts; and the efficiency of the nuclear material production lines, such as the arrangement of centrifuge cascades and the broader management of the nuclear material production process. Other human-centric nuclear research can also benefit from automated optimization solutions, which may in turn revolutionize the nuclear material production.

Automated discovery. AI algorithms are trained to understand the rules of a game by identifying key parameters at an initial stage, then developing their own algorithms to determine the best solution for the game. For example, from playing games like AlphaGo, AlphaZero (Silver et al. 2017; Silver et al. 2018), to protein structure prediction, such as AlphaFold (Jumper et al. 2021), code generation (e.g., AlphaCode) (Li et al. 2022), and faster matrix multiplication discovery (e.g., AlphaTensor) (Fawzi et al. 2022), AI has demonstrated its capability to revolutionize the scientific world at an exponential rate. Nevertheless, in the nuclear sciences, the application of automated discovery remains in early development stages. Consequently, few existing industrial applications are ready to be integrated into the nuclear material production or even feasibility research.[9]

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Popping the chatbot hype balloon

Automated discovery techniques not only advance computational and data processing power through hardware (examples include AI chips and computers) innovation, but also accelerate the development and upgradation of computer systems through automatic code generation (such as in cyber defense or industrial management systems). More significantly, the technique foresees the realization of machine-centric nuclear material knowledge production, as in the case of protein structure prediction[10], which accelerates the speed and accuracy of human-based research, for instance on new fissile isotope separation methods[11] and more efficient materials[12]. Automated discovery has the most potential among the three AI applications mentioned; as such applications advance, they could fundamentally affect the entirety of the nuclear material production lifecycle process.

The way forward . . .

As demonstrated, AI has already impacted several stages of nuclear material production, and its premise as a dual-use technology must be properly managed. While this endeavor requires an all-out effort from all involved parties, the scope of this discussion may focus on a three-dimensional solution.

Recommendation 1: State actors should be responsible for designing and executing effective nuclear material production-related data and infrastructure governance.

To account for the emergence of new dual-use technologies such as AI, existing legal and non-legal frameworks need to evolve.[13] However, the current political environment has constrained global consensus-building, even in cases where reaching consensus benefits all parties.[14] Nonetheless, states remain decisive actors in monitoring and regulating dual-use applications of AI as it relates to nuclear material production.

The scope of monitoring and regulating dual-use applications of AI should exclude AI algorithms; they are open-sourced and globally accessible, and therefore, essentially impossible to monitor and regulate. Instead, the scope should focus on two AI-supporting elements, the first of which is data. Since the precision of an AI solution depends on the quality and quantity of the training and testing data, the transfer of sensitive data around nuclear material production, including the peaceful production of nuclear material, should be safeguarded through enacting proper regulatory measures on technologies, data transfer, and security standards like cybersecurity.[15] The second focus should be on information infrastructure. As the function of AI-powered systems depend on advanced information infrastructures, including fast-speed broadband, cloud storage, AI chips, and supercomputers, among other things, the acquisition and transfer of these critical AI infrastructures should also be monitored. Therefore, export control of AI systems should focus on the transfer of training and testing data, as well as supporting infrastructure.

Data and infrastructure governance can be achieved via unilateral, bilateral, or multilateral solutions, as well as informal and formal means. A ready-to-implement platform is national export control regimes. Hitherto, the United States, the European Union, Russia, the People’s Republic of China, and other political entities with nuclear capabilities have increasingly fortified national legislation around functional export control mechanisms for technologies and data critical to their national security interests (Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, n.d.; PRC 2017; PRC 2020; PRC 2021; European Union 2021; Federal Service for Technical and Export Control of Russia n.d.; Vladimirova et al. 2014). In addition to unilateral efforts, states should also pursue related multilateral discussions based on a shared interest in improving AI-specific export control regime mechanisms, rather than enabling diverging political positions to hinder such discussions (Fisher 1991). An existing conduit for facilitating discussions and future negotiations in this regard is the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), where member state participants agreed to voluntarily implement “guidelines for nuclear exports and nuclear-related exports” (Nuclear Suppliers Group n.d.a).[16]

Recommendation 2: The non-proliferation sector should develop an AI-proficient workforce supported by external AI industry partnerships.

State actors, nongovernmental organizations, and intergovernmental organizations within the nuclear domain have had limited interaction with AI experts, resulting in a knowledge gap that can be reduced through collective discussions.[17] As such, building awareness and sustainable partnerships, both formal and informal, is vital.

To mobilize industry engagement in the non-proliferation sphere, a three-step approach should be taken by states, nongovernmental organizations, and intergovernmental organizations. First, researchers and scientists must develop and maintain a comprehensive understanding regarding the state-of-the-art AI research as well as most advanced industrial use cases associated with the nuclear material production. A visualized example is illustrated in Appendix 1. This can be self-initiated or under institutional cooperation[18]. Ideally, a fully developed table, as illustrated in Appendix 1, summarizing AI’s applicability to nuclear material production would be shared within the nuclear policy making community to develop a shared understanding on the subject, which in turn could serve as the foundation for future policy discussions.

Second, platforms and initiatives must be created and expanded to integrate the AI-related industry into the nuclear policy debate. For example, several United Nations (UN)-based organizations initiated an “AI for Good” program to identify and promote AI applications that accelerate the furtherment of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs). A recent sub-initiative, entitled “AI for Atom,” addresses AI applications, methodologies, and tools that can advance nuclear science and technology (Peeva 2021). However, the impact of AI on nuclear material production and modernization, as well as its potential risks, has yet to be addressed. The broader “AI for Good” program could be expanded to include AI industrial partners to facilitate knowledge exchange around dual-use applications of AI and their potential implications in maintaining the non-proliferation regime.

Third, industrial advisory boards must be established within the relevant policy-making bodies. These advisory boards would serve two purposes: the minimization of the AI knowledge gap and the creation of effective export control guidelines. This effort could rely on intergovernmental organizations— including the International Atomic Energy Agency and the UN Office for Disarmament Affairs, and by extension, the Wassenaar Arrangement and World Customs Organization—to promote discussions around emerging technologies and their potential implications for the maintenance of the non-proliferation regime. Meanwhile, the Nuclear Suppliers Group, as a binding mechanism, presents another means for member states to create effective export control guidelines through the inclusion of an industrial advisory board.[19]

Recommendation 3: Civil society and the international community should promote ethical AI as a means to incentivize government- and self-compliance in the AI industry.

Industries do not always comply with states’ policy goals or collective interests. Therefore, measures should be taken to stimulate industry compliance and engagement in non-proliferation efforts. Building a narrative that encourages compliance with AI ethical guidelines and regulations may involve highlighting the reputational costs of failing to comply and supporting the moral considerations of employees; such efforts could require outreach programs and government action (Stewart et al. 2016). For example, demonstrable industry-based association with the UN sustainable development goals has become increasingly important as companies manage employee and customer expectations surrounding sustainability, integrity, and values in an increasingly global and competitive market (United Nations Global Compact n.d.). Some of the leading suppliers of AI technology, including Amazon (Amazon n.d.), IBM (IBM 2018), and C3.ai (C3.ai n.d.), have expanded their business model to this end. Thus, the UN’s sustainability goals are promising instruments for governments, nongovernmental organizations, and intergovernmental organizations to leverage when negotiating for transparency and accountability within the AI industry.

Civil society organizations must be fully aware of their responsibility as gatekeepers of the non-proliferation regime and utilize their influence to counteract governmental policy preferences and industrial incentives that have the potential to negatively affect the effectiveness of efforts to manage the risk associated with AI’s use in nuclear materials processing. The first step toward achieving this goal is to increase civil society’s efforts to expose the potential of AI-driven industrial activities to increase the proliferation of nuclear material. The second step is to translate the policy preferences of civil society into customer-based reputational costs for the AI industry. For example, civil society groups could foster a grassroots initiative that encourages companies to agree to report end-users when transferring data, AI-powered systems, and supporting infrastructures with a potential to facilitate high-enriched uranium and plutonium production. Such an effort could stimulate market self-regulation, as companies see a way to reduce the possibility of reputational damage by adhering to the precepts of the UN’s AI for Good and Sustainable Development Goals programs.

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A Digest of tonight’s (11/12/23) major nuclear media headlines is listed below by Category. There are no bonus Yellowstone Caldera headlines available. The link to Sky News’ coverage of the Russia/Ukraine war is available at the end of this Post. (Just a reminder: When there is no link to a media story of interest, copy and paste the headline and lead line into your browser to find the article you are seeking.)

ACCESS TO “LLAW’s ALL THINGS NUCLEAR” RELATED MEDIA:

Whenever there is an underlined link to a Category media news story, if you press or click on the link provided, you no longer have to cut and paste to your web browser, since this Post’s link will take you directly to the article in your browser.

A current Digest of major nuclear media headlines with automated inks is listed below by nuclear Category. There are two Yellowstone Caldera bonus stories available in this Post. The latest Sky News coverage of the Russia/Ukraine war is available at the end of the other categorized Posts.

(Just a reminder: When linked, the access to the media story will be underlined. If there is no link to a media story of interest you can still copy and paste the headline and lead line into your browser to find the article you are seeking. Hopefully this will never happen.)

And today’s nuclear world’s News:

All Things Nuclear

NEWS

A Pennsylvania man saw the true power of Atomic Annie – Little Rock Public Radio

Little Rock Public Radio

All Things Considered. Next Up: 6:30 PM Marketplace. 0:00. 0:00. All Things … Russia is trying to change the dynamics by talking nuclear war and …

A Pennsylvania man saw the true power of Atomic Annie | New Hampshire Public Radio

NHPR

All Things Considered · Today’s Schedule · All Radio Programs · Printable … Russia is trying to change the dynamics by talking nuclear war and …

Nuclear reactor deal collapse challenges Portland company’s clean energy plan – KLCC

KLCC

All Things Considered. KLCC. All Things Considered. Next Up: 6:00 PM The World. 0:00. 0:00. All Things Considered. KLCC. 0:00 0:00. Available On Air …

Nuclear Power

NEWS

U.S. Nuclear Power Outages vs. Capacity – CleanTechnica

CleanTechnica

U.S. Nuclear Power Outages vs. Capacity. Every morning, each nuclear electricity generator in the United States reports its operating status to the …

U.S. Bets on Small Nuclear Reactors to Help Fix a Huge Climate Problem

The New York Times

A tangle of pipes and tanks in a large room. Steam feeding into the Unit 3 turbine generator of the Vogtle nuclear power plant in Waynesboro, Ga. When …

Nuclear project canceled in Biden clean energy agenda blow – Lincoln Journal Star

Lincoln Journal Star

A project to build a first-of-a-kind small modular nuclear reactor power plant has been terminated, a blow to the Biden administration’s clean …

Nuclear War

NEW

Putin ally outlines how Russia could kickstart horror nuclear war with NATO – Daily Express

Daily Express

Putin and his cronies have repeatedly threatened Europe and the US they with Russia’s nuclear arsenal since the start of the war in Ukraine.

Russian military official predicts how nuclear war with Nato might start – The Times of India

The Times of India

Europe News: A former Russian military officer has warned that tensions between Russia and NATO countries could escalate into a nuclear …

Putin Ally Threatens to Obliterate NATO Countries With Nuclear Weapons – Newsweek

Newsweek

An attack by Russia against one of these members, therefore, could lead to a much broader international conflict. Newsweek reached out to NATO …

Nuclear War Threats

NEWS

Russian military official predicts how nuclear war with Nato might start – The Times of India

The Times of India

The threat of using nuclear weapons against Western nations has increased amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Russian officials and state media have …

Putin Ally Threatens to Obliterate NATO Countries With Nuclear Weapons – Newsweek

Newsweek

Russian threats of a potential nuclear conflict with the West have … Russian colonel predicts how nuclear war with NATO could begin · Russia’s …

Nuclear-Armed Submarine-Launched Cruise Missile Could Come Back to Life

Warrior Maven

… nuclear threat environment is changing rapidly.” The Arms Control Today essay also cites support for the SLCM also coming from Senators Deb …

Yellowstone Caldera

NEWS

Katmai Volcano Volcanic Ash Advisory: VA NOT IDENTIFIABLE FROM SATELLITE DATA

Volcano Discovery

Katmai volcano. Stratovolcano with central caldera 2047 m / 6716 ft … List and interactive map of current and past earthquakes near Yellowstone …

The latest Sky News coverage of the Russia/Ukraine war:

Key points

• Overnight attack ‘damages Russian fleet’, Ukraine says  View post
• Why fighting across Dnipro could put huge pressure on Kremlin control  View post
• ‘Chess saved my life’: The Ukrainian star player representing England  View post
• Russia pummelling Avdiivka ’round the clock’ as onslaught intensifies  View post
• Sean Bell analysis:Why the pendulum might start to swing in Ukraine’s favour  View post
• Ukraine faces roadblock as Hungary reiterates ‘clear stance’ against EU membership  View post
• Philip Ingram analysis: Who is winning the war?  View post
• Your questions answered: How bad are sanctions making life for ordinary Russians?  View post
• Live reporting by Charlotte Chelsom-Pill

“End Nuclear Insanity Before Nuclear Insanity Ends Humanity”

LLAW’s COMMENTARY:

Today, being Veterans' Day in America many minds are revisiting the terrible ravages of war on a personal basis. It doesn't matter if you were or are an actual Veteran of foreign wars or any other kind of war anywhere. It only matters if you knew someone who was a soldier and felt sorrow for those who died, forced to fight other humans over Lord knows what or fortunately for everyone's sake, other than perhaps their own wishes, lived, no matter how maimed, mutilated, or suffering from  post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), which we weren't even aware of as a serious injury to the mind until after World War I.

My uncle Albert, who committed suicide after serving as a 'Private' in that war came home in Wyoming to a world of humanity who only recognized his symptoms, passing him off as insane beyond redemption. But he got a job as a ditch rider (when a ditch rider actually rode a horse) for Hot Springs County in central Wyoming.

I was just four or five years old when I met him, and only knew him for part of one day in Worland, Wyoming, He gave my older brother and me each a silver dollar, something that I had never seen before, and then he took us into an old Gamble's store and bought us a wagon to share. Sometime later he went missing and no one could find him. After a few days of searching, my father, a little brother to Albert, found him between the mattress of his bed and the bedsprings. He was dead. 

The very large family mourned his death, but he left this magical poem about how he felt that struck my heart, and over the years I have reread it thousands of times, coming to understand the poem and its meaning, and how it expressed his suffering and pain, and his disdain and distrust of humanity. I suspect it was a song he made up and sang as he rode along inspecting those ditches - a lonely job indeed. I have changed it a bit over the years and added a stanza or two in deference to what he must have felt, but verses that matter from his heart are all still intact, including the last two/  (I do have the exact words of the poem as he wrote it.) . . .

Trails End: Lament to The Lonesome Land
By Albert Pendergraft & Lloyd Albert Williams - Pendergraft
~ inspired by an old trail ballad by Albert Pendergraft (1894 – 1946)
(revised, rewritten, and edited with love and hope by Lloyd Albert Williams)
 

You’re a Lonesome Land, a badland -
A hard land that’s rugged and bare -
A wild and untamed Lonesome Land -
A proud land, demanding but fair.

Pausing on some sun-blistered hill
I gaze o’er your broad boundless range,
Where brisk restless winds never still,
And sunlight and cloud shadows change,

A song fills my heart with an ache,
A longing, indefinite, sad,
Yet contentment sorrow can’t take.
My troubles seem gone – and I’m glad.

At night when the hours slowly pass,
And wolves wail their long lonely cry,
Where wind whispers low in the grass,
And stars circle silently by,

Your mystical muse holds me fast
In a spell that can’t be undone.
While days of my lifetime shall last,
You’ve marked me and made me your son.

The wind sends faint drifts of your voice
When I’m weary and far away.
Faintly I hear you and rejoice,
For you’re calling me home to stay.

Whenever I hear your soft call
While I long and aimlessly roam,
My eyes fill with tears that would fall
If not that you’re calling me home.

Your voice offers comfort and peace
When I rest on your soothing breast.
Then my cares and sorrows shall cease
And my troubled soul shall find rest.

Give me strength till my wars are won
While along lonely trails I plod.
At last when my battles are done
Let me rest ‘ever neath your sod.

Let my soul roam free in your hills
And watch as the ages pass by –
Till humankind's clamor all stills
And men and their follies shall die.

Till heavens and earth have grown old
And endless dark night has drawn on –
When the sun in our path grows cold
And days of creation are gone.

vvv

Inspired by a trail song by Albert Pendergraft, 1944
& Lloyd Albert Williams, 2018

ACCESS TO “LLAW’s ALL THINGS NUCLEAR” RELATED MEDIA:

Whenever there is an underlined link to a Category media news story, if you press or click on the link provided, you no longer have to cut and paste to your web browser, since this Post’s link will take you directly to the article in your browser.

A current Digest of major nuclear media headlines with automated inks is listed below by nuclear Category. There are three Yellowstone Caldera stories available in this Post. The latest Sky News coverage of the Russia/Ukraine war is available at the end of the other categorized Posts.

(Just a reminder: When linked, the access to the media story will be underlined. If there is no link to a media story of interest you can still copy and paste the headline and lead line into your browser to find the article you are seeking. Hopefully this will never happen.)

And today’s nuclear world’s News:

	Nuclear Power
	NEWS
	Nuclear Power’s Newest Cautionary Tale | Cato at Liberty Blog Cato Institute NuScale Power, a nuclear start‐​up, announced termination of their Carbon Free Power Project (CFPP), a planned nuclear power plant to be built at …
	Disputes over safety, cost around California nuclear plant – Spectrum News Spectrum News A state judge tentatively approved the blueprint to keep the Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant operating for an additional five years, until 2030.
	Nuclear reactor deal collapse challenges Oregon company’s clean energy plan Jefferson Public Radio … nuclear reactors in the country, potentially changing the renewable energy landscape and revitalizing the
	All Things Nuclear
	NEWS
	The Air Force’s new nuclear stealth bomber, the B-21 Raider, has taken its … – Beaumont Enterprise Beaumont Enterprise … nuclear weapons stealth … Sign up for a weekly update on all things business with our What’s New: Business in the Golden Triangle email newsletter!
	Illinois lawmakers approve plan to allow small-scale nuclear development – WSIU WSIU All Things Considered · Morning Edition · Law Enforcement · Politics … nuclear reactor construction. Lawmakers on Thursday approved a proposal that …
	Illinois lawmakers lift a moratorium on new nuclear power plants | First Listen NPR Illinois Next Up: 7:00 PM All Things Considered. 0:00. 0:00. Marketplace. WUIS. 0:00 0:00. Available On Air Stations. On Air Now Playing NPR Illinois | 91.9 …
	Nuclear War
	NEWS
	Russian Colonel Predicts How Nuclear War With NATO Could Begin – Newsweek Newsweek “Do you even imagine an underwater nuclear explosion on the roadstead of Tallinn or Stockholm?” a retired Russian asked.
	Russia’s nuclear weapons move sparks NATO fears – Newsweek Newsweek “Russia continues its brutal war in Ukraine,” Stoltenberg said. “We must continue to give the Ukrainians the weapons they need to stay strong on the …
	Maps Show Biden’s New Nuclear Bomb Compared to Most Powerful US Weapons Newsweek The B61-13 is 24 times more powerful than “Little Boy,” the 15-kiloton bomb that the U.S. dropped on Hiroshima, Japan, during World War II. A map …
	Nuclear Power Emergencies
	NEWS
	Nuclear reactor deal collapse challenges Portland company’s clean energy plan – KLCC KLCC … nuclear power plants. Their design makes any potential emergencies easier to contain than conventional reactors. The project’s collapse was …
	Iceland issues state of emergency over volcanic eruption threat – TVC News TVC News Iceland has declared a state of emergency following thousands of earthquakes that sparked fears of a volcanic eruption … Nuclear Power Plant Ukraine, …
	Nuclear War Threats
	NEWS
	Russian Colonel Predicts How Nuclear War With NATO Could Begin – Newsweek Newsweek Russian threats of a potential nuclear conflict with the West have escalated over the course of the country’s invasion of Ukraine, which began in late …
	Russian Nuclear Blackmail Remains Ineffective – PRIO Blogs PRIO Blogs – Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO) Iran is escalating the war in Gaza, and Russia finds it opportune to continue its dialogue with Hamas. … the main threat emanates from Russia’s …
	Iran slams ‘barbaric behaviour’ of Israel after perceived nuclear threats by junior minister YouTube Iran slams ‘barbaric behaviour’ of Israel after perceived nuclear threats … Israel-Palestine war: Israel a nuclear threat to West Asia? WION New …

The latest Sky News coverage of the Russia/Ukraine war:

Key points

• Overnight attack ‘damages Russian fleet’, Ukraine says  View post
• Why fighting across Dnipro could put huge pressure on Kremlin control  View post
• ‘Chess saved my life’: The Ukrainian star player representing England  View post
• Russia pummelling Avdiivka ’round the clock’ as onslaught intensifies  View post
• Sean Bell analysis:Why the pendulum might start to swing in Ukraine’s favour  View post
• Ukraine faces roadblock as Hungary reiterates ‘clear stance’ against EU membership  View post
• Philip Ingram analysis: Who is winning the war?  View post
• Your questions answered: How bad are sanctions making life for ordinary Russians?  View post
• Live reporting by Charlotte Chelsom-Pill

“End Nuclear Insanity Before Nuclear Insanity Ends Humanity”

LLOYD A. WILLIAMS-PENDERGRAFT

NOV 9, 2023

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LLAW’s COMMENTARY:

The following statement and article from The Union of Concerned Scientists is a huge blow to the hopes of the entire nuclear power industry. If you read the article you will understand why nuclear power plants are extremely dangerous and also why greed and money play such a huge role in creating that danger.

Shortcutting ultimate safety at various phases of human nuclear construction and operation is the very reason why most all nuclear accidents have occurred in the past, and these supposedly future SMPs, even before they have a history, are no exception. From what has been reported here, and in other media, SMPs have been vastly overrated in their cost to build, operate safely, and cheaply. The nuclear industry continues to spread propaganda that is far from realistic, and the entire industry seems to be in the game for individual financial return rather than for any benefit to humanity and other living organisms on planet Earth.

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Having worked in the nuclear industry for parts of three decades, eventually learning that the industry is little more than wordsmithing hype, the fit the industry long ago threw over the media coverage of the 3-MIle Island nuclear accident and the concerns that accident created in the American public severely weakened the idea of more nuclear power plants, during which one major leader in the industry announced in a media-covered news (I was fortunately for me personally there to hear this because the phrase embarrassed me to my core.) to just let the reporters, protesters, and objectors ‘freeze to death’. He opened his speech this way in front of an audience of like-minded industry corporate executives: “Let the bastards freeze to death in the dark.”

That was when I’d had enough of the hype from the entire nuclear industry (regardless of whether or not any of us (and there were a few) believed that nuclear power was the safe, reliable, and inexpensive commercial product it was cracked-up to be compared to other fossil fuel power plants, and in the late spring of 1980, I resigned from my job and started my own company in gold exploration and other non-nuclear natural resources.

So my final humanitarian mission, now that the Russia/Ukraine war has stirred the divided human boiling pots toward nuclear war threats of expanding borders, economic and political domination, nation building, racism and other ethnic hatred, with all things nuclear by those threats or possibly actual war. As a result, we have ignorantly and blindly begun to build bigger and better nuclear weapons of mass destruction, even though we all inherently understand that no one, including other life, can survive a nuclear WWIII.

So it is, especially now that I see Russia, and all the rest of the nuclear endowed countries, have realized that nuclear power plants, with their radioactive fuel along with their nuclear reactors, combined with all that nuclear waste we have no idea what to do with, are additional potential nuclear weapons of mass destruction providing their ‘sitting duck’ participation in a nuclear war to be a ‘big-bang’ two-fer-one’ destructive force. By simply dropping nuclear WMD bombs where the nuclear power plants are in close geographical abundance, such as the eastern coasts of the United States and Canada you can plainly see that a commercial nuclear power plant to keep us “warm with the lights on” was never a good idea . . . ~llaw

Following is the welcome story, at least for me, of the likely impending failure of the ‘Small Nuclear Reactor’ of the recent addition to the nuclear industry. If this happens, and the general public everywhere learns how dangerous “All Things Nuclear” are, we may yet find a way to avoid allowing ‘Us’, as Pogo would say, causing the 6th Extinction in the 4 to 5 billion years our planet Earth has been around. Humans were not around for any of the 1st five extinctions by the way . . .

Small Nuclear Reactor Contract Fails, Signaling Larger Issues with Nuclear Energy Development in U.S.

Statement by Dr. Edwin Lyman, Director of Nuclear Power Safety, Union of Concerned Scientists

Published Nov 9, 2023

MEDIA CONTACT

Sanjali De Silva

Communications Officer

Energy, Climate Accountability

SDeSilva@ucsusa.org

202-331-5428

NuScale Power Cooperation, the first company in the United States to secure approval for the design of a small modular nuclear reactor (SMR), ended its contract with the Utah Associated Municipal Power Systems (UAMPS) on Wednesday. The companies cited rising costs as the reason for terminating the contract.

Throughout the development process, NuScale made several ill-advised design choices in an attempt to control the cost of its reactor, but which raised numerous safety concerns. The design lacked leak-tight containment structures and highly reliable backup safety systems. It also only had one control room for 12 reactor units despite the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) typically requiring no more than two units per control room. Additionally, the company led efforts to sidestep critical safety regulations, including requirements for offsite emergency response plans to protect nearby communities. But NuScale’s justification for all this regulatory corner-cutting—that the design is “passively safe”—was undermined when concerns about its passive emergency core cooling system arose late in the design certification process.

The end of the project reflects the fragility of the advanced nuclear power industry in the U.S., which has been driven by an oversupply of reactor developers and a lack of genuine demand. As new reactor developers look for utilities and other end users to buy their products, the high cost and risks of their experimental, untested technologies are proving too onerous.

Below is a statement by Dr. Edwin Lyman, the director of nuclear power safety at the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS).

“The termination of NuScale’s contract signals the broader challenges of developing nuclear energy in the United States. Placing excessive reliance on untested technologies without adequate consideration of economic viability, practicality, and safety concerns is irresponsible and clearly won’t work. The failure of this project underscores the need for decision makers to work diligently to ensure that the pursuit of nuclear energy aligns with the imperatives of public safety and financial feasibility.

“For all its problems, NuScale is one of the designs with the best prospects for commercialization because of its similarity to conventional light-water reactors, which allowed the company to learn from extensive operating experience and to leverage much of the existing nuclear power supply chain. Thus, the failure of the NuScale project with UAMPS does not bode well for the dozens of other, more exotic reactor types in various stages of development that are being touted as the next best thing in nuclear power, such as sodium-cooled fast reactors, gas-cooled reactors and molten-salt reactors. These reactors, which are based on much less mature designs and generally require fuels and materials that are not readily available, will be even riskier bets than NuScale for the foreseeable future. There are currently no other new nuclear power reactor designs under NRC licensing review.

“As private interests continue to turn their attention to emerging nuclear energy technology, lessons from this project should be held top of mind.”

ACCESS TO “LLAW’s ALL THINGS NUCLEAR” RELATED MEDIA:

Whenever there is an underlined link to a Category media news story, if you press or click on the link provided, you no longer have to cut and paste to your web browser, since this Post’s link will take you directly to the article in your browser.

A current Digest of major nuclear media headlines with automated inks is listed below by nuclear Category. There are no Yellowstone Caldera stories available in this Post. The latest Sky News coverage of the Russia/Ukraine war is available at the end of the other categorized Posts.

(Just a reminder: When linked, the access to the media story will be underlined. If there is no link to a media story of interest you can still copy and paste the headline and lead line into your browser to find the article you are seeking. Hopefully this will never happen.)

And the rest of the nuclear world’s News:

All Things Nuclear

NEWS

Illinois Senate approves plan to allow new nuclear reactors – IPM Newsroom

Illinois Newsroom

Pritzker vetoed it, citing among other things, a need to modernize oversight rules. … all those megawatts,” said Sen. Patrick Joyce, a Reddick …

Expecting Orders Worth ₹500 Cr From The Nuclear Sector In H2: MTAR Technologies | CNBC TV18

YouTube

… all the market action in real time: https … 10 Things You SHOULD Be Buying at Costco in November 2023. The Deal Guy New …

Lawmakers set to consider nuclear energy on final day of veto session | WCBU Peoria

WCBU

… All Things Peoria. Next Up: 5:30 PM Marketplace. 0:00. 0:00. All Things … nuclear moratorium in 1987. “As technology changes, we need to make sure …

Nuclear War

Nuclear War

NEWS

Nuclear War ‘Doomsday’ Clock Has Changed, Russian Physicist Says – Newsweek

Newsweek

“From the very first day of the war, Russia made no secret of counting on its nuclear weapons to ensure that nobody would come to Ukraine’s rescue,” …

The US, China and Russia Have a Three-Body Nuclear Problem – Bloomberg.com

Bloomberg.com

That’s why there’s talk again about counterforce versus countervalue strategies. The US in effect follows the former. That is, it sees nuclear warfare …

Nuclear Tensions Loom Over War Zones – IDN-InDepthNews

IDN-InDepthNews

Nuclear Tensions Loom Over War Zones … UNITED NATIONS | 9 November 2023 IDN) — The two ongoing military conflicts in Europe and the Middle East are …

Nuclear Power

NEWS

UN nuclear chief says nuclear energy must be part of the equation to tackle climate change

AP News

… Atomic Energy Agency told the U.N. General Assembly. Over a quarter of the electricity from nuclear power is low-carbon electricity and global …

Small modular nuclear reactor that was hailed by Coalition as future cancelled due to rising costs

The Guardian

… nuclear power plants could cost to build in 2030. He said this undermined arguments by the Coalition and other nuclear advocates, who had accused …

Small Nuclear Reactor Contract Fails, Signaling Larger Issues with Nuclear Energy …

Union of Concerned Scientists

NuScale Power Cooperation, the first company in the United States to secure approval for the design of a small modular nuclear reactor (SMR), …

NEW

Nuclear War ‘Doomsday’ Clock Has Changed, Russian Physicist Says – Newsweek

Newsweek

“From the very first day of the war, Russia made no secret of counting on its nuclear weapons to ensure that nobody would come to Ukraine’s rescue,” …

The US, China and Russia Have a Three-Body Nuclear Problem – Bloomberg.com

Bloomberg.com

That’s why there’s talk again about counterforce versus countervalue strategies. The US in effect follows the former. That is, it sees nuclear warfare …

Nuclear Tensions Loom Over War Zones – IDN-InDepthNews

IDN-InDepthNews

Nuclear Tensions Loom Over War Zones … UNITED NATIONS | 9 November 2023 (IDN) — The two ongoing military conflicts in Europe and the Middle East are …

Nuclear Power Emergencies

NEW

Saudi Arabia hosts Arab League emergency meeting over Israel-Gaza war – YouTube

YouTube

| What would happen if a nuclear bomb was dropped on a UK city? What Next? •813K views · 19:38 · Go to channel. Why Germany Hates Nuclear Power. Real …

Nuclear War Threats

NEW

Nuclear War ‘Doomsday’ Clock Has Changed, Russian Physicist Says – Newsweek

Newsweek

A Russian physicist argues that the Doomsday Clock should be moved backward due to global opposition to Russia’s nuclear threats.

Nuclear Tensions Loom Over War Zones – IDN-InDepthNews

IDN-InDepthNews

… threat of nuclear war, “should not be underestimated.” But the Israelis have not made any such threats—until 5 November. According to a report in …

Ignoring Russia’s Threats Would Be A Monumental Mistake – Fair Observer

Fair Observer

… war with Russia. Furthermore, the Russian authorities intensified their nuclear threats, and Dmitry Medvedev, the vice-chairman of the Russian …

The latest Sky News coverage of the Russia/Ukraine war”:

Key points

• Russia nuclear sub launches intercontinental ballistic missile in ‘successful’ test – reports  View post
• Peace talks with Russia a ‘trap’ to help Putin, says Ukrainian minister  View post
• Russian media: Five killed in Ukrainian strike on Russian-occupied territory  View post
• Putin struggles to pronounce Kazakh president’s name  View post
• Sean Bell analysis:Why the pendulum might just start to swing in Ukraine’s favour  View post
• Adam Parsons analysis: Ukraine moves closer to EU embrace – but still faces many hurdles  View post
• Philip Ingram analysis: Who is winning the war?  View post
• Your questions answered: How bad are sanctions making life for ordinary Russians?  View post
• Live reporting by Chris Lockyer

“End Nuclear Insanity Before Nuclear Insanity Ends Humanity”

By Lloyd Albert Williams-Pendergraft (llaw)

Installing new network computer equipment today and tonight, so I am reposting one of my former newsletters. The media news is, of course, current, so that I can get at least a couple hours of sleep tonight! Somebody said, “No rest for the wicked” so I guess it’s true! llolloll! ~llaw

LLAW’s COMMENTARY (“All Things Nuclear” #412 on October 7th, 2023)

It is so odd to me that the national and international network media so often describes a potential nuclear war as something that is fought with results about like a conventional war with one country conquering another and that the loss of limited human life and survival in opposing countries is no big deal – that a war among or even between countries is ho-hum style survivable to the everyman citizen and only the military jarhead suffers a similar degree of human losses as if a nuclear war is the same as a conventional war.

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Today a major nuclear war, or even a minor one, will not be skirmishes by military games per se, but rather directly toward the everyday citizens, e.g. you and me, of all countries involved in a nuclear war, but also including indirectly all other countries and life everywhere on the planet. That’s why nuclear bombs are called WMDs (Weapons of Mass Destruction). There will no more wars fought on Earth’s soil among foot-soldiers with rifles and machine guns, and hand grenades storming a beach, working their way inland, trying desperately to raise their country’s flag in victory. Air strikes on military bases or government complexes aren’t necessary in nuclear war. So it is that there are no heroic human beings in wars these days, but rather they will be just another living creature waiting to die from nuclear weapons and their cousins like nuclear power plants. There is no need for militaries to march their brainwashed soldiers in parades these days.

This is how WWII ended abruptly after six years (from 1939 to 1945, of brutal war, only to be over and done with in just 3 days in August by the atomic bombing of Japan’s cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, killing about a quarter of a million innocent people, most of them instantly. Today’s nuclear weapons are capable of killing millions of people in the same way on a single day with a single nuclear weapon that is capable of killing 30 times more people with a single blast than the atomic bombs of yore – and that doesn’t count the miserable survivors who would die of radiation poisoning and other injuries not long afterword.

And then there is the increasing danger of the nuclear cousin -stationary nuclear WMDs – aka Nuclear Power Plants – that one small nuclear warhead could destroy any nuclear power plant and add hundreds to thousands of years of nuclear radiation that could easily end most all life, not just us’ns, on our only home we call Earth.

We humans are utter fools to allow ‘anything nuclear’ to remain in existence on this planet Earth that we humans and other life rely on to sustain us indefinitely, or perhaps forever. None of it is Mother Nature’s fault; it is our fault. Why do we allow a plethora of super nuclear monsters (multiple kinds of them, actually) to exist that can easily end our entire existence. It is an unfair battle for sure – because what does uranium and its nuclear products have to lose if it doesn’t exist? Common sense tells us the answer to that not-so-silly question. ~llaw

ACCESS TO “LLAW’s ALL THINGS NUCLEAR” RELATED MEDIA:

Whenever there is an underlined link to a Category media news story, if you press or click on the link provided, you no longer have to cut and paste to your web browser, since this Post’s link will take you directly to the article in your browser.

A current Digest of major nuclear media headlines with automated inks is listed below by nuclear Category. There are no Yellowstone Caldera stories available in this Post. The latest Sky News coverage of the Russia/Ukraine war is available at the end of the other categorized Posts.

(Just a reminder: When linked, the access to the media story will be underlined. If there is no link to a media story of interest you can still copy and paste the headline and lead line into your browser to find the article you are seeking. Hopefully this will never happen.)

TONIGHT’S CATEGORIZED NUCLEAR NEWS:

Nuclear Power

NEWS

US says reliance on Russian nuclear fuel presents national security risk – Financial Times

Financial Times

Kathryn Huff, assistant secretary for nuclear energy, told the Financial Times it was “gravely concerning” that about 20 per cent of fuel used by the …

Nuclear–powered submarines for Australia’s Royal Navy | 9 News Australia – YouTube

YouTube

The Royal Australian Navy is planning to employ thousands more mariners to deliver nuclear–powered submarines, making it the single the biggest …

Investing in nuclear energy is bad for the climate, NGOs say

The European Environmental Bureau

Today, EU nuclear energy stakeholders are meeting at the European Nuclear Energy Forum. The nuclear industry and certain EU countries call for …

All Things Nuclear

NEWS

40 Years Of Sounding The Alarm On Nuclear Winter | Science Friday – WNYC Studios

WNYC Studios

… nuclear arsenal now. To stay updated on all things science, sign up for Science Friday’s newsletters. Transcripts for each segment will be …

China-US news: There’s a sliver of good news — involving nukes – Vox

Vox

All of this is converging to bring Biden and Xi together, and that is … nuclear deterrence strategy. But achieving that, especially in such a …

Israel’s Unintentional Nuclear Admission Raises Concerns | Gravitas Highlights – YouTube

YouTube

… all the updates. #israelpalestineconflict #wion #gaza About Channel … that is not biased. We are journalists who are neutral to the core and non …

Nuclear War

NEW

Israel’s nuclear option remark raises ‘huge number of questions’: Russia – Al Jazeera

Al Jazeera

… nuclear weapons and is willing to use them … Netanyahu’s indecisive, distrustful nature adds to the dangers of his war on Gaza, say experts who’ve …

Russia says Israeli nuclear remark raises ‘huge number of questions’ – Reuters

Reuters

… nuclear strike on Gaza had raised a huge number of questions … War European armed forces treaty. 7 hours ago. Deputy head of Russia’s …

Amid Nuclear Rumours, USA Forced By Iran To Reveal Missile Info Of Submarine? – YouTube

YouTube

A day after announcing that an Ohio-class submarine of the US Navy had been sent to the Middle East amid the Israel-Hamas war, American officials …

Nuclear War Threats

NEWS

Israel-Hamas War: US Slams Israeli Minister’s Nuclear Threats On Gaza – NDTV

NDTV

“Wholly Unacceptable”: US Slams Israeli Minister’s Nuclear Threats On Gaza. Israel-Hamas War: “We continue to believe that it is important for all …

‘Wholly unacceptable’: US slams Israeli minister’s nuclear threats on Gaza – Anadolu Ajansı

Anadolu Ajansı

WASHINGTON. US State Department on Monday said statements by an Israeli minister who threatened to consider using nuclear bombs in Gaza is “wholly …

Rare Admission About U.S. Submarine Sparks Question About Nuclear Weapons

Newsweek

… threats of a larger regional conflict may stem from the intensifying war in Gaza, but one expert told Newsweek it may be more common than we think.

The latest Sky News coverage of the Russia/Ukraine war”:

Key points

• Ukraine army to face ‘big problem’ – and analyst has pointed finger at Zelenskyy  View post
• Russia planning to encircle city in ‘third wave’  View post
• Ukraine’s president ‘cancels Israel visit’ over leaked plans  View post
• Russia formally withdraws from post-Cold War security treaty  View post
• Putin ‘could provoke another war in Europe’  View post
• Philip Ingram analysis:Who is winning the war?  View post
• Sean Bell explains:Why Russia is unlikely to seek end to war before US election  View post
• Your questions answered:How bad are sanctions making life for ordinary Russians?  View post
• Live reporting by Katie Williams

LLAW’s COMMENTARY:

Meme thanks to my friend and writing associate Deborah Hart Yemm. It seems quite timely to the World(s) full of invisible boundaries and borders on a planet Earth filled with ‘All Things Nuclear’ threating one another to blow themselves up forever. ~llaw

Thanks for this timely meme, Deborah! It will be a good time to Post it tonight on my “All Things Nuclear” Opinion in tune to all the best nuclear media news available in one place each and every day. It is so fitting and our long earthly human history shows us all, if we simply open our eyes and look, that it has never changed for the better, and that today we are living on the verge of annihilating ourselves. For what? Can anyone answer that question? I don’t think so.

As an example of what the meme has to say, I’ve told the following personal story more elaborately before, including on Facebook, but it bears repeating because it easier to see the cartoon aliens’ point if told on a smaller, more intimate scale.

In the early 2000’s, living in Nevada where we still do, my S.O. and I decided we wanted to go to one of my favorite places in the Wyoming wilderness to camp out for a couple of weeks where the scenery was spectacular and the trout fishing was amazing. I had long known of a short way to get there without a long drive and a 20-mile hike inching our way across a lengthy treacherous ice-covered trail across the Dinwoody Glacier, by alternatively taking a comfortable 4-wheel drive across the Wind River Indian reservation to reach the Wilderness boundary that separated the western boundary of the reservation from the designated Wilderness area, leaving only a pleasant 5-mile hike to one of the most beautifully spectacular places on the Planet. At dinner the night before in Riverton, Wyoming, I told some old friends where I was going and how I would get there.

The following morning, as I turned off the highway onto the Reservation rocky and rough dirt road, we had only gone a couple of miles when I was confronted by the Reservation Indian police telling me that I must turn around – that I could not cross the Reservation land to get to the Wilderness area. Outraged, I demanded to talk with the Reservation Indian Chief, whom I knew and had great respect for.

We sat down together in his office and he told me a long story about how the American Indians had been chased, murdered, separated from their families and tribes, and deprived of occupying the land they had always lived and roamed with the seasons like the birds and other animals did in order to survive, but that the European invaders had mysteriously claimed all land to be their own land. He told me that the Indians had never, since time began, claimed ownership of any land and that the land belonged to all living things, including all animals, as well as humankind, that the land belonged to or was owned personally by no living thing nor group of things, but was there for all life’s use. “How could anyone say it was theirs and that they ‘owned’ the land simply because they said so?”, he asked me.

Eventually, the Indigenous people had not only lost the use of the land they used for survival, but were forcefully taken to designated places called “Reservations” such as this one, often in the most sterile and useless land the U.S. government could find. Though this one was large and beautiful and plentiful, they were confined here and there on these Reservations, unable to roam off the Reservation lands simply because they were Indians – or “savages” as former President Andrew Jackson had called them in public speeches and writings.

So, he told me, they were eventually forced to call the Wind River Indian Reservation ‘their’ land, abiding by the U.S. government’s laws that made almost all land private land if anyone so desired it to be theirs and could pay the asking price. He told me that he knew that I, and a few of my white friends, had often been allowed to cross the Reservation land without interference, but since I had spoken of the short way to get to the Wilderness in a public place the night before where many could overhear, we would not be allowed to cross the Reservation land by rule, not by law.

I was overwhelmed with gratitude as he awakened me because I’d never before thought about the principle of land being only for all life’s use, not for ownership, and I instantly thought of the word ‘boundaries’, borders that had existed for centuries all around man’s self-made ‘world(s)’ that were and are the results of animosity among all humankind regarding the ethnicities of racism, religion, kinship, wealth, hatred, and on and on and on.

I thanked the old Chief for his time and the education, and for his wise words, and their meaning has stuck with me in the forefront of my mind for more than two decades now. And I have only seen the odd and old European concept of ‘borders’ grow stronger and more warlike against others that, until, in my own lifetime, we have developed, and used in war by the U.S. against Japan, nuclear weapons that we openly and proudly call “Weapons of Mass Destruction” (or WMDs that, oddly, everyone seems to know what the letters stand for). And now the U.S. and other countries are in the process of building a new generation of even greater, more powerful, nuclear bombs in a world that believes nuclear power, including nuclear use of generating electricity, is the way to salvation of humanity, which in reality, along with, or even without nuclear war, ‘all things nuclear is our death knell.

I am thankful for this meme and its relationship to my mission. What it points out is part of the engine that inspires my motivation to expand my long considered mission sooner rather than later – and I well know we have very little time – to overcome this odd way of committing mass suicide, and that the possibilities of saving ourselves are few and far between. I see only two ways of making it happen, and both of them seem impossible, but we have no choice but to have hope. I will be using the meme’s message at times to add to my ongoing mission’s future of nightly posts that are related to the meme and the multiple meanings embedded in it.

In the meme, both the aliens and their spaceship along with their story about humans is important – especially in one of the two ways I see of saving ourselves – or is it, in reality, being saved by others of far more intelligence and common sense than we have? Many Indigenous people (who are honored during this month every year) in America would understand my meaning and so would people like the Japanese, many Eastern European countries, South Americans, African tribes, and others, including Canada, concerning the ridiculous idea of invisible borders around the world(s) we humans have ignorantly built for ourselves in order to believe we are protecting ourselves. But rather than that, we are on the cutting edge of knowing that we have made a huge, likely fatal, mistake . . . ~llaw

ACCESS TO MEDIA:

Whenever there is an underlined link to a Category media news story, if you press or click on the link provided, you no longer have to cut and paste to your web browser, since this Post’s link will take you directly to the article in your browser.

A current Digest of major nuclear media headlines with automated inks is listed below by nuclear Category. There are three bonus Yellowstone Caldera stories available in this Post. The latest Sky News coverage of the Russia/Ukraine war is available at the end of the other categorized Posts.

(Just a reminder: When linked, the access to the media story will be underlined. If there is no link to a media story of interest you can still copy and paste the headline and lead line into your browser to find the article you are seeking. Hopefully this will never happen.)

---

All Things Nuclear

NEWS

Russia-Ukraine war live: US raises nuclear test concerns as Putin withdraws ratification of …

The Guardian

The CTBT was adopted in 1996 and bans all nuclear explosions anywhere in the world. … things‘. Pentagon’s UFO online reporting tool launches. 1d ago …

Putin signs a bill revoking Russia’s ratification of a global nuclear test ban treaty

The Portland Press Herald

… Things to Do · All Things to Do · All PPH Events · Guides · Event Calendar · Add … The CTBT, adopted in 1996, bans all nuclear explosions anywhere in …

‘Everybody got it wrong’: How did Israel fail to detect Hamas’ planned invasion? – WRVO

WRVO

Next Up: 4:00 PM All Things Considered. 0:00. 0:00. Whistle Stops: The … So what’s in it for the U.S. if the Saudis have – if they have a nuclear …

Nuclear Power

NEWS

Car crashes through gate at South Carolina nuclear plant before pop-up barrier stops it

AP News

Authorities say a driver tried to crash through the exit gates of a South Carolina nuclear plant about an hour after security asked the same car …

Driver accused of ramming through security fence at S.C. nuclear plant – NBC News

NBC News

Authorities are searching for a man who drove through the gate of a nuclear power plant in Oconee County, South Carolina, and allegedly attempted …

Police investigating incident at South Carolina nuclear plant after car drives through security fences

ABC News

Police in South Carolina are investigating an incident involving a vehicle that drove through security fences at a nuclear power station on …

Nuclear War

NEWS

Ukraine updates: Putin lifts nuclear weapons testing ban – DW

DW

How will the Hamas-Israel conflict impact war in Ukraine?

Putin officially opens door to new nuke testing – POLITICO

POLITICO

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday signed a law effectively revoking Russia’s ratification of a key nuclear … Ukraine’s top general: War …

Putin revokes Russian ratification of global nuclear test ban treaty – Reuters

Reuters

… war in Ukraine and what Moscow casts as Washington’s attempts to stymie … nuclear test to intimidate and evoke fear amid the Ukraine war. Putin …

Nuclear Power Emergencies

NEWS

Police investigating incident at South Carolina nuclear plant after car drives through security fences

ABC News

Anybody with any information on the whereabouts of the driver of a 2002 Toyota Camry with an Arkansas tag of 380VDR is asked to contact emergency …

Flag as irrelevantNo More Pills, Test Sirens or Escape Routes | The Highlands Current

The Highlands Current

… emergency response plan created when the plant was operational. … The state asked that any exemptions not go into effect until all the plant’s nuclear …

House GOP targets IRS in bill to provide emergency aid to Israel – WGN Radio

WGN Radio

… emergency aid for Israel should be coupled with cuts elsewhere in the budget … The Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, damaged by a massive March …

Nuclear War Threats

NEWS

Russia’s nuclear saber rattling: A threat or wake-up call for the West? – CSMonitor.com

The Christian Science Monitor

Threats would appear to signal conflict. But the Kremlin’s nuclear … “According to many politicians and experts, the threat of nuclear war is …

Updated U.S. Nuclear Bomb Could Reach New Targets – Newsweek

Newsweek

… nuclear and other global threats.” He added: “And I will work to bring … China gives US demands for preventing nuclear war. In the announcement …

Putin criticised as he withdraws Russia’s ratification of nuclear test ban treaty – The Guardian

The Guardian

US says move will undermine confidence in international arms control, amid concerns Moscow’s nuclear threats are designed to deter Ukraine’s …

Yellowstone Caldera

NEWS

Pluto may have an ice-spewing ‘supervolcano‘ the size of Yellowstone, New Horizons data reveals

Live Science

Kiladze Caldera, formerly called Kiladze crater, may be a supervolcano that erupted fairly recently, spewing ice across the surface of Pluto.

This Is One Of The Most Essential American Experiences You Should Try When Visiting The US

TheTravel

… calderas, including the famous Yellowstone Caldera, which is a must-see. But, that’s not the National Park’s only gem, and Yellowstone affords …

Two ‘supervolcanoes’ are showing signs of waking up – Times of India

The Times of India

… Yellowstone Volcano Observatory, as per the NBC news report. Campi Flegrei last erupted in 1538, and one of the largest explosions in the system …

---

Sky News Coverage of the Russia/Ukraine War

Key points

• Fire ignites after Russian drones hit ‘civilian targets’  View post
• Russia’s large-scale assault in Donbas town ‘flounders’  View post
• Moscow making ‘disturbing’ effort to raise nuclear risks  View post
• ‘Infighting in Russian military’ over Wagner  View post
• Ukrainian commander gives downbeat assessment of counteroffensive  View post
• Philip Ingram analysis:Who is winning the war?  View post
• Sean Bell explains:Why Russia is very unlikely to seek end to war before US election  View post
• Your questions answered:Why does Russia need North Korean weapons?  View post
• Live reporting by Charlotte Chelsom-Pill (now) and Brad Young (earlier)