The Dickens Effect is upon us. Consider the famous opening line from A Tale of Two Cities: " It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.... ". Could Charlie have had Richland and Milford in mind when he penned his classic twelfth novel in 1859?
...it was the age of wisdom... We know that he visited the area in 1842, and people were so taken with the man that they later created the only statue of him in the whole world. The problem is, Dickens' last will and testament specifically forbade any statues. Anywhere. Anytime. Anyhow. Frank Elwell apparently didn't know this when he cast a bronze of the writer in 1891, and shipped it to England.
...it was the age of foolishness.. . Dickens' son was so appalled that he ordered the statue off of the jolly old soil, and it somehow found a home in Clark Park in West Philadelphia. Close enough to blame the Dickens Effect for what is going on in our own Two Cities .
Actually, they are townships. And it isn't the townships themselves, but what is going on inside them that catches our Dickensonian attention. A Tale of Two Cities dealt with protest. Granted, as protests go, it was a biggie. The French Revolution. But, hey, they had their problems, we have ours.
Richland has the proposed new YMCA. Milford has the new CFC Logistics irradiator. Both projects have spawned dissent. Both projects have been to court. And both projects just won important legal rounds. ... it was the epoch of belief... The parallels are striking, and the differences important. Charles Darnay would understand.
Darnay was the hero of Two Cities, a man accused of treason. He never heard of an irradiator, and would have had little time for a YMCA. But, like them, he eventually triumphed over false accusations and biased opinions.
Fortunately, our courts today are an improvement over late 18 th -century France. The ultimate arbiters of our disputes. And certainly major players in our Two Townships drama . The following brief synopsis is brought to you by Campbell's Alphabet Soup:
In Richland, the RCA protested the YMCA, and ended up in Common Pleas Court. In Milford, the CCMT protested the CFC irradiator on AM Drive to the NRC, and was assigned a judge from the ASLP. ...it was the epoch of incredulity... In Dickens' native tongue, that roughly translates to "The Concerned Citizens of Milford Township protested the CFC irradiator to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and was assigned a judge from the Atomic Safety and Licensing Panel."
The YMCA won the first round in court when Judge Mitchell Goldberg upheld the Y's ninety-nine year lease with Richland. Goldberg's decision almost guarantees that the Y will be able to move forward with its new facility on Station Road. ... it was the season of light....
CFC has already won several rounds, most recently on May 28, when ASLP Judge Michael Farrar denied CCMT's request for the NRC to put a hold on the license that was issued last year. The citizens group had argued that CFC improperly changed a valve in the water tank containing the cobalt rods. The group actually was correct - but still lost! ... it was the season of darkness...
What makes Farrar's decision particularly devastating to the protestors is that the NRC decided not to cite CFC for a license violation. CCMT hoped that Farrar would issue a ruling condemning CFC, which could have been seen as a victory. But the judge's written decision was totally the opposite. ... it was the spring of hope... :
"The irradiator - in its original condition - provides the requisite protection of the public health and safety." A nuclear slap in the face to CCMT, which is clinging to hopes of a full hearing to challenge the CFC license. It is hard to believe that the NRC will now pull the plug on a facility that has been operating for six months, especially with an expert judge ruling that the public's health and safety is protected. ... it was the winter of despair...
Perhaps the most memorable character in Two Cities is Madame Defarge. She recorded the names of the enemies of the new Republic in her knitting, while heads rolled. The enduring literary symbol of mob rule, guilt by accusation. And, a symbol of the differences between the protestors in Richland and Milford.
...we had everything before us.. . CCMT, for all practical purposes, has lost the battle to keep the irradiator out of town. But they continue to raise valid issues. Issues that, in the long run, may provide better safety for the community. Their vigilance is, at the least, another set of eyes that may actually help CFC operate what is admittedly new technology. CCMT has not become a name on Madame Defarge's knitting.
...we had nothing before us.. . The RCA is a different story. Like CCMT, they hope to keep the object of their objections, the YMCA, out of town. Like CCMT, they have pretty well lost. And, like CCMT, they still pray for one last successful hearing. But, unlike CCMT, they have not brought in experts, or discovered actual violations. Like Darnay's persecutors, they offer only false accusations and biased personal opinions. Knit one, purl two.
Indeed, when history looks back at A Tale of Two Townships , only the CCMT will speak the final words " It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done ."