Most of us would like to think that history is based on civil negotiations between representatives from around the world. The fact is, war has always been a disease that spreads not only in the battle field, and infects all those who come in contact with it. In the case of nuclear weapons, the United States, like many countries, raced to produce some of the most deadly weapons. Kristen Iversen shares her experiences surrounding a nuclear production facility in Boulder Colorado called Rocky Flats. The events at Rocky Flats are fuelled by secrecy and widespread hazards, it is the integration of these concepts to various aspects of her life that are at the center of Full Body Burden. In order to better understand the historical context of nuclear development it seems to me as though Iversen dove into a fair amount of investigative journalism. The book focuses primarily on the events of Rocky Flats and her life through a narrative nonfiction interpretation. By providing a journalist approach, Iversen makes it easy for the reader to build a relationship with the characters presented throughout the book. At times I found myself visualizing the intensity of the fires, the whirlwind of emotions from locals, and the lasting environmental impacts that would not only plague Colorado, but taint the reputation of what it means to be human. The title Full Body Burden refers to the amount of radioactive material present in a human body, which acts as an internal and ongoing source of radiation. The parallel between her home life and the happening of Rocky flats is often very profound. Iversen describes a case in which mice have taken resident within her walls, cupboards and heat ducts. The solution to their extermination is the use of smal... ... middle of paper ... ...nto the events surround Rocky Flats as well as the status of current nuclear operations. Today, the current status of nuclear power, energy, bombs, etc. is only a small fraction of the dangers that are infecting our society. There is a greater network of individualism at play and I think she is trying to show that its not just the American government at fault for holding secrets, but that we as human beings must refrain from remaining passive in these situations. We must open our eyes and see that civilization is not as civilized as we might want to see it. It is time to move forward and change our attitude towards one another. This book is worth the $12, especially considering the strong presence of Dow Chemical in todays’ current affairs. Its size makes it great to for travel and it’s no weekend read. It is sure to inspire you to do some muckraking of your own.
On March 25, 1947, the Centralia no. 5 mine in Illinois exploded, claiming 111 lives (Martin, 31, 42). The apparent cause was determined to be inadequate mine maintenance by the operator—coal dust had built up on the floor and walls of the mine, creating conditions conducive to a chain reaction of explosions that would kill most of the workers inside of the mine. However, this was not the root cause of the disaster; it was the outcome of a systemic failure within the state government of Illinois. Despite the continuous warnings of a state mining inspector and a chain of notice letters sent from the Illinois Department of Mines and Minerals notifying the mine operator—the Centralia Coal Company—of the dangerous conditions in its mine, the disaster was not averted. The disaster occurred because both the mine operator and the Department itself dismissed the inspector’s warnings. The real, indispensable culprit of the disaster at Centralia no. 5 was political interference within the Department and the failure to conduct independent oversight over it. These failures are near universally applicable to national security organizations and their less...
Grundberg, Andy. "A Dangerous Weapon." The American Scholar:. American Scholar, 1 Jan. 2008. Web. 8 May 2014. .
“Full Body Burden: Growing Up in the Nuclear Shadow of Rocky Flats” is an inter-twine of two narrations depicting how secrets can turn out to be destructive. Kristen Iversen presents dangers of hidden secrets of the US government and secrets of her family, as well. Having grown up in the neighborhood of a secret plant for manufacture of nuclear weapons in Colorado, Iversen lived to witness maiming of the community and environmental degradation due to harmful effects of radiations from the plant. On the other hand is a disintegrating family; alcoholism of her father was a secret, subject, not for discussion. The ineffectual mother could also not keep the family together; she suffered from self-denial of the alcoholic husband and the realities of the Rocky Flats. The overall effects are two fold; Iversen, and her family suffered health problems due to radiations and due to the father’s alcoholism (Iversen). Residents suffered from cancer and incurable deformities, all because of secrets.
The United States government is known to give its citizens great advise with much care and concern. With this being known, many people come to the conclusion that United States citizens can faith in the government when it comes to making crucial decisions. Terry Tempest Williams is not one of these people. In “The Clan of the One-Breasted Women”, Williams gives her views on the government conducting nuclear tests in Utah. In contrast, in “America’s Energy Plan in Action: Bearing Witness,” an article Williams contributed to Orion magazine and OrionOnline, Williams speaks on issues containing actions of the government drilling for oil and natural gases. This is also conducted in Utah. Both of these articles share a common topic and tone. These two pieces both focus around major concerns for the Earth and how the government will is helping to destroy it for things like nuclear testing and drilling for oil and gases.
War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning, written by the talented author Chris Hedges, gives us provoking thoughts that are somewhat painful to read but at the same time are quite personal confessions. Chris Hedges, a talented journalist to say the least, brings nearly 15 years of being a foreign correspondent to this book and subjectively concludes how all of his world experiences tie together. Throughout his book, he unifies themes present in all wars he experienced first hand. The most important themes I was able to draw from this book were, war skews reality, dominates culture, seduces society with its heroic attributes, distorts memory, and supports a cause, and allures us by a constant battle between death and love.
All throughout time and history people have been at war with each other at one point or another. War can, truthfully, at times be inescapable and considered by some historians as a natural instinct, an instinct that every human being possess. Throughout history mighty empires and governments have collapsed due to the damages inflicted on by a war, yet in spite of this, some have managed to face the odds and make it through, staggering along as if nothing happened. War is a true test of an empire or government’s determination to move forward, adapting using the knowledge and intellect they have acquired to their own advantage. Nevertheless, not all wars lead to fighting by physical means but instead it can lead to fighting mentally by opposing sides. One such example would be the non-traditional Cold War fought between the United States and Soviet Union. The Cold War was a time that caused an immense fear in the lives of many, and inspired novels such as 1984 by George Orwell, Alas, Babylon by Pat Frank, and essays such as “You and the Atomic Bomb” by George Orwell, which are just some of the voices from this terrible time.
However amid the hot sand, buttes and mesas there were still thousands of people who called the southern Utah desert home. Year after year they would witness the eerie lights, smoke and ash of the nuclear test blindly believing those across the country in Washington DC who continued to promise it wouldn’t do them any harm. Little did they know the radioactive ash
It is evident that the occurrence of war throughout history has made a lasting impression on soldiers and civilians alike. This has been expressed over the years through different works of literature. The cost of war to the individual is illustrated in “The Red Convertible” by Louise Erdrich, “The Things They Carried” by Tim O’Brien, and “The Shawl” by Cynthia Ozick because each story shows some element of mental, emotional, and physical toll.
When one thinks about warfare, the average mental picture is usually a movie war scene with soldiers, and planes; very rarely do people think about about the average Joe, trimming his hedge. In the short story “Grace Period”, by Will Baker, there is a man trimming his hedge outside with an electric hedge trimmer when a nuclear bomb is dropped; his wife has gone to get the mail. In “an instant [he felt as] everything stretched just slightly, a few millimeters, then contracted again” (Baker, 1989, p. 7). Although the character does not know what is happening, the reader may realize that this description is a high altitude nuclear burst. The article “Nuclear Weapon Effects”, by John Pike, describes what a nuclear bomb’s effects are and what could happen if one was dropped. Based on clues in the story and the information from the article, the reader can determine what is happening to the man and what he can expect will happen to him.
Nuclear Energy has many proponents and much opposition. Many of the groups that oppose nuclear power have legitimate concerns, mainly with the dangers of nuclear material in relation with human health concerns and environmental troubles that are risked by allowing nuclear power plants to increase in number. Yet, many of these opposition groups have made outspoken and radical claims about the “hidden” motives of why nuclear power is promoted and subsidized by our federal government. For example, The Nuclear Information and Resource Service claim that the federal government has the intention of committing genocide against Native Americans because uranium mining is predominantly done on reservations. Another cry out by nuclear power opponents is the constant reliving of the few nuclear mishaps that occurred decades ago, at Chernobyl or Three Mile Island. No doubt, past accidents have happened worldwide and are important reminders to not play around with nuclear material, but technology has improved as well, a fact opponents fail to consider. Many of these organizations feel that other sources should be used to supply America’s energy needs. These types of statements tag many opponents to nuclear energy as misinformed, out of touch with scientific facts, or just closed minded to the whole concept of nuclear power. On the other hand, the proponents of nuclear energy like President Bush see it as cheap, and environmentally friendly. As a result, President Bush passed the Comprehensive Energy Bill in 2005 that would increase production of all types of energy, including nuclear, by giving subsidies and tax breaks to nuclear power producers. Keeping safe America’s capabilities for generating electric power by way of nuclear e...
This book’s primary focus was war; the story is set in World War II. Heller wanted to disprove war and show his own point of view of war. Culture in the 1950 was slowly being built upon way with the thought of war being good for the country. Heller wanted to condemn this
This book teaches the importance of self-expression and independence. If we did not have these necessities, then life would be like those in this novel. Empty, redundant, and fearful of what is going on. The quotes above show how different life can be without our basic freedoms. This novel was very interesting and it shows, no matter how dismal a situation is, there is always a way out if you never give up, even if you have to do it alone.
In 1917 a young female right out of high school started working at a radium factory in Orange, New Jersey. The job was mixing water, glue and radium powder for the task of painting watch dials, aircraft switches, and instrument dials. The paint is newly inventive and cool so without hesitation she paints her nails and lips with her friends all the while not knowing that this paint that is making them radiant, is slowly killing them. This was the life of Grace Fryer. Today there are trepidations on the topic of radiation from fears of nuclear fallout, meltdowns, or acts of terrorism. This uneasiness is a result of events over the past one hundred years showing the dangers of radiation. Although most accidents today leading to death from radiation poisoning occur from human error or faults in equipment, the incident involving the now named "radium girls" transpired from lack of public awareness and safety laws. (introduce topics of the paper)
It doesn’t matter which country have the largest army, manufacture the most guns and vehicles, or is in possession of the greatest amount of nuclear bombs, no weapon can completely debilitate a soldier as harshly as his own mind trying to subconsciously self-destruct from the trauma. Whether the necessity for weaponizing man’s own thoughts against himself can be argued, the repercussions for this decision will reveal itself as these scarred desperately try, but fail, to adjust to regular life.
The first thing that surprises an outside observer is how close together a daily, routine life and a place where a nuclear war can be led are. The train station in suburban-Moscow Odintsovo is on an ordinary route. The passengers pay the usual 25 rubles for the trip. Mama explains to her son that he needs to go to kindergarten and that all of the children are already there. Grandmother complains about the high price of cherries. A young man sitting in a rear seat tells a friend that he is in ecstasy. Suddenly, the route stops at the KPP [checkpoint], a soldier opens the door, and all of the ordinary passengers show him their passes for the specially-guarded territory.