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ACT for America The Mission Viejo Chapter of ACT for America will hold a General Meeting on Mon., July 8. Doors open at 7:00 p.m. The meeting starts promptly at 7:30 p.m. and ends at 9:30 p.m. The guest speaker will be Eyal Aranoff, co-founder of the Fuel Freedom Foundation. His topic will be “Bankrupting Jihad Inc. with $3.00 a Gallon Auto Fuel!” Aranoff is a fuels-choice advocate who will describe a practical path to cheaper, cleaner, American-made fuels that will break OPEC and bankrupt jihad supporters. Because of growing world trade, the world GDP expanded from $5 trillion in 1973, to $70 trillion in 2012. The transportation of all those goods requires petroleum fuels. Lots of it. This addiction to oil, the world's most important strategic resource, empowers OPEC to keep prices artificially high. By controlling supply, they dictate worldwide oil prices, enabling them to extract hundreds of billions of dollars in ill-gotten gains, each year. Billions of dollars of that money ultimately support jihad against the West. But what if there were competing fuels for ground, air and sea transportation? What if those fuels were cheaper and cleaner than oil-based fuels, and supported American jobs, innovation and national security? These fuels exist and can easily replace $100-a-barrel petroleum with $50-a-barrel fuels. At that price, all the oil dictatorships in the Middle East would collapse, the region would become impoverished, weak and isolated. The rich, spoiled petro billionaires wouldn't have any money to wage jihad. That dream can become a reality, in the next few years. Eyal will discuss:
Eyal Aronoff is a co-founder of Quest Software, which was recently sold to Dell for $2.4 billion, and co-founder of the Fuel Freedom Foundation, which is dedicated to ending America's oil addiction by opening markets to cheaper, cleaner, healthier replacement fuels such as ethanol, methanol and natural gas. Aronoff traces his commitment to breaking America's oil addiction to his Israeli roots. As a young boy, he lost his father in the 1967 Six Day War. Then, on Sept. 11, 2001, Aronoff's step-brother and his new wife were both killed in the World Trade Center attack. In the wake of 9/11, Aronoff began to turn his attention to answering the question of how to free the U.S. economy from its dependence on imported oil, which he believes would, in turn, help ensure America's geopolitical security. Aronoff will speak for about 50 minutes followed by about 20 minutes for questions. A $5 donation will be appreciated to help cover meeting costs. The location is the Norman P. Murray Community Center (Sycamore B Room), 24932 Veterans Way, Mission Viejo. Bruce Mayall is the Chapter Leader. Sign up for ACT! for America chapter announcements at www.act4oc.org |
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How ‘David’ Slew ‘Goliath’ Dear Readers, "Oh no, it wasn't the airplanes. It was beauty killed the beast." The glitter of gold attracted the operators of the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station. It did them in. Faced with the need to upgrade an old design, SoCal Edison demanded of Mitsubishi (the contractor for the replacement steam generators) too many impossible and conflicting constraints. Most Pressurized Water Reactors (PWRs) have three or four steam generators which, as the name implies, convert water to steam. San Onofre's reactors have only two steam generators each, so if one fails, the other has to handle the full task of cooling the reactor. This was one of many design flaws, but they had lived with it. The problem came when they tried to get even more output from the replacement steam generators, despite using a new, more corrosion-resistant alloy that was 10% less heat-conductive than the original alloy. They made up for the 10% loss of heat transfer capabilities by adding hundreds more tubes in the same space, packing them all closer together, and increasing their length by an average of about 50 inches. Additional changes were made as well, usually to prevent corrosion-related problems that had plagued the original steam generators. These changes may or may not have been successful -- we'll never know because somewhere along the line, they completely miscalculated how much steam would be produced inside the steam generators. Outside the tubes (but inside the steam generator casing) there was supposed to be about 96% steam and 4% water. Instead, it was over 99% steam, which allowed the tubes to vibrate. The flow rate was much higher than expected, which also caused, or increased, the vibration. The damage could probably have been prevented by operating the steam loop at a higher pressure, combined with a higher circulation ratio. (The circulation ratio indicates the number of times the water goes around the steam generator before becoming steam, and should be close to five or more, but it was less than four in the SanO SGs.). Adjusting these factors would have meant less steam production -- and less profit. But it might have saved the reactors. The glitter of gold got them. How greedy was SCE? Extremely! About a decade ago, they applied for, and received, a power uprate which allowed them to operate the original steam generators (and later, the replacement steam generators) at higher temperatures and flow rates in order to produce significantly more steam -- "pure" profit. The only problem was that doing so accelerated corrosion and fatigue wear in the original steam generators. Or WAS that a problem, in their view? Perhaps not, because they planned to bilk the ratepayers for the full cost of the replacement steam generators. And the sooner that happened the better, as far as the utility was concerned. What they wanted to avoid was to be replacing the steam generators around the time of the next license renewal, in 2022. Accelerated wear followed by an early replacement suited them just fine: That way, they could expect to slide through the license renewal with a "like-new" pair of reactors that they planned to claim was all ready to go for the next 20 or even 40 years. Never mind the waste problem they were continuing to create for everyone, and never mind all the other components that were also wearing out. SCE delayed some plant upgrades, and separated out the cost of a few items (such as new reactor pressure vessel heads, new turbine blades, miles of new pipes, new control equipment, etc.) to keep the cost of replacing the steam generators themselves below a billion dollars. Thus they were able to appease some activists who complained only about the cost. (Moral: Never complain only about the cost.) The Nuclear Regulatory Commission approved the uprate, and the California Public Utilities Commission approved having the ratepayers pay for it, and SCE turned up the steam output, and the power, and the profits, and shortly thereafter, ordered four replacement steam generators from Mitsubishi. With the new steam generators installed, the license extensions were expected to be a breeze. The NRC had never denied a license extension and still hasn't. Then Fukushima happened, and the opposition to San Onofre in the community swelled. American ex-pats came back from Japan to California with their young families, with terrifying stories about the incredibly poor way the Japanese government and many of the Japanese people are handling the radiation crises over there. Highly radioactive rice and vegetables are being downblended with less radioactive products to reduce the dose to "acceptable" levels. Radioactive food is being exported to poor countries as "aid" supplies. Radioactive waste is being shipped around Japan only to be burned (and thus released to the environment) in cities far from Fukushima. And worst of all: Thyroid abnormalities are suddenly rampant among Japanese children and there are rumors of excess numbers of stillbirths and deformed babies that can't survive, of doctors being told not to say anything to the parents -- to just say the baby was born dead. These returning ex-pats did not want the same thing to happen here. And much of it WILL happen if we have a nuclear disaster. Less than a year after Fukushima, and less than two years after San Onofre's new steam generators were installed, with opposition to San Onofre in full swing, one tube inside one steam generator leaked. Nearly 40,000 tubes had been replaced, but just one leaky tube spelled doom for San Onofre. They had been hit right between the eyes. At first, the operators of the plant didn't -- or couldn't -- believe anything serious had happened. So one tube leaked? They called it "settling in." But then they looked more closely, and the real problem began to reveal itself. This wasn't just teething pains. The steam generators had vibrated excessively, and thousands of tubes had rubbed against tube supports and against other tubes. There was 90% through-wall wear in one tube in Unit 2, which had been shut down for the first refueling after its steam generator replacement, and more than 90% through-wall wear in numerous tubes in Unit 3, with one, -- the one that leaked --, at 100% through-wall wear. Unit 3 was ruined for sure, at least without yet another billion-dollar steam generator replacement. But the utility thought Unit 2 could be salvaged somehow. Why they thought this, I'll never know, but for more than 16 months they held onto the thought, meanwhile charging ratepayers hundreds of millions of dollars for upkeep for a broken and inoperable pair of reactors. Finally, on June 7, 2013, the utility gave up and announced they would decommission San Onofre without trying to restart it, blaming "regulatory delay" which was fair enough, insofar as, the NRC would not grant them a license to restart Unit 2 at 70% power as they had asked. Instead, the NRC came back with dozens of highly technical questions about what assumptions SCE had made in projecting that the reactor could be safely operated at 70% power -- or any percent -- for a five-month "test" period. (Note: The word "test" is in quotes because the utility refused to call their restart plan an experiment with 8.7 million people's lives, but that's exactly what it would have been.) Whistleblowers, activists and experts alike were also looking at the available data -- which was insufficient in many ways, with much of it held back as "proprietary." But from what was available, all were saying it would be unsafe to restart San Onofre. Even a Senator (Barbara Baxer (D-CA)) and a Congressperson (Ed Markey, D-MA)) got involved, pressuring the NRC to examine SCE's application very carefully. But did "regulatory delay" really kill the beast? Was it the "miracle" of the busted steam generators (without an accompanying meltdown), or were the activists' campaigns what really killed San Onofre? We'll never know for sure, but the activists certainly put enormous pressure on SCE. Beginning just days after Fukushima, they (we) have been going to local city councils, to schools, political organizations, civic clubs, and to the media, explaining the horrific danger San Onofre presents. And it was working: we had been getting official letters for -- if not outright closure of San Onofre -- safer operation, open investigations, and removal of the waste. Not the brass ring, but good things. We spoke in front of hundreds of elected officials in dozens of cities. Only one or two appeared to express a strongly pro-nuclear point of view, and many that did talk (most just listened) were clearly confused about the dangers from nuclear power. They really did need an education! The activists brought world-renowned experts to discuss the issues, and many of us spoke without notes, so that we could, with a dozen or more speakers, each telling a three-minute part of the story, offer a very compelling case against nuclear power, complete with pictures, graphs, charts and facts to go along with every claim. And these activists were respected members of the community: retired government workers, Harvard graduates, lawyers, doctors, business persons, moms, dads and kids. All understood the issues and spoke eloquently, time and again. The communities surrounding San Onofre were getting quite an education, and most of these presentations were being broadcast live on the internet. After a while, one city council would tell another about the group of activists that would come and discuss San Onofre. We would try to have local residents of whatever city we were in speak first. Activists pointed out, for example, that the energy San Onofre produced was not vital even during the summer months -- there did not need to be blackouts or brownouts. This was true (and is true) even though SCE has refused to convert SanO's turbines to synchronous condensers (basically, big flywheels) for voltage support, has failed to distribute nearly a billion dollars in renewable energy funds it has already collected, has failed to implement much "demand response" (which turns off people's air conditioning and dryers and so forth for an hour or so during peak periods), and has fought all varieties of solar and wind projects tooth and nail to prevent them from hooking in to the grid. San Onofre will be decommissioned -- or so we're told: I want to see those domes come down before I'll truly believe it. And let's watch out for the radiation that can be released as that happens. The San Diego daily paper, the Union-Tribune, has always supported nuclear power. It still does. Today (6/20/2013) it published two op-eds: One pro-nuclear by the CEO of General Atomics, and one con by Daniel Hirsch of the Committee to Bridge the Gap. The CEO's claims are pathetic, ancient dogma about how we "need" energy and will get it one way or another, that renewables aren't ready, that the waste problem can be solved, that the next generation of nukes will be cleaner and safer (don't bet on it). It was sickening to read. Right next to it, Dan Hirsch explains the reality. Although San Onofre is far less likely to have a catastrophic accident now that it is shut down, the magnitude of the disaster it can have has not diminished by much, and won't diminish much for tens of thousands of years. What to do with the spent fuel -- the used reactor cores -- is a terrible problem which has never been solved by the nuclear industry. Decommissioning will take decades, and that's not including whatever is done with the reactor cores, which have all been stored on site since the first refueling outage at San Onofre. Diablo Canyon, a few hundred miles north of San Onofre, is also old and dilapidated, and needs to be closed forever too -- and they also have no solution for their nuclear waste problem. No plant has a solution. Nuclear power has failed the citizens miserably in California. There has even been a meltdown here -- probably worse than Three Mile Island -- which was covered up and denied for decades. (Dan Hirsch uncovered it.) It's time to give up on Diablo Canyon too, before something terrible happens there, such as a meltdown. Such as what was narrowly avoided at San Onofre. Shut down Diablo. It's no better than SanO ever was. Ace Hoffman |
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Non-government Events Following is a sampling of events and activities that are not funded by taxpayers or promoted by the Nanny State. Please support private enterprise and non-profit groups. Sawdust Art & Craft Festival, 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. daily, June 28 to Sept. 1, 935 Laguna Canyon Road, Laguna Beach, (949) 494-3030, http://www.sawdustfestival.org Soka University concerts: Men Alive present “Made in America!” on Sat,, June 29, 3:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. All-American Boys Chorus – “America: The Dream Goes On!” on Sat., July 13, 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., Soka Performing Arts Center, 1 University Drive, Aliso Viejo, (949) 480-4278, http://www.performingarts.soka.edu Concerts at Lake Mission Viejo on Saturdays: Kellie Pickler on July 6, Donavon Frankenreiter on July 20, Dennis DeYoung on Aug. 3, Michael Bolton on Aug. 17 and Rock Under the Radar: Delta Rae on Aug. 31. Concerts begin at 7:00 p.m. and are limited to lake association members and their guests. Call or visit the website for information, 949-770-1313, ext. 311, or http://www.lakemissionviejo.org Laguna Playhouse presents “I Do! I Do!” from July 9 through Aug. 11, 606 Laguna Canyon Rd., Laguna Beach, (949) 497-2787, ext. 1, http://www.lagunaplayhouse.com So. Cal. Tomato Battle, Sat., July 13, 1:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. in the spirit of Spain’s La Tomatina tomato battle, Irvine Lake, 5305 Santiago Canyon Road, Silverado, http://tbsocal.eventbrite.com/ Recycling Drive at St. Kilian’s Church, Sat., July 20, 7:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon, held on the third Saturday of each month. Organized by Knights of Columbus; acceptable items include aluminum, paper and plastic. No glass or cardboard. Lower parking lot, 26872 Estanciero Drive, Mission Viejo, (949) 472-1249, http://www.stkilianchurch.org La Vida Drum Circle, Mon., July 22, 7:00 – 10:00 p.m., group meets on the evening of every full moon (Mon., July 22, Tues., Aug. 20, Thurs., Sept. 19, etc.). Drummers should bring their drums. Firewood is appreciated for the bonfire, Aliso Beach, Aliso and Coast Highway, Laguna Beach, (949) 275-7544, http://www.lavidalaguna.com/things-we-dig/ |
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Political and Government Events Calendar Orange County Board of Supervisors will hold a special meeting on Mon., June 24, 12:30 p.m., and a regular meeting on Tues., June 25, 9:30 a.m., Board Hearing Room, First Floor, 333 W. Santa Ana Blvd., Santa Ana, (714) 834-3100. http://ocgov.com/cals/?ViewBy=7&CalDate=1/15/2013&EventDateID=89649 Meet President Abraham Lincoln, Tues., June 25, 10:30 a.m. to 12:00 noon, Richard Nixon Presidential Library. Nixon Library concert on Sun., June 30, Commonwealth Players featuring violinist Peter Marsh. Doors open at 1:30 and the concert begins at 2:00 p.m. 18001 Yorba Linda Blvd., Yorba Linda, (714) 364-1120, http://nixonfoundation.org Saddleback Valley Unified School District regular board meeting on Tues., June 25, 6:30 p.m., 25631 Peter Hartman Way, Mission Viejo, (949) 586-1234, http://www.svusd.k12.ca.us/ SOC912 presents “Common Core – National Education Program – Not Good for America!” on Wed., June 26, 7:00 p.m., at the Norm Murray Community Center, 24932 Veterans Way, Mission Viejo. http://www.meetup.com/SOC912/ Santa Margarita Water District Board of Directors will meet on Wed., June 26, at 7:00 p.m., 26111 Antonio Parkway, Rancho Santa Margarita, (949) 459-6420, http://www.smwd.com Capistrano Unified School District Board of Trustees will meet on Wed., June 26, 7:00 p.m., district office, 33122 Valle Road, San Juan Capistrano. Agenda and supporting documentation are published on the website 72 hours prior to a meeting, (949) 234-9200, http://capousd.ca.schoolloop.com/ Mission Viejo Chapter of ACT! for America will hold a General Meeting on Mon., July 8. Doors open at 6:45 p.m. The meeting starts promptly at 7:30 p.m. and ends at 9:30 p.m., at the Norman P. Murray Community Center, 24932 Veterans Way, Mission Viejo. OC Veterans Advisory Council, Wed., July 10, 6:00 p.m. The council meets on the second Wednesday of each month. Veterans Service Office, Conference Room A/B, 1300 S. Grand Ave., Building B, Santa Ana, https://cms.ocgov.com/gov/occr/occs/veterans/advisory/default.asp SOC912 General Meeting, Fri., July 19, 7:00 p.m. SOC912 meets on third Fridays. Norman P. Murray Community Center, 24932 Veterans Way, Mission Viejo, http://www.meetup.com/SOC912/ |
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The Buzz Community members who want to learn about Common Core Curriculum are invited to attend SOC912’s informative meeting on Wed., June 26, 7:00 p.m. The program topic will be “Common Core – National Education Program – Not Good for America!” Common Core involves a federal takeover of public education. The meeting will be held at the Norm Murray Community Center, 24932 Veterans Way, Mission Viejo. http://www.meetup.com/SOC912/ *** June hasn’t been a good month for Orange County’s incestuous power club. Despite the money boys promoting the restart of Southern California Edison’s San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station, SCE announced its closure on June 7. Another setback to the paid political performers came on June 19. The San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board denied a permit for the 5.5-mile extension to the SR-241 toll road. http://www.sanclementetimes.com/blog/2013/06/20/water-board-denies-241-toll-road-extension-permit/ *** This blog’s editors are not opposed to nuclear power, but they believe SCE should have first addressed safety issues. Instead, SCE’s PR campaign enriched shills who downplayed safety concerns. This blog also supports building and maintaining infrastructure, including road repair and traffic solutions. However, it does not support the money boys’ “education campaigns,” including full-page newspaper ads that don’t address Mission Viejo’s primary transportation needs. A representative who serves on the Transportation Corridor Agency finally revealed factual data from the dais. During the June 17 Mission Viejo City Council meeting, Councilwoman Rhonda Reardon talked about financing the toll roads and said the TCA’s bonds are one step above junk bonds. *** In another challenge to the toll road extension, a lawsuit filed by the California Attorney General in May alleges the road is being built in piecemeal fashion, which is prohibited by the California Environmental Quality Act. Toll road advocates responded the piecemealing claim isn’t true. However, Mission Viejo Councilman Frank Ury said from the dais the toll road will be finished “incrementally.” Watch the video, Item No. 24, where he states how the TCA will proceed, http://missionviejo.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?clip_id=ece3ebb3-87ec-4417-b6cb-6c22f46ae4c1&meta_id=4cc9710f-ea8d-4b05-adff-d07efbc56044 *** A Mission Viejo watchdog sent word that Justin McCusker replaced Roger Faubel on the Santa Margarita Water District Board of Directors. The appointment was predicted last week in an article on OCPoliticsBlog.com. From the June 22 blog update following McCusker’s appointment: “We reported on June 13, 2013, that consummate OC political insider Justin McCusker would be appointed to replace his pal Roger Faubel on the board of the Santa Margarita Water District. They demurred but today a press release was issued admitting that our inside source was right. You can bet that this guy will be a giant conflict of interest as he appears to be quite beholden to developers and no, we won’t be able to count on him to do the right thing.” Read the rest of the article, including information about a related fiasco, Cadiz Inc., at http://ocpoliticsblog.com/developer-shill-justin-mccusker-appointed-to-the-smwd-board-of-directors/ *** OC Politics blog highlights another member of the power club, Lucy Dunn: “Ruh roh! It looks like Lucy Dunn, the President of the Orange County Business Council (OCBC), really blew it when she sent out an email promoting her pal Kris Murray, who is running for re-election to the Anaheim City Council. You see the OCBC accepts taxpayer money and as such they are not allowed to endorse candidates. They have a Political Action Committee that is supposed to do that.” Continue reading: http://ocpoliticsblog.com/did-lucy-dunn-blow-it-while-shamelessly-promoting-kris-murray/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+OcPolitics+(OC+Politics) *** Conservatives who watched the June 17 council meeting were likely in shock that the budget was passed with almost no discussion. Only Councilwoman Cathy Schlicht asked questions about staff recommendations. By the way, the charging stations for electric cars are covered in the budget, with only Councilwoman Schlicht objecting. This is the tip of the iceberg as the budget goes, but a typical example of how things are done in city hall. The charging stations were budgeted without any needs analysis whatsoever, and the city apparently thinks it should compete with private enterprise by entering this market. |
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