Activist Charles Corda sent us a Letter to the Editor, calling out the District 2 Commission candidates for not being up front with their feelings about the Nuclear Reactors planned for Turkey Point. I don't understand how this is an issue in this election, but apparently it is.
Here is Commission Candidate, Ken Russell's response to Charles:
Here is Commission Candidate, Ken Russell's response to Charles:
Hi Charles,
It's a wonder that candidates don't take the bait when you start with insults and end with an impending declaration of candidacy.
I responded to your unrelated comments on my website a couple weeks ago asking to speak further with you about upzoning and appreciating your words whenever I've heard you speak at meetings. You didn't reply.
But the way you write here is not a conversation or an invitation for intelligent discussion. You're on a witch hunt to hammer candidates. Who wants to participate in that?
Regarding more local nuclear power, my mother is from Japan. She grew up a few hours away from the Fukushima nuclear plant. What happened there is devastating. A natural disaster breached the reactors poisoning the area with radiation. Of course I'm concerned that we are so susceptible to hurricanes and sea level rise. We already have a nuclear facility there, but how will the construction and operation of the new ones affect the surrounding environment?
And of course, Nobody wants new giant power lines and poles along the proposed Underline green space that is meant for us to enjoy.
So the bandwagon you'd like to drive and have all the candidates jump on is pretty obvious. You've already got your torch lit and pitchfork raised, and anyone who doesn't answer you is a coward, right? But who wants to engage with a hostile one-sided challenge?
What are the Nuclear alternatives to serving the power needs of the growing community? If nuclear is the best option, is it just a case of "not in my backyard?" Where is better?
Is there a possibility of burying lines instead of stringing wires on poles down US1?
Of course I don't want this. Nobody does so It's a ridiculous question.
But let's talk about alternative solutions. Figure out a better way.
As for you entering the race, If you're going to join our circus of a candidate pool, you're very welcome (I call it a circus affectionately--I'm part of it). You know the issues and you've paid your dues. You have as much right to run as anyone. But it sounds like you'd be another angry candidate who's doing it out of frustration. We've got that position filled in spades. I'm excited about what Miami can be moving forward.
I'm not perfect and I don't have all the answers. That makes me a good Grapevine punching bag. But everyone has seen that I'm willing to engage and keep a level head. Let's keep talking...
Reading back on my post, I see that it can be read with a mean or angry tone. Especially with the editor's title of "reading the riot act". That was not my intention. Please know that I do not mean disrespect to Charles and as I have said, I always have respected his comments at meetings and on this blog. Not backpedalling any of my comments... just want it known that they were written with love. :-)
ReplyDeleteI commend him on actively opposing and trying to put an end to the constant negative, pitchfork weilding "activists" in the Grove. All fire and brimstone and never any good alternatives.
ReplyDeleteIf I was still a resident of the 33133 instead of just having my employment here I'd give him a seriously look JUST for this alone! It's time for some positivity in this beautiful little village!
I'm not "feeling the love" Ken
ReplyDeleteSeems like I pissed you off . I'm happy I did so. At least now we have some semblanceon where you stand on the issue of the expansion of Turkey Point. Your response on the subject is confused and contradictory..But you tried. That is a good thing.At least you're thinking about it now.
Ken, It was a simple question that deserves a simple answer..Where do you stand on the expansion of Nuclear Power at Turkey Point?
Whether you support this, or whether you oppose this is almost a secondary issue.
The primary issue is that the voters have a right to know where the candidates stand on the issues.
If you are elected. Will this issue be something of importance to you?
It is sad that you had to be challenged to hear your opinion. It is even sadder that not one other candidate has spoken up to this point.
As to the "conversation" it HAS been taking place this week in meetings in Miami and Homestead hosted by the NRC- The Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Had you taken an interest in this important subject you would have known that.
A great deal of opposing viewpoints were presented and much was learned from many insightful and intelligent presentations.
Unfortunately again...It appears not one District Two Candidate felt this issue important enough to be present.
However State Representative Javier Rodriguez, Mayor Phillip Stoddard of South Miami and Mayor Cindy Learner of Pinecrest did. They spoke wisely and with compassion for their communities. Even Mayor Regalado voiced his opposition through his emissary Victoria Mendez.
I am sorry to hear you take offense to my challenge to you, and the other candidates, to come forward and express your views. To me this is one of the biggest problems we face in Miami. The desire of Government to operate in the shadows. We have had enough of that approach to governing.
If you will not come forward now on important issues why should anyone believe you will
do so when elected.?
We have spent far too much time being represented by people who fail to acknowledge the debt owed to their constituents. Being an elected representative is not about withholding information and viewpoints.it is about listening to, and acting upon those issues that are of concern to the community.
I do not believe "getting elected" by any means including remaining silent, takes precedence over being an honest and forthright candidate. The people have a right to know who they are voting for. To be blunt I dont think anyone in Coconut Grove at least wants another Sarnoff in office, whether it be Teresa or any other candidate who is duplicitous and conniving.
Ken I have never thought ill of you. In truth I dont think of you. I simply dont know you well enough to make even a reasonable assessment of your abilities, nature or viewpoints.
Nor have I heard enough from you to do so. In reality I have even expressed to a number of people that you appear to be a reasonably intelligent young man and viable contender for this seat.
Even though I find your letter to me rife with examples of immaturity and uncontrolled emotion at least you had the where with all to respond to a challenge albeit in a somewhat less than professional manner.
Finally Ken. As to whether or not I throw my hat into this ring is not an issue for your consideration. I will not consult you on my intentions. That said the chances of me doing so are highly unlikely. If I were to do so you can rest assured that I will be open and honest about my viewpoints and where I stand on issues important to this community. If the community supports me for my views so be it..If not that is ok too. Thats the way it should be. Everyone should know who they are voting for.
As to the vision you have about "Miami ..moving forward" Why don't you share with us what it is..I for one would be delighted to hear your views.
Lastly Ken ..Nuclear is NEVER the best option.
Sincerely,
Charles Corda
Since Mr. Russell is looking for alternatives to nuclear power, I would like to remind him that he lives in the SUNSHINE state and that Florida should be at the forefront of solar power as a viable energy source. Take the land that would be used to build the plants and use it for a solar field.
ReplyDeleteI am actually more concerned about what is happening to Biscayne Bay with high temperature water flowing into it from Turkey Point than I am about the reactor leaking so it is not a case of nimby as much as ruining a natural resource.
We should go solar not nuclear.
I believe Germany gets as much sunlight as Alaska YET Germans get more power from solar energy than this generated in the entire United States.
ReplyDeleteI've watched Charles Corda try to become some sort of "leader" on several community issues and it's tragic. No one wants or needs his bungling, blustering, amateur hour "leadership" on this or any issue. He is the NEW Marc Sarnoff, looking for any issue and any group of followers he can lead into battle. Hang it up Charles. You know nothing about energy policy. If you did you would know that there are many brilliant experts already doing battle with FP&L based on their expert knowledge and credibility. You are a ridiculous gadfly and do nothing but discredit those who are seriously trying to do something constructive to prevent a nuclear accident in our community....
ReplyDeleteCharles Corda's rants are getting a little long in the tooth. Just throw your hat in the ring and run for commissioner already. Nothing helps get rid of the status quo better than a highly diluted playing field where the odds and money are stacked in favor of the status quo.
ReplyDeleteA few facts re: Solar and Nuclear.
ReplyDeleteFirst the most obvious. If something goes wrong at a solar plant no one dies, no one gets cancer and the land remains as it was before whatever went wrong. The effects are negligible.
When something goes wrong at a Nuclear Reactor tens of thousands can, and do, die. That includes men. women and children in addition to every living breathing thing that is touched by the radiation. Everything alive dies. Cancer is common among those who survive the initial blast of radiation it just takes them longer to die. Radiation poisoning brings on a relatively slow and painful death. . The land around a nuclear accident site remains contaminated for centuries. At Chernobyl and Fukushima the "death zone is over 1200 Square Miles. If you enter that area sometime within the next 500 to 1000 years you die. The towns within that 1200 Square Mile area are ghost towns..and will remain so for all time. The effect of a melt down of a nuclear reactor is exactly the same as the effects of detonating a nuclear weapon.. Nuclear Power Plants have ZERO tolerance for errors or mistakes. Chernobyl the worst nuclear disaster in human history was caused by human error.
China alone brought more than 5 GIGAWATTS of Solar Power online in the 1st Quarter of 2015..That is more power the the Planned for FPL turkey point reactors and they did it in 3 months. FP&L is at this 9 years with nothing to show for it except for the money they have billed us to pay for their power plants. At this point in time a number of BILLION DOLLAR companies are installing Utility Scale Solar Plants all over the world. SunEdison, First Solar, Canadian Solar to name just a few.Utility Scale Solar is BIG today. Solar is viable, available, safe and less expensive that Nuclear. FP&L expects to spent 25 Billion Dollars on the new reactors. You will pay for that in your monthly electric bill. Your children will also pay for that too.
The NRC estimates that Solar will require somewhere between 6600 and 17000 acres of land. Turkey Point is 9,000 acres. If FP&L buys a few good sized ranches in various locations in Florida they can have more than enough land to fulfill Florida's energy needs for centuries to come Best of all no one's life or property is in danger. .I can go on here for hours listing all the advantages and recent advancements in Solar Power which is developing at a speed not unlike the advancement in computers. If anyone would like to know more I will be happy to put you on my mailing list for solar information.
After reading these posts I must to take my meds.
ReplyDelete"Nuclear is NEVER the best option."
ReplyDeleteWhy?
The French get most of their power that way, seem to be doing fine.
Negative posts like these are to be expected. If there is one person in Coconut Grove who is more deceitful, self serving and manipulative and than Sarnoff. its Seth Gordon..Buyer Beware he's Ken Russell's biggest supporter and consultant..
ReplyDeleteCorda's 5 minutes on Wikipedia does NOT make him an expert on nuclear or solar power issues. What a joke!
ReplyDeletePoor guy is SO eager to be a "leader" he practically BEGS for followers. PLEASE take me seriously!! NO happening Charles......;-)
ReplyDeleteYou know the phrase "piss and vinegar"? Well that's Charles Corda. More piss than vinegar. Let go of the hate, man, you'll be a happier human for it.
ReplyDeleteCharles is just baiting at this point. I'd ignore him.
ReplyDeleteCharles Corda raises many valuable points. He signs his name. Its his right. He seems to have touched a nerve, both in the present and in the past. All he wants, like the rest of us, is someone to run that represents the people instead of the developers. That means talking about important issues.
ReplyDeleteIt seems like anonymous from 8:31 to 12:09 may be the same person. Its that you again Ron? Did Charles hurt your little feelings? And Ron, as long as your reading this, are you going to be Theresa's butt boy too?
Have the Sarnoffs ever signed their names here?
ReplyDelete@1:59
ReplyDelete12:09 here. No this isn't Ron. I'm just your run of the mill tax payer. I can tell when someone is rambling and seeking attention. Charles' fear mongering is just that. You know that friend almost everyone has who always has wild stories to tell, but everyone knows they're lies? His rants above make him seem like that guy. His points above are full of holes and inaccuracies.
I'm sure Tom can see the IP address of where each comment originated from and I highly doubt any politicians or their handlers spend too much time responding to stuff on here.
So, 3:19, you admit that you are the same person posting multiple comments against Charles Corda? If it was a group of people, I'd be worried. Yes, Charles can be a bit abrasive, but I like that he is not afraid to speak his mind.
ReplyDeleteNo, I never said that. 11:29 was my other comment.
ReplyDeleteSolar constitutes about 0.2 percent of China's power generation capacity. 65% of China's power generation is in coal, and China continues to aggressively build more coal capacity.
ReplyDeleteGermany has had to curtail its green energy projects because electricity was getting too expensive for German industry to compete with the U.S., where we have a huge abundance of natural gas. The situation in Germany has gotten so dire that they have taken to burning lignite. If you've never been around lignite, let me tell you: It is the most foul-smelling, dirty fossile fuel you can imagine.
Any politician who tells you that we can satisfy our energy needs in South Florida with wind and/or solar is either uninformed or lying.
ReplyDeletePoster 10:49 AM is correct. FP&L are DEEP in the solar and wind energy businesses.....in other states where conditions are such that it can work. If it COULD work here they would be leading the charge....score huge PR points and make much more money. The fact they they rely on coal and nuclear here is absolute proof that wind and solar are not YET the answer for South Florida. When it is, they will be the first to retool and make all the money...
ReplyDeleteI think in Florida another monopoly should be allowed to produce energy purely from Solar and only then we will see if they will be more efficient than FPL
ReplyDeleteSWLIP is uninformed and/or intentionally misleading.
ReplyDeleteWind, Solar, and Tidal are all viable sources. And they need not be done on an industrial scale to meet our needs. Instead, they need to be adopted and utilized in pragmatic manner.
Also, beware of anyone telling you that our increased demand is the need for this expansion at Turkey point - that is a lie every time it is stated. This is to sell outside the state. That is an undeniable fact. This is driven by greed.
Solar needs to be instituted on multiple levels - in homes, in industry - the rooftops of warehouses and manufacturing plants - municipalities entering the ring with solar on all available facilities.
And most of all, Florida's legislature needs to force FP&L to buy energy from you at the same rate they will charge you for it. That change alone - changes everything.
City of Miami elected leaders have no authorization to vote on issues of FPL, birth control, civil rights, highways, Cuba relations, or the color of the sky. So why even ask them to provide their thoughts on those topics?
ReplyDeleteKen Russell and Grace Solares both showed up at the public hearing over the 60 story LED billboard tower in Marc Sarnoff's district. Hardemon and Sarnoff refused to let anyone speak.
ReplyDeleteSarnoff approved the LED billboards.
ReplyDeleteGreat letter, Ken. I think your tone was actually rather calm and fair.
ReplyDeleteFYI regarding my credentials to speak up about Nuclear Power vs. Solar.
ReplyDeleteIn relation to Nuclear..I have actually studied the effects of Nuclear radiation in an academic environment. I hold a Certification from the U.S. Department of Defense and the Atomic Energy Commission to perform mathematical analysis of the effects of Nuclear Weapons and associated Radiation and Fallout. I received the certification from the Government back in the 1970's. I know far more about this subject than most people In fact I know more about this subject than even I want to know. The bottom line is the effects of Nuclear Radiation are catastrophic ,long lasting and irreversible. There is no joke there no exaggeration. This is something you simply never want to have to deal with.In fact there is no "dealing" with it..you die..end of story.
As many scientists have said .This is something they wish they we could "un-invent"
As to Solar. As an Architect I have been professionally involved in the design and implementation of alternative energy sources and strategies such as Solar since 1976. ... 39 years.
I have followed the developments in both Passive and Active Solar with great interest for all those years. Am i the definitive expert on Solar..no..Am I well informed both professionally and personally..absolutely. If you had studied the subject for 39 years you would be too.
People who know me know I don't talk about things I don't know anything about.
It happens that the subjects of Nuclear and Solar are subjects in which I happen to have fairly extensive knowledge of, and with, compared to most people. My information is not coming from Wikipeadia.It is coming from being directly involved with both subjects for a very long time.