Are U.S. Nukes Safe?

Re: Do you feel that nuclear power plants in the U.S. are safe and

They can be safe, especially with newer technologies like pebble bed reactors.

Re: should additional capacity come online?

Yes.

I'll bet every nuclear power plant is checking their systems at a higher activity level now. That's a good thing.

Is it safe?

YOU BET!

Safe/unsafe is not a dichotomous variable. Rather, things are more/less safe on a spectrum. Spending huge amounts of money on high-profile but rare safety concerns means that much less money that can be spent on mundane concerns, some of them also involving safety.

Ban nukes → more coal → perhaps less safe overall (including more total radiation, and acid rain).
Ban coal → more of other energy alternatives → issues of their own (fish, birds, noise).
Restrict energy production severely → poor economy → neediest people suffer worst.