why do americans think the oil spill in the Gulf Of British Petroleum is a lot?

It's not a large amount in the context of supply of oil. But it could kill over half of the life in the Gulf of Mexico, which in turn would ruin a lot of people's way of life ie shrimping, fishing, tourism, etc

Obviously you have done very little research as to the effects of such a massive oil spill.

I suggest you go and look a little at the devastation that is caused by huge oil spills then come back and comment.

This is leaking over 240,000 Gallons every day into one of the earths most important Ocean Areas, The Gulf of Mexico.

Yes, oil does leak naturally into the Oceans in huge amounts, but over time, not 240,000 gallons per day in one specific location.

The Gulf is an extremely important factor in the climate of the east coast of the USA and the Climate of Western Europe.

Not to mention all the chemicals they have dumped into the ocean here to disperse the oil itself.

It's a huge disaster....period.



[edit on 1-6-2010 by grantbeed]

reply to post by Esoteric Teacher


I can appreciate your attempt at putting this event in perspective, however, I think you're misunderstanding the major issue.

The criticism over the leak has little to do with loss of supply of oil and more to do with the environmental impacts. Although you're right that the volume of oil is miniscule relative to the American oil market, that same volume of oil is significant when spilled into the ocean. I do not live near the Gulf of Mexico, but I do consider the livelihood of my environment is threatened. You probably do not live near the Gulf of Mexico either, but you should consider the eventual ramifications of such a large uncontrolled release of oil and natural gas on your environment in the near future. Earth can be considered a closed system; what happens in the Gulf will eventually have ramifications everywhere.

You also (nearly incoherently) mentioned the hipocracy of demanding oil and loathing the effects of its extraction. This is a valid point and one worth considering, but responsibility ultimately lies with the extractor, not the demander. It's akin to saying "It is my child's fault that I left it in the car while I worked because it demanded food for which I had to work".

I hope this clears up any confusion you may have on this subject. Each of us is on this planet together and the more we can understand each other, the better off that we are.

Shane

[edit on 1-6-2010 by randolrs1]

It is'nt a lot in terms of consumption but dump it in the ocean, yeah it's a lot. Think of all of the vodka the Russians consume in a month, now dump that into a fish tank at Sea World. Not a good outcome either. Not picking on Russians by the way, I like me a vodka tonic from time to time.

Originally posted by Esoteric Teacher
no offense intended americans, and if you are an offended american, owe well!

i refer to it as the gulf of british petroleum after kevin costner couldn't deploy his proven machines because their authority would not permit it, or at least detered him from simply deploying them.

Sincerely Americans,
ALL the lude crude leaked out into the Gulf Of British Petroleum in the past 43 days is only equal to ONE HOURS WORTH of oil consumed by the usa, every hour since the leak began.

it's not like it's a lot of oil to the usa's "big picture".
Take a look at statistics, I’m pretty damn sure …
So what if a little water might be a little unpure

supply and demand, "free" market's ideological land
you demand the supply, and blame others, …why?
G.O.D. (*Governments Of Dollars), …psy sigh …

(although it is difficult to assign a lot of blame to the omish)

[edit on 1-6-2010 by Esoteric Teacher]

this thread is so ignorant and short sighted. i guess that little statistic may have worked on a group of half drunk friends, but you are absolutely missing the big picture. this isn't a "little unpure water".

i just don't get how dumb you have to be to try and "downplay the sensationalism" for the sake of a making a pointless statistic to what is a truly severe and life altering situation that we will have to deal with for decades and decades.

just keep your mouth shut and let it keep spillin out, you obviously won't play any positive role in this anyway.