Solartopia Green Power and Wellness Hour – 04.07.16

Election theft in SOLARTOPIA is our vital concern as we talk with Bob Koehler, Mimi Kennedy and John Brakey about how the 2016 primaries are being rendered dubious by the disenfranchisement of hundreds of thousands of citizens.

Bob’s recent Commonwonders column calls attention to the 300,000 citizens deprived of their vote in Wisconsin.

Mimi tells us of the struggles in Los Angeles for even a semblance of democracy.

John paints us a beautiful picture of how democracy can work with his narration of an election on an Apache Reservation.

Meanwhile, we confront the realities of a political system dominated by corporate money and the electronic manipulation of our precious right to vote.

If you are concerned about our democracy (or what’s left of it) don’t miss this show.

Solartopia Green Power and Wellness Hour – 03.31.16

Can terrorists radiate all of New York by attacking Indian Point?
This devastating question is answered by the great Karl Grossman, lifelong journalist and professor, expert on atomic energy and author of numerous books on the catastrophic issues surrounding atomic energy. A Long Island resident, Karl gives us a complete excursion through the terrifying possibilities of how the Indian Point reactors could release huge quantities of radiation into the New York City environment, ultimately killing millions of innocent human beings and other living things. In the wake of terror attacks in Belgium, Karl has authored a major article circulating through the internet on how all the world’s reactors are profoundly vulnerable to such assaults. Indian Point is also at risk from earthquakes, and is situated at the juncture of two large seismic fault-lines. The unmistakable message: SHUT ALL NUKES NOW. Coming from Karl Grossman, the reasons are obvious and unmistakable.

Solartopia Green Power and Wellness Hour – 03.17.16

GOVERNOR JOHN KASICH, CLEAN ENERGY & ELECTION PROTECTION are with us in Solartopia this time.

We’re joined by KEVIN KAMPS of Beyond Nuclear who tells us that Ohio’s Davis-Besse nuke is in dire straits. The question is: will the national attention focused on “the sane Republican” make a difference. Will media scrutiny to the $4 billion bailout FirstEnergy wants for its dying nukes and coal burners prove too big an embarrassment for the Ohioan who would be president?

Then BOB FITRAKIS of www.freepress.org gives us the inside scoop on Kasich’s sorry record as a corporate toady. Despite all the campaign trail hugs, Kasich is always ready to hand billions to his fellow millionaires while dumping on the rest of us.

Finally RICHARD CHARNIN gives us the latest reports on election theft, warning that all those primaries Hillary allegedly won just might not be real. BERNIE, he says, is doing way better than we think.

Solartopia Green Power and Wellness Hour – 03.10.16

MAJOR DEFECT AT 98 OF 99 US NUKES revealed by 7 US Nuclear Regulatory Commission experts. The “NRC7” has filed a rare public report warning that the electrical defect threatens the safety of virtually all US nukes. We talk about it with the great DAVID LOCHBAUM of the Union of Concerned Scientists. The “regulatory” agency responsible for our safety has ignored this for years.

We then ask statistician RICHARD CHARNIN whether Bernie Sanders was in fact the rightful winner of the Massachusetts Primary. We’re joined by BOB FITRAKIS to investigate a key primary which, if Bernie had been given credit for it, would’ve shifted the entire race for the Democratic Presidential nomination. According to Charnin, the evidence is pretty clear the Bernie was, in fact, the victor, a shocking conclusion that casts doubt on the entire electoral process.

Harvey Wasserman – 7 Top NRC Experts Break Ranks to Warn of Critical Danger at Aging Nuke Plants

Seven top Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) experts have taken the brave rare step of publicly filing an independent finding warning that nearly every U.S. atomic reactor has a generic safety flaw that could spark a disaster.

The warning mocks the latest industry push to keep America’s remaining 99 nukes from being shut by popular demand, by their essential unprofitability, or, more seriously, by the kind of engineering collapse against which the NRC experts are now warning.

According to Reuters, the NRC engineers worry the flaw leaves U.S. reactors “vulnerable to so-called open-phase events in which an unbalanced voltage, such as an electrical short, could cause motors to burn out and reduce the ability of a reactor’s emergency cooling system to function. If the motors are burned out, backup electricity systems would be of little help.”

Solartopia Green Power and Wellness Hour – 03.03.16

Election madness continues in the aftermath of Super Tuesday. Bernie Sanders defies the odds by carrying four states (and almost Massachusetts). Donald Trump blows away the GOP. But what does it all mean? How do we expand a successful cultural revolution into a strategy to beat the corporations that are killing us all?

We’re joined in Solartopia to talk about this with David Akadjian a columnist for Daily Kos and author of The Little Book of Revolution. David’s approach to social change is, he says, “a way to make the seemingly impossible task of restoring democracy possible.”

Solartopia Green Power and Wellness Hour – 02.25.16

SHUTTING THE DIABLO CANYON NUKE is essential to the survival of human beings in North America. We discuss developments at this twin reactor complex sitting on a dozen earthquakes faults with key experts in the fight.

JIM HEDDLE and MARY BETH BRANGAN of the ENVIRONMENTAL OPTIONS NETWORK of northern California are joined by DONNA GILMORE of SAN ONOFRE SAFETY and CYNTHIA PAPERMASTER OF CODE PINK.

We discuss the criminal negligence by Pacific Gas & Electric that blew up 50 houses in the town of San Bruno and killed 8 people. Such irresponsible safety abuse is everywhere evident at Diablo Canyon, where radioactive fuel canisters are leaking, critical security features can’t be inspected and major operating components have been installed upside-down.

Thankfully, the BERKELEY CITY COUNCIL has joined the movement for sanity by passing a resolution to shut Diablo Canyon as soon as possible.

This deep exploration with four great activists will tell you much you need to know to push ahead for the shut-down of these truly horrifying nukes.

Solartopia Green Power and Wellness Hour – 02.18.16

THE WAR AGAINST SOLAR POWER comes to Solartopia today with three great expert/activists.

Pulitzer-nominee JACQUES LESLIE opens with his powerful NYTimes article on Nevada’s attempt to crush the massive, successful spread of rooftop panels. Jacques’ unique, distinguished journalistic career has spanned the field from Vietnam to a marquee book on big dams and much more.

Long-time nuclear opponent JUDY TREICHEL reports to us from Nevada on the Public Utilities Commission decision to assault homeowners like herself who have installed highly productive solar panels. The corrupt state government is now waging war to protect the fossil/nuke investments of the Koch Brothers against the clean, cheap, job-producing power of the sun.

By contrast, activist PAUL KANGAS joins us to talk about the California Public Utilities Commission decision to guarantee a 15 cent/kilowatt-hour payment to homeowners pumping juice into the grid from their own solar panels. The city of Berkeley has now resolved to shut the Diablo Canyon nuke, upping the ante on the race between renewables and the likelihood of a catastrophic explosion at the state’s last reactors.

All-in-all, this is a program sure to make the sun shine in your heart…and on your roof.