Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Nuke the Leaking Oil Well?



The BP oil disaster has a surreal feel to it. It seems bizarre that the press doesn't provide more coverage of what is happening at the wellhead as BP attempts to plug the gusher. Oh sure, we have the live video shots of the leaking oil, but how do we know what we are actually seeing? Many days I open the newspaper expecting to see news of how the effort is going, only to find little or none. What news that's reported is usually buried in a story about political maneuvering or BP's economic ramifications from the disaster.

What's up with this? The fate of the planet's ecosystem may hinge on events 5000 feet underwater. Why doesn't it receive coverage comparable to Major League sports or American Idol?

I'm not trying to promote conspiracy theories about the disaster, but lack of open news reporting is precisely what encourages such theories to spawn. Could it be that the US government does not have jurisdiction over the disaster site? BP is a crown corporation theoretically under British flag. The lack of open access and BP's evident calling of shots suggests that all is not as expected. Obama's efforts appear focused on managing the political angle at the behest of his advisors, while Republicans look even more foolish as they rush to defend BP.

There are also disturbing news reports that Goldman Sachs divested a large chunk of BP stock shortly before the initial explosion, as did the CEO of BP. Any hint of foreknowledge certainly would get the conspiracy rumors cranking. This is reminiscent of 9/11, where large players in the market shorted the stock of the two airlines involved, just days prior to the attack. Somebody obviously knew. Just follow the money.

I am very frustrated that it's difficult to find hard geological or technical data about the oil disaster. Some reports say the drilling went down 30,000 feet under the sea bed; others say only 18,000 feet. Rumors abound; that the pressures encountered hit 100,000 PSI, that oil plumes have been spotted a half mile away, suggesting that the sea bed is fracturing. Why are mainstream journalists not attempting to clarify the essential facts? 100,000 PSI would be enough to rupture any attempt to contain it. Did BP realize that such pressures would be encountered? Was it carelessness or something worse?

Some oil engineers have offered the opinion that nothing can be done, and that the well casing is failing. They say that all current efforts to cap the well will fail, or may even make things worse; thus the idea of using a nuke to seal the well has come up. Of course no one knows whether that would work or if it would compound the folly beyond anyone's nightmares.

The problem is that BP appears to be the sole source of information, and it's not at all clear that they can be trusted.

Rahm Emanuel stated that "no good crisis should go to waste", so the administration may use the disaster to push Cap and Trade and other energy initiatives. This opens the door for pondering whether the PTB could actually think the unthinkable - to deliberately cause a massive environmental disaster in order to influence public policy. Right after the explosion on April 20, Rush Limbaugh quipped that it was caused by sabotage by "environmentalist whackos" in commemoration of Earth Day. Could his drug-addled brain actually have had a moment of satori?

Efforts to implement cap and trade have stalled as evidence of global warming has become less clear. The global elite reportedly dearly wants cap and trade as another method of taxing and controlling the minions. Whatever the outcome, the Gulf oil disaster will have a huge impact on energy policy and foster rearrangement of the global power structure.

My sympathies are totally with the environment, but realize that this game can be played in deceptive ways. The myth of global warming belies a much more complex issue of long-term cycles that are poorly understood. Did you know that global warming is affecting Mars and Jupiter too? What heated the climate enough to melt mile-deep glacial ice 12,000 years ago? Not so many SUVs on the road at that time.

The fear of impending doom can be used as manipulative tool. 9/11 enabled Bush to plunge ahead with his reckless agenda in Iraq, so it remains to be seen what impacts the Gulf oil gusher will have (other than a stinking deadly mess).

I also firmly believe that clean energy technology has existed for some time, but has been suppressed by the PTB. Stories abound of inventors having their equipment confiscated by shadowy dark-suited agents, or encountering mysterious deaths (Eugene Mallove).

When the PTB decide it's time to stop buring coal and oil, perhaps they will introduce some of the suppressed clean technology - probably only after they figure out how to control it and further enrich themselves with it.

I'm not optimistic that BP will cap the oil any time soon. The question is when will the government tell BP to step aside and apply the world's combined resources on this problem. Another question is when will the disaster get covered like the extinction-level threat that it is - perhaps when coastal evacuations begin?

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