This is perhaps the worst man made dissaster ever:
Ten days ago, after an explosion occurred on BP’s Deepwater Horizon rig off the Gulf Coast, the initial word from the Coast Guard was that there was no oil spill. That soon changed as the government announced that 1,000 barrels of thick oil per day were spilling into the ocean.
Then, in a dramatic shift on Wednesday evening, the government changed its 1,000 barrels estimate to 5,000 barrels per day. BP initially rejected the new estimate about the spill, which experts now believe could be worse than the 1989 Exxon Valdez disaster.
We’re sure to learn more in the coming months and years about what the government and BP knew about the scope of the disaster, when they knew it, and whether they responded appropriately.
The only “appropriate” response to this would be a ban on off-shore drilling, it obviously cannot be done in a safe manner.
The Obama administration is proposing to open vast expanses of water along the Atlantic coastline, the eastern Gulf of Mexico and the north coast of Alaska to oil and natural gas drilling
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/31/science/earth/31energy.html
That was before this most recent dissaster, hopefully theu will change their minds. People need to realize that energy independance equals oil independance; and a good place to start would be the ending of offshore drilling.
Doesn’t matter, at least the mea culpa is issued and enforced.
Of course, someone who is against fossil fuel consumption could always unplug from the electricity grid and also destroy their combustion engine vehicles.
I am just saying we need to stop subsidizing oil companies, right now they don’t have to pay for the enviromental damage they cause, which basically subsidizes them at the expense of the public’s health.
In addition, if we end some of the more perniciuos methods of extracting oil, like offshore drilling, it would drive-up the price but not end consumption. I think that is part of the reason it is soo hard to discuss these issues, people on the right automaticaly assume the only alternative is to “unplug from the electricity grid and also destroy their combustion engine vehicles” there is a lot of middle ground.
It is getting pretty obvious that BP and Haliburton have destroyed a good part of the economies in the Gulf coast, fishing and tourism are not going to return anytime soon, It may be time to sieze the assets of both companies to help support Gulf Coast residents harmed by the companies negligence.
And it is definitely time to end offshore drilling it obviously is not safe.