|
The AA Game’s the Thing
Believe it or not, I’m going to agree with Tony Basilio’s assessment of major-league baseball in his April 8 column. The atmosphere and entertainment value of a Smokies game is far superior to anything the major leagues could possibly provide—with the exception of the few remaining historic fields such as Wrigley or Fenway.
While I disagree with Tony’s evaluation of the Yankees vs. the world: the Cubs, Braves, Dodgers, and perhaps two or three more teams are fully capable of competing with the evil empire, but just don’t have the desire, I completely agree with his take on the current breaking of records. Juiced balls, juiced players, weak pitching, and a dire need for [league] contraction are all factors that are leading to the felling of numerous hitting records.
It’s a boring game of wait-for-the-homer, instead of fundamental station-to-station baseball.
So, I’ll plan on spending my time and my entertainment dollar close to home in beautiful Kodak. Play ball!
Scott Boles
Kingston
Nuke Analysis Inadequate
Joe Tarr is indeed a gifted writer, regardless what subject he chooses to cover. Running the risk of spoiling him for you, I’d even venture to say that I think he’s worth every ounce of his light frame in gold.�And so it may be that it’s really the limited scope of his [April 22] article on nuclear power’s comeback threat, “Nuclear Freeze,” that is truly to blame for the inherent inadequacy of the security portion of his analysis.
Since I’ve worked on both sides of the Watts Bar nuclear dilemma, call them if you will the good side and the dark side, this article was of particular interest to me.�It was interesting to learn that there have been as many as 12 nuclear plant operating license extensions, and not a single extension application has been denied by the NRC yet.�
Maybe I’ve been standing too close to the trees to see the forest, but I also hadn’t considered that our country has backpedaled on their previous worldwide plea to keep “nukes for peace” separated from “nukes for war,” since one such tritium gas program is now in practice at Watts Bar and Sequoyah nuclear plants.�Back in the ’80s, both of these new trends would’ve been inconceivable.
Getting back to the security concern, a proper analysis should consider the biggest source of low-level radioactive wastes. I wonder if the same people that express concern over radioactive material at nuclear power plants would also propose that we begin to shut down cancer treatment centers in all hospitals across the nation!�This is not only the biggest source, but it’s also a lot easier to get into a hospital than to gain access into a heavily guarded nuclear plant.
Although post-911 security in medical facilities is also being tightened, as we speak, it still doesn’t compare to the level of security nukes have had all along.�This low-level radioactive material found in hospitals is no good for making a true nuclear device, but neither is the highly enriched uranium fuel used to produce electricity.�It [medical waste] would, however, be perfect for assembling a “dirty bomb.”�And long before we see an actual nuclear device in terrorist hands we’d see a dirty bomb that would spread radioactive fallout and contaminate a large area for years to come.
Regarding the nation’s energy-mix dilemma, I wonder if the anti-nuke camp has been neglecting their own turf in their quest to learn so much about all things nuclear. Maybe they need to truly brush up on all those other alternative sources of energy they mention, those that are so entirely inadequate in the truly grand scale that would be needed to replace the nuclear side of electricity production.�This is tantamount to asking Radio Shack to take over Detroit’s Big Three full-scale automobile production because they (RS) know how to make remote controlled and model cars.
I also can’t believe anyone can claim nuclear [power] is so highly subsidized and then turn around and start talking about wind or solar [power] seriously. There is a huge difference in the investment vs. yield history of nuclear power when compared to that of all other forms of “alternative” energy sources combined.
Roberto M. Sanabria
Knoxville
Masked Bears Unite!
I wanted to let you know that the [April 22] cartoon of the Smoky bear wearing a gas mask heading to Yellowstone Park hit the mark. As you can see from my address, I work for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in Oak Ridge.
The Atmospheric Turbulence and Diffusion Division (ATDD) is an atmospheric research laboratory that specializes in climate research, dispersion modeling, and global change issues. One of our ongoing projects (for about eight years now) is the East Tennessee Ozone Study (ETOS). We adopted a “mascot” about six years ago [It’s a bear in a gas mask]. These bears have been sent to many relevant and influential (we hope) individuals, such as Sen. Bill Frist, Rep John Duncan, etc. If you would like more information, please look at our website, www.atdd.noaa.gov.
Barbara Shifflett
Oak Ridge
Footnoted
Great article [July 25, 2002, on women in the Knoxville clergy] by Mr. [Mike] Gibson. I enjoyed reading it and actually referenced it in a project for my doctoral program! Nice job!
Lynn Durgin
Durham, N.H.
On Coming Home in a Box
I was about 9 years old when Mike Conner came home to Knoxville. I didn’t really know him, but he also grew up in Norwood, and I recognized his father from church. He was a big, distinguished looking guy with a Clark Gable kind of swagger. I was sitting near the back of the church during the Sunday service when the color guard carried Mike’s flag-draped coffin down the isle. He had been a helicopter pilot in Vietnam. He had a wife and kids, but it was the sight of his dad crying that really hit me. Even then I knew it was an image I’d never forget.
Tonight on the plane home, the Delta captain came on the speaker about 10 minutes before landing. He said there was a Navy lieutenant on board escorting a soldier back from Iraq. He asked that we all remain seated until the lieutenant had time to exit the aircraft. It was weird not to hear the instantaneous clack of seat belts opening once the jet stopped, but everyone just sat there—I think we were all kind of stunned. The whole plane watched in silence as the lieutenant in his dress whites exited. Two-thirds of the passengers got up and started grabbing from the overhead compartments about three seconds after the sailor cleared the door. Guess that was all the respectful reality they could take for one day. A handful of us stayed behind and watched through the portals as the luggage conveyer rolled out a wooden coffin wrapped in plastic. The lieutenant saluted and laid a flag over the box before he and a handful of tarmac guys in shorts did their best to respectfully place the coffin on a worn out luggage cart. It is another image I will never forget.
I feel no conflict in being both vehemently opposed to the events that led us into this war, while having the utmost respect for those that are tasked to fight it. America now has no choice but to stay the course and finish what was started.
Still, before anyone makes braggart statements about war, about the price of freedom or what we’re doing as a nation, they should have to look into the face of a dead soldier. TV is a sterile portrayal of reality. It is, at the end of the day, Mike Conner and the guy who came home tonight that pay the ultimate price for both the good and bad decisions our politicians make. We should think about those very real human costs every time we cast a vote.
Mark Hickman
Knoxville
May 6, 2004 • Vol. 14, No. 19
© 2004 Metro Pulse
|
| 
