Doomsday Clock moves two minutes closer to Midnight!
Sam Carana
the minute hand of the Doomsday Clock two minutes closer to midnight.
It now is five minutes to midnight - the figurative end of
civilization! The move reflects global failures to solve the problems
posed by nuclear weapons and the climate change.
The BAS move was accompanied by the following statements:
"We stand at the brink of a Second Nuclear Age. Not since the first
atomic bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki has the world faced
such perilous choices. North Korea's recent test of a nuclear weapon,
Iran's nuclear ambitions, a renewed emphasis on the military utility
of nuclear weapons, the failure to adequately secure nuclear materials,
and the continued presence of some 26,000 nuclear weapons in the United
States and Russia are symptomatic of a failure to solve the problems
posed by the most destructive technology on Earth."
"The second nuclear era, unlike the dawn of the first nuclear age in
1945, is characterized by a world of porous national borders, rapid
communications that facilitate the spread of technical knowledge, and
expanded commerce in potentially dangerous dual-use technologies and
materials. The Pakistan-based network that provided nuclear
technologies to Libya, North Korea, and Iran, is an example of the new
challenges confronting the international community."
"More than 1400 metric tons of highly enriched uranium and
approximately 500 tons of plutonium are distributed worldwide at some
140 sites, in unguarded civilian power plants and university research
reactors, as well as in military facilities."
"Global warming poses a dire threat to human civilization that is
second only to nuclear weapons. Through flooding and desertification,
climate change threatens the habitats and agricultural resources that
societies depend upon for survival. As such, climate change is also
likely to contribute to mass migrations and even to wars over arable
land, water, and other natural resources."
"The prospect of civilian nuclear power development in countries around
the world raises further concerns about the availability of nuclear
materials. Growth in nuclear power is anticipated to be especially high
in Asia, where Japan is planning to bring on line five new plants by
2010, and China intends to build 30 nuclear reactors by 2020."
"Several factors are driving the turn to nuclear power- aging nuclear
reactors, rising energy demands, a desire to diversify energy
portfolios and reduce reliance on fossil fuels, and the need to reduce
carbon emissions that cause climate change. Yet expansion of nuclear
power increases the risks of nuclear proliferation."
The BAS recommends to:
* Reduce the launch readiness of U.S. and Russian nuclear forces and
completely remove nuclear weapons from the day-to-day operations of
their militaries.
* Reduce the number of nuclear weapons by dismantling, storing, and
destroying more than 20,000 warheads over the next 10 years, as well as
greatly increasing efforts to locate, store, and secure nuclear
materials in Russia and elsewhere.
* Stop production of nuclear weapons material, including highly
enriched uranium and plutonium - whether in military or civilian
facilities.
* Engage in serious and candid discussion about the potential expansion
of nuclear power worldwide. While nuclear energy production does not
produce carbon dioxide, it does raise other significant concerns, such
as the health and environmental hazards of nuclear waste, the
production of nuclear materials that can be diverted to the production
of weapons, and the safety and security of the plants themselves.
Source:
http://www.thebulletin.org
Cheers!
Sam Carana