"The failure modes are huge. Most notably, the Cheernobyl Absolute Exclusion Zone stands at 1000 square miles 35 years after the fact"
We can also talk about all the tragedies and catastrophic events related to commercial aviation. But no one in their right mind would propose that we stop or slow down the airline industry because of the 'failure modes'.
I may not be in my right mind, but there is a #nofly tag on twitter.
Edit: tourism is a low productivity, low value, environmentally harmful industry. Fiji's coral reefs, for example, were beautiful, diverse, and productive, according to old National Geographics. Now they are gone.
We could do better with VR, as in the film "Soylent Green".
Edit. I agree with your point, which is that all technology choices have costs. There are no Disney miracles.
We can also talk about all the tragedies and catastrophic events related to commercial aviation. But no one in their right mind would propose that we stop or slow down the airline industry because of the 'failure modes'.