The Real Gender Politics

A recent Gallop Poll on public support of nuclear power showed some interesting things. General American public support for nuclear power stood at 57% in 1994; 57% in 2011 before Fukushima ( March 11, 2011, the largest nuclear disaster since Chernobyl in 1986) and is 57% in 2012. But there was a fascinating gender difference: Men overwhelmingly support the use of nuclear power 72% to 27% while women oppose using nuclear power, 51% to 42%.

One can assume the cross sections are similar, the education and backgrounds equal, the information available the same. How could there be such a huge difference? Is it a question of how one assesses risk? Or maybe risk tolerance? Is it a confidence in or a technical understanding of science or its application?

Here are two subsets in species homo sapien with wide variation in the assessment of a very important question.

Certainly there is no "right answer" here, only how people balance and weigh. The most we can expect is objectivity and honesty. But it does make one wonder about the implications of the hope for "consensus."