Since when does BRITISH Petroleum make and enforce laws in the United States?

[Speck Tater]

http://www.newsweek.com/2010/05/26/the-missing-oil-spill-photos.html

...snip...

Last week, a CBS TV crew was threatened with arrest when attempting to film an oil-covered beach. On Monday, Mother Jones published this firsthand account of one reporter’s repeated attempts to gain access to clean-up operations on oil-soaked beaches, and the telling response of local law enforcement. The latest instance of denied press access comes from Belle Chasse, La.-based Southern Seaplane Inc., which was scheduled to take a New Orleans Times-Picayune photographer for a flyover on Tuesday afternoon, and says it was denied permission once BP officials learned that a member of the press would be on board.

more at link

Since when can a private company deny American citizens access to the open sea? This is beyond outrageous.