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Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Written by The Independent Weekly Staff
C'EST BON**
From Virginia, Michigan, California, Maryland, Missouri, even Canada...
PAS BON
The Associated Press' breaking story last Thursday that the federal government had halted all offshore drilling...
COUILLON
Not since John Lennon's "more popular than Jesus" remark in 1966 has an Englishman more thoroughly ticked off...
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Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Written by The Independent Weekly Staff
**
C'EST BON
From Virginia, Michigan, California, Maryland, Missouri, even Canada, the inquiries are pouring in: How can I help? What can I do? One of the most-read stories at theind.com over the last month has been the April 30 blog, "Volunteer for oil spill clean-up." We provided a number for contacting BP to sign up. But reaching BP has evidently been no small feat. So readers have been reaching out to each other - teenagers, college students, retirees, working stiffs hoping to use their summer vacation to travel hundreds or thousand of miles from their homes and come to our steamy, polluted coast and help. To do something. Anything. They're posting comments and leaving their e-mail addresses, waiting for instructions. Amid the tragedy of 11 lives lost and hundreds of miles of Gulf Coast shoreline sullied by BP's mortal blunder, here's proof that the worst brings out the best in many of us.
PAS BON
The Associated Press' breaking story last Thursday that the federal government had halted all offshore drilling - the story was based on an e-mail the AP obtained that was penned by a Minerals Management Service supervisor of field operations for the Gulf of Mexico, a pretty damn good source - sent the local oil and gas industry into a tizzy. The MMS official (MMS oversees all offshore drilling) wrote that "until further notice" no new drilling is being allowed in the Gulf, "no matter the water depth." The mixed signal came a day after regulators had approved a new permit for drilling in shallow water. Within no time the Interior Department was denying that it had extended a drilling freeze to the Gulf's shallow waters. As it stands now, the six-month moratorium is for drilling in water depths of 500 feet or more, which is predicted to have a profound impact on south Louisiana's economy.
COUILLON
Not since John Lennon's "more popular than Jesus" remark in 1966 has an Englishman more thoroughly ticked off Americans, particularly those of the Southern persuasion. A contrite Tony Hayward, chief executive of British Petroleum, has taken to the airwaves lately promising to "make this right" in a series of commercials seeking to establish trust with a seething Gulf Coast. But after a steady stream of inanely insensitive comments demonstrating just how emotionally removed he is from the disaster, Hayward has a long way to go. From "I'd like my life back" to "the Gulf of Mexico is a very big ocean" to "food poisoning is clearly a big issue," the slimy limey has been a reliable gusher of gaffes. When your company hires a former spokeswoman for Vice President Dick Cheney to take your place at press conferences, well, nuf said.