Oil spill in the Gulf

[Ladywriter 7,783]

BP Censoring Media, Destroying Evidence

Years of Internal BP Probes Warned That Neglect Could Lead to Accidents

The Inside Story of How Obama Let the World’s Most Dangerous Oil Company Spiral out of Control

Rolling Stone’s Tim Dickinson writes, "Though George W. Bush paved the way for the catastrophe, it was Obama who gave BP the green light to drill." Dickinson explores how Interior Secretary Ken Salazar kept in place the oil industry-friendly environmental guidelines that Bush had implemented and ultimately let BP, an oil company with the worst safety record, to get away with murder.

[Ladywriter 7,783]

Official Gulf Spill Estimate Doubled: There’s Been an Exxon Valdez-Sized Spill Every 8 Days

How Oil Spills Affect the Food Chain

[Ladywriter 7,783]

[ame=http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/37673564#37673564]msnbc.com Video Player[/ame]

[ame=http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/37669486#37669486]msnbc.com Video Player[/ame]

[Ladywriter 7,783]

load of horse shit

their "plan" was copy and pasted from the Alaska plan

If you or I did that at work/school we'd be thrown out on our asses

[ame=http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/37669486#37682328]msnbc.com Video Player[/ame]

and I want all the folks at MMS that were supposed to READ it fuckin fired cuz they didn't

[Ladywriter 7,783]

While the disaster in the Gulf of Mexico gets worse by the minute, BP continues to dodge the tough questions about what went wrong and what they're doing to fix it.

It's time we got some straight answers. If BP won't give them of their own free will, we must compel them to do so. This week, 18 of my colleagues and I introduced legislation to grant President Obama's bipartisan investigative commission subpoena power that will allow it to uncover the unvarnished truth.

But we need your help to get there. Only with a strong grassroots push can we overcome the still-powerful oil lobby and convince Congress to give this commission the teeth it needs to bring transparency to the BP investigation, hold BP accountable, protect taxpayers and begin the difficult process of restoring the Gulf.

Click here to stand with me today and demand transparency from BP. The Gulf of Mexico region has suffered enough and shouldn't have to beg to get the truth.

http://www.democratsenators.org/o/44/t/825/petition.jsp?petition_KEY=316

As the slick approaches more than a hundred miles in either direction, the economic and environmental costs are seemingly immeasurable. Thousands of Gulf Coast residents have already had their livelihoods stolen from them and the region is losing billions in economic productivity. Equally heartbreaking is millions of acres of wetlands -- forty percent of all the wetlands in the country -- that are at risk in the Gulf of Mexico and the hundreds of species threatened by the spill, some possibly with extinction.

This bipartisan commission is our best chance to determine what really happened and to protect us from future disasters. I hope you will stand with me today and send a message to Washington that New York and the nation expect us to act.

Please click here to stand with me and help grant the commission the subpoena power it needs to bring justice to the Gulf of Mexico and protect our waters from spills.

http://www.democratsenators.org/o/44/t/825/petition.jsp?petition_KEY=316

I know you share my empathy with the citizens of the Gulf Coast and the concern for the workers that are helping lead the clean-up. Thank you for standing with me as we search for the truth about what caused this tragedy and to help heal the region.

Sincerely,

Kirsten Gillibrand

[Pchan 5,162]

Seize BP responds to President Obama's Oval Office Address

http://www.pephost.org/site/News2?id=9642

President Obama needed to be able to say with certainty to the people of the Gulf Coast, who today go to sleep fearing that they will not be able to put food on the table, pay their rent or their other obligations because of the spill, that tonight you can sleep safe knowing that the funds needed to make you whole would be secured, in trust, and available immediately.

He did not do it because he chose not to. Not because the funds are not available or because he lacks the authority. He did not because he could not get BP to agree and he refuses to treat BP as anything other than a partner.

BP possesses sufficient assets to place in trust for the victims of its malfeasance, the massive harm it has caused in its reckless pursuit of mega-profit.

Why "negotiate" with corporate criminals?

Rather than using the power vested in him as President and fulfilling the obligation vested in him to protect the people, he instead insists on “negotiations” with an entity that has engaged in criminal and reckless acts of deadly proportions.

President Obama has been given a choice: Serve the people or be subservient to corporate interests. The corporate interests of BP are in irreconcilable conflict with those of the people of the Gulf Coast and of the United States.

The workers and families in the Gulf Coast need action. Not rhetoric. Not sympathy and not the channeling, or mirroring, of their anger and frustration through the figure of the President. Their suffering is real. Their fears of life-altering catastrophe are well founded. The coastlines of five states are under attack.

The White House, responding to building national anger and the echoing cry for relief, brought out all of the symbolism of Presidential authority and leadership that have been so sorely lacking over the past two months of crisis. For the very first time in his presidency, which has seen the financial crisis—to which his administration responded with a massive banker bailout—Obama used the authority and the familiarity of a speech from the Oval Office to communicate directly with the nation as a whole.

Long on rhetoric—short on guarantees

This was to be the defining moment of the President’s response to this crisis, if not the defining moment of his presidency as a whole.

President Obama did not deliver. He did not deliver specifics about an escrow fund; specifics about the size of a proper trust account; specifics about how it would be administered; specifics about whether all wage-earners who have lost their income would be able to get immediate compensation. Again long on rhetoric, painfully short on details or the minimum guarantees that people require. President Obama reiterated his imposition of a six month moratorium on deepwater drilling but refused to pledge to use BP funds to compensate all oil workers who will lose their incomes as a result of the moratorium.

The U.S. government has the authority, under the Commerce Clause and other legal means, to secure the financial relief that is needed. President Obama has the authority of his office. His party commands majorities of both the House and the Senate. Collectively, the U.S. Constitution gives these institutions the fullest power of the state to act in ordinary times and in an emergency, to exercise its massive legal authority under the Commerce Clause.

The U.S. government will either allow BP to externalize the costs of its damage, shifting it onto the backs of the people whose lives and economies and ecologies will be damaged potentially for decades. Or it will hold BP responsible for the harm which it has caused.

We are not even referencing punishment for the completely reckless and avoidable oil spill. Just compensation. Immediate, ongoing, full compensation.

Tonight’s speech—particularly in what was missing—projected President Obama’s unwillingness to act in the face of this catastrophe.

His election benefitted from the repository of the people’s aspirations. He promised change. He promised hope. Tonight, for the people of the Gulf Coast, that promise remains unfulfilled.

[Ladywriter 7,783]

no matter how anybody tries to spin it....

our govt failed miserably to prevent this disaster. Minerals Management Services was corrupt to the core, PBO came in and made a superficial attempt to clean it up. Obviously not enough to make someone read a disaster response plan or stop him from approving more deep water drilling. MMS=mega fail. Fucktards simply didn't do the job we pay them to do. I'm not sure there's been enough firing over there.

And why is it we have to wait nearly 2 mutherfuckin months for the great minds of our nation to come up with build barrier islands? Even the reallllly stupid can deduce putting something in the way of the toxic diarrhea might block it from reaching land... now that's too late too. Its in the marshes and on the beaches, its still coming.

We've got a fucking ginormous mess to clean up now; its time for every mother fucker to wake the fuck up and look at how we got here. They can start by looking at these forms. Its no secret that I think W/Cheeny were the worst president ever. Cheeny in a private meeting w/ oil and energy big bosses and then ~ta da~ massive deregulation and the polluters are all cool to police themselves. Puppet Bush kicks off shore drilling down a 90 degree fucking incline even though we only have 2% of the earths oil reserves in our territory. As those pieces of shit leave office assholes around America start their drill baby drill chant. PBO comes in and kisses republican ass much to the fury of his supporters, and opens up more territory for fucking drilling.

How about instead of drilling a mile before the surface we try some other drilling, the lobotomy kind. The greedy self absorbed assclown with 2 SUV's in the driveway of his big ass house with only two fuckin people living in it aint really using his brain anyway.

yeah... mostly I was pretty fuckin disappointed by his address. It's a consistent pattern when it comes to Obama. He's weak, he sucks republican ass all day long. He bows down to the fucking nutters and flips all of us who got his sorry ass elected the bird.

I find it extremely hard to believe that President Hilliary Clinton would have waited 57 fucking days to announce barrier islands. She woulda had oil slick Tony on the fuckin phone on day 1. The democrats screwed us royally picking Barry over Hilliary, but they needed to protect their bullshittery (see MMS) and knew Hill wouldn't play dumb shit when it comes to things like making sure every child has a long healthy life in a clean future.

There was only 1 part of the speech that was worth the time it took to watch. He addressed his/my/our generation and all but begged us to raise our voices and demand clean energy now.

We cannot consign our children to this future. The tragedy unfolding on our coast is the most painful and powerful reminder yet that the time to embrace a clean energy future is now. Now is the moment for this generation to embark on a national mission to unleash America’s innovation and seize control of our own destiny.

News flash asshole, us "extreme greenies" have been screaming about it for fucking years.

Look and really see who put us in this barrel of shit, not me or you. Our parents are the me me me generation that spent the 80's hitting the mall after they blew a few lines of coke. These fuckers are in charge of the govt now. They were raised by folks who threw recyclable cans and bottles out the car window as they drank and drove their 8 cylinder rod around town.

Not a single shred of respect or compassion for future generations.

We aren't them. Let's not act like we are.

Please let it be time to

[nomedia=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gh76oepKFc8]YouTube- President Obama's Oval Office Address on BP Oil Spill & Energy[/nomedia]

[Ladywriter 7,783]

The BP Speech: Obama Still Refuses to Lead

Faced with the worst environmental disaster in history, Obama wants change. He just won't fight for it.

[Ladywriter 7,783]

...........

yo

ya know what?

now I'm fucking pissed

QRYtXBgEsWo

LISTEN TO ME!

[Ladywriter 7,783]

after 8 pages I do not need to convince anybody with a working brain that this is bullshit

what I feel compelled to do from my seat at the heart of the Marcellus Shale Drilling controversy is INSIST

NO NEW DRILLING ANYWHERE FOR ANYTHING EVER YOU STUPID FUCKTARDS!!!

END OF REPORT......

[Pchan 5,162]

Hear hear.

[Ladywriter 7,783]

[ame=http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/37820731#37820731]msnbc.com Video Player[/ame]

BP says it's spent $2 billion so far on oil spill

Meantime, Deepwater worker says he ID'd oil leak weeks before blast

Shares of BP, which have lost about half their value since the rig Deepwater Horizon burned and sank off the Louisiana coast, were down nearly 5 percent Monday in London trading at $5.06. The rig was owned by Transocean Ltd. but run by BP. BP also argued that its partners in the oil well project must share responsibility for the disaster costs. BP owned 65 percent of the well, while Anadarko Petroleum Corp. had 25 percent stake and a subsidiary of Mitsui & Co. Ltd. of Japan had a 10 percent stake.

Anadarko said Friday the joint operating agreement made BP responsible for any damage due to gross negligence or willful misconduct. BP shot back Monday that all the partners shared in liability for oil spill damages.

[Ladywriter 7,783]

Oil spill firms tapping a well of lobbyists

BP, Transocean prepare for a Washington public-relations offensive

[DeathscytheX 9,732]

http://gizmodo.com/5568425/the-stained-earth-courtesy-of-bp

pE-1G_476nA

[Ladywriter 7,783]

Nausea, vomiting, nosebleeds, headaches, and chest pain: these are just some of the identical symptoms reported by people working around BP's oil in the Gulf Coast.[1]

More than 100 people in the Gulf have fallen ill from BP's oil, and that doesn't include untold numbers of workers hiding their symptoms for fear of being fired by BP.[2]

Yet despite clear evidence of illness from exposure to oil and dispersants, BP refuses to provide respirators to people cleaning up its disaster. Why? Because BP is afraid of the PR impact from images of people wearing this critical safety equipment in pictures and on TV.[3] BP even threatened to fire workers who choose to wear their own.[4]

This is ridiculous. No amount of good PR images for BP is worth the health and lives of people battling BP's oil in the Gulf Coast.

Sign our petition for BP to pay for proper safety equipment and respirators for cleanup workers. Click here to add your name:

http://action.firedoglake.com/respirators

We'll make sure that your petition also goes to key government decision makers on the oil disaster and worker safety so they can take steps to protect cleanup workers in the Gulf.

BP's oil disaster isn't the first time in recent history that workers responding to a hazardous emergency have had their lungs - and lives - put at risk.

Just like after 9/11, we're already seeing cleanup workers with serious health problems after exposure to toxic chemicals without adequate protection. If the government properly enforced its safety standards after 9/11, every person at Ground Zero would have worn a respirator that could have protected their health and saved their lives.[5]

With workers' rights advocacy group American Rights at Work, we're launching this petition to key decision makers in the oil disaster for a simple idea: any worker who wants safety equipment like breathing respirators should get it, and BP should pick up the tab. We can't afford to fail our nation's workers in yet another disaster.

Join our call to make BP to pay for breathing respirators and other safety equipment for workers in the Gulf. Click here to sign our petition:

http://action.firedoglake.com/respirators

Cleanup workers deserve the best protection possible from the nasty effects from BP's oil. Paying for safety equipment for workers who want it is really the least BP should do for the people cleaning up its disaster.

The government agency responsible for overseeing worker safety - the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) - says that their tests showed respirators aren't yet required for cleanup workers in the Gulf.[6]

While OSHA is still studying the air quality in the Gulf, it should be no coincidence that dozens of people working around BP's oil disaster are falling ill with symptoms of chemical exposure to oil. Every worker needs access to the right respirators, training and safety equipment for protection from BP's toxic stew in the Gulf.

In addition to sending our petition to BP, we'll also send it to US Oil Disaster leader Thad Allen and government worker safety officials to make your voice heard by people who can make change happen. Click here to add your name to our call for BP to pay for respirators and safety equipment for cleanup workers:

http://action.firedoglake.com/respirators

Thanks for all you do to take on BP in its disaster.

Michael Whitney

Firedoglake

[Ladywriter 7,783]

BP: The oil spill is good for Gulf businesses!

Oil giant's in-house magazine reinvents slick as stroke of luck for area entrepreneurs.

[ame=http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/37837646#37837646]msnbc.com Video Player[/ame]

[Ladywriter 7,783]

Shocker: Judge Who Blocked Drilling Moratorium Has Massive Holdings in Energy Companies

By Tana Ganeva

http://blogs.alternet.org/speakeasy/2010/06/22/shocker-judge-who-blocked-drilling-moratoriam-has-massive-holdings-in-energy-companies/

Drilling Ban Blocked; U.S. Will Issue New Order

WASHINGTON — A federal judge in New Orleans on Tuesday blocked a six-month moratorium on deep-water drilling projects that the Obama administration imposed after the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. The White House swiftly vowed to appeal the ruling.

[Ladywriter 7,783]

for fucks sake

Oil Cap Removed: Oil Spill Now Gushing Unchecked

www.huffingtonpost.comNEW ORLEANS (AP) -- Hundreds of thousands of gallons more oil gushed into the Gulf of Mexico on Wednesday after an undersea robot bumped a venting system and forced BP to remove a cap that had been containing some of the crude. When the robot bumped the system, gas rose through the vent that carries...

[Ladywriter 7,783]

Oil gushing at spill site after vent damaged

Cap removed after sub hits vent; 2 cleanup workers die in separate events

New drilling ban order

On Tuesday, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said he will issue a new order imposing a moratorium on deepwater drilling after a federal judge struck down the existing one. Salazar said in a statement that the new order will contain additional information making clear why the six-month drilling pause was necessary in the wake of the Gulf oil spill. The judge in New Orleans who struck down the moratorium earlier in the day complained there wasn't enough justification for it.

Salazar pointed to indications of inadequate industry safety precautions on deepwater wells. "Based on this ever-growing evidence, I will issue a new order in the coming days that eliminates any doubt that a moratorium is needed, appropriate, and within our authorities."

[DeathscytheX 9,732]

2AAa0gd7ClM

pretty much says it all.

[Ladywriter 7,783]

Conflict of interest for judge in offshore drilling case?

Rachel Maddow reports on revelations that the judge who overturned the moratorium on offshore drilling holds stock in Transocean, the company that owns the Deepwater Horizon rig.

[ame=http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26315908/vp/37863248#37863248]Rachel Maddow Show[/ame]

[Ladywriter 7,783]

Containment cap again collecting oil

Greenpeace / Reuters

An official onboard the ship siphoning oil from the well says the cap on top has been reattached and is again capturing some of the crude. Full story | Video

[DeathscytheX 9,732]

qO193f8xAls

[Ladywriter 7,783]

so sickening

ppl are youtubing that it rained oil in La. and Fla. Have ya heard anything about it down there?

Research Mission Studies Oil Spill Using Autonomous Underwater Vehicle and Mass Spectrometry

[Ladywriter 7,783]

Rachel Maddow talks with oil industry expert Bob Cavnar about whether a moratorium on deepwater offshore drilling would really be detrimental to the oil industry and whether there is any remaining oil spill response capacity in the event of another leak or spill.

[ame=http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26315908/vp/37913267#37913267]Rachel Maddow Show[/ame]