Best Roger Lee Ray Podcasts (2025)

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S5E6 TVA: Building an SMR at Clinch River - 9/22/2025 - Greg Boerschig, TVA Vice President 27:03

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7d ago27:03

27:03

The 2025 Nuclear Opportunities Workshop sponsored by the East Tennessee Economic Council in Knoxville continues to yield newsworthy stories for the Gone Fission podcast. This week, host Michael Butler talks with Tennessee Valley Authority Vice President Greg Borschieg about TVA's plans to build a small modular reactor on the Clinch River site in Oa…

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How Do We Know What (we think) We Know? 21:10

8d ago21:10

21:10

How do we know what we know? Philosophy tells us that knowledge can be inherent, deductive reasoning, or it can be based on experience. What it cannot be is just imagination or personal prejudice. Science, which looks for knowable facts, depends upon something being at least 3 things: observable, repeatable, and testable. Everything else is either …

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S5E5 Meet the Nuclear Average Joe - with Mike Deane - 09.15.25 36:32

14d ago36:32

36:32

In this week’s episode of the Gone Fission podcast, Host Michael Butler reports on major news developments in the nuclear renaissance and the Department of Energy’s enviromental cleanup program. Oklo is building a new spent fuel recycling facility in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. TVA is partnering with Kairos to purchase power from a new Kairos reactor. Th…

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Just War Theory in 2025 26:38

22d ago26:38

26:38

We have hot wars in the Ukraine and Gaza. A border skirmish between Thailand and Cambodia, and an unknown potential for violence in Iran. Why do we find lasting peace so difficult in an age when the potential for devastating warfare is so great?

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The After-Church World 16:44

1M ago16:44

16:44

We have always had both priests and prophets but we are quickly growing beyond our need of priests who provide the rituals, religious texts, hymns, and institutions of organized religion. But the prophets, the ones who inspire us and challenge us to be and to do what it really means to be spiritual people, to embody courage, work for justice, and g…

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A.I. and the Guaranteed Basic Income 16:18

2M ago16:18

16:18

Beyond the fear of A.I. taking over our nuclear arsenal and attacking us is the very realistic fear that A.I. along with automation and robotics, will quickly and dramatically end the need for human employees in very many parts of the economy. Left unchecked, the wealthy will reap a windfall from these changes and the working class will be plunged …

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S5 E4 Charles Oppenheimer - 08/04/25 22:45

2M ago22:45

22:45

Charles Oppenheimer, the grandson of atomic pioneer Dr. J. Robert Oppenheimer, is Michael Butler’s guest on this week’s episode of the Gone Fission podcast. Ironically, this episode drops two days before August 6 which will be the 80th anniversary of America's use of the atomic bomb over Hiroshima, a pivotal event that launched the end of World War…

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Reason vs. Religion 20:24

2M ago20:24

20:24

230 years ago, in his Age of Reason, Thomas Paine implored his fellow Americans to break free of the mental prison imposed on them by monarchs and priests and to embrace a mental freedom found in reason. The pendulum has swung more than once since that time but clearly, we are living in a time in which propaganda is more warmly embraced than is cri…

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Religion and Politics (Just Be Nice) 23:45

3M ago23:45

23:45

If we follow the norm of never talking about politics or religion in polite company, we become a society that doesn't know how to discuss the important matters of politics or religion in a polite way. In fact, our faith (beliefs about ethics) are quite relevant to our politics (public policy). With civility, mutual respect, and rational language, l…

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S5 E3 Nuclear Opportunities Workshop, Knoxville, TN - 07/07/25 - Tracy Boatner, President and CEO, East Tennessee Economic Council 41:38

3M ago41:38

41:38

In this week’s episode, Host Michael Butler discusses plans to expand the Gone Fission podcast’s coverage to include the emerging nuclear renaissance. The expanded coverage begins later this month at the Nuclear Opportunities Workshop in Knoxville, Tennessee. Sponsored by the East Tennessee Economic Council (ETEC), the Workshop is expected to attra…

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The Long Road Out of Prejudice 18:01

3M ago18:01

18:01

We inherit prejudices from our family of origin as well as the culture around us and in the media. The first time our irrational prejudices are confronted, it is unlikely that we will give them up. For most of us, overcoming gender, racial, sexual orientation, or religious prejudices was a process of many steps taken over several years. Once free o…

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Hateful Self-Talk 18:30

4M ago18:30

18:30

Our mind can be our worst enemy, the invisible opponent who keeps us from staying in the battle with our visible opponents. We need to learn to pay attention to how our internal voice is talking to us. Does it tell us that we are a loser, does it call us stupid, or insist that we give up? If so, we really need to take control of our self talk, to f…

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Radicalized by Basic Decency 18:15

4M ago18:15

18:15

For centuries the world's religions have constructed a mental prison in which they try to control the conduct of their adherents through threats of eternal torture or, for the very good, promises of eternal reward. However, once you awaken to the reality that these are empty promises and threats, in a world where there is not heaven or hell, then t…

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Mom, Dad, and the Kids: Staying Together in the 21st Century 22:45

4M ago22:45

22:45

Between Mothers' Day and Fathers' Day, let us consider what it is that holds couples together in this age of liberty when neither church nor society has much to say when a couple decides to call it quits. Are we trying hard enough to foster healthy relationships what create a healthy environment both for child rearing and retirement? Does our faith…

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S5 E2 Amentum Nuclear Center of Excellence, Oak Ridge, TN - 05/12/25 - Mark Whitney, President, Amentum Energy & Environment Business 27:50

5M ago27:50

27:50

One of America’s largest government contractors has announced plans to establish a new Nuclear Center of Excellence in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. Amentum said its new Center will serve as a strategic hub for nuclear expertise, engineering and operational excellence. Mark Whitney, President of Amentum’s Energy and Environment Business, talks with host Mi…

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100 Days of Idiocracy 30:47

5M ago30:47

30:47

We have now seen Donald Trump through the first 100 days of his second term and what we have witnessed has been a horrifying attack on our constitutional democracy. It is sad to have to admit that the clowns are now running the circus but what is more frightening is that our nation may not survive the Trump administration with either our constituti…

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S5 E1 Centrus: American-Made Uranium Enrichment - 04/21/2025 - Amir Vexler, President and CEO, Centrus Energy Group 33:11

5M ago33:11

33:11

The Gone Fission Nuclear Report launches Season 5 with a new episode featuring a discussion with Amir Vexler, President and CEO of Centrus Energy Group. Centrus is playing a vital role in nuclear renaissance with its manufacturing of uranium enrichment centrifuges in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, and operation of the American Centrifuge Plant in Piketon, O…

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Ideas are Immortal 16:08

5M ago16:08

16:08

By the end of the first century of the common era, the message of Jesus the preacher had been entirely transformed into a message about Jesus, turning the spokesperson of radical compassion into a magical symbol who hods out a promise of life after death. We have no reliable sources to tell us much about the message of the historical Jesus since th…

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Estrangement Among Family and Friends 19:22

6M ago19:22

19:22

Estrangement among family and friends is a sad occurrence which is becoming increasingly common in a society that continues to trend towards isolation and loneliness. Our decade is more polarized than most but even though we can rehearse the arguments to defend our distance from parents, siblings, and formerly close friends, we really can do better…

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The Great Divorce 24:58

6M ago24:58

24:58

The greatest moral failing of the modern world may be our quiet acceptance of what Dorothy Day called "our filthy rotten system." Every year the income gap grows wider and the gap in ownership of capital becomes more stark. If we cannot change course it is not hyperbole to predict that the USA is on its way to becoming what we have too easily calle…

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Compassion is the Key 22:08

7M ago22:08

22:08

If we ask ourselves what it was about the historical Jesus that inspired the loyal following and explosion of writing on his behalf in the first century of the common era, beyond all of the talk about a kind of divine fire insurance, we find a message that is unique and powerful and nearly impossible to incorporate into our lives: Love your enemies…

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The Bible vs the Bible 25:39

7M ago25:39

25:39

The Bible doesn't speak with one point of view nor does it teach a singular message. Religious people have to be willing to enter the debate which is found even within the pages of scripture in order to choose the right path towards a healthy spirituality. You can find harsh judgement and prejudice in the Bible, and, if you look, you can find the c…

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To Live Without Love is a Mistake 20:20

8M ago20:20

20:20

Realizing that he had made a tragic mistake by ending his engagement to Regine Olsen, the Great Dane, Soren Kierkegaard, wrote in his journal, "To live without love is a mistake for which there is no reparation, either in this life or in the life to come." Successful coupling is more difficult in modern times when we no longer need a spouse for the…

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Four More Years 16:55

8M ago16:55

16:55

This week's inauguration of Donald Trump was painful for most if not all of our listeners. Still, short of resignation, illness, or an implausible impeachment, his chaotic administration will be a threatening fact of life for the world for four more years. How then can we adapt ourselves to a reality we wanted so desperately to never face? How do w…

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The Economics of Immigration 17:31

9M ago17:31

17:31

If Trump keeps his campaign promise to undertake a mass deportation of undocumented migrants in the USA, we should prepare ourselves for some economic and service industry hits and we are not going to like. Acknowledging that our immigration system is broken and than neither a coast to coast wall or an open border is a workable solution, what can w…

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Once More, Into the Breach 17:18

9M ago17:18

17:18

We are entering a new year with the single glaring feature of the return of Donald Trump to the presidency which will have far reaching implications both domestically and internationally. For most of us, this is a future to fear and yet, for good or for ill, we must face the reality we have been given, regardless of the future we had hoped for. So,…

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Jesus: from preacher to God 19:42

10M ago19:42

19:42

How Christmas is celebrated has evolved a great deal through the centuries but most of us alive today inherited a very churchy version of Christmas that focused on the birth narratives in Matthew and Luke and the whole incarnational theology of the ancient church. Modern progressives find it more uncomfortable to fit into those beliefs than an ugly…

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S4 E20 New Orano Enrichment Plant Boosts Nuclear Growth - 12/09/2024 - Jean-Luc Palayer, President and CEO, Orano USA 37:38

10M ago37:38

37:38

It’s being called the largest investment in the history of the State of Tennessee. Orano USA has announced plans to build a new multi-billion dollar, state-of-the-art centrifuge uranium enrichment plant in Oak Ridge. The facility will provide fuel for America’s nuclear power plants and reduce U.S. dependence on foreign sources, including Russia. In…

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Speaking Truth to Power 21:56

10M ago21:56

21:56

A prophet is not someone who predicts the future. A prophet is a person, religious or not, who accurately describes the present, even if no one wants to hear it. There is a saying in journalism that says journalism happens when you publish something that someone doesn’t want published. Everything else is just advertising. The ancient prophets were …

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S4 E19 SRS Gets a New Landlord: EM to NNSA 11.18.24 Mike Budney, EM SRS Site Manager, Michael Mikolanis, NNSA SRS Field Office Manager 47:09

10M ago47:09

47:09

Most of us have probably dealt with landlords at one time or another in our personal or business lives. But did you know that Department of Energy sites around the country also have landlords--DOE offices that are responsible for operation and maintenance of the site as a whole?This week’s episode covers the recent change of DOE landlord at the Sav…

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Morality and Climate Change 14:27

11M ago14:27

14:27

Climate change is not merely a matter of either science or politics. Wealthy people don’t tend to live in mobile home parks, after all, so the stronger hurricanes and tornadoes have a direct impact on those who are forced by economics to live in the least substantial housing. We must do more than open our hearts and wallets to participate in relief…

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Voting in an Empire of Lies 16:28

11M ago16:28

16:28

It is not hyperbole to say that our election on Tuesday is probably the most important election in our life times. In fact, it is entirely possible that this could turn out to be the last free election held in the United States if the anti-democracy wing of the Republican Party gain the reigns of power. We have been subjected to increasingly insane…

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S4 E18 EM Site Specific Advisory Boards: Valuable Community Input -- 10/28/24 -- Kelly Snyder, DOE EM, Amy Jones, Oak Ridge SSAB Chair, Kris Bartholomew, Vice Chair 50:16

11M ago50:16

50:16

Community input is essential to the success of the Department of Energy’s environmental cleanup program. Much of the most essential feedback comes from the Site Specific Advisory Boards (SSAB) composed of local community volunteers. These local members take their own time to become educated about local cleanup issues and make recommendations to DOE…

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No Way To Prevent This,’ Says Only Nation Where This Regularly Happens 17:54

11M ago17:54

17:54

In light of the recent assassination attempts against Donald Trump, in which the infamous AR-15 assault style rife was used, it seems like a good time to raise the issue of passing much needed gun reform legislation. The majority of Americans want sensible gun laws passed and yet we keep re-electing politicians who refuse to give us what we want. W…

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S4 E17 An ECA Report: Reviewing the EM Program in the New Administration - 10.07.2024 - Seth Kirshenberg, ECA Executive Director 22:11

12M ago22:11

22:11

With a new Administration taking office in January, the Energy Communities Alliance has released a detailed report calling for a top-to-bottom review of the Department of Energy’s Environmental Management program. In this week’s episode of the Gone Fission Nuclear Report podcast, ECA Executive Director Seth Kirshenberg shares with Host Michael Butl…

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Gaza One Year Later: The Publicity War 22:56

12M ago22:56

22:56

We have arrived at the one-year anniversary of the Hamas terrorist attack on Israel and the war drags on and even threatens to escalate. The Israeli response has, for many, overshadowed the horror of the original attack. The world is asked to witness a problem with no evident solutions, endlessly debating who is to blame while hostages, at least th…

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S4 E16 A Conversation with Candice Robertson - EM-1 - 09/23/2024 17:37

1y ago17:37

17:37

This week, the Gone Fission Nuclear Report features an interview with Candice Robertson, the Department of Energy’s recently appointed Senior Advisor to the Office of Environmental Management (EM-1). Host Michael Butler caught up with her at the 10th Annual National Cleanup Workshop in Washington, D.C. The occasion also marked the 35th anniversary …

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Misogyny in 2024? Unbelievable! 21:54

1y ago21:54

21:54

We cannot feign surprise at the outrageous and hypocritical misogynist attacks on Kamala Harris, but isn't it a shame that we are still having to fight this fight in 2024? Women have fought for a place at the table in law schools, medical schools, and in America's pulpits with a great deal more success than they have had in executive and legislativ…

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The Ten Commandments vs The Beatitudes 20:14

1y ago20:14

20:14

When Louisiana's new governor, Jeff Landry, signed an order that every state classroom from Kindergarten through university classrooms would have to post a poster sized copy of the Ten Commandments, you probably heard a voice in your head saying, "What an idiot." But what if he wasn't just trying to make culture war news and appeal to his base of c…

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S4 E15 Vision 2024: Oak Ridge Completes a Cleanup Milestone- 08.26.24 - Joanna Hardin, DOE Federal Portfolio Director, East Tennessee Technology Park 24:32

1y ago24:32

24:32

Each year, the Department of Energy’s Office of Environmental Management publishes a list of cleanup priorities for its sites around the country. Progress in the cleanup program is measured by how well these milestones are met. This week, the Gone Fission Nuclear Report joins in celebrating completion a major cleanup goal on DOE’s Oak Ridge Reserva…

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Giving Capitalism a Conscience 28:26

1y ago28:26

28:26

All of the world’s religions promote compassion towards the poor as a central spiritual value. However, it should be noted that the world’s major religions all were born in times of great scarcity of resources. It was impossible to prevent poverty because there simply was not enough resources to lift everyone up to a decent standard of living. Howe…

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Assisting in Our Own Victimization 23:15

1y ago23:15

23:15

“Why do the innocent suffer? And can we consider as well how many who are clearly victims are also unconsciously coconspirators in their abuse? Just as Bob Marley sang, “Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery, none but ourselves can free our minds,” we all must consider the ways in which we have failed to take responsibility to allowing or even …

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S4E14 Consent-Based Siting for Spent Nuclear Fuel: A National Conversation - 07/29/2024 - Energy Communities Alliance, Washington, DC 49:04

1y ago49:04

49:04

The Gone Fission Nuclear Report travels to the nation’s capital this week to join a national conversation on next steps for identifying a community to host interim spent fuel storage from America’s nuclear power plants. Our podcast sponsor, the Energy Communities Alliance, convened a meeting of elected officials, community leaders, economic develop…

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Project 2025 as seen by a Pastor 18:29

1y ago18:29

18:29

In the hope that Donald Trump will win the November election, the conservative think tank, the Heritage Foundation, has composed a huge book of plans and resumes to transform our government called the 2025 Project. It is 900 pages long and too much for any one news show or religious podcast to treat comprehensively but this message attempts to take…

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Religion and Politics – Natural Bed Fellows 20:56

1y ago20:56

20:56

What makes some topics controversial is because you can make a rational defense of either side of the issue. For example, you can mount logical arguments in favor of either socialism or capitalism but you cannot have a reasonable debate about whether the Earth is round or flat. Unfortunately, we often fail to have the needed rational debates that h…

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S4E13 Recruiting the Next Generation of Hanford Workers - 07/08/2024 - John Eschenberg, President/CEO, Central Plateau Cleanup Company 43:41

1y ago43:41

43:41

Our guest on this week’s episode is John Eschenberg, President and Chief Executive Officer of Central Plateau Cleanup Company in Hanford Washington. An Amentum-led partnership with Fluor and Atkins, CPCCO is responsible for managing site operations, facility deactivation, decommissioning, decontamination and demolition, waste-site remediation, and …

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Liars: Erasing Your Own Soul 26:52

1+ y ago26:52

26:52

The news has been uncommonly full of conversations about who lied and about what. Hunter Biden lied on his application to buy a hand gun. Michael Cohen lied about lots of things, specifically around the hush money payment made to an adult film actress to remain silent about her sexual encounter with Donald Trump. But it goes a lot deeper than that,…

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S4E12 The 2024 DOE Interns Have Arrived! --06/24/2024-- Maurice Thompson, Susan Sparks, Shannon Potter and Samina Mondal 1:05:54

1+ y ago1:05:54

1:05:54

This is the time of year when hundreds of interns descend on DOE sites around the country. They are eager and enthusiastic, ready to soak up new information gleaned from being out of the classroom and on the job. They are a critical part of the essential pipeline that will ensure the Department of Energy's Environmental Management program will have…

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What is a Cult and are You in One? 27:12

1+ y ago27:12

27:12

The gloves are off, at least in the left leaning media, as we now hear the Trump base regularly being referred to as a "cult." That's strong language that should not be used lightly but does the "shoe fit?" This message asks us to consider the diagnostic criteria for identifying any movement as a cult and to apply these criteria to ourselves.…

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S4E11 Environmental Management Consolidated Business Center Celebrates 20 Years - 06/03/2024 - Melody Bell, Deputy Director, Aaron Deckard, Procurement Director 47:46

1+ y ago47:46

47:46

DOE’s Environmental Management Consolidated Business Center (EMCBC) is celebrating its 20th anniversary this month. Called the “Swiss army knife of Environmental Management”, the EMCBC is a multi-faceted organization, serving as the centralized hub for procurement, financial management, and technical support for DOE’s environmental management progr…