Bernie Puppets

[Aikidoka]

These were brilliant!
From what I understand, they were sold for the Tsunami fund - does anyone know if you can get them outside Japan? I'd rather the money went to the fund as opposed to someone profiteering through eBay.

[airshifter]

I enjoyed the spirit of the puppets too. I was really shocked when I found out Bernie had purchased so many tickets for Japanese race fans.

[Malbec]

I enjoyed the spirit of the puppets too. I was really shocked when I found out Bernie had purchased so many tickets for Japanese race fans.

I think the whole f1 circus did itself proud in Japan. What they did was in stark contrast to the behavior of some of the moto gp riders

[ioan]

I think the whole f1 circus did itself proud in Japan. What they did was in stark contrast to the behavior of some of the moto gp riders

They didn't have to race 100 kms from Fukushima though.

[Malbec]

They didn't have to race 100 kms from Fukushima though.

So, the radiation levels were equally low.

[ioan]

So, the radiation levels were equally low.

Sure, sure, the radiation levels at 600 kms distance are equally low as at 150 kms distance. And you believe in Santa Claus, most probably.
Just one example, why did RedBull bring along food enough for their whole stay from outside Japan?!

[Malbec]

Sure, sure, the radiation levels at 600 kms distance are equally low as at 150 kms distance.


Actually yes, its equally insignificant.

I'm sure you realise that DORNA, the guys who run MotoGP, sent along an investigative team to record radiation levels at Motegi and found them lower than baseline radiation in Madrid and Rome right? That the radiation from the flight to and from Japan would be higher than the radiation they'd receive throughout the whole weekend there right?

You realise that people still live in/around Motegi, Honda's MotoGP bikes are designed and built there right? The area has never had problems with radiation and Honda's factories there have, logistics problems notwithstanding, been functioning since the earthquake?

The Indycar brigade had no problems going to Motegi the weekend before MotoGP except for Danica moaning a bit.

All the whinging from the MotoGP riders did was to expose their stupidity and ignorance of radiation. Seems the same is true of you.

[ioan]

Actually yes, its equally insignificant.

I'm sure you realise that DORNA, the guys who run MotoGP, sent along an investigative team to record radiation levels at Motegi and found them lower than baseline radiation in Madrid and Rome right? That the radiation from the flight to and from Japan would be higher than the radiation they'd receive throughout the whole weekend there right?

You realise that people still live in/around Motegi, Honda's MotoGP bikes are designed and built there right? The area has never had problems with radiation and Honda's factories there have, logistics problems notwithstanding, been functioning since the earthquake?

The Indycar brigade had no problems going to Motegi the weekend before MotoGP except for Danica moaning a bit.

All the whinging from the MotoGP riders did was to expose their stupidity and ignorance of radiation. Seems the same is true of you.

Nice words. Still difficult to believe that radiation in Motegi is bellow radiation in Madrid, unless we can see the data they collected.
And then again, each of them is free to fear for his/her health. Right?!

Back in the days after Chernobyl, the French authorities claimed that no radiation from the disaster site has reached France. 20 years later the reality was revealed different.
And this is just one example that proves that those in charge sometimes might have an agenda slightly different from the rest of the world.

Also wikileaks just revealed that the Japanese asked Obama not to present excuses re Hiroshima and Nagasaki because they do not wish negative speeches about nuclear energy.

In the end you're allowed to say what you wish, but as long as it is not your health and life in line you shouldn't judge those who fear for theirs.

[Malbec]

Nice words. Still difficult to believe that radiation in Motegi is bellow radiation in Madrid, unless we can see the data they collected.

Why should it be difficult to believe? Madrid is fairly high altitude and built on a granite rock bed, its natural radiation levels should therefore be pretty high.


Back in the days after Chernobyl, the French authorities claimed that no radiation from the disaster site has reached France. 20 years later the reality was revealed different.
And this is just one example that proves that those in charge sometimes might have an agenda slightly different from the rest of the world.

Unfortunately, the problem with your suggestion that the Japanese government might be hiding something is that radiation levels are easy to monitor. The equipment is not cheap but is readily available. In Japan the government monitors radiation, but so does the IAEA, various environmental groups trying to 'prove' high levels of radiation and various community action groups. In addition to these are the research groups sent on behalf of DORNA(MotoGP) and earlier for Indycar.

None of them has found high levels of radiation at Motegi. Guess they're all in on the conspiracy?


Also wikileaks just revealed that the Japanese asked Obama not to present excuses re Hiroshima and Nagasaki because they do not wish negative speeches about nuclear energy.

Relevance?


In the end you're allowed to say what you wish, but as long as it is not your health and life in line you shouldn't judge those who fear for theirs.

I have a problem with riders who have become multimilliionaires on the back of a sport which is dependent on Japan to an extent probably no other international sport is dependent on a single country who had such little regard for the feelings of the people of that country that they disregarded well put together scientific evidence and continually refused to go. This is why they were rightly mocked by MotoGP journalists and had team chiefs threatening to tear up their contracts if they didn't go.

The MotoGP riders did themselves and Japan a disservice. The F1 circus for all its faults excelled itself. Well done to the latter.

[ioan]

So in fact you have no proof but lots of words and how now it's different then it was in Chenobyl?!

And you find the fact that Japanese government wants to keep negative speeches about nuclear power away from the public irrelevant to a discussion that treats the aftermath of the biggest nuclear disaster since Chernobyl?

Also you chose to completely ignore what other governments did in the past with regard to prevention after nuclear disasters, I wonder why? Is it because it doesn't suit your POV?

Looks like I'm losing my time talking to a piece of rock that only debates the aspects that suit him, so I'll let it be your monologue.

Back to Bernie puppets now.

[Malbec]

Looks like I'm losing my time talking to a piece of rock that only debates the aspects that suit him, so I'll let it be your monologue.

ioan, trying to insult others because you can't comprehend their arguments reflects rather badly on you I'm afraid. I do understand you are quite an emotional fragile character but sometimes a little thinking will take you a long way.

If you can't tell the difference between Chernobyl where a functioning reactor released tonnes of radioactive material straight into the atmosphere with Fukushima where the reactor cores remained largely intact with only a small local release of radiation then you clearly understand very little. This would be fine if you didn't then pretend that you knew more than others.

If you also think that the lack of any elevated radiation readings from Motegi that compared to the abundance of reports that radiation there is low is lack of proof then that reflects more on you than anything else. Why don't you show evidence of raised radiation levels there if you are so certain this is the case?

But don't worry, go back to those conspiracy theories, they're much easier to understand aren't they?

Now since you're asking for hard evidence, try this:

http://www.fim-live.com/fileadmin/user_upload/medias/MotoGP/2011/Laguna_Seca/RelazionepreliminaremotoGP-translation.pdf

[Andrewmcm]

I'm not going to wade through some of the drivel in this thread, so let's get some objectivity here, similar to the posting of Malbec:

Motegi MotoGP: Radiation Doses Explained | MotoMatters.com | Kropotkin Thinks (http://motomatters.com/analysis/2011/07/19/motegi_motogp_radiation_doses_explained.html)

So, 6-days in Motegi equals a similar level of radiation exposure as about 60% of the radiation dose from a chest x-ray. I'm sure that any rider/driver who breaks bones in the future will have to be dragged kicking and screaming into the hospital to get themselves x-rayed. Seeing as it might kill them.

Chernobyl and Fukushima are indeed different. At Chernobyl the explosion in the reactor caused a large plume of smoke and radiation to reach the upper atmosphere, which affected a large part of the former Eastern Bloc, all the way over Europe, Scandinavia and as far as Eastern Canada. You can see a reconstruction of the plume development here - Chernobyl's Accident: Path and extension of the radioactive cloud (http://www.ratical.org/radiation/Chernobyl/IRSN14dayPlume.html). At Fukushima there was no such explosion, and radiation did not enter the upper atmosphere. The extent of the Fukushima radiation can be seen here - Radiation Fukushima | ALTNEWS.INFO (http://www.altnews.info/tag/radiation-fukushima/).

Also note the article in the Fukushima link which shows how the popular press can mis-quote scientists to produce outrageous headlines: The phrases 'in terms of...' and 'when it comes to.....' get dropped, and "FUKUSHIMA IS WORSE THAN CHERNOBYL" is what gets reported. It's pretty clear from this thread that some individuals are inclined to read the headlines and fall for the propaganda, rather than doing some actual research themselves and making their own minds up.

I'm no racing driver, but I'd imagine when they're in/on the machine they're racing the chances of doing themselves long-term damage are far greater than the risk from an x-ray machine or the radiation levels in Japan.