THE MEDIA DID NOT HYPE FUKUSHIMA

[OKIsItJustMe]

16. Which part did you miss?

It's estimated that the quake and tsunami are the costliest natural disaster in history:
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fgw-japan-quake-world-bank-20110322,0,3799976.story

[font face=Times, Times New Roman, Serif][font size=5]Japan damage could reach $235 billion, World Bank estimates[/font]
[font size=4]Economic consequences of the earthquake and tsunami will be felt across East Asia but will be 'short-lived,' the World Bank predicts. Japan's GDP growth could be slowed by as much as half a percentage point this year.[/font]

By Victoria Kim, Los Angeles Times
March 21, 2011, 10:27 a.m.

[font size=3]The World Bank on Monday issued a report saying the damage from Japan's earthquake and tsunami could amount to as much as $235 billion and that limited effects from the disaster will be felt in economies across East Asia.

Rebuilding in the aftermath of the destruction could take five years, according to the report, released Monday in Singapore. Growth in Japan's gross domestic product could be slowed by as much as half a percentage point this year, though it is likely to pick up after midyear once reconstruction efforts accelerate, the organization forecasted in its East Asia and Pacific Economic Update.

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Our friends at FOX "News" helped fan the flames of radiation paranoia:
http://www.foxnews.com/on-air/fox-news-sunday/transcript/joe-cirincione-sen-mitch-mcconnell-crisis-japan-sens-mark-warner-sen-saxby-chambliss-effo

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Published March 13, 2011 | Fox News Sunday | Chris Wallace
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JOE CIRINCIONE, NUCLEAR SECURITY EXPERT: This is an unprecedented crisis. It is extremely serious. One of the reactors has had half the core exposed already. This is the one they're flooding with sea water in a desperate effort to prevent it from a complete meltdown.

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CIRINCIONE: The worst case scenario is that the fuel rods fused together -- the temperatures get so hot that they melt together in a radioactive molten mass that bursts through the containment mechanisms and is exposed to the outside. So, it spews radioactivity in the ground, into the air, into water. Some of the radioactivity could carry in the atmosphere to the West Coast of the United States.

WALLACE: Really? I mean, thousands of miles across the Pacific?

CIRINCIONE: Oh, absolutely. In Chernobyl, which happened 25 years ago, the radioactivity spread around the entire northern hemisphere. It depends how many of these cores melt down and how successful they are on containing it once the disaster happens.

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In the US, people started buying up potassium iodide (I'd bet that many of the buyers had never heard of potassium iodide before.)

http://www.foxnews.com/health/2011/03/15/dr-manny-treatment-crucial-radiation-exposure/

[font face=Times, Times New Roman, Serif][font size=5]Dr. Manny: Treatment Crucial in Radiation Exposure[/font]

Dr Manny's Notes | Written By Dr. Manny Alvarez | Published March 15, 2011 | FoxNews.com
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Early symptoms of radiation poisoning include nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, which can start within minutes to days of exposure and last for days. Following that, a person may look and appear healthy, but they will soon become sick again, suffering from loss of appetite, fatigue, fever and possibly seizures and coma. These more serious symptoms may last for hours or months.

The condition is treated with stable potassium iodide, a salt that protects the body from radiation by blocking the intake of radioactive material in the thyroid. It is most effective when it is distributed before exposure, and it can provide protection for up to 24 hours afterwards. Japan has already distributed 230,000 doses of potassium iodide to evacuation centers housing people from the areas around the damaged nuclear reactors.

On the West Coast of the United States, sales of potassium iodide have skyrocketed in the past few days due to fears that radiation may sweep across the Pacific. Pharmacies typically do not stock the product, but it has always been readily available over the Internet – until recently.

Many outlets that sell potassium iodide have been flooded with orders, which has lead to a shortage. Companies say that callers often end up in tears when told the product is unavailable, even after being reassured that the chance of radiation reaching the U.S. is actually very low.

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You've got to love FOX "News" the headline says, "Treatment Crucial!" The text says, people are desperately buying the stuff (even though they're told they probably won't need it.) "Hey! Laverne! FOX News says we need to get some of this 'potassium iodide' stuff!"