Louisiana Fishermen Contemplating Suicide, Need Mental Health Services

[Cetacea]

Source: WGNO ABC26 News

The situation in the gulf is getting so dire for some in the seafood industry, they've thought about committing suicide. Steps to intervene are underway.

Desperation is setting in in Southeast Louisiana. "I spoke to a group of fishermen, mainly Vietnamese Americans and a group of them came up to me and said, they told me that they contemplated suicide because they're in such despair," says Congressman Joseph Cao. He says fishermen are feeling compounded stress on top of post-Katrina troubles. "For some people, this is almost a boiling point where they can no longer handle it and they're going to crack."

"These are grown men that broke down and cried this morning because they don't know what to do and we don't know how long it's going to be," says Plaquemines Parish President Billy Nungesser.

That's why Cao and organizations like Volunteers of America are working to get mental health workers on the ground to intervene. "They've just recovered as a result of their businesses, their homes and the rebuilding effort and now you have a number of these small businesses, these fishermen, who have to go through this all over again," says Voris Vigee with the Volunteers of America. She says organizations are expediting crisis and mental health counseling among other disaster-related services.

Read more: http://www.neworleans.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=399556&Itemid=2603

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This is only going to get worse.

[RandomThoughts]

1. In any logical reality.

It should not be that hard to contain. How long did it take for Alexander to build a bridge to that one island. In japan they built an entire airport in a harbor from moving a mountain.


They could have just hauled ships full of rocks and gravel and dirt and dumped it till it was closed. They were worried about getting the oil, or worst case, some might have wanted the spill. If it is true foreign owners have bought many US corporations, would they worry about the south beaches of USA?

Hard to know, but comments on media about slow and dumb, seem to be a bit of a snide response as if the oil is some scorched earth policy.

I do hope for comfort for anyone that is in that situation. But not worried about the oil, it is the corruption behind it that is the problem.

[Cetacea]

5. If a 100-ton block became "buoyant", I don't believe

gravel and rocks would be of much help.

[RandomThoughts]

10. Well if you believe that story, don't know if it is true.

Not saying it would work, but it is not impossible. It is just having enough weight to counter what ever the black oil flow is.

Not sure how much it would require, but it could be done. Not saying it would work or not.



But here is the thing, either the media and the posts read here and on tv are not true, or the world is unjust, so either way, things are messed up, so why worry about something like an oil spill with those other conditions existing.


It is a priority thing, The corruption as told by many news articles, or if not true, the corruption of information systems is far worse then the oil spill. The oil just has an effect that is easier to see, the other corruptions include the training of ways of dishonesty, lack of empathy and greed in millions of people.

I have those flaws also, but I don't try to train them, then only reward people with those traits, and I do not hold back resources from people that try to avoid those traits.

So Oil Spill worries? sure it is bad, but that is because it is visible, not because it is the worst things going on. When the other stuff becomes visible things will get better as the corruption is rooted out.

Note that everyone has issues, so not saying things should be perfect, but they should be better then they are now, and being flawed also, I do know everyone person is flawed, but are you joking? Look at what some are doing? Or what is being said, and look how many are not stopping them, there still is not trials for hundreds of crimes that hurt many people.

[cliffordu]

2. will it be millions of jobs gone before it's over???

Those fishermen make and spend a lot of money, the tourist industry is all that exists on a lot of that coast....all gone, from waitresses to bait cutters on the marlin boats.....

[Cetacea]

6. It's their entire lives. They live and breathe the gulf.

And the worst of it hasn't even begun.

[Delphinus]

21. Isn't that the truth?!

Every sentence you wrote is truth.

[CoffeeCat]

53. That's totally it...

We haven't even begun to experience the catastrophe of this gusher.

So many people think "oil spill" and they think Valdez. Valdez spilled
on top of the water. This gusher is spilling oil from the bottom of the
ocean.

This is going to affect the Gulf (and beyond) for a long time--and I imagine
the death and devastation will be horrendously shocking.

[revolution breeze]

60. Many many of these people

Have been doing this since their teens, this is all they know, their father fished, their grandfather fished. Thirty percent of all the shrimp in the United States come through Louisiana! This is going to affect alot of people all over.

[Bitwit1234]

22. You are correct about them making a lot of money

and it is their jobs. And it provides food for the nation. BUT this will give the SOUTH a taste of what the country has been going thru. Look at all the manufacturing jobs that the big corporations with the aid and assistance of the Bush administration moved overseas. The North was hurting. And the south still voted republican.

Now they see the effects of letting big business and corporations run wild with out any regulations or checks. Since it is taking their jobs and their livelihood away do you think they will get a clue as to what the Obama administration and congress is trying to do to reign in these people. To regulate their activities so they do the right thing. Since they can't self regulate themselves when it comes to making money. They don't care about people of the environment all they want is the money.

And where is the media on this. Why aren't they writing articles about the running wild of all these companies and breaking all the regulations.

[madokie]

24. The media takes its orders from its masters

and in this case their masters are the ones causing the problems so they are complicit in allowing themselves to be boxed in like this. The medias not doing their duty is why we're having all the problems we're having today.

[laurel46]

43. and why are they not demanding Jindal and Perry do something?

They keep claiming to be the experts and the ones who so brazenly called the eco-nazi's tree hugging morons. Why target Obama, he's not the oil guy. How about Rush et al? He pushed the oil men's competency and superiority as well as how smart the drill baby drill crowd is. So, come on Rush bo, what do you tell the guys now?

FIX IT NOW RUSH because it's kill baby kill, the hope and dreams of your audience in the south.

And Palin, hows that dopey changey policy workin for you? Come on babe, lets see some vicey presidenty advice from you.

[MadMaddie]

36. I am going to be pretty pessimistic and say the entire

Gulf fishing industry, tourism and associated businesses will be destroyed.

It has taken 20 years for the ecosystem to start showing true recovery from Exon Valdez. This gush is spewing 3XExxon Valdez every 1-2 days. (I can't remember the exact statistic). This has been going on a month.

I predict that you will see a huge population migration to other states because those industries are crushed out of existence.

[draa]

42. Not to mention

that the Gulf is the largest Food Bank in the nation. Growing up on the GOM my family got 50% or more of our weekly/monthly/yearly food source from it. That's FREE food that fed us for many generations. We rarely ever went hungry with the GOM 1 mile away. Sadly, that's gone now.

[CoffeeCat]

55. Wow, that is amazing...

Did you fish there?

I would have never thought of that. Thanks for sharing...and also for
anything else you want to share about how this worked for your family.

[chill_wind]

3. A nightmare

those most affected can't wake up from. That's how it's got to seem. Sheer hopelessness.

[depakid]

4. The reality is setting in that their way of life is over

Not sure how mental health professionals can even begin to help people with all these issues.

[The Northerner]

7. It's time for these fisherman to SUE THE HELL OUT OF BP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Punish BP for what it's done to destroy not only the environment but other people's lives!

[liberation]

18. It is also time for the Federal Government to do its damned job...

We spend more in defense than almost the rest of the world combined, what is it? over 500 billion a year (and that is without the war appropriations)... For what?

So we waste almost 60% of our budget on "defense." But so far we haven't been able to defend ourselves from a bunch of goat fuckers with cutters, we let a whole city drown when the levees broke, and we can't even figure what to do after 1 month of non-stop massive oil geiser threatening the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of people (maybe millions) and our environment?

So a few trillion dollars in a decade only to be able to topple a tin pot dictator without a single WMD in sight, and to play cave hide-and-seek with a 7 ft tall insane jackass with bad kidneys which we have yet to find.

Talk about a rip off...

So what is the point of having half of my tax dollars going to defense, if whenever the shit hits the fan for real... we are for the most part on our own devices. Shit, I would like then to keep each half dollar I pay in taxes, and use them to defend myself then. I am not that good of a shot, but for sure I could do a worse job.

[femrap]

35. Good rant. nt

[glinda]

49. Yes. Excellent rant!

[tango-tee]

39. Well said! n/t

[laurel46]

45. I'm with you, lets organize to stop paying taxes to the military and

default on all of our mortgages to get back some of what the banks stole. Instead of marching, protest by shutting down the country like they do in France. Don't go to work, stop shopping and trade with friends and family and grind the whole system to a dead stop. If congress has no money, it cannot function.

I am getting the horrible feeling that the president cannot or will not help us and we must help ourselves. Quite frankly, with all the complaining and demanding we have been whining about has burnt our president out and I don't blame him if he were ignoring this horrid country. We created this mess and hold him responsible, so lets start a protest group on a forum and seriously think of our own survival in our own hands. I will still follow him, I just think we don't have the money to pay for war and corporate greed.

[Kablooie]

8. The oil spew will dwarf other issues soon. It may get to 911 proportions if it's not stopped.

[donheld]

11. !!!!!Indeed it will

[intheflow]

15. It is already past that point.

The Gulf is dead, and the wetlands are irrevocably damaged. Just because the oil hasn't hit some shorelines doesn't mean it's not coming and isn't currently affecting the ecosystem. This is an Exxon Valdez spill every four days for a month and it keeps going without end in sight. There will be many suicides and probably some species wiped out. It should have dwarfed other issues by May 1.

[tango-tee]

23. It's beyond that point already, I'm afraid.

At the rate "they" are progressing, by the time the gusher is plugged whatever is left of the Gulf may be nothing but a stinking, dead cesspool. Call me an alarmist, but I watch this catastrophe unfolding with a deep sense of horror and hopelessness.

[Cetacea]

29. I haven't seen one report on CNN in two hours.

The coverage has dropped in a major way.

[tango-tee]

31. Makes you wonder how bad it *really* is,

once they start keeping information away from us.

[HCE SuiGeneris]

33. You have company.

:-( :grouphug:

[tango-tee]

46. There are times I want to despair.

But this does feel good :grouphug: in the midst of all of it. Thanks, HCE.

[flamingdem]

9. And they'll do it. It's pride. nt

[alp227]

12. And so the oil rig supervisors shall go to prison for life without parole.

Seriously. People are killing themselves over this shit. It's not just nature and the economy the victims.

If BP's board of directors can be responsible around oil, that would be at the local Burger King.

[Catherina]

13. The horror is just beginning :( n/t

[midnight]

14. This breaks my heart. Will our elected officials bail these fishermen out like

they did the other industries hit by hardship?

[reggie the dog]

28. no, these folks are small enough to fail

[dencol]

16. Why would they worry? BP said they're taking responsibility.

And they promised to pay all legitimate damages. :sarcasm:

[Divine Discontent]

47. I KNEW there had to be a sarcasm tag attached. Yeah, like BP isn't going to try and lowball every

claim. God bless those poor men & women who are effected immediately from this. I would think they'll be able to show lack of income and get help from the govt before their suits get through the court. They should each be fully compensated as to what they were making over the last 3 years average, times however many years experts say this will destroy their business.

[JeffersonChick]

17. This is the post that finally broke me

I've been tracking the oil spill pretty closely and growing increasingly upset over the weeks. But reading about the suicidal fisherman finally did me in, and I bawled like a baby.

None of the people I know seems too concerned about this, and I can't understand that at all. As much as I was shocked and scared when 9/11 happened, for some reason, this is scaring me so much more. I'm afraid that we don't even have any idea of the ramifications months, years down the road.

I'm not one to scare easily. Am I out of my mind? Is anyone else as alarmed as I am?

[liberation]

19. We're not planning on going to war against the British any time soon...

... that is why this tragedy isn't being pumped by the M$M.

If they could have linked this rig to an Iranian corporation, let me assure you... there would be 24/7 coverage with all sorts of pundits asking Teheran to be turned into a glass parking lot, and Mr. Obama would be giving speeches about not resting until the responsible are "caught and brought to justice." There would also be all sorts of specials to help the fishermen, plenty of awesome slow-mo shots with the kids crying, the heroic fishermen doing their American duty to clean up those poor American birds covered in evil-doer sweet crude oil. And who knows, maybe a big mega concert with all sorts of starts, fundraisers... you know, the works.

[CountAllVotes]

25. very alarmed here

:hi: and Welcome to the DU! :hug: for you.

I agree with you, many out there in the general public seem almost unaware of what is going or they simply don't give a damn about it.

They'll wake up soon enough only to find everything they touch contaminated due to this spill. I am not exaggerating either. The oil will seep into the water supply and then there will be plenty of worry.

They have dug so deep and hit such a huge vein of oil that it could keep gushing for years, not days!

I fear that suicides are just beginning and will only increase as this disaster amplifies. :(

:kick:

[HCE SuiGeneris]

32. Yes,

Your alarm is well warranted. The inaction is killing everything in the path of this oil slick.

[MadMaddie]

37. Those around you will become alarmed when the cost

of replacing a car tire jumps X4. (Why because most if not all tires are imported through the Gulf ports)

They will be alarmed when certain types of fruit and vegetables cost jumps X4 because we import a large % through the gulf.

Shrimp, Clams, Crawfish will be imported because America's supply is covered in black death.

This spill will pull away the thin vaneer of belief that America is self sustaining and not dependent on any country.

I never thought that we would see a tradgedy of this magnitude off of our shores.....

Oh and don't forget that with any catastrophic regional disaster you will see a huge migration population. You think AZ is out of control? There's more to come.

[femrap]

38. I'm very concerned....I've

worked with these Corporate buttwipes...they're worthless. Couldn't count to 21 without unzipping their pants. They'll scream at the PR Department to save them with some new 'spin.'

Obama better get the best 'Boom people' around. There is a science to laying and moving those booms so to trap the oil. There was a great video on this at DU yesterday. Lots of cursing, but well deserved cursing.

BP executives need to be arrested and jailed....one reason, for not stopping that damn dispersant Corexit when told to do so by EPA.

[Systematic Chaos]

41. Even though this is a shitty time to do it...

...I'd like to welcome you to the DU.

Myself, I'm just past crying.

[gypsy11]

58. I am...

This is truly horrifying. The people around me don't seem all that alarmed either. In fact, not too many people are talking about it at all. I on the other hand, have been screaming from the rooftops that we're in BIG trouble here. The environmental impact is going to be like nothing we've ever seen in this country. If this thing is really gushing a million gallons of oil a day into the Gulf, and it's been gushing for, what, 33 days now with no end in sight? It's hard to wrap my brain around that. I am heartbroken for all the lives, human, plant, and animal that will be snuffed out because of this... makes me physically ill.

[leftyladyfrommo]

20. Those poor people are just one disaster over the line.

They need to get help to just pack it in and get out of there.

Next month it will be another hurricane.

[unabelladonna]

26. is there a way to stop this disaster?

who's in charge and why isn't anything being done?

[Jennicut]

30. The truth is that deep sea drilling involves huge risk and we are seeing

that now. It is not that no one wants to stop it, it is just near impossible to stop. This makes deep sea drilling something that should be outlawed in my opinion.

[reggie the dog]

27. This is horrible, like i said in another thread, how many lives ruined?

[Uncle Joe]

34. Kicked and recommended.

Thanks for the thread, Cetacea.

[flvegan]

40. Happened after the Exxon Valdez spill, too.

People lost hope and killed themselves. Part of the "cost" many folks don't think about.

[Duer 157099]

44. Seems to me they need tangible help with support, financial support

Mental health help is all well and good, but this isn't some sort of imagined crisis they are facing, and talking about it isn't going to put food on their children.

[secondwind]

48. BP should set up a fund to reimburse all fishermen who have lost their livelihoods,

it is the LEAST THEY CAN DO. They've destroyed the Gulf, destroyed the wildlife for decades to come, and destroyed the hopes and dreams of hundreds of thousands of hard-working families.

BECAUSE THEY DIDN'T WANT TO SPEND $500,000 ON AN ACOUSTIC VALVE THAT WOULD HAVE SEALED THE CAP AT THE FIRST SOUND OF THE RUMBLE OF OIL COMING UP THE PIPE!!!!!!! :mad:

[HughMoran]

50. Saw a tough fisherman brought to tears talking about this situation

It's so devastating for these people :cry:

[revolution breeze]

61. Can you imagine

Your grandfather was a fisherman, your father was a fisherman, you are a fisherman, but your son will never know what it is to fish the Gulf of Mexico? You sacrificed to pay off your boat, followed all the rules, got all the necessary licenses and insurance, never fished in a closed area out of season and now your livelihood is gone? This was forecast to be a very good shrimp season, one of the best brown shrimp seasons in history, now you wonder if you are going to be able to buy groceries next week!

[Greyhound]

51. I'm sure some links to information telling them that it's not as bad as they think it is would be

very helpful...
:eyes:

[TheWatcher]

52. Hey, haven't you heard, the new meme is that we should all just "Get Used To It."

[Greyhound]

54. They said that during "The Great KY Boycott" of 1998, too.

"I feel your pain, but you will get used to it. We can't allow a 'billionaire gap' to form, now can we?"

and in 2000, 2001, 2003, 2004...

I bet you thought Goatse was just a grab for attention. Well now you know, it was the beta.
:rofl:

[pitohui]

56. we need more than fucking mental health services

nothing aga. cao but mental health services do fuck-all to solve the real problem -- that MANY people who are fishers and shrimpers have no other job they can do

if everyone was 20 and being depressed at being deprived of your livelihood was just a mental illness...fine...mental health services might actually help

i'm talking to men in their 50s and 60s, mental health services are BULLSHIT, re-education camps are BULLSHIT, they are at an age where if they cannot earn a living, their way of live is destroyed, then, truly, it is just being realistic to realize there is no other job they can do and no other way they can make their payments

we are not talking abt men who worked for min wage and can be re-trained to answer phones or greet customers at walmart

we are talking men who were able to provide for their families and live high and now they're nothing, there's nothing, there's no hope


i read of men who owned million dollar fishing contracts in the prince william sound who committed suicide after the exxon valdez -- same thing

one man i just talked to told me he's losing $40K a month and now doesn't want to spent money on anything, not even a trip to vegas (which trust me, it's cheap, vegas already crashed) -- he could make some extras $$ playing poker but nothing to replace his shrimping business



the gov't or BP may pay you enough to live as a pauper and be (barely) filled but if your identity is not about being a pauper? if your identity is about you provided food for this nation and did v. well by doing so? and now you can't???? and there's nothing else you can do because of realities of class, accent, age, education????

at some point mental health services are an insult if they are just about drugging people to accept bullshit

[WhoIsNumberNone]

57. I hope none of these guys accepted BP's $5000 settlement checks

In my mind, BP owes these guys a livelihood. BP should be paying all these guys' bills until the situation BP created is cleaned up sufficiently for them to start working again. Of course, if such a solution were enacted, the adverse affect that it would have on BP's profits leads me to believe it would ultimately be the taxpayers who actually paid for it.

[Cetacea]

59. CNN anchor person referred to it s a "Mental disaster" yesterday

I'm surprised that this story was not picked up by the majors. I have heard of people having nightmares and other disturbances who don't even live the area...

The constant emphasis on this as an "environmental disaster" is a bit disingenuous.