Robert Zubrin is the founder of the Mars Society, an organization dedicated to furthering the exploration and settlement of Mars. In the first half, he discussed how nuclear power works and debunked what he believes are toxic falsehoods that have been spread to dissuade us from using this source of clean energy. He also covered revolutionary developments in the field. The US has around 100 nuclear plants, with a new one that just opened in Georgia. However, it took 14 years to build it --a costly process that was hampered by what he considers to be a bloated, complicated regulatory structure from the NRC. American nuclear plants and 90% of the plants worldwide use pressurized water reactors, "and not a single person has ever suffered any harm from a radiological emission" from them, he said.
The US plants are inherently safe because they use water as a coolant and a moderator, he added, and they are surrounded by containment buildings. The plant at Chernobyl used a different kind of reactor and had no containment facility, he explained, whereas the damage at Fukushima was caused by an earthquake, "but not a single person outside the plant got any radiological dose." He suggested that ideological environmentalists are trying to curb freedoms and follow an anti-nuclear agenda, along with using the issue of carbon emissions (related to global warming) as a justification for reactionary policies. Zubrin praised new kinds of nuclear plant technology that could be even safer and more efficient such as breeder reactors, small modular reactors, and thorium reactors, though he's concerned that regulations from the NRC could stall their implementation.
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Ken D. Foster is a keynote speaker, author, business strategist, and news personality, who owns a broadcast & media production company. In the latter half, he revealed how your life can change if you seek more courage and wisdom. The key to life is to get in a place where we can quiet our minds and tune in to our inner wisdom, he stated. "The mind is the cause of your bondage," yet the mind is also what brings about your liberation, he added. By being introspective, we can look clearly at the results we're getting in our life, and make changes accordingly. We need courage to make such changes, Foster said, as well as the ability to rethink or reprogram the subconscious mind.
Courage could be thought of as an energy or vibration, and it can be developed within us. It takes courage to break out of our old paradigms –the way we were taught may not be true for us anymore, he noted. Foster cited several types of fears-- not getting what you want, losing what you have, and what others think of you, as holding people back and preventing them from stepping into new ways of thinking. As an exercise for breaking the mold, he suggested doing something that you've never done before for 14 days, even if it's as simple as eating a new food. Foster also pointed out that individuals can make changes at any age, and these can be done one day at a time.
News segment guests: Brandon Weichert, Mish Shedlock