I've got a great idea to provide the out-of-work fishermen in the Gulf new employment!

[Dover]

Let's put them to work in our regulatory departments of the FDA, EPA and NOAA!

Even with their livelihoods at stake they refuse to be a part of the charade and risk the health of
the general public. Apparently they've got too much integrity and real concern for other human beings. God knows they'd be more reliable than the current or previous bunch of politicos who will say/do anything to save their own hides at whatever expense to others and the country. But of course truth-telling often puts a wedge in the cozy relationship between big business and the government. And we can't have that!

I'm disgusted at Obama's part in the P.R. campaign to suppress legitimate concerns. He should instead be a voice of caution, support further studies and listen to locals about their observations of the remaining and potential toxicity of the water and sea life.
You'd have to be a complete idiot to buy into that PR campaign, and apparently that's exactly what they think of us. How can Obama be trusted anymore?






Mississippi Shrimpers Refuse to Trawl, Fearing Oil, Dispersants
Source: IPS

BILOXI, Mississippi, Aug 20, 2010 (IPS) - The U.S. state of Mississippi recently reopened all of its fishing areas. The problem is that commercial shrimpers refuse to trawl because they fear the toxicity of the waters and marine life due to the BP oil disaster.

"We come out and catch all our Mississippi oysters right here," James "Catfish" Miller, a commercial shrimper in Mississippi, told IPS. Pointing to the area in the Mississippi Sound from his shrimp boat, he added, "It's the only place in Mississippi to catch oysters, and there is oil and dispersants all over the top of it."

On Aug. 6, Mississippi's Department of Marine Resources (DMR) and the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality, in coordination with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, ordered the reopening of all Mississippi territorial waters to all commercial and recreational finfish and shrimp fishing activities that were part of the precautionary closures following the BP oil rig disaster in April. At least five million barrels flowed into the Gulf before the well was shut earlier this month.

-snip-

"Why would we lie about oil and dispersant in our waters, when our livelihoods depend on our being able to fish here?" Miller asked IPS. "I want this to be cleaned up so we can get back to how we used to live. But it doesn't make sense for us or anyone else to fish if our waters are toxified. I don't know why people are angry at us for speaking the truth. We're not the ones who put the oil in the water."


Read more: http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=52552



Who ya gonna trust?
Saturday, August 14, 2010

The FDA and NOAA say that Gulf seafood is fine. President Obama ate a fish taco yesterday made with Gulf fish.

So does that mean Gulf seafood is safe to eat?

I had hoped – for the sake of the Gulf fishermen and the entire Gulf economy – that the answer was yes. But after digging a bit, I’m not so sure.

For example, Local fishermen don’t trust the safety of the fish:

“Fishermen here are calling it ‘Voodoo seafood’ because we are all cursed,” said Bill Thompson of Long Beach, Mississippi. Fishermen from Texas, Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi and Florida gathered in Biloxi last week to discuss their fears.

“We do not think it is safe but the state officials say it is. Who do you trust? The people that know these waters or the government?” Thompson added.

Neither do local shrimpers:

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) reports that of all the samples of seafood that have been tested since the oil spill, none have shown evidence of contamination.While some in the coastal seafood industry agree with these assessments, a majority seem to view the news with a sense of betrayal.

“The cleanup isn’t even close to being done,” said Karen Hopkins of Dean Blanchard Seafood, which accounts for about 11 percent of the U.S. shrimp supply, on the barrier island of Grand Isle.

“The last thing I want to do is scare anyone away from the seafood down here,” said Dawn Nunez, standing at the counter of the shrimp wholesale business and deli she owns in the tiny fishing town of Hopedale. “But if I’m not eating it or feeding it to my children, I can’t advise anyone else to eat it either.”..cont'd

http://theburningplatform.com/blog/2010/08/15/how-about-a-big-helpin-of-gulf-shrimp/

[Mnemosyne]

1. That is an excellent idea, Dover! In an honorable country, this would work. KnR! n/t

[Dover]

3. Yep, but these fishermen have so far demonstrated their fortitude, compassion and

willingness to navigate according to their own inner compass. That's empowering! Power to the PEOPLE! :woohoo:

:patriot:

[Mnemosyne]

6. I have been so impressed by the strength the fishermen there are displaying.

Guess there aren't too many republicans among them.

:woohoo:

[Desertrose]

2. K&R Dover

:thumbsup:

It's been a loooong time since I trusted anything the FDA had to tell us.



:hi:

[Dover]

4. Hey you!

:hi:

[nashville_brook]

5. i couldn't agree more. BP employees should do the dirty work with citizen regulators

doing the oversight. not the other way around.

[lonestarnot]

7. K & R!

[Poboy]

8. k&r

[Little Star]

9. K&R