There is plenty of blame to go around in regards to the Gulf Oil spill.
The oil spill is ravaging the water and marine life, the shoreline, the marshes and the livelihoods of everyone in the region.
The reality of the situation sunk in for millions of Americans with the announcement of the "top kill" failure. Now we must admit, the Gulf of Mexico could be destroyed for generations to come. I think we all held out hope that after 30+ days, this process would work. There are not many options left.
There is plenty of blame to go around in regards to the Gulf Oil spill.
The oil spill is ravaging the water and marine life, the shoreline, the marshes and the livelihoods of everyone in the region.
The reality of the situation sunk in for millions of Americans with the announcement of the "top kill" failure. Now we must admit, the Gulf of Mexico could be destroyed for generations to come. I think we all held out hope that after 30+ days, this process would work. There are not many options left.
BP is going to try and put a temporary cap on it but it will not stop all the leaking. The best bet to stop the problem is the relief wells being drilled, but they won’t be ready until sometime in August.
BP and its corporate partners who built and operated this well are responsible. It is becoming apparent that they cut corners and pretended to be experts. Our Congress must set aside any cap on damages and if these companies are bankrupt after this event, so be it.
But, we must also turn the finger of blame around to ourselves. Every American is responsible for what is happening in the Gulf. We are energy hogs. Groups on both sides of the political spectrum scream about energy independence, but we are not focused on real solutions.
Yes, we need to be responsible for our own energy needs and not tied to foreign groups who do not have the best interest of our country in mind.
If one positive comes from this disaster, I hope it wakes-up Americans across the political spectrum that we MUST aggressively expand our green energy production. The U.S. must immediately significantly expand our wind, solar and geothermal energy production. We must construct extensive wind and solar plants across the country.
As a candidate in Michigan, my state must actively take a leading role in licensing, supporting and building extensive offshore wind energy farms. But this will not be enough. We need to equip public buildings including schools across this country with solar and wind generation plants to make them self-sustainable.
I am not naïve about the limitations of wind and solar energy. Combined these sources may only contribute 20 to 30% of our needs, but that will significantly reduce the risks and pollution from other energy sources.
We must all cut our energy consumption. We all waste energy everyday. It is hard for Americans to admit, but it is now times for us all to sacrifice. We can live without the luxuries, which waste energy simply for enjoyment.
It is unfortunate that greedy is driving our energy plans. In Michigan, there are nuisance complaints against existing wind farms. Some people complain that the turbines create noise or vibrations. While I have not personally experienced these issues, I would ask if they would prefer to have their land and water saturated with oil? These minor issues, if they truly exist, are the sacrifices we must all accept.
We as Americans must understand that we are living through a time of transition on many fronts. It is always difficult to accept and live through change. But, we must do it now.
As a Congressman, I will push not just for tax deductions for individuals or companies that install these types of renewable, sustainable energies, but will fight to ensure they are 100% deductible and in many cases completely underwritten by new fines on companies like BP. If BP makes approximately $60M in profits per day, those funds will go a long way to equipping our country with renewable energy sources.
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