Gulf oil spill

Lyndsay - posted on 06/09/2010

Honestly, the greed of humanity is absolutely abhorrent to me. If people weren't so damn money-hungry, they never would have built an oil rig in the middle of the Gulf. The whole idea has always been ridiculous to me, (don't they get enough on land?) and this is exactly why. And while thousands of specimens are washing up on shore, dead and full of grease, nobody is doing anything to stop it or even help.

Holly - posted on 06/09/2010

I heard on NPR this guy who invented glass beads that soak up oil and then sink. He was saying that he was willing to work with BP, donate ALL the glass beads needed to soak up the oil, AND help them work out a net-type thing to catch the oil infused glass beads so they don't sink all the way to the bottom of the ocean. I want to know WHY BP isn't even looking into this? I'll look to see if I can find the story and link it later...

Katherine - posted on 06/09/2010

Yes, they want to burn the oil.

Wow that's fascinating, I wonder why we wouldn't use that method too.

LaCi - posted on 06/09/2010

There is a bacteria that eats oil. I'm not sure If I've posted in this thread, there are a lot of gulf threads now. The guy trying to push for it says it would take 6 weeks to clean up the oil-I think it would take longer, however its an option that leaves no environmental hazards behind. The bacteria eat the oil, they break it down into nontoxic waste, and they die when they run out of oil. It was apparently discovered in 1975 and used in Texas oilspills, but we aren't using it? Ridiculous. Instead we dump "dispersants" on oil, which is kerosine if I'm not mistaken. Wow we are a stupid species.

when it was discovered: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/articl...,9171,917877,00.html

Current movement: http://spillfighters.com/

It is, apparently less useful in deep water because of the thinness of the slick, but very useful when oil reaches land. At the very least it should be used all along the shores, but it isn't.

Katherine - posted on 06/09/2010

Katherine - posted on 06/09/2010

It's disgusting that it STILL, STILL STILL LEAKING!!!!!!!!









I hate oil companies, if I didn't need a damn car I wouldn't even drive one. There are pathetic heart breaking pictures in the papers of the wildlife dying, it's effed up the entire ecosystem and they have done shit to try and contain it. I swear if I had the resources to do something.....and FINE them? They should serve time, accident or not. This constitutes a felony.

Amber - posted on 06/08/2010

@Jenny I didn't say the government should tell them how to run their companies. I said that they should fine the hell out of them for contaminating the environment. And the rest of us should not buy gas from them. Then, they will be paying out more than is coming in.

Good Day! - posted on 06/07/2010

Thanks Holly. I joined. =)

Holly - posted on 06/06/2010

huh... I guess you have to copy and paste the whole link into your browser. I tried editing the link and it still doesn't work unless you copy and paste... sorry about that.

Holly - posted on 06/06/2010

So, I don't have time to post how disgusted I am about all this, but I thought you'd all like this FB page about it that I am a fan of...



http://www.facebook.com/#!/stoptheoilspill?ref=ts

Jocelyn - posted on 06/06/2010

Omg the poor, poor man....fuck him I hope he fucking slips in his god damn oil and breaks his neck...It's times like this I really wish that I had either money or fame so I could actually DO something about it! And here I was signing petitions against the oil sands in Fort McMurray...silly me, I didn't know that complete and utter destruction was the alternative to those sands....

Good Day! - posted on 06/06/2010

Jocelyn, did you know that Tony Hayward (CEO) said he's tired of this oil spill too and that he'd like his life back? OMG I'm sooooo sorry you have to be stuck here in Louisiana to clean up this mess your company caused. And wouldn't those 11 who DIED on the rig like their lives back too? I'm sure their widows and children find comfort in the fact that you are tired of this mess you created! And what about the fishermen and all the others that make their livelihoods off the gulf waters? I'm sure they are just thrilled about the oil. And the irreplaceable wetlands. What of those Tony Hayward? Ugh. I'm sorry this oil spill has inconvenienced you!!! Please Jocelyn, come take care of him for us!

Jocelyn - posted on 06/06/2010

It makes me physically ill. It breaks my heart. I can't watch the news or read the paper because I will start to cry. I am so filled with rage at the fucking idiots that if I ever came face to face with one of the BP shit piles (oops I mean owners/presidents) I can't guarantee that they would be walking away alive. I would make them drink their fucking oil and then I would stand back laughing as they choked. And I'm a fucking pacifist. Ok, I have to go now before I get really worked up...

Isobel - posted on 06/06/2010

Pure capitalism can't work for the same reason that pure capitalism can't...the greed of human beings. When the bottom line is your only concern, the health of the planet slips by the wayside, THAT is what this "accident" has shown us.

I don't understand why people keep say that the government is sitting on their hands...they are paying engineers to try to figure out what to do...did I miss somewhere in his campaign where he claimed to be an engineer with deep sea drilling experience?

Here's my thought though, apparently there are oil tankers that can suck up the polluted water and treat it somehow that the oil comes out of the water and is usable...why are we not sending as many of these tankers as humanly possible WHILE we are trying to plug the hole.

Good Day! - posted on 05/26/2010

The thing about sealing the hole with concrete is that it may not work. And not just that, it could potentially make the hole bigger! I'm glad they are trying something, FINALLY, but I'm so nervous about it. I'll have my eyes on the news tonight for sure.

And it won't really do much good thinking about what could have been done differently and trying to shift the blame. Yes, BP should be held responsible. But as responsible citizens, the rest of us should be thinking forward. How are we going to spend our time and money in order to push for an alternative energy source so that this never happens again? It really makes me think. I told my husband I want a bike to do my business in town so that I won't be supporting oil companies. Unfortunately that's not entirely feasible when transporting kids. So I feel trapped in a sticky yucky mess (because we are so oil dependent) that is ruining my Louisiana!

Jenny - posted on 05/26/2010

Amber, if you have the government telling a business how to run then it's not really Capitalism. Capitalism is a free market where supply and demand says who stays in business. Companies have now become so large though that consumer choice is not truly enough to bring a corporation to it's knees. Sure it sounds good in theory to have a free market but we are seeing the true results. Profit is the ONLY motivator in Capitalism, there is no room for morality there. Should there be? Of course! But that's not how it works in practice or we wouldn't have these companies fighting off higher safety standards in the first place.

How wonderful would it be if the government just said, the people have had enough, no more killing our planet for profit. Move to sustainable energy sources or you're out of business period. I promise you once massive amounts of sea creatures start washing up on shore all the money in the world won't help us one bit.

Meghan - posted on 05/25/2010

this may not be appropriate, but I really have no idea of the effects seeing as I live on the coast...I found it funny?!

Katherine - posted on 05/25/2010

They probably didn't want to spend the money......seriously.

Amber - posted on 05/25/2010

On the news, they just said that BP is pumping mud and concrete into the pump to freeze it and block any other oil from coming out of it.
Great idea, but why hasn't this already been done????

Katherine - posted on 05/25/2010

What kills me is that we went through this same crap with Exxon, and this is exponentially WORSE.

You're right, Amber they should go broke, but but it wasn't their fault. Grrr, when is someone going to be a MAN and say WE caused a mother of an oil spill and WE are going to contain it and clean it up, and oh sorry about those 11 lives and the wildlife and marshlands.....oops I j u s t w a n t t o c h o k e t h e m.

Amber - posted on 05/25/2010

Capitalism isn't the problem here; lack of responsibility and punishment are. The government should be making them pay to clean up 100% of the mess, and should make them move their asses now! It is disgusting that they are moving so slowly and the government is sitting on their hands.
I also think that they should pay HUGE penalties for what happened, and they should have to pay an additional fine for every day that there is oil in the ocean (yep, all several decades worth). Hit them where it hurts and run them out of business.
That is the true point of capitalism, when one company does it wrong you run them out of business. Now, the government needs to stop helping them and let the public take care of them.
Sue them until they are broke!

Katherine - posted on 05/24/2010

Interesting...........http://www.huffingtonpost.com/frances-be...

Jenny - posted on 05/24/2010

I say we string em up. This whole situation makes me feel physically ill. I've said this before, capitalism will be the death of us. Here's some compelling evidence. I've also said this before: humans suck!

Meghan - posted on 05/24/2010

this is the exact reason we need another option for fuel and other things associated with oil...

LaCi - posted on 05/24/2010

I'm pleased that people are boycotting BP because of their negligence. I rarely purchase, but it's not BP when I do so I can't really say I boycott them. It's funny that they bother price gauging, since they are only liable to a small amount, like 75 million dollars or something ridiculously low. We'll have to foot the rest of the bill ourselves anyway, supporting all the fisherman and travel related employees that will be out of work, trying to clean up what they will no doubt neglect to clean. God forbid large amounts hit the gulf stream. small amounts already are.



The fact that they lied about how much oil was spilling out and no one is taking responsibility for fault pisses me off. The entire situation pisses me off, I guess. We don't need oil. We should have moved on from this a long time ago.

Stephany - posted on 05/23/2010

I look at the pictures and see the footage on TV and I can't even imagine where everyone will start cleaning up and trying to get things back to normal. I just hope "normal" hasn't changed too much and "the way things were before" is still attainable.
Sara- I hadn't heard about the fisherman doing that and then not getting paid. It's not making the news where I live (in the pacific northwest). How horrible!
I know BP is the big bad wolf right now, but this could have happened to any oil company and the outcome would have been similar. I've thought a time or two how those greedy bastards must be sick to their stomachs that so much "liquid gold" is slipping into the ocean and out of their pockets. I agree with Sara- it should have been assumed that something like this would happen. There should have been an established game plan, and there should have been more oversight. I don't know why BP is still in charge of the effort to stop the leak. Obviously they have proven themselves to be totally incapable of the task.
Entire ecosystems, economies, businesses, and employment opportunities are gone. How will they recover from such a disaster? When they stop the oil from gushing into the ocean, when it stops coming ashore with the waves, when the news cameras are off and the attention is gone- what happens then? It is such a monumental task that it almost seems incomprehensible.

Katherine - posted on 05/23/2010

The wetlands it sounds, have no hope. No matter what all of the life will be extinct. They're saying they'll have to burn it or flood it killing everything. It breaks my heart that such a disaster like this could have and did happen.

Good Day! - posted on 05/23/2010

So I didn't even get into what it is doing to our wetlands.

http://www.2theadvocate.com/news/9466447...

Good Day! - posted on 05/23/2010

Well I'm about three hours from the coast so I haven't actually witnessed it. But the whole think sickens my stomach. There are families here that lost their husbands, dads, brothers, uncles, etc. in the dad blasted blast (I really want to cuss it, that's as close as I'll get for now). To me, that is the worst part.

Then you have these fishermen whose livelihoods depend on the shrimp they catch in the gulf. And it's not only the fishermen, it's the people in the factories that shell and package them, the distributors that sell them, the restaurants that serve them...the economy is suffering because gulf seafood is a big deal here.

Okay and then this makes me mad. I don't know if this has made national news...The fishermen are going out, risking their health and damaging their boats to set out the boons to stop the oil. They are supposed to be getting paid. Not all of them are. They were lined up and picketing trying to get their paychecks. Those that got paid, got paid only a fraction of what they would have earned had they been able to go out and fish. Dad blasted BP!!!

And Katherine, you are right. I haven't seen any *real* efforts to try and stop this thing. I'm perplexed as to why there was no system in place, other than the pitiful boons, to contain a leak. There are literally thousands of oil rigs in the gulf. The odds of this happening one day was pretty big. Kind of like the odds of a major hurricane hitting New Orleans...pretty high, but no one cared to make sure the levees were up to standard.

Katherine - posted on 05/23/2010

oops: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/04/30...

Rosie - posted on 05/23/2010

i don't see a link katherine....

but i will have to say that i agree a hundred percent!! it seems like the thousands of gallons of oil spilling into the ocean aren't much to worry about. it freaks me out. all of the mess is truly concerning, and then i just saw today that the stuff they are spraying on it to contain the oil is highly toxic, and the EPA has told them not to use it, but they still are cause they think it will work better than anything else-yeah work better at killing things faster. fucking idiots!!!
i wonder is sara h can gives us a bit of info on what it is really like down there? i know she lives in louisiana, not sure how close to the coast. sara, help us!!