Gulf Oil Platform Explosion and Spill

Mudra, thank you for the article. I know how you feel about the news "near blackout" in Europe. It is the case in this country as well, when it comes to any news outside of our borders. It has been that way for at least twenty five years, and I know this by experience, having lived on the continent and then seeing the contrast in the media when I moved back to Georgia. We don't get anything close to the truth, only a Hollywood version designed to increase ratings and advertising sales. I mean, c'mon, man, this is the biggest environmental story of all, because all of the oceans are connected. Our media here have focused on the fear factor and their ratings are soaring. We need solutions, short and long term. What would we do without the internet? Please keep informing your friends and sending them to sites with the truth. A terrible task, yes, but we must stay connected. Divide and conquer is an old, old game. Here in the States, we are not getting much economic news about the rest of the world. It's like we live in a bubble. I don't know anyone who knows about the crisis in Greece, Portugal, etc. Currency crisis? What is that? I'm getting cold stares and ridicule when I talk about the euro and it's connection to the world. It's like they think I am crazy or something. Too bad the media is in show business...it is the biggest weakness that societies have right now. Back to the article: I am thinking that plugging the gusher(s) by August will not stop this consequence: The end of the Gulf as an ecological system. It truly will be a dead zone. Is this intentional? Perhaps. Thoughts anyone? All I know is that anyone who has taken a basic course in environmental science would know the ramifications. A third of our young people are not even finishing high school, and we have immense ignorance here. Our young people will suffer the most and understand it the least. They are in for such a surprise, God help us all. The crude oil will flow around the entire globe. Americans must not become violent as this will bring martial law. In the meantime, there will be hundreds of thousands (or maybe millions) of people who will become environmental refugees. I know I'm going on and on, but I'd like to know how to help and how to prepare. The task ahead seems overwhelming. What do we do with all of the elderly who live on the coastlines? Florida is filled to the brim with gray hairs in high rise condos. We will need to put them somewhere. Yikes! And that does not address the consequences of a broken food chain. Makes me want to move to Nebraska and plant crops. Love to you and thank you for letting me think out loud here. Linda

yup, it's zombie land. That's why it has to get this bad. Sick isnt it? Oh well, thats what I volunteered for,
And if you thought it could not get more diablical, then look at why it benefits BP to keep the leak ( gusher) flowing. some say the REAL MONEY IS IN THE DISPERSANTS! naturally ! Long blog but we need to know what the hell they are up to for when people can rise out of their stupor It's going to have to get massively uncomfortable for that
http://www.blogster.com/joannemor/bombshell-expose-the-real-reason-the-oil-still-flows-into-the-gulf-of-mexico

It simply won't change until people get mad, which is why I bang on about the manipulations of new age religion making people think anger is a dirty word it's NOT! They want us to love each other to death HAH! I think that feeling is happening to people closer to the um, " leak"

meanwhile here's johnny rotton singing anger is an energy :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ejRal5xFWA4
Muse, uprising: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w8KQmps-Sog

I'm thinking we need to keep or GET our base chakras connected to our heart chakras and mean BUSINESS. It's all about boundaries and these jokers have gone too far.
we need to dig in their dirt https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t5fOvcta3Ws&feature=related
For inner balance I can not recommend enough the Hand Clow red ice talk ( or the one dolphin mentioned) Siriusly! oh wait she's from the Pliades . I found this talk very helpful in terms of putting a time frame to whats unfolding as well as a spiritual overview of what is needed.

Don't fear, be of good cheer and do your best, it's all anyone can ask. It's the greatest show on earth. a damn circus.

Ah Linda, I'm somewhat sorry to say, it really is intentional. No doubt in my mind. massive fail with the swine flu and now this. Ultimately they will fail. Already have in one sense.
If you can get out west, I think it's a very good plan. If you know what's coming you have a duty to do what you think is best. It's obvious you care for many but take care of yourself first. I honestly do not see how the south can sustain this without severe damage on all fronts.
One problem of being a person with great light is it makes you very visible to the dark siders . Please do what you think is best for you. There is a reason why you know the score so USE your knowledge. People will get teachable soon enough but probably go crazy first.
My mother is one of those grey haired condo dwellers on the beach in Florida, she is in denial for now. Funny cuz she gets certain aspects of the agenda, like chemtrails. Oh well, the whole thing is creeping BIZARRE. Can I wake up now?? Stay safe Linda.

Some gray hairs getting mad in florida, the Raging Grannies giving it to 'em
BP YOU SUCK
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fw68FD55AMQ&feature=player_embedded

Very alarming. More and more evidence that this is another 9-11 event. Preplanned or prophecy ..... probably both.

http://gazbom.blogspot.com/



So what lies ahead? Here is what concerns me. Most of the weather events that bring rain to the eastern half of the US and Canada, are storms that form over the Gulf of Mexico.

Now if you want an effective brush killer you take a herbicide and mix a little diesel fuel with it. Rapid death of unwanted plants/weeds.
Now what will happen when these storms are forming? Will the hurricanes with extreme winds whip up the ocean to the point it picks up chemicals and oil particles and the releases them back down over North America in rain droplets? The main farmland in the US is not really too far from the gulf and if crops start dying because of pollutants, beware of higher prices and hyperinflation, let alone sickness of people and animals as no one wants to be under a nozzle of a sprayer!
And what about the people downwind of the gulf. It cannot be healthy breathing the fumes of a giant sesspool all of the time. If I were living in the deep south, I would be moving now. Remember what happened after hurricane Andrew, they had roadblocks and wouldn't let people leave and wouldn't allow help in. Once FEMA gets involved, this will get worse.

Stay safe Linda. Awareness will protect you.


Sorry for the fearmongering, but the facts need to be discussed

you are just being accurate. yes, terrorism, absolutely. just don't be terrorized.
You know, another random thought of mine is how this will affect even inland water in so many places. I have always wondered about the planned destruction of Detroit and Michigan in general, wow it's poor and on all that fresh water.... makes me wonder . Bush and cronies have bought tons of land in south America with plentiful fresh water.

There are a number of article about this over at www.rense.com that are worth looking at. Keep in mind there are many volcanos in the Western part of the US. Parts of Colorado is good. Many of the lower western states have to deal with drought.

Ashphalt volcanos, loads and loads of them.
http://www.marum.de/en/Ashphalt_volcanoes_discovered.html
Hobbit
The link don't want to play?
Google ..ashphalt volcanoes gulf of mexico

Thank you Hobbit .
Indeed the link you gave did'nt work .
I made some research as suggested and found this article .
Interesting .

Asphalt volcanoes discovered
13. May 2004

Asphalt flows from deep-sea volcanoes
New kind of volcano discovered in the Gulf of Mexico

Underwater volcanoes that spew asphalt instead of lava: they were discovered in the Gulf of Mexico during an expedition of the research vessel SONNE, led by Prof. Gerhard Bohrmann of the DFG Research Center Ocean Margins. On these volcanoes the multinational team of scientists encountered a previously unknown highly diverse ecosystem at a water depth of 3,000 meters. The prominent scientific journal Science reports the spectacular discovery in its issue of 14 May 2004.

Asphalt, commonly known to us as the material that covers our streets, has been found flowing out of mounds that rise 450 to 800 meters above the desert-like floor of the Gulf of Mexico. Researchers discovered the asphalt volcanoes during a cruise of the research vessel SONNE. First observed in video footage, the structures were confirmed by bottom samples taken during the expedition. "We were actually only searching for the presence of methane at the seafloor, instead we found a new kind of volcano associated with a complex ecosystem," relates Prof. Gerhard Bohrmann enthusiastically.

The researchers surmise that such asphalt volcanoes only occur in the Gulf of Mexico, but that they are abundant there, because the conditions required for their formation - deep water, salt diapirs below the seafloor, and the presence of oil deposits - are found only here.

When special microorganisms deep below the seafloor degrade petroleum, asphalt remains as a waste product. It is not unusual to find small amounts of this, but in some places in the Gulf of Mexico the asphalt covers more than a square kilometer of sea bottom. The researchers christened one of the mounds "Chapopote", after the Aztec word for asphalt. Video recordings of this mound clearly show how the asphalt flowed out of the crater and down the slope. The pictures are amazingly reminiscent of lava from volcanoes on land. In addition, they are home to numerous life forms: tube worms, clams, fish, crabs, and - typical for deep-sea oases - abundant bacteria.

Asphalt is commonly presumed to be hostile to life. "Nevertheless, we have now found a complete ecosystem, not only living on the asphalt, but also apparently feeding on it," says Bohrmann. The amazing thing about this is: as a waste product asphalt no longer contains the usual basic deep-sea nutrients, methane and hydrogen sulfide. Almost all animals living in the deep sea feed on such chemical compounds because energy from the sun only penetrates the upper layer of the ocean. "Now we have to find out what compounds the organisms on the asphalt volcanoes use, and how the network of life in this system is interconnected."

The geologist of the DFG Research Center Ocean Margins is fascinated. "As a scientist, one rarely has the opportunity to discover things that are still completely unknown. The chance for discoveries of this magnitude exists only in the deep sea."


Love Always
mudra

The misty rains came in overnight to North Georgia from the Gulf. This is a normal weather pattern. The mist smells faintly like oil. It's like the smell when rain hits the pavement at the gas (petrol) station.

Sad to hear Linda and yet predictable and we will hear more of these news as weeks go by and the oil keeps leeking.
People need to prepare to meet the situation the best they can .
I'll open a thread later on today " Oil spill : preparation and advice " so we can all gather our ideas there while there is still time mentally , spiritually and physically .
Let's get practical . A lot is in our hands .

Love from me sister



mudra

Dear Linda, I wish I could send a current of clear wind and rain from here to you. We've had torrents in New Zealand recently, breaking a serious drought. Right now I am looking out at a sparkling day, calm and fresh. My gratitude is right at the top as is my huge compassion for all of you experiencing the physical aspects of the oil right now.

Dear Mudra,I will go to your oilspill:preparation and advice thread now. Recently got some very helpful information from Conscious Media Network about how we need mineral supplementation now.

In Love,
Bushycat

mudra, i'm also interested in seeing your "oil spill preparation" advice. thanks for doing that!

i'm currently reading for the second time "Earth" by barbara marciniak (channeled info from the pleiadians)... i can't believe how appropriate it is for the times we face. when i read it the first time years ago, i overlooked some very important info for why these things are going on---how FEAR and CHAOS is how these "management team and their et bosses" need the world to be vibrating for they're afraid the world will reach a critical mass of "awakening" spiritualy...according to her (them), when that happens, the living library in our bodies, dna, animals, plants will suddenly open itself up to a "new world". tptb want all of us to forget about our spiritual development and instead focus on these crazy events in a low-base survival frequency.
we are the "renegades" from other systems to "bust" the system and that is one of the reasons we are here.

i'm going to post some of the excerpts later, bec. they say it best.

thank you all for being here. it gives me some comfort knowing i can express these thoughts and we all can share. part of my frustration is that i can't talk about any of this to people outside this virtual(forum) world. my friends refuse to listen to this point of view, even artists like myself whom i thought are "open-minded"--only to find they are like the rest of the zombies out there.

why can't i find at least ONE person in my life that knows about these esoteric ideas and doesn't believe the mainstream media regarding current events! urrrrr....

I read Barbara Marciniak and the Pleiadians many years ago and it rang some bells. And so much of what was said has played out. I'll look forward to some of your postings of her here, Dolphin.

Agreed, we are so fortunate to have this meeting place. When you are that dolphin on the crest of the wave, they may not appear to hear you, but the ones right behind you will follow you into your light. It is not easy to be a pioneer, but we came here for these times. I know we need more than metaphors right now, but some poetic images (and so does the wonderful art posted elsewhere, and the spitiual offerings) give us a break from the stark unfolding of the events in the media. We are ALL effected by this oil, and we don't yet quite know how. Sometimes in recent days, I've wondered what else I should be doing, and repeatedly a voice in my head says "stay balanced".

See you later,
Love,
Bushycat

From Dolphin "it gives me some comfort knowing i can express these thoughts and we all can share. part of my frustration is that i can't talk about any of this to people outside this virtual(forum) world. my friends refuse to listen to this point of view, even artists like myself whom i thought are "open-minded"--only to find they are like the rest of the zombies out there.

why can't i find at least ONE person in my life that knows about these esoteric ideas and doesn't believe the mainstream media regarding current events! urrrrr.... [/quote]

Dolphin: the Great Alone has been a very long road for the older ones of us. In a city of millions, I finally found like minded folks who will listen and share. Hang in there. I met my friends at a bookstore called the Phoenix and Dragon!

Renegades as is against TPTB is indeed apt.

Day 43: latest gulf oil spill update

June the 1st 2010

Here are the latest developments involving the BP oil spill in the
Gulf of Mexico:

Cleanup

– Oil washes ashore on Dauphin Island, an Alabama barrier island, and
on Mississippi barrier island Petit Bois, west of Dauphin.
– BP has begun its latest attempt to curtail the flow of oil from the
ruptured underwater well, using robot submarines to cut into a damaged
pipe a mile down.
– Process could increase flow of oil, but BP says next step - a cap
over the leak - will capture most, but not all, of the flow.
– "Avatar" director James Cameron was
among a group of 20 top scientists, engineers and technical experts who
met with officials from a number of federal agencies to discuss ways to
stop the massive oil leak. Cameron designed cameras, robots and probes
for underwater scenes in his movies, including "The Abyss" and
"Titanic."
– Tuesday marks the beginning of the Atlantic hurricane season,
prompting more worries about the spread of the spill.

Economy

– The federal government has now closed 31 percent of the Gulf to
fishing. The latest closure extends the restricted zone deeper into the
southeastern Gulf, reaching roughly 240 miles west of Key West, Florida,
at its furthest point. It also moves eastward, closing federal waters
off the Alabama coast to the Florida state line, NOAA reported.

Love Always
mudra

I know it is hard, there don't appear to be many of us, but we are everywhere and rising. Be of good cheer. They are losing, and fast.
This came up on the welcome page of AOL

May 19th 2010 By Oliver Jones


Black-tech -- the new battlelines of military technology

EmailMore

<LI class=first>Politics

• News
  

5 Comments
All man's biggest technological breakthroughs have come through military research. It makes sense that they'd keep some of the best stuff for themselves, right? Remote mind control? Teleportation? Weather weapons? Yep, and more.

We wanted to know what they've got that they don't want us to know about, so we tracked down investigative journalist Richard Goodwin, a well-respected voice in esoteric studies, and asked him: "How's it going Rich?" You know, because you've got to be polite.

But then we got down to business, we asked "What are they up to Rich?" And guess what? He only bloody told us. Your briefing begins after the break.






Weather Weapons
"HAARP (High Frequency Active Auroral Research Program), which is a project dedicated to studying the ionosphere has been at the heart of many weather manipulation claims since its birth" said Richard Goodwin.

"Although, many claim it is a direct descendant of Nikola Tesla's more "esoteric" experiments."

"Nikola Tesla revealed in an interview with The New York World newspaper that an earthquake which drew police and ambulances to the region of his laboratory at 48 E. Houston St., New York, in 1898, was the result of a little machine he was experimenting with at the time which 'you could put in your overcoat pocket''."

Where they're up to now is anyones guess, though claims that the government was behind the 1993 Midwest US floods and US, Canadian, agreement to inform each other of weather experiments has done nothing to quell the speculation.

Teleportation and Cloaking
In an experiment supposedly carried out in 1943, a US Navy ship, the SS Eldridge was fitted with specially adapted electromagnets, that were designed to bend light around the ship with the intention of making it invisible.

The experiment had some unexpected side-effects mind, as crew members became fused to boat itself. The magnets were recalibrated and the experiment was tried again. Instead this time the ship completely vanished appearing some 200 miles away in Norfolk, Virginia, where it sat in the full view of a merchant ship, before reappearing in Philadelphia.

"It's widely regarded as a hoax, it is nonetheless true that the US has spent millions of dollars investigating teleportation. And it does exist. The first successful teleportation happened in late 2008 when the Quantum Institute at the University of Maryland sent information from one atom to another over a metre away," said Goodwin.

"And guess who paid for the study? You got it, the US Military."

Nanotechnology
The US spends $1.28 billion on nanotechnology research, "and that's just what they're declaring," said Goodwin. "It wouldn't be unreasonable to assume they're spending a lot more behind closed doors."

Nanotechnology is the reassembly of matter by tiny little robots. Early, and more pleasant applications will allow for targeted medication, while "There will be potential for tiny nuclear weapons, terrifying swarms of invisible robots that could literally turn you into a puff of dust, by rearranging the very atoms that you're made of."

"It could be the best thing ever to happen to mankind, it could feasibly end world poverty, or it could end everything," Richard concluded.

Anyone else a bit scared?

Disinformation
"Disinformation is real, present and makes up much of our media - it's just called "spin" instead, as that at least sounds a little less immoral," said Goodwin.

"The rise of conspiracy theories in recent years is not a coincidence, as information has become more easy to access with the rise of the Internet, people can research themselves, and sometimes find uncomfortable facts.

"It sounds improbable to Western citizens, but think about how obvious it is in places like Russia, China and North Korea. Just watch Russia Today on Freeview. To them our news is just as biased," he added.



Mind Control
The most famous example of military investigation into mind control is Project MK-ULTRA, a secret CIA series of experiments taking place during the 50s which were eventually exposed during the 1970s by the US Congress.

Several people died during the experiments, including Frank Olson a CIA scientist . A CIA agent was monitoring him when Olson allegedly threw himself out of a 13th floor hotel window, though Olson's family claim he was murdered because he might divulge secrets from project.

"Many people believe MK-ULTRA was just the starting point. Remote mind control is something militarites around the world have been looking into for years. The idea is that the military or governments could monitor what people are thinking by deciphering the electrical impulses in their brains, from a remote source, using say a mobile phone as a mediating device."

We haven't seen the iPhone app yet (but we bet it exists).



Read more: http://www.asylum.co.uk/2010/05/19/black-tech-the-new-battlelines-of-military-technology/?icid=main|uk-ws-bb|dl4|link5|http%3A%2F%2Fwww.asylum.co.uk%2F2010%2F05%2F19%2Fblack-tech-the-new-battlelines-of-military-technology%2F#ixzz0pi25bpPH

Whaaaat? AOL? I am so curious as to how that shift happened!

VIDEO: New Giant Oil Plume Discovered in Gulf


by Lynn Hermann
Global Research, May 29, 2010

A new oil plume, 22 miles in length, has been
discovered below the surface of the Gulf of Mexico, and stretches from
the leaking BP wellhead northeast toward Mobile Bay, Alabama.




Marine scientists aboard the Weatherbird
II have discovered what they believe is a massive new oil plume
situated in deep waters of the Gulf of Mexico. The plume is located just
beneath the surface down to a depth of 3,300 feet, with the greatest
concentration of hydrocarbons at about 1,300 feet, suggesting the
highest levels of environmental pollution from the BP disaster may be
located out of sight in the Gulf’s deep waters.



The scientists estimate the newest plume to be 22 miles
long by 6 miles wide and fear it is the result of BP’s unprecedented use
of chemical dispersants applied subsurface at the well site.



David Hollander, associate professor of chemical
oceanography at USF and lead investigator of the research mission, said
the oil they tested is no longer visible, dissolving into the water and
raising more fears that oil combined with dispersant toxicity may lead
to a dangerous situation for fish larvae and other creatures that filter
ocean water for food.



Where the first
significant oil plume was discovered southwest of the explosion site
and headed toward open waters, the newest oil plume is believed to be
headed inland toward shallower waters that are a reproductive area for
many fish and ocean species.



According to the Maddux
News Wire, Hollander said: “Our concern regarding these
contaminants is they have the potential to be incorporated in the food
web.”



He added: “The first ecological impact of this spill is the
effect on coastal habitats, including marshes, beaches and estuaries.
The second threat to nature would be the impact on the food webs. That
is what’s at risk."



The research vessel used a series of technologies to help
determine their preliminary findings: a CDOM Fluorometer, the ship’s
sonar and the ship’s gliders which assess water conditions as the ship
moves through the water column.



The Weatherbird II, a research vessel in the University of
South Florida’s College of Marine Science program, is scheduled to
return from its most recent mission to its home port of St. Petersburg,
Florida on Friday morning. Confirmation testing will begin after that
time.



Estimates by government scientists have cast doubt on BP’s
ongoing assertion of 5,000 barrels of crude escaping from a ruptured
pipe on the seafloor.



Two teams of scientists, the
Mass Balance Team and the Plume Modeling Team, have been assembled
by the US government to estimate the flow of crude oil from the
wellhead. Their preliminary numbers indicate that flow is 2 1/2 to five
times greater than BP and Coast Guard estimates. If so, that means
between 504,000 to more than a million gallons per day of crude has been
pouring into the Gulf since the disaster began on April 20.



In total numbers, that equates between 18 million and 39
million gallons of oil has contaminated the Gulf’s waters and coastal
shorelines, far surpassing the 1989 Exxon Valdez spill of almost 11
million gallons. The two teams used differing methods to determine their
calculations and have come up with similar numbers, according to the Associated
Press.



In a belated effort at shoring up unfavorable poll numbers,
President Obama is scheduled to visit the Gulf coast region on Friday,
only his second visit to the area since the Deepwater debacle began five
weeks ago. According to Reuters,
Obama is headed to the region “to assert control over the largest oil
spill in US history.”


Love Always
mudra

Ten Things You Need (But Don't Want) To Know
About the BP Oil Spill

by Daniela Perdomo


How the owner of the exploded oil rig has made $270
million off the disaster, and nine other shocking, depressing facts
about the oil spill.

It's been 37 days since BP's offshore oil rig, Deepwater
Horizon, exploded in the Gulf of Mexico. Since then, crude oil has been
hemorrhaging into ocean waters and wreaking unknown havoc on our
ecosystem -- unknown because there is no accurate estimate of how many
barrels of oil are contaminating the Gulf.

Though BP officially
admits to only a few thousand barrels spilled each day, expert estimates
peg the damage at 60,000
barrels or over 2.5 million gallons daily. (Perhaps we'd know more
if BP hadn't barred independent
engineers from inspecting the breach.) Measures to quell the gusher
have proved lackluster at best, and unlike the country's last big oil
spill -- Exxon-Valdez in 1989 -- the oil is coming from the ground, not a
tanker, so we have no idea how much more oil could continue to pollute
the Gulf's waters.

The Deepwater Horizon disaster reminds us what
can happen -- and will continue to happen -- when corporate malfeasance
and neglect meet governmental regulatory failure.

The corporate
media is tracking the disaster with front-page articles and nightly
news headlines every day (if it bleeds, or spills, it leads!), but the
under-reported aspects to this nightmarish tale paint the most chilling
picture of the actors and actions behind the catastrophe. In no
particular order, here are 10 things about the BP spill you may not know
and may not want to know -- but you should.

1. Oil rig
owner has made $270 million off the oil leak

Transocean
Ltd., the owner of the Deepwater Horizon rig leased by BP, has been
flying under the radar in the mainstream blame game. The world's largest
offshore drilling contractor, the company is conveniently headquartered
in corporate-friendly Switzerland, and it's no stranger to oil
disasters. In 1979, an oil well it was drilling in the very same Gulf of
Mexico ignited, sending the drill platform into the sea and causing one
of the largest oil spills by the time it was capped... nine months
later.

This experience undoubtedly influenced Transocean's
decision to insure theDeepwater Horizon rig for about twice what it was
worth. In a conference call to analysts earlier this month, Transocean
reported making a $270 million profit from insurance payouts after the
disaster. It's not hard to bet on failure when you know it's somewhat
assured.

2. BP has a terrible safety record

BP
has a long record of oil-related disasters in the United States. In
2005, BP's Texas City refineryexploded, killing 15
workers and injuring another 170. The next year, one of its Alaska
pipelines leaked 200,000 gallons of crude oil. According to Public
Citizen, BP has paid $550
million in fines. BP seems to particularly enjoy violating the
Clean Air and Clean Water Acts, and has paid the two largest fines in
the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's history. (Is it any
surprise that BP played
a central, though greatly under-reported, role in the failure to
contain the Exxon-Valdez spill years earlier?)

With Deepwater
Horizon, BP didn't break its dismal trend. In addition to choosing a cheaper --
and less safe -- casing to outfit the well that eventually burst, the
company chose not to equip Deepwater
Horizon with an acoustic trigger, a last-resort option that could have
shut down the well even if it was damaged badly, and which is required
in most developed countries that allow offshore drilling. In fact, BP
employs these devices in its rigs located near England, but because the
United States recommends rather than requires them, BP had no incentive
to buy one -- even though they only cost $500,000.

SeizeBP.org
estimates that BP makes $500,000 in under eight minutes.

3.
Oil spills are just a cost of doing business for BP

According
to the Harte Research Institute for Gulf of Mexico Studies,
approximately $1.6
billion in annual economic activity and services are at risk as a
result of the Deepwater Horizon disaster. Compare this number -- which
doesn't include the immeasurable environmental damages -- to the current
cap on BP's liability for economic damages like lost wages and tourist
dollars, which is $75 million. And compare that further to the
first-quarter profits BP posted just one week after the explosion: $6
billion.

BP's chief executive, Tony Hayward, has solemnly
promised that the company will cover more than the required $75 million.
On May 10, BP announced it had already spent $350 million. How
fantastically generous of a company valued at $152.6 billion, and which
makes $93 million each day.

The reality of the matter is that BP
will not be deterred by the liability cap and pity payments doled out to
a handful of victims of this disaster because they pale in comparison
to its ghastly profits. Indeed, oil spills are just a cost
of doing business for BP.

This is especially evident in a
recent Citigroup analyst report prepared for BP investors: "Reaction to
the Gulf of Mexico oil leak is a buying opportunity."

4.
The Interior Department was at best, neglectful, and at worst, complicit

It's
no surprise BP is always looking out for its bottom line -- but it's at
least slightly more surprising that the Interior Department, the
executive department charged with regulating the oil industry, has done
such a shoddy job of preventing this from happening.

Ten years
ago, there were already
warnings that the backup systems on oil rigs that failed
on Deepwater Horizon would be a problem. The Interior Department issued a
"safety alert" but then left it up to oil companies to decide what kind
of backup system to use. And in 2007, a government regulator from the
same department downplayed the
chances and impact of a spill like the one that occurred last month:
"lowouts are rare events and of short duration, potential impact to
marine water quality are not expected to be significant."

The
Interior Department's Louisiana branch may have been particularly
confused because it appears it was closely fraternizing with the oil
industry. The Minerals Management Service, the agency within the
department that oversees offshore drilling, routinely accepted gifts
from oil companies and even considered itself a part of the oil
industry, rather than part of a governmental regulatory agency. Flying
on oil executives' private planes was not rare for MMS inspectors in
Louisiana, a federal
report released Tuesday says. "Skeet-shooting contests, hunting and
fishing trips, golf tournaments, crawfish boils, and Christmas parties"
were also common.

Is it any wonder that Deepwater Horizon was
given a regulatory exclusion by MMS?

It gets worse. Since April
20, when the Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded, the Interior Department
has approved 27
new permits for offshore drilling sites. Here's the kicker: Two of
these permits are for BP.

But it gets better still: 26 of the 27
new drilling sites have been granted regulatory exemptions, including
those issued to BP.

[b]5. Clean-up prospects are dismal

The
media makes a lot of noise about all the different methods BP is using
to clean up the oil spill. Massive steel containment domes were popular a
few weeks ago. Now everyone is touting the "top kill" method, which
involves injecting heavy drilling fluids into the damaged well.

But
here's the reality. Even if BP eventually finds a method that works, experts
say the best cleanup scenario is to recover 20 percent of the
spilled oil. And let's be realistic: only 8 percent of the crude oil
deposited in the ocean and coastlines off Alaska was recovered in
the Exxon-Valdez cleanup.

Millions of gallons of oil will remain
in the ocean, ravaging the underwater ecosystem, and 100 miles of
Louisiana coastline will never be the same.

6. BP has no
real cleanup plan

Perhaps because it knows the
possibility of remedying the situation is practically impossible, BP has
made publicly available its laughable
"Oil Spill Response Plan" which is, in fact, no plan at all.

Most
emblematic of this farcical plan, BP mentions protecting Arctic
wildlife like sea lions, otters and walruses (perhaps executives simply
lifted the language from Exxon's plan for its oil spill off the coast of
Alaska?). The plan does not include any disease-preventing measures,
oceanic or meteorological data, and is comprised mostly of phone numbers
and blank forms. Most importantly, it includes no directions for how to
deal with a deep-water explosion such as the one that took place last
month.

The whole thing totals 600 pages -- a waste of paper that
only adds insult to the environmental injury BP is inflicting upon the
world with Deepwater Horizon.

7. Both Transocean and
BP are trying to take away survivors' right to sue

With
each hour, the economic damage caused by Deepwater Horizon continues to
grow. And BP knows this.

So while it outwardly is putting on a
nice face, even pledging
$500 million to assess the impacts of the spill, it has all the
while been trying to ensure that it won't be held liable for those same
impacts.

Just after the Deepwater explosion, surviving employees
were held in solitary
confinement, while Transocean flacks made them waive their rights
to sue. BP then did the same with fishermen it contracted to help clean
up the spill though the company now says that was nothing more than a legal
mix-up.

If there's anything to learn from this disaster,
it's that companies like BP don't make mistakes at the expense of
others. They are exceedingly deliberate.

8. BP bets on
risk to employees to save money -- and doesn't care if they get sick

When
BP unleashed its "Beyond Petroleum" re-branding/greenwashing campaign,
the snazzy ads featured smiley oil rig workers. But the truth of the
matter is that BP consistently and knowingly puts its employees at risk.

An
internal BP document shows that just before the prior fatal disaster --
the 2005 Texas City explosion that killed 15 workers and injured 170 --
when BP had to choose between cost-savings and greater safety, it went
with its bottom line.

A BP
Risk Management memo showed that although steel trailers would be
safer in the case of an explosion, the company went with less expensive
options that offered protection but were not "blast resistant." In the
Texas City blast, all of the fatalities and most of the injuries
occurred in or around these trailers.

Although BP has responded
to this memo by saying the company culture has changed since Texas City,
11 people died on the Deepwater Horizon when it blew up. Perhaps a
similar memo went out regarding safety and cost-cutting measures?

Reports this
week stated that fishermen hired by BP for oil cleanup weren't provided
protective equipment and have now fallen ill. Hopefully they didn't
sign waivers.

9. Environmental damage could even include a
climatological catastrophe

It's hard to know where to
start discussing the environmental damage caused byDeepwater Horizon.
Each day will give us a clearer picture of the short-term ecological
destruction, but environmental experts believe the damage to the Gulf of
Mexico will be long-term.

In the short-term, environmentalists
are up in
arms about the dispersants being used to clean up the oil slick in
the Gulf. Apparently, the types BP is using aren't all that effective in
dispersing oil, and are pretty high in toxicity to marine fauna such as
fish and shrimp. The fear is that what BP may be using to clean up the
mess could, in the long-term, make it worse.

On the longer-term
side of things, there
are signs that this largest oil drilling catastrophe could also
become the worst natural gas and climate disaster. The explosion has
released tremendous amounts of methane from deep in the ocean, and
research shows that methane, when mixed with air, is the most powerful
(read: terrible) greenhouse gas -- 26 times worse than carbon-dioxide.

Our
warming planet just got a lot hotter.

10. No one knows
what to do and it will happen again

The very worst part
about the Deepwater Horizon calamity is that nobody knows what to do. We
don't know how bad it really is because we can't measure what's going
on. We don't know how to stop it -- and once we do, we won't know how to
clean it up.

BP is at the helm of the recovery process, but
given its corporate track record, its efforts will only go so far -- it
has a board of directors and shareholders to answer to, after all. The
U.S. government, the only other entity that could take over is currently
content to let BP hack away at the problem. Why? Because it probably
has no idea what to do either.

Here's the reality of the matter
-- for as long as offshore drilling is legal, oil spills will happen.
Coastlines will be decimated, oceans destroyed, economies ruined, lives
lost. Oil companies have little to no incentive to prevent such
disasters from happening, and they use their money to buy government
regulators' integrity.

Deepwater Horizon is not an anomaly --
it's the norm.


Daniela
Perdomo is a staff writer and editor at AlterNet.

Love Always
mudra

lindabaker wrote:Whaaaat? AOL? I am so curious as to how that shift happened!

yes, some time ago I was told by my" mentor" that the mainstream was going to have to start truth telling to keep up with alternative news. It is indeed happening. Not sure what the average bear will make of it, but ridiculously enough it legitimizes what we have been saying for ages, so it won't be long before the house of cards comes tumbling down. Can't wait. and I am going to find it very hard not to say I TOLD YOU SO chowderheads. Just out of sheer frustration.
If we survive, like and if we dont I'll know I gave it my best shot and was a genuine pain in the a$$.

My god it has been a lonely path and a long one but this appears to be why we are indeed here, so well done everybody, never give up. I know we are not out of the woods yet but it's all moving very quickly.
Mudra you are doing a sterling job, knowledge is power. It helps to know what they are saying. A very grim scenario works in our favour for now, and yes it IS grim , but changes are afoot.

anomalous cowherd wrote:
My god it has been a lonely path and a long one but this appears to be why we are indeed here, so well done everybody, never give up. I know we are not out of the woods yet but it's all moving very quickly.
.

We are not out of the woods yet but we certainly are on our path. I can't think of any better place to be but to serve . The castle is crumbling to pieces . I must say I have been waiting for this too . I just watched Sharkwater that I posted in " Inspiration ". Money and greed have been a driving force to the escalading destruction of the true paradise that Earth is .
However with men of good will great faith and strong heart we can harnessed the powers unfolding and make the change our change . As a matter of fact we have already won because we are without fear despite all we know and have known for years ... despite what we see .. despite our own struggles in this corporate world .. despite the challenges at hand we are One in the heart Now and always .

Love from me
mudra

Gulf oil spill workers complaining of flulike symptoms
By The Associated Press
June 03, 2010



In this June 1, 2010 file photo, workers collect oil that washed ashore from last month's Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion on Fourchon Beach Port Fourchon, La. Few studies have examined long-term health effects of oil exposure. But some of the workers trolling Gulf Coast beaches and heading out into the marshes and waters have complained about flu-like symptoms _ a similar complaint among crews deployed for the 1989 Exxon Valdez spill in Alaska.

NEW ORLEANS -- For days now, Dr. Damon Dietrich has seen patients come through his emergency room at West Jefferson Medical Center with similar symptoms: respiratory problems, headaches and nausea.
In the past week, 11 workers who have been out on the water cleaning up oil from BP's blown-out well have been treated for what Dietrich calls "a pattern of symptoms" that could have been caused by the burning of crude oil, noxious fumes from the oil or the dispersants dumped in the Gulf to break it up. All workers were treated and released.
"One person comes in, it could be multiple things," he said. "Eleven people come in with these symptoms, it makes it incredibly suspicious."

Few studies have examined long-term health effects of oil exposure. But some of the workers trolling Gulf Coast beaches and heading out into the marshes and waters have complained about flu-like symptoms -- a similar complaint among crews deployed for the 1989 Exxon Valdez spill in Alaska.

BP and U.S. Coast Guard officials have said dehydration, heat, food poisoning or other unrelated factors may have caused the workers' symptoms. The Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals is investigating.
Brief contact with small amounts of light crude oil and dispersants are not harmful. Swallowing small amounts of oil can cause upset stomach, vomiting and diarrhea. Long-term exposure to dispersants, however, can cause central nervous system problems, or do damage to blood, kidneys or livers, according to the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention.
In the six weeks since the Deepwater Horizon rig exploded, killing 11 workers, an estimated 21 million to 45 million gallons of crude has poured into the Gulf of Mexico. Hundreds of BP contractors have fanned out along the Gulf, deploying boom, spraying chemicals to break up the oil, picking up oil-soaked debris and trying to keep the creeping slick out of the sensitive marshes and away from the tourist-Mecca beaches.

Commercial fisherman John Wunstell Jr. spent a night on a vessel near the source of the spill and left complaining of a severe headache, upset stomach and nose bleed. He was treated at the hospital, and sued -- becoming part of a class-action lawsuit filed last month in U.S. District Court in New Orleans against BP, Transocean and their insurers.
Wunstell, who was part of a crew burning oil, believes planes were spraying dispersant in the middle of the night -- something BP disputes.

"I began to ache all over ..." he said in the affidavit. "I was completely unable to function at this point and feared that I was seriously ill."
Dozens of complaints, most from spill workers, have been made related to oil exposure with the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals, said spokeswoman Olivia Watkins, as well as with the Louisiana Poison Center, clinics and hospitals. Workers are being told to follow federal guidelines that recommend anyone involved in oil spill cleanup wear protective equipment such as gloves, safety glasses and clothing.

Michael J. Schneider, an attorney who decided against filing a class-action lawsuit in the 1990s involving the Valdez workers, said proving a link between oil exposure and health problems is very difficult.
"As a human being you listen to enough and you've got to believe they're true," he said. "The problem is the science may not be there to support them ... Many of the signs and symptoms these people complained of are explainable for a dozen different reasons -- it's certainly coincidental they all shared a reason in common."

Similar to the Valdez cleanup, there have been concerns in the Gulf that workers aren't being supplied with enough protective gear. Workers have been spotted in white jumpsuits, gloves and booties but no goggles or respirators.

"If they're out there getting lightheaded and dizzy every day then obviously they ought to come in, and there should be respirators and other equipment provided," said LuAnn White, director of the Tulane Center for Applied Environmental Public Health. She added that most of the volatile components that could sicken people generally evaporate before the oil reaches shore.

BP PLC's Chief Operating Officer Doug Suttles said reports of workers getting sick are being investigated but noted that no one has pinpointed the cause. Suttles said workers were being given "any safety equipment" needed to do their jobs safely.
Unlike with Exxon Valdez, in the Gulf, the oil has been lighter, the temperatures warm and humid, and there have been hundreds of thousands of gallons of chemicals used to break up the oil.

Court records showed more than 6,700 workers involved in the Exxon Valdez clean up suffered respiratory problems which the company attributed to a viral illness, not chemical poisoning.

Dennis Mestas represented the only known worker to successfully settle with Exxon over health issues. According to the terms of that confidential settlement, Exxon did not admit fault.
His client, Gary Stubblefield, spent four months lifting workers in a crane for 18 hours a day as they sprayed the oil-slicked beaches with hot water, which created an oily mist. Even though he had to wipe clean his windshield twice a day, Stubblefield said it never occurred to him that the mixture might be harming his lungs.

Within weeks, he and others, who wore little to no protective gear, were coughing and experiencing other symptoms that were eventually nicknamed Valdez crud. Now 60, Stubblefield cannot get through a short conversation without coughing and gasping for breath like a drowning man. He sometimes needs the help of a breathing machine and inhalers, and has to be careful not to choke when he drinks and eats.

Watching the Gulf situation unfold, he says, makes him sick.
"I just watch this stuff everyday and know these people are on the very first rung on the ladder and are going to go through a lot of misery," said Stubblefield, who now lives in Prescott, Ariz.
(Associated Press Writers Matthew Broan and Noaki Schwartz wrote this report, with contributions from John Flesher from Michigan, and Brian Skoloff and Kelli Kennedy from Miami.)


Love Always
mudra