S04.E22: Nuclear waste and waste management

[Athena]

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Other segments: Departure of Steve Bannon

 

[Lantern7]

Heads up: episode is scheduled for 11:15-11:46 p.m. tonight. So have fun with the extra fifteen minutes.

ETA: Fired up crowd for Bannon's dismissal, anchors telling us not to look into the sun tomorrow, and the dangers of nuclear waste. I forgot what the last bit was about, and I'm going to feel like an idiot when I rediscover it. Also: John's disdain of the Toxic Avenger, toxic alligators, and the horrors that are American Dolls. Nothing like a Brit screaming "JESUS FUCKING CHRIST!!!!" Almost makes up for the show taking a vacation. With John and Sam Bee gone until September, it looks like the heavy lifting goes to Trevor Noah.

[khyber]

I can see a decommissioned nuclear plant from my living room window.  They really have no idea what they will do with all the spent fuel rods that are stored there.

[cpcathy]

Man, I was depressed after last night's show. Like, even more than before!

Thank goodness for the bits of comedy he forces into the main story. I laughed so hard at the doll. Loved John brushing its hair during the credits. Thanks, John, for depressing me and making me giggle at the same time.

[ganesh]

2 hours ago, khyber said:

 They really have no idea what they will do with all the spent fuel rods that are stored there.

It can be stored in dry casks safely for up to 100 years onsite. Their air cooled so you don't need to install tons of expensive equipment. It's not ideal, but it's still a sound engineering solution. 

But i agree with JO's premise that there isn't really a waste management policy even though technically, we know we can bury it. The show is conflating two things that aren't the same: used fuel from the reactor and defense wastes. They're not the same thing, and the used fuel can and is being stored safely. I don't consider fuel out of the reactor to be "waste" per se, because you can still recycle it, but I wouldn't call the show being incorrect on that. 

A severe pool accident is highly unlikely. They were upgraded as a result of Fukushima. And it should be noted that fuel that was stored in dry casks at Fukushima was undamaged. 

Edited August 21, 2017 by ganesh

[iMonrey]

Nuclear alligators could totally be a TV show.

[ganesh]

The thing that John is not mentioning strongly enough imo is that this isn't really a technical problem in terms of the repository. It's one of policy and social science. 

[stillshimpy]

2 hours ago, cpcathy said:

Man, I was depressed after last night's show. Like, even more than before!

Thank goodness for the bits of comedy he forces into the main story. I laughed so hard at the doll. Loved John brushing its hair during the credits. Thanks, John, for depressing me and making me giggle at the same time.

About a minute into the nuclear waste segment, for the first time ever, I just freaking peaced out on a segment of Last Week Tonight and went to watch something else.  It's a worthy subject, I'm sure, but maybe not the absolute best choice for a week where -- let's go with English understatement -- there were other matters of concern that were somewhat pressing. 

Dude, after this last week, I was genuinely amazed that they went for a deep dive on nuclear waste.  "So now, even if they aren't rained down upon you by some pudgy despot (in a land far away, lest I confuse anyone) there's no need for you to dial down the terror.  Cheers!"   

[Lantern7]

16 hours ago, Lantern7 said:

I forgot what the last bit was about, and I'm going to feel like an idiot when I rediscover it.

Martin Shkreli!! Shit! Prospective jurors weighing in on him, coupled with courthouse art. "He disrespected the Wu-Tang Clan." "WU-TANG CLAN AIN'T NOTHIN' TO FUCK WITH!!!" How did I forget that?

[Annber03]

29 minutes ago, stillshimpy said:

Dude, after this last week, I was genuinely amazed that they went for a deep dive on nuclear waste.  "So now, even if they aren't rained down upon you by some pudgy despot (in a land far away, lest I confuse anyone) there's no need for you to dial down the terror.  Cheers!"   

Seriously, I feel like I'm developing a nervous tick in relation to the word "nuclear" after all the news lately. The bit about people considering using rockets to get rid of this stuff, and the issues that came with that, was...ye gods. And the thought of nuclear alligators is just plain disturbing. 

Interesting segment, though. I agree it would've been good to have a lengthy segment on current issues as well, but at the same time, sometimes getting a break from them and focusing on another topic can be nice, too. Even if that topic is equally depressing and unsettling in its own right. And it sounds like they'd been preparing this one for some time, so I don't blame them for not wanting that time and effort to go to waste. 

I did like Oliver's point that getting rid of Bannon, while good, obviously hasn't solved our problems, and that it's hard to be truly hopeful this could finally be the end for Trump, given how much other controversy's managed to bounce off him thus far. Still, I keep my fingers quietly crossed anyway, just in case. It always seems some sort of big news happens when Oliver's on a break, after all, so...

And I too loved the Shkreli bit :p. I especially liked how even the court illustrations of the guy captured his sleaziness. 

[iMonrey]

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 It's a worthy subject, I'm sure, but maybe not the absolute best choice for a week where -- let's go with English understatement -- there were other matters of concern that were somewhat pressing. 

Yeah - I have to wonder how they choose their main stories. Do they just brainstorm them all at once and parse them out regardless of what's going on that particular week? The show is entitled Last Week Tonight. There's nothing particularly timely about nuclear waste nor is it specific to last week. I know few of the main stories are but this one was really out of the blue. I think a more relevant topic might have been about White Supremacist groups or some of these home-grown militia groups considering the events that took place last week. A whole piece on nuclear waste just felt tone-deaf.

Granted, a lot of them feel that way given the shit-show we endure out of Washington week in and week out. Nevertheless, I do expect more coverage of what went on last week.

[mojoween]

At the end when he was brushing the creepy doll's hair I yelped that she looked like the thing from The Ring and that I felt like she was going to come out of the TV at me and THEN HE THREW HER AT THE TV and I will never sleep again.

[paigow]

It seemed like the point was the USA is more likely to suffer a self-inflicted nuclear winter through neglect and apathy as opposed to wilfully antagonizing North Korea.

Edited August 22, 2017 by paigow

[ebk57]

Is it wrong that the first thing I thought when he started talking about nuclear waste was "what will @ganesh have to say about this?"

And after reading your posts upthread, I do feel a bit better and wish John had talked about policy.  I guess it's like all the infrastructure here... we won't fix anything until it crashes and throws everything off the bridge.  (I know, that doesn't make sense, but it sorta did to me.) 

And I'm not necessarily sorry he doesn't focus on all the crap that is happening all around us right now.  It's not like he doesn't mention it at all.  Enough other shows do that, so I enjoy a deep dive about an important issue that I'm not thinking about at the moment.

[ganesh]

I agree with the show saying that nuclear waste management has been an afterthought. We don't really have a policy at all, and that's a problem. And it needs to be led by public policy people. Lumping in the used fuel with actual nuclear waste I think was an oversight on the show's part. I don't think anyone disagrees that Hanford is problematic, but the used fuel is being stored safely. 

[Corgi-ears]

I have to quibble with John's punchline to the Bannon segment. Speaking of the amazing disappearing White Housemen, he should have said that our problems won't be over till two more people in the photo get shown the door. #SixPenceNonetheBetter

[stillshimpy]

Off-topic, but I love your avatar, @Corgi-ears  

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he should have said that our problems won't be over till two more people in the photo get shown the door. #SixPenceNonetheBetter

 

 

 

Edited August 22, 2017 by stillshimpy

[stillshimpy]

Awesome, so I fucked up another quote box by accidentally using bb codes.  At least this time there's an explanation.  Please don't ask me why I can't just then edit it out, I genuinely have no idea.  Here's what I was trying to say in response: 

Truly.  Plus, there's the terrifying prospect of men calling their wives "mother" catching on at a national level.  Must be avoided.  Keep making white shadows there.  

 

Not exactly worth the wait, I admit. 

[cuppasun]

10 hours ago, Lantern7 said:

Martin Shkreli!! Shit! Prospective jurors weighing in on him, coupled with courthouse art. "He disrespected the Wu-Tang Clan." "WU-TANG CLAN AIN'T NOTHIN' TO FUCK WITH!!!" How did I forget that?

I damn near laughed myself into a stroke at the Wu-Tang Clan moment. All I could think was, "hey, wait--I didn't know my son-in-law was one of the prospective jurors!" Because that could have--no, scratch that, would have come out of his mouth. Probably has.

[mojoween]

I've read a lot about Shkreli, who I fully agree is a snake, but I didn't see what he said about the Wu-Tang Clan?

The courtroom artist is my hero.

[Robert Lynch]

That comment about the Wu-Tang Clan made howl with laughter. Oh, to be a kid in the 90s. 

To return the story about Trump, his speech to the troops was disgusting. I guess the draft dodging president would still hold rallies until who knows what. And his new vocabulary for Ana-ghanistan became his Jina. I guess Trump makes words as he goes along. He definitely didn't need a spell check, did he?

[ottoDbusdriver]

2 hours ago, mojoween said:

I've read a lot about Shkreli, who I fully agree is a snake, but I didn't see what he said about the Wu-Tang Clan?

The courtroom artist is my hero.

Sidebar: Brief refresher on Martin Shkreli and the Wu-Tang Clan
http://www.vulture.com/2017/07/martin-shkreli-wu-tang-album-once-upon-a-time-in-shaolin.html
End sidebar

[wknt3]

18 hours ago, stillshimpy said:

Dude, after this last week, I was genuinely amazed that they went for a deep dive on nuclear waste.  "So now, even if they aren't rained down upon you by some pudgy despot (in a land far away, lest I confuse anyone) there's no need for you to dial down the terror.  Cheers!"   

 

17 hours ago, Annber03 said:

Interesting segment, though. I agree it would've been good to have a lengthy segment on current issues as well, but at the same time, sometimes getting a break from them and focusing on another topic can be nice, too. Even if that topic is equally depressing and unsettling in its own right. And it sounds like they'd been preparing this one for some time, so I don't blame them for not wanting that time and effort to go to waste.

The show has pretty much always combined a Weekend Update style summary of the week's news with an in depth look at a policy problem or social issue that is usually not in the headlines. Usually the point of these deep dives is to point out something that's important, but not getting a lot of media attention before it reaches a crisis point. And they seem to have made a deliberate choice to maintain that format during the Trump administration when they could do 2 hours every week on the latest outrage. They've covered most of the issues involved in the past and they may have felt they didn't have anything new to add beyond not having the time to research a new main segment that meets their standards and having made that choice not to chase the headlines.

[iMonrey]

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At the end when he was brushing the creepy doll's hair I yelped that she looked like the thing from The Ring and that I felt like she was going to come out of the TV at me and THEN HE THREW HER AT THE TV and I will never sleep again.

I'm with John on this one: dolls are creepy. However, I'm not sure that doll he was holding at the end of the show was the same doll they showed on the shelf in the still photos. It looked different to me.

Quote

The show has pretty much always combined a Weekend Update style summary of the week's news with an in depth look at a policy problem or social issue that is usually not in the headlines. Usually the point of these deep dives is to point out something that's important, but not getting a lot of media attention before it reaches a crisis point.

It's true it's always been that way, but it seems odd for a show titled "Last Week Tonight." They start out with a "quick recap" of the week's big news then jump into a "main story" that has little or nothing to do with last week. I guess the title of the show is just misleading.

But - it's worth noting that the justice department announced last week they are ending funding for a program that trains police how to deal with domestic terrorists. That would seem to be a very timely subject for John to delve into. I think I'd just prefer the main story be somewhat relevant to the week and that would have been an excellent one. They did North Korea the previous week, and that was certainly relevant to the weekly news cycle.

[ganesh]

I should also point out that there was a blue ribbon commission formed a few years ago (2012 iirc) to address this issue. They've issued a report. Nothing was done about it, but there are solutions out there. 

[Jersey Guy 87]

On 8/21/2017 at 2:58 PM, iMonrey said:

Yeah - I have to wonder how they choose their main stories. Do they just brainstorm them all at once and parse them out regardless of what's going on that particular week? The show is entitled Last Week Tonight. There's nothing particularly timely about nuclear waste nor is it specific to last week. I know few of the main stories are but this one was really out of the blue. I think a more relevant topic might have been about White Supremacist groups or some of these home-grown militia groups considering the events that took place last week. A whole piece on nuclear waste just felt tone-deaf.

Granted, a lot of them feel that way given the shit-show we endure out of Washington week in and week out. Nevertheless, I do expect more coverage of what went on last week.

 

23 hours ago, wknt3 said:

 

The show has pretty much always combined a Weekend Update style summary of the week's news with an in depth look at a policy problem or social issue that is usually not in the headlines. Usually the point of these deep dives is to point out something that's important, but not getting a lot of media attention before it reaches a crisis point. And they seem to have made a deliberate choice to maintain that format during the Trump administration when they could do 2 hours every week on the latest outrage. They've covered most of the issues involved in the past and they may have felt they didn't have anything new to add beyond not having the time to research a new main segment that meets their standards and having made that choice not to chase the headlines.

Not to mention if they wanted to do something highly topical for the main story they'd drive the writers crazy.  First, there wouldn't be enough time to do the research they do for their main story plus Trump does so much outrageous stuff every week they'd be shifting gears nonstop trying to pick a topic.  The main story usually requires a few weeks of research to prepare, by its very nature it can't be based on something that just happened.

[Danny Franks]

It's depressing that John's initial news roundup has now just become 'what crazy shit has Trump and/or the Republicans done this week?' but I guess it's inevitable. From the outside looking in, the US has become a dystopian world of crass indecency, lack of respect for legal and moral norms, and blithe unconcern about it, I can only imagine what it's like for actual right-thinking Americans.

Then we get the montage of news people actually feeling like they have to warn people not to stare directly at the sun and... I don't really know what to say about that. 

But I like that John can still focus on more relatively mundane topics, like the handling of nuclear waste, to get away from the immediate insanity. And this one ties in nicely to a few other things John has talked about. Chiefly, the fact that humans have really fucked this planet up, and that we're all one day going to pay dearly for how cavalier the last couple of generations have been with everything they've done.

The lack of a nuclear toilet for high level waste, and the continued storage of that stuff in increasingly derelict facilities also brings to mind the episode about infrastructure, and the ticking time bomb it represents due to lack of maintenance and renewal. And it's sadly indicative of how humans work that this vital, incredibly pressing issue has just been put off and put off, while American politicians dealt with all kinds of shit that affected them more directly.

I understand why some people might feel John should focus chiefly on what's Trump and his racist followers, but I just don't think he needs to be the one to carry that burden. You've got the late night hosts talking about it, you've got Trevor Noah talking about it, you've got Samantha Bee talking about it, you've got mainstream news and Rachel Maddow talking about it. Meanwhile, no one is talking about the fact the US has dozens of nuclear waste facilities storing lethal stuff that no one knows what to do with. And I think the initial premise of Last Week Tonight was to shine a light on these under-reported stories that really need to be more widely understood..

Loved the running gag about Felicity the creepy doll.

[ganesh]

John didn't get much into the WIPP facility in New Mexico which is a "well functioning toilet" for lack of a better term for the defense wastes. And again, lumping used fuel in with 'waste' is not technically correct. It is being stored safely. If they started loading the used fuel into Yucca Mountain on Friday, the repository will function properly as designed. 

[Annber03]

6 hours ago, Danny Franks said:

It's depressing that John's initial news roundup has now just become 'what crazy shit has Trump and/or the Republicans done this week?' but I guess it's inevitable. From the outside looking in, the US has become a dystopian world of crass indecency, lack of respect for legal and moral norms, and blithe unconcern about it, I can only imagine what it's like for actual right-thinking Americans.

Believe me when I tell you a good portion of Americans feel the same way. We remain utterly baffled as to how we found ourselves in this situation every single day. With each passing day and each new crazy story about this administration, I just keep sitting here playing a loop of, "I told you so..." in my head. People tried to warn others about this shit before the election. That's the most frustrating part. 

But yeah, you're exactly right. I'm sure a lot of people who love all the late night comedy shows/talk shows would love to go one day, one week, even, without hearing Trump's name. And I'm sure the comedians themselves would be glad to talk about literally anything else, and go back to making the kinds of typical jokes they used to make about your average politician (Colbert himself said some time back that he'd trade the good ratings his show's currently getting for a better president). But since Trump is our actual president, news related to him just can't be ignored, unfortunately. 

You're also right about this:

Quote

I understand why some people might feel John should focus chiefly on what's Trump and his racist followers, but I just don't think he needs to be the one to carry that burden. You've got the late night hosts talking about it, you've got Trevor Noah talking about it, you've got Samantha Bee talking about it, you've got mainstream news and Rachel Maddow talking about it. Meanwhile, no one is talking about the fact the US has dozens of nuclear waste facilities storing lethal stuff that no one knows what to do with. And I think the initial premise of Last Week Tonight was to shine a light on these under-reported stories that really need to be more widely understood..

Sure, I'd be all for Oliver further discussing the issues surrounding the racism in this country and how it's being fostered by this administration, 'cause I would love to hear his take on the whole situation. It would make for a great segment. Especially since Oliver would have the kind of passionate anger that he showed when talking about the Charlottesville tragedy itself on the show. But it is also nice to take our minds off Trump for a short time, both for obvious reasons, and also because I'd hate for our country to get so distracted by Trump that we forget about or ignore the other problems that might sneak past our radar as a result. .

That said, heck, for all we know they could well be planning in depth segments on the racism that's built up in relation to Trump and the Confederate statue debate and Charlottesville and whatnot, too. Because sadly, those problems clearly ain't going away anytime soon, so they'd be relevant topics at any time, unfortunately. 

Edited August 23, 2017 by Annber03

[scarynikki12]

On 8/22/2017 at 1:43 PM, iMonrey said:

I'm with John on this one: dolls are creepy. However, I'm not sure that doll he was holding at the end of the show was the same doll they showed on the shelf in the still photos. It looked different to me.

The first doll looked like Kirsten, who has blond curls. The last doll was Felicity with her amazing red hair. I love that Ollie picked American Girl dolls. They were so much fun when I was a kid. I still have my Felicity and Samantha dolls in the basement somewhere. 

[OneWhoLurks]

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Besides, there just isn’t much nuclear waste. 70,000 tons over 60 years? Hello - it’s uranium, the heaviestelement on Earth prior to 1940. That much waste wouldn’t even fill one good-sized landfill. Coal generates that much toxic waste every 30 minutes.

No one is going to die from nuclear waste. No one ever has. And we know what to do with it, where to put it, and what it’s going to cost.

We just aren’t allowed to do it.

 

Please, John Oliver, Please Talk To A Real Nuclear Scientist

[ganesh]

You have been talking to a nuclear scientist. That's what I've been saying all along. 

[MaryPatShelby]

On 8/23/2017 at 8:07 AM, Jersey Guy 87 said:

 

Not to mention if they wanted to do something highly topical for the main story they'd drive the writers crazy.  First, there wouldn't be enough time to do the research they do for their main story plus Trump does so much outrageous stuff every week they'd be shifting gears nonstop trying to pick a topic.  The main story usually requires a few weeks of research to prepare, by its very nature it can't be based on something that just happened.

Plus, by the time Sunday night comes, anyone paying attention has seen, hears, and read almost all they probably want to about 45 and his administration's antics throughout the week on cable news, late night talk (which was mentioned above), newspapers, etc.  Sometimes it's a relief to get to LWT and learn about something completely different.

[Delwyn]

I was re-watching this episode to get back in the game for tonight and just realized the lady newscaster who admitted she was going to look into the sun during the eclipse was from Calgary. Ermahgerd.