The World Needs More Nuclear Power Essay -- Argumentative Essays, Pers

Opponents of the nuclear industry conjure up frightful images of nuclear accidents to spread terror to those who could benefit from its awesome bounty. A misguided desire to protect the environment blinds people to the reality that nuclear power is a "green" energy source. Nuclear power is superior to traditional power generation in almost every way whether it is looked at from an environmental, economic or technical point of view. Currently, most consumer power generation is achieved through the burning of fossil fuels. Skeptics of nuclear energy’s potential have long contended that fossil fuels are safer to process, are better for the environment and pose less of a long term hazard than nuclear power. Concerns over safety also dominate the issue since the often lamented invention of nuclear weapons has demonstrated that the awesome force of nuclear power can be dangerous indeed. Nuclear power is also tagged as being expensive, not only for power generation but for the environmental detriments that must be mitigated after processing. None of these arguments against nuclear power has any real factual basis as research has shown that nuclear power has less of a negative impact on the environment, has the potential to be safer and ultimately cheaper than traditional power generating methods. The mainstays of traditional power generation involve the burning of fossil fuels, such as natural gas and coal. Environmentalists use scare tactics to try to convince people that nuclear power is a dirty energy. The truth however, is that as far as damage to the environment goes, nuclear power is a much greener source of energy than either coal or natural gas. The first advantage of nuclear power over coal or natural gas is ob... ...ands in the way of nuclear power becoming the energy of the future is fear and rhetoric. As the famous philosopher Heraclitus said â€Å"Dogs bark at a person whom they do not know† (Heraclitus, para 97), which means that people will always attack that which they do not understand. This makes education the greatest step towards making one of man’s greatest technological triumphs into a blessing for this generation. Works Cited Heraclitus. â€Å"The Complete Philosophical Fragments.† Middlebury College Website. Middlebury College. 07/14/10 http://community.middlebury.edu/~harris/Philosophy/Heraclitus.html Hill, Patrice. â€Å"Nuclear Power Is the Energy of the Future.† Insight April 2001 McGregor, Douglas S. â€Å"The Use of Nuclear Power Should be Increased.† The New American April 2001: 12-19 Robinson, Mark, A. 100 Grams of Uranium Equal 200 Tons of Coal. Kelso, WA, 1987