The Gulf Oil Spill.

The BP oil spill is now becoming a distant memory.  For 90 days the country watched as  the media wrung their hands over the terrible disaster that was the spill.

Do we have any perspective on this or do we just get jostled by the winds of the story.

Fortunately we have some perspective and history to look upon.  In 1979 114,000,000 barrels of oil spilled into the Gulf of Mexico from a leak caused by a Mexican oil company.   The oil spill spread far and wide and ultimately washed up on the Gulf beaches including Texas and Louisiana.  Experts at the time saw nothing but disaster and expected the beaches and environment to be toxic for years.  As they researched they found that within two years the gulf had healed itself and that there was little or no sign that the spill had ever happened.  It seems the Gulf of Mexico leaks oil naturally.  With this leaking has brought to the gulf oil eating bacteria.  With the bacteria breaking down the oil  the oil disappears.

We are already seeing that with the current spill.  Those tasked with the cleanup cannot find oil to cleanup.

So what do we learn from all of this?  Over reacting has consequences as great or greater than not reacting.  In the end we will see that our over reacting was probably worse for the Gulf region than the oil spill itself.  Except of course for those who can capitalize on the 20 billion dollars being paid out
by BP.  That will be equivalent to $100,000 being paid out to 200,000 people.  That is a lot of cleanup especially if it turns out like the previous oil spill in 1979.   I sure hope some of that money gets in the right hands.

Next time I hope cooler heads prevail.  Somehow I don't think so.