Re: Oil Spill. I think everything is going to be OK

[apples and oranges]

The oil spill is a great tragedy but I think everything will turn out alright in the end. We live on an amazing planet that has been around for millions of years, and the Earth will still be around long after humans are gone.

[DireStrike]

1. True. The planet's life has survived worse extinctions than this one

Not many, but it's been done.

[Lorien]

14. Hey, it's not a problem if it's not YOUR problem

or so seems to be the attitudes of some. No surprise that the planet is in the shitty shape that it is today because of it.

[breadandwine]

27. Yep, "The Earth will still be around long after humans are gone" -- even if that's next Tuesday.

This is a ridiculous opening post.

At 35,000 feet the pressures and temperatures are enormous and we are testing the limits of our technology to be drilling down that deep. If the repairs and fixes don't work, and they have never been tried under the present extreme conditions, the oil could continue leaking for years and wipe out the ocean's plant life, which is responsible for most of the oxygen we breathe. The planet would be rapidly asphyxiated.

But who cares? If you've seen one planet with life you've seen 'em all.

[Statistical]

58. No that is a silly post.

Wipe out the oceans really.

Just to put this into perspective to date the combined estimate for global oil spills is roughly 1.2 to 1.6 billion gallons.

To date this spill is roughly 1/50th of all oil spilled by mankind.

Pretty frackin bad but another way to look at it is 50x as much oil didn't wipe out the oceans.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_oil_spills#Global_total

The oceans didn't get wiped out from 1.6 billion gallons of oil they won't get wiped out by 10 million or even 50 million gallons.

Mankind has a very good knack at fucking up the Earth but luckily for us the Earth is both large and resilient.

[Radical Activist]

67. But it's true. Again, the planet will survive. Human life may not. n/t

[texastoast]

2. ... Warning: Oily Dolphin Pic

Not from around here, is my guess.

We do live on an amazing planet. A planet that knows when it is time to shed a few too many fleas. And I'm not talking about:



Suffering stupidity is just relative to many.

[Cetacea]

78. Thanks for posting that

From news reports alone one would think that the Gulf is the exclusive home of birds and shrimp.

[Subdivisions]

3. It is shocking to see. But I think you're right that it's not going to be

as bad as it was looking at first. That's what I'm hoping anyway.

And yes we do live on an amazing planet. This gusher made me wonder about something: I wonder how many times the Earth's crustal/techtonic movements have release billions of barrels of oil into an ocean in one fell swoop. It's bound to have happened and here we are. Don't get me wrong, AFAIAC, one barrel is too many.

[DCBob]

4. Sure, the earth and the oil soaked oceans will be "fine"...

its the humans and other living creatures I'm worried about.

[customerserviceguy]

5. While it's still too soon to say what the final result will be

I was a bit less depressed about it when I read this:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/04/us/04enviro.html

I understand the writer is pro-big oil, but he does point out some realities about previous incidents.

[DCBob]

28. It serves no good purpose to downplay this crisis...

other than for political or pro-oil business reasons.

[customerserviceguy]

33. Like I said

the whole story's not written yet, but can't a person have some hope that things will not turn out to be a complete disaster? I saw such signs of hope in that article.

[DCBob]

34. I read it too.. Yes, its does put things into perspective and gives one hope but..

it should not be a reason to downplay the seriousness of this potential catastrophe as the OP is attempting to do.

[Dappleganger]

6. You're right--it's not like were launched into the Ice Age by a freaking meteor.

:sarcasm: :sarcasm: :sarcasm:

[truedelphi]

7. yeah. The earth has been here a while, and in terms of the earth,

All is well. Same thing could be said after the tsunami.

However the ecological impact on the specific species of marine life and coral reefs etc is definitely a tragedy.

Also, given that European stock market is in a downward trend, what with Greek and Spain debts needing to be paid, and then the other debts too - that is giving people the economic jitters.

So now we can expect a huge increase in price of oil (ie gasoline) and also expect the loss of tourism dollars to half a dozen states right before their busy season. Not good news when most folks would agree we needed some.

[anarch]

25. the tragedy here is the human hubris

Earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanoes, meteor strikes...catastrophes to be sure. But when a people, through its own pride and folly, does things that bring about its own destruction--that's a tragedy.

[Duer 157099]

8. "It hasn't happened yet so that means it never will"

That's how my teenager's brain works, too.

Alcoholics never think that one drink will send their livers into failure, either.

There's a concept called a tipping point. We never know when we'll reach it.

Well, until we've reached it, that is.

[uppityperson]

9. How long is "the end" and who will it turn out "alright" for?

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/may/03/deepwater-horizon-oil-spill-turtle-deaths-soar

Deepwater Horizon oil spill: turtle deaths soar amid fight to save wildlife

Tests take place to determine cause of deaths, as locals hope booms along coastline will protect commercial fisheries
-----------

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2010/05/100504-science-environment-gulf-oil-spill-dead-zone/

If the oil spill can't be contained, the Gulf of Mexico could have another "dead zone in the making," according to Sylvia Earle, a marine biologist and National Geographic explorer-in-residence. (National Geographic News is owned by the National Geographic Society.)

[dionysus]

15. probably hundreds or thousands of years after we wipe ourselves out?

[uppityperson]

10. Yeah, like Prince William Sound is "alright" again? By the way, it's not.

http://www.wwl.com/200-000-gallons-a-day-of-oil-spewing-as-crews-wait/6963829
The consequences of the 200,000 gallons a day of crude spewing from a blown-out underwater well on those whose livelihoods rely on the richness of the sealife in the waters was obvious. Fishing has been shut down in federal waters from the Mississippi River to the Florida Panhandle, leaving boats idle Monday in the middle of the prime spring season. A special shrimping season will close Tuesday evening.

Inns and restaurants that count on tourists attracted to the beautiful blue-green waters and sandy white beaches already are getting calls about the spill, which has flirted with the coastlines before receding, mostly because of the weather.

[DireStrike]

16. Hey, not yet!

You have to give it a few thousand years at least.

[malaise]

11. Should I listen to you or the experts? n/t

[apples and oranges]

17. Scientists Find That Tons Of Oil Seep Into Gulf Of Mexico Each Year

ScienceDaily (Jan. 27, 2000) — Twice an Exxon Valdez spill worth of oil seeps into the Gulf of Mexico every year, according to a new study that will be presented January 27 at the Ocean Sciences Meeting in San Antonio, Texas.

But the oil isn't destroying habitats or wiping out ocean life. The ooze is a natural phenomena that's been going on for many thousands of years, according to Roger Mitchell, Vice President of Program Development at the Earth Satellite Corporation (EarthSat) in Rockville Md. "The wildlife have adapted and evolved and have no problem dealing with the oil," he said.

Oil that finds its way to the surface from natural seeps gets broken down by bacteria and ends up as carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas. So knowing the amount of fossil fuel that turns to carbon dioxide naturally is important for understanding how much humans may be changing the climate by burning oil and gas.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2000/01/000127082228.htm
___

I know this situation is a little different, but I still think that Mother Nature can handle it.

[Marr]

26. If that's not the next talking point from Big Oil, I'll be shocked.

Assuming it's true, it obviously isn't all coming out of one location. That's a bit like saying arsenic is harmless because people consume thousands of apple seeds every day without being poisoned to death.

[DCBob]

31. Probably a Lush Limbaugh talking point..

Its so easy to manipulate the simple minded rightwingnut conservatives.

[The Gunslinger]

37. It's Rush's talking point already.

[apples and oranges]

38. I'm not connected to big oil

nor am I using "talking points." I'm simply giving my opinion and offering a different perspective to "we're all doomed!!"

[uppityperson]

39. You are saying the Earth will survive after we are gone. Others are saying "we're all doomed"

You seem to be talking the planet, long long term. Others seem to be talking about us, we here now, the animals and people and plants here now.

[johnaries]

51. "We" are doomed. The Earth will be just fine.

The Earth was just fine for billions of years before us. She'll be fine long after we're gone. The question is, how long can we hang around? It seems we are working hard to shorten our time on Earth.

[DCBob]

40. There's a big space between "we're all doomed" and "we're all going to be fine"....

and that space is where the reality of this situation resides.

[tabasco]

43. Yep, you're using talking points.

Stupid people ALWAYS think they are smarter than everyone else.

[apples and oranges]

44. Is there something in that article you'd like to refute, or are insults

all you have to offer?

[DCBob]

50. Of course, small amounts of oil or any toxin slowly released over a wide expanse of seawater...

can be handled by mother nature... any idiot knows that. Its the high rate of the oil release from a single point that makes this situation and most blowouts potential environmental catastrophes.

[apples and oranges]

55. Actually, it's not a small amount: The number is twice the Exxon Valdez's spill per year, and that's

a conservative estimate.

Again, I'm not condoning or making light of the tragedy. I'm saying, the Earth will be just fine.

[DCBob]

57. The rate is very very small per unit area/per time compared to a blowout..

Its "apples and oranges"... you should understand completely.

[Kalun D]

72. Real Scientific Articles

Are peer reviewed

where's the peer review?

[Marr]

63. I honestly didn't mean to imply that.

I apologize-- I can see how it can be read that way. What I meant was that this sounds like one of those deceptive factoids that come out of industry-funded studies, and are then trumpeted for years.

[Kalun D]

71. You May Not Be Connected

but the company at the source of your "scientific" article damn sure is, it's an oil exploration company

[Marr]

62. mispost

[texastoast]

35. At what price does Mother Nature handle it?

And how much trust do you have in Earth Satellite Corporation, which has a Wall Street parent?

[joe black]

41. Christ

People on this site believe this shit but to some it's too much of a streach to believe in aliens, do they really think we are alone in all the vastness of space.

[dionysus]

52. what the fuck is a streach?

[uppityperson]

64. move a Bostonian to Georgia for several yrs

Reach wayyy out big, really do a big streach. could sound like that?

[lonestarnot]

53. Sounds like a study put out by flat earthers and who's Roger Mitchell.

Whatever is put out naturally pales in comparison to what is currently gushing out.

[apples and oranges]

56. The article was published 10 years ago. And the amount that seeps out

is twice the Exxon Valdez oil spill per year. It would be nice if people actually read the article before attacking.

__
To get an estimate of how much oil seeps into the Gulf each year, the researchers took into account the thickness of the oil-only a hundredth of a millimeter, the area of ocean surface covered by slicks, and how long the oil remains on the surface before it's consumed by bacteria or churned up by waves. "The number is twice the Exxon Valdez's spill per year, and that's a conservative estimate," said Mitchell.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2000/01/000127082228.htm

[Kalun D]

69. Sounds Like Oil Company BS

It's not peer reviewed, it's "adapted" from NASA material by a company that helps the oil companies find oil.

There's no scientist's names attached to the article, just the vice president of the company.

a company with ties to the oil industry

IOW propaganda BULLSH*T

[fascisthunter]

77. Mother nature can Handle it over hundreds of years, but PEOPLE Can't

your user name is perfect

[Lorien]

12. It's already "not OK" for wildlife and anyone who depends on the oceans

to make their living. :grr:

[dionysus]

13. sure, when we eventually wipe ourselves out, the planet will heal itself. will take some time but

the planet will do just fine without us.

[Lorien]

18. Unless it doesn't because we've ended it's ability to create an atmosphere

that can sustain life, which is a very real possibility. But hey, a spinning dead rock is still "just fine" to the deadened souls among us. Which begs the question; if one REALLY doesn't give a shit, then why spend any time on DU?

[dionysus]

47. my point kind of is, the earth, even if it takes a billion years, will be just fine. evolution will

start from scratch. all the life that was there when we destroyed it, not so much. :(

[Junkdrawer]

19. Testing the talking points on focus groups.....n/t

[DCBob]

29. +1

pathetic, isnt it.

[Junkdrawer]

32. Usually they wait until the event is over before they minimize it....

But since no one knows how long this event will last....

[The Gunslinger]

36. yep

[City Lights]

46. +1.

I give this one a big :thumbsdown:

[blue sky at night]

20. have you ever feed the birds...

or cared if a squirrel got hit on the street by some a-hole who couldn't turn the wheel....ever had a dog hit by a car, ever lost three friends in a car accident? what does it take, the end of the earth for you to feel the pain??? do you have any idea how they are going to stop this thing....it could gush for all time, then how are the oceans going to look?? ever been to the beach....wtf? there is no "turn out alright" in the end, especially when it is the end of the oceans, humans will die too, not just the birds and the fish....most of the oxygen we breath comes from the oceans. eom.

[nosmokes]

21. There is absolutely NO reason for optimism.Nothing that has transpired

so far gives me any cause to see anything but total destruction for the GoM in the future. This bogus plan of mega ton reinforced concrete boxes being dropped over the leaks has slim chances of success and many problems of it's own. If. and when, the slick gets caught in the gulfstream current and moves on to the Keys and then around Florida and starts moving north up the east coast maybe the country will pay attention.

But lets's get this clear right now; this is an unmitigated disaster on a scale never seen before. Once this toxic shit moves into the bays and bayous, especially since we've managed to cut off most all of the natural flushing system of these biosystems, it will take hundreds and hundreds of years for them to recover, if they ever do.

[MellowDem]

49. Not optimism, but the hyperbole and hopeful negativity gets really tiring...

The truth is no one knows how bad this will be, but that doesn't stop people from speculating the Gulf of Mexico is dead, or all the oceans of the world for that matter. Going on and on about how every attempt to stop the flow is a "bogus plan" is tiring as well. I understand there are people on here who are constant doom-predictors, where it is always hyperbole and nothing good can ever come from anything. I understand that this is a coping mechanism of sorts, but for those of us that don't use it and try to keep some sanity, it can grind after a while.

[drm604]

22. Unless you're a gulf coast fisherman,

or depend on gulf coast tourism, or own property on the gulf coast, or actually care about the state of the biosphere and not just the mere existence of the planet.

But hey, those are minor concerns, right? :sarcasm:

[DURHAM D]

23. Its not a spill - it is a continual leak. nt

[Marr]

24. Who is saying the earth is going to die?

Obviously it's going to be fine in the long run. I'd personally like it if the gulf economy and ecology were around for at least the short run, but hey.

[Seneca]

30. I am getting sleeeeeepy

Yes, sweet complacency and ignorance, I love being enveloped in your warm and comforting embrace... zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz............

[BeFree]

42. Yeah? Everything is gonna be ok

We've heard that one before. It was a lie then and it's a lie still.

[dchill]

45. Move along, people...

nothing to see here.

[johnaries]

48. Yes, Mother Earth will be fine just as soon as she gets rid of the infection

known as "humans".

Yep, Mother Earth will adapt and be just fine. Unfortunately, none of us will be around to see it.

Although, call me crazy, I think that if we can learn to adapt to the Earth rather than trying to make Her adapt to us, we might be able to stick around a little longer. A crazy idea, I know. BTW, read my sig line.

[MellowDem]

54. Mother Earth made humans...

so blame that crazy biaaaatch.

[Edweird]

59. I'm gonna go with "Things are definitely NOT alright" for the time being.

[Bluebear]

60. Sorry :(

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x8275072

[lumberjack_jeff]

61. Define OK.

Eventual recovery after an extinction event is not my definition of OK.

[uppityperson]

65. If everything were eventially be ok, then it doesn't matter wtf we do at all

We can be as nasty to the world as we want because, everything will be ok. Eventually. So why the hell bother?


Right?

[apples and oranges]

75. Not really

[apples and oranges]

76. Not really

[MadHound]

66. Ah yes, domes, a device never tested in deep water

We'll see. Somehow I don't think this one is going to work.

[Turborama]

68. They're not even domes

They're boxes...

[Prometheus Bound]

70. Why do I not feel comforted by that photo?

This is the premier high tech solution to the disaster?

[Warren DeMontague]

73. I think it's going to fuck up a lot of sea life in the Gulf of Mexico for a while.

If someone is telling you that it's going to "destroy the Earth", that person is quite likely smoking crack.

[underseasurveyor]

74. Truly, short attention spans and personal disconnect are a plague in this country

Yes you are more than likely correct in saying that 'everything is going to be OK.' But until that time happens oh say in about 20, 30 or more years........... open up your freaking skull and let something in and please just ponder on the vastness and scope of the LONG TERM impact for more than just 5 seconds. How about you make your way to the gulf coast states and spread your message of joy to all those people whose lives have been put on hold and possibly decimated for generations and to all those working their asses off in the muck and filth putting themselves in harms way to try and save what can be saved. And to all those picking up and logging dead wildlife.

Jeezus a friggen goldfish has a longer attention span than most people these days:banghead:

[Turborama]

80. My thoughts exactly

Double

[underseasurveyor]

82. I think it could be due to the, 'Everything Is Going To Be OK

Pill' that too many people are swallowing these days.

[fascisthunter]

79. yeah... everything will be ok people....

:eyes:

[librechik]

81. so let's hurry up and get rid of these fucking humans so the earth can survive!

Excellent plan. Pointless, but still...

[texastoast]

84. Not so much get rid of them

But definitely get their numbers down. ADOPT don't BREED.

Flame suit on.

[callous taoboy]

83. And how many species have gone extinct so far this year?