Turner Urges Use of Nuclear Energy
This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.

LITTLE ROCK, Ark.—The broadcast mogul Ted Turner told a group of wealthy philanthropists yesterday that the country needs to turn to nuclear power as part of a new energy plan, but that terrorists could blow up a nuclear power plant.
The multibillionaire megaphilanthropist called power plants “gigantic land mines” but said, “At the end of the day, I think it’s a risk we have to accept.”
Mr. Turner, who is known for his unpredictable, brash style, was speaking at the Slate 60 conference, a gathering of the most generous philanthropists in the country. A day after Mayor Bloomberg addressed the group, Mr. Turner spoke at the William J. Clinton Presidential Library shortly before President Clinton took the stage.
Mr. Turner, who is credited with the idea of publishing a list of the Americans who give the most to charity, said he was proud to be in the company of those who use their wealth for the greater good.
“I’d rather be here than with a bunch of Nazis, you know, trying to kill people, or at the Pentagon, figuring who we are going to bomb next, Afghanistan or Iraq,” Mr. Turner, a longtime critic of the Bush administration, said. “At least we are bombing people with funds and good will.”
“If our country used a little more of the same kind of philosophy we are using here in this room, it would be a hell of a lot better world than the one we are living in right now,” he added.
The founder of CNN, Mr. Turner, joked about giving away too much of his wealth, saying, “I’ve got to be careful I don’t give everything and be a poor, destitute old man, which would be really sad.”
Then, in an apparent dig at President Bush, he warned the group, which included AOL co-founder Steve Case, “to keep enough for your old age, and remember, Social Security is a little shaky now.”
While acknowledging its flaws, Mr. Turner praised the United Nations and said American leaders need to talk to Iran and North Korea about their nuclear programs — a move others, including Senator Clinton, are pushing for.
“There is no hope if you don’t listen,” he said. “No wonder they hate us. We should have discussions. That’s why human beings have the ability to communicate with one another, and when we communicate, we are at our best, and when we don’t communicate, we might as well be monkeys, and even monkeys communicate.”
He added, “We should have elected Al Gore six years ago. I’ve got to tell you, the electorate spoke, and they are not happy, either. Too bad we didn’t have a presidential election last week.”