Sunday, July 14, 2013

China Drops Plans to Build Uranium Processing Plant

On Saturday, high officials in China announced their decision to drop plans to build a uranium processing plant in Jiangmen, Guandong.

Jiangmen's municipal government agreed to cancel this project in the aftermath of a protest organized by people living close to the uranium plant's proposed location. The protest was held on Friday, and more than 500 people took part in it, South China Morning Post informs us.

Not long after the protesters had gathered in the city's Donghu Square, the local government sent 100 police officers to deal with the problem.

The hundreds of people who wished to voice their complaints at the idea of building this uranium processing plant were soon sent to their homes, and promised that high officials would not move forward with this project.

However, many doubt these promises, and fear that they are just a stunt designed to keep them from protesting while the government is busy carrying on with its plans for the construction of the plant.

?The government officials are so corrupt. The accept lots of bribes that could support them to migrant to overseas. That's why they never seriously take care of our living safety,? one of the people taking part in this protest told the press.

?We don't believe the project will be dropped permanently, because our government has no credibility at all,? another one said.

Should it be built, this uranium plant would cover an area of 30 hectares. It would sit at a distance of roughly 100 kilometers (about 62 miles) from the cities of Hong Kong and Macau, whose residents also fear that their health might be affected by activities carried out at the facility.

As previously reported, China is presently dealing with a major air pollution crisis. The government hopes that, by switching to nuclear energy, the country will manage to lower air pollution levels and better protect public health.

Source: http://news.softpedia.com/news/China-Drops-Plans-to-Build-Uranium-Processing-Plant-367897.shtml

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The NFL's summertime blues aren't going away

As the NFL awaits another autumn, you might say it hasn't exactly been an enjoyable summer for the New England Patriots and the Denver Broncos.

It took the Patriots less than five hours between the July arrest of Aaron Hernandez and his arraignment on charges of first-degree murder to sever ties with the All-Pro tight end before the first steps were taken in court, a departure from the way teams usually handle a star athlete in serious trouble.

"Words cannot express the disappointment we feel knowing that one of our players was arrested as a result of this investigation," said the Patriots. "We realize law enforcement investigations into this matter are ongoing. We support their efforts and respect the process."

The Patriots removed Hernandez from the roster and the NFL stopped selling his jersey online.

Hernandez was charged with murder in the shooting of a friend, Odin Lloyd, who prosecutors said angered Hernandez in a Boston nightclub. Lloyd, a 27-year-old semipro football player, was shot five times while he was on the ground, raising his hand to try to save his life, according to prosecutors.

It was two weeks after Hernandez was charged with murder that Patriots cornerback Alfonzo Dennard was arrested and accused of drunken driving in Nebraska while on probation for assaulting a police officer.

Dennard's arrest was his second in 15 months. He had yet to serve a 30-day jail sentence for his run-in with the police.

Meanwhile, over in Denver, the problems facing the Broncos had nothing to do with players, but with the front office.

Talk about wild.

A month after being hired as Denver's director of player personnel, Tom Heckert was facing DUI charges and Matt Russell, also involved in player personnel, was apologizing for his arrest on suspicion of driving under the influence.

"We're not perfect," said Broncos president Joe Ellis. "We admit it. You can say we apologized for it, but I think an apology rings hollow when you run into the back of a police car or you're blowing a blood alcohol limit that's three times the legal limit. I don't think fans, I don't think the public, I don't think anybody wants to hear an apology."

History tells us coaches, to some degree, will always be rolling the dice when it involves welcoming possible troublemakers to the roster. An agent told the Associated Press' Jim Litke there are "at least a dozen on every team," mainly on defense.

"They want guys who say, 'gimme the damn ball' and guys who can turn around and play after they get beat and start talking trash right away about how it won't ever happen again. Without those nasty, selfish guys, competing on a regular basis is practically impossible.''

Source: http://www.nola.com/sports/index.ssf/2013/07/the_nfls_summertime_blues_aren.html

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