Letter to the editor: Greed is holding us back on energy

While China charges forward investing billions in nuclear fission, the United States is gutting the very university research that could unlock the clean, limitless energy of the future. Public colleges are laying off scientists, canceling projects and turning away brilliant minds — not because we lack potential, but because Big Oil wants it that way.

Nuclear fission isn’t just another energy source — it’s a revolution. A single gram of uranium holds over a million times more energy than a gram of coal. Modern reactor designs are safer, smaller and can even run on spent fuel. Once operational, fission plants can provide uninterrupted, emissions-free electricity for decades at rock-bottom costs. No weather dependency. No supply chain chaos. Just pure, reliable energy — forever.

That’s exactly what the oil and gas lobby fears. If we crack fission wide open, their multi-trillion- dollar empire crumbles. So they do what they’ve always done: funnel cash to politicians, choke off federal research funding and gut science programs at the nation’s universities. The result? America’s best minds are being told to pack up and find something else to study — while China’s scientists build reactors that may one day power the world.

We’re not falling behind — we’re being dragged backward by greed. Every cut to higher education and nuclear research is another nail in the coffin of American energy independence and global leadership.

If we want to lead the future, we have to invest in it. Right now, we’re selling it off for one more tank of gas.

William Werts

Greensburg