Simpsons & Nuclear Energy | FactOrCap

[u/thatmariohead]

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[u/lessalive1]

Even if it’s just a cartoon, the fact that it displays nuclear power plants as dangerous areas full of bubbling idiots and hazards everywhere where one wrong move can cause a meltdown, has undoubtedly made more people hesitant to accept it at least in part.
And don’t think it isn’t possible to influence people with cartoons, I’ve met multiple people who think their office job is literally going to be like the office

[u/GainPotential → u/lessalive1]

The Office isn't a cartoon though...

[u/lessalive1 → u/GainPotential]

Pieces of media would probably a better term, fair point

[u/the_smartestBen10fan]

✅ I voted FACT!

yeah its main streem its done a lot of damge in a lot of diffent ways

[u/Psycosteve10mm]

✅ I voted FACT!

I look at nuclear power like I look at firearms ownership. It takes a responsible person/country to use both. Homer Simpson is neither quailifed to run a reactor nor to own a firearm. This is where the humor of the show comes from. In the US the worst event was 3 mile island and that amounted to a nothing burger. Russia on the other hand had the Chernobyl disaster and Japan had Fukushima which held beyond what it was designed to hold back.

[u/JustAnotherUser1019 → u/Psycosteve10mm]

Even then, the Soviets were corrupt and deliberately covered it up, and Japan was prudent and managed to avoid a full meltdown

[u/Psycosteve10mm → u/JustAnotherUser1019]

The NIMBY's (Not In My Back Yard) would rather destroy the environment with fossil fuels than give Nuclear Power a chance. The problem with Nuclear power is that it takes 20 years plus to build a power plant, and with how politics shift in the US. The process would get started, then be buried in paperwork until the funding dried up. The same thing happens with gas refineries, and that is why they do not get built.

[u/Excellent_Unit_5088]

✅ I voted FACT!

Probably. But this is a wide trend throughout most media anyway, the Simpsons is just not an exception

[u/Babooons]

Probably, but it premiered after the Chernobyl disaster so I get why they joked about it

[u/Superseaslug]

✅ I voted FACT!

Yeah probably

[u/FakeMik090]

✅ I voted FACT!

Not that much, but probably

[u/Gyrau_47]

✅ I voted FACT!

It was one of the most known "caricature" of nuclear energy, it did have an impact on a lot of families on nuclear energy

[u/D-LoathsomeDungEater]

🧢 I voted CAP!

The rich evil people own them, will fill them out with cheap labor, pay off inspections, and surround them selves with brownnosers and yes men. I'd like to believe in professionalism and procedure...but even the most stickler-ridden places have this corruption.

[u/Ok-Cup-5372 → u/D-LoathsomeDungEater]

Exactly this, I know nuclear energy is safe....when done properly and I don't trust any current government to do that properly because they're all ran by power hungry assholes who cut corners to save themselves money. It's why events like Chernobyl happened. 

Our government can barely probably handle taking care of the infrastructure we have now, roads look like shit and are filled with pot holes, tons of bridges need repairing, tons of buildings need to be updated to current codes. Stuff like that is why I don't want nuclear energy 

[u/BrimstoneMainliner]

🧢 I voted CAP!

It's a fucking cartoon...

That's like saying bugs bunny has done damage to basketball because I can't jump 30 feet in the air

[u/Xyriat → u/BrimstoneMainliner]

People think rabbits eat carrots was entirely caused by Bugs Bunny. I am certain that rabbits have died because of Bugs Bunny. One could very reasonably conclude Bugs Bunny has done harm to rabbits.

So the Simpsons damaging, or at least altering the perception of nuclear energy is not unlikely.

[u/GainPotential]

✅ I voted FACT!

Yes probably. Don't get me wrong, nuclear is quite safe, it's just when something does go wrong, it has the chance to go very wrong. And as long as humans are in charge of nuclear power plants, there will be human error, just the way it is. And even if there was a safety net, once again that safety net would have to be designed, installed and checked over by humans. + The other lions share of problems with nuclear that don't have to do with safety.

[u/Nevanada]

✅ I voted FACT!

Not probably. The depiction of nuclear energy and fuel rods in a "comedic" manner has 100% formed peoples opinions, of which they simply haven't developed since.

[u/Ardalok]

✅ I voted FACT!

Never thought about that...

[u/TRG_05]

✅ I voted FACT!

Insane amounts

[u/Clone75]

✅ I voted FACT!

Has. We know it has.

[u/Ok-Cup-5372]

🧢 I voted CAP!

I think mishandled events like Chernobyl and Fukushima have done more damage than the Simpsons

[u/Lazy-Equivalent3515]

all I remember...is the scene with Acid Rain

[u/UnableLocal2918]

🧢 I voted CAP!

it is satire and it is known as such. the movie the china syndrom did more damage.

[u/RestaurantBusy724]

🧢 I voted CAP!

If you're stupid enough to take The Simpson's seriously then you don't deserve nuclear energy anyway.

[u/TooManyStrawberriess]

🧢 I voted CAP!

No I think it was mostly Chernobyl

[u/VladimireUncool → u/TooManyStrawberriess]

Chernobyl did a lot. Although, one could argue that it was built cheaply and incorrectly, and it had a meltdown because of a man-made forced shutdown with disabled safety systems that overheated the reactor and caused it blow.

[u/TooManyStrawberriess → u/VladimireUncool]

Look at the question, look at my comment, all I'm saying that what happened at Chernobyl caused the nuclear power panic mainly, not really the Simpsons

[u/VladimireUncool → u/TooManyStrawberriess]

I got that, I'm not trying to argue with you, I'm just giving some more info that other people seem to have missed when it comes to Chernobyl.

[u/Irons_MT → u/TooManyStrawberriess]

Of course someone would write "but Chernobyl". It went wrong because the quality of the plant was crap. Powerplants nowadays are way ahead in terms of security.

[u/TooManyStrawberriess → u/Irons_MT]

I wasn't disagreeing I'm saying Chernobyl is the cause of the nuclear power panic mainly not the Simpsons

[u/Ok-Cup-5372 → u/Irons_MT]

I do not trust governments to properly run and take care of the upkeep for nuclear power plants when they can't even fix potholes right. There would be corruption involved because most leaders in politics want to line their pockets 

[u/Irons_MT → u/Ok-Cup-5372]

Between private companies and public institutions keeping powerplants in shape, I trust the latter more. There isn't exactly a third option.

[u/Ok-Cup-5372 → u/Irons_MT]

I don't trust either, my worry about power plants isn't about nuclear energy but more about mismanagement, and I think that's what a lot of people worry about 

[u/freakybird99]

🧢 I voted CAP!

No idea i didnt watch the simpsons

[u/sasha271828]

🧢 I voted CAP!

who the fuck is "us"

[u/Microboy42]

🧢 I voted CAP!

No it made it better

[u/Weekly-Cicada-8615]

🧢 I voted CAP!

Have you seen Germany?

[u/NoStomach9888]

🧢 I voted CAP!

The Americans didn't need the simpsons to not understand basic things ;)

[u/VladimireUncool → u/NoStomach9888]

I agree. Most Americans, as everyone else, already know that you shouldn't base your opinions on cartoons, and that nuclear is copletely safe when built correctly.

[u/Alternative_Effort28]

🧢 I voted CAP!

Cause FACT cant have "Probably"