another fine mess...

The pristine Gulf Coast is no longer (pristine, that is...).

We have BP (the former British Petroleum) to thank for this catastrophe.

Eleven died in the accident and approximately one hundred workers escaped the initial explosion. Nearly 5,000 barrels of crude are spilling into the gulf daily, creating a problem for the gulf states and the eastern coast of Mexico. The cataclysmic destruction to the environment is potentially worse than the damage done to Prince William Sound, Alaska in 1989.

Think about this for a moment. The spill from the Exxon Valdez (nearly 11 million U.S. gallons) into the Prince William Sound devastated not just the area, it also destroyed the livelihoods of many fishermen and native Alaskans.

Worst, this spill destroyed a huge swath of wildlife in the vicinity including as many as 250,000 seabirds, numerous sea and river otters, seals, orca whales and enormous numbers of salmon and herring. This was the immediate destruction from the Valdez. The long-term destruction is still felt, and not just economically. Wildlife populations devastated in the immediate spill, have not made a comeback and will probably feel the effects for quite some time.

Exxon/Mobil on the other hand, has never really paid for the extensive destruction to this region, and quite possibly, never will. In Baker v. Exxon, the jury awarded $287 million for actual damages and $5 billion for punitive damages. However, in appeals (2006), the damages award was trimmed to $2.5 billion. Exxon again appealed, the case went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court which ultimately remanded the case back to a lower court after vacating the damages award. (for further information, go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exxon_Valdez_oil_spill)

And so, insanity continues to prevail.

The official position still held by Exxon is this was an "accident" therefore the punitive award was fundamentally unjustified.

I cannot wait to hear the justification for the latest "accident" in the Gulf Coast area. Already the fingers are pointing elsewhere.

Stay tuned.

AP photo