I'm sorry I have not been there in a long time, dear readers.
"Spilled oil still fouling La. marshes" by Associated Press / January 8, 2011
PORT SULPHUR, La. — State and parish officials took the media on a boat tour of Barataria Bay, pointing out areas where oil is collecting in marshes and protective boom is absent or overwhelmed by the oil.
“This is the biggest cover-up in the history of America,’’ said Billy Nungesser, Plaquemines Parish president, who was accompanied by Robert Barham, secretary of Louisiana’s Department of Wildlife and Fisheries.
And it has a lot of competition!
Pearl Harbor, 9/11, and JFK to name just three.
A Coast Guard official on the tour said a plan was being developed to clean up the rapidly eroding marsh. He had no details and couldn’t explain why there is no mechanism in place to keep the situation from getting worse.
I thought the stuff had disappeared.
At least, that's what government and the newspapers said months ago.
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Related: Woods Hole study finds oil dispersants lingering in Gulf of Mexico
Also see: Globe Endorses Government on Evaporated Oil From Gulf Gusher
Nungesser just may be right.
"Panel report identifies blunders before spill; Lax oversight, shortcuts seen; Change urged to avoid repeat" by John M. Broder, New York Times / January 6, 2011
WASHINGTON — The Deepwater Horizon blowout and oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico was an avoidable accident caused by a series of failures and blunders by the companies involved in drilling the well and the government regulators assigned to police them, the presidential panel named to study the accident has concluded.
It was CRIMINAL NEGLIGENCE and an ENVIRONMENTAL WAR CRIME, folks -- not "failures and blunders."
The companies — BP, Transocean, and Halliburton, and several subcontractors working for them — took a series of hazardous and time-saving steps without adequate consideration of the risks involved, the commission reported in a chapter of its final findings, released yesterday in advance of the full report, to be published early next week....
It is called CUTTING CORNERS!
The commission warned that without major changes, another accident was likely....
And the truth is there have BEEN NO CHANGES (keep reading).
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Another whitewash, cover-up commission from the government.
At least everyone got paid, right?
"Thousands of gulf spill claims, just one final payment thus far from BP fund" by Brian Skoloff, Associated Press / February 1, 2011
OCEAN SPRINGS, Miss. — BP’s compensation fund for gulf oil spill victims has issued a final settlement payment to just one of the thousands of people and businesses waiting for checks, records show, and that $10 million payout went to a company after the oil giant intervened on its behalf.
BP will not identify the business, citing confidentiality, but acknowledges it lobbied for the settlement. The amount far exceeds smaller stop-gap payments that some individuals and businesses have received while they wait for their final settlements....
As of this weekend, roughly 91,000 people and businesses had filed for final settlements, but the fund’s administrator, Washington lawyer Kenneth Feinberg, a native of Brockton, Mass., and former chief of staff of Senator Edward M. Kennedy’s office, has said those checks won’t start rolling out until February at the earliest....
Also see: Overseeing the Cover-Ups: From JFK to 9/11
Add BP to the list.
Rudy Toler, 30, a shrimper and oysterman from Gulfport, Miss., called the payment disgusting.
“It makes me sick,’’ said Toler, a married father of four who hasn’t received a dime from the fund. “It’s just criminal.’’
So will Gulf seafood, sorry.
Early on, he filed a claim for losses of about $140,000 for the six months he couldn’t work through the summer. He was denied. The claims facility tells him his paperwork is under review again, but in the meantime, Toler is struggling to pay his bills and feed his family.
“I’m doing the best I can,’’ he said yesterday. “Every day is a struggle.’’
Not if you are a Wall Street banker, some war-profiteer, or other well-connected corporation with a going concern.
Feinberg has faced repeated criticism from lawmakers, plaintiffs attorneys, and claimants who complain about a lack of transparency and independence from BP, as well as claims being shortchanged and paid too slowly, or not at all.
His law firm had been receiving $850,000 a month from BP for its work. Feinberg is currently negotiating with BP over a new payment structure to run the fund through August 2013.
Any money left over from the $20 billion is expected to be returned to BP....
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Related:
“By all appearances, Mr. Feinberg — in his approach toward the timing and nature of settlement offers, in the protection of his deliberative process from disclosure, and in securing full releases and assignments in BP’s favor — seems indistinguishable from a defense attorney attempting to settle cases on behalf of BP.... Feinberg is acting for and on behalf of BP.’’
Well, they are paying him, right?
And what does he mean recovery by next year?
We were all told it had miraculously recovered already.
Of course, Alaska is still suffering effects from the Valdez, but....
Yeah, at least BP will be okay:
"BP spill costs manageable, study says; Seen as well below original estimates" by Chris Kahn, Associated Press / December 30, 2010
NEW YORK — BP will survive the worst oil spill in US history for several key reasons: It has little debt; its global businesses are forecast to generate $26 billion next year in cash flow from operations; the environmental impact of the spill isn’t as bad as feared; and the government seems unlikely to ban BP from Gulf drilling. To bolster its finances, BP has cut its dividend, issued debt, and sold more than $21 billion in assets.
“It could have been a lot worse,’’ said Tyler Priest, a University of Houston petroleum historian who serves on President Obama’s oil spill investigation committee. “BP is going to come back from this.’’
Many influential investors appear to agree....
Now I'm starting to feel sick and I don't even eat seafood anymore.
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Check must be in the mail, right?
"Gulf residents upset by BP’s dividend plan; Many awaiting final payments for spill damage" by Harry R. Weber, Associated Press / February 2, 2011
NEW ORLEANS — BP’s decision to resume paying dividends rankled Gulf Coast residents yesterday who saw it as another sign the company wants to move on even though many are still suffering from last year’s massive oil spill.
Related:
"Fourth quarter profit of $5.6 billion"
Yeah, that's BILLION with a B!
Oil stains linger in marshes along Louisiana’s fragile coast and tens of thousands of victims are waiting for final payments from a $20 billion compensation fund, while a large number of people haven’t received any money at all....
Shrimper Bobby Barnett, of Pass Christian, Miss., said London-based BP still owes him compensation, which he has filed for, for damages from a shortened season after the spill halted shrimping in some areas for much of the summer. He’s also worried about the long-term effect on gulf seafood of the dispersants BP used to break up the oil.
But the lying and obfuscating Amerikan media is not.
“This is a slap in the face to the thousands of victims forced to watch BP line its shareholders’ pockets while they struggle to pay their mortgage and put food on the table,’’ said James P. Roy, a lead attorney for plaintiffs suing BP and other companies over the disaster.
US Senator Mary Landrieu acknowledges that it’s up to BP to decide when and how much it pays in dividends to its shareholders.
But, the Louisiana Democrat said, “I intend to hold them accountable for paying every penny they owe to make businesses and families in Louisiana whole again and to repair the damage the spill did to the state’s coast and our seafood industry.’’
Government told us the stuff was safe to eat, and to load up.
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Time to check the mail again:
"Justice official urges speedier disbursement of oil-spill aid; Any money not spent would be returned to BP" by Harry R. Weber, Associated Press / February 5, 2011
ATLANTA — The job of the administrator of the $20 billion fund for gulf oil spill victims is not to preserve money or return it to BP, and he should loosen the purse strings to help people suffering from last year’s disaster, the Justice Department said yesterday.
Actually, that is his job.
In a letter to claims czar Kenneth Feinberg obtained by the Associated Press, Associate Attorney General Thomas J. Perrelli alluded to the fact that only about $3.5 billion of the fund has been spent. Any money not spent would go back to BP.
Perrelli also said that Feinberg needs to be more transparent, and that his Gulf Coast claims facility should take a second look at the emergency advance payments the fund paid to victims to determine if the process was fair.
“Your immediate attention to these issues will go a long way toward fulfilling BP’s commitment, and the [claims facility’s] responsibility, to provide a fair and efficient process that serves the needs of the people of the gulf.’’
Feinberg told the AP in a phone interview that he would give his attention to the Justice Department’s concerns. He didn’t promise any immediate changes.
“I welcome their input. It’s always constructive,’’ Feinberg said. “I plan as I move forward to take into account the constructive suggestions of the department and the administration.’’
Feinberg was appointed in June by BP and the White House to oversee the claims process. He does not report to the government, and has said he is independent of BP. But a federal judge said this week that the claims czar is an agent of BP and is acting on behalf of the company to fulfill its duties under the Oil Pollution Act.
Translation: Corporations control AmeriKa's government.
Feinberg would not say how much he thinks will be left in the fund when the claims process ends. It is scheduled to run until 2013, though Feinberg is in the process of issuing final payments to eligible claimants for past, current, and future damages. He has not committed to spending the entire $20 billion and has suggested previously that as long as he does his job there is nothing wrong with the idea of money being returned to BP.
Oh, so BP is going to GET a RETURN, too?!!
US Senator Bill Nelson, Democrat of Florida, asked President Obama yesterday to order an administration review of the claims fund’s operations. Among his concerns, Nelson cited a recent AP report showing that of the 92,000 claimants who have filed for a final settlement, only one company has been paid, and that was after BP intervened.
BP called it a unique situation when it sought a $10 million payment from the fund for a business associate, which Feinberg paid. Feinberg has said he never reviewed the claim, but paid it because BP asked him to....
Translation: BP is in control of the fund.
Feinberg has faced criticism for the slow pace of payments and the small checks to victims, as well as complaints about lack of transparency and perceived influence from BP. About half the total 485,000 claims filed have been denied because of ineligibility or lack of documentation.
Perrelli, in his letter yesterday, said that businesses in the gulf that have suffered harm as a result of the Deepwater Horizon explosion and oil spill need to be investing in their businesses and marketing themselves to avoid losing another year of revenue and to continue the revitalization of the gulf, which he described as a national priority.
“This is a matter of urgency,’’ Perrelli said.
No check in the mailbox again today.
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Related: US files suit against BP, other companies in gulf spill
Can't do that if you accepted final payment.
Also see: Residents get $12.3m in Buzzards Bay spill
Diesel fuel spill clouds Mystic River
Related:
"Exxon’s profit is biggest in two years" by Bloomberg News / February 1, 2011
CHICAGO — Exxon Mobil Corp., the world’s largest company, posted its biggest quarterly profit in more than two years as energy demand boosted oil and fuel prices. Fourth-quarter net income rose to $9.25 billion....
That's over $3 billion a MONTH!
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Also see: Merger ends Maine Exxon gas sales
So when can they get back to drilling?
"US lets some halted deep-water drilling resume; 13 firms’ wells OK’d prior to moratorium" by Matthew Daly, Associated Press / January 4, 2011
WASHINGTON — The Obama administration said yesterday that it will allow 13 companies to resume deep-water drilling without any additional environmental scrutiny, just months after saying it would require strict reviews for new drilling in the aftermath of the BP oil spill.
Some change.
The government said it was not breaking its promise to require environmental reviews because the 13 companies, which include Chevron USA Inc. and Shell Offshore Inc., had already started drilling the wells without detailed environmental studies....
Yeah, so the stoned and bought-off regulators signing off on oil industry reports is just fine.
The decision is a victory for the drilling companies....
The administration has been under heavy pressure from the oil industry, state leaders, and congressional Republicans to speed up drilling in the Gulf of Mexico, which has come to a near halt since last spring.
Yeah, the war machine needs lubrication.
The delay is hurting big oil companies such as Chevron Corp. and Royal Dutch Shell PLC, which have billions of dollars in investments tied up in gulf projects that are on hold.
Yes, THAT is WHOSE HEALTH is IMPORTANT!
Smaller operators such as ATP Oil & Gas Corp., Murphy Exploration & Production Co.-USA, and Noble Energy Inc., also have been affected. A federal report said the moratorium probably caused a temporary loss of 8,000 to 12,000 jobs in the gulf region....
Related: Louisiana Still Covered in Oil Slick
Officials characterized the action as a sort of grandfather clause that applies only to companies that had begun drilling before the spill....
And if there is another "accident?"
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Related: Panel urges tougher rules for offshore drilling
US officials investigate blowout preventer testing
