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05/13/2010 02:27:19 PM · #1
impressive photos of the horrific oil spill
05/13/2010 02:55:56 PM · #2
Amazing and horrifying in scope. The corporate owned media has done a good job so far in keeping everyone in the dark as to how bad this is. Thanks for the link.
05/13/2010 03:13:35 PM · #3
We are parasites and will continue to rape this planet until it dies or it kills all of us. I hope the later. Life will spring up again after we're all dead and gone.

Seeing this disaster only makes me wonder why I waste my time washing cans and other trash for recycling. I think I'll stop because it won't accomplish anything in the end. We're suckers for believing that it would. No more.
05/13/2010 04:13:02 PM · #4
Crap … so my link made you stop recycling? I can tell my wife I did something evil today ;)

If I were to show a graph of how much I am concerned about my own environmental impact, it would have hit a downslope as well. I was actually pretty green-minded for most of the past 12 years or so. Started a "green committee" at work, insisted on not polluting the ground or my home with toxins etc. …

But I sometimes do feel like a drop in an uncaring ocean. And my concessions in what I do / buy etc. have shown it. I believe the topic needs to be addressed on a global level - but also on a national and local level … which, naturally, would need to have government intervention.

There very common school of thought that the so-called "free market" will work this out. We can be beaten over the head with contradicting evidence (financial collapses and disasters likke this), and ppl will still believe regulation and legislation is evil.

Originally posted by Jac:

Seeing this disaster only makes me wonder why I waste my time washing cans and other trash for recycling. I think I'll stop because it won't accomplish anything in the end. We're suckers for believing that it would. No more.

05/13/2010 06:38:21 PM · #5
Thanks for the link! Kind of dualism. It's a great disaster and I hope they fix it soon, but the photos are really great!
05/13/2010 07:56:31 PM · #6
Doesn't everything like fuel, tires, and plastics come from petro? We would have to change our whole way of life before we give up on those.

It also doesn't help that people like Al Gore, whose father was a big petro man preaches to everyone about GREEN and then lives in a house that uses 25 times the energy of the average human. Does he still fly in his private aircraft to the Green meetings around the world?

I'm all for slowing down the use of dirty energy but until EVERYONE, including China, Russia, and India sign on (and can be watched), I don't want us to go it alone because it won't make a dent.

Edit: I live in N.O. and have seen all of these shots and more....and no...we can't smell the oil here.

***Here is a funny comment from one of the posts linked to the photos****

One of the problems of capping it off is that they don't wanna permanently seal off a potential "producing" well. They may not say so, but why it hasn't been blown up yet may indicate otherwise. This is mere speculation, of course, but at least now they know the potential of this "exploration" well

Message edited by author 2010-05-13 20:00:20.
05/13/2010 09:20:17 PM · #7
Too heartbreaking....

I hate to see the birds slowly getting killed by that shit....
05/13/2010 09:27:56 PM · #8
Thanks for the link. This just gave me the opportunity to give a visual explanation to my child. I think it prompted him to look, think, and ask good questions. I'll have to do this more often :)
05/13/2010 10:17:21 PM · #9
Wait until Russia starts drilling in the Artic Circle. They have already claimed a hugh chunk in the name of Russia by saying it is a continuation of their landmass.

Originally posted by NikonJeb:

Too heartbreaking....

I hate to see the birds slowly getting killed by that shit....
05/14/2010 12:23:19 AM · #10
The source of the leak as presented in this video from BP
05/24/2010 03:47:09 PM · #11
I just got a briefing on the spill status and effects and it is just frightening. The volume/scale is hard to imagine.

The two relief wells are making progress, but late July is the earliest possibility for touchdown on that. The top-kill method that will be attempted tomorrow has a good possibility of success, then again, the dome "should've" worked too.

If there's a positive to be found, it's that the industry, government and the military have come together and some absolutely brilliant minds are working the solutions.
05/24/2010 04:10:15 PM · #12
My heart is breaking over this, the photos were impressive but extremly sad.
05/24/2010 05:04:35 PM · #13
Originally posted by tate:

Crap … so my link made you stop recycling? I can tell my wife I did something evil today ;)

If I were to show a graph of how much I am concerned about my own environmental impact, it would have hit a downslope as well. I was actually pretty green-minded for most of the past 12 years or so. Started a "green committee" at work, insisted on not polluting the ground or my home with toxins etc. …

But I sometimes do feel like a drop in an uncaring ocean. And my concessions in what I do / buy etc. have shown it. I believe the topic needs to be addressed on a global level - but also on a national and local level … which, naturally, would need to have government intervention.

There very common school of thought that the so-called "free market" will work this out. We can be beaten over the head with contradicting evidence (financial collapses and disasters likke this), and ppl will still believe regulation and legislation is evil.

Originally posted by Jac:

Seeing this disaster only makes me wonder why I waste my time washing cans and other trash for recycling. I think I'll stop because it won't accomplish anything in the end. We're suckers for believing that it would. No more.


I used to recycle cigarette butts and anything else that was reusable. I was almost obsessed with it until I realized how much recyclable material was thrown out at work. We throw out more paper/cardboard in one day that you or I would use in 2 lifetimes, and we have a recycling plan in action. I hear stories of waste management companies throwing plastic bails away for landfills because there was one piece of cardboard in it claiming that it costs them too much to sort it. If they can't do it why should we? I understand as a society we can make a change but I have a life to live and I don't see myself sacrificing my time cleaning cans for recycling when companies like where I work are wasting resources without remorse.

All the effort we give to saving this planet is being rendered useless by some big companies who's bottom line is way more important then yourself or I or this planet. Parasites do not recycle, they devour until they kill their host, we're doing the same to this planet and nobody is going to stop us from doing so.
05/24/2010 05:41:28 PM · #14
Does your IRA mutual fund have oil company stocks in it?
05/24/2010 05:58:45 PM · #15
I live down here and our governor has been begging for permission to dredge and build berms that will keep additional oil out of the marsh. The Corps of Engineers will not give permission. This is because dredging has been deemed an environmental "hazard".

So we pretty much can't dredge and build the berms to keep the oil out because the dredging may harm the marsh....so we sit. I think when looking back in 5 years, we'll say that dredging and building would have been the smart thing to do.

Also..on the topkill method. I've read that at worst...this could blow another hole closer to the blow out preventer. This could increase oil flow dramatically. Let's hope this doesn't happen.

Originally posted by signal2noise:

I just got a briefing on the spill status and effects and it is just frightening. The volume/scale is hard to imagine.

The two relief wells are making progress, but late July is the earliest possibility for touchdown on that. The top-kill method that will be attempted tomorrow has a good possibility of success, then again, the dome "should've" worked too.

If there's a positive to be found, it's that the industry, government and the military have come together and some absolutely brilliant minds are working the solutions.
05/24/2010 06:55:32 PM · #16
I'm reminded of this story from //www.starthrower.com/star_thrower_story_script.htm:

Originally posted by Joel Barker:

There's a story I would like to share with you. It was inspired by the writing of Loren Eiseley. Eiseley was a very special person because he combined the best of two cultures. He was a scientist and a poet. And from those two perspectives he wrote insightfully and beautifully about the world and our role in it.

Once upon a time, there was a wise man, much like Eiseley himself, who used to go to the ocean to do his writing. He had a habit of walking on the beach before he began his work. One day he was walking along the shore. As he looked down the beach, he saw a human figure moving like a dancer. He smiled to himself to think of someone who would dance to the day. So he began to walk faster to catch up. As he got closer, he saw that it was a young man and the young man wasn't dancing, but instead he was reaching down to the shore, picking up something and very gently throwing it into the ocean.

As he got closer, he called out, "Good morning! What are you doing?" The young man paused, looked up and replied "Throwing starfish into the ocean."

"I guess I should have asked, Why are you throwing starfish into the ocean?"

"The sun is up and the tide is going out. And if I don't throw them in they'll die."

"But young man, don't you realize that there are miles and miles of beach and starfish all along it. You can't possibly make a difference!"

The young man listened politely. Then bent down, picked up another starfish and threw it into the sea, past the breaking waves. "It made a difference for that one!"

His response surprised the man. He was upset. He didn't know how to reply. So instead, he turned away and walked back to the cottage to begin his writings.

All day long as he wrote, the image of the young man haunted him. He tried to ignore it, but the vision persisted. Finally, late in the afternoon he realized that he the scientist, he the poet, had missed out on the essential nature of the young man's actions. Because he realized that what the young man was doing was choosing not to be an observer in the universe and make a difference. He was embarrased.

That night he went to bed troubled. When the morning came he awoke knowing that he had to do something. So he got up, put on his clothes, went to the beach and found the young man. And with him he spent the rest of the morning throwing starfish into the ocean. You see, what that young man's actions represent is something that is special in each and everyone of us. We have all been gifted with the ability to make a difference. And if we can, like that young man, become aware of that gift, we gain through the strength of our vision the power to shape the future.

And that is your challenge. And that is my challenge. We must each find our starfish. And if we throw our stars wisely and well, I have no question that the 21st century is going to be a wonderful place.


Message edited by author 2010-05-24 18:55:45.
05/24/2010 07:14:32 PM · #17
Originally posted by kenskid:

I live down here and our governor has been begging for permission to dredge and build berms that will keep additional oil out of the marsh. The Corps of Engineers will not give permission. This is because dredging has been deemed an environmental "hazard".

So we pretty much can't dredge and build the berms to keep the oil out because the dredging may harm the marsh....so we sit. I think when looking back in 5 years, we'll say that dredging and building would have been the smart thing to do.

Also..on the topkill method. I've read that at worst...this could blow another hole closer to the blow out preventer. This could increase oil flow dramatically. Let's hope this doesn't happen.



I'm not sure what would be the catalyst for an explosion (which would be required to create another hole) in the top-kill method, but I guess it is a possibility. It's just mud and an aggregate cement and they are used regularly to cap wells. The most-likely possibility of failure would be the that the outward pressure of the rupture would simply siphon out the fluid they'll pump down, but hopefully it'll hold.

Regarding the dredging... it's a tough call. Do you suspend existing regulations (ie. allow dredging w/out an environmental impact study) to head off a known environmental catastrophe? Just over a month ago, Exxon was doing some dredging and ruptured a Chevron Pipeline which released about 18K gallons in Delta National Wildlife Refuge near Breton Island. That's probably a major concern by the CofE. My guess is if the top-kill fails, you'll start to see dredging and and other shoreline measures increase hugely.

I'm really at a loss to adequately describe the potential damage we were briefed on today.
05/24/2010 08:48:58 PM · #18
Thanks for sharing, those photos are great
05/24/2010 09:56:54 PM · #19
Sorry - not great...sad. Just how I feel. Can't even muster praise for a good photo on this one because if the opportunity exists, multitudes of wildlife and sea life die. There is no beauty, no quality, no aperture and ISO setting that can make this 'great' in any way. Opportunistic maybe, and that makes me even sadder. But not 'great' in any way.

Message edited by author 2010-05-24 22:00:26.
05/24/2010 10:54:40 PM · #20
I think the danger was from a rupture of some sort...not an explosion.

Originally posted by signal2noise:

Originally posted by kenskid:

I live down here and our governor has been begging for permission to dredge and build berms that will keep additional oil out of the marsh. The Corps of Engineers will not give permission. This is because dredging has been deemed an environmental "hazard".

So we pretty much can't dredge and build the berms to keep the oil out because the dredging may harm the marsh....so we sit. I think when looking back in 5 years, we'll say that dredging and building would have been the smart thing to do.

Also..on the topkill method. I've read that at worst...this could blow another hole closer to the blow out preventer. This could increase oil flow dramatically. Let's hope this doesn't happen.



I'm not sure what would be the catalyst for an explosion (which would be required to create another hole) in the top-kill method, but I guess it is a possibility. It's just mud and an aggregate cement and they are used regularly to cap wells. The most-likely possibility of failure would be the that the outward pressure of the rupture would simply siphon out the fluid they'll pump down, but hopefully it'll hold.

Regarding the dredging... it's a tough call. Do you suspend existing regulations (ie. allow dredging w/out an environmental impact study) to head off a known environmental catastrophe? Just over a month ago, Exxon was doing some dredging and ruptured a Chevron Pipeline which released about 18K gallons in Delta National Wildlife Refuge near Breton Island. That's probably a major concern by the CofE. My guess is if the top-kill fails, you'll start to see dredging and and other shoreline measures increase hugely.

I'm really at a loss to adequately describe the potential damage we were briefed on today.
05/24/2010 11:00:10 PM · #21
Originally posted by kenskid:

I think the danger was from a rupture of some sort...not an explosion.


The integrity of the pipe through the BOP "should" be fine. Let's hope.
05/24/2010 11:02:10 PM · #22
Originally posted by CEJ:

Sorry - not great...sad. Just how I feel. Can't even muster praise for a good photo on this one because if the opportunity exists, multitudes of wildlife and sea life die. There is no beauty, no quality, no aperture and ISO setting that can make this 'great' in any way. Opportunistic maybe, and that makes me even sadder. But not 'great' in any way.


Wouldn't you say the same about war, disease, famine, natural disasters? All have produced "great" photographs, though the subject matter an theme are heart-wrenching and sickening.
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