Arrest Of Chinese Man Started With Radiation Worry
In China, authorities have jailed a man for spreading radiation rumors. The comments posted online warned readers to take action to protect themselves from radiation dangers following the nuclear problems in Japan. The man was sentenced to 10 days in jail. He must also pay the equivalent of $76.13 in fines. Source for this article – In China, man jailed for radiation rumors by Newsytype.com.
The spread of radiation rumors in China
China has not seen any of the Japan radiation from the nuclear plants even though many are worried about the radiation. Since many Chinese believe the iodine in salt will stop the radiation, several of them are stockpiling it. Many are worried about eating seafood. The whole country has become concerned about it. Chinese and English language message boards are full of warnings of the dangers of radiation and listing the possible effects of radiation sickness.
Jailing an old man for rumors
Police officials in Zhejiang province have declared the arrest and conviction of a man who goes by the online handle “Old Fisherman.”. After seeing warnings online, Mr. Chen forwarded the information to his friends and family. By spreading these things, Mr. Chen was supposedly doing “harm to society.” This is what he is being charged with. Chen made a comment about this. He said he had a “deep awareness of his mistake…which was…illegal and harmful to society.” A 500 yuan fee was given to Mr. Chen who must stay in Chinese prison for 10 days.
Possible difficulties with radiation in the world
The Japan crisis involving nuclear material is continuing on. More individuals are worried about getting radiation poisoning. In order to stay away from thyroid cancer, many individuals are getting Iodine pills. They’re expected to help stop radiation exposure. Fears of radiation sickness are becoming overblown, except for those really in Japan. The dangers from nuclear meltdown will certainly affect Japan for years to come – however the likelihood that severe radiation poising is imminent are simply overstated. The radiation dose from spending 24 hours within 50 km of the Fukushima plants is still less than just one chest X-ray. In short, the radiation danger is very real – and for a lot of people living outside Japan, very small.
Information from
Wired
wired.com/geekdad/2011/03/xkcd-puts-your-radiation-fears-to-rest/
Reuters
news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20110321/od_nm/us_quake_china
