That glow in District 30...

Here's an excerpt from a Jim Kent editorial in the RC Journal today:

Here in Heartland Expressway country, where old uranium mines have already contaminated water and soil, more are planned. So is an oil pipeline across our plains and an oil well near a sacred Native American mountain.

The response from our "leaders" in Pierre? Relinquish authority to protect their constituents and transfer that responsibility to Washington, D.C. Odd behavior for rural folk who consistently complain of federal intervention.

Perhaps the most absurd "official" reaction to local environmental concern has come from Mark Hollenbeck, project Manager for Powertech - the Canadian company hell-bent on getting Black Hills uranium. It seems Hollenbeck considers the nuclear accident in Japan a "testament to the redundant safety features of a nuclear power plant" - particularly because "no one died."