Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Ann Coulter Says that Radiation is Good For You

Not much to say about this other than this:  When Bill O'Reilly is the voice of reason, you know something is wrong.  On his show, The O'Reilly Factor, Ann Coulter declares than we don't need to fear the radioactive plume emitted from the Fukushima Reactor in Japan.  I would agree that the US has very little to worry about with the radiation.  There is no need for people to rush out for iodine pills.

However, to say that radiation is a good thing is dangerously stupid.  We know that high doses of radiation on a regular basis can cause cancer in some people.  Radiation is only part of the problem.  Genetics plays another role.  For some people, the radiation will alter the DNA and lead to cancers.  For others, nothing will happen.  Think about how not all smokers get lung cancer but some will get it just from second hand smoke.  You likelihood of cancer depends on your exposure to carcinogens (cancer-causing chemicals) and your DNA.  With all of it, don't sit there and smugly say that radiation is good for you.

She seems sincere in her statements, but I would guarantee that Coulter will not be traveling to Japan anytime soon.  At least O'Reilly can step back and warn people of the potential dangers of radiation.

See the video for yourself:

Videos like these remind me of the importance of quality science education which becomes more and more important in an ever-modernizing world.

No comments:

Post a Comment