three mile island

With cleaner air and energy self-sufficiency high on America's list of priorities, our irrational dislike of nuclear power looks increasingly imprudent. China, France and the U.K. have raced ahead safely on nuclear power: It's well past time for the U.S. to start catching up.

Corporate disasters can lead to unprecedented changes in the ways business and government operate. Think Three Mile Island, or the massive 1969 oil spill off Santa Barbara, Calif., which led to Earth Day and the environmental movement.

For decades, the nuclear power industry has had a hard time finding qualified workers. But now, as the industry receives unprecedented levels of government support, it's facing an all-out talent drought. According to data released in 2009 by the trade group Nuclear Energy Institute, "To maintain the current nuclear work force, the industry may need to hire as many as 25,000 more workers in the next five years."