On Monday, I was one of the thousands of people at over 200 vigils across the country who were standing shoulder to shoulder with friends and neighbors to show support for Japan and to imagine a world free of nuclear disasters.
The Obama administration isn’t backing down from nuclear energy giveaways, and neither will we. Tell the President and Congress that the key to a stable energy future is clean, renewable energy and NOT nuclear power.
Unfortunately, while you were planning your vigils, the president and some members of Congress have been planning to take more of YOUR tax dollars and give them to the nuclear industry to build more plants here in the United States.
Just days after the earthquake and tsunami in Japan crippled not one but THREE nuclear reactors at Fukushima Daiichi to the point of meltdown, the Obama Administration announced that it would move forward with even more giveaways to the nuclear industry in the budget. And they could take the issue up in Congress any day now.
It’s time for some common sense. Tell the President and Congress that there is no place for taxpayer giveaways to the nuclear industry in the budget and that now is the time to invest in technology that uses clean and unlimited energy sources like the sun and wind.
Every day a new, startling report from Japan makes the headlines: Babies in Tokyo can’t drink the water, radiation levels near the disaster site are dangerously high, plutonium has been reported in the water around Fukushima…. Meanwhile, the president is asking for $36 billion dollars for loan guarantees to subsidize the nuclear industry on top of the already $18.5 billion set aside. It’s crazy.
Lobbyists for the nuclear industry want you to believe that nuclear power is safe. That what is happening in Japan somehow couldn’t happen here even though we have 23 of the exact same reactors on line in this country. Don’t be fooled.
There is no place for nuclear power in our clean energy future. And there is no place for taxpayer giveaways to the nuclear industry in the budget. Send a message today and make sure that your members of Congress and the President know that you’re paying attention to how they’re spending your money.
A recent poll found that 75% of Americans oppose taxpayer-backed loans for nuclear power and favor increasing emphasis on renewable energy. But the industry won’t go away quietly. Lobbyists are undoubtedly knocking on the doors of every member of Congress trying to convince them nuclear energy is still the way to go. We can’t let them win. Send your letter today!
Thanks for all you do,
Jim Riccio,
Greenpeace Nuclear Policy Analyst
Be a Seed for Change 
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