J. Samuel Walker

Having lived in the Washington area since the 1980s, even then there was a sense that the city had not put the events of 1968 behind it, and really didn't until the 1990s. This workmanlike accounting is probably not the last word on the topic, but it was good enough for my purposes, with my main takeaway being that while one could blame the event on Martin Luther King's assassination, there was likely to have been some sort of insurrectionist event, due to the hopes of the early 1960s for racial and economic justice having evaporated, and the inhabitants of the District's slums being sick of it all. As for why there have not been more such events post-1960s, Walker suggests that how many urban police departments made an effort to improve community relations had a great deal to do with this; this is suggestive as many of the more recent insurrections seem connected with ham-handed police departments unable to balance paramilitary force with personal discipline.… (mais)

This is exactly the kind of book you would expect from a man who was a Historian for the NRC. I wouldn't consider this book dry. I would say it is "information dense." I don't think this is the best book for a casual reader. This book is certainly something that would be at home in an academic library. The book follows the accident from multiple perspectives, including technical and political. It is very interesting and highly detailed. I would recommend this book to someone interested in the subject. This book is not designed like a popular non-fiction book. I don't think this would be the appropriate title for someone looking for a popular history of TMI. Still, I really did enjoy this book. I look forward to reading more of this author.… (mais)

I'm glad I read this book, but I guess I was hoping for something more. The book is exactly what it purports to be: a history of the development of radioactive waste policy in the United States, by the historian of the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission. It is primarily an organizational and policy history, although the author discusses pertinent political and scientific events and issues. The book is suitably critical of failed and inadequate policies, but I was hoping for something with more of a "bite" to it -- something that would expand on the issues at stake. The author fails to provide a broader context: what exactly constitutes a significant danger to public well-being? There is no mention of France's approach to nuclear waste, and no mention of the work of Hales ("Atomic Spaces") or Sternglass. The author has clearly research the subject extensively, but the bureaucratic context is a limiting one.… (mais)