Dangerous Man-Made Radiation is All Around You: In Airports, Condos and Bed Bath & Beyond

We are exposed to a lot of natural radiation during our lives, and our bodies are built to withstand a certain amount. But the growing prevalence of man-made radiation from the nuclear devices that are increasingly common is a constant environmental threat.

We were reminded of our modern half-lives recently with the TSA’s announcement they would test employees for radiation exposure from x-ray body scanners installed as security deivces. Thanks to our friends at After the Press, we saw this TSA radiation concern coming from a mile away. As early as two years ago, experts were pointing out that these poorly tested “backscatter” machines could potentially expose TSA workers to harmful levels of radiation. Passing through the x-ray machine once won’t harm you, and frequent travelers may have some legitimate concern, but certainly those who have to stand nearby the machines all day are in the worst shape.

Since we’re talking about radiation, a quick check-up on Fukishima reveals the situation is still pretty bleak. Yesterday, four families were evicted from a condo after it was found to have been built with radioactive concrete. Imagine being the filling between a radioactive floor and ceiling sandwich — that’s the scene 30 miles from the obliterated plant. The Louve wants to send the embattled city some classic art as a symbol of solidarity, but experts are cautioning against exposing the art to radioactivity that may condemn them to never leaving.

Of course, nuclear is still cleaner than the life-obliterating obscenity that is coal power waste ash (which incidentally is also radioactive). As a form of energy, nuclear power poised to expand in both U.S. and China, so look for more exciting moments like the recent leak at the Indian Point power plant which is just miles from News for End Times headquarters. Note to fleeing survivors: head south, we are armed!

Of course, these days you don’t have to go all the way to Japan or even the airport to get your nuke on — two Illinois Bed, Bath & Beyond stores were selling radioactive tissue containers before they were pulled from the shelves by a swift maneuver by the Illinois Emergency Management Agency. This is probably scarier than anything above:

The only reason authorities knew these boxes were radioactive is because a Bed Bath & Beyond truck set off radiation sniffers in California. This begs the question, how much of my stuff was made with a dash of Cobalt-60, actually exposing me to an X-ray’s worth of radiation every hour? I can’t afford a geiger counter, so I’ll probably never know.