On 11/26/13 a NKK news report on fishing in the Fukushima area of Japan was aired on PBS.



Here are some highlights of the English language broadcast:



* Limited fishing now allowed by the government is called "Test Fishing." However, the "test fish" caught are scanned and sold in fish markets.



* It was claimed in the news report that "Radiation levels are now half that of government maximum standards." New anchor failed to mention how the government quietly raised maximum safe radiation exposure standards about a year ago.



* Smiling women shopping in a supermarket were shown looking at seafood on display. A sign in a refrigerated case was shown in mixed English and Japanese. It listed the radiation levels present (in Becquerels, or Bq) for 3 kinds of seafood in English:

.2 Bq.

.4 Bq.

.6 Bq.

Considering the very low level of the above readings, it is impossible to believe these readings are accurate. Typical background radiation measures about 20 counts/minute (or more.) Twenty counts/min. = 20Bq. Yet these supermarket signs claim to be radiation levels of seafood caught near several failed power plants - an area known to be dumping thousands of gallons of radioactive water 24/7 into the ocean for years? Radioactive seawater dumped into the ocean measures millions of Becquerels or more. It is impossible for seafood from that area to have radiation counts lower than background cosmic radiation after living in highly radioactive water. Utter nonsense to you and I, but perfectly acceptable to the unsuspecting public.



* None of the various video clips in the news footage of fisherman, warehouse workers, store workers or consumers was shown using a Geiger counter. That's not believable. But the Japanese mindset is to never talk about anything bad. In other words, lie by omitting what people really need to know: Don't live in that area! If you must live there, wear a dosimeter and carry a pocket Geiger counter around with you.



* No one talked about toxic, accumulative health effects of radioactive heavy elements like Cesium which are present in seafood caught in the Fukushima coastal areas. Toxic effects create separate issues different from radiation effects.



* Long tables packed with people eating bowls of seafood were shown. These people were smiling, laughing and happy. One was shown tasting the seafood with her friend, then smiling and giving a nod of approval to her friend. This reminds one of the old USSR and Chinese propaganda videos, showing people working like dogs out in the field and smiling as they toiled. Even using sledge hammers to break rocks they were smiling.



* A fisherman was shown living in one room inside a building with others. His room is about 10ft x 10ft. He is smiling and happy saying "The Tokyo Electric Company gave me this room to live in along with a small living allowance." He also pointed out how all of his fingers are getting smaller, and how his wedding band now easily slides on and off his finger. (Weight loss is one of many signs of radiation exposure.) He can't work at his fishing trade, making him equivalent to a dog kept in a cage.



In short, the entire news report was created just like a propaganda film to illustrate how wonderful everything is near Fukushima.

What difference does it make if people consume fish laced with toxins and radioactivity which cause cancer - or drink Jonestown cyanide laced Coolaid?

No difference - except one takes longer than the other to bring death.



Will these same people be smiling and laughing when they learn they have a incurable cancer - with little time left to live? All because they obediently accepted so-called "safe radiation limits?"



Basic Conversions from http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/2011/explained-radioactivity-0328.html which may be helpful:



1 gray (Gy) = 100 rad

1 rad = 10 milligray (mGy)

1 sievert (Sv) = 1,000 millisieverts (mSv) = 1,000,000 microsieverts (Sv)

1 sievert = 100 rem

1 becquerel (Bq) = 1 count per second (cps)

1 curie = 37,000,000,000 becquerel = 37 Gigabecquerels (GBq)



*Note - One sievert carries with it a 5.5% chance of eventually developing cancer. Doses greater than 1 sievert received over a short time period are likely to cause radiation poisoning, possibly leading to death within weeks. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sievert)



For x-rays and gamma rays, 1 rad = 1 rem = 10 mSv

For neutrons, 1 rad = 5 to 20 rem (depending on energy level) = 50-200 mSv

For alpha radiation (helium-4 nuclei), 1 rad = 20 rem = 200 mSv



Ted Twietmeyer