Mishap left nothing to stem the flow of oil at its source
Article Source: msnbc.com
from:msnbc.comContainment cap again collecting oil from leak
Seeded on Tue Jun 22, 2010 6:57 AM EDT (msnbc.com)
— Filed under: us-news, barack-obama, crime, general-news, energy, government-and-politics, industries, animals, accidents-and-disasters, corporate-news, accidents, courts, government-business-and-finance, environment-and-nature, national-governments, judiciary, national-courts, bobby-jindal, ken-salazar, disaster-in-the-gulf, tony-hayward, corporate-crime, bob-barr, kenneth-r-feinberg
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Its disingenuous for the owner of a deepwater oil rig which lacked the required back up safety equipment to complain about a deep water drilling ban when they cannot demonstrate that their rigs are now 100% safe. WTF is he thinking? Its all about profits and certainly not about protecting the environment or the folks who may be adversely affected by a huge spill.
It's also very strange that all this happened right when obama's crap and trade tax hit the drawing board!! Let's shut down oil in the middle of a recession when people are out of work and raise gasoline prices to all time highs just to get his energy bullsheet rolling. When are these dumbazzez gonna realize that more jobs are at stake. Maybe some of you who scream the loudest about this sheet wouldn't be screaming if your'e job was lost!!!!!!! The old I'm working, who cares about my nieghbor or friends!!!!!! Kind of like the unions not taking a freeze because it's okay for the guy next to him to lose thier job as long as I get my raise!!!!!!!!!! When all you tree huggers can show me alternatives with reasonable costs to gasoline than you can spout off all you want. But you don't have an alternative, just hike gasoline prices, well some of us can't afford it!!!!!!!!!!!!! Especially those in the gulf region who are now losing more work
I see a Judge with too much power when he has the ability to overturn a ban set by the President of the country he might soon not have a job in...
Hitobito...What's he thinking? $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ as opposed to $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$. That's how all Big Oil men think. Why be just a millionaire when you can be a billionaire? A million? A mere bag of peanuts. After all, they have a covenant from God to be rich, don't they? So what if they destroy the planet with their black slime?
You know what's really pathetic? They gouge us at the gas pumps and for heating, use that price gouged profit to make themselves rich and all they have to do is spend what you paid them for lobbyists. They figure in true rich man's vernacular, what goes around HAS to come around. Even if it is destroying the future generations right to a safe environment.
100 % safe ? I see now why people are upset with BP....anyone thinking any activity has such safety levels is uninformed at best.
Simple example, you put your kids in the car and drive them to a movie...you have put them in a situation that is about 99.95 % safe for that one trip (chances of an accident)....and that is OK with you ?? Have you checked for radon in your basement....22,000 cancer deaths per year...and you let people in your home...do you put cost and convience above their safety...shame on you. Nothing is 100 % safe....if you want say double the safety for drilling for oil, at a guess we could get that for about 4 times the cost....you are very willing to pay 8 per gallon...right.....you want another factor of 2 safety...do the math.
Every activity we engage in, from taking kids to movies, to changing to daylight savings has risk (an average of 4 people die every year due to light conditions on the day we change clocks).
BP is responsible for the spill....we are responsible for our oil use. Lets fix things.
John142...BP admitted that they chose to overlook safety in favor of profit. Now, Big Oil with its skankitis is trying to cover their money grubbing butts. Not working. American know if they can do this in the Gulf, where else must have they already done this and is this the reason the Arabs hate us so much? Surely, no American is going to believe that profit doesn't come first on all oil rigs.
It's kinda amazing to me that mdph thinks the judge should be fired because he has too much power but nothing is said about Obama isn't exerting too much power. Like GM, the banks, health care. The truth is Obama is looking out for the best interests of his friend George Soros. He is giving Soros $2B of our money for him to go deep well drilling in Brazil deeper than the wells here. So let thousands of Americans go bankrupt and give more of our jobs to oversees. Whether you believe it or not Obama isn't doing anything about the Gulf crisis except playing golf to try to push his Cap and Tax through. When that goes through he will make his friends at Freddie and Fannie rich because of the $10T of Carbon patents they hold along with Al Gore, the Joyce Foundation, and British company Generations, and still ask the American people to give them more and more money for their banking indiscretions.
Amongst other conspicuous "curiosities" post facto of the curious explosion on the Deepwater Horizon is the fact that nine days before the explosion a federal (Maobama) inspection team gave a complete inspection of the rig - in toto - and awarded "two thumbs up" to all systems and operations before they flew away 31 hours after their arrival. Yet, post facto of the explosion, where the federal government (Maobama) could have pragmatically done something to possibly mitigate the spread, inclusive of availing themsleves of equipment that no less than 11 nations were offering, Maobama and Company delibertaly did nothing........... The situation of course grew worse and then when it had reached beyond catastrophic level, the short, medium and long Salem Witch Hunt - Inquisition knives came out with Maobama playing the street thug role of Torquemada................., not surprisingly nor the least bit demonizing "BP" and "Big Oil"...., anything that is not "Green".............., aided and abetted by our Statist media.
Certainly the "convenience" of this explosion is just that, the deliberate refrain from any assistance that might have mitigated the situation until catastrophic levels were achieved - and they have been so as to further ramp up the beyond Draconian and punative Totalitarian lie that is "Cap and Trade". That BP executives caved in to the extortion as meted out by Maobama and the Praesidium was the icing on the cake. No mention of Transocean, Mitsui or Anadarko or the Maobama inspection team........., why? Liability should be established and assessed not by any Totalitarian dictator, rather in a court of law with all parties assessed.
Any of you untrammeled vision Americans out there seeing through this too........? Millions upon tens of millions of you thankfully are and not just within the USA.
I love how the oil babies claim its so darn strange that this happened right when Obama was trying to pass the ill conceived cap and trade...
But not one of you oil babies have the intelligence to realize that if this spill didnt have the possibility of ending our oil dependency, we would be paying $5 to $8 a gallon for gas. This is the summer driving season and there is a moratorium on oil, and 100's of millions of gallons of oil have been dumped in the Gulf....
I think I will remember this next time some aholes shoot their AK-47's at an oil rig in Nigeria and the price of gas triples.
Our government and Rush and Company lies... They tell all of you that we drill oil in deepwater because thats the only place the Hppies will let them drill. But over in the banking and commodity industries, the experts claim that oil companies drill for oil in deepwater because its the last place that oil companies can drill profitably.
(Personally I find it interesting that hippies cant get pot legalized but they can steamroll a multi trillion dollar industry, just goes to show you people how smart Rush Limbaugh isnt.)
So who are you going to believe. Politicians and talk show hosts who are in the pocket of the oil companies...
Or the industry experts that collect all of the information so they can make educated decisions for investments, insurance for oil companies, and advisory boards for nations...
Hmmm..... Let me think....
The sad thing is that Rush, Hannity, et all, really think that the "small people",all of us, are really that stupid.
donna426...How about your tell your Big Oil CEO hello for us and to make sure he has a job in another industry for you. Cause...darlin...you're gonna need it.
I totally agree with Hitobito's comment above. These Corporate whores must think that their needs are above the People of this country. Other nations around the world have much stricter safety standards in regard to their drilling practices and much better engineered Blowout Protectors being used by them. BP is not allowed anywhere near their shores because of their safety record. These azz holes never cease to amaze me with their comments. A TIME OUT is certainly needed before a continuation is allowed. BP IS THE A$$ HOLE WITH A DEVISTATING SAFETY RECORD OF INCOMPITANCE WHO STARTED THIS WHOLE DEBACLE. I would venture a guess that every CEO of just about every oil company operating in the U.S. would like to get their hands around the throats of the IDIOTS at BP. They ruined a perfect opportunity for the oil industry and their workers to profit from the oil in the Gulf. They ARE the incompetent goofs that they have shown the world to be. MORONS!!!
Donna...
Why dont you post what I said that deserves your ridicule?
I apologize for using the term ill-conceived instead of the word stupid.
I will dumb down my posts so people like you can see that I dont support Obama.
Please dont confuse this debate by using the polarized politics that keeps sheeple like you inline.
Repeat after me..... Everything disagreeable that happens in this country isnt the product of the political party that you dont support... They just want you to think that way.
The polarization of politics in this country is one of the tools of control.
There is only one thing a politician cares about.... $$$MONEY$$$
Maybe you should be complaining about OPEC rather than about big oil. Most of the oil comes from state run oil companies who are member nations of OPEC. Trying to say that the "big" oil companies set prices is comical when the state run companies and the OPEC cartel has infinitely more power than them.
You forgot to mention that the government encourages deepwater drilling. In 1995, under Clinton, the Deewater Royalty Relief Act was passed. As the name implies, this act reduced the royalty payments per barrel for deepwater production, thus encouraging deepwater exploration and drilling.
Mbeaty,
OPEC doesnt set gasoline prices in the U.S.
Of course the government encourages deepwater drilling. The oil companies control the government.
I didnt forget to mention anything. I mentioned the government when I mentioned Rush et all. Last time I checked our government is DEMOCRAT. The same aholes who got Soros's Healthcare bill passed and the same ahole who put the moratorium for oil drilling(which I agree with) while his buddy Soros has his oil company Petrobas drilling like there is no tomorrow off the shores of Brazil.
Believe me...
Next one of you will say that we dont have the technology to move from oil... Or you will say that we have subsidized alternative energy for 30 years with no commercial application...
Democrats or Republicans could of ended the 1970's oil subsidy that makes it not profitable to move from oil but they dont.
Politician only care about money.
Look at Palin. Dumped the state of Alaska to make big bucks on the talk show circuit and in 2012 she will get on TV and tell us how much she cares about Americans. Look at ACORN. Look at politicians putting cold hard cash in the freezer... Building houses for themselves. Vacationing in Crawford with the Saudi Royal Family.....
If you try to take a stand in this maelstrom you better have a sturdy foundation.
The Deep Water Royalty Relief Act (DWRRA) was passed by a (R) congress and renewed with steroids in 2000 by guess who? Clinton could have vetoed it but was trying to grow the economy. Nice try, very disengenuous of you to try to point fingers when you probably already knew who started this bill.
Called being blackmailed by big oil.
We are pitiful. We are willing to wrok in unsafe conditions because it's a job. Reminds me of the early industrial revolution. Pitiful country.
No longer is the beach a place of refuge. Pretty soon the oil boys will kill all the rivers, ponds, and soon the air won't be breathable, but who cares we want CEOs to have yachts and enjoy some exotic place to enjoy the pristine beauty, not us now, just the gentry. We know our places as commoners, riff raff, so much cannon fodder,. We Americans kowtow to our betters, like the average Brit bows to the queen. They know the aristocracy are better people and you are just a pack animal.
I love my country but the people running it are just dumb as a box of rocks.
Yes John, I agree we must fix things, but the problem here with BP is that this accident is not the result of it not being 100% safe to drill (as it's not 100% safe to do anything as a mortal being). It is the result of BP blatantly ignoring every warning because of their greed and disregard for the danger they were putting this rig under. They should have been listening to their engineers and not their stockholders (or those pandering simply to their stockholders within the company). This is a clear case of negligence. I understand that you hold BP responsible as well and would like to move on to a solution, but sometimes these things require drastic measures in order to clean up a culture where CEOs are allowed to @!$%# on safety regulations in order to make more money. If I were to lease a house and destroy it through manufacturing meth, which would toxify the whole property, I would be kicked out and never allowed to lease that property again (not to mention thrown in jail because that is illegal, I know, while drilling, obviously, is not). My point just being that this level of negligence and blatant disregard should amount to BP losing its right to drill there and let someone willing to comply with safety regulations do it if it's going to be done there.
there is 300 years of oil in ANWAR. it is on land. it's easily accessible and easily maintained and easily restorable. There is no safety factor and no $8.00 per gallon gas. That's stupid. ANWAR. drill it. NOW
Don't worry Obama. Tomorrow night is "Party Night" at the White House. Till then:
Take in a baseball game. Play a round of golf. Give a teleprompter speech.
Everything will be fine.
A moratorium is a clever thing to do. But, of course it is something RepublicanS hate it because HATEMONGERING IS A REPUBLICAN MANTRA.
These oil people are out of their minds. They could fill the entire Caribbean basin with spilled oil and still not give a hoot about anything but profits. They will promise the world to clean it up but it will be done poorly and many people and ecosystems will suffer permanently. Big oil runs the world and they do whatever they want to. These corporations should be held accountable by buying up large tracks of undeveloped beachfront and other wild areas and then turning it over to states to be run as national parks and wildlife preserves. They have the money. They need to fix this crazy mess before WE allow them to do more deep drilling or any drilling in the ocean areas or other sensitive areas.
Best comment of the day. Too bad no one will believe it. The sheeples are just too gullible.
ARBITRARY? ARBITRARY?
Six months? How about NEVER, EVER, EVER! As an engineer I want all these bean counters OUT OF THE GULF. They have NO IDEA how to run a dangerous operation. They should ALL BE IN JAIL.
The people that say we can't afford alternative energy have been LIED TO by the oil companies. We could do it RIGHT NOW. Put the money going into new drilling and the STUPID, STUPID coal and gas fired plants and put it into alternatives, wind and solar, and short term storage. DONE, DONE and DONE.
It is the lying energy companies (I'm looking at YOU, BP and Massey Energy) that tell us it can't be done.
WE ARE AMERICANS, DANG IT! WE DON"T KNOW "CAN'T BE DONE"!!!
And then they called their BFF's on their iPhones, got into their cars, and drove home to watch X-Factor.
Put the money going into new drilling and the STUPID, STUPID coal and gas fired plants and put it into alternatives, wind and solar, and short term storage. DONE, DONE and DONE.
In the mean time, cut a hole in the floorboard of your vehicle so you can get it moving with your feet like Fred Flintstone.
C'mon Colonel, watching Fred requires electricity!
It is interesting that Transocean has filed motions in Texas court to have its former oil rig declared an 1850's-vintage steamship and thereby limiting any liability to the value of "the ship and its cargo." The value of the "ship" was fully covered by insurance, therefore the Transocean liability would be zero.
"...plaintiffs' attorney Carl Rosenblum said the six-month suspension of drilling work could prove more economically devastating than the spill itself." What he means is "more economically devastating to our end of the spectrum", cause they've already ruined fishing, tourism, and the enviroment.
if my car breaks down, do we park every car in the country, no, logic says why we stopped, the economy won't be able to handle a strain on supply, can you afford eight dollar gas cause they've stopped cause one rig broke(sure its a big one) but the entire world is still in a continuing process, we cannot be ignorant with hasty decisions(obama's), and look up your precious wind energy local gov's cannot handle the rebates from the extra being stored by customers solar and wind systems, yet another economical blow, you just cant stop progression cause one of thousands has broke, our wussy gov, has yet again let fearless leader of no knowledge have his backwards a** way once again, thats alright though all those workers would rather collect unemployment and stay at the house all on our dime, after all it is summer time, wish he'd ignorantly stop my shop, and gaurantee me cash
C'mon Colonel, watching Fred requires electricity!
I guess my reference will be lost on them then. Since I know the people on here who are cursing fossil fuels don't use them ever.
If your car, like every other car is an accident waiting to happen because the car company put buttered toast in place of the brake pads to save $2.00, YES WE STOP DRIVING THEM.
No, we don't need to stop driving. We have enough oil for the moment without companies that have PROVEN they are incompetent drilling wells they have NO IDEA how to stop if something goes wrong.
Stop CORPORATE WELFARE and make the oil companies pay the true costs of production. Put the money into renewables.
STOP THE MADNESS.
Not to worry Obama will win in court with a three pronged defense:
(1) He will demand that BP pays for "his" actions in shutting down all off shore drilling.
(2) If #1 fails' "It's all Bush's fault."
(3) if #1 & 2 fail; Obama will simply smile and say;"I didn't know that would happen."
If England should finally have enough of his strutting around with his chest puffed out and pretending he is in charge by demanding that BP do, what they are already doing: Obama will apologize for "America's (not his) arrogance."
There all problems solved, everyone is happy and Obama is not caught with oil on his face. I swear the longer Obama is in office, the more I think he patterns his actions around the Governor of Texas in the old movie "The Best Little Whore House In Texas." Anyone who has seen the movie knows that I am talking about.
BP is paying for the damages done by this blow out/spill and will be doing so for some time to come as no one is sure of the long term effects the oil will have. Only a complete financial idiot believes that BP is letting one drop of oil spill into the gulf that they can prevent. Not only does it cost them in terms of the damages but in terms of the lost oil they can not capture and sell. The truth be known Obama is not as concerned about the damage done to the environment and livelihood of the people along the gulf coast who are effected by this spill as he is about the loss of votes/loss of popularity. For Obama this is just another photo op and chance to get out of the White House and campaign. The more time he can spend away from the White House the longer he can hide the fact that he has no clue how to do his job.
What hellhole did this monster crawl out of into the here? Would Newman be so cavalier and insouciant if this nation had defacated or vomited on Great Britain's shores, her seas her land, her birds?
I once read a comment that I will try to paraphrase. It went something like this...
Michelle banned chain-smoking Obama from smoking in the white house. The only place he is allowed to smoke is on AirForce One. This would best explain why the guy feels the need to fly Every Single Day (at our expense no less). Of course all of this while pushing his carbon bill.
Sure, let's lift the ban on deep sea oil drilling. Once we have a new law in place that requires a 'security deposit' from each company involved in deep see oil drilling. I think a $1 billion deposit [per company per drilling site] should do.
I get so tired of reading comments from you Obama haters. First, they never ever come anywhere near the truth of any matter; just the same old insults over and over. Second, they are the same right wing rants we hear from that crackpot Rush Limbaugh day in and day out, so I must assume you have anointed him your own Chosen One. Third, the irrational hatred spewing from these posts make me sad to live in a country chock full of ignorant haters who have marbles rolling around in their heads instead of brains. Please people, go back and read all the posts from those who can clearly be identified as right wingers, and tell me how much intelligence is displayed.
Jules,
Do you want to pay $10 per gallon of gas? There is practice and there is theory. The difference between practice and theory is that in theory everything is possible, but in practice, it is not.
As if Transocean isn't getting enough negative publicity. Everyone was looking toward BP to cover the majority of responsibility but for the rig owner to come out with this bullsh1t reminds us that they were also negligent and should be held accountable.
The spill and the responsibility for cleanup is a three way street. BP, Transocean and Haliburton. They all are to be blamed for the Gulf spill and therefore should all pay.
In essence this rig owner idiot is saying, "hey we messed up also but let us continue with business as usual". Dumba$$.
louee
they are the same right wing rants we hear from that crackpot Rush Limbaugh day in and day out,
You listen to Rush Limbaugh day in and day out? LOL!
I have a question...how did the protesters (who shouted down the BP exec by yelling "end the oil age now") get to the meeting in the first place? The same question for all you people whining about how BP and oil companies are all about profits. Did you drive today? Do you heat your house by buring cow dung? Companies like BP are driven to make profits by providing goods and services that the world wants and needs. While capitalism encourages greed it also encourages innovation, motivation and keeps prices competitive. It is not a perfect system but it is the best anyone has come up with yet. I have no stomach for the hypocrites that drive around in their cars and complain about the oil companies that provide the means
Julie & louee, you do realize that it takes energy to make products? What do you think will happen to the US GDP if you limit the ammount of energy US industries can use? What do you think will happen to the jobs linked to industry if you limit energy resources? Would you favor drilling on land instead of offshore? How about Nuclear energy, is that OK with you? Give us some feasible suggestions/alternatives. How do you feel about the 80,000 or so Americans who work in the oil industry who are going to to become unemployed due to the presidential ban on offshore drilling?
It's my understanding that the required backup shutoff valves and switches were there however they were so damaged by the explosion that they were rendered useless.
While it's perfectly natural to want to make BP the bad guy, is it not more reasonable to work with them, rather than scream at them. When Hayworth sat in front of that Congressional committee there was nothing positive about that. All that posturing was done for the respective constitutiants, not to try to get answers and solve problems. Responsibility? Whose more irresponsible than Congress? Talk about the pot calling the kettle black. By my thinking, anyone who wants to yell at BP surely can but if you don't have a solution, then hush. The Administration is at fault for letting this get as bad as it has. Why was international help turned down? Why didn't we convene a world wide committee of experts and consult with them? The list is endless.
Well apparently Julie lives in a cave and walks everywhere (barefoot, naked and unwashed no less). It is an apparent miracle that she has managed to access the Internet.
This and they along with the Greed Over People are only concerned about their pockets and nothing else!!! If 20 more people died tomorrow from a rig accident they'd just go on and say "oh, well accidents happen""!! They are all cold hearted bas*ar*s!!!!!
GaryColumbus #1.42,
You forgot the fourth party, the US government via MMS inspectors.
louee
I get so tired of reading comments from you Obama haters.
___________________________________________________________________________
Louee I can kind of agree with you but I get tired of hearing hate comments from both sides. Both sides just seem to want to spew hate and lump all Dems or Reps in one big hate pile, everything black or white with nobody in the gray shades and if everyone would step back and really take a look the gray shades are where most people are. Yes there are really far far lefties and righties and they seem to be the ones shouting the loudest, so are getting the most attention. We all need to remember we are all Americans first and try to work from there.
x
Hey Julie is it okay for Petrobra to drill 3 times as deep as we do? Is it okay that this President just dumped $2,000,000,000.00 or our money into Petrobra so they could drill baby drill?
I have to go to work .................................and make my contribution to the United States through taxes so they can hand it over to Brazil and those here in the States on entitlements.
Not all entitlements are bad just the ones that are being FRAUDED
Sure its about profits. Always has been. Whats news about that. However that halfbreed Kenyan doesn't know a dam thing about the oil fields. The whole oil industry shouldn't have to pay for what one bunch of idiots do. BP knows who is responsible for they screw up. They should fire him or them and turn his sorry ass over to the prosecutors. Other wise file charges against the top dog. He probably a golf playing politician that has never set foot on a drilling plat form. They require licensed pilots, licensed truck drivers, licensed river boat captains etc, etc. Same should be for drilling rig operators. Then the driller has the authority to over ride these dam arm chair quarter backs running the dangerous situations. I wonder haw many registered petroleum engineers BP has in their drilling department? If president walking Eagle wants to shut down BEE PEE's drilling operation. Why not? After all they are the ones that screwed up and by all means should be held 100% responsible. You see where British Petroleum has hired ever wheel dealer influence peddling lobbyist known to man. That should tell you something about how screwed up our political system is. Then what do you expect when a half breed Kenyan that can't can't produce a birth certificate can get him elected to be the president of the USA. Supposedly financed by all these millions of poor people sending in $5 donations. BULL @!$%# !!!!! OH YES! the books he supposedly wrote. My wife is a selling author and WE had never heard of the dam books until he was elected president. Sure not much praise for the US in those books for sure. Oh I forgot!!! Its all Bush's fault. What do you expect??? You guys should talk to some petroleum engineers who worked for companies that had BEE PEE as partners. Very good to explain why things went wrong.
Yet There is a group of dumb asses think we can live with out the oil so they want to punish the industry. The life blood of this nation. Tell you what you do. Next time you go to WalMart demand paper sacks. Wait a minute paper takes energy to make or recycle. Only buy products packaged in glass. That takes energy to make also. Gasoline or diesel fuel is the low man on the totem pole when it comes to oil usages. So lets all ride bicycles. Get real do do heads. Get real. Kill the goose that is laying the golden egg. I cut my teeth on a set of elevators . Don't talk to me about Oil production. Yes in a dangerous business. Everything on the derrick floor is harder and heavier than man. There are pressures down deep so great you can't record them.
Check the early days of oil.
I grew up in this area.
Yes, they had blow out back then.
Copy to your address bar.
http://www.unioncountysheriff.net/viewpage.php?page_id=28
and
http://www.topix.com/album/detail/el-dorado-ar/N7IK33AKOEAK4MVE
I repeat. Don't punish an industry for what some dumb ass bean counter caused.
Toxic, what of the eco-nomy of the Earth? How relevant is the Earth's ability to sustain life to man's very existence? Does mankind continue to destroy oxygen releasing, the gaseous composition of the atmosphere, the Earth's marine, wetland and coastline, eco - systems, the eco-nomy of a living Earth that is in the business of climate regulation, the nitrogen cycle, the hydrological system, the creation and renewal of the soil, seed dispersal, decomposition, pollination, new medicines, the purification of the air and water, pollination, 99% of all pest control, and the regulation and controlling of disease pathogens that cause viral pandemics?
Does man continue to slaughter the Earth for a little put put and a quart of toxic oil? Do we kill the Earth for a few pieces of silver? How did man survive without cars, a new monster on the scene. For the vast majority of mankind's existence he did magnificently without cars, horses, trolleys, paychecks, jobs and paper monies. How?
According to the vast majority of science, mankind is actively killing the Earth's ability to sustain all life. You chose your moniker well. If you die from this growing epidemic of cancer, will a paycheck or car be meaningful? Long before cars, jobs and oil, mankind arose to dominance -- based upon the eco - nomy of the Earth. Think!
if we were really concerned about protecting the environment, then we would allow them to drill closer to shore, where an accident like this could be easily contained. The "evironmentalists" never think before they act. They are the same tree huggers who prevented us from moving forward on nuclear energy. We could be drilling more on land too, Like ARNWR, which could also be contained easily in case of an accident. However, considering this is the first time this has occurred in over 40 years of drilling, it would be idiotic to stop now. My question is, why is Obama playing golf while all this is happening? Get to work you lazy bum!
Excellent post, skor. As we irrevocably change the ecology and the circulatory system of the Gulf of Mexico, our earth, the only habitable planet in the current era, will suffer catastrophic consequences. The issues are not economic or political, which are shear nanoseconds on the timeline of life's existence. The issues are survival of humans, who appear to be bent on self destruction.
you people act like this is the end of the world. sure, it's a lot of oil, but lots of oil seeps into the oceans naturally all the time. the earth will take care of itself in the long run.
Good for this judge. Obama had no right to throw hundreds of thousands of people out of work on an over reaction. The experts did not recommend this!! Obama does not seem to care at all about Americans and Jobs.
His only elegance seems to be with the Marxist George Soros! Whom stands to make billions taking over the drilling rigs.
Where oh where does it say anywhere in my post to stop drilling? All I'm saying is require some type of withholding funds. Do you really think we're going to be lucky enough for the oil company to step up and take responsiblity again? Think about the Exxon Valdez and the claims that are still on going after decades. I guess your proposal (of which you put forth questions to me but never stated any proposals yourself) is to just keep things as is? How's that working for the shrimpers, crabers, fisherman of the Gulf? So it's alright to fight for the employees of these oil companies but not for those employed in the fields that have no livelyhood due to these oil companies?
I say keep drilling but for now on (no granfather clause) require this 'deposit' just as a landlord requires one to protect their interest/property from renters.
'man'manillow
No. Do you want to pay for oil company's clean up? We got lucky that BP stepped up with their billions. You willing to gamble that on another oil company (because they're so honest and can police themselves)?
Oooh, are you a little frustrated and now feel the need to personally attack someone you don't know a damn thing about? Big man, little....
....and who says the GOP doesn't like activist judges? That azz clown should be on a barge in the gulf cleaning oil off of sea turtles, not sitting behind the bench.
Sadly, we're right back where we started = 'Drill, Baby, Drill!' : -(
Good !!! District Judge Martin Feldman has ruled against the moratorium.
Now, what about taking the Department of Interior, along with MMS management, to court for allowing "waivers" to oil companies on safety and operational issues ???
And what about the $ 2,000,000,000 the President earmarked for Peru to deep water drill, and the depth is deeper than the BP oil rig ??? Yet, the President placed a six-month moratorium on deep-water drilling in the offshore waters of the United States. What a friggin joke !!!
Seems everything this Administration is doing, or is rebutting other State(s) legislation, is getting challenged by the courts. Still waiting on:
ENOUGH of the courts interventions.....PLUG THE LEAK !!!!
Oh, shucks.....time for another Air Force 1 trip, a round of golf, or a party at the Party House.
Donna429....
Huh? What in the world are you espousing? You make absolutely no sense. Odd postings.
American warrior; nope, the new design bop, about 6 years in use, were not required by the dept. of interior (mms); nor was a adequate spill plan, nor were their any inspectors on the rig, even though several days earlier they reported a problem; the BP reps on the deepwater horizon overruled the tool boss, haliburton and the deep sea horizon supervisor; he wanted to show his company, he could get the well flowing, if a inspector from mms would have been on board he could have stopped BP from taking such a foolish gamble; with the right safety equipment, safety procedures and inspectors disasters like this would be prevented; however MMS, dept. of Interior, Congress ,Coast Guard are all in bed with the multi-national corporations!
Gee the judge didn't have a knee jerk reaction....
When a plane crashes, you don't shut down all the airlines. When there's a rail disaster, you don't shut down all railroads. You can't assume that all deepwater wells are unsafe as a result of the disaster. It's been said that the other wells have been inspected since this disaster and they all passed. One analyst said "Well, we don't really know what caused this rig to collapse, spill, etc. Amazing, we hung BP out to dry and now we're going to say we really don't what caused this spill??? No wonder a judge didn't go for that argument. In court, you need facts, proof. The admin didn't have it. The judicial system 1, BO 0.
"Corporation, n., An ingenious device for obtaining profit without individual responsibility"
~ Ambrose Bierce
District Judge Martin Feldman said the Interior Department failed to provide adequate reasoning???
How about reasoning that they have no clue on how to PROPERLY clean up their messes???
If they can prove they can adequately clean up their messes, then allow them to drill.
All some of us are asking is RESPONSIBLE DRILLING!!
Judge probably received contributions from the oil companies (I am assuming... a Louisiana judge... ruling for BIG OIL... with a reason that takes no responsibility).
What is going on in this country when REASON is utterly thrown out the window!!!
Blame the GOP for removing regulations on Oil, the stock markets, the housing markets, the environment... they are killing our country!
Feds say "no cause for concern" after inspecting 30 deep water drilling rigs in Gulf of Mexico "
From the AP:
"AP Feds check 30 oil rigs, say no "cause for concern" Friday May 7, 5:04 pm ET
By Ray Henry, Associated Press Writer
Feds say "no cause for concern" after inspecting 30 deep water drilling rigs in Gulf of Mexico
ROBERT, La. (AP) -- U.S. Minerals Management
Service inspectors say there's "no urgent cause for concern" regarding
30 deep water drilling rigs they've finished inspecting in the Gulf of
Mexico.Spokesman Lars Herbst said Friday that the inspectors'
findings will be available soon in a report. His inspectors now will
examine all deep water production facilities in the Gulf.The
inspection of the drilling rigs began after an oil rig operated by BP
PLC exploded and sunk on April 20 in the Gulf, killing 11 people. It's
been spilling an estimated 200,000 gallons of oil a day in the nation's
biggest oil spill since the Exxon Valdez disaster in Alaska in 1989."
.....
http://ca.us.biz.yahoo.com/ap/100507/us_gulf_oil_spill_inspections.html?.v=2
How do you figure people are prepared to have every right answer at all times? To stop drilling will kill the economy over five states. Sure we need to to come up with other means of extracting oil but we cannot stop drilling. As a matter of fact if Democrats would have allowed more drilling in swallow areas this may not have happened in the first place.
Gordon90N
You're right Gordon. But which government? I say that this spill is just another ripple effect from de-regulation and particularly Reaganomics. So enough with Reaganomics. It's done too much damage ever since instituted therefore should go. All of it. And don't give any of that "Wall" bullsh1t. Reagan could talk the talk with anyone but Reaganomics was about the worst policy agenda in the history of the United States.
Sorry folks...correct my post #1.62 to read BRAZIL vs Peru.
Don't think the country would matter anyway....the President will back "his friends (Soros)" to make sure they become richer and forget about the American people, even though he promised $ 2,000,000,000 of AMERICAN TAXPAYER MONEY.
We'll see how the appeal goes. This judge was put in by Reagan, so is likely right leaning and pro big business.
It's all about safety. If it can be shown that it is safe to drill in deep water, fine get the permits ready. If not, how many of these accidents do you want? 3, 5, 7.
So what happens if the permits start up and we get another one?
If Obama wasn't the President of the United States, he could make hundreds of dollars doing stand-up all over the greater Chicago area.
So he's got THAT going for him!
Wait a minute... does this mean the Big Ol Government can't run around doing whatever it pleases with complete disregard and disrespect for law and order?!?!?!
Who'd have seen THAT coming... HAHA Does this President understand ANYTHING!?
Hitoboto - An accident is not proof that all rigs are unsafe. This did not occur because the rig was unsafe. Now when it comes to procedure that is another matter. Based on what I'm seeing, the methane content was beyond normal. TransOcean being 45 days behind schedule sealing and switching probably was a contributing factor because that kind of pressure can be held for only so long.
This well was full of short-cuts permitted by a federal regulatory board. Regardless, follow the regulations would be a good start and greatly decrease the likely hood of another accident.
Yeah! Run that one up the flagpole and see who salutes it Obama!!
It's ABOUT TIME.
The federal judge says that Obama was violating the constitution but that is not importrant to you? One rig messes up and he closes them all down even though there had been no showing of wrong-doing on the part of any of the others - and someone can disagree? How could any sane person not see that this was just Obama using an accident to further is goal of destroying capitalism since he believes, as some on this site do, that any action to make a profit is inherently evil! Capitalism is evil and must be stamped out. The only jobs worth saving are public sector jobs - and to date that is all his 775 billiion stimulus hhas saved.
Thank god for this federal judge!
GaryColumbus #1.70,
I was only pointing out that the government did not follow its own rules regarding onsite inspections __— a minimum of once per month. Therefore, the US government was negligent in its duties. I never stated anything regarding any politics or pointing to either political party.
I'll agree to this moratorium when they start shutting down airlines for months at a time every time a plane crashes. I mean, the airlines are making billions of dollars why do they get a pass when there is an accident?
dont ever let a crisis go to waste remember???
isnt it funny we have been drilling for oil for how long 150 years and no accidents like this. how many decades have we been deep water drilling with no major accidents??? now all of a sudden after the climate change thing seems to be losing steam to get us to switch...we have the worst spill in our history under a democratic government which at first seems nonexistent and then comes out with guns blazing saying and pushing for an alternative fuel.
it just seems odd.
drill baby drill !!
there is hope for our judicial system
Seems fair to me. For teh Obama admin to think that all rigs are dangerous due to just one be faulty, we can apply that logic to the following....if one President is incompetent (Bush for example as the Lib's claim), then all are incompetent. :P
Yeah, go obumo...one bad accident in 40 years by one company, so...lets stop ALL of it and kill even more jobs, send oil prices through the roof...just what you want to further your agenda of taking America down...well, FU stupid. I'd call you a traitor but you have to be a true member of something before you can betray it.
You unreal F-stain
These companies signed contracts and are all complying with the terms. They should not be punished just because one other company violated its contract. The court ruled so and it is correct. It is no different than when a black man commits a crime - that does not mean all blacks must go to jail. It is not disengenuous to say so - in fact it is racist thinking to think otherwise.
Obama must be pissed!
I wonder who's gonna get the blame for this one?
Bush? "The party of NO"? Osama Bin Laden? BP? Stupid cops? Tea Party? Bush? Halliburton? Cheney? Imademonjob? Toto? Bush? Sponge Bob? Rush Limbaugh? Beck? Hannity? Bush? "Typical white people"? Arizona? Bush?
It's too early to tell, but I'm putting my money on Bush!
Since the judge found Obama guilty of violating the rights of these companies I would expect that he would now be forced to pay compensation for all their losses - shouldn't he? Certainly BP will be able to argue that they are not responsible to pay for the lost wages and profits of these other innocent rigs since it was not their action but the illegal action of Obama that caused those losses.
First off, this was really a no brainer decision. The government's logic is that if GM produces a car with an oil leak, then the president has the authority to shut down the production of all vehicles for six months, so that an investigation can be had to determine why the leak occurred.
As for the decision itself, unfortunately, Obama can easily thwart this, like he does all the other laws. What happens if the department just doesn't issue permits? More lawsuits, that take time and money to fight. He won't enforce the immigration laws and is fighting to prevent it's enforcement. He knows that all he has to do is buy time until the rig owners decide they need money and haul them off to foreign lands. So, the battle is just beginning and the losers will be the American taxpayer and all other Americans.
Remarkable, bought and paid for then sets no trial date after setting the condition for trial requirement. This isn't law.
Martin Leach-Cross Feldman is an Article III federal judge for the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana. He joined the court in 1983 after being nominated by President Ronald Reagan. Born 1934 in St. Louis, MO
No it does not make any sense, yet now the entire nation has been tasked with the clean-up cost invoice for a well that is still leaking.
The District Court is superseded by the Appeals and the Supreme Court. THe JUdge essentially ruled that the Department of Interior is not the oversight department, the industry is. THis is a feather in the industries cap which can lead towards complete ignorance of any future provisions.
Louisiana government is owned lock stock and BARREL by OIL.
Why do I say this? The Louisiana Leguslature just cut all funding to Public Interest Law Firms, you know, the ones who file class action law suits and file for people who can't afford lawyers.
Then they told all the schools in Louisiana that if their law schools filed any of these suits, the ENTIRE schools funding would be cut.
This is going against the people and voters who are desperate for help, by the very states the victims live in.
It is raw power time, time to pay back for all the money oil gave them and to hell if it makes you look corrupt. No pretense, gloves off, we say jump - you jump
Noelle-588175
Sadly, we're right back where we started = 'Drill, Baby, Drill!' : -(
yeah, a couple weeks before the spill, obama approved more drilling in the gulf. most koolaid drinkers don't seem to remember that, must've been a holiday, like obama's birthday or maybe oprah's.
EBW
The state of Louisiana wants the BP Billions of dollars to go to the people in need not just a few ambulance chasing, blood sucking lawyers.
Seems like the GOBP crowd is out in full force today. If these patsies of big dirty oil have their way we will NEVER get off our oil dependence.
You idiots just don't get the big picture do ya? Our government is as much responsible for this disaster as BP is and you sit on your high horse blaming everything on BP!! I challenge any of you idiots to google "Corexit 9500", this is the TOXIC chemical that our wonderful president is allowing BP to spray. Dig for the facts Zombies because very soon our wonderful dictator will be taking that away from us!
Total fraud is behind the oil companys arguments. Deepwater in the gulf constitutes about 5% of the total drilling and hundredths of a percent of all the worldwide oil production. Waiting for 6 months until this disaster is resolved and making sure we know what exactly they did wrong is not going to be a blip on the worldwide oil supply or even many jobs. Non deep water drilling and production are still going on.
The point is, if there was another blow out, where the hell will the response ships and materials come from since everything is already being used for the blow out that is still spewing at a rate that they cannot even identify much less control?
Damn...and y'all run around boasting about how you're the greatest country in the world. What you really are is a laughing stock. First, there is no way any judge should have any say in deep water drilling, especially when one considers that such drilling takes place well outside the countries borders. Second, current events alone dictate that a moratorium should be in place at the very least. Obviously, wisdom and/or integrity are not prerequisites for a seat on the bench. This so-called judge has neither. We are seeing these travesties daily now yet y'all still running around talking about how you believe in the country's justice system. You can't have a justice system if the judges are corrupt now can ya?
Nice work here however according to this District Court Judge, the industry may continue unabated. The Judge is not a scientist nor an engineer, nor it could be argued even cognitively functional. Ixtoc I an exploratory well "blowout" in the region was not stopped by the first relief well.
So they shut down the free lawyers who don't get large fees?
That wasn't even a good try on defending the corrupt politicians, but it was a good example of the dupes who keep them in office.
YES! It's about time the legal system stood up to the HNIC (head narcisist in charge). I knew Obama had a "God" complex... it's way over due to be deflated.
Maybe somewhere along in his OJT, someone forgot to tell him that he can't do everything he damn well pleases. The spoiled brat child president finally gets sent to his room. I love it!
Thunder Horse PDQ was evacuated with the approach of Hurricane Dennis in July 2005. After the hurricane passed, the platform was listing badly. The platform was designed for a 100 year event, and inspection teams found no hull damage, and no water was taken on from a leak through its hull.
Rather, an incorrectly plumbed 6-inch length of pipe allowed water to flow freely among several ballast tanks that set forth a chain of events causing the platform to tip into the water.
Drilling in the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic Ocean is subject to oil spills due to damage from hurricanes. However, the Coast Guard reported that of the more than 7 million gallons of oil spilled during Hurricane Katrina from various sources, no spills were reported from offshore facilities.
Obama's freeze on drilling only seeks to destroy more and more jobs. It is obvious his goal is just to pass Cap and Trade and more stimulus packages that clearly don't work. He'll scream "we need to extend unemployment benefits because the people in the Gulf can't make a living." Well, if you didn't shut down all the oil rigs, many people would still have jobs. If the White House wasn't so buddy-buddy with the environmentalists, we would be drilling on land or in shallow water, making a spill much more preventable or at least easier to contain and clean up. It's astonishing that the White House refuses to allow drilling on our own soil or in shallow water, but is allowing nations like China to drill 30 miles off the coast of California.
Obama preaches the need to end dependency on foreign oil, yet he imposes a freeze on oil drilling? What a crock! He thinks that if we don't drill, we won't need to get oil elsewhere? For crying out loud, is he going to snap his fingers and magically produce an effective alternative just like that?! What we should be doing is drilling on land and in shallow water while at the same time allowing entreprenuers to develop cost effective alternatives to fossil fuels. I heard someone say that we will eventually run out of oil. That's true, but no one knows when that will be (only estimates). The sun will explode and kill the entire planet and destroy the solar system. That's true, but no one knows when.
lib50
Seems like the GOBP crowd is out in full force today. If these patsies of big dirty oil have their way we will NEVER get off our oil dependence.
___________________________________________________________________________
Lib are you really ready to stop driving your car, no lights, no heat or air conditioning, grow all your own food since no transport of food, haul your own water and probably a dozen other things you take for granted. I know I'm not and I'm not afraid to admit it.
Do you really believe the President seeks to destroy jobs?
That is the kind of no brain talk we are hearing more and more, just mindless attacks.
Q: Did Obama loan $2 billion to Brazil's oil company to benefit China and George Soros?
A: The president had nothing to do with the loan, which the Export-Import Bank approved for Brazil to buy U.S.-made equipment and services.
This claim stems from a "preliminary committment" made back on April 14 by the board of directors of the Export-Import Bank of the United States. The bank intends to loan up to $2 billion to finance exports to the Brazilian oil company Petróleo Brasileiro S.A., known as Petrobras, over the next several years.
The e-mail is false on two counts.
The bank's chairman and president, Fred P. Hochberg, underscored the purpose of the loan during a trip to Brazil at the end of July.
To see a list of this judge's holdings in energy companies which can very easily be construed as offering a basis biased judgement against safety.
http://www.thinkprogress.org/
Here’s a list of Feldman’s income in 2008 (amounts listed unless under $1,000):
Even the president can not arbitrarily dictate a moratorium without a valid reason. Just because BP has a bad safety record does not instantly mean that all other oil drilling to stop. Rookie President, another rookie mistake, the judge ruled on legal grounds not emotional ones,,,when you people in here who know everything are judges, I would guess then you could say the judge was wrong,,,we have a legal system just for this reason to keep politicians form overstepping their authority,,,high five judge
skor, Please understand that I am not "Pro-pollution." I hate the fact that the oil is continuing to be leaking in the Gulf.
No, I don't want to "kill the earth", but I also don't want to be without a home to live in because I no longer have a job or a means to get to one, if their would be one without energy. I believe we can do both, be kind to the earth, but also live from the fruits it enables us to take from it.
They sat in overcrowded poorly insulated huts that were only lit by sunlight. They grew their own crops, and if they ran out they starved. They froze in the winter, drank well water and died of simple diseases. Life expectancy back then was at most 30 years.
I choose the moniker of "ToxicChemist" because I work with Research & Development of Chemotherapy drugs, (many of which are toxic), and Occupational safety: protecting others from exposure to toxic substances, whether at home, in public places or for the most part, at work.
The paycheck is out of necessity, the car gets me to work, helping others be able to live somewhat normal lives when stricken with diseases such as Parkinsons, Epilepsy or Cancer is meaningful to me.
News flash for you all, Obama wants to get rid of all off shore drilling which he made a huge deal to Petrobras and gave the company 2 billion of tax payers money to invest over there with Obama's buddy Soros who has huge stock with this company. That means all the jobs from the oil rigs here would eather go to Brasil or they are out of work. Obama made a huge backroom deal. How do you all like this surprise?
The argument that the 6-month delay pending review is erroneous since the industry is somewhat in decline do to falling demand across the board. This would tend to influence employment figures considerably more, than 33 preliminary drilling operations which will not produce anything for 3-5 years according the the industry.
Directly from BP Statistical Review of World Energy 2010 Report
Highlights
Oil
Natural gas
Coal
Primary energy
The judge, every oil exec, and every politician in DC are probably laughing all the way to the bank with boatloads of money from oil.
No matter what the law, politicians, and oil CEOs say, they have only one goal: $$$$$$$$$$$.
And, sadly enough, most of us have a price, too.
For some of us, that price might be $1,000,000. For others, it might be $1,000,000,000. But we all have a price point. And, what if that price point was the life of a loved one?
Tim and all the rest of you, BHO is nothing but a chicago politician, by nature capable of ANYTHING, no matter how far fetched it may sound! Written from Chicago.
I figue it this way. Obama wants to stop all drilling, present and future, then something like this won't ever happen again. (So far it's happened once in a row.) And he won't have to look inept and clueless, because no more working rigs, no more problems.
No, this isn't about profit. This judge saw that the Interior Dept. had no real cause to pull the permits it gave to the 27 oil rigs just because one went bad. The department had just finished checking out all rigs and only found two that needed to be scrutinized more. Just because one rig goes bad doesn't mean all the other companies and drillers are taking cuts also, at least that is what the Interior Dept. found when they inspected these other rigs just recently and gave them the go ahead. The judge decided there was a better way to find out the safety of these rigs and putting hundreds of thousands of people out of work was not the way to do it. These rigs can be inspected more closely while they are operating. When a judge goes against the government it is because he truly believes the government has no basis to do what it did and with the economy like it is there is no reason to keep all these men and women out of work while the MMS takes it sweet time like it does with everything else to find better safety solutions.
This judge is absolutely right and even the governors and lawmakers in Louisianna, Mississippi, etc...have said that a moratorium was not the answer and they agree with the judge. It has NOTHING to do with profit people. Please read the whole case before you go spewing hatred toward the judge. I would think you would be more concerned with how the president has gone golfing 7 times just since the spill, has had a concert at the White House with Paul McCartney, has had numerous vacation days, going to sports events and having different sports leauges at the White House, has gone to numerous fundraisers for the democratic party and numerous sports outings and parties in just the 62 days that this rig exploded. I can't believe that your not furious about how out of touch this president is and yet if this were Bush you would be bashing him for just one golf outing (by the way, Bush stopped playing golf completely when the war started because he didn't want to have one mother or father of a soldier see him having a good time with them in harm's way) I wish this president had the backbone to do that and the symphathy to feel their pain. What a bum
Julie, my heart goes out for the people effected by the oil spill. I agree that BP should be compensating those people, maybe I hadn't made myself clear in that regard.
First of all, I think that the regulations failed us. I don't know the particulars of the energy industry, but I do know that when the government oversees your business, you have to follow proper procedure, doccumentation, inspection and soforth (adnauseum). In my opinion, the proper procedure for the Deep Water Horizon regarding safety proceedures/inspection was not followed to the letter. Also, I do find it strange that there wasn't some kind of disaster plan in place for a blowout such as this. Going forward, if there is any more drilling off shore, there shlould be procedures/plans in place to assure this type of thing does not happen again. (I know that the government sees to it that my company follows proper Safety & Regulatory obligations. We would be out of business if we didn't.)
Now, as far as energy goes, we need oil to get us to the point until some other type of (clean/efficient/reliable) energy source is available. Develop new technologies, (I'm all for it), but until then we don't have much choice. Oil is currently the world's economy's lifeblood.
Good work Judge. At least the Socialist don't own all the judges. YET that is. I still think an example has to made out of BP. Drill Responsibly are get shot down. Jail time for sure for the "shoot from the hip" guys.
Deep water drilling has been going on for around 60 years without incident until now and all evidence is pointing to a company that was cutting corners to save a buck. This is no reason to condemn the rest of the industry and was so indicated in the final report issued by the panel of experts.
As justification for issuing this moratorium Obama cited this report after he modified it and added a couple of paragraphs making it seem like the panel recommended a drilling moratorium which they insisted they did not, but Obama needs this drilling moratorium to push his highly unpopular cap and trade abomination. What Obama did here was highly unethical at best and criminal at the worst.
The judge’s ruling was correct but now he’s apparently become the target of a smear campaign. For chairman Obama and his Marxist regime it’s business as usual.
What! Adequate reasoning! Let's get this Einstein judge down dar and put him in the black death for a dip. Then, he can make a logical and reasonable decision. I am utterly stunned.
What more evidence does this cracker, human garbage require! Three ecosystems have sustained toxic and deadly hits. The strands of the web of all life have been smothered in this vile toxin. We must insist this judge seek help from a shrink; he's drunk on the oil or let's peruse his childhood IQ score causin this red neck needs our help!
Off the bench and into the quagmire this red neck goes!
Tomorrow's headline "Obama furious with Judge. Calls Judge to Oval Office"
Or "Obama sues Judicial Branch. Wants to know who's ass to kick"
Because deep sea mining is a relatively new field, the complete consequences of full scale mining operations are unknown. However, experts are certain that removal of parts of the sea floor will result in disturbances to the benthic layer, increased toxicity of the water column and sediment plumes from tailings.[17] Removing parts of the sea floor disturbs the habitat of benthic organisms, possibly, depending on the type of mining and location, causing permanent disturbances.[18] Aside from direct impact of mining the area, leakage, spills and corrosion would alter the mining area’s chemical makeup.
Among the impacts of deep sea mining, sediment plumes could have the greatest impact. Plumes are caused when the tailings from mining (usually fine particles) are dumped back into the ocean, creating a cloud of particles floating in the water. Two types of plumes occur: near bottom plumes and surface plumes.[19] Near bottom plumes occur when the tailings are pumped back down to the mining site.
The floating particles increase the turbidity, or cloudiness, of the water, clogging filter-feeding apparatuses used by benthic organisms.[20] Surface plumes cause a more serious problem. Depending on the size of the particles and water currents the plumes could spread over vast areas.[21][22] The plumes could impact zooplankton and light penetration, in turn affecting the food web of the area.
They appear to have left out a few facts:
1. No one knows how much oil has leaked. Obama said 10,000 barrels a couple of weeks ago and the 30,000 and now 60,000......the harder he pushs for the Cap & Emission TAX the higher his quote gets but the truth is NO ONE KNOWS! Plus Obama has given Reid permission to use closed door politics yet again and shove that GAS TAX thru by the July 4th Holiday.
2. Every disaster we have had until this one the existing President waived the Jones Act which allows other countries to help out. Obama REFUSED TO WAIVE THE JONES ACT....14 countries have tried to help and he has REFUSED HELP. Why? So that he can use this situation and TAX US ALL.
3. Obama NEVER intended to open up Offshore Drilling. That was a carrot dangled in front of our noses and he intended to use it to push candidates he wanted into winning elections. Just as he will try to use that Escrow account to influence voting this Fall and in 2012. Get real he wants to tax all that money BP will be paying for Damages.
4. Obama REFUSED free help cleaning up the spilled oil from 14 countries and hired BIG UNION buddies to supply the labor.
5. Please note that all the major spills have been by foreign owned companies. These permits are not foreign owned companies. It should be obvious that our companies don't seem to have these nasty incidences so why is Obama punishing our companies? How many wells are there and how many have ever had this kind of problem. Why is it that only now has Obama agreed to allow a secondary well to be drilled to relieve the pressure??? Surely that should have been done within 24 hrs after it happened. 60 DAYS after!
skor, It looks like you are ready for a "good ol'e fashioned lynching." So get out of that unheated, sunlit only - hut of yours, and travel by foot for several days/weeks to where this judge lives, providing you can find that information out by word of mouth. Make sure to pack several days worth of beef jerky and berries to munch on....no stopping for fast food on the way..........
United States non-ratification of the UNCLOS
In the United States there has been vigorous debate over the ratification of the treaty, with criticism coming mainly from political conservatives who consider involvement in some international organizations and treaties as detrimental to U.S. national interests. A group of Republican senators, led by Jim Inhofe of Oklahoma, has blocked American ratification of the Convention, claiming that it would impinge on U.S. sovereignty. The Bush administration, a majority of the United States Senate, and the Pentagon favored ratification.
To date, 157 countries and the European Community have joined the Convention.
Wow, nobody sees that OBAMA IS BRILLIANT!
He implements a broad group punishment for the actions of one company that skipped numerous industry standards. The court rules on the illegality and lifts the ban. What do you want to bet Obama doesn't re-institute a ban just on BP? This way Obama gets to look like a good guy but behind the scenes gets to collect a favor from BP.
While I don't think it should have been a hard number like six months,they should all be shut down until they can visibly prove they they have a realistic plan to solve the same problems BP has had in stopping the pipeline break and be fully inspected to see if any safety violations are happening. They can then be brought back on line as they are cleared to do so on a one by one case. I don't think that is unrealistic or uncalled for..
I like how I heard on CNN that the Judge asked the Government lawyer if a train crossing had experienced an accident if they would shut down all train crossings in America also. But that is the wrong way to look at it. A better way is to compare it to another ecological disaster in scope such as a nuclear reactor meltdown like Chernobyl in Russia. If that happened here wouldn't you want every reactor shut down until they were proven safe ?
ToxicChemist, +1 from me on your 1.114 post.
As for your post 1.45 I would answer yes to all of those questions except (which is not a Yes or No):
I feel bad whenever someone loses a job not due to their own actions. We need all of our energy assets (coal, oil, Natural gas, trash to fuel, nuclear, solar, wind, etc) in this country, period! I just want some sort of security from these oil companies that if an accident does happen, they're going to be responsible. I just don't trust them due to their track record.
This entire satire on American thinking and reasoning is evidence, anything can be spinned. Supposedly, for the financial economy and toxic oil, they have killed the fishing industry in the gulf, exposed Americans to more and more carcinogens in their diet and environments and have weakened the eco-nomy of our ecosystem dependent Earth. What of the eco-nomy of the Earth?
And, Toxic your societal voices and droning brainwashing slogans have tainted your image of how mankind did gorgeously through the vast majority of his existence without cars, jobs, oils and paper monies and experienced a vastly superior quality of life. No major wars, no pandemics, no famine, and twice the amount of leisure time to spend with family and children and in paradise. You've bought the entire tired and cliche brainwashing, hooked you to the economy to keep the rich pigs, rollin in the clover. You've been had. Your mind is no more free than the serfs who were the slaves to the rich kings of G Britain.
I wasn't talking about agriculture, which began the beginning of the end. If you were to take a 24 hour clock as a witness to mankind's existence and rise to the dominant specie on the Earth, the so-called civilized societies began at 2 minutes until midnight!!! Almost the entirety of mankind's existence was small scale hunting and gathering, considered by social scientists, the most successful lifestyle for homo sapiens. And, they did magnificently without jobs, offices, bosses, slaves, cars and 40 hrs a week separated from family and children. And, they lived and played in paradise.
What had you rather be doing all of your life, fishing on a beautiful river and playing in paradise or workin on duh job. Carbon dating and shell mounds proven, for many thousands of years, man experienced no major wars, no famine and no man-killer disease pandemics. Because pandemics, like the bird flu, are caused by man raping and plundering the Earth's ecosystems and pushing extinct the strands in the web of all life. You aren't alive and breathing because of a job, house, car or oil.
Today, we are in the business of building monster ships and cannot even find the lifeboat or see the plug. Mankind is devouring the Earth. When does it stop. You aren't alive because of oil, jobs, money and cars; you are alive only because of the natural, wild surface of the Earth and the community members of the Earth's ecosystems.
However, don't worry, man will continue to build and support the monster until there is nothing left to build or support. Now we are discussing oxygen releasing, the atmosphere, a living, life giving soil, a stable and moderated climate, fresh water, food, the nitrogen cycle and the entirety of the Earth's biogeochemistry. Every day, jobs, paper money, banks and wall street are turning the Earth into another Mars. The majority of the Earth's scientists believe we have no paradigms, no models, of what is now happening to man's only home, the miracle of life itself, the Earth.
Donna 426 and blue iris-----Please do some research. Your claim that Obama has given 2billion dollars to drill for oil in Brazil is BOGUS! NOT TRUE! A fabrication! Cite where you get your information.
Just try, for once, to Google what your are saying. Prove you know what you are talking about. Don't be so gullible.
The Waivers and the Jones Act. 1916-1970 revision.
The Jones Act, created to protect seamen from the negligent actions of employers, ensures seamen the right to take legal action against employers who fail to provide a reasonably safe working environment. This includes the safety of the seamen’s mental health. Filing a lawsuit for mental injuries caused by the “zone of danger” can be complicated. Speaking with a Jones Act lawyer is the best way to learn more about your legal options and better understand how you may be compensated for the mental and emotional injuries that you have suffered.
Barratry is something every seaman should be aware of and is defined as an act of misconduct by the ship’s master or crew that results in damages to the ship or cargo. Deserting the ship, illegal scuttling, and theft of the ship and/or its cargo are all considered barratry. Masters of the ship that commit barratry may cause the harm of the ship’s crewmembers, requiring legal action under the Jones Act.
*Of course, this applies to oil semi submersible drilling platforms.
Obama is the perfect representative for the people of this nation. We are so emotionally OVERreactive to every pitfall out there. An oil well blows up, let's get rid of oil altogether. A child disappears, let's make pissing behind a tree a major sex offense. These are just two examples of how we live in a victim culture. Nobody wants to say, "stuff" happens. We just want to blame and condemn. There is no common sense, no greater good, no benefit for the people in general. We think one example sets the rule. Banning drilling, sex offender laws (there are many other examples) has never, and will never, be good for the people (although some of them people should have been hung imo). Let's continue to OVERreact to everything that happens. It is no wonder to me that the rest of the world laughs at our laws, regulations and culture now. We are a victim or our own decadence.
Types of Damages You May Seek Under the Jones Act
The Jones Act was created specifically to protect the rights of seamen who are injured while working aboard a vessel. There are several types of damages that can be sought under the Jones Act. It is important to consider legal damages as compensation for your injury. The legal process is not designed to make you money, but to help you recover successfully without suffering additional financial strain. If you are injured while working aboard a vessel and are considered a seaman, you may be able to recover the damages listed below. Consult an attorney to verify which of these damages are applicable to your specific case.
Types of damages:
When your employer's negligent actions result in your injury, consult an experienced attorney to help you receive the compensation you deserve for your injuries.
The Jones Act Lawyers at Williams Kherkher are highly skilled in Jones Act cases and have successfully represented a variety of seamen who have been injured while working at sea. Contact the Jones Act Lawyers today to discuss your specific claim.
Political corruption is the use of legislated powers by government officials for illegitimate private gain.
"To destroy this invisible Government, to dissolve the unholy alliance between corrupt business and corrupt politics is the first task of the statesmanship of the day." – 1912 Progressive Party Platform, attributed to TR[8] and quoted again in his autobiography[9] where he connects trusts and monopolies (sugar interests, Standard Oil, etc.) to Woodrow Wilson, Howard Taft, and consequently both major political parties.
MMS
I love it!! The federal judge was doing the job the Constitution called for in exercising his duty to provide a system of checks and balances to the excesses of either the executive or legislative branches of the Federal Government. So Obummer got his executive order hand slapped! The judge basically said the Obummer did not have the authority to shutdown an entire industry and put all the associated workers out of job. If Obummer wants to shut down the off-shore industry, he should propose a law, should get the Congress to pass it, and then get the Supreme Court to declare it constitutional in the legal challenges that will surely follow. Then it's legal!! Then its constitutional!!!
And for all the tree huggers and mother earthers out there, if you don't like the age of oil, either come up with a workable alternative or drop out. Alternate green energy sounds great, but it's not 99.99% reliable, so running a power grid from it is a pipe dream. If the wind don't blow, the turbines don't spin, and if the sun don't shine, solar cells don't generate electricity. Any even when they are working, there's no way to store the energy on a massive electric grid scale basis. Both technologies are fine on an individual residence basis where a high reliability power grid exists as a backup. Right now that grid is going to be either fossil fuel or nuclear based. Who has a demonstrated other option? No one!
So, then if that's an untenable position for the huggers/earthers, drop out. Turn in your cars, you motorbikes, your snow mobiles, your all terrain vehicles, and your power consuming homes and appliances. We'll give you a rudimentary spear, a knife, a piece of fishing line, and a ticket to the Amazon Basin. You'll turn in your clothes and shoes on arrival and then will be free to commune with nature for as long as you survive! Should appeal to you, because you'll just be another equal species fighting for life.
Anything made by man will have some probability of failure. Getting a well blowout preventer to work at 5000 feet below sea level appears to be an issue. So, then address the reliability issue. Develop a workable design, test and prove its robustness, and then install it with primary and secondary backups. Have the oil companies contribute a fairly significant sum as a percentage of profits to a general clean-up fund run by someone other than the Federal Government who wants all the money in a general fund accessible by the Congress for what-ever program it's chasing.
The Federal Government has dirty hands on this issue also. They put the drilling leases up for bid, thus encouraging off-shore drilling while raking in the money for the leases. They approved the drilling and control plans. They failed to properly inspect the rig facilities. They failed to properly assess the control plans and safety measures. Guess that bunch was too busy watching porn on the internet like so many others in our government, so stuff got a free pass! Strikes me as the Federal Government needs to clean house also.
Dave-661352
Donna 426 and blue iris-----Please do some research. Your claim that Obama has given 2billion dollars to drill for oil in Brazil is BOGUS! NOT TRUE! A fabrication! Cite where you get your information.
_________________________________________________________________________
Try googling George Soros.....
Gee, I wonder what party he's registered with?
There I googled Soros and got this response from factCheck.org........So tell us where it says that Obama got involved on Soros's behalf?
All you hear is places like Fox News and other right wing sites with no responsibility for truthfulness put the "question" out there and you ignorant people believe it without there being any proof of it being true.
It's been pretty well established that the 6 month moratorium and getting the regs in line on all the other rigs will take far longer than 6 months. 1 rig boss stated that it cost $60,000 a day to run the rig. With no drilling, the lay-offs come very quickly. The IEA stated that this moratorium and it's lingering results will cause a 900,000 barrel decrease in production daily by 2015 and an increase in the 3 figure category on a gallon of gas. That's global petrol. No, it's far more than a pea in the pod. No, BO has not simply stopped current deep water drilling. He's stopped all other deep water wells from being drilled. BP was being Mr. nice guy. Legally, BO is on real shaky ground. It's plausible that if this ruling is sustained, The US may be liable for damages to all the other oil companies?
SRS-798254 #1.24,
What alternative fuel do you propose that we use in aircraft?
Without buying a new car, how do propose that we run our vehicles on alternative fuels? How expensive would that be? Most cars on the roads today have computers that would possibly need to be replaced, along with its sensors __— not exactly cheap.
What about all the tractor trailers, freight trains, ships ?
It's easier to say, than do !
The difference between you and an Earther, Paul is, the more the individual is learned in the science of ecology, the more radical his thinking because, believe it or not Paul, every living thing on the Earth is a tree hugger and an Earther. Life began as we currently know it when photosynthesis interacted with green plants and trees. LIttle oxygen was on the Earth until the advent of trees and plants. Past living species created the atmosphere, and they maintain it right today.
You are only alive because of the Earth's ecosystems and their biological diversity. The animals and plants slaughtered in this eco-terrorism are the community members of the Earth's ecosystems. At least 3 ecosystems were viciously attacked because of this ecological rage. An attack on the EArth and all earthers.
If you are not an Earther, then flip on over to Mars. If you were to slide on over to Mars, what is you would take with you to keep you alive? Would your baggage contain paper money, a job, oils or freeways and cars? Can you eat, drink and breathe the preceding? When astronauts sail into the darkness of space, onboard, they place the Earth and her earthers. Without the living services of the Earth's ecosystems placed on their venturing craft, the astronauts would die. Believe, fellow tree-hugger and Earther, you need the services of the EArth's natural, wild, life-giving communities because, this alone, is all the reasons you are alive. And, the more living and alive that man obliterates for a few pieces of silver, the more the Earth becomes like Mars.
Would a pelican be sooo stupid as to dump oil all over his only nest? Oil is a known carcinogen. And, a recent article on MSNBC just pointed out, that a vital, keystone specie of the marine ecosystem will be deleteriously impacted by "our" oil spill, thousands of miles away, and countless species of biological diversity, will be impacted. Ecologically, all things connect to everything. If all of life were depended on your thinking and just paper monies and paychecks and oils, you would be as dead as all the life that has died in this tragedy and travesty.
You know what is really a crime here. MSNBC is opting to not cover the fact that the drug cartels are moving into areas in Arizona and Texas. Why are we still talking about BP and the oil spill. It will be cleaned up as fast as it can be cleaned up. End of story. Why are we not talking about sealing our border and kicking out all the illegal aliens that are here. Why are we not talking about amending the constitution so that any illegal alien that deposits a child on this side of the border will not be rewarded with that child being granted citizenship. These are far more important issues folks.
Is he serious? What more "adequate reasoning" does he need? I guess birds and dead fish covered in black oil and contaminated water and beaches aren't "adequate" enough. The thoughtless greed of some people never ceases to amaze me.
I can absolutely not believe some of the pro drilling posts. Why are these jobs more important than the auto jobs saved (that they bitch about)? What about all the other outsourced, out of work people? They don't give a crap about them, but sure come to the defense of the corporate elite at every opportunity.
And I stand by my opinion about the GOBP and big oil hindering our attempts to wean ourselves off dirty energy decades.
Diversity, you are missing the point. There is NO evidence that the other deep water wells suffer from the same problems as the one owned by BP. It is, in point of fact, illogical to make that assumption.
Considering TransOcean' s role in the making of the Gusher in the Gulf, they really should ShUT UP in my opinion. If they couldn't even stand up to BP, by following their own safety rules, then it is some other oil company they are going to stand up to and do the right thing? LOL
Considering that only 2% of the world's oil is produced/harvested here, how is it that this moratorium going to cause less oil to go to the world market? Chevron is surely shovelling it and it isn't tar either.
Thought I saw a video where someone who looked like Sen Mary Landrieu was talking to Tony Hayward, I am not sure if it was before or after the hearing or at which hearing. But I could be wrong.....
Anyhoo, those folks on the Gulf coast that are wingeing and whining about 1. their loss of jobs etc...... remember when the financial corps/Wall Street investment titans tanked the economy putting a whole lot of people out of work, did they care about those workers who lost their jobs etc and who could only tap into unemployment insurance payments to make ends sort of meet?
How about at the same time when the auto industry tanked or was tanking and laid off a whole lot of people, plus the ripple effect that this caused for those companies that supported the auto corps with the additional layoffs...... unemployment lines swelled then also. There is a 20B trust fund (plus 100 million dollar additional payment for those rig workers) affected by the moratorium that was negotiated on your behalf, remember? Shouldn't that help? Hmm
2. and that the most modern rigs will be moved elsewhere in the world taking the more experienced drillers/rigworkers with them, and that when the drilling starts again it will leave the less modern rigs and less experienced workers to drill in the Gulf.......
OoooKaaay..... thanks for the heads up. Hope the Bureau of Oil and Gas ( MMS) keep that in mind.......when they conduct their safety checks etc.......
The sad part is that these Gulf coast folks, including their leadership that are trying to repeal the moratorium do not seem to care about what further damage can occur to other areas including their neighbors ....Florida with its white sand beaches and tourism etc. What about their job losses from the Gusher in the Gulf? What happens if another Gusher should happen even as we are dealing with the present one? What about the islands in the Caribbean....like Cuba, Jamaica etc or even the impact on the East Coast of the USA?
Considering that the moratorium is to give the govt an opportunity to (A) make certain that these other deep sea drillings are up to code and safe, and that these companies have the necessary plans and hopefully the equipment and technology to perhaps deal with another gusher, should such an unfortunate situation occur, and (B) to continue its investigation into how the Horizon gusher occurred etc, it seems strange that these folks would be against the 6 months moratorium or do not care, even as their back yards are already filled with oil and dispersants killing wildlife and wetlands and even cutting off their fellow citizens from their livelihood like fishing, tourism etc....WOW
Oh well........whatever....
When an airplane crashes, do they shutdown the industry for 6 months?
Americans are stupid, voting for Obama, listening to and believing the left bent media, running debt to the end of us all. Where did history class go? This is so predictable, just review the rise of Hitler idiots.
Why did Obama say no to other nations offer to help? Why did he refuse to bring in oil scimmers from other parts of the country? Why do they have some of the helping vessels sit (for 24 hours or so) while they try to find an inspector to make sure it has enough life jackets on board? Just ask yourself. What is the agenda here?
Skor, Your statement above really shows the true agrenda that the democrats have for America. Let's go back to the days of the 14th century, you know "The Good Old days", as democrats like yourself would call them. Yes, those people were just living in paradise weren't they? Unless they got the Bubonic plague. Yes, the 14th century was just a hoot with the Great Famine 1315- 1317 when many died of starvation, if the Black Death didn't get them. Back before the "Evil society" came to be, we had the Peloponesian war resulting in plague, the Antonine plague, the Plague of Justinian and of course, the Black Death was infact a plague.
And you would like us to return to days like those? With no heat or hot water, refrigeration, information, medicines etc....Like I said in another posting on this vine. "Book smart / Life Stupid."
What in the world is this Judge Feldman thinking?
1. Feldman granted the drillers' request for a preliminary restraining order that would prevent the ban from taking effect until a trial is held. He did not set a trial date.
HUH????
2. Feldman said the Interior Department failed to provide adequate reasoning and that the moratorium seems to assume that because one rig failed, all companies and rigs doing deepwater drilling pose an imminent danger.
Feldman.....baby! Until someone gives us straight answers as to what happened, we are not willing to take any chances.
3. Feldman's financial disclosure report for 2008, the most recent available, shows holdings in at least eight petroleum companies or companies that invest in them, including Transocean Ltd., which owned the Deepwater Horizon.
Oh, NOW I know what you're thinking.
What a pud.
I wasnt thinking you were a pud.
what I do think is that you cannot see a bigger picture here. I will not even try to explain it to you. Would take way to long, and you being the victory of a lifetime of PR probably wouldnt understand anyway.
There is an agenda for this...Obama refused help from other nations, they stopped cleanup boats from going out so the authorities could count the life jackets, and someone suggested oil skimmers from other parts of the country come in to help and Obama said "no, what if there is another leak?" instead of sending them in. Take a look at the agenda here...it's for Cap and Trade. Also, by keeping the Gulf people jobless by shutting down the wells, they are at the mercy of the government for their livelihood. There is an agenda...think about it.
Another huge miscue just occurred after the containment cap had to be removed today---thus, more oil is gushing into the Gulf. Bashing the Obama Administration moratorium and Salazar is simply a way of venting anger over something that has not been repaired by BP. Frustration looms and understandably so, with so many unemployed and the fragile ecosystem taking more hits in the process.
Obama gave George Soros 20 bil of the American tax dollars to drill in the oceans of Brazil at the depths of 17 thousand feet.
Does anyone see DISASTER here?
GEEEEEEEEEEZUUUS! This has got to be the job from hell....
skor? skor? No response? He must have gone "off the grid"..............
To all the Eco-Friendly people: If you are steamed about this, then why don't you look in the mirror next time you drive your car or truck - THAT is who is to blame. If you want to fix this problem - make electric cars free so everybody that can drive can get one and we will be free of this oil consumption mess. Till then, STFU.
To the Obama haters - STFU. He had nothing to do with this mess and is doing what anybody else can (legally) do. Are you expecting Obama to publicly flog and disembowel all of the BP staff? If that is what you want, you are more insane than me. I bet you would like it better if it was McCane/Pailin... Yet we would still have this problem regardless of the political party in the Oval Office. This isn't a Republican/Democrat problem or caused by them. It was caused by BP being careless. BP will pay or BP will pay. There is no third option here.
Lets get realistic people. Enough pointing fingers and lets find real solutions. I really don't know whats more hilarious: The oil spill itself or everybody here thinking X party is at fault and they have a solution. Do something or STFU.
Watching BP is like watching rehearsals for the circus tightrope act without a net.Thse people don't have a clue what they are doing?
"Tar balls have been reported as far west as Panama City..."
On my map, Panama City is EAST of New Orleans. And how much more are the people whose livelihoods have been decimated supposed to take? First Obama puts a moratorium on any and all further drilling which further devastates the Louisiana people. Now the oil is gushing as fast or faster than it has for nine weeks. Is there no end to their trials and tribulations? People everywhere, join me in praying for a resolution to this destruction of a people who were struggling to rally after Katrina before this happened to them.
It's called greed over safety.
Something that keeps surfacing over and over the last few days is the "doomsday scenario". In this scenario the well casing has been "blown out" --- actually an unknown number of vertical splits. This has apparently been confirmed by several BP engineers quietly to the press and by the presence of oil coming up from seams in the seafloor itself.
The problems of this are manifold. If the casing is blown out, then oil and methane, under high pressure are being forced into cracks and seams in the rock around the casing. This "rots" the rock and allows more oil and methane out and that rots more rock, etc.
There is a huge amount of oil and methane under very high pressure in this reservoir. Before the well was drilled the pressure in the reservoir was balanced by the weight of the water and rock above it. But the well changed all of this.
A good portion of the proof that this might have been happening came during the "top kill" operation. There was supposed to be enough mud to pump for 48 hours, but not only did it run out in about 10 hours, but if was coming up through the casing and around the casing, indicating that the casing was ruptured. At this point top kill was canceled and several BP engineers have told the press on the DL that the casing is blown out.
One thing that would contribute to a doomsday scenario is where the casing is blown out. If it is near the top, the relief wells can possibly get below the blow out and pump in enough mud and concrete to plug the well. If the blow out is too low in the casing, the relief wells will not be able to pump in enough mud because it will leave the casing through the cracks. Even if the casing is split fairly near the surface of the rock, it will dramatically reduce the amount of mud that can be pumped through the BOP itself, leaving only the two relief wells really pumping mud.
Should it happen that the casing is really screwed up, there will be no real way to stop the oil and methane coming up and rotting the rock around the well. And should the methane break through the rock, it would be a catastrophe of Biblical proportions, generating poisonous gas and probably fire, sinking all the ships around the well site, and creating huge tsunamis.
Jeez the scenario is scary and I absolutely hope that it is just unfounded speculation, but it appears that more and more oil and geology experts are signing on to the possibility and that little bits and pieces that support the scenario are being disclosed, but no information to refute it is coming out.
The world is so scary that conspiracy theories abound. Most of the time I just chuckle at them, but this one has me very worried.
Article about the judge who struck down the administrations moratorium on deep water drilling. From Counter Punch website:
The Oil Industry's Go-To Judge Comes Through
By DAVE LINDORFF
As the BP well in the Gulf of Mexico continues to spew out ever more toxic oil and methane into the sea, floating toxic sludge, by the millions of gallons, starts destroying the wetlands across the American Southeast, the dead hand of President Ronald Reagan is at work, making sure nothing is done to prevent yet another such disaster from occurring.
The name of that dead hand is Martin Leach-Cross Feldman, a federal judge in Louisiana, a part of the notoriously right-wing Fifth Circuit.
Feldman, appointed to the federal bench by President Reagan and approved by the Republican-led Senate in 1983, has been a craven supporter of corporations over the public interest for years. In the wake of the Katrina disaster in New Orleans, for example, Judge Feldman ruled against homeowners who tried to bring a racketeering case against Clipper Estates, the corporate owner of their housing development, claiming that the company had stolen money it collected from them allegedly for repairs, for the owner’s personal use. The judge ruled that homeowners had no standing to sue.
Now, using classic Reaganesque logic (remember our senile ex-president’s mocking argument to environmentalist that because trees release carbon dioxide at night, they must be “polluters”?), Judge Feldman has issued a temporary restraining order against the White House’s six-month freeze on offshore drilling. His rationale for overturning the moratorium on drilling: The government hadn’t provided an adequate justification for it.
As the judge put it: "If some drilling equipment parts are flawed, is it rational to say all are? Are all airplanes a danger because one was? All oil tankers like Exxon Valdez? All trains? All mines? That sort of thinking seems heavy handed and rather overbearing".
Well actually Judge, yes it is rational as a matter of fact. When the Exxon Valdez was crashed by a drunken captain into a rockpile, and its hold was gashed open, spewing 11 million gallons of crude oil into the pristine waters of Prince William Sound, it exposed for all to see the danger of single-hull supertankers, and led to requirements that tankers be built with double hulls. And yes, when an engine fell off a DC-10 jumbo jet, causing a fatal crash, all DC-10s were grounded until the problem was figured out, and all those planes around the world were refitted with a new pylon design. Similarly, when a few Toyota Prius cars were found to develop stuck accelerators, all Prius cars of that model were ordered back to the shop for repairs...
http://www.counterpunch.org/lindorff06232010.html
I'm really tired of those who continue to complain and whine about "green" energy jobs, and use the term as a derogatory label claiming that this will "cost jobs" (obviously in the coal, oil, and transportation inductry). Just a few short years ago when we were entering the digital age, did this same group complain that computers would cost jobs at the typewiter factories? That copiers would eliminate the need for mimeograph machines, that mp3 players would make transistor radios obsolete and we would lose those jobs too? I doubt it, and think that a retrospective evaluation of technology would help them to understand that creating those dreaded "green" jobs is an eventuality, and for all the right reasons.
There is way too much spin in this article to know what is really happening and to attack the judge in the ruling on the moratorium in the gulf is way over the top! This wasn't a "news" article it was simply some uninformed person's opinion and therefore must be discounted.
The folks in the Gulf have been foresaken by this administration...I hear a lot of talk coming from Washington, but those affected are telling a completely different story...What the hell is wrong with this country....This whole BS excuse of saying it's BP's job to cleanup the spill is a crock...It will take this spill to affect the rich in FL before any TRUE action is started..
This disgusting disregard for those in the Gulf makes me ashamed to be an American..
The robot knocking the cap off underscores how difficult it is to manipulate the submersible robots from the surface control panel. Given the difficult in these recovery operations due to the extreme depth, America needs to adopt Canada's mandate that deep ocean operations have TWO well heads established, one primary and one safety back up.
The ban on deep ocean drilling is totally justified given to BP's documented track record of reckless abandon in cutting corners and costs on the Deepwater Horizon and how there was a total failure to regulate them. How widespread is this recklessness, cutting corners/costs and non regulation? That is an entirely valid question to be asking, especially in regard to BP's larger and deeper oil rig, the Atlantis.
It would be fair to say the ban should last for each oil rig as long as it takes to inspect them. Then after inspection they are free to continue. There would have to be a guarantee that they were inspected by the right people and not my the typical non regulators. Lets get people back to work as soon as it is deemed safe to proceed.
The only question that leaves for me is whether or not specialized Blow Out Preventers need to be developed to operate under the extreme pressure of deep ocean drilling. The Blow Out Preventer of the Deepwater Horizon failed to work. To be specific, the Blind Shear Ram. Then it was recently discovered the research has already been done in which the BOP's did not operate satisfactorily under simulated high pressure environments. In short, if a new, deep ocean Blow Out Preventer needs to be developed, that is going to take time.
When any average American wants to build their own home, they have to build it up to code and they get inspected to see that it is done correctly. Why is it too much to ask that the same standard apply to oil rigs, especially deep ocean oil rigs where each accident could be catastrophic? MMS was just shut down, and hopefully the new regulatory agency with actually regulate instead of rubber stamping approval on everything corporations want to do while regulators get gifts from the corporations they are allegedly regulating.
By now everyone should realize that everything that can be done is being done to fix this problem. The well will be taken care of as soon as it can. The damage will be cleaned up. Claims will be paid. This story is no longer worth the daily coverage MSNBC is giving it. Why is MSNBC not covering the drug cartels essentially taking up residence all along the border. By this I mean on our side of the border. with Mexico. Why is MSNBC not reporting the problems that illegal immigration is having on the United States. Why is MSNBC essentially giving Obama a free pass on other important issues that he is doing nothing about. When will there be an open discussion on what he is going to do about the largest budget deficit this country has ever had. We are not talking about how to fix social security or what impact his health car plan will have in terms of how much more it will cost the federal government-which means you and I. No. lets focus on the oil spill and skip all the other critical things that also require our attention.
This did not happen today, but it happned in the last year
Today, even though President Obama is against off shore drilling for our country, he signed an executive order to loan 2 Billion of our taxpayers dollars to a Brazilian Oil Exploration Company (which is the 8th largest company in the entire world) to drill for oil off the coast of Brazil ! The oil that comes from this operation is for the sole purpose and use of China and NOT THE USA ! Now here's the real clincher...the Chinese government is under contract to purchase all the oil that this oil field will produce, which is hundreds of millions of barrels of oil". We have absolutely no gain from this transaction whatsoever!
Wait, it gets more interesting. Guess who is the largest individual stockholder of this Brazilian Oil Company and who would benefit most from this? It is American BILLIONAIRE, George Soros, who was one of President Obama's most generous financial supporter during his campaign. If you are able to connect the dots and follow the money, you are probably as upset as I am. Not a word of this transaction was broadcast on any of the other news networks!
Forward this factual e-mail to others who care about this country and where it is going. Also, let all of your Government representatives know how you feel about this. Below is the Wall street Journal article to confirm this.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203863204574346610120524166.html
Thanks honest jo. I will read that. If true it calls into question the motivations of our president in a way that is serious and cause for concern.
reading most comments on here is like hearing a 2nd grader talk about the moon being made of cheese and really believing it.
most of you are making unfounded statemets about something that you are clearly not qualified to do so.
to be clear the Oil, Gas and Petrochem industry spends more money on safety and has more safety policy and regulations than any other industry in the world. bar none.
Northern states have been polluting the Gulf for years.
WASHINGTON, April 1, 2009 – For the first time, the U.S. Geological Survey has identified the top 150 polluting watersheds in the Mississippi River Basin that cause the annual 8,000 square-mile “Dead Zone” in the Gulf of Mexico. Based on the USGS report released today, members of the Mississippi River Water Quality Collaborative urge the Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and state policy makers to use the report to solve water quality problems both within the states and downstream in the Gulf.
In January of 2008, USGS identified commercial fertilizers and animal manure from farmland in 9* states as the cause of over 70 percent of the Dead Zone pollution. Evidence is mounting that the mandated push to increase corn production – one of the most fertilizer intensive crops – for ethanol exacerbates water quality problems within the states and in the Gulf. This year, the USGS identifies and ranks watersheds in the Basin by the amount of pollution that gets to the Gulf.
“Currently, federal Farm Bill conservation dollars are not targeted to where the pollution is generated. This new report should help states focus their pollution reduction efforts in the top ranked watersheds and on the most cost-effective practices,” said Michelle Perez, Senior Agriculture Analyst for the Environmental Working Group. “A targeted approach to farm conservation programs will help demonstrate to taxpayers that states are trying to use their resources wisely and get the biggest bang for the buck.”
“This report demonstrates that pollution doesn’t respect state boundaries,” said Matt Rota, Water Resources Program Director for the Gulf Restoration Network. “Many of the top-polluting river and stream basins occupy multiple states. Downstream states like Louisiana and Mississippi are counting on a multi-state effort to address the Dead Zone. This study will hopefully help states and the U.S. Department of Agriculture to increase and target farm conservation funding to help reduce the Dead Zone, which is a major national environmental problem.”
“States that have watersheds listed in this report now have a better sense of where action can be taken to reduce their contribution to the Dead Zone while also reducing pollution to their local waters, ” said Susan Heathcote, Water Program Director for the Iowa Environmental Council. “The Environmental Protection Agency needs to take the lead to focus federal resources to solve both local water quality problems and the national Dead Zone in the Gulf.”
The USGS report, Incorporating Uncertainty into the Ranking of SPARROW Model Nutrient Yields from the Mississippi/Atchafalaya River Basin Watersheds” is available online at http://water.usgs.gov/nawqa/sparrow/nutrient_yields/index.html
The Mississippi River Water Quality Collaborative is a partnership of environmental organizations and legal centers from states bordering the Mississippi River as well as regional and national groups working on issues affecting the Mississippi River and its tributaries. The Collaborative harnesses the resources and expertise of its diverse organizations to comprehensively reduce pollution entering the Mississippi River as well as the Gulf of Mexico.
*The 9 states contributing over 70 percent of the dead zone-causing nitrogen and phosphorus pollutants are: Illinois, Iowa, Indiana, Missouri, Arkansas, Kentucky, Tennessee, Ohio, and Mississippi.
*BP has put more people to work than obama and they are even going to pay the bill.
"BP making obama's unemployment numbers look better one spill at a time"
*Tony Hayward for president 2012.
he's greeeaaattt!!!
zeropointfield....I respectfully disagree that everything that can be done is being done....If it is, DC has done a crappy job of communicating it to the American people...What I do see, however, are people in the Gulf crying for help because they are not getting the help they need....Livelyhoods are being destroyed but are not getting the exposure they should be getting...
The general attitude is that the problem is limited to the Gulf and no one else, which is BS...It's estimated that between 18->40 Million gallons of oil have spilled into the Gulf....Where is it and where do you think its headed...
The scariest part of this whole mess is that no one will truly give a crap until oil starts to wash up on the Eastern seaboard...GUARANTEED...
*if republicans have so much more than everybody else then the answer is simple.
why doesn't everybody become a republican. then we will all have more than we need.
Here is an important question ctdad. How do you know they have not done everything that can be done to fix this problem. What motivation does BP have to not fix this PR nightmare. Their stock has dropped. I believe that they are doing the best that can be done to fix this and move on. Their economic future depends on this.
Understand that from a legal point of view they can't just open up a mall kiosk and start handing out money like candy. Claims have to be verified, documented, and confirmed as legitimate. Each payment has to accompany a release of liability and indemnity agreement. Proving lost wages is perhaps the most difficult to document and prove. No, this is complicated and will take time even in the very best of circumstances.
zeropointfield...We don't know...that's the problem....BP is tightlipped, despite their claims that they are open to inquiry about the current status...
Unless you have some inside info or a crystal ball, I be extremely interested to know what exactly is being done...At this point, it's unclear...
My frustration is not politically motivated...It's motivated by the cries I hear/see day after day by the people directly affected...which is CLEARLY heard and seen...
You do not need to be a political analyst or subject matter expert to see that the people of the Gulf are being screwed over...
Suppose BP is as everyone says. Let's say they are greedy and unfeeling. It is still in their financial best interest to resolve this matter as quickly and as efficiently as they possibly can. Surely no one believes they are dragging their feet on purpose. There is absolutely no financial upside to do that. In fact, the longer this process takes the harder hit BP will be. I think they want to plug this well and stop the leak as much as anyone does.
The information you present is incorrect.
The moratorium only affected 33 rigs out of 3600 rigs that are in the Gulf. That would not be enough to have any effect on gasoline prices.
What are these oil folks smokin ? Of all the people this idiot has the gall to demand a lifting of a temp ban - get busy and clean up your spill first ! People like this should never be given a license to do anything! Where are you Dick Cheney when the world needs you ?!!! (oops did I say Dick Cheney?)
The ol boys are not capable. They need a nanny to change their diapers like most right wingers. They talk big, but that is all it is just talk,
I laugh at their talk about republics and seceeding...they are like children, lost wiothout a nanny.
WHT3
They need a nanny to change their diapers like most right wingers.
Ironic, considering the libs are trying every underhanded trick possible to turn the U.S. into the biggest welfare (nanny) state in the world.
WELFARE? WELFARE? The only SIGNIFICANT welfare is CORPORATE welfare. We are paying as much to the oil companies in TAX BREAKS as we are to education (on the federal level).
Make energy stand on its own two feet and cover the real costs of climate change and environmental degradation (OK, sort of one in the same) and renewables are CHEAPER RIGHT NOW.
You GOP goofs only want welfare for the RICH. That's just WRONG!
You two are symbolic of the bigger problem -- too busy slinging "lib" and "con" (and worse) comments yet offering nothing. Until we get over this rampant, nasty and totally unnecessary political extremism, we will get nothing accomplished. When will you all figure out you are being manipulated? Do you "libs" think anyone REALLY cares? How about you "cons"? They don't. What the powers that be DO care about is keeping you all stirred up and screeching at each other -- thus taking the focus off what they are doing.
Instead of taking on each other, why don't you do a little research and take on the people who NEED your wrath? Forget the parties -- they are not that dissimilar (they just want you to think they are), look at the individuals.
Beth-440386
At the moment we have one party in power trying to use that opportunity to "fundamantally transform America" (Obama's words, not mine). Until we have some sort of balance of power in order to keep both parties in check, it's just going to get worse. There was a reason our founding fathers set up a system that required three separate branches to work together. So that no ONE political entity could reap their grand designs upon the country with no one to challenge them. But that is the situation we have right now and all it is doing is damage, damage, and more damage.
As for "lib" that's just short for "liberal. Like 'rep" is short for republican.
We shouldn't be paying anything for education at the federal level. Read the Consititution. We also should not have ANY corporate welfare. It should immediately be considered treason if 1 dime of tax payer money goes to a corporation. They have bought our government, with our own money.
I guess you could call me a 'right winger'. Truth be told, I used to be almost as far left as Obama. But there is only one way to reduce the corruption, and that is to shrink the size of the government. The smaller it is, the less corruption is possible. And, we get more freedom to boot. Why not have lower taxes for everyone? Why not trust that WE can regulate companies better than our incompetent government. Have you been to a BP station to fill up your tank since this disaster started? Not me. In fact I drive less than 20 miles per week. Many weeks, I don't drive at all. Ever wonder what would happen if everyone in America practiced that kind of regulation?
I don't buy anything from companies I think are irresponsible. There is an entire generation behind me who will choose to only do business with responsible companies and will choose responsibility over a higher salary when considering work. This is how we will take care of our BP problems before they happen. It will not be via Government.
I just used education as an example. If the feds should be involved with education is a valid question. The real point is the corporate welfare and the subsidies we are paying to KEEP US ON OIL.
How do you think WE regulate companies other than through OUR government - you know, the one of, by and for the people.
The problem is that the government is now of by and for the CORPORATIONS.
Corporations are not people and should NOT have the rights of a person. They are manufactured entities to do a specific task. Would you give your SHOES the right of free speech?
SRS, What should be Newman's top priority if not to address and cease this ecological nightmare, an attack on America, her land, her seas, her shores, birds and life, and the American people? Me thinkest if this assault had been on Great Britain, his thinking and attitude would be totally inverse to the vomit oozing from his crooked and ever so transparent little lips.
Human vomit.
Welfare exist outside of corporations. For alot of people it's a way of life. Why work when we can draw a check? I have neighbors to prove it. Neither has a job, two kids, decent car, pool, toys for the kids, satellite hanging on the house. Really the only thing I want from "my" gov't is the return of industry and jobs to this country. Stop the handouts, to banks and corporations first, then wean the public off of "welfare". Stop shaking me down for everything, start a fair tax and get the same from everyone(illegals, cheats, theives, etc.). Start working for us and not the "lobbyist", after all, we did elect them, right?
By the people for the people...maybe 100 years ago. But not today. There are over 50,000 regulations, and like the saying goes in the private sector, when everything's a priority, nothing's a priority, which is exactly what we are seeing today.
manmanilow, governments are not corrupt; people are corrupt. Corrupt people are elected to serve in government because Americans are so focused on their own little world they don't have the time or the interest in learning as much as they can about who they are electing.
Government - at any level - is nothing but a tool designed to serve the common good. And like any tool, when used improperly it can cause more harm than good. A small tool can cause just as much damage as a large one. Don't denigrate the government system that is probably the best system yet designed on Earth; focus on who you are voting for. Sadly, most Americans don't have a clue who their representative in Congress is or who their U.S. Senators are but they know how to complain about 'the government'. End of rant.
Well Bruce, being that governments ARE people (not computers, animals, etc..) there is little left to say for them. Once upon a time, I would have agreed with you. Folks like Thomas Jefferson, were heros. And I will throw you a bone if your are a far left person (see communism) JFK was also a hero. I will leave you to figure out what he, Garfield and Lincoln had in common, that WASN'T assassignation.
I sincerely believe you can figure it out.
They just had a crawler, in spite of the recession, the rich, just got richer. Even rich as cream pro baseball teams receive beaucoup bucks in corporate welfare. Welfare, we are talking billions of dollars for the top wealthiest so they can stay rolling in the cream while the vast majority subsist on the waterdowned drippings from their mouths. You've been had, America.
Why do the wealthiest grow richer? Oh, could it be, they have brainwashed the masses to keep them comatose, so they don't figure it out! In spite of the recession, duhhh, the wealthiest just got wealthier, while Americans groan about the poorest, the most suffering in this nation, yet, the big bucks just keeps on a flowin to the rich pigs. duhhh
so now we see their true colors. Liberals do not care about the common man. All they care about is getting their liberal agendas through. If we stop drilling, the price of gas will skyrocket. And we will be relying solely on foreign oil from the middle east. You pinheads need to pull your heads out of you azz and think this through, instead of supporting some stupid ban that will not accomplish anything.
Colonel --
I wonder what our Founding Fathers would think about the three levels of government when it comes to rendition? Just curious. Don't pick and choose what fits your narrowmindedness. Let's see...Borderline mentally retarded Bush charging, convicting and punishing hundreds -- all from one office. Doesn't seem to fit the checks and balances argument.
Let's all take a deep breath and get our facts straight. The moratorium from Obama affected 33 wells that are currently drilling. Those are the ONLY wells that were affected by the action. This would NOT put hundred of thousands out of work as claimed by some, nor would it cause our gas prices to raise.
The oil companies do not have a plan in place that would guarantee the safety of the public or the employees on the rigs. That is a fact, catastophic failure or not, it happened and we still do not know why.
We still have thousands of barrels a day of oil spewing into the gulf with no immediate end in sight.
We have oil washing up on the shoreline of the US, we have oil heading for the warm loop current. We have a major environmental disaster that is putting people out of work and destroying our environment for generations.
Bottom line, why would anyone side with Oil on this one? What do you think you have to gain besides a "stick in the eye" for the white house. Think for one second, is this what you want for your children and your grand children? A polluted planet beyond repair so that a few can reap more profits?
The politics need to be kept out of this argument and cooler heads need to prevail. The judge is wrong and not looking after Joe the Crabber.
drill baby drill !!
Jon Chicago -
You don't know much about the oil industry do you? It would indeed put over 100,000 people out of work. We are not just talking people who work on oil rigs. There is a major support industry that goes along with oil drilling and if there are no rigs in the area that are drilling then those people are put out of business as well. I read that an estimate in Houston alone could be as high as 85,000 jobs.
Jon, please explain to me why they do not shut down the airline industry when there is a plane crash? We all know that faulty mechanics have brought down airplanes, so what is the difference? I'll tell you why - POLITICS.
It's all about politics.
You are condemning the innocent companies and telling them to clean up the mess that they did not create. Reminds me of the argument that all blacks should be condemned because one of them committed a crime. I hate such racist stupidity no matter where it rears its ugly head and you people should be ashamed for suggesting such a thing.
Total fraud is behind the oil companys arguments. Deepwater in the gulf constitutes about 5% of the total drilling and hundredths of a percent of all the worldwide oil production. Waiting for 6 months until this disaster is resolved and making sure we know what exactly they did wrong is not going to be a blip on the worldwide oil supply or even many jobs. Non deep water drilling and production are still going on.
The point is, if there was another blow out, where the hell will the response ships and materials come from since everything is already being used for the blow out that is still spewing at a rate that they cannot even identify much less control?
french, not to worry. The only people that are going to have to pay for this current blow out is the American taxpayer. And, the American taxpayer will pay for any new ones too.
And the Fed will just keep printing money.
Abetterlife
Colonel --
I wonder what our Founding Fathers would think about the three levels of government when it comes to rendition? Just curious. Don't pick and choose what fits your narrowmindedness. Let's see...Borderline mentally retarded Bush charging, convicting and punishing hundreds -- all from one office. Doesn't seem to fit the checks and balances argument
Proof, baby, proof.
And thanks for the unprovoked "narrowmindedness" insult.
You liberals are one angry bunch.
Colonel,
I think you would have a greater understanding of the mindset, if spent about 10 minutes watching American Idol auditions. Seriously, go to youtube now; do it! Everyone is wonderful and so talented, except...they're not.
Just My Thoughts -
You are totally off base. The numbers that you are hearing are related to a broader scope of rigs, not the ones that are shut down. Fact is there are 33 rigs that are deep drilling and they do not require support staffs of over 2,000 people per rig. Plus, most support personnel are also supporting the other 3600 rigs that are operating in the Gulf. Yep, quite a few out there pumping away.
So, I guess it is OK to just go ahead and drill baby drill without consequence so you can guzzle baby guzzle?
With regard to your comment about airlines, if they FAA suspected or knew of a problem with a particular piece of equipment, then yes, they would ground that equipment, they would ground the fleet. I am glad that you brought this up because that has happened in the past when cracks have been found. You see, if you know there may be an issue and you do nothing about it, and damages are incurred, then you are held liable for negligence.
If a plane develops a problem at 35,000 feet and you are on board and the FAA knew that there were issues with these models, then I am sure you would be singing a different tune. If you fly, then I am sure you would appreciate the actions of the FAA to keep you safe. Your argument does not hold water because you are using the talking heads broad scope approach. Remember, Obama did not stop ALL drilling, just deep water drilling.
Tell me how you would park a plane at 35,000 feet, just like you can stop a gushing broken well at -5,000 feet. Well, you run into some problems now don't you?
The issue here is not jobs, it is safety of the workers and the environment. Maybe you can go talk to the families of the 11 men killed on this rig, or maybe the next, and tell them how you supported this action so that you can fill your tank. Good luck and God Bless.
Just my two cents. I for one am sickened by the sight of what is happening in the Gulf with no immediate resolution. I came from that part of the country and they should not have to bear the burden of destruction to feed our appetite for oil.
Obama was on track, make it safe, develop a real plan and then start deep water drilling. Until that time, let's take a breather and find out what really happened to try to avoid this in the future.
I honestly cannot see how anyone can side with Oil or the drillers on this one. Seriously, do you see what is going on down there and how this is killing our environment?
If you use the argument of "it's a big Ocean and only a little oil", then go ahead, pour yourself a nice glass of water and add a couple of drops of motor oil. Drink up, it's such a huge glass and only a little bit of oil, what harm can it do, right?
Just My, what happened to all the blacksmiths when the horse was put to barn and the killer car consumed the byways of America? I would hope, the blacksmiths realized it was time to seek another path and re-invent themselves. Did all the blacksmiths, just curl up and die? And, the pigeon pie makers of America went outta business when the passenger pigeon fell extinct. And the sizzling along but defunct chestnut industry in America when the chestnut trees all fell extinct.
My grandmother remembered a life and America without automobiles. How many cars and vehicles have taken American lives? More than all wars? If a pandemic was causing this immense death toll of so many Americans, everyone would be clamoring to find a cure for this monster.
What about the fishing and shrimp economies in the gulf region? The black death will deleteriously impact their financial economies. Nary a peep about those, "little people" sacrificed for big, black and cancer causing oil and the really big bucks!
What came first, a living, life giving Earth and the fish of the seas and the birds of the air or oil cans, plastic bags [plastics suspected carcinogen], cars, smog, freeways, lung cancer for non-smokers, and more and more deadly pathogens, released upon the death and plunder of the Earth's life giving systems and biological diversity.
What of the economy of the Earth, all the reasons you are alive, and all the pelicans, already struggling to remain extant, the crabs, the fish, the sea turtles and the native plant species or the foundation, bricks and mortar of man's only house, his home the Earth.
This is ridiculous.
Its time to impeach Obama and all his merry gang of criminals.
You people are sick! Why don't you just kill the entire enconmoy? Why stop at 10% unemployement? keep on doing stupid stuff like this and it will soon be 20%. There are a lot of jobs that will be lost for years because of this moratorium and scientists actually believe going forward with it is more dangerous than proceeding with caution. But then there's not one G@@ D&@&@%m part of private enterprise that this president or the leftist that support him embrace. Make a note folks, guess how soon those rigs show up in Brazil. And yes that will be funded with the $2 Billion that the US loaned them for .... you got it ... deeper water drilling. So we give them $2 Billion and then shoot ourselves in the foot for an additional $4-6 Billion to cover the unemployed. All for the Big O!
November can't come soon enough!
You forgot that Goeorge Soros (the puppet master) is invested up the wazoo in Petrobras-----Brazilian oil. The same group to whom Obumma loaned 2B in American dollars. A conflict of interest? Seem only one answer.
Now wait a minute Mr. Salazar. If it is so dangerous for other deep water drilling to continue, then, you need to immediately stop those two rigs drilling the relief wells into the same zone from which the well is blowing out into the Gulf waters.
Where in the he** is the logic in this administration except "not wasting a crisis"?
How dare a judge not nod and agree with dictator Obama!
Let the incessant whining and name-calling begin since he didn't get his way. This judge is clearly "misguided" or "obstructionist". (sarcasm)
The sky is falling !! The sky is falling !!!!!
33 out of 3,400 drilling wells are delayed 6 months !!!!! The Horror !!!!
Bunch of crybaby "girlymen" to coin a Republican saying.
This Bobby Jindl...is he for reals ? last week he crying for Obama to come down there and stop the leak.....as if Obama needed to come down there and scuba dive down to the leak and single handily plug it, now the very same thing thats poisoning the waters now he "hail the ban being lifted" ? that's a head scratcher there.
President trying to get people paid down there for the oil spill, but it's not fast enough, or he's "Shaking The Oil Company Down" are these fools for reals ?
Our founding fathers wanted 3 equal branches of government. Obama doesn't want that. Instead of appealing the ruling he wants to just ignore the ruling and do it anyway. That is unconstitutional. And he did the same thing when the Supreme Court issued a ruling on campaign finance. He didn't like the court having a say so he is crafting a new law.
What happened to 3 equal branches of government. Or do we now live in a dictatorship?
This ban is a death sentence to drilling in this country and also the livlihoods of a lot of people. The knee jerk reation by the idiots in charge is way out of line and just goes to show That this admin knows nothing about what they are doing and doesn't care who or how many poeple they hurt.
How stupid can the white house ass kissers get. The Judge was right. Its like punishing the whole first grade when one unruly bully disrupts the first grade class. What will it solve? Nothing but may get some left wing dumb ass socialist's vote. That the way Washington acts lately. Like a bunch of first graders.
""A democracy can only last until the public learns how to vote itself money from the treasury."" Go ahead and support more welfare both corporate and private. Drive another nail in the US's coffin
WAYNE ALLYN ROOT
Barack Obama is no fool. He is not incompetent. To the contrary, he is
brilliant. He knows exactly what he's doing. He is purposely overwhelming
the U.S. economy to create systemic failure, economic crisis and social
chaos -- thereby destroying capitalism and our country from within.
Barack Obama is my college classmate (Columbia University, class of '83).
As Glenn Beck correctly predicted from day one, Obama is following the plan
of Cloward & Piven, two professors at Columbia University. They outlined a
plan to socialize America by overwhelming the system with government
spending and entitlement demands. Add up the clues below. Taken
individually they're alarming. Taken as a whole, it is a brilliant,
Machiavellian game plan to turn the United States into a socialist/Marxist
state with a permanent majority that desperately needs government for
survival ... and can be counted on to always vote for bigger government.
Why not? They have no responsibility to pay for it. --Universal health
care. The health care bill had very little to do with health care. It had
everything to do with unionizing millions of hospital and health care
workers, as well as adding 15,000 to 20,000 new IRS agents (who will join
government employee unions). Obama doesn't care that giving free health care
to 30 million Americans will add trillions to the national debt. What he
does care about is that it cements the dependence of those 30 million voters
to Democrats and big government. Who but a socialist revolutionary would
pass this reckless spending bill in the middle of a depression? --Cap and
trade. Like health care legislation having nothing to do with health care,
cap and trade has nothing to do with global warming. It has everything to do
with redistribution of income, government control of the economy and a
criminal payoff to Obama's biggest contributors. Those powerful and wealthy
unions and contributors (like GE, which owns NBC, MSNBC and CNBC) can then
be counted on to support everything Obama wants. They will kick-back
hundreds of millions of dollars in contributions to Obama and the Democratic
Party to keep them in power. The bonus is that all the new taxes on
Americans with bigger cars, bigger homes and businesses helps Obama "spread
the wealth around." -- Make Puerto Rico a state. Why? Who's asking for a
51st state? Who's asking for millions of new welfare recipients and
government entitlement addicts in the middle of a depression? Certainly not
American taxpayers. But this has been Obama's plan all along. His goal is
to add two new Democrat senators, five Democrat congressman and a million
loyal Democratic voters who are dependent on big government. -- Legalize 12
million illegal immigrants. Just giving these 12 million potential new
citizens free health care alone could overwhelm the system and bankrupt
America. But it adds 12 million reliable new Democrat voters who can be
counted on to support big government. Add another few trillion dollars in
welfare, aid to dependent children, food stamps, free medical, education,
tax credits for the poor, and eventually Social Security. -- Stimulus and
bailouts. Where did all that money go? It went to Democrat contributors,
organizations (ACORN), and unions -- including billions of dollars to save
or create jobs of government employees across the country. It went to save
GM and Chrysler so that their employees could keep paying union dues. It
went to AIG so that Goldman Sachs could be bailed out (after giving Obama
almost $1 million in contributions). A staggering $125 billion went to
teachers (thereby protecting their union dues). All those public employees
will vote loyally Democrat to protect their bloated salaries and pensions
that are bankrupting America. The country goes broke, future generations
face a bleak future, but Obama, the Democrat Party, government, and the
unions grow more powerful. The ends justify the means. -- Raise taxes on
small business owners, high-income earners, and job creators. Put the entire
burden on only the top 20 percent of taxpayers, redistribute the income,
punish success, and reward those who did nothing to deserve it (except vote
for Obama). Reagan wanted to dramatically cut taxes in order to starve the
government. Obama wants to dramatically raise taxes to starve his political
opposition. With the acts outlined above, Obama and his regime have created
a vast and rapidly expanding constituency of voters dependent on big
government; a vast privileged class of public employees who work for big
government; and a government dedicated to destroying capitalism and
installing themselves as socialist rulers by overwhelming the system. Add it
up and you've got the perfect Marxist scheme -- all devised by my Columbia
University college classmate Barack Obama using the Cloward and Piven Plan..
Judge Martin Feldman owns 17% stock in:
Halliburton
Trans Oceans...which built the Horizon Rig
BlackRock
J P Morgan Chase
He's looking out for his own ASS! and CASH!
When all else fails change the rules. Since the Obama Administration failed to put enough lies about why they wanted to totally destroy the economy in the gulf area (as if the BP oil spill wasn't bad enough) now they want a "do over." I wonder if they are going to be forced to prove the reasons are valid? Obama doing this is no different (other than the wide spread effect difference) than banning auto's because of a traffic fatality. Or shutting down all trains because of one wreck in which a town has to be evacuated because of a toxic spill. Or, grounding all airplanes because on one crash that kills a bunch of people. What the real kicker here is that Obama's own people inspected and approved BP and 26 other off shore drilling sites just before the BP blow out. Now, they don't care that it will cost jobs and about $13 billion in tax revenue (more negative impact on the area) they are just concerned with making Obama look like a POTUS who is taking action. The whole problem with his action is that it is unnecessary and wrong and saying that if one is bad they all must be. Tighten the regulations, Increase the inspections. Replace the people who inspected and passed BP with people who know how to do their job and are not afraid to give the order to fix it or shut it down. But you don't punish an entire industry for the actions of one business. This is obviously nothing more than a power play by Obama in an attempt to make it look like he knows what he is doing when in fact he has no clue. Obama is trying to save his popularity and get some votes for his endangered democrats.
The obama AGENDA will destroy America before a majority of the citizens realize what they have lost. Don't let them shut down drilling in the Gulf!
Beth - you have nailed it Perfectly.
Biggest smokescreen in the history of politics.. this notion of a two party system. As long as they can keep the 'great unwashed' bickering back and forth about the lib/con game.. they win.
Thanks for sayin it!
You know, after reading all the "Jobs" related posts, I have seen the light. I agree, let's just drill drill drill, then we can strip mine the hell out of the country and how about a few Nuke plants, a few on the East Coast, A few on the West Coast and a few in the Middle of the Country, that will get the jobs going. And, while we're at it, we might as well say damn to the Unions and drive those wages to whatever the market will take. And let me tell you, being OSHA compliant is a real pain in the butt! I say we stop all that job safety stuff as well and let the corporations decide what is right so they can make a profit and stay in business. Hey, if you don't like it, don't work there, righ? We in Chicago know a thing or two about that wink wink... (go read the jungle by upton sinclair)
I say to heck with the environment and job safety, we need JOBS. So, let it go man! I say we start in your backyards with the nukes and strip mining! Whoahoaaaa!!!
Rush is right! Let'r RIP!
Seriously, you people need ot stop listening to all the talk radio and thinking that Obama is at fault for all your problems and start thinking for yourselves. Pathetic.
So the Administration doesn't like the judge's decision, so they release their attack dogs against the judge.
Typical Chicago thug politics.
I can see why Blago said his actions were considered "business as usual for Chicago".
Yes Roy that is right! The administration didn't get its way again because they don't pay attention to details and think they have unchecked power. The Judge was right in his ruling and if they can effectively show a potential danger in safety practices on all riggs then they should have no problem facing another legal challange. Liberals and enviromentalists don't see anything but what is directly affecting them and their agenda. They don't see the thousands of rigg workers that will be laid off, whose families will suffer because the administration is using this unfortunate accident to push their green agenda. If safety practices are inadequate but are in compliance with federal regulations as was the BP rigg prior to the accident, then it is the government that should see to their own house first before saying anyone else is wrong. if a rigg is in violation of the federal regulations, then they have the right to shut it down until it complies, but a blanket statement based on an assumption, even an educated assumption is still wrong.
Obama wants to ruin this country. Destroy capitalism, put everyone on welfare, government run everything, and ruin the economy. Never waste a giant crisis, especially when you can create one!
No, REALLY? Forgive me, I'm too stupid to figure that out! Sheesh.
It's not the "lib" and "rep" -- it's the fact that they are being used as invectives and slurs. As long as the sheeple let them get away with being manipulated, it doesn't matter WHICH party is in power.
The oil spill is horrible, horrible, horrible but.... you cannot just ban drilling because Obama decides that he should have made sure that his regulators were doing their job on all rigs and not just those that had not paid him campaign funds. It stinks worse than oil that BP gave Obama big bucks then somehow, someway they were exempted from safety checks and what was checked was superficial and checked as okay when it clearly was not okay. Drilling in the Gulf has been going on for a long time and the chances for an accident are always there - as a poster commented above, every time you get in your car to go somewhere you are taking a risk, just as we have risked drilling but, just like you wear your seat belt and drive a car that gets inspected we have regulations and inspections for drilling rigs too. So far these safety measures have worked well - until now. That is a bit odd in itself but regardless...the fact is that this rig was in deeper water than had ever been drilled in and should not have been there without extreme oversight yet that was not the case - why were the inspections not made or were made but in error? those are some of the bigger questions.
Back to the ban though - if we cut off our supply of oil without having an alternative in production, you will be cutting off the foot of our country. The number of jobs that depend on drilling are humongous - I don't think Obama really has any idea what type of job loss scenario he would be setting up with even a short term ban much less the effects on everyone's wallet. Unless we import oil from our Muslim "friends" we must produce it ourselves. So you want to pay more to import oil or just not use the oil? Remember that everything plastic comes from oil too - just look around you and see, really see how much of what we use and rely on (medically too!) is plastic. I use my cloth bags at the grocery and hope you do too but the computer I'm typing on is mostly plastics, etc. We must have an alternative fuel source - there is only so much oil out there, but it has to be found and be produced and alternatives found to plastics as well before we just say - no more oil. That or we are indebted to the Arabs more. You have to think, not react. Obama is good at reacting, not so good at the thinking part. oops, wait - he is not so good at the reacting part either, took him a little too long to respond to this crisis imo.
I guarantee if the oil companies involved in the other rigs offered a billion $ or so per rig to the feds for the "relief fund" the drilling ban would be dropped so fast your head would spin for a week.
Butt I need a fix RIGHT NOW!!!
Exactly, there is a market glut of resource.
Let us gather now today to pay our last respects to our less fortunate brothers. Those whom through no fault of their own, have discovered they are at a subordinate level of the food chain. A liquid encapsulated resource, the global population of intelligent primates see as vital to sustaining the balances of cyclical domains which governs our simean aspiration requirements. But if there is somethng better we will take it. We can demonstrate various tool building skills which may prove of interest in exchange.
It is RAINING OIL now along the Gulf states. Not only is the seafood in the Gulf now toxic, our farms and gardens along the Gulf are toxic now too. I think I will have to file a lawsuit now, my entire garden, which I've invested a couple thousand dollars into, is now ruined and toxic. And I guarantee these now toxic farms will still sell their food to us, and since nobody knows where thier food actually comes from, we are all at risk.
Youtube "raining oil" and watch for yourselves.
I hearby declare the U.S. Government, Republicans, and Democrats unfit to rule. We are under attack and nobody is doing anything.
WHAAAAAA.....Whuuuu....Wuuuu....WAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!
Jus cause they're senile Ol farts doesn't mean they can't accidentally sneak up UR nose...
There is so much that needs to be said, but the words are not there. It could be that inner silence is the only appropriate way to express that which is crying out in the darkness amongst us. Our need for an angel. This need is being expressed by the homeless in the streets and the gangs in the ghettos that were once peaceful villages and neighborhoods. It is the drive by shootings, and day care centers and the armed patrols in our schools, in the filth of our movies and the mindless vacuity of our television, in the corruption of our governments and the decadence of our corporations, in the abduction and murder of our innocents and the teen pregnancies, in the unpaid child support and guns in our glove box, in tattoos and body piercing and video games and overweight teens with cell phones.
We are all searching for something missing in our lives; something holy that cannot find expression but is a necessary component of our humanity; as essential as air ...thus we turn in desperation to temporary comfort ...release ...in the arms of an angel ...drugs.
Obama and his far left-wing eco-terrorist, anti-American socialist friends must be driven from office and returned to their Land of Oz (My guess it's in Kenya)
30,000 wells have been drilled with one accident. This action by Comrade Salazar (who, like Obama is a pathological liar) has nothing to do with protecting the environment and everything to do with advancing their Socialist/Communist manifesto.
BO is full of BS
Op-Ed: Is U.S. Now on Slippery Slope to Tyranny?
By Thomas Sowell
When Adolf Hitler was building up the Nazi movement in the 1920s, leading up to his taking power in the 1930s, he deliberately sought to activate people who did not normally pay much attention to politics.
Such people were a valuable addition to his political base, since they were particularly susceptible to Hitler's rhetoric and had far less basis for questioning his assumptions or his conclusions.
"Useful idiots" was the term supposedly coined by V.I. Lenin to describe similarly unthinking supporters of his dictatorship in the Soviet Union.
Put differently, a democracy needs informed citizens if it is to thrive, or ultimately even survive.
In our times, American democracy is being dismantled, piece by piece, before our very eyes by the current administration in Washington, and few people seem to be concerned about it.
The president's poll numbers are going down because increasing numbers of people disagree with particular policies of his, but the damage being done to the fundamental structure of this nation goes far beyond particular counterproductive policies.
Just where in the Constitution of the United States does it say that a president has the authority to extract vast sums of money from a private enterprise and distribute it as he sees fit to whomever he deems worthy of compensation? Nowhere.
And yet that is precisely what is happening with a $20 billion fund to be provided by BP to compensate people harmed by their oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
Many among the public and in the media may think that the issue is simply whether BP's oil spill has damaged many people, who ought to be compensated.
But our government is supposed to be "a government of laws and not of men."
If our laws and our institutions determine that BP ought to pay $20 billion — or $50 billion or $100 billion — then so be it.
But the Constitution says that private property is not to be confiscated by the government without "due process of law."
Technically, it has not been confiscated by Barack Obama, but that is a distinction without a difference.
With vastly expanded powers of government available at the discretion of politicians and bureaucrats, private individuals and organizations can be forced into accepting the imposition of powers that were never granted to the government by the Constitution.
If you believe that the end justifies the means, then you don't believe in constitutional government.
And, without constitutional government, freedom cannot endure. There will always be a "crisis" — which, as the president's chief of staff has said, cannot be allowed to "go to waste" as an opportunity to expand the government's power.
That power will of course not be confined to BP or to the particular period of crisis that gave rise to the use of that power, much less to the particular issues.
When Franklin D. Roosevelt arbitrarily took the United States off the gold standard, he cited a law passed during the First World War to prevent trading with the country's wartime enemies. But there was no war when FDR ended the gold standard's restrictions on the printing of money.
At about the same time, during the worldwide Great Depression, the German Reichstag passed a law "for the relief of the German people."
That law gave Hitler dictatorial powers that were used for things going far beyond the relief of the German people — indeed, powers that ultimately brought a rain of destruction down on the German people and on others.
If the agreement with BP was an isolated event, perhaps we might hope that it would not be a precedent. But there is nothing isolated about it.
The man appointed by President Obama to dispense BP's money as the administration sees fit, to whomever it sees fit, is only the latest in a long line of presidentially appointed "czars" controlling different parts of the economy, without even having to be confirmed by the Senate, as Cabinet members are.
Those who cannot see beyond the immediate events to the issues of arbitrary power — vs. the rule of law and the preservation of freedom — are the "useful idiots" of our time. But useful to whom?
It's this simple. I'm voting the Dems out in 2010 and BO out in 2012. Nothing I've seen so far changes that. It's called HCR, amnesty for illegals, gays serving openly in the military, and the spill is just icing on the cake. I wouldn't condemn GWB over Katrina and I wouldn't hold BO liable on the spill. It's the total package and it's just not there. You diehard Dems can ride along with us again for another 8 years. OH, we're still in Iraq and Afganistan and we're not leaving anytime soon.. I know it's the General's fault for doing the interview. That's the root of it all. If he wouldn't have said what he did, we'd be out of there by now?
The oil drilling ban will cripple America for a decade or more and make us more susceptible to outside influence. Does anyone believe that the owners of these $1B platforms are going to make payments on them, waiting for this government to get its collective heads out of a dark smelly place? These rigs are expensive and in high demand, if the US won't allow them to explore there are dozens of countries around the world that want to develop their resources and they will move on and do those jobs. It may be YEARS before they run out of foreign contracts and return.
The Obama Administration aims to destroy American oil production and will soon do the same for coal all in the name of 'green' energy. Let's follow Spain where they lose 2 jobs for every green job created because the technology and economics aren't sustainable. There is no balance for the people here, it's just government taking over and controlling vast amounts of the American economy and the government hasn't been successful or efficient with anything that it has ever done. The Founding Fathers had it right.
Either Obama is deliberately trying to manipulate the system, or he's the stupidest son of a bit$h on the planet.
Or as Forrest Gump would say: "Maybe it's a little of both".
Why did Obama say no to other nations offer to help? Why did he refuse to bring in oil skimmers from other parts of the country? Why do they have some of the helping vessels sit (for 24 hours or so) while they try to find an inspector to make sure it has enough life jackets on board? Just ask yourself. What is the agenda here?
Isn't this Hope and Change Wonderful? loflmao
Deepwater horizon is simply Nucking Futs....!
Judge Martin Feldman owns 17% stock in:
Halliburton
Trans Oceans...which built the Horizon Rig
BlackRock
J P Morgan Chase
He's looking out for his own ASS! and CASH!
Two more deaths, more Oil Leaking...6-23-2010.
This Judge only cares about his WALLET!
Martin Feldman does not care about the havoc this "leak" is reeking.
what a bunch of retards stop destroying our oceans for your greed. drill in the bakken formation on the standing rock reservation in north dakota.
Judge Feldman's portfolio is really of no consequence. If you know anything about the markets, it absorbs bad news fairly quickly so any of these stocks, if he still holds them, have already taken a substantial hit. It's my underestanding that he had invested no more than $15,000 in any given stock and I don't know what the current price is but on the NYSE that doesn't amount to all that many shares. If he were holding 150-200,000 shares of each then there might be something to this, but as it is it's just another liberal hack story that amounts to a hill of beans.
Why is it Yellow? Oil is black. Now it is yellow so what happened that is not being stated? And who got shot and why? Was it a fisherman in that boat? A worker to do with the fixing of the spill? Someone got shot and not much said. Someone pulled the trigger on someone? This article provokes more questions than answers.
Sulfur is yellow. Is it sulfur? If it is how did that get there?
Wilberta
I can honestly say your "drive-by posts" are completely worthless.
You never reply to anyone because you haven't the slightest idea what you're talking about.
Hence, your "hit and run" approach.
I never reply to stupid comments from people like you. It's a waste of time.
I don't need YOUR validation Clint Hophead!
I can not have a HEALTHY DISCOURSE with people who don't understand the subjects or how this Country works.
I have said this to you before, which proves my point!....You don't listen, because you are INCAPABLE of COMPREHENDING what you read!
I don't want to be bothered by you ad hominems and non sequitter crap!
If you could understand English, then you would know to just SKIP over my comments and I will do the same to yours!
I am not a huge fan of Obama but I must say I am impressed of his stand against these bullies. Its time we take our country back from these oil comopanies and put rules in place to safe gaurd the enviroment, 6 months is not long enough. Make them suffer, they all reap in the profits when it goes well
Well, it takes one to know one. Obama has done a terrific job of turning an accident into his "crisis du jour". If people think BP ought to pay, then, if they are logical, they should think Obama should pay. After all, Obama has done everything he could to make sure this grows into as big a disaster as possible. Keep away all people who have expertise to help. Yep, great leadership. Prevent those with the tech know-how from helping make sure that the oil doesn't reach our shores. I'm impressed!
And, as for the extent of the problem. Even with all the press this is getting, the oil that has leaked would only fill 1/7th of the Superdome. In the vast gulf ocean, it really is a drop in the bucket. See this article on this web site: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/37833873/ns/disaster_in_the_gulf/
But, I suppose the president should have the authority to shut down the auto industry for 6 months (knowing the actual damage to the industry is going to be a lot greater) if a car comes out of the factory with an oil leak. After all, we've got to make absolutely sure that there are no more oil leaks. Who can argue with that. And there would be no real damage to the auto industry, after all it is just a 6 month shutdown and they will be able to resume operations in a little while.
grant...Now you are seeing what has REALLY been going on for years in Big Oil. Swagger, swagger....boom boom. Cowboys hats high as the stratosphere stuffed with lots of your money.
And, the wonder of it is, how they use your money to support those political lobbyists to turn legislation against you.
If you stubbed your toe, I'm sure you will find a reason to blame the President.
Same thing could be said for the Bush/Exxon consortium.
Grant said about the shutdown: "6 months is not long enough. Make them suffer, they all reap in the profits when it goes well"
The people losing their jobs will suffer a lot more than the oil companies if everything is shut down. Oil companies can drill in other countries!
Don't you care about the people here losing their jobs?
getalifevirginia...oh boo hooo.....so these people will be without jobs? Are they so stupid they can't find work in other industries? Any engineer who has worked in the energy field can make the transition to alternative energy easily. They just don't want to. Big Oil has made addicts of them as surely as they've made of the entire country.
Frankly, no, I don't care if people lose their jobs. Not when the alternative is an industry that is incredibly dangerous (for those who live in a fantasy land where drilling is "safe," look up what it's done to the Niger Delta) and that is CURRENTLY killing our southern coastline.
Give the people who are losing their jobs new jobs cleaning up the oil. Give them jobs creating a national clean-energy railway. Put them to work on massive solar projects. NOW NOW NOW! Why are people acting as if there is nothing to do but oil? We could put millions of people to work - not just oil employees, but millions of the unemployed all over the country - on massive projects to drastically reduce use of fossil fuels and to make our cities and towns more efficient, more pleasant to live in, with higher air quality. Instead, we spend trillions of dollars fighting resource wars over toxins. Fools.
It's also worth mentioning that conservatives don't seem to care when nonskilled labor gets shipped off to China, but for some reason oil jobs are now holy relics that can't be touched? Please.
Goody...Isn't that the truth? They'll protect the jobs of a small number of oil riggers but allow 10,000 people in a single day to lose theirs. Conservatism...thy name is greed.
You should emphasize the "WE" part even more, because that is correct. If "WE" just put millions of people to work it will be "WE" the taxpayers that end up with the huge tab. Jobs can not just be created on a whim.
I agree we do need to switch away from fossil fuels where it is possible. This means both practical and economically feasible, which currently means the choices are few to non-existent on a large scale.
What do you consider to be a small number of people? To states like Louisiana, the oil industry is not just a small number of people. For most people it seems like they are "out of sight, out of mind," but this moratorium will devastate South Louisiana.
Mbeaty...I find your bleeding heart post amazing. Did you actually think that the first businesses established in this country was in the Big Oil industry? Louisianna is a state that has a heritage rich in culture...not Big Oil. How do you figure anyone in Louisianna will ever trust Big Oil to not slather that state in more oil when not if another disaster occurs?
As for jobs in this country, the jobs are out there. Just not where people are looking. And, not in the same old, same old, way of earning money. Today's American employment is vibrant, exciting and has huge potential to take this country in a direction never before expected. Or, we can stay in the Big Oil rut for another 50 years, watch more states die from petrochemical addiction and all to save a few thousand riggers jobs. Did anyone care in 2004 when tens of thousands lost their jobs? Where was the outcry from the riggers then?
ewent
Today's American employment is vibrant, exciting and has huge potential to take this country in a direction never before expected.
Right down the toilet.
I would say there are a lot of people in Louisiana that still trust the oil industry. If someone who works offshore is willing to "risk" their life to go back to work now, I would say that they trust them fairly well.
Please point out these jobs and while you are at it try to find 10,000+ plus jobs for all of the people who are already being affected by the moratorium. The moratorium cuts much deeper than just people who work directly on the rigs. There are so many jobs on the shore that will be affected.
The MSNBC article that Witch mentions is more than a tad pointless.
What the article fails to mention are the critical points regarding the contaminants.
The oil, unlike the rest of the water is toxic, in the concentrations that it's occurring in.
The oil, unlike the rest of the water, will float to the surface, or very near it, adversely affecting any surface flora/fauna.
The oil, unlike the rest of the water, is likely to find it's way into animals, fish, plants and beaches where it will only accumulate.
When water rolls onto a beach, it can sink into the sand and it can roll back out to sea. Oil, it tends to stick around. If an animal inhales or ingests it, it's not ideal.
The article makes one think that the percentage of oil, in the huge body of water is insignificant because the percentages alone imply a system-wide and immediate concentration-level approaching uniformity, which would be something you could practically ignore.
NONE of the oil is falling back to 5000 feet, because of the buoyancy, it will ALL rise.
The benzene, toluene, and xylene will blend right into the local waters, and any animals or currents passing through the plume(s) will be contaminated.
At present, it can be seen, by satellite, as covering an area almost 300 miles wide by 200 miles long. Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana have coastal zones with oil on the shoreline.
We aren't asking for 100% safety.
We are asking that the companies stop until they can guarantee a timely response and that something of this scale cannot happen again.
Saying "well, it's hard to stop because it is so deep" means, "we shouldn't have drilled at such a depth".
This is no different from the Gulf of Mexico spill of 1979, also months to control -- we've learned nothing.
And Code, the toxins in the oil will evapotranspire into the atmosphere and ride the winds and clouds, helter skelter over who knows where.
I believe, the thinking on the deep ocean drilling stems from thoughts that off shore drilling was more dangerous to the Earth's ecosystems as shore, wetland and terrestrial ecosystems are more endangered of extinction than the vast marine ecosystems; however, no where on the Earth does anything exist as an island onto itself.
All ecosystems are interconnected inextricably to each other with feedbacks and looping to the climate and the atmosphere. On planet Earth, there are no free lunches. And, all of mankind is interconnected to it all.
Ewent, you would have more credibility if you stopped posting, unless you can prove your house is run by solar power.
ewent
boo hooo so they lost their jobs?
guess the same could have been said for gm then huh? there's corporate welfare for you oops union welfare i mean. those union workers to stupid to find jobs in other areas?
don't be a hypocrite.
it's a shame your boy didn't get the help when offered by experts from other countries who not only have done this but have the equipment also. gotta save those unions though.
a true leader would have lifted the jones act and not waited for impact studies to build berms. his commission to study this accident would have more than academics on it. how about maybe someone who actually was in the industry and knows about oil and spills.
Please go through the timeline and events. You will see that a lot of those "experts" were offering to sell equipment and services, not just a nice offer of help.
Also, this issue has never been faced before by any nation. There have been leaks, leaks below ground and on the surface, leaks at great depths, but you have to remember that the well itself is cracked below the surface and the floor is unstable. That has not been faced before, otherwise don't you think BP would have sealed the well? Don't you think it is making BP sick to see their profits floating around the ocean?
jon
not talking about stopping the leak or the ocean floor.
there are ships able to skim, vacumn and separate oil from water that were offered. i guess not doing or trying anything is better.
obama dropped the ball on the response whether you like it or not.
timelines? the only timeline was to do EVERYTHING possible to keep the oil from the shores.
Goody said, "It's also worth mentioning that conservatives don't seem to care when nonskilled labor gets shipped off to China, but for some reason oil jobs are now holy relics that can't be touched? Please."
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Excellent Post!
Bad argument since it was a Democrat named Clinton that signed the fair trade agreement.
Thank you! A voice of reason.
The folks who will suffer aren't the oil companies if the ban is extended grant , most are multi-national so they just shift operations elsewhere. No the folks who will suffer are the "little people" BP's Exec was referring to when they're added to the ranks of the unemployed and when gas is $4 a gallon again. I originally supported the ban and I may still but I'm annoyed by the convenience of this crisis to the greenies. Don't put all resources possible or accept offers of help offered against a disaster until it becomes a catastrophe and then say "see, I told you so,we have to be living in the green utopian dreamworld with moving sidewalks and battery powered cars with carbon footprints as big as a Suburban but hey we'll fix that with windmills and solar panels (if we can find anywhere to put them without someone complaining)" !!!
This ban makes no sense. This will cost jobs. This will bring more financial hardship on our Country. If deep drilling is a problem then why would Obama give our federal dollars to a foreign oil company in Brazil - like $2 billion- to drill baby drill. Does this make sense to anyone. I had to listen to people bust Dick Cheney all those years yet Obama can commit $2 billion to an oil company owned in large part by his liberal buddy George Sorros and I hear nothing from the press. Where is the outrage. Where are the charges of the oil lover Obama. The hypocrisy is insulting.
Grant
Obama is not handling or standing up against anyone. BP had announced 3 days prior to their meeting with Obama that they were going to set aside 20 billion in a fund for claims. BP, from the beginning of this tragedy has not denied responsibility, nor have they shied away from paying claims. To date they have recieved about 65,000 claims ( that number is about one week old) and have paid 31,000 of them, this just 5 or 6 weeks after the accident. They have set up a whole department to justify and expidite claims, without government mandates. There are billions at stake for BP in future revenues and drilling leases so it is in their best interest to clean up the mess created by this accident. If BP was trying to duck responsibility for any of this you would have a point, but so far they have not.
Yes, take America back and hand it over to the new king, Obama! Shall we start human sacrifices now or later? I guess by voting Obama you prefer now!
You won't listen but wind doesn't work, can't take any VAR loads, Solar won't work, can't take heavy loading, but you don't care. Let's try no power, no freedom, no reason, and no plans. Let's destroy the monitary system and all fend for ourselves! That IS the plan most of you are going toward. Kill each other stupid humans!
An Old Fart Endorsement...
What next, brand new 57' Chevy's!
There are still cologne boys in Las Vegas...everyone else uses a fan and a magazine.
There is so much that needs to be said, but the words are not there. It could be that inner silence is the only appropriate way to express that which is crying out in the darkness amongst us. Our need for an angel. This need is being expressed by the homeless in the streets and the gangs in the ghettos that were once peaceful villages and neighborhoods. It is the drive by shootings, and day care centers and the armed patrols in our schools, in the filth of our movies and the mindless vacuity of our television, in the corruption of our governments and the decadence of our corporations, in the abduction and murder of our innocents and the teen pregnancies, in the unpaid child support and guns in our glove box, in tattoos and body piercing and video games and overweight teens with cell phones.
We are all searching for something missing in our lives; something holy that cannot find expression but is a necessary component of our humanity; as essential as air ...thus we turn in desperation to temporary comfort ...release ...in the arms of an angel ...drugs.
So if a plane crashes on US soil is Obama gonna ban flights for 6 months?
If an oil ship leaks oil, is Obama gonna ban shipping for 6 months?
If a coal mine collapses, is Obama gonna ban minning for 6 months?
If Obama makes a colossal mistake....like he has with the rules of engagement, as evidenced by the lack of support from his very own hand picked General....will he ban himself?
The judge, who, in overturning the ban makes it look like he is in the pocket of BP and/or Horizon, argued that a moratorium on deep water drilling was unfairly assuming that other wells were also going to rupture. In actuality, the deep water drilling ban (which was for 6 months) was only to ensure that other wells were not in danger of rupturing. Anyone who is opposed to a little extra security in a situation such as America now finds itself is a fool.
And, for those who feel that, because it was an 'accident', ignoring the issue of blatant and extreme negligence, BP should not have to pay for damages. By that same argument, the next time someone hits your car and totals it and puts you in the hospital for two months they should not have to pay for your medical expenses, or to replace your car, or for the ongoing pain you will suffer for the next twenty years because of their carelessness.
Some of you people need to take politics out of your reasoning and weigh situations on their own merit without regard to which side of politics you may be leaning. Congress, for a refreshing change, now finds both sides of the aisle more or less united against this common enemy, so to speak. They, for the most part, are able to look at the real issue. Why can't you?
I am all for shoving it up your Butt, Obama 2 term President, heck i'd vote for him a third time if possible. Just to see you nazis' cry.
ewent - what are you talking about? If you know so much about all of these great "vibrant" jobs - please share - there are a lot of people I know who are out of work (and that have nothing to do with oil by the way) who would love to know about any job you are aware of.
thanks
That 6 months will give obama more time to work out higher profits for the oil companies, some of you don't get how this works. Who do you think contributes to his campaign. Use your'e heads people. He is not in the white house for us, he's in there for profits!!!!!!! If you don't think they won't come out smelling like a rose on this, you are wrong. Thier bottom line will be higher than ever just because obama is working with them!!!!!!!!!!!
This isn't another " I hate Obama " seed , it's about the recklessness and the gall of the oil industry.
In case you forgot , " Drill Baby Drill " is a Republican war cry.
JaiAllen, where are your'e alternatives, give up your'e vehicles and I'll take you seriously. I ride a motorcycle, don't own a car. I'm 60 years old and I will rough it in the rain and high outside temps so they can't take advantage of me. What are you doing??? What are you driving???
tim580...Unless you live in the most remotest hinterlands, let me clue you in. Solar energy works. Wind power works. Hydrogen energy..works.
Want proof? Camp LeJeune just installed solar roofs on all of the houses that the military live in. Now, the solar energy company has a bid to do the same with other branches of the military.
Solar powered homes are everywhere and growing. So, gee...maybe the rich Oil boys figure if solar is going to make them poor again, they may as well dump it into the Gulf, right?
The only reason alternative energy didn't work was Big Oil playing gatekeeper and the only reason for their gatekeeping? Big Money. In fact, a solid monopoly on energy. Now...can you please demand that the records Cheney's secret oil meeting of 2001 be made public so we can get the REAL skinny on what his part in this deepwater oil rig mess is?
Yeah ewent, the gov't installed it at our cost. See how much solar cost on an average home for you and I. I know about solar, I have been in ther heating and air conditioning business for 39 years. I was building solar panels back in the early 80's and used them on a home I owned in colorado at that time. If you have 40 thousand dollars you can put a pretty decent solar system on your'e home. If I was gonna build a new home I would definetely use wind power for all of the lighting. The average homeowner cannot afford to install solar.
ewent. Solar and wind power are too expensive to do not do the job without government subsidies and the government simply does not have enough money to subsidize an entire country.
Where do you get power when it's cloudy?
Where do you get power when the wind doesn't blow?
Until a new and inexpensive power source is found, we're stuck with oil, natural gas and coal. That's unfortunate but true.
tim...No...The energy company leased it to Camp LeJeune...nice try. Do try again fool.
oldcavscout...I have a hybrid vehicle and as soon as it peters out, I intend to buy a more energy efficient. Stop posting as if oil has been the only energy since Neanderthals. Are you that spoiled that you cannot possibly envision life without oil?
As for my home, I am at present looking into leasing the solar panels to cut my electricity and natural gas consumption.
Now...Do you have a wind generator in your backyard? A lot of Texas farmers do....it's how they pay their taxes. By the way, the Srecs that go with solar energy cut the costs in half. Can you tell me the last time there was a cut in gasoline or home heating oil prices?
getalifevirginia...Oh puhlease...Your post is so indicative of how ignorant people want to remain just to keep their addiction to Big Oil. I am not going to go into the details of how solar energy works. That's for you to study yourself. I work in a solar powered building for two years since they made the change to solar. I don't notice a single difference on the coldest NJ days or the hottest. We are never without hot water in the ladies or mens rooms. So...the really skinny is that for a 1-time investment of around $6,000 for an outright purchase of solar panels without the Srecs, you pay more than that for electricity and home heating and cooling in 2 years time.
Then, there is the option of leasing the panels to buy. Or, if you don't want that, you can contact any solar energy company and they will install the panels and you'll get a monthly bill that is a fraction of what you currenlty pay. How do I know? My nephew did that very thing with his mobile home. His energy costs went from $200 a month in winter to $60. It's your money, if you don't care how it is gouged to death by Big Oil, I'm sure no one else does either. Just don't whine that Obama is at fault for your poverty when your addiction to Big Oil is the cause.
If solar is too expensive without government subsidies, let's GET RID OF OIL SUBSIDIES and give them to solar. Let's stop spending trillions fighting resource wars over toxins that are killing our coastline and use the money to benefit our society, instead of kill a bunch of innocent people and wreck the coast. Let's put millions of unemployed people to work building extensive, clean, safe public rail systems all over the country. Let's make those rail systems super cheap and pleasant to ride. These problems are not that difficult. The one "problem" is that cleaner energy means far less money for the owners of this country and more freedom for citizens.
Goody...The dirty little secret Big Oil hides is just how much they receive in government subsidies. Do you realize if you counted all of the tax credits and government subsidies Big Business in general receives, you can directly relate that to why their CEOs are billionaires?
Tim. I noticed ewent selectively skipped over this part of your post.
If you have 40 thousand dollars you can put a pretty decent solar system on your'e home. The average homeowner cannot afford to install solar.
Typical lib tactic. Attack what you can. Ignore what you can't.
I also noticed he called you a fool. Personal attacks by libs on here seem to be getting more frequent. Obama's miserable performance must be pi$$ing them off and causing them to lash out at others.
People keep claiming that solar and wind is subsidy dependent. So what? So is oil, natural gas, fire wood, coal, etc. Those energy companies get the leases cheap, drilling rights cheap, land cheap, government loans and grants and everything else on the cheap, so we really can't hold back the development of alternative energy because it might have to be "subsidized" to get them going. Gee, if an energy company wants your land because it has something on it they want, they can get the government to claim eminent domain and throw you off of it if you don't agree to their "fair market value" of the property. All of our roads are built by the government. That's a subsidy. Cars were expensive when they first came out, then Henry Ford improved manufacturing to make them affordable to everyone. This will happen with alternative energy once it gets up and running and big oil stops sabotaging it in Washington. Humanity has been using the sun, wind, rain and earth for thousands of years for energy, but for some reason we can create tiny little phones and cameras and all of this other technology, but no, we can't figure out how to capture the sun's energy on a large scale to get us off oil oil. Give me a break. I used my clothesline yesterday. Figure it out people.
It has been said, energy conservation itself can make dramatic differences in energy consumption. Americans are spoiled and consume so much more energy as it relates to population while the rest of the world relies on public transportation. Many people in Japan don't even have cars and resort to public transporation while Americans just have to have 2, 3 or more cars!! Turn down the thermostat. If you're cold, dress up and layer up. Launder your clothes in cold water. Don't run your dishwasher half empty. All of the little things add up.
My grandmother knew a world without cars. HOw did they survive? I remember a world without plastics, paper towels and much of the gadgets and do-dads that are must haves today. America must learn how to prioritize.
Do we kill the Earth for the more and more energies, so we can join the rat race? The vast majority of man's existence on the Earth he lived very simply because the Earth provided everything for him. If the Earth fails to support all life, then cars and oils will be meaningless.
And, the new energy technologies must be utilized wisely as well because it is the Earth's terrestrial ecosystems that are the most endangered of extinction. Devolving our forested ecosystems for dead fields of wind turbines and solar panels is as deadly as spilling oil over the surface of the Earth. And, NASA maintains, solar panels in space will have an unobstructed access to the heat of the sun. How about those solar roof tiles? How about a wind turbine on every roof, of course, encased by a protective, metal cage so the swirling swords don't butcher the Earth's birds, bats and flying pollinators.
The safety and the salvation of the Earth must be man's number one priority because science is sending out warning after warnings of red alert, that it is the fate of the Earth that is up for grabs.
If you have an independent system, from your batteries. If you have a grid tied system, you simply pull it off the grid.
Grid tied systems are much more affordable especially with existing construction. Most people assume a totally self sustaining system when solar is mentioned, but that doesn't have to be the case. You can greatly reduce (and sometimes earn money from the power company) your electric bill and reduces dependence on fossil fuels.
Please note I said reduces. There are a great many things that can be done at a relatively low cost to an individual that help reduce the dependence on fossil fuels. Going cold turkey is pretty darned impossible, but we could all take small steps that add up just by the sheer mass of people doing those things.
oldcavscout, may I ask what you're dong to reduce dependence on big oil? If you're doing nothing, then ewent is doing better than you. Sneer all you like, but doing something proactive is better than doing nothing, whining that nothing can be done and slamming those that are trying.
We could power the entire country for a century if we could only harness the hot-air generated by all the politicians in Washington DC at this very instant in time.
Wow ! It looks like ewent is trying real hard to see how many people she can piss off today with her hateful comments......let us all bow down to her superior intellect.
Meanwhile, the article is about a federal judge over-turning a knee jerk political response from the Rookie-in-Chief to ban deepwater drilling. Funny thing, Bill Clinton promoted deepwater drilling by reducing or eliminating severance taxes on deepwater sites.
Has ewent actually read the article today ??
Why is there so much resistance to making a start to wean ourselves from a carbon economy? Do you think the oil and coal will last forever? Those who complain about the deficit ruining our children's lives, what do you think those children will use for power, what will their quality of life be like if we don't curb our own excesses today?
The price on solar and wind, hydro and geothermal is coming down all the time. We need to put more money into battery technology to make these fuels truly efficient.
And we need to keep our fragile ecosystems healthy. These deepwater rigs shouldn't be allowed to drill until they each have a second pipeline installed, as they do in well-regulated European waters. And yeah, we pull cars off the road if even one vehicle causes death or a sampling are judged unsafe, and the corporation pays for the repairs and takes the pubilicity hit. Why on earth should something as potentially hazardous to hundreds of thousands of people be any less culpable?
I don't see where the "drill baby drill" crowd has a pegleg to stand on. Forget shallow, forget ANWR, forget shale, let's be the great country we can be and lead for a change, toward a safer future for us and our children. Let's not drill to the last drop before scrambling around for an alternative -- for ONCE, let's get ahead of the game. What on earth is wrong with that? And if the new technology creates more jobs -- win win.
Uh... in the midst of all the rants, did everyone miss or just gloss over the fact that Judge Feldman has what I consider to be a conflict of interest here regarding oil companies? JSayler has very kindly listed "His Honor's" many, many oil-related investments. Had I been in Judge Feldman's shoes, I think I would have recused myself on this one. Maybe he didn't think anyone would notice...
As for the job situation - gains/losses, while I am sympathetic to the individuals affected, I would say that this is probably as good a time as any, folks, to wean yourselves and begin investing your time, effort and money into renewable energy sources because, if it doesn't completely collapse this time, that job market will surely collapse in the future. It would be better to just bite the bullet now, because it is inevitable. There is just so much fossil fuel available, globally. It will hurt a lot worse later, trust me.
Ewent, you're so funny. I wonder how well solar energy works in places like Anchorage and Fairbanks, which don't exactly have much sun.
ewent
You truly are a fool! Large oil companies are the formost researcers for alternative energy. They know that oil is a finite resource and that in order to remain viable as corporations they have to look to the future as well! Even so, where do all the plastic parts in your solar panels come from, how is the steel made for your windmills, who produces the hydrogen and drills for the natural gas? Large energy (oil) companies have a hand in it all! Your green economy and energy could not take place without oil and the energy it produces or the byproducts from it. You really should look at the bigger picture. Eventually our oil consumption will dwindle as cleaner technologies evolve but we are not anywhere near that point yet. Electric cars rely on batteries that are far more hazardous to the enviroment than any drilling operation, solar panel production pollutes worse than strip mining, and windmills aren't cost effective in the large scale because maintenance on them is more expensive than the energy they currently produce. Enviromentalists won't let new dams for hydroelectric be constructed, nor will they let a permit for a new nuclear power plant go through. So I guess it is back to lamp oil, no refrigeration, horses, or bicycles right?
I hope they make more money than GOD has stars.
One Question: When you are at a crossing walk, do you stop, then wait for instructions?
I think you're deliberately missing my point, which was that doing something to even slightly reduce dependence is better than doing nothing. I even pointed out that its impossible to go cold turkey right now.
I didn't mention a thing about replacing oil at this point in time, and your attempt to turn my point about how small steps can make a difference into an all or nothing argument just re-enforces my theory that you do nothing. And then like to feel superior by sneering at those who do.
Now, since my stance is small, affordable steps that add up you'll probably just bash me again for not admitting that I don't live in some totally off the grid commune. If that makes you feel superior, go ahead..
My boyfriend and I live by the philosophy that being "green" has to make economic sense. We're not going to put in a system that doesn't work for our house and that we don't have the money for. So we've looked for alternatives. We have sol-tubes to light the darker areas, we upgraded to a new-high efficiency furnace, we installed a tankless water heater, we put celluar shades on the windows, we re-insulated the attic with a material that has a high R value and re-roofed. We did look at hybrids, but wound up going with the mini-cooper because it actually gets better gas mileage than the Prius and the Ford rep could not answer the question of how the battery was disposed of when it went kaput. We installed rain collection barrels and use them to water a vegetable garden and our yard.
All of this reduces our gas, electrical and water usage and saves us lots of money. So go ahead and feel superior that I couldn't find an answer to fit your all or nothing viewpoint. I'm going to the bank.
And now back to our regularly scheduled topic.
This idiot's incompetence started an environmental disaster whose effects will haunt America for decades , and he has the gall to cop an attitude because his reckless practices have been curtailed , even if only temporarily ??
I think he should be in prison , but I imagine that such vast wealth entitles him to a " bye ". Maybe he should be arrested and dropped off in a bar in the Gulf where now broke Gulf fishermen sit wondering if they will ever regain their livelihood ?
Oh my, JaiAllen; aren't you the indignant victim of Big Oil! Are you driving a car? Taking a cab or bus? Heating your home? Using products that are the by-products of oil? And on and on and on. Get indignant when you don't use the product. Until you do, you're just spouting useless rhetoric.
luckily, our legal system does not have you involved.
I bet the shrimp fisherman will be back at it fairly quick. Hey, should we lock them up for unsustainable fishing practices...you do realize world wide we have decling fish stocks in all locations, and how about the anti nuclear protesters of the 80's....billions of billilons of tons of carbon emissions and huge mining sites resulted from that effort, did they sell out global safety for personal satisfaction ??
Second guessing is fun :)
Should people that demand cheap oil and press us to drill in such locations have any responsibility.
Linda...Come of it...Your Big Oil addled rhetoric is so far off the beaten path. Not everything you use in your household is made from oil. Get real. And, if you'd learn to live within your means and use household products that are environmentally safe instead of selfishly taking full advantage of the planet you live on, you wouldn't need Big Oil at all...or, are you so young you've forgotten that oil wasn't always the only energy in town?
Learn to use cloth diapers instead of those horrible plastic things that end up in a landfill and take 99 years to breakdown. Learn to use a clothesline instead of that dryer you can't live without. That's what the sun is for. Yeesh...all these McMommies and McDaddies who have forgotten how easy it is to live without all those Mctoys and McMansions.
Ask the fisherman whose lives were destroyed by the Exxon Valdez if they were "back at it fairly quick." Just saw an interview with officials in Alaska who say that this was the FIRST YEAR they have seen shrimp return there. And 70% of the bird populations have not recovered at all. You don't get it. This ecosystem is RUINED for at least the next 20 years. You can't just clean up the oil and expect everything to go back to normal. Not to mention the fact that the oil is STILL rocketing out of the well ("spilling" is such a misnomer here), and shows no sign of stopping. The relief wells may or may not work - and if they don't, there isn't much else they can do besides bomb the well - which may or may not work.
Americans are so used to feeling like gods, they think that they can destroy whole ecosystems and it's "no big deal." It's really insane to watch.
Linda: Yes we all use oil, but that doesn't mean these companies can take short cuts endangering workers lives, the environment and the economic systems of 5 states to save a few million bucks so some slob can buy a huge yacht and go sailing with his cronies on Saturday afternoons. These companies have billions of dollars to do things right. They are not struggling mom and pop grocery store outfits. That guilt trip is garbage and you know it- it's too easy and simple. You drink water, correct? What if that spill was into your water supply and you did not know it for a long time, which happens alot? And your kids got sick from it? But you drove a car? Illegal, corrupt and incompetent procedures do not justify the means to an end.
Jai, I totally agree with you. This nation went to 2 wars because of foreign terrorists assaulting America. These arrogrant, cavalier monsters that refer to America's "small " people [ what are they, big folks???duh] should be charged with an attack on this nation and in violation of several federal laws that protect this nation's biological diversity. And, yes, the brown pelican will have to be listed as threatened, all over again.
If you or I were to illegally poach a protective specie [just one], we would face jail and a huge fine. And, their carelessness and f.... you attitude with America, our land, our seas, our shores are people is reflective of their disregard for the Earth, the strands in the web of all life and Americans. And, they committed murder because of blatant and glaring negligence.
It is obvious they would have not been so nonchalant and given the popular finger sign if they had defecated on their seas, their shores, their land, their peoples... A crook is still a criminal. An evil pig is still a monster. How dare they???? Little people.... Why are we so little and they so grossly, impossibly... big people????
Ewent: Excellent reasoning and thinking. I don't use paper towels; I use cotton cloths. In the winter, I turn my thermostat to 65. I launder in cold water. My bed sheets are changed just once, every 2 weeks. I use glass products instead of plastics, and glass is recyclable. And, plastic, like oil, is a suspected carcinogen. {If you're dead, oil and cars ain't goin matter, right!] I use cloth napkins. In the winter, I dress up, and in the summer, I dress down.
So many little things add up to the big -- if everyone puts on their thinking caps. How did our grandparents live before the advent of cars, plastic, pesticides, pollution and an epidemic of cancer, with the death toll growing higher every year!
Big whoop - I used cloth diapers over 20 years ago and I recycle, use "green" cleaning products (actually baking soda and vinegar work wonders) and do lots of things to help the environment.
I'm just not arrogant enough to say fu*k big oil, we can live without them. No we can't. Not right now. I'm smart enough to know that it's going to take years, decades, until we get to the point were we are not dependent on big oil. I'm smart enough not to cut my nose off to spite my face.
Check out who donates to the judge in this case:
http://www.judicialwatch.org/jfd/Feldman_Martin_L_C/2008.pdf
Just my --
But why can't we start? Why not support alternatives? If we just keep saying "not now," the time will never come, and our great-grandchildren will be living in horrible conditions. Why not say, "yes, NOW," and make it stick? What is the downside of getting off a carbon-based enconomy?
*question#1: what do you think we will need to do with all of the batteries and solar cells that would become waste if we all had solar panels.
question#2:how many people that work for the energy companies would solar and wind put out of work.
Sorry, Linda, but you have no cause to jump on Jai. We all use oil or oil-based products to some extent. It is difficult not to these days because that is what manufacturers foist on us. Most people, I am sure, are not even aware of how many products in their homes are made from petroleum derivatives. They are not scientists or engineers. They are average people.
Average people have a right to be upset over this situation and upset with the oil companies and big conglomerates who continue to foster this dependence on fossil fuels and it not just about gasoline for cars. That's just a fraction. It's all the other junk they choose not to manufacture "green". It's not even something the average person can vote on or vote out. Not that Congress, in bed with these guys for decades, would allow that anyway.
People are upset because they find out that, as an example, this whole mess in the Gulf could have been entirely avoided if BP hadn't gone the cheap route in constructing that well and decided not to put in the necessary safety features to guarantee this couldn't happen. The cost of that safety enhancement? Seven million dollars. That's $7 million against the BILLIONS it is now going to cost to make this right, if that is even possible. What a foolhardy decision. Doesn't that make you angry? It makes me angry. Very.
ewent
How much plastic is in your everyday life that you take for granted, your computer, the credit or debit card in your wallet, your drivers license or ID card. How about the pens you right with, the TV you watch or the radio you listen to? Even if you cut back you can't eliminate it from your life.
Skor
your almost as bad as ewent! Completely clueless to reality.
Yes we should support developement of alternative energy, yes we should continue to research alternative fuels, but we should do so intelegently and carefully so that we don't create greater enviromental or health hazards in a zealos run away from oil. We could have been farther along by now I'll agree, but it wasn't the oil companies that kept us from getting ahead, it was human nature and everyone's greed!
They will if fish bowls regain popularity. Really, you would think the Sun itself stopped shining. Need a tissue?
ord dem -
I never said we could not start. What I said was it is going to take years to get to the point where we can get off of big oil dependence.
I am surprised by two things... first the lack of comments on this story and secondly the audacity of the guy whose safety record is among the worst in the industry complaining he cant get back to business as usual.
I'm ashamed by the number of comments people have collapsed which are legitimate expressions of opinion and don't break any newsvine rules. You can't silence people because they don't agree with you. Welcome to America.
I'm with grant and Tim. All activities in the oceans, should be banned, it's human nature too ruin everything. We can't afford to lay waste to the seas. Fishing is the exception, but should be tightly regulated.
The LOBBY money these large companies are paying to our elected officials, should also be stopped. It's time for the crooks on capital hill to represent the people, not the highest bidder. Without the LOBBY money, safety requirements for oil drilling might not have been weakened, and this oil disaster could have been avoided!
malocchio...The lobby money you pay Big Oil for gasoline and heating is turned right back on you by buying legislation they know makes money for them and is dangerous for the rest of us. This is a Republican red state politician's bread and butter. So, how much do the Republicans in red states really care about the environment they've destroyed? Zip.
Just to let you know, all deepwater leases and permits as well as the royalty payments go to the federal government, not the "red" states governments. The only way the states make money is through all of the taxes and business that is generated from the jobs and work.
MBeaty...Uh huh...Sure sure...And Lindsay Graham, Mitch McConnell and that adorable Governor Perry aren't sweating out what will happen if Big Oil goes down the toilet, right?
I don't know who you think you are kidding but...here's the reality. Texas has the most electoral votes of any state. Why? Tax ratables. And what tax ratable does Texas have that grants that many electoral votes? Guess. Or do you need a clue?
Nothing about what I said above is false. The federal government is the entity that benefits most from deepwater exploration, drilling, and production. I am sure there are many politicians who don't want to see the oil industry go away for a multitude of reasons. I was not trying to deny this. I was merely trying to say that when you start accusing only "red" states as the problem, this is false. The real authority that allows deepwater operations to continue is the federal government.
We should close down all deep water drilling and force them to all drill in water that is no less than 500 feet deep where it is safe and this present situation could never have occurred. Oh wait - that is what they wanted to do but the environmentalist lobby didn't allow it! Doesn't that mean that the environmentalist movement shares the blame and responsibility here? Maybe Obama should shut them down for six months? Maybe Obama should shut his mouth for six months since he caters to the green lobby.
Sorry but the crooks herenot the oil companies but the crooks are Obama and his Czars = the court said so. We are a nation of laws and the courts tell us who in fact is breaking the laws, not communist sympathisers who hate capitalism. The court said that Obama broke the law - not the oil company. Live with it!!
Judge Martin Feldman owns 17% stock in:
Halliburton
Trans Oceans...which built the Horizon Rig
BlackRock
J P Morgan Chase
He's looking out for his own ASS! and CASH!
The Bernie Madoff of judges
Awww, this nation's ladies are always in the front and in the know. Thank you my brilliant lady! Thank you for your intelligent and reasoning input. Our Earth needs more like you!
skor
If you knew the depths of corruption that is in our government on both sides your head would explode.
Fascism should more appropriately be called Corporatism because it is a merger of state and corporate power.
Benito Mussolini
we need to decrease the size of our government to limit the corruption. its on both sides people.
My James, you had me at hello. I totally agree with your thinking.
BO is only concerned about the environment as a means to bring about a society where the middle class is brought to its knees and fully dependent on the government. His entire Chicago School of Sociology-Bill Ayres upbringing make him want to destroy the last vestiges of traditional America by ruining its economy and not protecting its borders.
He passed an opportunity from other nations for help with the oil spill disaster in order to let BP hang in the wind to show that big oil is our enemy. He was slow and indifferent to common sense people who wanted to sand barriers to stop the oil from coming ashore. Meanwhile the Gulf is destroyed and middle class people will be paying for his decisions.
He didn't pass on anything , a law enacted by Congress decades ago bars other nations from helping.
Take it up with your Congressman.
http://personalmoneystore.com/moneyblog/2010/06/11/jones-act-gulf-oil-spill-2010/
alur...The middle class isn't brought to its knees by Obama. Nice that you overlook those billionaire's who wealth creates the unemployment, poverty and inability to prosper. 1% prospers at the expense of the other 99%.
Piles of money sitting in a billionaire's bank account and people like you think that must be protected at all costs...our costs. Not theirs.
Obama is not responsibile for the unemployment. If the Big Oil boys can't learn another trade...boo hoo. The auto industry reinvented itself. The energy industry can do the same. But nooooo...Big Oil boys are so accustomed to their billions, they can't possibly see life without commandeering the rest of us into poverty to keep them rich.
Know your facts before you comment. This was not caused by Obama, he didn't go out there and blow up the rig. This was BP's fault. They had over 700 violations on that rig and did nothing about, knowing that this would happen one day. They didn't care about that though, all they care about is the all mighty dollar.
Sherri...I agree. I work for an environmental engineering company. You can bet your life that those violations are much more than a year old. There are generally two means of compliance reporting that are mandatory: state and federal. In some cases, the state has reporting jurisdiction to the feds.
So, my question is ...Who allowed those 700 violations and for how long? I'll bet anything that those records are as sealed as Cheney's records of that secret 2001 Big Energy meeting.
I am pretty sure the 700+ violation figure is misleading. It is not 700+ violations on that rig, it is for the entire company over a several year period. If you look at the majority of their violations, most of them deal with accidents at refineries, not with drilling operations. Most of the violations are through OSHA, not the MMS.
I am in no way defending BP but facts and figures can be very misleading unless they are taken in context.
To the folks who want to keep harping about the administration not accepting the (not free) help from other countries. 1. It's illegal 2. It will create more of a boondoggle. Just an example: We let the Dutch come help (That would be Royal Dutch/Shell a petroleum company owned by the dutch) but they didn't say they would do it for free. The RD/S gets together with BP and say lets put this "tophat" on the pipe. As actually occured that didn't work. Well now BP says it would have worked if the RD/S guys wouldn't have interfered and them just being there is slowing everything down. Now the issue really is the administrations fault because they brought in these other guys. The only reason you bring in more contractors is to spread around blame. Good job on the administrations part by seeing that is exactly what would happen.
No, the explosion of the rig wasn't caused by Obama.
But the miserable federal emergency response to this is all his.
Didn't you just love the great speech he gave 57 days into the emergency?
Even Olbermann's and matthews' love for this guy is waning. I think it's about time the libs on here got on board with their fellow spokesmen.
Colonel, Do you think that the miserable Federal emergency response has been intentional? I posed this question a few weeks back that "if the Gulf becomes severely polluted, it will be easier for Obama to pass Cap & Tax, stop all off shore drilling and ration fossil fuel energy used by the average US citizen."
It would go hand & hand with senator Kyle said regarding the Arizona chaos, that "Obama wants illegal immigration to get out of hand that way he can have an easier time with comprehensive immigration reform"...(ie amnesty without securing the border).
I know there is already talk about forcing homeowners to make costly upgrades to their homes like adding more insulation, solar panels and such at their cost. Heck I've even heard that the ecolibs want to make it that in order for you to be able to sell your house, you HAVE TO make these costly changes/upgrades.
The lack of a proficient federal response to these two issues: Suing the state of Arizona over the constitutionallity of AZSB1070, and refusing help from qualified/experienced individuals/countries in cleaning up the oil spill lead me to believe that there is some intentionallity to the president's actions.
BTW, where is Al Gore? This is the worst environmental disaster in US history, and I haven't heard a peep out of him.
ToxicChemist
I try hard not to buy into theories like that. That being said, his total lack of urgency would seem to only be explainable from a couple of standpoints:
1. He doesn't give a $hit about the Gulf disaster.
2. He's in over his head and doesn't have a clue how to delegate authority
3. It's intentional.
Personally I lean more toward the second option. But you never know what's going on in a egotistical narcissistic brain like his. He did say he wanted to "fundamentally transform America." This would cetainly help nudge things further in that direction.
As for Arizona. I think that's just a bunch of grandstanding to get latinos behind his party so close to the midterms.
And Yes, you are correct about the mandatory upgrades for your home in the Cap and Trade bill.
Scary stuff.
Colonel, I hope you're right, that it is the "second option." I'm trying hard to not believe it is the third.
Spin it boys, yup, you can spin anything. Yup, Obama is a two-headed-monster from outer space, a socialist, commie, Hitler, STalingrad, African goat herder, terrorist. Spin, it cowboys. And, you are all genius, Einsteins and Earth-hating, Earth killing swine. Right?
Regardless of which spin is popular this moment. Bush/Cheney, the two oil cowpukes, who had one agenda while commanders of this nation, to make their rich pig pals wealthier and to kill Hussein because this once American pal had the audacity to speak up for his nation against big daddy Bush, will most assuredly -- with vast evidence -- go down in history as the worst presidency in all of this nation's history.
Perhaps Obama is not the greatest prez in history, but he is the second coming compared to that idiot Bush, and Obama outscored Bush on an IQ test by almost 50 points. And, I'm confident that the underpinnings of this oil spill/American disaster began with the 2 oil dudes. Americans were nuts to vote for two oil, rednecks. Okay, cowboys, find a new spin; let's keep the brainwashing spin machine a rollin, right.
THey made it even worse by voting for this educated idiot.
Skor, there is such a thing as "Book smart / Life stupid."
If that is the case, and suposedly the MMS was full of idiots, why didn't president Obama do something about it in the last 18 months? ...and don't give me that "he had so many other things on his plate he didn't have time" bull$hit, doing nothing about it is just as bad as setting it up, and he certianly had enough time to have fun. Leaders delegate responsibility to their subordinates if they don't have enough time to do the job themselves.
toxic
I agree that it is intentional as you and the colonel were discussing earlier. It just seems so convenient is all. climate change has stalled.....switch to alternative fuel and making money has stalled......oil spill comes up.....federal government basically quiet for month and a half then comes out with guns blazing.
never let a crisis go to waste remember??? its a progressive motto. they wanted a crisis so they can push an agenda. I know colonel doesnt like to believe that....I dont either, but I believe the powers that be are not stupid...they know how PR works and they use it very effectively.
Oh and book smart/life stupid. thats a real thing.....most obvious when I was in the military myself.
peace.
I'm 100% behind the President on this ban. BP after 60 + days have yet to stop and have yet to cleaned up all the oil. Why should they continue to drill, if they can't resolve a serious problem they have now?
Wonder how much it'll cost to take a leisurely Sunday drive, oh, say a year from now? Of course, most of us will be on welfare by then, so it really doesn't matter much, eh?
Joe Biff...Nice try. The guy who owns the building our office is in traveled from NJ to Maine in his Toyota hybrid and he didn't spend a dime on gasoline. And, it's been known for decades that lithium powered cars are sufficient for all but those Hemi Bully Boys with those idiot bullnozed trucks that take an hour to fill up, cost a $100 a tankfull and guzzle gas to keep Big Oil richer than God.
Buy a more energy efficient vehicle and stop the oilmongering.
Edward-453134 exactly what is it you are doing behind the President?
You think the Pres should have the power to shut down industry? If he is so concerned about the welfare of the citizens, then believing as you do, he should shut down the US Government > it has had its leaks, blowouts and ruinous incidents plus there are plenty of safety issues > I say to Obama...'shut it down'!
digger...The president would have not only the power but the sanction of the people if the industry is corrupt...Are you forgetting the Teapot Dome scandal? Are you forgetting the Robber Barons who made off with piles of money at the expense of worker safety?
This country can support many industries if those industries are willing to operate with ethics, integrity and in compliance with safety regulations. If they can't, then yes...the president and Congress should shut them down. Elsewise, we may as well put out the welcome mat for the Mafia.
We have a major disaster in the Gulf of Mexico, it has yet to be stopped and cleaned up. And you want to continue drilling for oil. What have the oil industries done, to prove they can have a major problem, even though they may not be the one's responsible, they do have a way to correct this problem. Until BP and all the other major oil companies can show they have a way to correct this problem, then ban it.
We have Toyota selling a car that caused the death of owners so I guess Edward would want to shut down the selling of all automobiles - even those who are making safe ones? You don't shut down an entire industry costing them millions a day while putting several hunndred people out of work just becauuse one company cut corners on one rig. Punish that company - as we are doing - not the entire industry. Next thing you will want to put all black men in jail because one of them committed a crime.
Oh, Dig, the president's first responsibility is to life itself. It is only common sense to insist upon a moratorium until this eco- tragedy is cleaned up, and intensive & extensive research into what went awry. If we were to have another eco-nightmare equal to this on our seas, it could render much of the planet dead.
Man should not be in the eco-nomics of killing his only home. As yet, no rocketships for the ready to go to another life giving planet or home.
This ban is stupid . All they needed to do was have the 33 rigs fully inspected by people that actually know what they are doing, unlike Obama and Salazar. I hope all you tree huggers have to walk to work in the dark. Oil will be need for the next hundred years, and all you want to do is put this country further in debt by buying oil from foreign countrys that are drilling in deep water, at least one of which is supported by Obama.
I have news for you William....BP is based in a foreign country.
The CEO needs deep water drilling to keep enough money coming in for his private 747 jet, 200 foot yatch, 40 room French Riviera villa, and $200. dailly lunches!
If it is so dangerous why has Obama authorized a 2 Billion loan to petrobraz for deepwater drilling? Something smells rotten and I do believe it Obama and his gang of corrupt thieves.
"Never before has the government done this,"
Unfortunately, true.
I'd like to refer readers of this article to the Fox seed reporting attacks on officials and neighbors in Mexico.
See if you agree that government involvement (and the rule of law) helps to stabilize society when and where the oversight exists at all and, in it's absence, victimization of others.
While I'm at it, what even happened to following Ten simple Commandments. I've been seeing an awful lot of "bearing false witness" in politics, lately, by the Christian Right. Whaus up wit dat?
If the President were to resign and go back to community organizing, do you s'pose Joey would be able to clean up all the poop that seems to be floating to the top of this inept administration? Just wondering.
Joe Biff...Obama wouldn't have had to clean up any messes if your Republican rich oil boy had the brains God gave him and the energy to move his butt for the people of this country and not Big Oil. What exactly did you think Iraq was all about if not Big Oil?
This president has no reason to resign. Bush had more than his share. But the slimy little oil boy managed to slink away like all slick articles with a swagger, swagger boom boom.
Unfortunately, they have been very busy shaking the feces out of the diaper used by the previous administration that shipped thousands and thousands of jobs to China, ran the national debt into the ozone causing a financial collapse, putting big oil CEOs in charge of energy policy, starting a war in Iraq based on lies and with no plan, corruption built upon corruption, and dividing America into those "who are with us" and those "who are against us." The Cheney/Bush administration was a total disaster. The Obama/Biden administration is trying to restore the country to it's moral base even though the party of "No" spreads lies and delusion at every step and has absolutely NO ideas that will help Americans.
TW417...I so agree. It's one thing to malign a president for incompetence. It's another to malign a president when you have nothing better to offer.
Thus far, the benchmark for the Republican party is to bash labor while trumpeting Big Business at the expense of labor. What else explains what Bush and Cheney did to labor for 8 years? Of course, their main idea was always One Party Rule. Rove announced this proudly. The only way to gain total control of the masses is to incur the sting of poverty and divide the country into two classes. That's not who Americans are.
Of course, their main idea was always One Party Rule. Rove announced this proudly. The only way to gain total control of the masses is to incur the sting of poverty and divide the country into two classes. That's not who Americans are.
Why does that description sound EXACTLY like how people on the right feel about people on the left?
BTW One Party Rule is what we have right now and it ain't workin' out so good.
Colonel, I think we'll get back to "balance" come November, and I personally, would prefer to see a bunch of Independents elected, but I'll settle for Republicans.
TW, your commentary is my commentary; your thinking is my thinking. No doubt, those 2 idiot oil dudes brought this nation to its knees -- in every aspect and at every corner.
Yes, idiots to continue drilling "during the most catastrophic environmental/wildlife event ever in our history. The oil workers are going to be paid from the 100 million dollar fund for just them, and the people of the Gulf that work in the Gulf region will hopefully see the money soon to keep them
afloat, for the extended future. The Gulf will not be assessable for food or wildlife for many, many years. 40-50 years is a guess but an educated one! That is assuming the gusher is stopped when they say it will be. 100s of millions of deadly oil is filing up much of the Gulf and the poisonous despersant is making things SO MUCH WORSE, in an effort to hide the "true levels" of oil, its not working and is adding to the level of catastrophe.
People, the oil and natural gas are killing Americans, and the Government and the Corporations are complicit in this cover up. If you can watch the HBO special "GasLand", it is a real eye opener, and I had no idea how natural gas is extracted, now I do and it is another tragedy happening NOW, and is growing. If we would have started 10-20 years ago with an all out effort to use renewable energy, we would be well on our way to energy independence. We keep talking about as if it is too hard, and putting it off! How long will we continue to put it off? Cheney is a war criminal and a environment and wildlife criminal;, where are prosecutors and the courts demanding a trial for dispicable man? He must go before a televised trial, and receive his (our justice), for all he has done to destroy this country for his own greed! No, I don't see him as a patriot, particularly his 5 deferments avoiding been drafted into the Vietnam War. He is a coward and nothing can change that!
How stupid do these ego-maniacs think the American People are? We are gullible to be sure to trust anything out of our "elected" official's mouths and the corporate big shots ( in their eyes) who run the "elected" officials!
I think the tea party has NO good "productive" agenda to fix this situation. With "mental giants" like Palin, Bachman, Beck and Rush, who only care about their own interests, and go back and forth on issues like a pendulum. There is no honesty in this parties leadership.
I do believe, strongly in the Tea Party idea of "change", but not theirs based on the hatred of a black man in the President chair, as I see it. And how could anyone that "thinks" be attracted to the "Tea Party" or the Republicans. They talk big, but with no concrete answers, only "small government and lower taxes for the rich". How in the hell is that going to help us? The very rich are at the heart of destroying this country for their own betterment, not anyone else. So please wake up America and find your true voice and vote for your own interests, because that powers that be whether corporate or government will not speak for you, we "small people", and that was not a mis-step, the rich do see the rest of us as the "small people", remember, Leona Helmsley, Barbara Bush always sticking their foot in their mouths about the lower class, so far removed from us that said stupid things on a fairly regular basis.
We we need our country back from these multi-nationals and a corrupt government doing the "rich" people's will.
These times seem reminiscent to the French days of "let them eat cake", which shows how the "American royalty" is so out of touch with the "real" working people and it must end NOW!
Well lets see, $100,000,000 and 150,000 jobs lost= about $750 a person. Not to bad huh!
Yes throw the baby out with the dish water. Take the good with the bad. Now if we could pass an amendment the no lawyer could hold a publicly elected office then we may get some where. I am for kicking the whole pack out. However the Democrats and the Republicans have made in dam near impossible to do with control over the election process. They knew one day their jobs would be in danger so over the years they made sure it was not possible to clean house complete. All so the non tax paying public out number the tax payers. There in lies the problem.
A democracy will only exist until the public find they can vote them selves unfunded money from the treasure. So we have food stamps, we have welfare, We have aid to bastard babies, we have corporate welfare running out of our ears. All under some bull@!$%# program or another.
Why do you think there are so many lobbyist crawling out of the wood work. Because Our congressmen want them. They are their life's blood. When the congressman masters the art of influence peddling, Arm twisting he hits the jack pot by becoming a lobbyist. In a nation were laws are created by lawyers for lawyers What do you expect.
I have no comment printable about Present WALKING EAGLE. What do you expect from a half bread Kenyan who can't produce a verifiable US birth Certificate? Did you see the picture of his mother. Boy what a body. However I suspect Photoshop CS had a lot to do with that picture. That Kansas girl sure had a strange attraction to men. One straight out of the jungles and I never figured out what the last one was.
I ave no use for the republican or the democrats as a whole. I sure say HOLE. However the republicans do not preach Socialism as much as the share the wealth even though you never produced any Democrats. Both party's leaders would sell their own grand mother for a vote.
You're right about lawyers. They don't have the skills nor the knowledge to lead this country. We need people in government how know how to do things. Engineers, scientists, economists, doctors, planners, business and financial experts, technical experts from all kinds of vital industries etc. Not a bunch of corrupt lawyers.
How do we make this change? I think we have to change the election laws to get special interests out. Unfortunately a recent supreme court ruling did just the opposite. We the people must insist on this change. All of our politians are bought. They simply cannot get elected without the money from special interests.
Paul, you are a free thinker. This nation and our Earth needs more like you. In reality, corporate everything is killing the Earth. According to the science of ecology and the vast majority of all scientists, mankind is killing the Earth, so the rich pigs can roll in the clover. All the rest is mind control and brainwashing.
Ironically, when the Earth fails to sustain all life, the rich swine will die too. Every American needs to be exposed to the why's he is alive, and it has nothing to do with jobs, cars and oil, but everything to do with the beginning, when man evolved. Every aspect of all life on the Earth is given, governed and regulated by the Earth's natural, wild ecosystems and their natural, wild animal and plant biological diversity, all that was slaughtered and butchered by this horrible oil spill.
Who was one of the most superlative free-thinking Americans. That ole master of transcendentalism himself, Hank Thoreau, who could see man had chosen the wrong path several hundred years ago...long before cars, oils and idiocy. And, he pursued a simple existence at Walden Pond, simple in means...rich in ends. Are there even any Walden Ponds left on this sagging planet. Yep, Walden Pond smothered in the black death, and even Thoreau could not image this Earth killer, murderer.
The "Chosen One" can't pass up a crisis - he's going to prolong this as long as he can - it's his agenda. I do wish all you "Omabaites" could see him for what he really is. He's out to destory our Country as we know it - that's the plan and he's determined to accomplish the mission. There's no desire on his part to "fix" the oil spil - it plays too well into his playbook of destroying the USA.
Gary,
i'm sure some of the kool-aid drinking Odumbo butt lickers on here will say you're right-wing moonbatsh!t crazy, but i happen to agree with you.
lovetocook74 and Gary: You both sound like a class acts, fortunately people see you for what you are: IGNORANT!! You would piss & moan no matter what the President does..You guys are like a broken record: SOS different day!! By the way SOS stands for Same old S.h.i.t You have a great day!!
yes we know what SOS stands for......and you're living proof that those on the left are still mired deep in it.
Yeah Bernie, but they are correct. More than I can say for anyone who believes obama's bullsh!t!!!!!!!!!!!
I bet you party with rush. Yes, I can see you perched on your keg of beer, your little Am radio blasting rush rantings, while you parrot along.
You must be one of the idiots who voted for Bush, and supposed you did it twice! All you obama bashers, answer this question - How do you fix 8 years of suffering in 1 year? Bush and Cheney put this country in the largest mess that it has ever been in and you expect Obama to fix it in just a short amount of time? I know he has the ability to turn this country around. All you Bush fans can move to Texas and maybe good old George can get you in the oil industry too so you can make millions off us little people.
Has anyone noticed that Mr Cheney always had comments about what this administration is doing with the war and everything else, but since the oil spill he has had no comments??? I WONDER WHY???
Sherri 880289: you forgot "drill baby drill" Sarah Palin
Gary...We voted for Obama because we all saw for 8 long, arduous years what Bush "wasn't". He wasn't a president who recognized the constitution as more than "just a piece of paper". He wasn't a president who stood for labor against the unsafe and greedy practices of Big Business. He wasn't a president who wanted to live in a country where peace and prosperity as alliterated by the Constitution is the right of ALL Americans.
No...You cannot change our minds about President Obama any more than you'll ever change our minds about Bush. And, all we had to do was be there for 8 years of rampant incompetence, cronyism to the max and autocratic bullying.
Gary, are you taking medication to treat your paranoia? It seems as if you skipped a dose or two.
The Earth's Ewent. As always, you are a sane voice for reason and logic. Our beloved Earth loves you, and so do I. You are a valiant warrior in defense of the Earth, man's only home. My blessings extend to your strong and valiant voice. Blessed be.
sherri, ewent and others, Bush did not put us in this mess. a lot of players did! so many people were involved that I can't list them all here. but one grouping was Congress (including Obama) , not to say Bush is free from it all he is partially to blame (but he was handed a booby trapped economy), Clinton got the ball rolling for the banking collapse, by repealing laws and modifying acts that were in place to prevent it from happening. congress has more power than the president and have a lower approval rating than even Bush. Yet you all voted for one of them like he was the savior of man kind. He is a politician picked from the bottom of the same barrel we pick most of our politicians from. we don't like what congress does so lets make one the president. Zero sense to me. Obama hardly even voted as a member of congress (worked less than Bush did). every word he speaks is written by someone else (EVERY SINGLE WORD). he brought his TelePrompTers to speak at an elementary school. ??? WTF he isn't smart enough to talk to little kids? Obama is the only president to try to walk out a window after a press conference. So stop the Obama Idolatry already, he isn't even close to being perfect or great. Stop the its Bushes fault stuff, makes you look like an idiot (except to Media sheep like yourselves). Bush had haters and so does Obama deal with it. Both had strengths and weaknesses, to bad your not smart enough to comprehend that.
Soros and Petrobras. Cap and tax. Feb. 13th the federal goverment was aware of this potentional disaster and did nothing. Yeah it's all Bush's fault.
This guy has some @!$%#ing nerve after the environmental disaster that BP created. CLEAN IT UP AND PAY AND SHUT YOUR @!$%#ING MOUTH!!
Bernie, maybe you should take a deep breath
tim...Bush isn't president anymore. We don't have to shut our mouths. We don't have to take a backseat to big mouth right winger cronies with all the talk and no action.
But thank you for proving what we suspected all along...that right wingers hate the Constitutional right to Free Speech.
Bernie's yelling and it looks like ol Bernie's about to 'explode'? > when he does explode will ewent qualify it as an environmental disaster that BP created? Could anyone clean it up or even want to clean up Bernie's explosion? Would post-explosion Bernie blame Bush?
digger...An environmental disaster can only be caused by ignorant, arrogant greedheads who put money before the safety of a nation. Sound familiar to you?
It's very true that Bush is no longer President; any argument or blame attached to the last administration is just beyond laughable. Let's take a look at our current predicaments and how they're being handled.
From what I can tell by just standing back and looking is that the Federal government is getting larger and larger. Ultimately, our society will have become so reliant on big government for basic goods and services that there will be no room for entrepreneurs, large business of any type, or any incentive for personal growth and reward. Not only are we headed toward the Progressive agenda for redistribution of wealth, we're heading for the redistribution of our entire social mores. Our marginal tax rate will be going up in January, we have a VAT headed our way, and it appears industry after industry is becoming socialised. And these are good things? If one can put aside the useless name calling and vehement stict party alignment and step back, the one fundamental question that should be asked is "Is this good for our country in the long haul?" That applies to every piece of legislation that's put forth. Further, regardless of the answer, the next question is "why?" Only then can an unbiased opinion be derived. All I'm seeing here is name calling and finger pointing but no viable solutions being offered. The "alternative" energies, as far as I know, don't exist but I don't know everything there is to know about that. I would hope that if they did and were viable they'd be in full use. Since they're not I can only assume that there's nothing out there that will take the place of oil. Period. There will be, surely, but not next week, next month, or next year.
Is socialized medicine good for the country? Not if we overload the system the way it's predicted to do. The New England Journal of Medicine reported that near 1/3 of all internests will leave, or stop taking new patients, when this impacts us fully. It's great to have health insurance but pretty useless if you've nowhere to use it. I would assume that physicians know more about their industry than lawyers do.
Illegal immigration? No President has done anything about that issue that's been IMO good for the country. Obama has an opportunity to do the right thing and enforce the Federal laws on the books but instead is wasting his time fighting Arizona over their legislation that mirrors the federal legislation. Why is that? It's because he wants the voting block not what's best for the country, as all Presidents before him have done.
You just gotta ask the simple question. What's best for the country?
Why don't you loudmouthed, republican, rightwing, teabagging, respect and common sense difficient, feckless, false witness bearing bible thumping, hot air blowing know nothing not Faux fed, ignorami, regurgers of the usual stale hand me down/pass me by/ shovel it quick/ never had a clue/ still don't have a clue/ still clueless/ couldn't buy a clue/ wouldn't know what clue to buy even if you got a hint, repeat sprouters of rubbish passing for reasoned thought, blame President Obama for everything no matter what, gun toting to show potency but failing, corporate lackeys .....just put a bung of a tarball in the gob and for a few precious minutes just think for yourself for a change, instead of following corporate dogma?
BZe1 - wow so much said and still said so little. your a media sheep. but I agree with one thing
the media controls what you think, and you buy it. right wing, left wing neither is good. we need to be more center. real center not fake center like politicians do near the end of an election season. honestly if you did some research Democrats did more to cause this mess than republicans. but the Dem's have better spin control with the help of the media. Both parties are at fault but the current players are some of the worst politicians we have had in a long time. Just look at Pelosi and Hillary. Obama is no savior, can't even speak his own thoughts. needs his TelePrompter for everything. at least Bush would speak candidly. I'm sure you will miss the point of what I said.
Folks....last year Exxon had 1 critical safety violation in the Gulf and BP/Transocean had 172. Maybe we should reward Exxon and incarcerate both the CEOS of BP and Transocean for flagrant violations and contempt of court? What say you all.
Airlines aren't shut down when one plane crashes why should everything be shut down with oil?
Because it doesn't cost millions of people their jobs and ruin the environment for YEARS to come, that's why!!!
No it just kills 200 versus 11, but hey that's ok at least everyone is still working huh?
Because an Airplane crash doesn't result in 35,000-100,000 barrels of oil leaking into the Gulf....everyday for the past 2 months.
So who cares about those lives???? Good theory!
Did you see anyone here comment on NOT caring about those lives, h*ll no. A plane crash is a terrible tragedy but you're comparing apples to oranges..... Go back to bed.
Obama should donate his BP campaign contributions of $90,000+ to the people of the Gulf coast.
reggie7777: cite you source of information!!!
reggie777...And will you expect the same from Bush and Cheney? Who, by the way, are awfully incognito, wouldn't you say? I'm guessing it's fear that their record of Big Oil pandering is about to gush like that BP rig is doing right now.
Bush and Cheney arent in chargeincharge anymore, so it doesnt matter. Obama is, suppose to be, in charge.
http://theweek.com/article/index/202679/Do_BPs_big_donations_to_Obama_matter
http://dailycaller.com/2010/05/05/obama-top-recipient-of-bp-contributions-last-20-yrs/
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE64420A20100505
reggie777...Oh I get it. If you are a privileged "American", it doesn't matter. Exactly when didn't it matter that two men who are dirty players in Big Oil games can't step up to the plate when they are needed? Or is that too American for the right wing?
reg I appreciate the links. I'm sort of confused about your attempt though. Are you saying that the President is an actual leader of the people because not only did he use the money from BP to get elected but once there and they screwed up he sided with the PEOPLE by publicly and privately lambasting them for their screw up?
Funny how that BP contribution to Obama keeps growing. When you compare the nearly million dollar contributions to many wingnut politicians, it actually makes you look pretty silly. I don't understand what it is you want. Should we elect Bush/Cheney or their ilk again? That sure worked really well the first time around. Instead of spewing hatred, please give me some kind of explanation for why you are so angry at Obama. Because I'm pretty sure all that anger can be laid at the feet of Bushco.
http://www.opensecrets.org/orgs/toprecips.php?id=D000000091&type=P&sort=A&cycle=2008
Obama beat out McCain for BP cash. Too bad Obama can't suck up oil as well as sucking up BP cash.
We the American People elected President Barack Obama into Office not Big Oil. Remeber we pledged money every week and went out to vote for him. Big Oil did not put The President in Office. Of course he took the loosy $25,000 tip from Big Oil. Try running a National Campaign on $25,000. We the American People elected President Barack Obama into Office not Big Oil.
BP and its employees have given more than $3.5 million to federal candidates over the past 20 years, with the largest chunk of their money going to Obama, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.
During his time in the Senate and while running for president, Obama received a total of $77,051 from the oil giant and is the top recipient of BP PAC and individual money over the past 20 years, according to financial disclosure records.
How hilarious, boy this has really got the tree huggers panties in a wad. It's one thing to admit that your family is an oil family, however, its quite another to act like an environmentalist and to push for cap and trade when you are the single LARGEST recipient of contributions from BP and its employees.
moratorium on deep water drilling ban is bad. u.s and world need energy, baning would hurt the nation more than oil spewing in ocean. if oil companies drill properly with several back up provisions, chances of oil spewing or the amount of spewing will be much less and would be under control by operators. u.s and world have taken risks in the past, that is why we are surviving. ther is no foolproofing in engineering design and activities, everything is based on safety factors used.
Ask the homeowners and the businesses that rely on the Gulf of Mexico for their survival (non-oil) if they agree. Look at the dead wildlife and ask yourself how it would feel to die like they have.
That's the problem, oil companies don't drill properly. They don't have backup provisions...if they do, they don't care if they fail (profit is more important than the safety of the employees, environment and wildlife). We have evidence that BP and it's contractors failed to run their rig properly and have failed to stop this gigantic disaster. If the non-BP oil companies are running their rigs 99.99% better, why haven't they offered advice to stop this? Or is it just possible that they don't have any idea how to stop it...
11 people died on that oil rig. Damage has been done to the environment that will take decades, if not centuries, to repair. Oil companies, as most companies in the United States of America, have more rights than the employees they hire. BP more than likely will send the bill to the US tax payers as some point in the near future. The families of the 11 people that died get nothing. Again, companies are more important that people.
Frankly, I hope President Obama bans offshore drilling permanently.
rama...Sorry to disagree. Petrochemicals are deadly carcinogens. If they leach into any nearby streams and waterways, it isn't long until the plumes end up in soil underground.
Americans have always persisted in forward movement. To remain in the grip of the Big Oil Addiction for even another decade is to continue to push this country into a regressive movement back in time.
The problem is that those who want to continue to support Big Oil do so out of selfishness and greed. They so fear change to other more advanced methods of producing energy that they are willing to fight every possible attempt at progress in this. They grew rich, fat, lazy and all too comfortable from Big Oil, just they way they grew rich, fat, lazy and all too comfortable from slavery.
ewent..........just what are those other more advanced methods of producing energy??? Sun and wind just don't get it. Obama doesn't want nuclear and if we did get that and something went wrong, it would make this disaster look like a cake walk. Again, what are the more advanced methods???
oil companies invest lot of money to get some benefits(profits). they keep people employed. without oil, cities like houston, new orleans will be starving, that will be a much bigger problem than the gulf coast resudents. bp will be able to compensate gulf coast resident's losses, but economic losses for texas, and other south eastern states will be beyond means of state and federal govt. when already so many commitments have been made by federal govt. to compensate losses due to natural disasters. moratorium on oil drilling will have bigger negative effects. we lived on chances and risks taken industrial and business enterprenuers since thousand of years, more recently since the beginning of 19th century. too much health and environmental consiousness are not going to help us for our progress and advancement. our new alternate energy and renewable energy developments are only possible, if current energy companies are alloed to increase their income for investing in alternate energy sources in the near future. for the present, we will have to live economically so that in the future we also can survive living economically. oil companies should be alloed to continue drilling along with developing good backup methods to handle disasters like the presernt one. otherwise we will have to face disasters like second world war japanese victims.
Sarcastically speaking, we are better to continue on track in the complete devastation to the gulf region and its ecosystem than to stop and perhaps try and prevent such a future disaster. This is the American way....why should I take care of myself when I can get a pill to hopefully cure it at a later time, or just pass the buck to the next administration or generation after we rape it and ruin it for a profit.
Perhaps, rather than wait for the next Gulf problem we could possibly find ways thru new technologies, employment and opportunities to allow for better research and guidelines of which could perhaps not ruin such a vast ecosystem and perhaps leave something behind as a legacy to future generations, other than today’s wasteful greedy oil addicted Americans?
Put it up for a vote & if the peoples of TX and the other Gulf States are on board for deep sea drilling with no safety nets, then they should not ask for a hand out from the oil companies or the Fed when they lose their jobs, have no income and the properties they own are not worth the paper it's written on.
On record, it is noted that in 2008 the percentage of oil found and obtained through platform drilling offshore in US waters was a total of 43%. Out of this 43% of oil that had been obtained through platform drilling in our waters, the percentage of oil exported from this was 40% as finished petroleum products. We do not even keep this oil! We rent our waters for drilling so that the oil found and refined can be sent to other countries and we can then buy our own oil back from these countries and companies at over inflated prices…make sense to anyone? Lastly, we would never want to hurt or cripple such a company as BP, because it may cost jobs for those who obviously have no care for anything other than themselves!
They should have moved the big yacht race to the gulf....
That woud have been slick!
Heh.
Yup funny funny times eh?!
Hilarious huh........
or put up a golf coarse for obama and a feed trough for the mrs.
K now thats funny...
drill for oil in shallow water. it is there. if the well head is NOT 1 mile underwater these problems are fixed. they are not allowed to drill in shallow water.
You can say thanks the the environmentalists and the EPA for pushing the rigs out beyond our current technologies capabilities.
But can you say backfire?
Mixman. Please stop believing everything your hear on Rush or Fox News. Do some real research, then make statements.
The rigs want to be out there. That is where the oil is located. What would they done when the oil near shore is gone? Duhhh I guess they would go deep water.
In any event why would you even drill if it was that dangerous? Ok, maybe all the oil on land is gone? Not according to Rush..there is plenty. Ok, then...then what?
Then, you don't bribe regulators do you? Well they did not bribe them they just accepted a bribe, noone offered a bribe, it was just accepted.
Then environmentalists said don't drill period in the Gulf. But we are out of oil on land. Rush said you were not, which is it?
You wingers take zero responsibility and can't clean up after yourselves. You do need a nanny to inspect and clean up after you. Did you wash behind your ears..let nanny look and you left your clothes on the floor, nanny will pick them up. You go play as if you are an independent big boy, nanny knows different.
TooMany,
Don't read Fox, their website is cartoonesque and Rush sounds like a dieing old man... not interested. Nice easy assumption for you to make though. Cliches are easy.
Except you forgot one thing... I'm commenting on an article on MSNBC..... duh
Mix, I suspect the thinking on this was, the wetland and shoreline ecosystems are vastly more endangered than the marine ecosystems, which are much larger and because of that, should be more stable.
However, from an extrapolation of science, I would say, all of the Earth's ecosystems are struggling to remain extant and life giving. And, all ecosystems are interconnected, one to the other, with feedbacks and loops to both the atmosphere and climate.
An old environmental chant sings, there are no free lunches on mother Earth, and this is only applicable to the "civilized" and modern societies, in the economics of butchering the Earth. Yes, today's societies are behemoth, Earth killing machines.
You liberals are sickening in your never ending chiken little the sky is falling lets distroy the economy BS!
The obama administrations only claim to fame is how many jobs it can distroy while spending record amounts of money on one economy breaking ponzi after another, all failures from european nations.
As for you liberals how are you even on line? Havent you by now cut from the grid and havent you by now compacted your cars. If all liberals would live by the standards they expect our entire country to servive on we wouldnt have an energy problem.
Instead every liberal I know is a jet settting, enrgy hogging hypocrit.
Mankind and every animal on it has used this planet sinse the day of their existance if this is a problem for you leave I hear they are looking for people to volenteer to go to mars.
I wish the Obama administration would stop being the problem!
Ditto "sandyshores". The same fools who want to shut down the oil industry will be the same ones who will scream at the top of their lungs about the price of gas when it goes past $4 and how expensive their commute from Northern Virginia and Maryland to DC is. The liberal bastions of Fairfax, Alexandria, Arlington, Prince George, Montgomery counties and DC are hypocrites. They drive in big fat gas guzzling SUV's, BMW's, Mercedes and limos.
The real shame is this articles author trying to disparage the Judge because he has stock in oil companies. I guess this idiot can't put 2 + 2 together and figure out that the folks who live in the Gulf States invest in oil companies. That's the center of the universe for the oil industry. For this President to want to do anything he can to shut the wells down and how the economy and people will suffer shows me how callous this man is. Then again he takes his marching orders from the Anti-American "George Soros".
You tree hugging libs will rue the day that you agreed with a clueless administration to shut the oil off. Where are you progressive fat cats in New Orleans, remember the chaos of Katrina, near anarchy. Well you have something far more disastrous than Katrina coming your way.
I guess that seafood down theer is not an indusyrt and neither is tourism, just oil.
Ok with me, That area will dry up pretty soon as people will leave . Not everyone can work on an oil rig or want to do so. I know I cancelled my plans to retire in Destin and those milon dollar beach houses are now worth a fraction of their value. Who wants a beach house with oil on the beach, oil wells visible on the shore? Not me, mountains eher we come, beach die.
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if this well at 5000 feet is so dangerous to drill why did obama give petrobraus 2 billion to drill at 15000 feet for oil that is already ubder contract with china.
i do not think that many of you understand just how extensive the support mechanism is for drilling and oil and gas production. there are litterally thousands of private companies all over the world that depend on this drilling to continue. none of these people had anything to do with the well blowout.
honest jo:
No we do not understand how extensive the support is for the oil companies. Just like the average American believes the USA is honest and above board with them. Please let people know what is actually happening (no sarcasm involved). I don't believe I know, nor the average American knows how much of tax money is in the oil companies, drilling, or any other large scale corporate industry. We need to know.
Who is advising these idiots, Sarah Palin, Dick Cheney? What is even more disturbing is the fact that there is actually some support for lifting the drilling moratorium in he gulf. Very sad indeed. How many more lives will have to be ruined for these morons to understand the damage they have caused?
It is irrelevant to assign blame to EITHER BP or Transocean. They are ALL at fault.
Everyone involved is guilty of gross negligence and let us not forget that 11 people DIED while working in an unsafe rig.
The executives and decision makers at BOTH companies should be all forced to work in a chain gang cleaning the mess they created.
For the guilty include the U S Government agency heads and employees that 'regulated and inspected' the industry, plus the President since it did happen well into his term in office.
Who is advising these idiots...they have been meeting with Obama, his group, his agencies, his leaders (ha)...so, there you have the answer and why its taken sooooooo long for the Pres to organize committee after committee to review and review and discuss....etc. BP is the only group that has been actively trying to stop the leak and they want it stopped much more than you do MauriceR.
digger...If you know anything about inspections and compliance reporting, you know that it can take the DOE, EPA and federal agencies up to a year to get through all of the reports sent to them. It's not like these agencies are fully staffed. But, then if they were, people like you would be whining about "big government". In addition, the paperwork for inspections has to be thoroughly validated.
You can drop the "Blame Obama" game. If BP had 700 violations, they didn't start the minute Obama took office. Now...can you say that four letter word you are denying is at fault? B U S H.
MauriceR
Everyone involved is guilty of gross negligence and let us not forget that 11 people DIED while working in an unsafe rig.
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With your way of thinking since Toyota put out some dud cars and some people sadly lost their lives then the whole world should not drive their car (no matter the make) for at least 6 months. WOW talk about everything coming to a stand still......
The CEO's of all the major oil companies testified before Congress that their wells could have an accident like the BP well. They also admitted that at that depth, they could not cap it or clean up the oil any better than BP has.
So we have a very clear and very large present danger in these wells.
You can still watch this on CSPAN.
This is a VERY good reason for the moratorium, based on the CEO saying if the drilling continues there is nothing to stop another disaster. The only thing that can be stopped is the drilling.
bBP caused the leak so it is their job,. But now if BP need sbig brother to do the job..hahahahaha independent, free enterprise? hahahaha better be glad that socialism is here to save the rears of you pitiful right wingers who can't even stop the leak.
what is wrong with self regulation?
Because it has certainly worked so well in BP's case...
Maurice, most assuredly, there will be more people die because of this eco-tragedy, but their death certificates will not read oil spill, but cancer. Oil contains deadly toxins. These toxins will leach into the environment along the currents, both wind and sea, across the world. The toxins will be in the water vapor that slips into the atmosphere, the winds and the clouds.
Fish will have more and more carcinogens stored in their bodies, and man will eat the tainted fish. That which kills the Earth's birds, sea mammals, turtles and fish is not very good for man as well. Man does not live in a bubble. And, upon ecological plunder and death, pathogens in the food chain with man behave "like rats jumping off a sinking ship". Ecosystems and many of their species are in the eco-nomics of regulating and trimming the viruses and bacteria in the food chain with mankind.
Noted specifically are: frogs, birds and lizards. Ecologically, all things and all living are forever connected.
I understand everyone wants a different energy, but it's not there yet or anywhere close, solar doesn't work like its supposed to, the hydrofusion cars cost a million dollar a piece to build, anyone going to get one? Every oil company should not be penalized for one companies mistake. There are many companies operating safely. As for regulation, they get a visit from the MMS every month if not more and Coast Guard annually and ABS annually. When the last time any regulators came to some of your places of employment?
Uberzone...Tell that to the hundreds of thousands of solar energy companies springing up all over the country. It worked for 2 years in the total solar building I work in.
Solar is totally competitive as is wind. The only thing holding it back is the corporate welfare given to the oil and coal companies that makes their products cheaper.
All the tea bagger that say "drill baby, drill" are really saying "Corporate welfare baby, corporate welfare!"