Naked America: Paying For Nuclear Damage

Here's an anti-nuclear propaganda film dressed as a documentary:

It starts out by making the viewer think the Fukushima power plant meltdowns have cost the taxpayer $250 billion, and since in the U.S. the insurance levels are only $12.6 billion there's a woeful shortfall.

No, the earthquake and tsunami cost about $250 billion.  Fukushima costs are insignificant.

They then interview anti-nuclear activist Bob Alvarez. Hello???  Of course his estimates will be outlandishly high and they are.  That's a no-brainer.

They interview some NRC folks and others, but contrast that with scary "aging" plants (most of the plants have been retrofitted with modern equipment so they are safer than when built).

But the most ridiculous fear mongering is the claim that politicians wouldn't fund any cost overruns not covered by insurance should a major nuclear power accident occur.   Not funding it would be political suicide.

Let's look at 9/11, a catastrophe that originally killed around 3,000 people.  We've had no problem spending around $5 trillion on that (give or take a few trillion).  And we've killed a bunch more Americans and others in the process.  All done with largely bipartisan support.