Nuclear Meltdown - Back to the Future

On This Day

"Celebrations of anniversaries of disasters, such as nuclear power plant meltdowns or political assassinations, provide opportunities, as do holidays." Joey Skaggs

What's going on here? Are we back in the 60's and 70's? More likely, as the pundits say, history is doomed to repeat itself. If you're over 40 or know anything about those decades, you know there are more than a few eerie parallels.

Think about it. Look at those headlines. (Click the photo to enlarge.)

America's in a disastrous, unwinnable war on foreign soil. Our (Republican) president has committed grossly unethical and arguably criminal acts.

We see evil corruption of religious faith for personal gain by everyone from priests to congressmen to movie stars. Unrest among students in France. Ominous rumblings from the Middle East.

In 1966 Charles Whitman climbed a tower in Austin, TX, killed 14 people and injured dozens more. Last weekend Aaron Kyle Huff showed up at a party, opened fire, killed six people and then himself.

Yesterday it was revealed that undercover congressional investigators foiled federal regulators and managed to smuggle radioactive material into the US.

Today is the 27th anniversary of Three Mile Island, the worst nuclear accident in American history. I know. I was there.

I lived and worked through Hurricane Agnes in 1972 too. (More about that another time.)

This parallel bothers me the most: the unconscionable fact that our government has done virtually nothing in 7 months to help the still homeless victims of Katrina and Wilma.

I came up with a solution for the TMI aftermath that would work just as well today. We need to stick Michael Chertoff in a flooded trailer in Louisiana -- and not let him out until all victims have adequate housing and services. Period.

It feels like nothing has changed. And we have to do something about it. But right now, I'm about to have a meltdown myself.