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Missing radioactive capsule found in WA outback after frantic search

abc.net.au

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Re: Missing radioactive capsule found in WA outback after frantic search

#161

Post by avereveard »

defrost wrote: post #143
avereveard wrote: post #140

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Blaming customers for companies malfeasance must have been one of the greatest deflection tactics ever invented and it saddens me deeply when it gets parroted verbatim by the general populace.

[flagged]

you trying to hold me personally responsible for other people accountability is at a foundamental level a repeat of the same deflection tactic as expressed above, and warrants a repeat of the same general concept: I do not bear any responsability in the atrocities that far away government allow to be inflicted on their own populace, and I do not profit from them, and the accountability rest on the government of the oppressed population, and they are accountable to the oppressed population and no other.

On the other hand, extrapolate your own question to the only logical conclusion, see how it goes. You cannot boicot sweat cobalt, there are not enough "sustainable" mines for that. Option two is either santion these countries into the ground or to invade then and export democracy. Good luck with that, bet their population will be real glad of your help. Your line of thinking is circular, offers no actionable solution, and it's ultimately just a way to distribute guilt moving it from the people actually exploiting the situation to people that have no choice in the matter.

Re: Missing radioactive capsule found in WA outback after frantic search

#162

Post by bell-cot »

mieko wrote: post #130
igbk wrote: post #128

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I suspect the extend and target of postmortem blame varies considerably from culture to culture. An anecdote from the railroad traffic between Germany and Denmark: "[In 2019, a DB Cargo freight train in Denmark caused an accident with a passenger train on its way to Copenhagen after a truck trailer flew off the freight train due to high winds. The German side was keen to find out who was responsible at the lowest lev…

> keen to find out who was responsible at the lowest level It's funny how profit flows up, but legal responsibility trickles down.

There are some old stereotypes of detail-obsessed Germans - far too busy measuring the growth rings of a tree with micrometers, and wondering why those are so close together - but never noticing that the tree is small, and growing in a well-shaded part of a large forest.

Re: Missing radioactive capsule found in WA outback after frantic search

#163

Post by dbuder »

stirlo wrote: post #74
TomK32 wrote: post #71

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Australia has slipped quite a few places on the last World Press Freedom Index. Let's not forget that friendlyjordies, while also making comedy videos but also making videos on corruption, politicians and the gambiling industry, was targeted by a firebomb and his house burnt down. Luckily he was away and no one at home.

Right but there is no suggestion the firebombing was linked to any government or regulatory policy/action/initiative. It's simply that he upset organised crime groups. These exist everywhere in the world and theres no suggestion the Australian authorities aren't investigating and trying to bring those responsible to justice.

It was prob the bikies that are associated with the union - a lot of drug money is washed via real estate development

The state politician who set the anti terror squad on friendlyjordies is more concerning from a freedom standpoint

Re: Missing radioactive capsule found in WA outback after frantic search

#165

Post by defrost »

avereveard wrote: post #161
defrost wrote: post #143

Earlier quoted context omitted.

[flagged]

you trying to hold me personally responsible for other people accountability is at a foundamental level a repeat of the same deflection tactic as expressed above, and warrants a repeat of the same general concept: I do not bear any responsability in the atrocities that far away government allow to be inflicted on their own populace, and I do not profit from them, and the accountability rest on the government of the o…

[flagged]

Re: Missing radioactive capsule found in WA outback after frantic search

#166

Post by twawaaay »

perihelions wrote: post #101

Is the idea of blameless postmortem that exotic in the general public? If I hear that a critical safety system failed, my first association isn't "find the individual closest to responsibility, and look into whether a criminal prosecution is feasible". - "We have the ability to prosecute under the radiation safety act and we will certainly look at such prosecutions, and we've done that in the past," [Chief Health Off…

Yeah, exactly.

What an engineer thinks: "Why not attach this thing to a beacon so that it can't be lost?"

What everybody else thinks: "Why not persecute everybody responsible to the fullest possible extent?" Which is just our reptilian brain looking for somebody to blame but isn't actually helping anything.

Re: Missing radioactive capsule found in WA outback after frantic search

#167

Post by dbuder »

ggm wrote: post #88
antihipocrat wrote: post #75

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't disagree that nuclear anything is a big deal, but just wanted remind everyone that the British tested their nuclear bombs in the outback.. and Australia has ordered some nuclear subs.

Nuclear powered subs, there is no intent or request to provide nuclear weapons. It is not unusual for nuclear capable vessels to visit Australia and in the usual "will not confirm or deny" sense nobody is going to speak to visiting vessels with ICBM or tactical nuclear weapons. But the formalism remains: Australian defence forces are not overtly seeking nuclear arms to operate under the Australian flag.

"Nuclear powered subs, there is no intent or request to provide nuclear weapons"

Oh there is intent - enough nukes to end a superpower from the grave is our goal

Re: Missing radioactive capsule found in WA outback after frantic search

#168

Post by mschuster91 »

puffoflogic wrote: post #81
mschuster91 wrote: post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> From my perspective it was a localised and relatively limited risk Localized? Yes. But limited? You can't see radiation. The absolute worst case would be someone getting it stuck into a tire or a shoe, spreading radiation everywhere they go.

> spreading radiation everywhere they go. Radiation is not "spread" in the manner you are suggesting. The only affect on passers-by would be transient exposure - less than ideal, but not a fatal risk. If the capsule were breached and radioactive material were spread, then that would be a disaster posing actual risk to the public at large.

> Radiation is not "spread" in the manner you are suggesting. The only affect on passers-by would be transient exposure - less than ideal, but not a fatal risk.

The problem is secondary irradiation. Everything contaminated by exposure - even a car - has to be taken, destroyed and the waste dealt with as radioactive waste.

Re: Missing radioactive capsule found in WA outback after frantic search

#169

Post by defrost »

mschuster91 wrote: post #168
puffoflogic wrote: post #81

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> spreading radiation everywhere they go. Radiation is not "spread" in the manner you are suggesting. The only affect on passers-by would be transient exposure - less than ideal, but not a fatal risk. If the capsule were breached and radioactive material were spread, then that would be a disaster posing actual risk to the public at large.

> Radiation is not "spread" in the manner you are suggesting. The only affect on passers-by would be transient exposure - less than ideal, but not a fatal risk. The problem is secondary irradiation. Everything contaminated by exposure - even a car - has to be taken, destroyed and the waste dealt with as radioactive waste.

> Everything contaminated by exposure ...

Wow.

Like, you mean the entire 800 million tonnes of iron ore per annum delibrately exposed to radiation guages such as this all needs to be treated as radioactive waste?

Even after it's been turned to steel and worked into bridges, building, cars, etc?

I hadn't realised things were that serious :/

Still, I guess reality is in the middle ground and there are degrees to contamination here.

Re: Missing radioactive capsule found in WA outback after frantic search

#170

Post by acomjean »

King-Aaron wrote: post #7
franze wrote: post #3

Anybody has a clue how / what for this is used in mining? And are there alternatives for the future?

Density meter source, and no there's generally no necessary alternative as these are "usually" quite safe when they are handled correctly.

I’ve used troxler portable nuclear soil density readers when I was a civil engineer doing site inspections.

I’m assuming it’s something similar.

Fairly safe. I had a radiation badge which never showed anything. We know the badges worked because someone stored the badge with the nuclear device which caused them to be quite alarmed when that test came back. Keeping distance reduces exposure.

We had to have paperwork from the US regularitiry commission to transport it from site back to office. I remember it was stored in a giant orange box which we tied down in the back of our truck.

Looking it seems like new models are designed not to need that.

https://troxlerlabs.com/egauge-model-4590-soil-density-gauge...

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