I guess that there can always be unforeseen eventualities like meteors crashing, but to a large extent, nuclear power is as safe as the people operating the reactors want it to be. In Japan the priority for the Tokyo Electric power company was profits and salaries ahead of safety, better safeguards could have easily been in place that the tsunami wouldn't have affected. It isn't just an after the fact have become wiser that they could have done this or that to prevent the meltdown, a number of those safeguards are what was currently prescribed from a worldwide perspective for the safe operation of reactors. Would they have cost the power company to implement, no doubt. Execs tied in with the government regulatory agency and all for putting money into their pockets instead of implementing better safeguards is what the problem was. After the shit came down and still to this day, when the blame for the horrendous disaster tries to get explained, those same execs all say, "Don't look at me, I just work here", and will have dropped their pencils when their name comes up. A big thick book came out from a commission that was appointed to clarify what the root causes and blame for the event could be broken down to, that spelled it out in very clear terms. It told in detail of the cahoots between the regulatory agency and the power company when it came to managing things. Basically they were all real good buddies going back and forth between jobs. I thought that it was going to be fun to watch the heads roll, but that big book disappeared from the news after two days like it had never been. Just another example of government control of the press. If there was ever a case where the people have a right to know, it's this one.
Have responsible and sufficiently intelligent people running the nuclear power industry and independent from scumbag politicians, and I believe it is fair to think of the risks minimised, and consider it as a viable power source given the potential hazards. Have college educated greedy self indulgent idiots in charge with their impressive sounding position descriptions on their business cards and over the top wages, and as we are seeing, there can be unspeakable problems to mankind that may result. That's my take on it. The bastards are still lying and getting away with it. They all should be strung up for public viewing, and let the people cheer when the necks snap.
