Ishihara: "It's Plain Stupid to Abandon Nuclear Plants!" (and Nuclear Technology, Probably)

Donation from electric power companies to his new party must be swelling by the minute.

According to Jiji Tsushin (10/24/2012), Mr. Ishihara, who was still the governor of Tokyo at that time, made the remark in a press conference at J-Village in Naraha-machi, Fukushima, after he toured Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant on October 24, 2012 in suits (without Tyvek) accompanied by the governors of Ibaraki and Gunma Prefectures.

東京都の石原慎太郎知事、茨城県の橋本昌知事、群馬県の大沢正明知事は２４日、福島県の東京電力福島第１原発を視察した。石原氏は視察後、原発事故対応の拠点となっている楢葉町の「Ｊヴィレッジ」で、記者団に「大きな反省点はあるが、その事故をもって人間が開発した現代的な新しい技術体系を放り出すのは愚かだ」と述べ、原発の必要性を強調した。

Governor of Tokyo Shintaro Ishihara, Governor of Ibaraki Masaru Hashimoto, and Governor of Gunma Masaaki Oosawa visited Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant on October 24. After the visit, Mr. Ishihara emphasized the necessity of nuclear power plants to the press at J-Village in Naraha-machi, saying "There are points which we should seriously reflect upon, but to throw away the modern, new technology system created by the mankind just because of the accident is stupid."

Jiji says Ishihara was referring to nuclear power plants, but I'm not so sure. He may have meant nuclear power plants, but given his ultra-hawkish stance on security issues he may have also meant nuclear technologies in general, including nuclear weapon making.

Here's Ishihara, flanked by the governors of Ibaraki and Gunma, telling TEPCO managers and workers at Fukushima I Nuke Plant "You're doing the great job that only Japanese can do, with meticulous attention to detail", (according to the same Jiji article).

From TEPCO's Photos and Videos page on October 24, 2012:

Ishihara looks good for his age.

After witnessing the devastation from the two atomic bombs dropped, there were many people in power in Japan who wanted to have such powerful weapons themselves. Maybe it had a similar impression on then-13-year-old Ishihara.

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