March 28, 2025 • 49 mins
Forty-six years ago, on March 28, 1979, the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant experienced America's most serious nuclear accident. Though officials maintain minimal radiation escaped, the event permanently altered the nuclear industry and public perception. What many don't realize is that President Jimmy Carter—a trained nuclear engineer who had previously helped dismantle a damaged nuclear reactor in Canada—personally visited the site while debates raged about a potentially explosive hydrogen bubble forming above the cooling water.
We dive into the fascinating details of this historic event, examining how Carter's hands-on approach provided crucial leadership during a time of national anxiety. The accident resulted in permanent changes to nuclear industry regulations, with no new reactors ordered for years afterward. Despite the severity of the reactor damage (52% of the core melted down), the official stance maintains that health impacts were negligible—though we can't help but wonder about the long-term effects on Pennsylvania residents.
The conversation shifts to modern concerns as we discuss the critical importance of the United States Postal Service and current threats to its sustainability. Many people don't realize the USPS serves as more than mail delivery—it's a crucial infrastructure component designed to distribute emergency medications nationwide during disasters. Unlike what many believe, the postal service isn't taxpayer funded but relies on revenue from stamps and shipping services to maintain operations.
From nuclear anxieties to postal service advocacy to unexpected wildlife drama (including eagles battling ravens on live webcams and orcas wearing salmon as "hats"), this episode captures the quintessential Gen X perspective on both historical events and contemporary challenges. Join us for a thoughtful, sometimes feisty exploration of the events that shaped our generation and continue to influence how we view the world today.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:19):
We'll see you back.
It's like whatever.
Speaker 2 (00:31):
Welcome to Like Whatever a podcast for, by and
about Gen X, I'm Nicole and thisis my BFF, heather, hello.
So this week we want to startoff by talking about a couple of
collaborations that we aregetting into, which is fun and
exciting.
So this week I want to tell youabout a podcast called Free
(00:55):
Nights and Weekends.
It is a Gen X podcast.
It is very funny, ooh, and hehas some really good guests on.
So we like it and we wanted toshare it with you.
So here is a little clip fromFree Nights and Weekends.
Speaker 4 (01:14):
Hello, like Whatever Pod listeners, my name is Scott
and I write comedy and, like theladies of the podcast you're
listening to, I got to grow upin the roaring 80s, but in the
middle of the country.
My podcast, free Nights andWeekends roaring 80s, but in the
middle of the country.
My podcast, free Nights andWeekends, covers it all, but
from a different perspective.
So when you're not listening toLike Whatever and planning
family trips around theirpersonal appearances, give us a
(01:34):
listen.
You can find us at Free Nightsand Weekends Podcast on Facebook
X and at FNAW Podcastcom Shutup.
Speaker 2 (01:42):
I know, Make sure you check out Three Nights and
Weekends when you get a chance.
Speaker 3 (01:53):
So we're giving him a little clip to have on his
podcast and we recorded ourfirst commercial Commercial and
air quotes, and.
I mean we killed it on thefirst try.
We really did, I don't know, Ihope.
Anyway, he might disagree, Iguess, but uh, whatever, um he
would be wrong.
Uh, we also have um.
(02:14):
We were contacted by someonewho is very into this podcast,
which is very exciting becausewe think it's cool when you
people like us, we do.
He has a book.
His name is Pat Green.
The book comes out April 7th.
It's called Hearts of GlassLiving in the Real World and we
(02:37):
got a little advanced copyExcuse us.
And it is really good.
Speaker 2 (02:45):
Yes, I mean, I mean, really good, I have not started
it yet but I will procrastinate.
I am the queen ofprocrastination and I am on
vacation for the next three days, um a relaxing vacation with my
mom and sister in virginiabeach, so I think I will have
plenty of time to sit around andread it then.
Speaker 3 (03:04):
I read it last night.
Speaker 4 (03:06):
Right after we got it , I read it.
And I very much enjoyed it.
Speaker 3 (03:11):
So basically, we are going to try and work something
out where he comes andentertains you and us.
Yeah.
As a guest on the show.
He really wants to hang outwith us for the hour.
I don't know why.
Speaker 2 (03:30):
And we want to help him promote his book.
Win-win for everybody.
Speaker 3 (03:34):
So we're trying to get it out there.
We're trying to do our things,help the community, Because we
think we're fucking hilarious.
I mean we are fucking hilarious.
Speaker 2 (03:49):
So, yeah, just real quick, I want to remind you to
find us wherever you listen topodcasts.
Please remember to like, rateand review.
That is important for us to getin better standings with all
the podcast carriers.
And we are on all the socialsexcept for X at LikeWhateverPod.
(04:09):
You can look for us on YouTubewhere we are under LikeWhatever
and the L and the W arecapitalized.
Yes, some people are havingissues finding us.
We think that might be it, meincluded, and we are also on
TikTok.
Speaker 3 (04:23):
The tickety-tock.
Speaker 2 (04:25):
Heather's favorite.
All right, so let's fuck aroundand find out about the 1979
Three Mile Island accident 46years ago, on March 28th, which
is the day that this podcastwill drop.
Wow, mm-hmm up, wow.
(04:50):
My references are pbsorg andnrcgov, which is the United
States Nuclear Regulatory.
Speaker 3 (04:54):
Commission, someone whose website is still up, so
that's good.
Speaker 2 (04:56):
Does Homer run that?
Probably so.
The Three Mile Island accidentin 1979 at the three mile island
nuclear plant station that wasthe most serious in the history
of the american nuclear powerindustry.
The three mile island powerstation was named after the
island on which it was situatedin the susquehanna river near
(05:18):
harrisburg, pennsylvania I don'tknow why I always thought it
was new york.
Speaker 3 (05:21):
It's up there, I know , but I don't know why I always
thought it was New York.
It's up there, I know, but Idon't know why.
I don't know, I don't know why.
Or, like Upper Jersey, I don'tknow why I thought it was like
there.
Speaker 2 (05:32):
Yeah, it's in a weird spot.
I Googled it, good job.
I know.
At 4 am on March 28th anautomatically operated valve in
the Unit 2 reactor mistakenlyclosed, shutting off the water
supply to the main water feedsystem, that is, the system that
(05:54):
transfers heat from the wateractually circulating in the
reactor core.
Speaker 3 (06:28):
No-transcript, whew that was a tongue twister, that
was easy for you to say yeah.
Speaker 2 (06:36):
Some of which escaped from the core into the
containment vessel of thereactor building.
Very little of this and otherradioactive gases actually
escaped into the atmosphere andthey did not constitute a threat
to the health of thesurrounding population, which I
find very hard to believe.
But nobody believes that In thefollowing days adequate coolant
(06:57):
water circulation in the corewas restored.
The accident at Three MileIsland, though minuscule in its
health consequences, hadwidespread and profound effects
on the American nuclear powerindustry.
It resulted in the immediate,though temporary, process of
(07:23):
approval for new plants by theNuclear Regulatory Commission
was significantly slowed.
For years after the accident nonew reactors were ordered by
utility companies in the UnitedStates from 1979 through the
mid-80s.
The accident increased publicfears about the safety of
(07:44):
nuclear reactors andstrengthened public opposition
to the construction of newplants.
The unharmed Unit 1 reactor ofThree Mile Island did not resume
operations until 1985.
The cleanup of Unit 2 continueduntil 1990.
Damage to the unit was sosevere, however, 52% of the core
melted down and it remainedunusable.
Speaker 3 (08:06):
wow so I don't remember when was chernobyl?
Speaker 2 (08:10):
man.
That movie chernobyl, though,is very good oh my gosh, so good
yeah, they have likethree-headed dogs and stuff.
Speaker 3 (08:18):
They they still have new that whole area there is uh
radioactive, radioactive 86.
Speaker 2 (08:28):
Okay, and I remember um knowing about three mile
island my whole life.
Yeah, and it made me nervousbecause where we live at the
beach, you can look across thewater and see the new jersey yes
, nuclear plant you know, and Ithink I I think that might be
why I was confused, because Ithink I maybe thought that was
Three Mile Island.
No, we can't see Three Mile.
Speaker 3 (08:53):
Island, I know, not from here.
Well, I think that maybe that'swhy I thought it was Jersey,
because I was like, oh, look atthat, that's right there.
I mean, I guess nuclear is oneof the cleaner energies, correct
?
Speaker 2 (09:05):
Yeah, until it leaks.
Until it leaks, until it's not.
Speaker 3 (09:09):
Then it's really not.
Speaker 2 (09:10):
Yeah, then it's super not Because.
Speaker 3 (09:12):
I think that Chernobyl still has like
radioactive.
Speaker 2 (09:14):
Oh it takes I think I want to say tens of thousands
of years for it to Radio work,yeah, and it's so creepy to see
pictures of that area nowbecause it's just an abandoned
yeah city it's so sad what wascrazy, though, in that movie was
watching.
The people just stand there andwatch yeah like as it happened.
Speaker 3 (09:35):
You're like oh my god , yeah, they have no idea well,
and I think that wasn't thatwhat happened in Fukushima in
the tsunami.
It was the coolant right, thatwas the problem with it.
Speaker 2 (09:50):
It was, I think that's, and then they had people
going in there they had the oldpeople going in there because
the old people knew it was moreimportant to keep the young
people alive the good of themany outweigh the good of the
few Imagine that Spock.
Speaker 3 (10:12):
Dr Spock, it's the needs of the many outweigh the
needs of the few, oh, okay.
Speaker 2 (10:19):
So I lost my place.
I'm sorry I interrupted.
No, it's not your fault Healtheffects, Not your fault my fault
.
Speaker 3 (10:24):
It is my fault, everything's my fault.
I'm sorry I interrupted.
No, it's not your fault.
Health effects Not your fault.
My fault, it is my fault,everything's my fault.
Speaker 2 (10:28):
All right.
The health effects the NRCconducted detailed studies of
the accident's radiologicalconsequences, as did the
Environmental Protection Agency,the Department of Health,
education and Welfare, nowHealth and Human Services, the
Department of Energy and theCommonwealth of Pennsylvania.
Several independent groups alsoconducted studies.
(10:50):
The approximately 2 millionpeople around TMI2, too much
information to during theaccident are estimated to have
received an average radiationdose of only about one millirem
above the usual background dose.
To put that into context,exposure from a chest x-ray is
(11:13):
about six millirem and thearea's natural radioactive
background dose is about 100 to125 millirem per year for the
area.
The accident's maximum dose toa person at the site boundary
would have been less than 100millirem above background.
(11:34):
I don't want any?
Speaker 3 (11:37):
No, that doesn't seem like it's good.
Speaker 2 (11:40):
It's like how they say well, you can have so much
lead in baby food, but just alittle bit.
Speaker 3 (11:45):
Well, you can have so many cockroach parts.
Yeah, a little bit of rat poopnever hurt anybody.
Speaker 2 (11:49):
Okay.
So in the months following theaccident, although questions
were raised about possibleadverse effects from radiation
on human, animal and plant lifein the TMI area, None of your
goddamn business.
None could be directlycorrelated to the accident.
Thousands of environmentalsamples of air, water, milk,
(12:10):
vegetation, soil and foodstuffswere collected by various
government agencies monitoringthe area.
Very low levels ofradionuclides could be
attributed to releases from theaccident.
Organizations such as ColumbiaUniversity and the University of
(12:37):
Pittsburgh have concluded that,in spite of serious damage to
the reactor, the actual releasehad negligible effects on the
physical health of individualsor the environment.
I would like to talk to peoplein the area well and see how
they're so here's how muchcancer they've got so
Speaker 3 (12:52):
here's the thing about Pennsylvania period.
No offense to the Pennsylvaniapeople, but first of all, you
all travel some kind of crazyamounts.
Are you ever home.
Because everywhere I have everbeen, ever Vegas, I was on a
cruise to motherfucking Alaskaand the whole ship was people
(13:15):
from fucking Pennsylvania.
In Arizona, some lady walks up,starts a conversation when are
you from Pittsburgh?
Oh, you're from fuckingPennsylvania.
Everywhere I go Can't get awayfrom, it's true, anyway.
So you, people fromPennsylvania, you got the
cancers anyway.
I mean that's what my wholefamily has died of.
And they, you people fromPennsylvania, you got the
cancers anyway.
I mean that's what my wholefamily has died of.
(13:37):
And they're all fromPennsylvania.
Yeah, I mean they live rightnear Sun Oil, so that probably
didn't help.
They were drinking that Sun.
Speaker 2 (13:45):
Oil, water and all that mining.
Speaker 3 (13:48):
Well, yeah, I mean, how would you know if it was
nuclear cancer or minor cancer,oil cancer?
Speaker 2 (14:01):
All right.
Impact of the accident.
A combination of personal error, design deficiencies and
component failures caused theTMI accident, which permanently
changed both the nuclearindustry and the NRC Public fear
and distrust increased.
Nrc's regulations and oversightbecame broader and more robust,
(14:21):
and management of the plantswas scrutinized more carefully.
Careful analysis of theaccident's events identified
problems and led to permanentand sweeping changes in how nrc
regulates its licensees, whichin turn has reduced the risk to
public health and safety exceptwhen you give one to mr burns
and he lets homer be in charge.
(14:44):
It's not good.
This stuff always makes me madanyway, like humans are lazy yes
and there is a reason thatprotection measures and safety
measures are put into place.
So when you just get bored andlazy and skim on things like
this, this shit's going tohappen, yeah.
Speaker 3 (15:04):
So shit's going to melt down.
Speaker 2 (15:05):
Yeah, I heard they've been talking about a lot about
the Scott Key Bridge again thisweek because it's the
anniversary and that bridgehadn't been inspected in like 50
years.
And guess what the bay bridgehasn't had.
Like no, thank you proper,don't tell me that.
And like no, I know I have togo through the bay bridge tunnel
tomorrow.
I don't mind the tunnel, somuch maybe the bay.
(15:28):
My mom hates tunnels so shemight make.
Just make me do the bridge mysister's driving though, so oh
Lord.
Speaker 3 (15:37):
Either way, we don't like bridges around here.
Speaker 2 (15:39):
Yeah, no, no, no.
Speaker 3 (15:40):
And the sad fact of it is they're literally
everywhere.
Yeah, we're surrounded by water, so we are on a barrier island.
Speaker 2 (15:49):
Kind of bridgey.
So here are some major changesthat have occurred since the
accident Upgrading andstrengthening of plant design
and equipment requirements.
This includes fire protection,piping systems, auxiliary feed
water systems, containment,building isolation, reliability
of individual components,pressure relief valves and
electric circuit breakers, andthe ability of plants to shut
(16:12):
down automatically.
I mean, if you really thinkabout it though, not to
sidetrack.
I mean to sidetrackintentionally.
Speaker 3 (16:20):
Yes, so you have really only ever heard of three.
I mean I have.
I don't know about you.
Speaker 2 (16:29):
Maybe you know more.
You would think there'd be alot more incidents you would,
but maybe there are ones wedon't know about.
True, like if they're happeningover there in Russia, china.
Speaker 3 (16:46):
That's true, but maybe not.
I don't know.
Speaker 2 (16:51):
Okay.
Identifying the critical roleof human performance in plant
safety led to revamping operatortraining and staffing
requirements, because you knowpeople pay attention in
trainings Followed by improvedinstrumentation and controls for
operating the plant andestablishment of fitness for
duty programs for plant workersto guard against alcohol or drug
(17:13):
abuse, I mean duh, that's not agood job to be drunk on.
I don't think Definitely notEnhancing emergency preparedness
, including requirements forplants to do immediate
notification to the NRC ofsignificant events and an NRC
(17:34):
operations center staffed 24hours a day.
Drills and response plans arenow tested by licensees several
times a year and state and localagencies participate in drills
with the Federal EmergencyManagement Agency and the NRC.
Speaker 3 (17:49):
Yeah, they don't exist anymore.
I don't think they cut FEMA.
Speaker 2 (17:54):
Oh yeah, Well, it used to be that way.
Speaker 3 (17:59):
So prepare yourselves for some nuclear meltdown, hey
kids.
Three Mile Island might happenagain.
Speaker 2 (18:09):
I hope it doesn't happen in Jersey.
That's too close.
I don't know the wind's blowingthe right way, we're fucked.
I think we close.
I don't know the wind's blowingthe right way, we're fucked.
Speaker 3 (18:16):
I think we're fucked either way.
True.
Speaker 2 (18:19):
Integrating NRC observations, findings and
conclusions about licenseeperformance and management
effectiveness into a periodicpublic report.
Having senior NRC managersregularly analyze plant
performance for those plantsneeding significant additional
regulatory attention.
Expanding NRC residentinspector programs first
(18:41):
authorized in 1977, to have atleast two inspectors live nearby
and work exclusively at eachplant in the US to provide daily
surveillance of licenseeadherence to NRC regulations.
Sounds like a fun job.
Just go around and tell peoplewhat to do.
Expanding performance-orientedas well as safety-oriented
(19:05):
inspections and the use of riskmanagement or assessment to
identify vulnerabilities of anyplant to severe accidents.
Strengthening and reorganizingenforcement staff in a separate
office within the NRC.
And then like five more and I'mjust not going to run through
the rest of them.
I'm bored with it.
I know you guys are All right,so this was fun.
(19:26):
Jimmy Carter was president whenthree miles.
Speaker 3 (19:30):
She was so goddamn excited about this.
Speaker 2 (19:32):
I was so excited because y'all loved the jimmy
carter episode jimmy carterepisode is our most listened to
episode yeah, by quite a bit.
Yes, yeah, so we were excitedto plug jimmy carter again.
The damaged uh reactor at threemile island was not the first
president jimmy.
(19:52):
Jimmy Carter had viewed upclose.
While in the Navy, carter waspart of a team that helped
dismantle the damaged nuclearreactor at the Chalk River plant
in Ontario, canada.
Oh yeah, I remember that.
So, there's a fourth one.
I remember that.
Speaker 4 (20:06):
Because I was blown away by Carter was a trained
nuclear engineer.
Speaker 3 (20:09):
I know as a trained nuclear engineer, I know.
Speaker 2 (20:12):
A trained nuclear engineer, Carter worked under
famed Admiral Hyman Rickover,the father of the Navy's nuclear
program on the Seawolf andatomic submarine.
He also studied nuclear physicsat Union College in New York.
Given his background, Carterhad a firm grasp of the
potential disaster that wouldensue should a nuclear meltdown
(20:32):
occur.
How convenient is that thatthat you have?
The guy that's in chargeactually knows what he's doing.
Speaker 3 (20:39):
That's a novel idea.
Speaker 2 (20:41):
He has expertise on you know what?
Speaker 3 (20:43):
the guy in charge, having expertise on literally
anything other than goingbankrupt, is a really novel idea
yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah yeah yepokay, um, as a seasoned
politician, he was a lot ofsoapboxes that I, I am
oh well, feel free to jump inwith one whenever you feel like
I can't, because I haven'tgotten my email email from elon
(21:06):
yet, so I don't have to tellwhat my three things I did last
week was um, yeah, I got a lotof I'm very angry person today,
okay, and then she gave medrinks, so now I'm even more
angry yeah well, I'll try not tobe angry at Jimmy Carter no,
it's okay.
Speaker 2 (21:26):
If you do, he would understand I don't think he
would.
As a seasoned politician, he wasalso aware of the possible
panic that would ensue shouldpeople come to believe a
meltdown was imminent.
Upon hearing of the situationat Three Mile Island, carter
dispatched Harold Denton, thedirector of the Division of
Nuclear Reactor Regulations atthe Nuclear Regulatory
(21:49):
Commission, to Harrisburg,pennsylvania as his personal
representative mission toHarrisburg Pennsylvania.
As his personal representative.
The president was frustrated byhis inability to establish
telephone contact withPennsylvania Governor Dick
Thornburg.
To solve this problem, heordered dedicated phone lines to
be connected between the WhiteHouse, the NRC and the State
House at Harrisburg.
(22:09):
By Saturday, march 31st, carterhad decided to pay a personal
visit to Harrisburg.
Jimmy didn't fuck around noJimmy was like bitch, I'm coming
.
If you want something done right, do it yourself.
The national and internationalmedia had given the accident at
Three Mile Island front pageattention for days, and
(22:30):
venerable network newsman WalterCronkite was speaking of a
horror that could get much worse.
So it sounds like the media.
Yeah.
Carter believed that the peopleof Pennsylvania and the nation
were looking to him forleadership.
So on April 1st Carterinspected the damaged plant
inspected it his own damn self.
Middletown, pennsylvania MayorRobert Reed later spoke of
(22:57):
Carter's visit as providing amuch-needed morale boost.
People weren't talking to oneanother, they were cooped up in
their homes and when he came itseemed like everyone came out to
see the president and it wasreally a shot in the arm.
Reed recounted to writer MarkStevens.
Speaker 3 (23:11):
Well, I I imagine that if you live there you have
to think like when he shows upwell, obviously it can't be as
bad as we think it is, becausethey're letting this guy.
Speaker 2 (23:25):
Yeah, if the president's standing outside
breathing the air it must besafe.
Speaker 3 (23:29):
Yeah, you're not going to let that guy hang out.
Speaker 2 (23:32):
Yeah, but he was like a superhero.
He had already been infusedwith radioactivity.
It was repellent.
Speaker 3 (23:41):
It just repelled off of him.
Speaker 2 (23:45):
I know I understand that, but I think the bad guys
throw balls of radioactive stuffat him and it just throws his
forearm up and bounces off.
Speaker 3 (23:56):
I'm a humble peanut farmer.
I just I feel like that wouldcertainly would make me feel
better, mm, hmm, if thepresident showed up as a nuclear
accident.
Yep, it would really make mefeel a lot better, a lot
Currently.
President would show up in anuclear anyway, I am wound up.
Speaker 2 (24:21):
She is, it's, it's very I love it when she's feisty
.
Um, in the aftermath of threemile island, president carter
ordered the creation of aspecial commission headed by
Dartmouth College President JohnKemeny, to review the event.
The resultant report foundfault with the NRC.
Carter ordered a reshuffling ofkey NRC personnel, but no
(24:45):
substantial overhaul.
So he went and got rid of thepeople that weren't doing their
job, instead of all the people.
Speaker 3 (24:56):
Just all of them, and then trying to bring him back
three days later because youfound out what they actually
fucking do for real.
So I am gonna hold on.
Speaker 2 (25:07):
Okay, I am gonna soapbox it for a second god, I
know I was like she can't leaveme hanging.
Speaker 3 (25:11):
No, I'm a federal worker right yes, yes, you are
Kind of.
Technically not, but anyway, ifyou care at all, call your
representative or senator oremail them.
I don't think it's hard to do.
I've done it.
Just send a littlerepresentative email, a senator
email, to save the post office,because strange things are afoot
(25:37):
at the circle k and um, youknow we're, we're all a little
on edge about it.
Um, I worked very hard to getwhere I am.
Yes, I started the post officein the in the beginning of COVID
and worked a lot of hours, alot, a lot, a lot, because we
(25:59):
were delivering when nothingelse was open and yeah, so I
worked very hard to get where Iam.
I was excited to finally beable to say I can at some point
retire with a pension, and thatis now being threatened.
So I'll get off my soapbox now.
Speaker 2 (26:21):
No, and I've watched you go through that.
And I also have a nephew whowill be turning 30 this year and
he has chosen to make this hiscareer and he's about the same
amount of time as you right, Ithink we started at the same
time.
Yeah, I thought so.
So he also went through it andhas finally gotten to the point
where he can relax a little bitand do his job and think about
(26:43):
retirement.
Speaker 3 (26:44):
It's funny because there was a few of us that were
it's called an RCA.
You're the sub, basically, andyou do all the grunt work.
There was a few of us that havestayed the whole time and there
were times where we had, oh, 21plus 8, 29 routes in our office
(27:07):
and like half of them were wereempty because, you know, covid
went through and all sorts ofdifferent reasons and there
wasn't enough of us to cover andwe were just doing everything
we could and I swear I keep, wekeep talking about it all the
time and we're like I know Ihave ptsd from that and they're
like, yeah, I mean there weretimes where we were delivering
(27:30):
mail until you know 10, 30, oknow 10, 30 o'clock, 10, 30, 11
o'clock at night.
Yep, yeah, so anyway I.
Speaker 2 (27:40):
There was a rally nationwide yesterday and my
nephew went to it.
I guess maybe in Wilmington,dover, I don't know where he
went.
Newark Okay, yeah, he went.
I haven't heard where he went.
Newark Okay, yeah, he went.
I haven't heard how it went.
Speaker 3 (27:55):
And you know, obviously there's lots of rumors
going around as to what couldhappen, what they want to have
happen, and, from what I'mreading, your nephew will be
fine, he'll still have a job,but I don't know.
About the rural craft, uh, yeah, we're very expensive yeah, but
(28:22):
if it privatizes, you're allscrewed.
So yeah, well, that's very true, yeah, so soapbox ended
everybody that I work with hiall right.
Speaker 2 (28:34):
One last thing that I need to add to that um, the
post office is not a business.
It is not meant to make money.
Speaker 3 (28:46):
It is a service to the people of the United States.
You remember when everybody gotthree COVID tests and it came
to you through the mail?
I know because I delivered abazillion of them of them.
(29:08):
That is the plan.
If something like three mileisland happens, the the plan put
through in the governmentsecret plans is that if you need
to deliver a large quantity ofmedication to people, it is the
united states postal servicethat will be that we will be the
ones that will be deliveringwhatever anti-radiation or
whatever.
That is the whole.
One of the things that we wouldbe in charge of is something If
(29:34):
something were to happen.
We go to every house every day,so that's how they and that's
how you got COVID tests.
Yep, and they that you know saywhat you will about the post
office being slow and alwaysrate hiking and all that.
It's going to get a whole lotmore expensive if it privatizes.
(29:54):
That's just.
You're not going to be able tosend a letter for under a dollar
.
Speaker 2 (29:58):
No, it's going to be like UPS or yeah.
Speaker 3 (30:02):
Well, that is.
They'll be competing with them,right?
Speaker 2 (30:04):
um yeah so I don't know.
Yeah, that wasn't even asoapbox, that was just you
educating everybody on what'shappening and we also.
Speaker 3 (30:12):
Just I don't know.
I didn't know this until Ifirst started working there.
The usps does not receive anymoney from the government at all
.
We do not get government moneyunless they have to bail it out,
which they did bail it out acouple years ago.
Speaker 2 (30:24):
But everybody got bailed out a couple years ago.
Speaker 3 (30:26):
Yeah, but the USPS survives on its own.
It's its own thing, Right?
You know we live off you buyingstamps and sending parcels and
stuff like that.
So technically we're nottaxpayer funded, Correct?
So there look it up.
Speaker 2 (30:45):
Yeah, I'll go ahead.
Harold Denton, director ofdivision of nuclear reactor
regulations at the nuclearregulatory commission, was Jimmy
Carter's personalrepresentative to Harrisburg for
the duration of the problem atthe Three Mile Island nuclear
power plant.
The arrival of Denton seemed toimmediately calm the fraying
(31:08):
nerves of public officials andstem the anger of the frustrated
press corps.
Reporter Steve Liddick of WCMBradio explained to writer Mark
Stevens that Harold Denton wastrusted because he looked like a
regular down to earth kind ofguy and people wanted someone to
believe.
Speaker 3 (31:28):
So, like you said, and that's, you know, that would
.
That's the whole point where Ithink any of the presidents go
to these places where disastersjust you know, to put the eyes
on it and say you know we care,yeah, we know you're here, yeah,
we're going to do what we can.
Speaker 2 (31:44):
And plus it's important for them because you
can't understand somethingunless you see it or live
through it.
You know people who want tomake judgment on everything.
If you haven't been in thatsituation, you have no idea.
So it's important for thepresident to go and see how bad
it actually is.
Speaker 3 (32:03):
You know when there are disasters and such, so that
they really can wrap their headaround how much help is needed
because, and here's the thing,um so when, when they're showing
all this disaster stuff, it issad and I, you know, I only know
hurricanes because we've had acouple um none of them have ever
been a big problem, but thething of it is is a lot of
(32:24):
things are built to be destroyedin the situation to again, the
good, the, the, uh, whatever drspock said, the needs of the
many outweigh the needs of thefew, um, so in order to to save
the house, a lot of stuff has tobreak away.
Like um, I grew up in a blockfrom the ocean.
(32:48):
We had a lagoon in our backyardand the bay was across the
street.
Everything has to be up onstilts, it has to handle.
I think it's a three here, twoor three here, because we don't
usually get them bigger thanthat.
But when the media is showingyou these places that have been,
you know, destroyed and, yes,our house being gone, that's sad
(33:08):
, but a lot of times it looks alot worse because it's like you
know, siding piled up and allthat shit was meant to come off.
Speaker 2 (33:19):
Yeah, or they'll pick like structures that weren't
meant for hurricanes at all.
Speaker 3 (33:25):
yeah, and you see the roof halfway across the yard
and such, and you're like, oh mygod, but you know that's one
house and that is of course, notto say that there are
definitely damaged areas, butthat's one of the reasons why
you put eyes on the ground,because if you don't know what
it's like to go through thatbecause you know, when I watch
(33:45):
that stuff I can be like well,that shed was you know it's a
shed right all those boats piledup.
You have insurance on thatbecause you know that's going to
happen especially in thehurricane areas right.
Losing the house is althoughhere's my thing about that.
How many times are you justgoing to keep rebuilding your
house in the same fucking spot?
(34:06):
Yeah and also my issue with itfor those of you that live in
hurricane prone areas.
Why do you not save yourplywood?
Why are you going to the homedepot the day before the?
Storm comes in and fightingeveryone else for a piece of
plywood.
Speaker 2 (34:23):
You know it's funny.
My parents live in Fort Myersand they did have a bad
hurricane a couple years ago andwhen I went down and visited
them in November, it's been afew years and there is still a
lot of damage, like you canstill tell that a hurricane came
through there and they took medown to one of the popular
beaches where there were hotelsand restaurants and there's just
(34:44):
nothing.
It's really crazy.
But my point to this is so manyhouses just left their plywood
up, all their windows areplywooded shut and it's all
really old, like dark plywood,so it's definitely been there
since the hurricane.
I'm like, take it down and saveit Like really old, like dark
plywood, so it's definitely beenthere since the hurricane.
(35:05):
I'm like, take it down and saveit.
Like your house is dark inside.
To save I mean, leaving yourchristmas lights up all year is
one thing, but hurricane seasonstarted, starts in like june and
goes to november every year.
Speaker 3 (35:17):
it's not a surprise, it's not?
Oh my god.
You's not, oh my God.
You live in an area, if youlive in Florida, that hangs off
the bottom of the country,you're pretty sure that you're
going to get at least one rollthrough somewhere in your state.
Speaker 2 (35:33):
Yes, you just know.
Yeah, somebody's getting hit?
Speaker 3 (35:34):
Why are you going to Home Depot the day before the
damn thing hits, fighting otherpeople off for plywood.
Just save your plywood.
Speaker 2 (35:43):
Yeah, it's not that hard.
Or just randomly buy it one dayif you don't have it, or buy
Hurricane Shutters or whatever.
Yeah, there you go, there yougo.
Speaker 3 (35:53):
If you got an issue all the time, buy some shutters.
Speaker 2 (35:55):
Mm-hmm, yeah, so Denton's job was far from easy.
It fell to him to informThornburg and Carter about a
possibility no, possiblyexplosive hydrogen bubble
discovered above the coolingwater.
That sounds scary.
Speaker 3 (36:14):
Anything possibly explosive, explosive bubble.
Speaker 2 (36:18):
Yeah, explosive bubble At the top of the reactor
pressure vessel.
The bubble, and whether or notit would mix with oxygen and set
off a devastating explosion,proved to be the source of
intense debate and fuelednightmarish images of a meltdown
.
At the time of Carter's arrivalon Sunday morning, april 1st,
(36:41):
the question as to whether thebubble would explode was still
under debate.
Jimmy Carter showed up knowingthere was an explosive bubble.
Speaker 3 (36:55):
I'm telling you she loves her some Jimmy.
Speaker 2 (36:57):
Carter, I really do.
I didn't know how much I lovedhim until we did that episode.
I know I mean I always haveloved him because he's always
been a good human I just likegood humans.
But yeah, I didn't realize hewas so badass.
Speaker 3 (37:08):
He was a superhero.
Speaker 2 (37:10):
Yes, denton informed the president of the risk just
as he was preparing to enter theplant.
I briefed the president on thisbubble and the possibility of
an explosive mixture and triedto give him the two sides that
were out there, but we stilldidn't have single view on that.
Denton remembered.
Speaker 3 (37:31):
It's pretty scary Unexplosive bubble yeah.
Speaker 2 (37:36):
Alright, so the current status of Three Mile
Island Today, the TMI None ofyour goddamn business.
Two reactor is permanently shutdown and 99% of its fuel has
been removed.
The reactor coolant system isfully drained and the
radioactive water decontaminated.
And evaporated which I readthat the first time and I was
(37:59):
like what exactly does that mean?
And evaporated, which I readthat the first time and I was
like what exactly does that mean?
The accident's radioactivewaste was shipped off-site to an
appropriate disposal area.
Speaker 3 (38:09):
I bet it's not appropriate.
Speaker 2 (38:10):
Yeah, I mean nowhere is appropriate.
The moon yeah, that'sappropriate.
And the reactor fuel and coredebris was shipped to the
Department of Energy's IdahoNatural Laboratory.
No-transcript.
(38:43):
Exelon Generation isresponsible for decommissioning
activities there.
So, huh.
Speaker 3 (38:56):
I was going to say that, yeah, are they not using?
I don't, yeah, are they notusing?
I don't know.
Are they not using them anymore?
Speaker 2 (39:04):
Not there.
Speaker 3 (39:06):
Where are they getting their electric from?
Speaker 2 (39:09):
Canada, Well they're about to shut it off.
Okay, they're about to turn thelight switch off.
Everybody better get some solarpanels on their house, windmill
.
Here's a little additionalinformation.
Further information on theTMI-2 accident can be obtained
(39:29):
from NUREG documents, many ofwhich are on microfiche.
Speaker 3 (39:39):
I dare you all to go get some microfiche and see if
you can read it, if you have amicrofiche viewer is that the
thing from the library?
How we used to look up newsarticles when we were kids.
Speaker 2 (39:53):
okay, uh, they can be ordered for a fee from the r,
our NRC's public document room,in case you're super bored, at
301-415-4737 or 1-800-397-4209.
Or you can email pdr at nrcgov.
The PDR is located in Rockville, maryland, or something like
(40:17):
that.
Speaker 3 (40:17):
Yeah yeah, I don't know, but yeah okay, so I was, I
think.
I think nuclear power is scaryto us.
Speaker 2 (40:30):
Yes, because of chernobyl, because of three mile
island and because we don'thave a real understanding of it
and because we don't have a realunderstanding of it.
Speaker 3 (40:38):
Because we're not engineers I am not.
I think also it's hard todiscern the difference between
nuclear weapon and nuclear power, and I think that's where,
because we always had to getunder a desk and obviously
(40:59):
that's not going to help.
But so I think that's maybewhere all the fear of them.
Speaker 2 (41:05):
Probably.
Speaker 3 (41:06):
Because I do think they're one of the cleaner.
Speaker 2 (41:09):
Mm-hmm and safer.
Speaker 3 (41:10):
Safer, yeah, mm-hmm.
I mean, yeah, I don't know, Ijust think they're scary.
Speaker 2 (41:17):
They scare me too.
I just I don't get it.
I don't understand it.
But I knew that I always knewabout Three Mile Island.
Yeah, like my, I knew that Ialways knew about Three.
Speaker 3 (41:25):
Mile.
Speaker 2 (41:25):
Island like my whole life, so I wanted to do this and
, like I said, when this iscoming out on Friday, march 28th
, that is the anniversary of themeltdown, and I thought of
something that I want to talkabout earlier.
Did you see the article I sentyou about the Great White?
Speaker 3 (41:41):
No.
Speaker 2 (41:46):
So off the shores I want to say not far, maybe the
carolinas some guys were surffishing and caught like a 12
foot great white yes, and theybrought it up and they had.
Speaker 3 (41:52):
They had to free it yeah, that looks and try to buy
those.
Speaker 2 (41:56):
Of course it did yeah , because that's his job.
Yeah, and how do you get a hookout of that mouth?
They don't, they cut him, ohyeah well, it took them long
enough to cut.
Speaker 3 (42:05):
And then the worst part about it a you're not
allowed to catch them um, yeah,of course you have to.
Speaker 2 (42:09):
Yeah, they didn't catch it on purpose.
No, I know.
Speaker 3 (42:11):
Um the other problem is um sharks.
It came up awfully far out ofthe water and the issue with
sharks, I believe, in particular, is that they don't do well
being drugged back out.
Yeah, they're not good at that,yeah, so.
Speaker 2 (42:34):
He probably didn't make it.
He probably didn't make it.
Speaker 3 (42:38):
Did you see the orca, though, off of one of the
Carolinas?
I did.
What in the hell?
Now they're coming for yachtsover here.
Yeah, another reason to stayout of the water.
Oh, and also, did you see, man?
The orcas are wearing the hatsagain, the salmon hats.
They did it for 30 years.
They did it 30 years, like inthe 90s, they wore dead salmon
(42:58):
as hats.
This one particular pod woresam.
They would just like toolaround with salmon on their head
and it was like a hat and itwas like they said it was like a
trend, it was trendy becausethey all did it in this one
particular pod and then one daythey just stopped and then
apparently somebody told him itdidn't look cool much like
(43:20):
people now thinking the 90s havecome back.
If you've seen any of theclothes out today, everybody is
dressing like it is 1996.
Yeah, the mom jeans have youseen Low Rise are coming back.
No, thank you.
Anyway, they all started thepod and another pod, like
(43:40):
completely different from themare all now wearing Sam and his
hats again.
Speaker 2 (43:45):
They must have had a picture of, like their grandma
with a salmon hat.
I were like it's totally weird.
Yeah, I watched.
You just reminded me I watchedthe second episode of the
Americas with Mexico, so I sawwhat you meant about not needing
(44:05):
to see the circle of life.
Yeah, yeah, and it involvedorcas, but that one was brutal
it was, but it was also, on theflip side of that, amazing to
watch them work as a group andit's.
Speaker 3 (44:20):
It's funny because I can't watch that, but I can
watch.
Um, I became obsessed withthese two fucking eagles and, oh
yeah, the big bear.
So shadow and jackie I havebeen watching these damn eagles
for like three years, and thelast time they produced a chick
was in 2022, prior to mewatching them so then they had
(44:42):
two years where they did not um.
Their eggs did not hatch.
Apparently they do grieve.
It's very sad.
When they gave up the nest thefirst time, it took them a while
to because, um, I don't know ifyou know or care about bald
eagles they stay at the samenest and they just keep making
them bigger and bigger andbigger, yes, so, um, eventually
(45:02):
they ended up realizing that theeggs were not going to hatch,
so they just give up.
And then there's a squirrelthat lives underneath of them,
called Fiona.
And she came and stole the eggsAnyway.
so this year Jackie and Shadowin fact did lay three eggs and
all three hatched.
They did.
Now the drama has been one dayit still snows there, because
(45:25):
it's it's very cold, I guess.
Um, so when jackie was gettingup one day one of the chicks was
stuck to her leg and almostlost it out of the, out of the
nest oh, no but it rolled backin and then it started snowing
really, really hard.
Um and jackie, those two,they're hilarious, I know shadow
(45:51):
comes with sticks and he hitsher in the head all the time.
It's friends of big bear.
If you ever want to check theseeagles out, it's.
It's really, it is anyway.
Um, something happened.
One of the chicks froze todeath after the snow yes, it
didn't make it through, and itwas the one that was like super
feisty, like it was the oldestone, I think, and it was super
(46:11):
feisty Like the parent would siton the nest and it would like
pop its little head out andeverything, anyway, it must have
gotten caught up in one oftheir feathers.
Out on the outside, it'snature's way.
Yeah, it's got you knowwhatever.
Yeah, so there's two.
Well, drama has happened againbecause yesterday jackie had a
(46:32):
fish hook stuck in her mouth.
Oh no, yeah, she did end upgetting it out, but everybody on
there was like they need tointervene and of course, the
people were like we, we don'tit's it's nope, it is what it is
you know, just because you'rewatching it doesn't mean my
point to that was.
There's these ravens that flyover their heads and you can see
(46:54):
on their um.
I don't know what the hell kindof balls these ravens have I
don't know if they're trying toget to the chicks or they're
trying to get to the eggs orwhat they're doing, but they fly
around and they drive theminsane, like you'll see her duck
down and like she's yelling,and then shadow will come and
try and hit.
Anyway, they have severalcameras up and the one is like a
(47:15):
long distance camera, so theother day you can see the raven
flying over and then all of asudden you see jackie or shadow
I don't remember which one comeout of fucking nowhere, swoop
through, grabs the raven andboth of them go out of view of
the camera, in, I mean not evena second, it was just like she
(47:35):
just came in and took that bitchout and then she shows up at
the nest with a dead raven.
It was pretty impressive.
She had had enough.
She had had enough.
It was impressive, I was Wow.
She had had enough.
She had had enough.
It was impressive, I was Wow.
Speaker 2 (47:48):
Nature is something else it really is.
Speaker 3 (47:54):
So, yeah, this is probably this is going to be a
little shorty, a little shorty,short.
50 minutes is short.
Nicole has today.
We are we usually record onTuesdays, but this week we had
to do it on Monday, which is aheavy day for the post office.
Speaker 2 (48:11):
So, again.
Speaker 3 (48:13):
We're at my mom's house recording because Nicole
was going away with her mom andsister all week so we could not
record on her normally scheduledprogramming and now she has an
hour drive back home and allthat horse shit.
So we were cutting it a littleshort today.
(48:35):
I hope you don't mind.
Plus, I'm cranky as fuck.
I don't know.
I know why it's been a week.
So thank you for listening.
Thank you, you can like sharerate review.
You can do that.
You know it won't kill you,probably, no, it might.
(48:57):
You can find us wherever youlisten to podcasts, as you are
listening now.
You can even like, you know, ifyou say to your friend, hey,
there's this podcast I listen to.
You should try sometime.
Then you can say you can findit wherever you listen to
podcasts.
Exactly, you can follow us onall of the socials at
(49:20):
likewhateverpod except X.
You can send an email tolikewhateverpod at gmailcom.
And don't forget to head onover to Free Nights and Weekends
and listen to our amazingcommercial.
Speaker 2 (49:36):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (49:37):
Or don't Like whatever.
Speaker 2 (49:39):
Whatever, bye.
We'll see you back.
It's like whatever.
Speaker 2 (00:31):
Welcome to Like Whatever a podcast for, by and
about Gen X, I'm Nicole and thisis my BFF, heather, hello.
So this week we want to startoff by talking about a couple of
collaborations that we aregetting into, which is fun and
exciting.
So this week I want to tell youabout a podcast called Free
(00:55):
Nights and Weekends.
It is a Gen X podcast.
It is very funny, ooh, and hehas some really good guests on.
So we like it and we wanted toshare it with you.
So here is a little clip fromFree Nights and Weekends.
Speaker 4 (01:14):
Hello, like Whatever Pod listeners, my name is Scott
and I write comedy and, like theladies of the podcast you're
listening to, I got to grow upin the roaring 80s, but in the
middle of the country.
My podcast, free Nights andWeekends roaring 80s, but in the
middle of the country.
My podcast, free Nights andWeekends, covers it all, but
from a different perspective.
So when you're not listening toLike Whatever and planning
family trips around theirpersonal appearances, give us a
(01:34):
listen.
You can find us at Free Nightsand Weekends Podcast on Facebook
X and at FNAW Podcastcom Shutup.
Speaker 2 (01:42):
I know, Make sure you check out Three Nights and
Weekends when you get a chance.
Speaker 3 (01:53):
So we're giving him a little clip to have on his
podcast and we recorded ourfirst commercial Commercial and
air quotes, and.
I mean we killed it on thefirst try.
We really did, I don't know, Ihope.
Anyway, he might disagree, Iguess, but uh, whatever, um he
would be wrong.
Uh, we also have um.
(02:14):
We were contacted by someonewho is very into this podcast,
which is very exciting becausewe think it's cool when you
people like us, we do.
He has a book.
His name is Pat Green.
The book comes out April 7th.
It's called Hearts of GlassLiving in the Real World and we
(02:37):
got a little advanced copyExcuse us.
And it is really good.
Speaker 2 (02:45):
Yes, I mean, I mean, really good, I have not started
it yet but I will procrastinate.
I am the queen ofprocrastination and I am on
vacation for the next three days, um a relaxing vacation with my
mom and sister in virginiabeach, so I think I will have
plenty of time to sit around andread it then.
Speaker 3 (03:04):
I read it last night.
Speaker 4 (03:06):
Right after we got it , I read it.
And I very much enjoyed it.
Speaker 3 (03:11):
So basically, we are going to try and work something
out where he comes andentertains you and us.
Yeah.
As a guest on the show.
He really wants to hang outwith us for the hour.
I don't know why.
Speaker 2 (03:30):
And we want to help him promote his book.
Win-win for everybody.
Speaker 3 (03:34):
So we're trying to get it out there.
We're trying to do our things,help the community, Because we
think we're fucking hilarious.
I mean we are fucking hilarious.
Speaker 2 (03:49):
So, yeah, just real quick, I want to remind you to
find us wherever you listen topodcasts.
Please remember to like, rateand review.
That is important for us to getin better standings with all
the podcast carriers.
And we are on all the socialsexcept for X at LikeWhateverPod.
(04:09):
You can look for us on YouTubewhere we are under LikeWhatever
and the L and the W arecapitalized.
Yes, some people are havingissues finding us.
We think that might be it, meincluded, and we are also on
TikTok.
Speaker 3 (04:23):
The tickety-tock.
Speaker 2 (04:25):
Heather's favorite.
All right, so let's fuck aroundand find out about the 1979
Three Mile Island accident 46years ago, on March 28th, which
is the day that this podcastwill drop.
Wow, mm-hmm up, wow.
(04:50):
My references are pbsorg andnrcgov, which is the United
States Nuclear Regulatory.
Speaker 3 (04:54):
Commission, someone whose website is still up, so
that's good.
Speaker 2 (04:56):
Does Homer run that?
Probably so.
The Three Mile Island accidentin 1979 at the three mile island
nuclear plant station that wasthe most serious in the history
of the american nuclear powerindustry.
The three mile island powerstation was named after the
island on which it was situatedin the susquehanna river near
(05:18):
harrisburg, pennsylvania I don'tknow why I always thought it
was new york.
Speaker 3 (05:21):
It's up there, I know , but I don't know why I always
thought it was New York.
It's up there, I know, but Idon't know why.
I don't know, I don't know why.
Or, like Upper Jersey, I don'tknow why I thought it was like
there.
Speaker 2 (05:32):
Yeah, it's in a weird spot.
I Googled it, good job.
I know.
At 4 am on March 28th anautomatically operated valve in
the Unit 2 reactor mistakenlyclosed, shutting off the water
supply to the main water feedsystem, that is, the system that
(05:54):
transfers heat from the wateractually circulating in the
reactor core.
Speaker 3 (06:28):
No-transcript, whew that was a tongue twister, that
was easy for you to say yeah.
Speaker 2 (06:36):
Some of which escaped from the core into the
containment vessel of thereactor building.
Very little of this and otherradioactive gases actually
escaped into the atmosphere andthey did not constitute a threat
to the health of thesurrounding population, which I
find very hard to believe.
But nobody believes that In thefollowing days adequate coolant
(06:57):
water circulation in the corewas restored.
The accident at Three MileIsland, though minuscule in its
health consequences, hadwidespread and profound effects
on the American nuclear powerindustry.
It resulted in the immediate,though temporary, process of
(07:23):
approval for new plants by theNuclear Regulatory Commission
was significantly slowed.
For years after the accident nonew reactors were ordered by
utility companies in the UnitedStates from 1979 through the
mid-80s.
The accident increased publicfears about the safety of
(07:44):
nuclear reactors andstrengthened public opposition
to the construction of newplants.
The unharmed Unit 1 reactor ofThree Mile Island did not resume
operations until 1985.
The cleanup of Unit 2 continueduntil 1990.
Damage to the unit was sosevere, however, 52% of the core
melted down and it remainedunusable.
Speaker 3 (08:06):
wow so I don't remember when was chernobyl?
Speaker 2 (08:10):
man.
That movie chernobyl, though,is very good oh my gosh, so good
yeah, they have likethree-headed dogs and stuff.
Speaker 3 (08:18):
They they still have new that whole area there is uh
radioactive, radioactive 86.
Speaker 2 (08:28):
Okay, and I remember um knowing about three mile
island my whole life.
Yeah, and it made me nervousbecause where we live at the
beach, you can look across thewater and see the new jersey yes
, nuclear plant you know, and Ithink I I think that might be
why I was confused, because Ithink I maybe thought that was
Three Mile Island.
No, we can't see Three Mile.
Speaker 3 (08:53):
Island, I know, not from here.
Well, I think that maybe that'swhy I thought it was Jersey,
because I was like, oh, look atthat, that's right there.
I mean, I guess nuclear is oneof the cleaner energies, correct
?
Speaker 2 (09:05):
Yeah, until it leaks.
Until it leaks, until it's not.
Speaker 3 (09:09):
Then it's really not.
Speaker 2 (09:10):
Yeah, then it's super not Because.
Speaker 3 (09:12):
I think that Chernobyl still has like
radioactive.
Speaker 2 (09:14):
Oh it takes I think I want to say tens of thousands
of years for it to Radio work,yeah, and it's so creepy to see
pictures of that area nowbecause it's just an abandoned
yeah city it's so sad what wascrazy, though, in that movie was
watching.
The people just stand there andwatch yeah like as it happened.
Speaker 3 (09:35):
You're like oh my god , yeah, they have no idea well,
and I think that wasn't thatwhat happened in Fukushima in
the tsunami.
It was the coolant right, thatwas the problem with it.
Speaker 2 (09:50):
It was, I think that's, and then they had people
going in there they had the oldpeople going in there because
the old people knew it was moreimportant to keep the young
people alive the good of themany outweigh the good of the
few Imagine that Spock.
Speaker 3 (10:12):
Dr Spock, it's the needs of the many outweigh the
needs of the few, oh, okay.
Speaker 2 (10:19):
So I lost my place.
I'm sorry I interrupted.
No, it's not your fault Healtheffects, Not your fault my fault
.
Speaker 3 (10:24):
It is my fault, everything's my fault.
I'm sorry I interrupted.
No, it's not your fault.
Health effects Not your fault.
My fault, it is my fault,everything's my fault.
Speaker 2 (10:28):
All right.
The health effects the NRCconducted detailed studies of
the accident's radiologicalconsequences, as did the
Environmental Protection Agency,the Department of Health,
education and Welfare, nowHealth and Human Services, the
Department of Energy and theCommonwealth of Pennsylvania.
Several independent groups alsoconducted studies.
(10:50):
The approximately 2 millionpeople around TMI2, too much
information to during theaccident are estimated to have
received an average radiationdose of only about one millirem
above the usual background dose.
To put that into context,exposure from a chest x-ray is
(11:13):
about six millirem and thearea's natural radioactive
background dose is about 100 to125 millirem per year for the
area.
The accident's maximum dose toa person at the site boundary
would have been less than 100millirem above background.
(11:34):
I don't want any?
Speaker 3 (11:37):
No, that doesn't seem like it's good.
Speaker 2 (11:40):
It's like how they say well, you can have so much
lead in baby food, but just alittle bit.
Speaker 3 (11:45):
Well, you can have so many cockroach parts.
Yeah, a little bit of rat poopnever hurt anybody.
Speaker 2 (11:49):
Okay.
So in the months following theaccident, although questions
were raised about possibleadverse effects from radiation
on human, animal and plant lifein the TMI area, None of your
goddamn business.
None could be directlycorrelated to the accident.
Thousands of environmentalsamples of air, water, milk,
(12:10):
vegetation, soil and foodstuffswere collected by various
government agencies monitoringthe area.
Very low levels ofradionuclides could be
attributed to releases from theaccident.
Organizations such as ColumbiaUniversity and the University of
(12:37):
Pittsburgh have concluded that,in spite of serious damage to
the reactor, the actual releasehad negligible effects on the
physical health of individualsor the environment.
I would like to talk to peoplein the area well and see how
they're so here's how muchcancer they've got so
Speaker 3 (12:52):
here's the thing about Pennsylvania period.
No offense to the Pennsylvaniapeople, but first of all, you
all travel some kind of crazyamounts.
Are you ever home.
Because everywhere I have everbeen, ever Vegas, I was on a
cruise to motherfucking Alaskaand the whole ship was people
(13:15):
from fucking Pennsylvania.
In Arizona, some lady walks up,starts a conversation when are
you from Pittsburgh?
Oh, you're from fuckingPennsylvania.
Everywhere I go Can't get awayfrom, it's true, anyway.
So you, people fromPennsylvania, you got the
cancers anyway.
I mean that's what my wholefamily has died of.
And they, you people fromPennsylvania, you got the
cancers anyway.
I mean that's what my wholefamily has died of.
(13:37):
And they're all fromPennsylvania.
Yeah, I mean they live rightnear Sun Oil, so that probably
didn't help.
They were drinking that Sun.
Speaker 2 (13:45):
Oil, water and all that mining.
Speaker 3 (13:48):
Well, yeah, I mean, how would you know if it was
nuclear cancer or minor cancer,oil cancer?
Speaker 2 (14:01):
All right.
Impact of the accident.
A combination of personal error, design deficiencies and
component failures caused theTMI accident, which permanently
changed both the nuclearindustry and the NRC Public fear
and distrust increased.
Nrc's regulations and oversightbecame broader and more robust,
(14:21):
and management of the plantswas scrutinized more carefully.
Careful analysis of theaccident's events identified
problems and led to permanentand sweeping changes in how nrc
regulates its licensees, whichin turn has reduced the risk to
public health and safety exceptwhen you give one to mr burns
and he lets homer be in charge.
(14:44):
It's not good.
This stuff always makes me madanyway, like humans are lazy yes
and there is a reason thatprotection measures and safety
measures are put into place.
So when you just get bored andlazy and skim on things like
this, this shit's going tohappen, yeah.
Speaker 3 (15:04):
So shit's going to melt down.
Speaker 2 (15:05):
Yeah, I heard they've been talking about a lot about
the Scott Key Bridge again thisweek because it's the
anniversary and that bridgehadn't been inspected in like 50
years.
And guess what the bay bridgehasn't had.
Like no, thank you proper,don't tell me that.
And like no, I know I have togo through the bay bridge tunnel
tomorrow.
I don't mind the tunnel, somuch maybe the bay.
(15:28):
My mom hates tunnels so shemight make.
Just make me do the bridge mysister's driving though, so oh
Lord.
Speaker 3 (15:37):
Either way, we don't like bridges around here.
Speaker 2 (15:39):
Yeah, no, no, no.
Speaker 3 (15:40):
And the sad fact of it is they're literally
everywhere.
Yeah, we're surrounded by water, so we are on a barrier island.
Speaker 2 (15:49):
Kind of bridgey.
So here are some major changesthat have occurred since the
accident Upgrading andstrengthening of plant design
and equipment requirements.
This includes fire protection,piping systems, auxiliary feed
water systems, containment,building isolation, reliability
of individual components,pressure relief valves and
electric circuit breakers, andthe ability of plants to shut
(16:12):
down automatically.
I mean, if you really thinkabout it though, not to
sidetrack.
I mean to sidetrackintentionally.
Speaker 3 (16:20):
Yes, so you have really only ever heard of three.
I mean I have.
I don't know about you.
Speaker 2 (16:29):
Maybe you know more.
You would think there'd be alot more incidents you would,
but maybe there are ones wedon't know about.
True, like if they're happeningover there in Russia, china.
Speaker 3 (16:46):
That's true, but maybe not.
I don't know.
Speaker 2 (16:51):
Okay.
Identifying the critical roleof human performance in plant
safety led to revamping operatortraining and staffing
requirements, because you knowpeople pay attention in
trainings Followed by improvedinstrumentation and controls for
operating the plant andestablishment of fitness for
duty programs for plant workersto guard against alcohol or drug
(17:13):
abuse, I mean duh, that's not agood job to be drunk on.
I don't think Definitely notEnhancing emergency preparedness
, including requirements forplants to do immediate
notification to the NRC ofsignificant events and an NRC
(17:34):
operations center staffed 24hours a day.
Drills and response plans arenow tested by licensees several
times a year and state and localagencies participate in drills
with the Federal EmergencyManagement Agency and the NRC.
Speaker 3 (17:49):
Yeah, they don't exist anymore.
I don't think they cut FEMA.
Speaker 2 (17:54):
Oh yeah, Well, it used to be that way.
Speaker 3 (17:59):
So prepare yourselves for some nuclear meltdown, hey
kids.
Three Mile Island might happenagain.
Speaker 2 (18:09):
I hope it doesn't happen in Jersey.
That's too close.
I don't know the wind's blowingthe right way, we're fucked.
I think we close.
I don't know the wind's blowingthe right way, we're fucked.
Speaker 3 (18:16):
I think we're fucked either way.
True.
Speaker 2 (18:19):
Integrating NRC observations, findings and
conclusions about licenseeperformance and management
effectiveness into a periodicpublic report.
Having senior NRC managersregularly analyze plant
performance for those plantsneeding significant additional
regulatory attention.
Expanding NRC residentinspector programs first
(18:41):
authorized in 1977, to have atleast two inspectors live nearby
and work exclusively at eachplant in the US to provide daily
surveillance of licenseeadherence to NRC regulations.
Sounds like a fun job.
Just go around and tell peoplewhat to do.
Expanding performance-orientedas well as safety-oriented
(19:05):
inspections and the use of riskmanagement or assessment to
identify vulnerabilities of anyplant to severe accidents.
Strengthening and reorganizingenforcement staff in a separate
office within the NRC.
And then like five more and I'mjust not going to run through
the rest of them.
I'm bored with it.
I know you guys are All right,so this was fun.
(19:26):
Jimmy Carter was president whenthree miles.
Speaker 3 (19:30):
She was so goddamn excited about this.
Speaker 2 (19:32):
I was so excited because y'all loved the jimmy
carter episode jimmy carterepisode is our most listened to
episode yeah, by quite a bit.
Yes, yeah, so we were excitedto plug jimmy carter again.
The damaged uh reactor at threemile island was not the first
president jimmy.
(19:52):
Jimmy Carter had viewed upclose.
While in the Navy, carter waspart of a team that helped
dismantle the damaged nuclearreactor at the Chalk River plant
in Ontario, canada.
Oh yeah, I remember that.
So, there's a fourth one.
I remember that.
Speaker 4 (20:06):
Because I was blown away by Carter was a trained
nuclear engineer.
Speaker 3 (20:09):
I know as a trained nuclear engineer, I know.
Speaker 2 (20:12):
A trained nuclear engineer, Carter worked under
famed Admiral Hyman Rickover,the father of the Navy's nuclear
program on the Seawolf andatomic submarine.
He also studied nuclear physicsat Union College in New York.
Given his background, Carterhad a firm grasp of the
potential disaster that wouldensue should a nuclear meltdown
(20:32):
occur.
How convenient is that thatthat you have?
The guy that's in chargeactually knows what he's doing.
Speaker 3 (20:39):
That's a novel idea.
Speaker 2 (20:41):
He has expertise on you know what?
Speaker 3 (20:43):
the guy in charge, having expertise on literally
anything other than goingbankrupt, is a really novel idea
yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah yeah yepokay, um, as a seasoned
politician, he was a lot ofsoapboxes that I, I am
oh well, feel free to jump inwith one whenever you feel like
I can't, because I haven'tgotten my email email from elon
(21:06):
yet, so I don't have to tellwhat my three things I did last
week was um, yeah, I got a lotof I'm very angry person today,
okay, and then she gave medrinks, so now I'm even more
angry yeah well, I'll try not tobe angry at Jimmy Carter no,
it's okay.
Speaker 2 (21:26):
If you do, he would understand I don't think he
would.
As a seasoned politician, he wasalso aware of the possible
panic that would ensue shouldpeople come to believe a
meltdown was imminent.
Upon hearing of the situationat Three Mile Island, carter
dispatched Harold Denton, thedirector of the Division of
Nuclear Reactor Regulations atthe Nuclear Regulatory
(21:49):
Commission, to Harrisburg,pennsylvania as his personal
representative mission toHarrisburg Pennsylvania.
As his personal representative.
The president was frustrated byhis inability to establish
telephone contact withPennsylvania Governor Dick
Thornburg.
To solve this problem, heordered dedicated phone lines to
be connected between the WhiteHouse, the NRC and the State
House at Harrisburg.
(22:09):
By Saturday, march 31st, carterhad decided to pay a personal
visit to Harrisburg.
Jimmy didn't fuck around noJimmy was like bitch, I'm coming
.
If you want something done right, do it yourself.
The national and internationalmedia had given the accident at
Three Mile Island front pageattention for days, and
(22:30):
venerable network newsman WalterCronkite was speaking of a
horror that could get much worse.
So it sounds like the media.
Yeah.
Carter believed that the peopleof Pennsylvania and the nation
were looking to him forleadership.
So on April 1st Carterinspected the damaged plant
inspected it his own damn self.
Middletown, pennsylvania MayorRobert Reed later spoke of
(22:57):
Carter's visit as providing amuch-needed morale boost.
People weren't talking to oneanother, they were cooped up in
their homes and when he came itseemed like everyone came out to
see the president and it wasreally a shot in the arm.
Reed recounted to writer MarkStevens.
Speaker 3 (23:11):
Well, I I imagine that if you live there you have
to think like when he shows upwell, obviously it can't be as
bad as we think it is, becausethey're letting this guy.
Speaker 2 (23:25):
Yeah, if the president's standing outside
breathing the air it must besafe.
Speaker 3 (23:29):
Yeah, you're not going to let that guy hang out.
Speaker 2 (23:32):
Yeah, but he was like a superhero.
He had already been infusedwith radioactivity.
It was repellent.
Speaker 3 (23:41):
It just repelled off of him.
Speaker 2 (23:45):
I know I understand that, but I think the bad guys
throw balls of radioactive stuffat him and it just throws his
forearm up and bounces off.
Speaker 3 (23:56):
I'm a humble peanut farmer.
I just I feel like that wouldcertainly would make me feel
better, mm, hmm, if thepresident showed up as a nuclear
accident.
Yep, it would really make mefeel a lot better, a lot
Currently.
President would show up in anuclear anyway, I am wound up.
Speaker 2 (24:21):
She is, it's, it's very I love it when she's feisty
.
Um, in the aftermath of threemile island, president carter
ordered the creation of aspecial commission headed by
Dartmouth College President JohnKemeny, to review the event.
The resultant report foundfault with the NRC.
Carter ordered a reshuffling ofkey NRC personnel, but no
(24:45):
substantial overhaul.
So he went and got rid of thepeople that weren't doing their
job, instead of all the people.
Speaker 3 (24:56):
Just all of them, and then trying to bring him back
three days later because youfound out what they actually
fucking do for real.
So I am gonna hold on.
Speaker 2 (25:07):
Okay, I am gonna soapbox it for a second god, I
know I was like she can't leaveme hanging.
Speaker 3 (25:11):
No, I'm a federal worker right yes, yes, you are
Kind of.
Technically not, but anyway, ifyou care at all, call your
representative or senator oremail them.
I don't think it's hard to do.
I've done it.
Just send a littlerepresentative email, a senator
email, to save the post office,because strange things are afoot
(25:37):
at the circle k and um, youknow we're, we're all a little
on edge about it.
Um, I worked very hard to getwhere I am.
Yes, I started the post officein the in the beginning of COVID
and worked a lot of hours, alot, a lot, a lot, because we
(25:59):
were delivering when nothingelse was open and yeah, so I
worked very hard to get where Iam.
I was excited to finally beable to say I can at some point
retire with a pension, and thatis now being threatened.
So I'll get off my soapbox now.
Speaker 2 (26:21):
No, and I've watched you go through that.
And I also have a nephew whowill be turning 30 this year and
he has chosen to make this hiscareer and he's about the same
amount of time as you right, Ithink we started at the same
time.
Yeah, I thought so.
So he also went through it andhas finally gotten to the point
where he can relax a little bitand do his job and think about
(26:43):
retirement.
Speaker 3 (26:44):
It's funny because there was a few of us that were
it's called an RCA.
You're the sub, basically, andyou do all the grunt work.
There was a few of us that havestayed the whole time and there
were times where we had, oh, 21plus 8, 29 routes in our office
(27:07):
and like half of them were wereempty because, you know, covid
went through and all sorts ofdifferent reasons and there
wasn't enough of us to cover andwe were just doing everything
we could and I swear I keep, wekeep talking about it all the
time and we're like I know Ihave ptsd from that and they're
like, yeah, I mean there weretimes where we were delivering
(27:30):
mail until you know 10, 30, oknow 10, 30 o'clock, 10, 30, 11
o'clock at night.
Yep, yeah, so anyway I.
Speaker 2 (27:40):
There was a rally nationwide yesterday and my
nephew went to it.
I guess maybe in Wilmington,dover, I don't know where he
went.
Newark Okay, yeah, he went.
I haven't heard where he went.
Newark Okay, yeah, he went.
I haven't heard how it went.
Speaker 3 (27:55):
And you know, obviously there's lots of rumors
going around as to what couldhappen, what they want to have
happen, and, from what I'mreading, your nephew will be
fine, he'll still have a job,but I don't know.
About the rural craft, uh, yeah, we're very expensive yeah, but
(28:22):
if it privatizes, you're allscrewed.
So yeah, well, that's very true, yeah, so soapbox ended
everybody that I work with hiall right.
Speaker 2 (28:34):
One last thing that I need to add to that um, the
post office is not a business.
It is not meant to make money.
Speaker 3 (28:46):
It is a service to the people of the United States.
You remember when everybody gotthree COVID tests and it came
to you through the mail?
I know because I delivered abazillion of them of them.
(29:08):
That is the plan.
If something like three mileisland happens, the the plan put
through in the governmentsecret plans is that if you need
to deliver a large quantity ofmedication to people, it is the
united states postal servicethat will be that we will be the
ones that will be deliveringwhatever anti-radiation or
whatever.
That is the whole.
One of the things that we wouldbe in charge of is something If
(29:34):
something were to happen.
We go to every house every day,so that's how they and that's
how you got COVID tests.
Yep, and they that you know saywhat you will about the post
office being slow and alwaysrate hiking and all that.
It's going to get a whole lotmore expensive if it privatizes.
(29:54):
That's just.
You're not going to be able tosend a letter for under a dollar
.
Speaker 2 (29:58):
No, it's going to be like UPS or yeah.
Speaker 3 (30:02):
Well, that is.
They'll be competing with them,right?
Speaker 2 (30:04):
um yeah so I don't know.
Yeah, that wasn't even asoapbox, that was just you
educating everybody on what'shappening and we also.
Speaker 3 (30:12):
Just I don't know.
I didn't know this until Ifirst started working there.
The usps does not receive anymoney from the government at all
.
We do not get government moneyunless they have to bail it out,
which they did bail it out acouple years ago.
Speaker 2 (30:24):
But everybody got bailed out a couple years ago.
Speaker 3 (30:26):
Yeah, but the USPS survives on its own.
It's its own thing, Right?
You know we live off you buyingstamps and sending parcels and
stuff like that.
So technically we're nottaxpayer funded, Correct?
So there look it up.
Speaker 2 (30:45):
Yeah, I'll go ahead.
Harold Denton, director ofdivision of nuclear reactor
regulations at the nuclearregulatory commission, was Jimmy
Carter's personalrepresentative to Harrisburg for
the duration of the problem atthe Three Mile Island nuclear
power plant.
The arrival of Denton seemed toimmediately calm the fraying
(31:08):
nerves of public officials andstem the anger of the frustrated
press corps.
Reporter Steve Liddick of WCMBradio explained to writer Mark
Stevens that Harold Denton wastrusted because he looked like a
regular down to earth kind ofguy and people wanted someone to
believe.
Speaker 3 (31:28):
So, like you said, and that's, you know, that would
.
That's the whole point where Ithink any of the presidents go
to these places where disastersjust you know, to put the eyes
on it and say you know we care,yeah, we know you're here, yeah,
we're going to do what we can.
Speaker 2 (31:44):
And plus it's important for them because you
can't understand somethingunless you see it or live
through it.
You know people who want tomake judgment on everything.
If you haven't been in thatsituation, you have no idea.
So it's important for thepresident to go and see how bad
it actually is.
Speaker 3 (32:03):
You know when there are disasters and such, so that
they really can wrap their headaround how much help is needed
because, and here's the thing,um so when, when they're showing
all this disaster stuff, it issad and I, you know, I only know
hurricanes because we've had acouple um none of them have ever
been a big problem, but thething of it is is a lot of
(32:24):
things are built to be destroyedin the situation to again, the
good, the, the, uh, whatever drspock said, the needs of the
many outweigh the needs of thefew, um, so in order to to save
the house, a lot of stuff has tobreak away.
Like um, I grew up in a blockfrom the ocean.
(32:48):
We had a lagoon in our backyardand the bay was across the
street.
Everything has to be up onstilts, it has to handle.
I think it's a three here, twoor three here, because we don't
usually get them bigger thanthat.
But when the media is showingyou these places that have been,
you know, destroyed and, yes,our house being gone, that's sad
(33:08):
, but a lot of times it looks alot worse because it's like you
know, siding piled up and allthat shit was meant to come off.
Speaker 2 (33:19):
Yeah, or they'll pick like structures that weren't
meant for hurricanes at all.
Speaker 3 (33:25):
yeah, and you see the roof halfway across the yard
and such, and you're like, oh mygod, but you know that's one
house and that is of course, notto say that there are
definitely damaged areas, butthat's one of the reasons why
you put eyes on the ground,because if you don't know what
it's like to go through thatbecause you know, when I watch
(33:45):
that stuff I can be like well,that shed was you know it's a
shed right all those boats piledup.
You have insurance on thatbecause you know that's going to
happen especially in thehurricane areas right.
Losing the house is althoughhere's my thing about that.
How many times are you justgoing to keep rebuilding your
house in the same fucking spot?
(34:06):
Yeah and also my issue with itfor those of you that live in
hurricane prone areas.
Why do you not save yourplywood?
Why are you going to the homedepot the day before the?
Storm comes in and fightingeveryone else for a piece of
plywood.
Speaker 2 (34:23):
You know it's funny.
My parents live in Fort Myersand they did have a bad
hurricane a couple years ago andwhen I went down and visited
them in November, it's been afew years and there is still a
lot of damage, like you canstill tell that a hurricane came
through there and they took medown to one of the popular
beaches where there were hotelsand restaurants and there's just
(34:44):
nothing.
It's really crazy.
But my point to this is so manyhouses just left their plywood
up, all their windows areplywooded shut and it's all
really old, like dark plywood,so it's definitely been there
since the hurricane.
I'm like, take it down and saveit Like really old, like dark
plywood, so it's definitely beenthere since the hurricane.
(35:05):
I'm like, take it down and saveit.
Like your house is dark inside.
To save I mean, leaving yourchristmas lights up all year is
one thing, but hurricane seasonstarted, starts in like june and
goes to november every year.
Speaker 3 (35:17):
it's not a surprise, it's not?
Oh my god.
You's not, oh my God.
You live in an area, if youlive in Florida, that hangs off
the bottom of the country,you're pretty sure that you're
going to get at least one rollthrough somewhere in your state.
Speaker 2 (35:33):
Yes, you just know.
Yeah, somebody's getting hit?
Speaker 3 (35:34):
Why are you going to Home Depot the day before the
damn thing hits, fighting otherpeople off for plywood.
Just save your plywood.
Speaker 2 (35:43):
Yeah, it's not that hard.
Or just randomly buy it one dayif you don't have it, or buy
Hurricane Shutters or whatever.
Yeah, there you go, there yougo.
Speaker 3 (35:53):
If you got an issue all the time, buy some shutters.
Speaker 2 (35:55):
Mm-hmm, yeah, so Denton's job was far from easy.
It fell to him to informThornburg and Carter about a
possibility no, possiblyexplosive hydrogen bubble
discovered above the coolingwater.
That sounds scary.
Speaker 3 (36:14):
Anything possibly explosive, explosive bubble.
Speaker 2 (36:18):
Yeah, explosive bubble At the top of the reactor
pressure vessel.
The bubble, and whether or notit would mix with oxygen and set
off a devastating explosion,proved to be the source of
intense debate and fuelednightmarish images of a meltdown
.
At the time of Carter's arrivalon Sunday morning, april 1st,
(36:41):
the question as to whether thebubble would explode was still
under debate.
Jimmy Carter showed up knowingthere was an explosive bubble.
Speaker 3 (36:55):
I'm telling you she loves her some Jimmy.
Speaker 2 (36:57):
Carter, I really do.
I didn't know how much I lovedhim until we did that episode.
I know I mean I always haveloved him because he's always
been a good human I just likegood humans.
But yeah, I didn't realize hewas so badass.
Speaker 3 (37:08):
He was a superhero.
Speaker 2 (37:10):
Yes, denton informed the president of the risk just
as he was preparing to enter theplant.
I briefed the president on thisbubble and the possibility of
an explosive mixture and triedto give him the two sides that
were out there, but we stilldidn't have single view on that.
Denton remembered.
Speaker 3 (37:31):
It's pretty scary Unexplosive bubble yeah.
Speaker 2 (37:36):
Alright, so the current status of Three Mile
Island Today, the TMI None ofyour goddamn business.
Two reactor is permanently shutdown and 99% of its fuel has
been removed.
The reactor coolant system isfully drained and the
radioactive water decontaminated.
And evaporated which I readthat the first time and I was
(37:59):
like what exactly does that mean?
And evaporated, which I readthat the first time and I was
like what exactly does that mean?
The accident's radioactivewaste was shipped off-site to an
appropriate disposal area.
Speaker 3 (38:09):
I bet it's not appropriate.
Speaker 2 (38:10):
Yeah, I mean nowhere is appropriate.
The moon yeah, that'sappropriate.
And the reactor fuel and coredebris was shipped to the
Department of Energy's IdahoNatural Laboratory.
No-transcript.
(38:43):
Exelon Generation isresponsible for decommissioning
activities there.
So, huh.
Speaker 3 (38:56):
I was going to say that, yeah, are they not using?
I don't, yeah, are they notusing?
I don't know.
Are they not using them anymore?
Speaker 2 (39:04):
Not there.
Speaker 3 (39:06):
Where are they getting their electric from?
Speaker 2 (39:09):
Canada, Well they're about to shut it off.
Okay, they're about to turn thelight switch off.
Everybody better get some solarpanels on their house, windmill
.
Here's a little additionalinformation.
Further information on theTMI-2 accident can be obtained
(39:29):
from NUREG documents, many ofwhich are on microfiche.
Speaker 3 (39:39):
I dare you all to go get some microfiche and see if
you can read it, if you have amicrofiche viewer is that the
thing from the library?
How we used to look up newsarticles when we were kids.
Speaker 2 (39:53):
okay, uh, they can be ordered for a fee from the r,
our NRC's public document room,in case you're super bored, at
301-415-4737 or 1-800-397-4209.
Or you can email pdr at nrcgov.
The PDR is located in Rockville, maryland, or something like
(40:17):
that.
Speaker 3 (40:17):
Yeah yeah, I don't know, but yeah okay, so I was, I
think.
I think nuclear power is scaryto us.
Speaker 2 (40:30):
Yes, because of chernobyl, because of three mile
island and because we don'thave a real understanding of it
and because we don't have a realunderstanding of it.
Speaker 3 (40:38):
Because we're not engineers I am not.
I think also it's hard todiscern the difference between
nuclear weapon and nuclear power, and I think that's where,
because we always had to getunder a desk and obviously
(40:59):
that's not going to help.
But so I think that's maybewhere all the fear of them.
Speaker 2 (41:05):
Probably.
Speaker 3 (41:06):
Because I do think they're one of the cleaner.
Speaker 2 (41:09):
Mm-hmm and safer.
Speaker 3 (41:10):
Safer, yeah, mm-hmm.
I mean, yeah, I don't know, Ijust think they're scary.
Speaker 2 (41:17):
They scare me too.
I just I don't get it.
I don't understand it.
But I knew that I always knewabout Three Mile Island.
Yeah, like my, I knew that Ialways knew about Three.
Speaker 3 (41:25):
Mile.
Speaker 2 (41:25):
Island like my whole life, so I wanted to do this and
, like I said, when this iscoming out on Friday, march 28th
, that is the anniversary of themeltdown, and I thought of
something that I want to talkabout earlier.
Did you see the article I sentyou about the Great White?
Speaker 3 (41:41):
No.
Speaker 2 (41:46):
So off the shores I want to say not far, maybe the
carolinas some guys were surffishing and caught like a 12
foot great white yes, and theybrought it up and they had.
Speaker 3 (41:52):
They had to free it yeah, that looks and try to buy
those.
Speaker 2 (41:56):
Of course it did yeah , because that's his job.
Yeah, and how do you get a hookout of that mouth?
They don't, they cut him, ohyeah well, it took them long
enough to cut.
Speaker 3 (42:05):
And then the worst part about it a you're not
allowed to catch them um, yeah,of course you have to.
Speaker 2 (42:09):
Yeah, they didn't catch it on purpose.
No, I know.
Speaker 3 (42:11):
Um the other problem is um sharks.
It came up awfully far out ofthe water and the issue with
sharks, I believe, in particular, is that they don't do well
being drugged back out.
Yeah, they're not good at that,yeah, so.
Speaker 2 (42:34):
He probably didn't make it.
He probably didn't make it.
Speaker 3 (42:38):
Did you see the orca, though, off of one of the
Carolinas?
I did.
What in the hell?
Now they're coming for yachtsover here.
Yeah, another reason to stayout of the water.
Oh, and also, did you see, man?
The orcas are wearing the hatsagain, the salmon hats.
They did it for 30 years.
They did it 30 years, like inthe 90s, they wore dead salmon
(42:58):
as hats.
This one particular pod woresam.
They would just like toolaround with salmon on their head
and it was like a hat and itwas like they said it was like a
trend, it was trendy becausethey all did it in this one
particular pod and then one daythey just stopped and then
apparently somebody told him itdidn't look cool much like
(43:20):
people now thinking the 90s havecome back.
If you've seen any of theclothes out today, everybody is
dressing like it is 1996.
Yeah, the mom jeans have youseen Low Rise are coming back.
No, thank you.
Anyway, they all started thepod and another pod, like
(43:40):
completely different from themare all now wearing Sam and his
hats again.
Speaker 2 (43:45):
They must have had a picture of, like their grandma
with a salmon hat.
I were like it's totally weird.
Yeah, I watched.
You just reminded me I watchedthe second episode of the
Americas with Mexico, so I sawwhat you meant about not needing
(44:05):
to see the circle of life.
Yeah, yeah, and it involvedorcas, but that one was brutal
it was, but it was also, on theflip side of that, amazing to
watch them work as a group andit's.
Speaker 3 (44:20):
It's funny because I can't watch that, but I can
watch.
Um, I became obsessed withthese two fucking eagles and, oh
yeah, the big bear.
So shadow and jackie I havebeen watching these damn eagles
for like three years, and thelast time they produced a chick
was in 2022, prior to mewatching them so then they had
(44:42):
two years where they did not um.
Their eggs did not hatch.
Apparently they do grieve.
It's very sad.
When they gave up the nest thefirst time, it took them a while
to because, um, I don't know ifyou know or care about bald
eagles they stay at the samenest and they just keep making
them bigger and bigger andbigger, yes, so, um, eventually
(45:02):
they ended up realizing that theeggs were not going to hatch,
so they just give up.
And then there's a squirrelthat lives underneath of them,
called Fiona.
And she came and stole the eggsAnyway.
so this year Jackie and Shadowin fact did lay three eggs and
all three hatched.
They did.
Now the drama has been one dayit still snows there, because
(45:25):
it's it's very cold, I guess.
Um, so when jackie was gettingup one day one of the chicks was
stuck to her leg and almostlost it out of the, out of the
nest oh, no but it rolled backin and then it started snowing
really, really hard.
Um and jackie, those two,they're hilarious, I know shadow
(45:51):
comes with sticks and he hitsher in the head all the time.
It's friends of big bear.
If you ever want to check theseeagles out, it's.
It's really, it is anyway.
Um, something happened.
One of the chicks froze todeath after the snow yes, it
didn't make it through, and itwas the one that was like super
feisty, like it was the oldestone, I think, and it was super
(46:11):
feisty Like the parent would siton the nest and it would like
pop its little head out andeverything, anyway, it must have
gotten caught up in one oftheir feathers.
Out on the outside, it'snature's way.
Yeah, it's got you knowwhatever.
Yeah, so there's two.
Well, drama has happened againbecause yesterday jackie had a
(46:32):
fish hook stuck in her mouth.
Oh no, yeah, she did end upgetting it out, but everybody on
there was like they need tointervene and of course, the
people were like we, we don'tit's it's nope, it is what it is
you know, just because you'rewatching it doesn't mean my
point to that was.
There's these ravens that flyover their heads and you can see
(46:54):
on their um.
I don't know what the hell kindof balls these ravens have I
don't know if they're trying toget to the chicks or they're
trying to get to the eggs orwhat they're doing, but they fly
around and they drive theminsane, like you'll see her duck
down and like she's yelling,and then shadow will come and
try and hit.
Anyway, they have severalcameras up and the one is like a
(47:15):
long distance camera, so theother day you can see the raven
flying over and then all of asudden you see jackie or shadow
I don't remember which one comeout of fucking nowhere, swoop
through, grabs the raven andboth of them go out of view of
the camera, in, I mean not evena second, it was just like she
(47:35):
just came in and took that bitchout and then she shows up at
the nest with a dead raven.
It was pretty impressive.
She had had enough.
She had had enough.
It was impressive, I was Wow.
She had had enough.
She had had enough.
It was impressive, I was Wow.
Speaker 2 (47:48):
Nature is something else it really is.
Speaker 3 (47:54):
So, yeah, this is probably this is going to be a
little shorty, a little shorty,short.
50 minutes is short.
Nicole has today.
We are we usually record onTuesdays, but this week we had
to do it on Monday, which is aheavy day for the post office.
Speaker 2 (48:11):
So, again.
Speaker 3 (48:13):
We're at my mom's house recording because Nicole
was going away with her mom andsister all week so we could not
record on her normally scheduledprogramming and now she has an
hour drive back home and allthat horse shit.
So we were cutting it a littleshort today.
(48:35):
I hope you don't mind.
Plus, I'm cranky as fuck.
I don't know.
I know why it's been a week.
So thank you for listening.
Thank you, you can like sharerate review.
You can do that.
You know it won't kill you,probably, no, it might.
(48:57):
You can find us wherever youlisten to podcasts, as you are
listening now.
You can even like, you know, ifyou say to your friend, hey,
there's this podcast I listen to.
You should try sometime.
Then you can say you can findit wherever you listen to
podcasts.
Exactly, you can follow us onall of the socials at
(49:20):
likewhateverpod except X.
You can send an email tolikewhateverpod at gmailcom.
And don't forget to head onover to Free Nights and Weekends
and listen to our amazingcommercial.
Speaker 2 (49:36):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (49:37):
Or don't Like whatever.
Speaker 2 (49:39):
Whatever, bye.
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