Seymour Friendly

A court allows Shell to move ahead on drilling in the Arctic even as we still cannot firmly know how much oil is spilling in the Gulf, because none of these companies has been required to develop a technique for measuring a leak rate concretely.

We can’t even know if the Horizon blowout preventer was safely functioning at the point of the blowout and explosion, as BP apparently falsified tests on these devices frequently. More to the point, MMS let them.

As Obama may be proposing the first real and positive change at the Federal level to address the extraction industry in a very long time, Senator Mary Landrieu (D-Oil) continues to demand more drilling.

Mary Landrieu and David Vitter, the two Senators from Louisiana, speak out in favor of continuing oil drilling as the Horizon oil slick threatens their state’s environment and livelihood. Lieberman backs them up from his perch in the Senate. Pelosi signals no resistance from the vaunted House Democratic majority.

The political games worsen as the spill continues uncontrollably. BP has constructed a rusty, four-story steel box to deal with the disaster brought on by its 350 million dollar oil rig.

Mass media, industry, and Washington, DC have begun their inevitable hysteria and gamesmanship as the Horizon slick steadily grows and threatens more and more of the Gulf coast.

In a simply unconscionable act of pure institutionalized racism and xenophobia, Arizona is attempting to purge its school system of foreign teachers and curricula that emphasize ethnic diversity.

The world appears to have finally woken up to the vast and steadily growing disaster that is the Deepwater Horizon spill. We are seeing the start of a slow-motion replay of the Exxon Valdez disaster.

Initial responses from some major environmental organizations one might expect to be very strong have been very tepid indeed. Let’s monitor these various organizations over time and see if they earn their donations and membership fees.

Following on the footsteps of the Massey collapse, a mine in Kentucky has collapsed as well. Authorities fear fatalities.