Here's a story that caught my eye. It's about how golf courses near the Fukushima nuclear power plant are struggling to stay in operation.
All of the 27-hole courses are within the emergency zone.... And they are struggling to stay in business!? What!? You'd have thought that they'd have gone out of business 6 months ago.
Some people really love to golf!
Daily Yomiuri reports:
Golf Courses Trapped in Rough by Radiation
FUKUSHIMA--Some golf courses in Fukushima Prefecture are suffering from radioactive contamination stemming from the crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant, while others have lost customers due to radiation fears.
Gee. Ya think so? Nah! Can't be.
Since the accident at the nuclear plant, 12 out of a total 63 golf courses in the prefecture have been forced to suspend operations. The number of players at golf courses currently in operation has been low, frustrating people in the golf business in the prefecture.
Go figure.
Kashima Country Club in Minami-Soma, located northwest of the nuclear power plant, has been closed since March 12, the day after the Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami. Almost all of the 27 hole-golf course falls within the emergency evacuation preparation zone.
Hmm? They are within the emergency evacuation zone? That means they are chock full of goodies like Spider-Man at Three Mile Island. Now why in the world wouldn't people be just be "dying" to get on the courses and do a brisk 18 holes every morning?
Radiation-measuring instruments dotted around the golf course constantly issue alarms indicating radiation levels of 0.3 microsieverts per hour or above; in some areas, levels have reached over 3 microsieverts per hour.
Three microsieverts and hour? Does that count toward my handicap? Wow! Empty golf courses? If there were ever a time to pick up the sport, now is the time... And, that's not all, folks! Free tanning on these golf courses with the new "Fuku-you Golf Tanning" plan!
Yoshikatsu Fukuodori, manager of the golf course, said, "[It's a pity], as our golf course suffered no damage from the earthquake and tsunami."
What does he mean by that? Does he wish the courses were ruined by tsunami as well as nuclear radiation?
As a result of some club members requesting to practice their swing at the course, the club reopened 18 holes on June 4. However, because many of the club's members have evacuated to outside the prefecture, only about 20 people per day use the course. The 3,500 yen fee members pay to use the course just covers the minimum maintenance costs involved, such as gasoline for golf carts and chemical herbicides.
Aha! I love golf! Nature! The sun! Birds! Bees! Chemical fertilizers, pesticides, insecticides, Agent Orange and nucleotides!
Fukuodori had no choice but to dismiss all 45 of his employees as a result of the downturn. Of those, four are supporting him as volunteers. Fukuodori remained pessimistic, however, dropping his shoulders and saying, "Even if we decontaminate the golf course, it's not guaranteed that players will return."
"Even if we decontaminate the course, it's not guaranteed that players will return"!? So, what Einstein is saying here is that the course is contaminated and he wonders why players don't come there to golf?
Did you folks ever see that movie Caddy Shack?.... Case rests your honor.
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