The American Spectator : Overreactions to Disaster

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Overreactions to Disaster

By Ben Stein on 6.25.10 @ 6:08AM

Some additional perspective on the Oil Spill.

Not for a moment do I question that the Deepwater Horizon oil gusher is a "disaster" or a "catastrophe" of some kind. But I am beginning to wonder of what kind.

Yes, for tourism in the area, it is very bad. For shrimpers and other fishermen in the affected area, it is just terrible. But when I see the photos of the oil soaked birds and hear the sobs about them, a few thoughts come to mind.

Marine birds are beautiful and a wonder of nature. But hunters kill hundreds of thousands of them every year and brag about it and have giant parties around it. What makes those birds less worthy of survival than the pelicans and other marine birds getting killed by oil soaked water?

Birds are generally impressive and cute and it hurts to see any of them get killed. But we kill roughly 30 MILLION chickens per day in this country for food. To some people, they are also cute and impressive. Why are they deemed less worthy of life then other kinds of birds? Why is killing a few pelicans deemed so much more important than the deaths of other birds?

We are all sad to see hermit crabs and other cute little animals killed by the oil spill and it should not have happened. But hunters kill hundreds of thousands of deer every year, and we consider this a totally legitimate and even praiseworthy activity. What's the difference? Deer can look kind of sweet, too.

We kill more -- way more -- than one hundred MILLION cattle a year. They have moods and feelings, too. Some people speak up for them, but not many. Why are hermit crabs more important than sweet mooing cattle?

Or take the matter of the disaster of harm to Gulf fishing. I completely agree, again, that the oil spill is a tragedy for the Gulf fishermen and their families. But fish from the Gulf are way less than two per cent of all fish consumed in this country each year. That loss, or rather a partial loss, is not a catastrophe for the world at large.

Of course, we all grieve for the eleven good men and true killed on the drilling platform. They were fine people. But no one hears or reads a word about the 3,000 babies killed every single day in the abortion mills of the nation. They have never done anything wrong, and they get killed intentionally, not accidentally, and killing them is considered a civil right under the Constitution. Where is the outrage?

Again, I am not for a moment saying that for the Gulf residents directly affected that it's anything but horrible. But this isn't war. This isn't a tsunami. This is not a plague. It is really bad and it could get worse, but it is a sort of a small "c" catastrophe so far. The notion that we should try to change all energy production and consumption because of it is just not sensible. The idea that the Deepwater Horizon mess mandates a complete change in oil and gas production and taxation is preposterous. Mr. Obama's demands that the whole world change because of this event are a solution looking for a problem, and not the other way around.

About the Author

Ben Stein is a writer, actor, economist, and lawyer living in Beverly Hills and Malibu. He writes "Ben Stein's Diary" for every issue of The American Spectator.

Letter to the Editor View all comments (71) | Leave a comment

stephanie| 6.25.10 @ 6:39AM

Now, that was a weak article Ben.

R Martin| 6.25.10 @ 9:00AM

Ben's writing has certainly been on the weak side of late, weakness, in particular, in the sense of mushy. However, his last three sentences are spot on and could have been presented more effectively using a different theme.

vtwin| 6.25.10 @ 2:38PM

Ben Stein's stupidity knows no bounds.

Joe| 6.25.10 @ 3:42PM

I agree. I used to love the guy. But he has turned out to be just another corporation loving, Republican ahole.

Mark| 8.18.10 @ 1:45PM

You're great at name calling, not so great at giving any sort of explanation whatsoever as to why you'd call him this. Hate to say it, but... typical lib.

newsel| 6.27.10 @ 5:28PM

Ben speaks the truth - his numbers and examples are close to spot on. Have you taken the time to check the NOAA site. They actually provide the numbers - the number of dead turtles, pelicans, dolphins etc that maybe due to this leak. They are infintesimal when compared to the overall picture. But stupid people want to believe what they want to believe regardless of what is the reality. Life will go on and the mess will be cleaned up and believe it or believe it not history provides the reality. Check Wiki for the largest leaks / spills. Life does continue.

Bschmitz8| 6.28.10 @ 10:15AM

If you consider Ben's common sense to be stupidity, then I think the rest of us know who's stupidity has no bounds...

Ray| 6.25.10 @ 4:09PM

That wasn't a "weak" article , because it's an opinion share by others. I, myself, share a similar opinion and have made several posts here explaining my position on this.

vtwin| 6.25.10 @ 7:28PM

Really Ray, Ben is comparing the ecological disaster in the Gulf of Mexico to eating chickens and beef. That's weak!

newsel| 6.27.10 @ 5:32PM

Pls explain why Ben's article is weak? I doubt that you can put a reasonable argument together that reinforces your one liner.....if that is all you can offer, why waste your time posting anything?

Alan Brooks| 6.26.10 @ 8:43PM

It's a case of a big mind focusing too closely on small details, not seeing the forest for the trees. Everyone else can see that having birds die slowly from being marinated in petroleum is worse than a bullet or pellets.

Ben, you are a good guy, but you might be getting a bit senescent.

Alan Brooks| 6.27.10 @ 1:13AM

... Ben, it might even be better to return to writing about your homes and toys;
even a six year old can understand that a center-shot deer feels less discomfort than a pelican does smeared with petroleum.

Newsel| 6.27.10 @ 5:21PM

Alan,

Sxit happens - so you get all sentimental - what does that achieve? Zip. If it wasn't the emulsified oil it would be a fishing net or a fish hook or something else. Suggest you never get out of bed - just in case Sxit happens when your crossing the road.

Alan Brooks| 6.27.10 @ 5:43PM

Who said I'm a tree hugger?
BTW, Ben is the one who wrote the piece above, that is why all the critiques; it wasn't writing -- it was typing.

Alan Brooks| 6.27.10 @ 6:18PM

.. nobody wrote that it is the worst piece Ben ever wrote; but you might have noticed many of the comments here regarding the article were not positive.

And why, do you surmise, they would be so?

Appleby| 6.25.10 @ 7:06AM

I appreciate the attempt to bring perspective into the picture, but that was pretty sophomoric. (Of course this is a sophomoric culture, isnt it?)

The proles are now used to gawping in front of hysterical 24 Hour TeeVee, watching people try to make something out of nothing to keep bums in seats. Most people probably do not believe that this is even a catastrophe with a small c -- its just a way to sell more Viagra and Cialis to people who have nothing else to do. The more and louder the drumbeats, the less people believe there is anything important going on at all.

This weeknd the G20 has taken over my city, which looks like Belfast during the Troubles and is threatened by the usual (Indians) suspects with violence, which the millions of Mounties and Cops will welcome because frankly they look pretty bored downtown all alone. The other usual suspects are trying to stop the use of Sound Cannons -- Cruel Punishment of the class of people whose ears are jammed shut with earbuds pouring 100 db into their empty heads 24/7 already ... and who cannot hear a fire engine 100 feet away.

Nobody is paying attention to this either, except to kvetch about what it is costing.

We really dont care about anything. Its all hype to sell Viagra.

bluecollarbytes| 6.25.10 @ 7:23AM

What you're saying Ben is 'put things in a balanced perspective'. The painfully-slooow buildup of opposition to the un-American Obamagenda makes me wonder if that level mindset has a future in a country that is being prodded and nurtured into a collection of whiners and malcontents.

David Williams| 6.25.10 @ 7:30AM

Ben, I appreciate your thoughts, but as a citizen of Louisiana I would have to argue with you on a few points. Of all people I would expect you to sympathize with the economic devastation that this kind of disaster brings. I know that most of you out there only care if it bothers your nice vacation spots. If it does then, with a little petulence, you simply go somewhere else. To those who live in the region it means survival. The fisherman are not rich men. They work hard, brutal hours. They often live lives on the very edge of financial crisis. They don't want to make their money from the government, they don't want handouts. They want to spend their time earning their own money through their own hard work. It is a matter of semantics of course. One man's catastrophe is another man's Catastrophe. How many lives, jobs, etc. have to be at stake or lost before it becomes a big C? Perhaps it is kind of like an description once used by a great man: "Recession is when your neighbor loses his job. Depression is when you lose your job." Bless you my friend.

CommonSense| 6.26.10 @ 9:23PM

David Williams, your post is ludicrous and makes human beings out to be moronic creatures with no minds who would stand in front of a train as it was barreling toward them.

What happened to the die-hard self reliance of America? You cry for the poor fisherman who by their birth were doomed to the daily toils of fishing. They had no choice, and no opportunity at any other livlihood! They are forced to remain at a job where they "often live lives on the very edge of financial crisis", and no matter how hard they work, or attempt to improve their situation they are merely lowly fisherman unable to escape their destiny! Is that about right David?

Enough of this boo hoo woe is me bullshit. This always has been and still is the land of opportunity. Don't ask me to cry for someone who "works hard". Everyone should be working hard. Don't ask me to cry for someone who "often live lives on the very edge of financial crisis". Get an education, learn another trade, move to a different state! When did our society become so addicted to sympathy.

You want me to have sympathy for someone? I'll tell you who has my sympathy... the thousands of teenagers that died on the beaches of Normandy. You wanna talk about having it rough! I'll face an oil spill any day to avoid facing the German Army! They died so people would be free and could make their own decisions, so they could use their brains to adapt and improve their situations.

If a fisherman "often live lives on the very edge of financial crisis", my first question is why? Do they have no savings? Did it never dawn on them that a strong hurricane season could essentially cut their income for a year? Did they have no idea that they should have funds saved for just such a possibility for a season or two? If they truly are as poor as you say they are, then why did they stay in the profession of fishing. I believe mail men and trash men usually start at about 35 grand a year. Why not get a job with more security, and better pay?

I will not insult the people who have been affected by having sympathy for them. We live in a world where bad things happen, but thankfully God has given us a brain built to learn and adapt so that we can survive. To feel sorry for them would be to imply they have no control over their destiny and that they are simply passengers on this train called life, completely unable to affect the outcome of the ride. To have sympathy for them would be tell them they have to endure the situation because they lack the intelligence or ability to change their situations for the better by making good decisions and adapting to the circumstances. I won't do that.

Everyone has bad things happen to them. EVERYONE. We as a society have got to stop playing boo hoo. Someone buys a house they can't afford and we say "boo hoo, their house is getting forclosed." Someone decides to do drugs and we say "Oh boo hoo, look at the poor junky, we need to pay for his rehab." Someone flunks out of high school and we say "Oh boo hoo, he didn't have good parents, we should lower the standards, and then give him free tuition to college." ENOUGH! People control their destinies in life through the decisions they make. People CAN and DO cope with diversity. In fact thats pretty much life on Earth in a nutshell.

Does the situation suck? Yes. Do I wish it hadn't happened? Yes. Do I think the people down their were born with the necessary intelligence to assess their situations and make the decisions necessary to improve their lives in whatever ways they want to improve them? Yes!

Alan Brooks| 6.26.10 @ 10:14PM

CommonSense,
You libertopians are almost as bad as hardline commies-- you are automatons. And you wonder why more voters do not choose choose libertarian candidates.

They prefer the horrors of the known to the unknown.

JimE| 6.27.10 @ 11:41PM

You are just a shithead!

Louis Jenkins| 6.25.10 @ 8:30AM

Dear David:

Good words. Unfortunately, Ben Stein is also correct. I for one do not want to see the fishermen of the Gulf lose their jobs, but by the same token we hate seeing 3000 babies nixed in the name of privacy. There are no quick answers, but rest assured, the Pretender n Chief will have a few of them.

Alan Brooks| 6.27.10 @ 9:10PM

"nixed"?
abortion is merely nixing, like you nix your reservations at a restaurant?

Bill Hussein O'Stalin| 6.25.10 @ 9:11AM

Perspective is a damning thing because it brings out the truth. This oil incident may be termed a disaster but this is America and panic never solved anything.

The true perspective here is that a lack of leadership by the government led to confusion.
That provided the MSM with opportunity to portray the incident in any manner they wanted.

scotchieguy| 6.27.10 @ 1:22PM

Bill, the only thing I enjoy more than your comments is that crazy name of yours--everytime I see it, I smile and think: "Bill O'Reilly, Saddam, and Stalin all sitting there at FOX yelling at each other!" ha ha too f cking funny!

Sara| 6.28.10 @ 11:31AM

Actually, Stalin was an extreme leftist. Saddam was on extreme right.

Bill O'Reilly is rather centrist in the big scheme of things. It's only from a position over near Stalin that O'Reilly seems to be positioned on the far right.

Nick| 6.28.10 @ 5:52PM

Sara,

Saddam idolized both Stalin and Hitler, both lefties.

arlo price| 6.25.10 @ 10:00AM

The obamagedon PIMP thugocracy chugs along.....

Janet Incompetano should be calling this a true man caused disaster. The man-child that caused the disaster is the PIMP-in-chief.

In 1974 with 60's technology (4 function pocket calculators, pre-pre-space shuttle, rolodex's, pbx's, vega's and pinto's) a POTUS summoned the resources of this great nation to do the near impossible task of locating and retrieving a Soviet submarine from a depth of over 16,000 ft. The Soviets couldn't even find the wreckage. Yet this nation, unencumbered by free enterprise and capitalism was able was able to accomplish the mission.
This nation, which holds more patents then all other countries combined has the resources to contain and stop this 'man caused disaster'. It is not being contained and stopped for the sole purpose of promoting the PIMPs political agenda.

PolishKnight| 6.25.10 @ 10:00AM

I'm going to take Ben's observation one step further and it will be highly controversial:

Couldn't the same be said of 9/11 and the attacks on domestic air travel? Yes, they are tragic but several thousands of people die on the highways each year. By engaging in (2) wars over the 9/11 attack and making air travel miserable for security reasons, the USA engaged in a reactionary policy that gave the terrorists what they wanted: attention.

A friend of mine was in Israel and observed that after a suicide bomber attack that blew up a cafe, the police and owners quickly worked to clean up the scene and get back to business as usual. This is because if Israel engaged in constant mourning over such matters, national morale would eventually evaporate and people would be asking whether they should just give up.

Perhaps the reasons why we sometimes overreact to these tragedies is because of the strong media attention. Remember the little girl who fell down the well? Americans seem to love media blanket coverage of tragedies.

Ray| 6.25.10 @ 4:05PM

"Couldn't the same be said of 9/11 and the attacks on domestic air travel? "

You're right in that this could be highly controversial, but you already know that the two situations are no compatible. 9/11 was a deliberate attack on America and our citizens. The same can not be said of the BP disaster, as you well know.

I have to wonder if you're just being sarcastic in your attempted comparison or if you refer to 9/11 because you're looking to stir up passions merely to amuse yourself in a faux debate.

newsel| 6.27.10 @ 5:39PM

Ray,

You miss the point Polishnight was making completly - or rather you just choose to ignore the point. The point is: "A friend of mine was in Israel and observed that after a suicide bomber attack that blew up a cafe, the police and owners quickly worked to clean up the scene and get back to business as usual." This spill is bad, could have been avoided (like 9/11 if Clinton had done the necessary) but we continue. Confiscating $20B without due process takes us down a slippery path to anarchy. But out of anarchy someone stays in power - but as a dictatorship. Be careful of what you wish for.

Ken (Old Texican)| 6.25.10 @ 10:28AM

Ben,
each of your points is well taken, but your "poo pooh" tone is not.

This "regime" has not responded like Americans.

They have been a despicable disgrace, once again.

Layne| 6.25.10 @ 10:51AM

Ben,

You are dead on the money that something is amiss. Forest Fires kill millions of animals. Hurricanes wash ashore killing millions of creatures. The difference is a manufactured hatred of energy providers. It is a cult like obsession/hatred for capitalism or industrialization. It is Marxist propaganda intended to mold your opinions.

Alan Brooks| 6.27.10 @ 9:18PM

But Ben is a good writer, he can do better than the above-- it is hack work.

Frank Drackman| 6.25.10 @ 11:00AM

Abortions the only thing keepin the Lower Socioeconomic Classes in check.
Do you really want to live in a Country with 50 million more people?
That'd be like if every Mexican moved here instead of only 10 million or so.

Frank

Nick| 6.25.10 @ 11:53AM

Mr. Drackman,

People are not a virus or disease.

You sound like a eugenicist.

vtwin| 6.25.10 @ 2:42PM

No, he {Frank Drackman] sounds like a Nazi!

Tim*| 6.26.10 @ 12:20PM

He Sounds Like Margaret Sanger .

JimE| 6.27.10 @ 11:43PM

He sounds like a liberal.

LiveFreeOrDie| 6.25.10 @ 12:24PM

"Do you really want to live in a Country with 50 million more people?"

Yes.

Do you really want to live in a country where 50 million babies were murdered?

Ned| 6.25.10 @ 11:02AM

Whatever solution this administration shoves down the nation’s gullet will be the disaster.
We are about to be prescribed chemotherapy and radiation for a head cold.

Daniel| 6.25.10 @ 11:18AM

Ben Stein apparently stayed up late last night, and although he did not have any idea of what to write for today's column, he went ahead and wrote one anyway.

Al Adab| 6.25.10 @ 11:24AM

The Hegelian approach is to define, and even create, crises which are then used to consolodate and centralize power in the hands of the "rulers".

When what's his name said never let a good crisis go to watse that is exactly what he was doing. We remain in danger as long as we react to each and every "crisis" with the cry, "what is the government going to do about it"?

We must look to ourselves like LA and AZ are doing. Others will follow. That is the way of Federalism and Freedom.

lrobin| 6.25.10 @ 12:05PM

Mr. Stein,
You have finally become in person the comedic figure you played on Ferris Bhuler's Day off.
Maybe it is age but you are becoming an idiot.

You do not understand the culture along the Gulf Coast and how the Gulf plays a vital role in our culture.
Oiling biirds vs. killing of game.....what a moronic argument.
Hunting and Fishing is a sport and as sportsman we do not take more than what the nature will yield. BP's Oil disaster in our Gulf is destroying fish hatcheries.... the oil on the stupid pelicans is only evidence of a greater horror.
I personally know folks that are spotting for oil that are life long fishermen. By their most optimistic estimates - we will lose 1/2 of our fish stocks....

And why? Not because the oil industry is evil but becasuse BP is a shoddy reckless irresponsible operator.

The liberals in Washington want to use this tradegy to promote their agenda - cap and trade and the green energy scam.

The conservative media who have become(sadly) a bunch of idiots are desparately trying to use the disaster to politically stop Obama who they will disagree with any chance they get.

Both are missing the point. Its simpler than that albeit less satisfying to you both.

Simply put - BP is a dangerously irresponsible corporate entity. Their actions is threatening our way of life for probably at least a decade.

And not just tourism you goddamn simpleton!

And you morons who somehow think the pensioners of BP, their franchisees and their poor pitiful employees are victims not deserving to suffer because of one irresponsible act have your value system all wrong.

BP will make us whole for loss of property, value, income, tax base, life style, loss of use and every other tiny inconveneince before their pitiful little shareholders and stakeholders see another goddamn dime......because they have been reckless and irresponsible .

It serves the greater good for damage to be properly placed - so the next deep water driller will dot his I's and cross his T's before he pokes another hole in the ground to get the black gold we all so desperately clamour for.

A thought to leave you with....to orientate you properly....

arlo price| 6.25.10 @ 1:06PM

And why hasn't the current regime committed ALL the advanced technological resources that this country possesses to avert the continuing disaster?

jennifer| 6.25.10 @ 9:55PM

Because you our government and government leader are using BP as a whipping boy for all of Americas ills...because it fixes HIS problems...and HIS agenda...and it makes you folks at home feel safe that we caught the bad guy

Remember…. the core of this administrations thinking is encapsulated in the saying “never let a crisis go to waste.”
With the spill and moratorium legal battle continuing
1. He can push Enron’s Cap-and-Trade…
2. He can increase the deficit though more “emergency” spending
3. He can increase the size of the federal government
4. He can give out more patronage positions
5. He has more villains to fight against
6. He can energize his greenie base
7. He does not need to waive the Jones Act…it waives itself

Looks like he his carbon tax base...........

crescentCityRay| 6.25.10 @ 12:16PM

Overreacting???

You are aiding the enemy when you help BP and the feds minimize the value of Gulf Coast citizens, our nation's wildlife and ecosystems. You are a traitor to this nation if you promote our losses as trivial. Y'all have been treating us this way since 1802.

Please give a reliable source for that 2% figure. I realize your figure includes imported seafood consumed in America. Please tell us the % of domestically harvested seafood that comes from the Gulf? Or, perhaps you feel that is only relevant to us small people not into globalization?

As a Cajun, whose family has lived off these lands since 1765, to me, as bad as this is, it is certainly, with a big capital C, going to get worse before it gets better. No, I cannot imagine how much worse.

So far, BP & the feds have not even come close to overreacting - not even a little bit. AAMOF, the feds and BP, since day one, has done everything possible to ensure our wetland destruction - one third of all the wetlands in the United States. Minimize reported oil quantity, hide it subsurface where we cannot defend with booms or skimmers, delay and deny permits for our defense, shut down our oil collection and defense operations at every opportunity for BS reasons, collect and dispose of dead wildlife at night. Deny media access as much as you can get away with. Etc.

Chemical Tony says they will remove every drop. I see them raking beaches, but have you seen even one demonstration of how BP or the feds, or anyone, can remove this half dispersed toxin from our marshes? Show me.

The importance and necessity of an attempted defense of our wetlands is merited. America's most sensitive shores should be protected. Why would our country deny us that defense?

The British ran us off our homelands in Nova Scotia, but they won't pry us out of South Louisiana. We know their unconstitutional tricks and this time we are not giving up our guns and evacuating for any Hurricanes. We suspect they will not let us return home from the evacuation. We will stay and fight for our land and way of life. If necessary, we will shut off or highly tax all of the O&G transportation pipelines that criss cross our state like no other state in the nation - including pipelines from LOOP! Then, you might almost understand our value.

If y'all keep tyrannically treating us like some third world Caribbean nation, then give us our sovereignty too.

ken (Old Texican)| 6.25.10 @ 1:58PM

...Ray,
Thank you! See my post shamelessly pasted here.

Ken (Old Texican)| 6.25.10 @ 1:37PM
Oldefarte,
You know.....between LA and TX, we can demonstrate total "fuel cutoffs" to 3/4s of the country.
Check out your own search engine and type in oil pipelines...and study the maps.

If a bunch of independent cuss pipeline hands lose their jobs because of the communists,(pardon the shorthand), they WILL demonstrate true power.

...no heat...no diesel...no gasoline...little natural gas.
There is a constitutional rule that ..."no ex-post facto".
ie: you cannot pass a law against something that has already happened.....and indict a person or persons.
Also,
those thousands of miles of pipelines are totally impossible to protect........hmmmmm.

...and Washington DC begins to starve in only three days. (no diesel for food trucks).
New York city begins to starve in 3 days.
And Cleveland, and Detroit, and Philly, and...well you get the idea.

I hope I cannot be indicted for reminding us that "we the people" cannot be 'governed' without our consent.
Have a great weekend.... We don't HAVE to wait until November.

vtwin| 6.25.10 @ 7:46PM

Why haven't the Republican Governors [Jindal, Barbour, Riley, and Crist] of the four affected Gulf States deployed their respective national guards when the pentagon has authorized it and BP is paying for it?

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories.....5414.shtml

crescentCityRay| 6.26.10 @ 3:46PM

vtwin: The states are actually using some of their national guard, but just that part that has equipment helpful to the tasks. Understand that the subcontractors BP hired, under direction from the USCG and sometimes local governments, thankfully mostly hire disaster displaced civilian workers to work the oil collection and shore defense projects. Personnel is not as much of a problem as equipment. Nearly overnight, our Louisiana leaders could make real good use of thousands of deck and tank barges and scores of tugs and dredges and pumps and skimmers, generators, crew boats, jack up barges stacked with galley, mess and crew accommodation containers, etc. There are still thousands of local displaced workers desperately trying to get these low paying health destroying oil cleanup jobs. It is BP money being spent. I say hire the displaced workers if they want BP's nasty jobs.

Frank Drackman| 6.25.10 @ 1:08PM

Crescent City Ray,
Having lived 5 years in Mobile, all I can say is... "3rd World Caribbean Nation"???
the Gulf Coast States are more like 33rd World, the one place where even hungry Haitian refugees turn up there noses and paddle back to Port au' Prince cause it sucks so bad.
Its effin OIL, I spill some in my Garage all the time when I work on my Car, OK, maybe not 100,000 barrels a day, but it adds up.
And Mobile didn't smell too good to start with, Eau de Oil might be an improvement, I LIKE the smell of Oil.
And Louisianas just Mississippi with some french words thrown in.
Keep Spewing Deep Water Horizon!!!!!!!!
Put THAT in your "Peak Oil" pipe and smoke it.

Frank "I Love BP" Drackman

Oldefarte| 6.27.10 @ 12:45PM

I don't 'love BP' or any other oil companies, BUT if any moron wants to be able to power their vehicle, use electricity, consume products, energize/weatherize their homes/businesses, grow food,etc; then they damned well better have [or obtain] knowledge of our dependence upon OIL for those needs. Oh, and BTW, I [and thousands] do ............LOVE MOBILE, so watch out!!!!!

Oldefarte| 6.27.10 @ 12:51PM

PS: Ever get close to and get a WHIF of a large scale cattle operation [ie stockyards] in Texas? Also, Haitians tain't notin',try comprehending the Mexicallys [ie Hispanics] living in Texas, okay????

Ken (Old Texican)| 6.25.10 @ 2:02PM

Drackman,
I just gotta' do it again...idiot!

If a bunch of independent cuss pipeline hands lose their jobs because of the communists,(pardon the shorthand), they WILL demonstrate true power.

...and Washington DC begins to starve in only three days. (no diesel for food trucks).
New York city begins to starve in 3 days.
And Cleveland, and Detroit, and Philly, and...well you get the idea.

I hope I cannot be indicted for reminding us that "we the people" cannot be 'governed' without our consent.
Have a great weekend.... We don't HAVE to wait until November.

Drackman...couldn't hack working right?

Joe D.| 6.25.10 @ 3:42PM

stephanie and any other stupid enviromental/peta people, I do not know what you were reading but he is exactly right on.

John DuBose| 6.25.10 @ 6:38PM

Once the relief wells do their job, the oil flow will basically stop. All that spilled oil will take a while to decompose. But it WILL.

In a couple of years, this whole episode will be just a memory. Of course BP must pay up. But if the normal functions of the courts do not get it right, we need better laws or better procedures for enforcing them.

I am no lawyer, but I do not see that what our president has done falls within his constitutional authority. We do not need extra-legal presidenital invervention. Even if it helps some deserving folks, it sets a very bad precedent.

jennifer| 6.25.10 @ 10:47PM

Obama reacts to all situations in one or more of only 5 ways:
1. He appoints a czar
2. He appoints a commission
3. He makes a speech
4. He expands the size of the federal government
5. He collects and spends other people’s money
He’s done all 5 already……so don’t expect anything further….until he gets his energy bill passed

Newsel| 6.27.10 @ 5:15PM

You are so right: who was that said never let a crisis go unwasted. Initials RM come to mind. These people are evil in the strict sense of the word.

Dixie Pixie| 6.25.10 @ 7:36PM

Greetings Mr. Stein

Here is a free Movie of the Week idea you can pitch to your Hollywood friends purely for the amusement value.

A villainous oil company arranges oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico to drive down land values. The oil companies idea is to then buy the beachfront property at pennies on the dollar and then contain the spill.

But before the spill is shut off a hurricane blows through. The hurricane sucks up the multi-billion gallon oil spill and distributes the oil throughout the 2 hundred mile wide hurricane. Naturally a lighting strike lights the flying oil and tar balls. This causes the first Fire-Hurricane.

Of course the Fire-Hurricane heads for New Orleans.

The rest of the movie writes itself.

Write fast as a tropical depression is headed north to the Gulf Spill Site.
Tropical depressions usually turn into hurricanes.
The South may see tar balls as far north as Memphis Tenn.

Moe Blotz| 6.25.10 @ 8:19PM

Oy Ben,you now have overreactions to your article.

J Rich| 6.25.10 @ 9:52PM

Obama knows just what he is doing concerning this Gulf oil crises. He is not letting a good crises go to waste. And if it wasn't bad enough in the beginning he had to help it along with his stupid actions and in-actions. He knows that this will bleed the region economically and hasten the country toward socialism which is his goal all along.
I have yet to figure out why they think socialism is so great When there are so many examples of its failures. I guess it is because they are evil people.

ChuckD| 6.26.10 @ 12:20AM

It's like he planned it, which I don't believe he did of course. But what a great distraction the BP oil spill has been. BP takes the entire rap for the spill, even though the MMS gave them a pass on testing the Blowout preventer. And nobody cares about the Blago trial or the Sestak investigation. The guy is a master of deflection.

Yosemeti Sam| 6.26.10 @ 2:20AM

Um - a study in reality 101.

DG in GA| 6.26.10 @ 11:11AM

I tend to agree with Ben that the Gulf Oil spill has been blown completely out of proportion. The reason for that is 1) the media, who have nothing else to talk about and 2) the Administration, who have a policy of never letting a good "crisis" go to waste. As long as they have a compliant media to blow something into "crisis" level, they can appoint all kind of czars and pass all kinds of stupid laws that will do a lot of harm to the economy, but nothing to mitigate the immediate problem.

If something else were to happen in the U.S. to take the attention away from the Gulf, this would be forgotten in the span of a news cycle. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on how you look at it), we have had no other newsworthy "crisis" arise in the past several weeks. But a good, video-worthy disaster would wipe the oil spill off the TV screens in a heartbeat.

As for the very real damage done to the Gulf-dependent businesses, I believe BP should be held accountable financially for all LEGITIMATE claims. turning over vast sums of money to the Obama administration will only ensure that those DESERVING claimants will NOT be reimbursed, and a whole lot of UNDESERVING people will end up with a whole lot of cash. Disgusting!

Bottom line, I think Ben was trying to bring some much-needed PERSPECTIVE to the situation.

scotchieguy| 6.27.10 @ 3:03PM

Excellent point. The environmental movement thrives on exaggeration; the media thrive on sensationalism. I am just stunned at the amount of over-reaction to this article. Of course it is a huge disaster. But only 11 people were killed. I hate to see the poor pelicans die, but over one third of songbirds are killed each year by cats. How many million deer are slaughtered each year by cars crashing into them? You don't hear about that...the media is presenting the perfect crisis in living color. The amount of hatred towards BP is staggering. It's all working to perfection. These people are good. Really good.

Streetfighter| 6.26.10 @ 2:03PM

I agree DG. Lots of drama queens. Also a moroon from Texas, where of course the center of the universe is. LOL

Toolbag| 6.26.10 @ 5:11PM

When I Catch birds in my yard I make sure to spray 'em good with a can of Penzoil. That'll teach 'em.

Rich D| 6.27.10 @ 10:41AM

Of course, the environmentalists are quite happy to drive their cars to protest against drilling on shore where it is much easier and safer and then go to their air-conditioned homes to watch the lamestream media using electricity from coal and oil-fired generating plants.

Rich D| 6.27.10 @ 10:48AM

Obama's reaction to the explosion and leak (not a spill) in the Gulf was...golf. Just a slight misunderstanding or can't he spell? SEVEN times.

Logan Rosi| 6.29.10 @ 9:24AM

You have raised a very good issues through your article Ben!! I totally agree with you on all these points. I am glad that someone has the courage to raise such issues in the international community. These are the burning questions and must be answered.
http://www.articlesbase.com/he.....70354.html

Occam's Tool| 6.29.10 @ 8:15PM

The most interesting thing about this crisis is the fact that 90% of the interventions of Barack have deliberately made things worse. If he had let the Governors in Alabama and Louisiana do their thing and just offered to help as indicated (which is what the Feds are SUPPOSED to do) Berms would have been built, oil skimmed, and cleanup begun.

Barack could screw up a wet dream.