I guess as this disaster continues the thing which scares me the most is the disconnect between what we deal with as citizens of this great nation and what the politicians we elect seem to be focused on.
What I mean is this. Here in the Gulf region the debate is centered around a moratorium, a disaster clean up effort and stopping an underwater gusher.
While politicians and the media jockey for political position or the best cover story, the victims of this disaster search for more pressing answers. People who are out of work want to know if they will be able to survive.
The major industries in louisiana which have taken a big hit are: Tourism, Seafood, and of course energy. OK. The energy industry has a lot to do with the problem so a lot of people might not be sympathetic here. But do to the moratorium (just shot down by a federal judge) a lot of people who had nothing to do with blowing up the Deep Water Horizon are out of work.
As for tourism and seafood. Perception is everything here. If the world thinks that Louisiana seafood is tainted (It's not at all) then the world won't buy it. And as for tourism, who wants to spend vacation on an oil slick. The sad thing is down here in New Orleans I haven't seen a drop of oil but tourism is way down anyway.
That's what we are facing on the ground level. Meanwhile, the political jabbing continues and the media keeps digging out new ways to let us all know that we are in trouble.
I guess what scares me most is the unshakable feeling that we are in this alone. That BP only cares about profits, Politicians only care about spinning the story so that it makes them look good or even competent, and the media just wants to deliver the most sensational story.
It's day 65 with no end in sight.
For more information and latest headlines regarding the gulf coast oil spill follow the link below.
http://news.blogs.cnn.com/category/latest-news/gulf-coast-oil-spill/
.
Comments(7)