> We have myriad energy solutions now... and in fact most are at parity with the cost of nuclear power (if you're honest about it, and include government R&D and subsidies in the cost).
You sure you want to include the billions in taxpayer subsidies it takes to get 1% of our energy from solar? I don't think Comedy Central instructed you to point out that solar-electric is 4.8X times as expensive during the daytime, and far more costly at night.
Billions? BILLIONS? I do not think you know what that word means. The US has likely invested close to half a trillion in nuclear energy development. Whatever change accidently slipped out of Uncle Sam's pockets and into solar R&D is, in comparison, quite nothing at all. Also, had the US invested just 5% of what they spent on nuclear energy development since the 1950s on solar, we wouldn't even be arguing. Solar would be crazy cheap! And nuclear, still where its at... competitive with coal, (not beating the crap of the cost of coal, but just competing with it) until you see the its hardly even the tip of the iceberg of the cost.
Nuclear energy is a dog. A very very expensive dog with toxic crap. It has an extremely high initial cost of building a power plant, as well as the continuing forever cost of maintaing the waste. It's been this way since the start, so its amazing that with nearly 70 years of this crazy money being thrown at nuclear that we keep doing it. And it keeps biting the finest nuclear engineers and architects in the ass. I'm not afraid of radiation. I'm not even afraid of the mountain of toxic waste we have piled up for our children's children's children's great great great grandchilden. What bothers me is it is a poor investment. The money we already invested got it only so cheap... so it is clear we screwed up. We needed fuel for bombs, or thought we did, and we went nuts building these things... 110 plus military and resarch plants... and 1 plant would have provided all the bomb fuel we'd ever need... and we're stuck with this dirty, outrageously expensive power. And yet I'm arguing with someone that likely belives nuclear energy is some kind of solution, still, at the expense of investing that money in cleaner energy technologies. I imagine you just like nuclear power, irrationally with no compelling reason, probably like gun people just like guns... you don't need a gun, more a danger to yourself than any criminal that wants to hurt you or rob you, but they're neat. We don't need nuclear, but we have this really expensive infrastructure and all these workers trained... heck... lets just keep going down that road until we're bankrupt and living in waste!