Pacific Disaster Times Three

Image by Getty Images via @daylifeThey say bad news comes in threes, and that's what's going on in Japan right now.

First came the major earthquake that struck in the middle of a Friday afternoon in a region northeast of Tokyo, which now registers as a 9.0, according to officials who measure these things.

Next came the tsunami that was caused by the quake, sweeping away massive numbers of people and property.  The death toll was originally believed to be 10,000, but has since been whittled down to over 3,500 with many more unaccounted for.  Waves from the tsunami caused minor damage on the U.S. west coast.

Now comes a nuclear nightmare that rivals Chernobyl and Three Mile Island.  Explosions at the Fukushima  Daiichi plant near the city of Sendai have increased the possibility of a meltdown that could contaminate the region.  The Japanese government has ordered people in that area to stay indoors if they haven't been evacuated already.

The Japanese are being praised for the calm manner in which they're handling this disaster, setting an example for the rest of the world.  But what about reports of people making runs on stores for emergency supplies, or crowding airports hoping to get the heck out of the country?

Well, you say, that's Japan.  What does all of this mean for us on this side of the Pacific?

For one thing, it means that you can forget about nuclear power as an alternative energy source.  There are simply too many question marks surrounding the safety of the plants that are already operating.  What happens if an earthquake, computer glitch or a terrorist attack damages the plant?  And just what are we supposed to do with the waste that might take thousands of years to dissipate?

There is also the question of what would happen if "The Big One" were to occur somewhere in the U.S.  California isn't the only place where there are fault lines.  They can also be found along the west coast of North America, and in an area of the Midwest known as the New Madrid fault.  Experts warn that the timing for a major quake is long overdue.

So how come certain politicians want more money for nuclear plants, and less for a system that's supposed to alert people in case of a tsunami or an earthquake?

The disasters in Japan has succeeded, if nothing else, in getting the Libyan civil war and the trials and tribulations of Charlie Sheen off the front pages.  Also, it has shone an unwanted light on those who choose to make tasteless comments on various social media services.  Gilbert Gottfried, for one, lost his job as the voice of the Aflac duck after tweeting jokes about Japan.  Seems Aflac does plenty of business there.

But never mind all that.  What Japan and the rest of the world want to know right now is what further horrors await a country that's already seen more than enough of them.