On this 60th anniversary of the bombing of Hiroshima, it seems appropriate to consider what we’re doing to prevent nuclear bombs going off in cities in the future. We already know that the president isn’t particularly concerned about what’s happening with nuclear materials and has recently promoted a guy who’s sabotaged attempts to control their spread. But how about the Congress?
Billmon at Whiskey Bar points out a Washington Post article about a provision in the recently passed energy bill (see also Hilzoy at Obsidian Wings). North Carolina senator Richard Burr (R) managed to slip in a passage relaxing restrictions on export of weapons-grade uranium. The “Arm Osama Amendment”, as Billmon calls it, was apparently inserted to help a Canadian producer of medical isotopes, one that “already has enough highly enriched uranium to make one or two Hiroshima-size bombs” but doesn’t have the security requirements of US weapons facilities. Billmon continues:
… I strongly urge everyone to read the entire Washington Post article and read it carefully. That way, when the day comes for you lean out your bathroom window and wonder: “How did that funny shaped cloud get there?” you’ll already know the answer. And as you watch the bones in your hand become visible through your skin, and marvel at the sight of your child’s hair instantly catching on fire, you can, in the brief moment before the shock wave hits, thank the good people at the Council on Radionuclides and Radiopharmaceuticals for helping make such wonders possible….
Unfortunately, putting campaign donations above the security of the American people isn’t limited to Republicans. Sen. Blanche Lincoln, a Democrat from Arkansas, cosponsored the amendment.
The insane way bills are put together and passed — thousands of pages put out only hours before the vote, full of irrelevant provisions, with no chance for review — may one day lead to worse than the usual wasting of billions of dollars. Congress has got to get the process under control, but it’s hard to imagine how that will happen.
