Well, as we all know by now, down at the site of the Deep Water Horizon sunken oil rig, top - kill is top - DEAD. So, I spent part of the long weekend coming up with creative alternatives on how to prevent a perfectly horrible situation from getting even worse.
With whatever calculations y'all deem appropriate, we can use the following "resources" from here, here, here, and here to plug up the hole or clean up beaches & such without hazmat suits or write personal checks to all the residents & businesses that are going to lose their livelihoods & way of life because of what happened over a month ago. And, just to make sure all bases are covered, let's add this for good measure!
Oh! And, I just remembered something I was going to discuss/ask you all about the end of last week but got sidetracked by a couple other news items. You all should know by now that "constructive criticism" of this diary series is ALWAYS welcome, but let me just clearly ask for some feedback here. What's your overall feeling about this diary series? What would you like changed (if anything)? Do I use too much video or images or not enough? Do you like the "this day in history" stuff, or should I ditch it? Do I give too much information about each segment or not enough? Again, I don't want this diary series to feel like a "rut" to either me or to you, so let me know what you want changed, what you want to stay the same, etc. BUT, BE NICE ABOUT IT! ;D
Speaking of "this day in history," on this date in 1792 & 1796 respectively, Kentucky & Tennessee became our 15th & 16th states. In spite of Rand Paul, I guess I'll let Kentucky stay in the union because that state gave us the one the only THE ORIGINAL "Gonzo," Dr. Hunter S. Thompson. As far as why Tennessee should get to stay, uh...I'll get back with you on that.
On this date in 1926, Marilyn Monroe was born Norma Jeane Mortensen in Los Angeles. About the only Marilyn Monroe flick I actually enjoy & think is pretty funny is Some Like It Hot.
On this date in 1967, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band by the Beatles was released. Sorry, but I think that album's over - rated; I much prefer Abbey Road. Sgt. Pepper's redeeming quality for me is the famous cover that features a whole mess of my favorites in the world of literature & culture!
And, I would be the bad daughter extraordinaire to not mention MY DAD'S BIRTHDAY is today, too! :D
Finally, sadly, this world became a whole lot less "cool" this past weekend; Dennis Hopper died on Saturday.
Let's Countdown - 42 days since the explosion & sinking of the Deep Water Horizon off - shore oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico.
#5 "Oil Rigged" AKA "Cap Fear" AKA "Take Charge of the Cleanup" - Tony Hayward’s also claimed there are no plumes of oil flowing from the disaster site – in addition to having the GALL to say he wanted "his life back" ON CAMERA??!!
All righty...yea, the addition of a DICK aide will do wonders for BP/BS’s already – stellar PR works these days. The new terminology for the new containment effort going on in the Gulf is "cut & cap." So, someone’s going to try to put a big ‘ol beanie on all that oil spewing out now? And, in the process of said "cut & cap," the still barely functional blowout preventer will be totally sparked, and the oil will come spewing out in greater volume and more quickly. BRILLIANT!
Someone remind me again why BP/BS is still in charge? Holy crap, you can now see the oil on the surface of the Gulf from space. Oil is now being seen in Mississippi & Alabama. So, we’ll get to see 2 more GOP Governors who would normally decry "big government" *itch about the government not doing enough about this clusterspark? YEA! Semi – shallow comment here, but is it just me, or has President Obama gotten a hell of a lot more grey hair since January 20, 2009? Gee, I can’t imagine why. Robert Reich wants to put BP/BS in receivership of their North American operations so our government can finally officially "take charge" in doing something about what’s been allowed to go on in the Gulf for entirely too long. Uh, I have just a quick question. While Secretary Reich’s suggestion might sound good on the surface, and I admit it sure as $hit does, what would be the incentive for BP/BS to continue to give expertise, guidance, whatever to the federal government? They haven’t been great (to be charitable about it) in that area up to this point. I’d wager they won’t be in anymore of a "giving" mood should the government follow Secretary Reich’s suggestion. I just don’t see BP/BS being that concerned about "consequences" should they decide not to cooperate. They’ll still have their profits; Tony Hayward might even get his damn life back! And, even if everything goes absolutely positively wonderfully in capping, cutting, etc., don’t be fooled into thinking that those affected by this spill will ever EVER be fully compensated for their "trouble." Alaska still hasn’t gotten all their money from Exxon from the Valdez’s little drunken run – in with Mother Nature, and that’s been over 20 years!
Robert Cavnar is a new face to talk science & logistics on Gulf efforts. He said top – kill was the last best chance to "kill" the well before any relief well efforts in August. Mr. Cavnar’s quickly learned that whenever BP/BS claims everything is going "to plan," they are lying lying pants on firing; he thinks they knew top – kill didn’t work fairly immediately. Keith posed a question I hadn’t even thought of about the reliability of the images & video coming from the bottom of the Gulf; Mr. Cavnar thinks the video’s been the real deal but heavily "managed."
#4 "It’s a Crime" AKA "Oiling the Wheels of Justice" - President Obama & AG Holder are at least talking criminal charges about what happened at the Deep Water Horizon rig. I won’t hold my breath; I’d advice y’all to do – or not do – likewise. BP/BS already has a rap sheet. Let me guess; there’s not a "3 strikes" rule for big corporations. Am I right? OK, I think there needs to be a video or campaign video made of all the residents & businesses being affected by this spill with simply their name, their business’ name, and the participants saying, "I’d like my life back." I’d think it could be fairly cheaply made – 1 person with 1 video camera with the people involved standing with the Gulf in the background or their empty businesses, etc. If any of y’all take this idea & run, give me some credit for it. ;D AG Holder is apparently focusing on environmental crimes at this point. Uh, how ‘bout the pesky details of the 11 oil workers who died? Last I heard, murder was still a crime. The DOJ is trusting BP/BS to retain all the documents that might be necessary in further investigations; I got one word for y’all on that score – and not even a whole word – HA! HA!
David Uhlmann has prosecuted environmental crimes cases for our government before. Obstruction of justice charges could eventually be down the pike, too. Again, what about the 11 workers who were killed? How ‘bout some homicide or negligent homicide here?! Mr. Uhlmann mentioned no emails, hard drives, documentation, etc. being tampered with on BP/BS’s side of the equation; it is w...a...y too late for that plea to play nice. Any incriminating evidence is long gone. Huh...Keith answered my "3 strikes" question; well, I asked that question basically rhetorically. I knew what the damn answer was because...
#3 "Fact – Free Sarah" AKA "Publicity Hound" - Ya’ know, it would be even bigger news if St. Sarah from Wasilla WASN’T pi$$ed off about something or taking umbrage with something. Joe McGinniss has gotten death threats about living so close to "that woman." She’s pi$$ed at the Today show because she claims they didn’t use any of the stuff she or the former First Dude had to say; I’ll believe her about that when she asks to friend me on Facebook. ;D
Eugene Robinson’s the "lucky" guy who gets to talk Grandma ExGov TurkeyLover tonight! I wonder if segment guests get to draw straws for the "privilege," or do they volunteer for this duty, or do they get "pegged" by Countdown peeps? ‘Cause I know for a fact that Richard Wolffe just loves loves LOVES the opportunity to get to do this shtick! Eugene questions the desire of Mr. McGinniss WANTING to be so close to the subject matter of his book; yea, you’d think stealth in that area would be best. Oh well...again, it’s bigger news when the below "person" isn’t peeved about SOMETHING.
"Tea Time" A candidate for the Tea Baggers in NV who went on & on & on about fiscal responsibility declared bankruptcy.
WPITW – Campbell Brown is "whoa is me"ing all over the place. Didn’t Keith praise her on teh Twitter when it was first announced she was leaving CNN? Lonesome Rhodes didn’t like being called a con man; I’m crying a river – especially since he responded in such a classy way.
Michael Savage couldn’t recall an American POTUS who had resigned. ALL RIGHT!! So, Nixon really wasn’t POTUS {insert huge sigh of relief here}?
#1 "Breast Cancer Vaccine" - There might just be a preventive vaccine for breast cancer similar to what the polio vaccine did to polio. Breast cancer is the 2nd leading cause of death among women. The drug could potentially even be used as a treatment even after a diagnosis because tumors in lab mice shrunk. Dr. Vincent Tuohy of the Cleveland Clinic developed this vaccine that would potentially wipe out breast cancer within 10 years. Huh...I wonder who might be spear –heading the desperately – needed funding Dr. Tuohy mentioned at the beginning of the segment? :D