5000 barrels a day of oil (210,000 gallons) leak off the coast of Louisiana

[mrwags]

I few pages back a few of us stoners stated a line was in the sand on this one and our administration will be forced to show a side that will define it's term:

*********************************************

President Obama on Friday issued his harshest criticism yet of the oil drillers and executives, condemning the "ridiculous spectacle" of oil executives shifting blame in congressional hearings and denounced a "cozy relationship" between the companies and the federal government.

"I will not tolerate more finger-pointing or irresponsibility," Obama said in the White House Rose Garden, flanked by members of his Cabinet. "The system failed, and it failed badly. And for that, there is enough responsibility to go around. And all parties should be willing to accept it."


The line that we predicted b4 being published TODAY has been drawn. All that's left to see now is if the words mean anything other than just that words.


Have A Great Day
Mr.Wags

 

[Danks2005]

oooh, he even mentioned the "cozy relationship", well I guess we'll see what happens, but my guess is not much, but at the same time this spill is getting worse by the day, hopefully he stands on that statement, and truley holds ALLparties responsible.

 

[DiscoBiscuit]

Big oil is probably investing more money for renewable energy research than any other single group.

Let's take a look at some facts:

If you're looking for a clear winner, look no further than BP, which donated a whopping $500 million in 2007 to create the Energy Biosciences Institute -- a research partnership between UC Berkeley and the University of Illinois.
http://www.greendaily.com/2009/02/23/big-oil-backing-more-alternative-energy-research/

Five hundred million......sounds like a whopping amount until you consider the annual 20 billion profit for BP. That's net, in their pocket. If that doesn't make ya feel all warm and fuzzy, then check how much they paid in taxes.

Do you really think the largest industry in the world has a comparable "single group"? If you look at percentage, then "probably" carries about as much water as an assumption.

Besides, convention should not only finance alternative, they should be involved with renewables and not just marketing pc terms like clean coal and bio fuel.

Other donors may pale in comparison, but Chevron and Conoco Phillips each provided over $25 million in research grants, mostly aimed at developing biofuels. Total doled out $5 million for all sorts of eco-friendly initiatives, while Shell embarked on a partnership with six universities from around the globe.

So, is Big Oil our friend now? Or is this just token money to greenwash big oil's image? Critical of Big Oil's recent investments in alternative energy research are groups like the Center for Science in the Public Interest, who see these endowments as a threat to integrity.

Is the industry really seeking alternative energy? If "alternative" means we can mix it with oil and burn it, is it green or renewable? No, it's just profit.

If "probably" is an educated guess, it's worth noting. If, in this case "probably" ends at the letter y, what is your message? We're not collectively steering enough funds to research?

That might be one "probably" we all agree with.

I saw the president let loose his apparent anger at big oil for how they acted in congress...throwing the blame around. Well, folks...the buck does not stop at BP oil.
Perhaps we need to also look at who sponsors oil drilling in the gulf...the US Gov.

Well, let's see......If we're gonna look at it through the rose tint of political shades, let's add some perspective.

In 2001, our governmental watchdog agencies for the energy industry fell under the scrutiny of big Dick's Energy Task Force. Those words still roll off the tongue like a force for the people, solving our energy problems or at least making us less dependent on foreign sources.

But wait! The "force" forced our watchdogs to look the other way. The administration allowed the industry to police itself. Regulations with real teeth to bite the industry's ass were ignored. Regulators that were too strong to circumvent received enough Methamphetamine and hookers to distract their attention. (Does the Interior scandal ring a bell?)

Enron got to cook their books but threatened more cookie jars then the one their hand was stuck in.

Big Coal decided they'd go ahead and pocket that extra 1% profit, even though regulation said if you remove your structure, it will fall on your head. So they tried to scrimp on venting and KABOOM! A decade later, we have the same game and criminal investigation as a result.

the buck does not stop at BP oil.

Then why are they making multiple public statements declaring their commitment above and beyond what current regulation requires? Because they know it's their fault and it's still considered a win if BP ends up spending less than potential, revamped regulation might require.

But in BP's case, government didn't roll over play dead. BP lobbied Congress to avoid containment measures. Rather than play "task farce" and allow the bottom line to dictate safety measures, industry science argued that containment isn't necessary.

So basically, BP won that battle. They didn't have a friend that tanked the rules, they played by the rules and government lost the argument.

But the current administration isn't advocating a break for the industry in regard to safety and disaster prevention. On the contrary, the current administration along with some members of Congress are considering raising liability from $75 million to $10 billion. Compared to meth and whores, that's about as 180 as it gets.

So back to the point. But what was your point? That Obama is to blame for 11 dead rig workers and a spill that's causing damage on a scale we may not yet fathom?

Do you have a technical (or at least non-political) motivation to make such generalization? What, exactly follows "the buck does stop...."? Where exactly (or even vaguely) does the administrations failure exist?

You might have an argument if you're an environmentalist, that the administration isn't tough enough on making sure the greedsters get fined and the criminals get time.

But as a capitalist, your advocacy rides the big-government-is-the-problem train.

It's certainly in Obama's lap to get this straightened out and take the necessary steps to ensure future reliability. But suggesting he's culpable with no information isn't even empty political generalization unless you're an environmentalist.

 

[flubnutz]

so now we find out that the blow-out preventer or whatever it's called, was not working and they knew it wasn't working correctly, or at all, before the mess. in other words, they just said fcuk it let 'er rip anyways. then, kaboom.

you'd think that, given the size of the mess that could have occurred (and DID occur), they could have held off for a week and fixed the damed thing. the cost of the delay would have been jack next to the cost of the mess.

 

[hoosierdaddy]

It is refreshing to see you put so much time in a post that points out what I have said repeatedly...which is you think more points are scored for emotional feelings and you think a connect-the-dots scenario is worth more than the facts.

And facts are what you seem to always leave out...

But the current administration isn't advocating a break for the industry in regard to safety and disaster prevention. On the contrary, the current administration along with some members of Congress are considering raising liability from $75 million to $10 billion.

You are so drunk on the kool-aid that you can't wait to post that stupid shit (that you got from someone else anyway). But the real facts are that the Obama regime allows drilling to take place, and has been issuing permits without the standard EPA safety standards put in place and the normal regulations adhered to. And the rig that is doing this deed is one of those that the OBAMA ADMIN ISSUED PERMITS AND BYPASSED NORMAL EPA STANDARDS.

mrwags, the line was nothing but Obama pandering to his base...of which is getting ready to also make an enemy of him. Phony and hollow are only going to last so long...even for the over zealous that up until now have simply turned a blind eye to what is happening with this administration.
When you talk a good one, but never back up anything, things don't go so well for very long. The sheen fades from the crown a bit....

*you know I say it was nothing more...but it is something more. It is also a way for Obama to put more hatred in the hearts and minds of the people, so that he can keep us hating on big oil and maybe we won't notice he and his administration are just as culpable as the oil execs congress was trying to grill.

 

[ben ttech]

until our predator drones start blasting french villas where these bastards are hiding...

were not taking this seriously

 

[MoldyFrogToe]

Cant believe the US govt is sitting around relying on BP to fix this...what a shame

 

[sal a man-deer]

Sullying the image of 4/20's to come...

Sullying the image of 4/20's to come...

I wonder what kind of things people will be saying about the millions of gallons of oil being spewed into the Gulf of Mexico on it's one year anniversary next april 20th...

Environmentalists aren't going to think it's a good day to celebrate unless we magically outdo anything we've ever accomplished and 'fix it' by then...

Anyone that has to pay higher prices for gas that could result from this isn't going to want to celebrate.

I never really bought into the story that 420 came from a single group of students somewhere, and always kind of thought stoners were sorta getting punked into celebrating hitler's birthday.

Well now we can look forward to celebrating the worst environmental disaster on that day too!

 

[Frozenguy]

Wait a second. Why is a foreign company drilling off our shores? The profit doesn't even go to a US based company?

 

[turbolaser4528]

on the positive side, this will probably lead to more interest in the attainment of cleaner, renewable, home-based alternative energy sources.

and hopefully some major reform of big oil, the heat is on!

 

[supermanlives]

leaks just like the well .

 

[DiscoBiscuit]

It is refreshing to see you put so much time in a post that points out what I have said repeatedly...which is you think more points are scored for emotional feelings and you think a connect-the-dots scenario is worth more than the facts.

I posted facts buddo...where are yours?

=hoosierdaddy]And facts are what you seem to always leave out...

You are so drunk on the kool-aid that you can't wait to post that stupid shit (that you got from someone else anyway).

Sorry hoos, it's called news. The stuff is cited. If you have a beef, why don't you specify? Because you have no specifics.

But the real facts are that the Obama regime allows drilling to take place, and has been issuing permits

Learn the definition of regime. Here's the guy that's been issuing permits.

Chrys Oynes, the associate director of Offshore Energy and Minerals Management at the Minerals Management Service will retire May 31, reports The Washington Post:

Oynes, who oversaw oil and gas leasing in the Gulf of Mexico for 12 years before being promoted to MMS associate director for Offshore Energy and Minerals Management, has come under fire for being too close to the industry officials he regulated.​

The Post reports that Oynes made the announcement Monday.
His move follows the April 20 explosion aboard the offshore oil rig Deepwater Horizon and the subsequent oil spill.
In the wake of the spill, Interior Secretary Ken Slazar announced plans to split MMS into two separate agencies: one that would oversee safety compliance and another that would oversee drilling leases and royalty collection.
Oynes was promoted to associate director despite his role in a "foul-up" at the MMS' regional office in New Orleans, reports The Times-Picayune:

During his tenure at the Gulf regional office in Louisiana for the MMS, Chris Oynes played a central role in an offshore leasing foul-up that cost taxpayers an estimated $10 billion in lost revenue. The Interior Department's inspector general called the matter "a jaw-dropping example of bureaucratic bungling." Despite that, the agency's then-director promoted Mr. Oynes in 2007 to associate director for the offshore program.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/05/17/chris-oynes-mms-official_n_579009.html​

Now let's see, who was the fella that appointed Mr. Oynes?

This guy is a carryover from the Bush Administration and decided to retire in the wake of the Gulf disaster. I believe "retirement" indicates a conditional or career appointment. That means Mr. Oynes didn't ride off into the sunset with the cowboy. He stayed on and caused more problems. All you have to do is follow the links.

Do you know anything about conditional and/or career appointments? As in how a new administration can get rid of the really bad ones? Basically, they can't. Thus the moniker "appointment".

Let's see some of your facts,.....oh wait, we've got another cleanup on aisle hoos

without the standard EPA safety standards put in place and the normal regulations adhered to.

Hoos, Obama hasn't gutted the EPA. That's your boy again. I could bring you the world but you'd ignore it. Since you're attention span is too short to even cite your own comments, I'll just post the wiki memorial of Bush's former head of the EPA

Resignation

On June 27, 2003, after having several public conflicts with the Bush administration, [Christine Todd] Whitman resigned from her position to spend more time with her family.[29][30]
In an interview in 2007, Whitman stated that Vice President Dick Cheney's insistence on easing air pollution controls, not the personal reasons she cited at the time, led to her resignation.[31] At the time, he pushed the EPA to institute a new rule allowing large polluting plants to make major alterations without installing costly new pollution controls.[31] Refusing to sign off on the new rule, Whitman announced her resignation.[31] Whitman decided that President Bush should have an EPA administrator willing to defend the new rule in court, which she could not bring herself to do.[31] Federal judges later overturned the new rule, saying it violated the Clean Air Act.[31]

Would you be interested in the 2009 EPA Progress report? Of course you're not. But here's the link anyway.
http://www.epa.gov/progress/

mrwags, the line was nothing but Obama pandering to his base...of which is getting ready to also make an enemy of him. Phony and hollow are only going to last so long...even for the over zealous that up until now have simply turned a blind eye to what is happening with this administration.

Tune in tomorrow....same Beck time, same Beck channel.

When you talk a good one, but never back up anything...

You can't even back up current nor recent events.

you know I say it was nothing more...but it is something more. It is also a way for Obama to put more hatred in the hearts and minds of the people, so that he can keep us hating on big oil and maybe we won't notice he and his administration are just as culpable as the oil execs congress was trying to grill.

I wish I could say nice try but it's a little more like...

When you talk a good one, but never back up anything...

Do yourself a favor hoos, save the historic revisionism for Beck.

But you can do yourself a favor and educate. Here's a pretty good definition of historic revisionism with an outline of historic events that explain in further detail.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historical_revisionism#American_Business_and_the_.22Robber_Barons.22

Without a knowledge of history, you're stuck with revisionists like Beck. BTW, John Stewart pretty much destroys Beck's philosophy on a daily basis. If you would watch more than Fox News, you'd hear more about the events you say I make up.

 

[hoosierdaddy]

Earlier AP investigations have shown that the doomed rig was allowed to operate without safety documentation required by MMS regulations for the exact disaster scenario that occurred; that the cutoff valve which failed has repeatedly broken down at other wells in the years since regulators weakened testing requirements; and that regulation is so lax that some key safety aspects on rigs are decided almost entirely by the companies doing the work.

The AP sought to find out how many times government safety inspectors visited the Deepwater Horizon, and what they found. In response, MMS officials offered a changing series of numbers.

At first, officials said 83 inspections had been performed since the rig arrived in the Gulf 104 months ago, in September 2001. While being questioned about the once-per-month claim, the officials subsequently revised the total up to 88 inspections. The number of more recent inspections also changed - from 26 to 48 in the 64 months since January 2005.

No explanation was given initially for the upward revisions. On Sunday, the officials said additional inspections were discovered after MMS gathered more information from a deeper examination of its databases.

AP granted MMS officials anonymity because without that condition, communications staff at the Interior Department, which oversees MMS, would not have let them talk.

Reacting to the latest disclosures, House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Nick J. Rahall, D-W.Va., said while he applauded Interior Secretary Ken Salazar's remedial actions, it seems "MMS has been asleep at the switch in terms of policing offshore rigs." He said the committee, slated to hold hearings May 26-27, will examine these issues "in the context of what our offshore leasing program will look like in the future."

Based on the last set of numbers provided, the Deepwater Horizon was inspected 40 times during its first 40 months in the Gulf - in line with agency policy.

Even using the more favorable numbers for the most recent 64 months, 25 percent of monthly inspections were not performed. The first set of data supplied to AP represented a 59 percent shortfall in the number of inspections.

Interior spokeswoman Kendra Barkoff would not comment on the inspection numbers. Instead, she offered a general statement: "We are looking at all the questions that are coming out of the Deepwater Horizon incident."

In response to a Freedom of Information Act request filed by AP, the agency has released copies of only three inspection reports, from Feb. 17, March 3 and April 1. According to the documents, inspectors spent two hours or less each time they visited the massive rig. Some information appeared to be "whited out," without explanation.

The strong inspection record led MMS last year to herald the Deepwater Horizon as an industry model for safety.

...

Disco, you dingbats are amazing....always thinking the best answer is to continue to blame Bush for anything and everything that happens. Sad that you have such a short strand of brain matter.

And you never fail to bring something like Glenn Beck into the mix. You seem to think the guy is doing nothing but putting out propaganda and lies. You even think John Stewart is a formidable opponent for the right wing...when he is nothing but a comedian..an entertainer..as you claim Limbaugh and Beck are.
But you won;t take up the challenge I offered up awhile back. You won't take the next show Beck does, and tear it apart for us. Take each propagandist lecture and lies he tells and lay them out for us. Debunk his lying shit for us so we will understand what you are talking about when you throw stones at Glenn Beck. Show us exactly why we should not be listening to Beck, and how John Stewart has it right. But you won't because you don't have a single hair on your little lilly ass. You could care less about what Beck is presenting, you only hold the party line...which btw is laid out specifically for dumb fucks such as yourself.
The left needs dumb people to continue this charade.
It was dumb people that allowed them to do what they are doing now, which is ruining our nation bit by bit.

"We were there on day one!" quoted by...take your pick, it was the party line buzz term given by all in the Obama admin, which btw was a fucking blatant lie.

 

[Clackamas Coot]

Do yourself a favor hoos, save the historic revisionism for Beck.

Maybe someone could tell Beck to climb down from the cross. Tell him we need the wood.

Without a knowledge of history, you're stuck with revisionists like Beck. BTW, John Stewart pretty much destroys Beck's philosophy on a daily basis. If you would watch more than Fox News, you'd hear more about the events you say I make up.

The new tagline over there is "We Fart - You Sniff" in keeping with the addition of the new talent like Grizzly Bear Palin and now I understand her dimwitted daughter is striking out on the speaking tour @ $30,000.00 per engagement.

Not to shabby for trailer trash from the Alaska hinderlands. I wonder what kind of program she'll have - "Teens Tweeting Twats"?

Could be a real financial windfall for Murdoch and his son.

CC

 

[Kalicokitty]

new talent like Grizzly Bear Palin and now I understand her dimwitted daughter is striking out on the speaking tour @ $30,000.00 per engagement.



CC

You have got to be kidding?
What is she going to talk about?
How to make every major mistake in life before the age of 21?
Seriously, what is she going to talk about?

 

[Clackamas Coot]

KK

Yep - it's true: Bristol Palin Signs Deal For Up To $30,000 Per Speech

From the link quoting her publicist:

Bristol Palin, Sarah Palin's oldest daughter, took the country by storm practically overnight when she was introduced to Americans during the 2008 presidential campaign. Her teen pregnancy and the birth of her son Tripp, resulted in millions of Americans discussing the issues surrounding teen pregnancy.

Bristol has since gone on to become a Teen Ambassador for the Candie's Foundation, and speaks about pregnancy prevention, abstinence, faith and life.

She recently appeared on the ABC drama "The Secret Life of the American Teenager" and is working on her first book.

It's obvious that her baby's daddy is smarter than the entire Palin family combined. He bailed on them.

'nuff said.

CC

 

[Kalicokitty]

"Bristol has since gone on to become a Teen Ambassador for the Candie's Foundation, and speaks about pregnancy prevention, abstinence, faith and life."


How does someone who has royally fucked up all those things for the world to see suddenly become a 30K expert on them????
Unless seeing and hearing a retard in action at her speaking engagements allows people to learn from her mistakes.

I'd rather hear someone with a shining record of personal success in those areas speak.

 

[Clackamas Coot]

KK

Did Bristol ever finish high-school? Even in the GOP that would seem like a worthy goal perhaps. Getting a GED might launch a political career for young Bristol - perhaps at the head of a Repuba-Bubba Think Tank. Like "The Stuff I Knowed About Institute" in Butt Crack, Georgia.

Perhaps as an analyst on the LimpNutz Comedy Hour or a pole dancer on Blech's daily red-meat feed fest.

Regardless she will be warmly welcomed at county and state fairs across the midwest and southeast. A dozen or so cans of Pabst Blue Ribbon and a snort of meth and it's off to hear the Palins!

"Someday we'll laugh about this once we're sedated" - John McCain's Bootle Boy

CC

 

[hoosierdaddy]

See how easy it is for your types to get sidetracked into a hate fest?
And I'm sure both of you measure up in your own personal lives.
Simple minds breed simple thoughts.
You folks are perfect examples of the simpleton mentality. A sizable degree of hatred most always accompanies the outrageous type of behavior that you folks display. Including slurs that would be unacceptable if uttered by your opponent.
You fucks sicken me, to be blunt.

The sooner we get folks educated, and cull people like you from our ranks, we will win the MJ battle much sooner. IME, it is due to our culture being saturated with this same simpleton mentality that has caused us to suck hind teat for so long now.
Change...you are fucking right it is time for a change.

 

[MoldyFrogToe]

who gives a shit about bristol palin! there are 10mile long blobs of oil under the surface of the ocean that are rolling around!