Major Media has given the Protests very little coverage, but Social Media sites are buzzing with activity in connection with the Rallies.   Boycott BP, a Facebook Page dedicated to what else, but boycotting BP, already has over 570,000 Members.  There are currently about 200 Facebook Groups/Pages dealing with the oil spill disaster and more are springing up daily.  People are worried and they are using the Social Media not only to stay current on the latest oil spill developments, but also to voice concern and vent their anger.

BP has cordoned off the areas of destruction, making them inaccessible to Journalists, who can no longer tell the story of the Biggest Ecological Disaster to ever hit our country.   No Flights are allowed (nothing under 5,000 ft) over the destruction areas, and a general Information Blackout has ensued.   If you want authentic and uncensored news from the Gulf, you have to turn to the Social Media for coverage, where you'll find locals complaining about the smell, the illnesses and their frustration with BP and the pressing urgency of their economic situation.  Someone said recently that Social Media is the new Major Media.

On Twitter you can just use the following hash tags to glean the latest activity on the oil spill debacle:  #oilspill #BP #oilpocalypse.  Turning to YouTube used to garner more visual proof of the destruction, although lately, with this cordoning off of the affected areas, you can only find old images recorded before this Media black-out ensued.  BP has purchased hundreds of oil spill Internet search terms, hoping to capture the traffic to their sites, spending about a million dollars per month on it. 

Timing is everything, and this Social Media Explosion is taking place while our Governement is embroiled in scrutinizing the Internet, looking to possibly regulate how and what we can say on it.  The FTC is holding a third and final Public Hearing on this subject, before making its recommendations.  The hearing is scheduled next week, on Tuesday, June 15th, and the mere fact that such hearings are taking place is great cause for concern.

Another important event on the calendar below, is a Congressional Hearing set for next Thursday,  June 17th.  We have another problem Houston:  There is another BP deep water platform named Atlantis, located about 200 miles South of New Orleans that has been plagued by serious problems and safety violations.  There is great concern that we may have another Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the works, before we even contain the current one.

BP's indiscriminate use of Corexit, a toxic dispersant, showering the Gulf Coast area with over 1.2 million gallons of it, does not sit well with the locals, or with the environmentalists.  In spite of the EPA's repeated requests for BP to stop dumping the toxic dispersant in the Gulf, BP has been undeterred, insisting that it is safe, trying to mask the problem and creating Ecological Mayhem.  The people of Louisiana are not taking BP's abuse sitting down: they have organized a huge Protest scheduled for this Thursday, June 15th, in front of the Louisiana State Capitol Building. 

We are now on the 54th day since the Deepwater Horizon blew up, causing the greatest Environmental Disaster in our country's History.  We've had the equivalent of Eight (Yes, 8!!!) Exxon Valdez worth of oil spilled in the Gulf already, with no end in sight.  Some very scary prognosis have been made by scientists studying the eventual trajectory of the oil, which, after being swept up by the Gulf Stream current and traveling a hundred miles per day, will invade the entire Eastern Coast of the United States as early as this summer.  We are now being told that the spill will continue into the fall.   Will we have an oily Christmas this year?  The better question yet remains: how many more Christmases are there in store for us?

As the creator and Leader of the Optimist Group, you know me as the perennial Optimist, not dissuaded by the Economy, nor by the Housing and Banking debacle.  My words and my actions have always denoted resilience and hope, and I've consistently espoused looking at the glass being half full.  Until now...  There is no positive spin I can put on this ongoing disaster and I've been passionately writing about it for several weeks.  This is serious.  This is urgent.  Our very survival depends on how we handle this behemoth of a crisis. 

I urge you to take action!  Stay informed and participate in the political process!  Put pressure on our Government, which is in a much too cozy of a relationship with the oil industry, to enact laws that encourage clean, sustainable energy, while maintaining a permanent moratorium on offshore drilling.  Urge our President to issue a waiver to the Jones Act, thus allowing the 17 countries that have offered their help to actually do so and mitigate an expedient resolve.  Bring together the finest minds and the latest technology in a communal effort to save the Gulf and by doing so, saving the World.  Allow participation of the proven performers like James Cameron and Kevin Costner. 

We have no idea what repercussions the toxic brew cooked up by mixing the Corexit with the oil in such enormous quantities will have on our Oceans, once the currents pick it up and carry it to the far corners of the World.  This has been a mass science experiment, the results of which remain to be seen in the months and years to come.  Of immediate urgency, the use of Corexit, or any other toxic dispersant needs to be stopped.  The EPA must stop tip toeing around BP and remember that it is there to regulate it, not befriend it.   Abandon all this politeness in asking BP to please stop poisoning our Gulf!  The EPA needs to order BP to do so, instituting stiff penalties for non compliance. 

Action on all fronts needs to be taken quickly.  This is no time for golf and siestas for our Politicians.  This is when a true Leader rolls up his sleeves and eats, sleeps and breathes a resolve.   The people of the World are making their voices heard today and in the weeks to come.  Will you join them?

Tuesday, June 15

FTC PUBLIC HEARING ON THE ROLE OF THE GOVERNMENT IN THE NEW MEDIA Where: At the National Press Club in Washington - Please check for the exact time of the Hearing When: Tuesday, June 15 from 6:00 am to 6:30 am