ShuffStuff

motherjones:

“There’s no reason why, technologically, we can’t employ nuclear energy in a safe and effective way. Japan does it…”

— Barack Obama, speaking at a town-hall meeting in 2009. Read more in Kate Sheppard’s story, “Obama Touted Safety Record of Japan’s Nuclear Industry.”

Stories that could have been written (and in some places, have):

1. Analysis of exactly what’s happened in Japan and what could go wrong from here.
2. Discussion of whether it is reasonable to plan safety precautions of future plants around the fifth biggest earthquake in recorded history.
3. Comparison of dangers of nuclear power in these unusual circumstances against other power sources’ eventual pollution consequences.

Story that was written:

1. Nuclear power advocates touted Japan as an example stupidly thinking (like all the engineers did) that their plants were invincible! How awkward!

(You could argue that it’s about the implications on the American pursuit of further nuclear power development, but the title will gladly point you in a different direction—that of Obama’s face, which supposedly has egg on it.)