Gulf Toxicologist Rikki Ott:“People who’s esophaguses are dissolving.. these people have oil

[FedUpWithIt All]

in their bodies." Video at link.

http://www.floridaoilspilllaw.com/toxicologist-dealing-three-autopsies-gulf-people-whos-esophaguses-dissolving-video

Transcript Summary

Worker on Grand Isle dropped over dead.

I am dealing with about 3 or 4 autopsies right now.

I know of people with 4.75% of lung capacity and with an enlarged heart.

I know people who’s esophaguses are dissolving and disintegrating.

All these people have oil in their bodies, upper 95th percentile.

In the comments...

"I have a nephew in-law who’s esophagus has disintegrated. He’s 26 years old and in perfect health prior to swimming in the Gulf this past summer."

[Generic Other]

1. Boat captain “bleeding from her vagina” — “I’m bleeding from my anus, too… This thing is killing me”

http://www.floridaoilspilllaw.com/boat-captain-bleeding-her-vagina-im-bleeding-anus-killing

And I was called a liar repeatedly for quoting respected journalist Dahr Jamal stating this was so!

[L0oniX]

10. We spotted that asscarrot a while back. There are a few of them on DU but they stick out...

...like ...erm ...asscarrots!

[Subdivisions]

26. I'm missing something here. I don't understand. What asscarrot? n/t

[Generic Other]

32. I have been called liar, GOP operative and other names

for posting these stories by one who seemed to be defending BP. Stalked across all my threads for some time. All comments stopped when the moratorium on drilling was lifted confirming my suspicions that there might have been an underlying motive in the comments. Others who followed the threads noticed the constant shrill attacks on me and others as well. "Asscarrot" is actually a fairly colorful term for it.

[tsuki]

106. I got called names here for warning people not to let your children

swim in the Gulf.

[truedelphi]

15. First they scoff at us, then they fight us,

Then we win.

Of course, if we had a Political Class that cared about people, and protected us, we wouldn't have to wait until disease and death removed so many people from the planet, during events like Katrina and BP disaster.

[Lucky 13]

2. Malcontents just trying to ruin obama's presidency.

:sarcasm:

We have been lied to about the gulf oil spill and dispersants. This is just the tip of the iceberg...

[BlueIris]

21. Yeah, really. Haterz! nt

[JVS]

28. LOL

[Blue_In_AK]

3. Rikki Ott tells the truth.

A gigantic coverup has been perpetrated on the American people -- again.

[Defectata]

4. unfortunately it only makes sense...

Corexit, and similar dispersants, function by penetrating oil saturated zones in open water, breaking them down into smaller confined droplets. Chemically, red blood cells floating in the bloodstream are very very similar on the microscopic level to an oil slick. If anything, I would think that the increased pressure and physiological temperature in the blood system would make Corexit MORE efficient at lysing cell walls than it would be at atmospheric pressure and ambient temperature in breaking up an oil slick.

[Delphinus]

113. Welcome to DU

Defectata.

Now, on to read the rest of this thread.

[ima_sinnic]

5. elephant in the room: OSHA & EPA turned a blind eye to blatant lawbreaking

Where were the "regulators" when BP was so blatantly spewing Corexit into the water, to be blown into the atmosphere by any passing storm, despite regulations against doing such? And did Obama ever insist (with any real zeal) that they cooperate with government rules and regulations and oversight by agencies, or follow up with consequences after refusal to do so?

[glitch]

6. Obama is held hostage by any large corporation that threatens the economy.

Banking, Insurance, Military, Oil Companies. They've all learned they can run their own protection racket on him to get what they want.
That's the generous explanation, which at this point I still think is true.
The ungenerous one is that he is a Chicago school true believer and wants to give them full reign anyway, rackets not needed.

[BeFree]

11. I'm feeling a bit generous today

But that is only because there is an election on the horizon.

Come Nov. 3, NO MORE. Come November 3rd, the gloves come off.

Or I may do like most Americans and go back to sleep. Sleep is nice. Can't live without it. Sleep and dream. Actually sounds kinda nice. Blissfully ignorant. Unaware. Hmmmm.

[glitch]

19. That reminds me of something.

"The sleep of reason produces monsters." Goya

[TheMadMonk]

45. The first Lolcat. /nt

[WinkyDink]

23. No President wants to end as JFK.

[defendandprotect]

54. It wasn't only an attack on JFK .... it was also an attack on our people's government ....

If we ALL don't want more of the same, we'd better begin acknowledging the

political violence of the right wing.

The right wing can't rise except by political violence, stolen elections and lies.

[WinkyDink]

96. Exactly. JFK, RFK, MLK, Malcolm X, etc., etc. Funny how the missed attempts are on the Right.

[Generic Other]

46. I also am feeling generous

I sense a powerlessness on the part of the government. Obama is no Dick Cheney. But it worries me how much pressure he is under by these powerful lobbies.

[glitch]

52. Yeah. But it's not just the lobbies I am worried about.

I think the "cancer on the presidency" from the Nixon administration metastasized under the Reagan/Bush/Bush administrations.
We had a chance for treatment with Clinton, we didn't take it. Perhaps all Obama can achieve is palliative care.

[defendandprotect]

53. Oil is now a "National Security" issue .... MIC uses 80% of it, btw ......

Peak Oil will create even more insanity on the part of those who control and own it

and those like the MIC who need it!! Not difficult to see what Obama did and why.

We need a president who will say NO to both oil elites and to MIC -- and move on to

alternative energy.

Allegedly we went to the moon, but we can't figure out Peak Oil and alternative energy?

hmmmm....

[ensho]

7. people in the White House better wake up to this and stare down

the CEOs who are standing on their necks. get up off the floor and take action.

[felix_numinous]

8. Holy crap

The word has to get out, to save lives.

[bobbolink]

17. Some of us have been trying to get the "word out" and other deaths, too, but it doesn't

connect.

It still doesn't matter to "progressives" about the number of homeless people who are dying on the streets.

It didn't matter when people from Katrina were shoved all over the country and killed themselves.

Why is this any different.

Face it, human death doesn't matter in this country to ANYONE.

[Lorien]

33. Um yes, it does

otherwise the OP wouldn't be posted. I give money to the homeless whenever I pass them. Sometimes I bring them food, which is against the law here. My friend Dave risks jail time by feeding the homeless every Friday night here in Orlando. Quit with the hysterical "NO ONE CARES ABOUT..." statements. They're insulting and simply not true. You attempt to hijack every thread and accuse the rest of us about not caring about the homeless (again, utter bullshit) making highly inflammatory statements about the very people who stick their necks out for those who are down on their luck, mentally ill, sick, or just unwilling to work (yes, those people do indeed exist. I've known two of them). Yes, we all know that you've been homeless since you started posting here years ago. You've made lots of statements demanding that we provide free housing to the homeless with no strings attached. The problem there is that NONE OF US will ever get free housing with no strings attached. To make that a possibility you'd have to overturn the Capitalist system; and still most people wouldn't want to hand out free housing to the able bodied and sound of mind who simply don't care to do anything for a living. Now, back to the topic at hand: I'm not too keen on watching many of my coast dwelling friends die of internal bleeding; so what are we going to do about THAT???

[bobbolink]

38. I don't take orders from you, Put me on ignore, and make your life easier.

I simply stated that there are a LOT of issues that people don't care about, including the one I'm involved with. Deal with it.

And, as nice as it is for you to give food, charity will NEVER solve the problem.

Again, deal with it or put me on ignore. Your nastiness isn't good for YOU.

I really don't care which.

[Divine Discontent]

41. exactly.

[felix_numinous]

44. Hi bobbolink

You definitely do not forget the homeless and poor, and I am so glad to hear from you, I am not far from it myself. I lived in NO in the 80s and what is going on in the Gulf is a travesty.

Our culture does not have too many sharing communities, but it really looks like that is the only way to survive the future. Call me a socialist :) but we have to live very differently to survive in years to come, because the government/corporations are making off with too much cash

Peace I hope this finds you well.

[bobbolink]

77. Thanks, felix, my thoughts are with you!

There are so many different groups of people suffering in the U.S., and dividing us up and judging who is hurting more is just counter-productive.

All of these issues are just so pathetic, and so unnecessary, but having some get all the attention while very little goes to others is a tool of the $$$$ class, and must be stopped.

You are right, of course, we don't know how to come together anymore. :(

:yourock: :hi:

[Bragi]

9. The BP blowout was the best PR ever for the oil industry

Seriously, the BP blowout "proved" to everyone in the media and politics that we can drill down miles and miles and that even a massive failure, multi-month blowout, won't do a lot of lasting damage.

Sure, there may be a few bleeding hearts moaning on about the oddly re-engineered Gulf ecosystem, and a few sick people will outlandishly try to blame their illness on BP, but really, there is no limit now on where the industry can drill.

The industry really should give BP the Big Oil PR Award of the decade.

[BeFree]

12. Yep

Whether by design or a real accidental humongous screwup, the reality is that they can now claim:

"See, drill baby drill, even if we spill, ya gotta let us drill".

We are so badly drilled it ain't funny.

[defendandprotect]

58. Pretty much like Chernobyl + Three Mile Island proved the worthiness of nuclear energy...

It's insanity to permit off-shore drilling -- especially given the immense numbers

of wells being drilled!

Capitalism is criminal corruption -- and will only continue to exploit and destroy

humanity and the planet.

[hedgehog]

13. Hmmmmm...... should I believe something someone posted on the

internet, or maybe the MSDS for this product:

http://www.lmrk.org/corexit_9500_uscueg.539287.pdf

[Generic Other]

16. Or should you believe the EPA's own warnings about the product

On June 8, the EPA finally listed the ingredients of the products more than one million gallons of which BP has poured into the Gulf of Mexico.<1> -- Blogger James Plummer noted that Corexit 9527 includes 2-butoxy-ethanol, which according to the N.J. Dept. of Health "may be absorbed through the skin; should be handled as a CARCINOGEN -- WITH EXTREME CAUTION; can irritate the skin and eyes with possible eye damage; can irritate the nose and throat; can cause nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and abdominal pain. can cause headache, dizziness, lightheadedness, and passing out and may damage the liver and kidneys."<2> -- "The dispersant is widely considered more dangerous to human health than the oil itself," Plummer said, "and several clean-up workers exposed to the dispersant have been reported as coming down with health problems." -- "Corexit is is four times more toxic than oil (oil is toxic at 11 ppm (parts per million), Corexit 9500 at only 2.61ppm)," said Yobie Benjamin, who writes a blog on the website of the San Francisco Chronicle.<3> -- Writing for Wired, Brandon Keim said that "Almost three weeks after federal orders to find less toxic chemicals to break up oil in the Gulf of Mexico, no progress has been made."<4> ...

http://www.ufppc.org/us-a-world-news-mainmenu-35/9723-news-epa-reveals-toxic-corexit-ingredients.html

****************************************
What the maker of corexit says about the product?

MSDS on Corexit EC9527A says:
“**EMERGENCY OVERVIEW**
WARNING
Eye and skin irritant. Repeated or excessive exposure to butoxyethanol may cause injury to red blood cells
(hemolysis), kidney or the liver. Harmful by inhalation, in contact with skin and if swallowed.”

“ENVIRONMENTAL PRECAUTIONS :
Do not contaminate surface water”

“HUMAN HAZARD CHARACTERIZATION :
Based on our hazard characterization, the potential human hazard is: High.”

http://www.floridaoilspilllaw.com/epa-corexit-perfectly-safe-compares-dispersant-klondike-bar-video

[Generic Other]

18. corexit is lethal not some harmless dishwashing soap

2-butoxyethanol (an ingredient of COREXIT) is a paint solvent, dry cleaning solvent, also used in dissolving plastics.

Corexit causes hemolytic anemia (low Red Blood Counts) because the body prematurely destroys its own red blood cells and worse. Workers exposed to Corexit feel tired all the time from the blood damage (anemic). Their children are at greater risk for brain tumors and leukemia from over exposure to this solvent.

38% of COREXIT 9527 is made up of this toxic solvent that dissolves plastic.If you want to know what 38% of COREXIT is and the reason it has a Class 3 (Serious) Health Classification and Class 2 (Moderate) Flammability Classification, read this NJ Hazardous Substance Fact Sheet (Adobe PDF format): http://nj.gov/health/eoh/rtkweb/documents/fs/0275.pdf

It is ironic to note that the MSDS for both Inipol EAP22 and Corexit 9527 warn to “keep product out of sewers and watercourses” or “prevent liquid from entering sewers, watercourses, or low areas,” respectively. The MSDS for the Exxon product Corexit 9527 lists similar potential health effects of exposure including irritation to the eye, skin, and respiratory tract. Low order toxicity may result from skin contact as compound “may be absorbed through skin to produce hemolytic anemia and kidney damage evidenced by paleness and possibly red coloration of the urine.” Further, “vapors and/or aerosols, which may be formed at elevated temperatures may cause systemic effects.” (Inipol was heated to a target temperature of 90ºF before application.) Chronic effects of overexposure by inhalation or dermal contact may result in damage to the blood and kidneys. Source: http://www.valdezhousing.com/inipol/pages/solvents.htm

MORE:
http://waronyou.com/topics/gulf-oil-dispersant-corexit-is-11-times-more-lethal-than-oil/

[defendandprotect]

60. "2-butoxyethanol=paint solvent, dry cleaning solvent, also used in dissolving plastics" . . .

Looks like it also dissolves body organs!!


MSDS on Corexit EC9527A says:
“**EMERGENCY OVERVIEW**
WARNING
Eye and skin irritant. Repeated or excessive exposure to butoxyethanol may cause injury to red blood cells
(hemolysis), kidney or the liver. Harmful by inhalation, in contact with skin and if swallowed.”

“ENVIRONMENTAL PRECAUTIONS :
Do not contaminate surface water”

“HUMAN HAZARD CHARACTERIZATION :
Based on our hazard characterization, the potential human hazard is: High.”


Wow ... !!!

[BeFree]

101. Amazing isn't it?

It's almost as if they don't give one whit for the health of the citizens as long as the oil is dispersed.

The market has a product called 'super clean' and it has the 2-butoxyethanol as the main ingredient. On the label it says get your ass medical care if you breathe too much or ingest it.

And they sprayed the gulf with it? WTF? I mean: WTF??

[defendandprotect]

111. When a human being comes between $1 and oil industry.... watch out --!!

Capitalism is basically a war on nature -- this is environmental TERRORISM!!

Our MIC has to be pulled down -- they're using 80% of the oil -- and that puts

Obama/Government on the side of oil = "natural security."

Wars bankrupting our Treasury and still the warmongering goes on and on!

Basic insanity -- !!

Poor people of the Gulf are defenseless against this monster oil industry which

is going to fight them on every cent they may be due. And on medical care.


Who knows how far-reaching all of this may eventually turn out to be --

How many deaths this may bring to the Gulf -- how extensive the damage to ocean/

animal-life may be -- ?

Capitalism is suidical -- and they are taking all of us with them!




:)

[KT2000]

108. Always remember this about MSDS

They are prepared by the legal departments. Most are useless.
If you really want to know about the health effects of a product - look up the research that the corporation that makes it did not participate in. Journals are full of useful research that does not make it to the regulatory agency - by design.

[blindpig]

14. Lies, lies, lies, lies, lies, lies, lies, lies. lies.................

Capitalism is the kingdom of lies. They do this not out of malice, it is simply 'due diligence', looking out for the investors, what could be wrong with that?

There ain't no fixing that, it must be destroyed.

[defendandprotect]

61. Capitalism/Corporatism = NO conscience ---

[BlueIris]

20. Jesus Christ.

Thanks for this.

What national emergency?

:sarcasm:

[lunatica]

22. I think Obama is stymied by his own desire to restore rather than re-invent

He seems to want to take us back to where and when the economy was good. He's thinking in terms of rebuilding the country to what is was in some economic perfect time. He isn't thinking in terms of inventing a new future. FDR thought in terms of inventing a future. Obama wants to fix what is broken to be as good as it was before.

The problem is that it can't be done successfully. It can only be as good as it was before which means it will invariably end up as bad as it is now again.

[LTX]

24. What exactly does this stuff mean?

1. "All these people have oil in their bodies, upper 95th percentile."

Huh? So "these people" are in the upper 95th percentile of people with measurable oil in their bodies? Or is that "these people" are 95% oil? Assuming it's the former, a few questions seem in order: Who are "these people"? Are you comparing "these people" to people with known high oil exposures, like people who work in oil change shops or garages or gas stations or in the oil patch or in oil spill recovery and remediation? What's the source of the oil exposure in "these people"? What's the data base from which this "95th percentile" was determined? How were "these people" clinically determined to have "oil in their bodies" in the first place? (Add your own -- there's plenty more.)

2. "I know people who’s esophaguses are dissolving and disintegrating."

Are you associating that condition to specific oil exposure levels? If so, what are the levels that cause a dissolving or disintegrating esophagus, and is this same condition observed in other groups with known high oil exposures (see 1 above)? How many people have been diagnosed with a dissolving or disintegrating esophogus? Are they smokers? What histories have been taken to determine other exposures, inheirited conditions, or pre-existing diseases? Etc.

3. "I know of people with 4.75% of lung capacity and with an enlarged heart.

So do I. They're at MD Anderson in Houston, and they have never had any significant oil exposure, and nobody treating them associates their condition to oil exposure. Again, are you associating these conditions to specific oil exposure levels? If so, what are the levels that cause these conditions, and are the same conditions observed in other groups with known high oil exposures? Etc.

Instead of scary sound bites, how about you write something up that has real data and that can be checked, Doc.

[Generic Other]

25. I agree you need more than the soundbites -- here's the full interview

Riki Ott on the environment: "We are running out of time." 1/3
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yo9jc5jHh94

Riki Ott on the Gulf: "These people have oil in their bodies." 2/3
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b3H9V_kCrMY

Riki Ott on BP: "They've got our politicians completely hamstrung." 3/3
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0CJxQVdkMHk

[LTX]

27. I'm still not finding answers to any of my questions

in those interviews. Where are the clinical reports or studies? Interviews are a pretty lousy way to disseminate highly alarming scientific conclusions. They're a great way to disseminate alarm, though.

[Generic Other]

29. Testing one water sample costs $500. EPA won't do anything but sniff tests

Why isn't BP testing? Friday there was a report of long strings of degraded oil in the NOLA area. Was reported by fishermen in the area who were working for BP clean-up. Coast Guard sent a helicopter to investigate. Flew over and pronounced the oil was algae. Not even a sniff test. A fly over. The fisherman said it smelled like oil, looked like oil, and needed solvents to remove it from their boats. Why though would they bother to test it if they already know they will get results that don't match their foregone conclusions? BP, EPA, government do not want to find problems. Testing makes it harder to avoid. When citizens do independent tests they find high levels of hydrocarbons in water, they find toxins in the samples, etc.

All the Gulf states Health departments do report increases in respiratory ailments since the oil spill. I have seen and posted links to these things daily. Where are the reports in the mainstream media? Good question. I am neither a scientist nor a reporter. I am posting these stories because they are the reports coming from all 4 Gulf states told by all kinds of people who have no support from the government or anyone else for that matter. Dr. Ott is hearing these stories and meeting these people. Kindra Arnesen is reporting. The parish presidents in NOLA are begging for support, for help, the fishermen, the clean-up workers. people are getting sick.

That no one wants to verify their health problems doesn't make them any less real. A cover-up is going on. Massive. I welcome seeing actual clinical reports and studies. Instead of doubting the people reporting illness, why aren't you demanding they be tested, that their illnesses be verified?

BP has a stake in silencing them. The government appears to be going along with it. Turn your scrutiny on them rather than attacking the victims of the contamination. I have no doubt that their concerns are real. I have been monitoring the information for months. I have sick loved ones. They were healthy when I started posting these stories. I have seen how those who have tried to get the information out have been pressured, suppressed, ridiculed and silenced. I am out of patience with those who question the information or the motives of those getting it out.

Go find out for yourself. Donate some money to those who would like to test water samples. I am sure NOLA officials would love your help to get verifiable scientific reports for you. Casting doubt without offering anything in return makes you seem as bad as BP and its apologists. If you have scientific knowledge and ability to help, get down there and lend a hand. People will welcome your expertise.

[LTX]

34. In short, no answers to my questions. Post hoc ergo propter hoc. Thanks. n/t

[Generic Other]

36. In short who should be conducting testing if people claim they are sick?

Who promised to clean up their mess? Who promised that no one would suffer for their mess? Who set aside 75 billion dollars because the government forced them too in order to deal with their mess? Who refruses to do the baseline testing that would confirm or refute the claims being made? BP. That is a fact.

Anything that comes after that fact does nothing to negate that fact. It is BP's responsibility to test these people not mine. It is BP's responsibility to put the issue to rest by publishing real data, not mine.

Why the pointed questions at the testimony of real people rather than at the source? Belittling real people's health issues would not make me sleep well at night.

[LTX]

39. How about the people floating the cause and effect hypothesis?

Look, it's an interesting hypothesis. But it's not true because there's no evidence. That's the crank's perennial fall-back.

And the excuse of a conspiracy to hide the evidence is facially bogus. After all, "these people" have made themselves available, and have been ostensibly examined and interviewed. Their exposure history and past exposure histories and habits are therefore available. Also available are histories of prior people exposed to oil and corexit or similar cleaning agents. This is not the first time people have been exposed to oil or the agents used to clean or remove oil, and this is not the first time there has been an oil spill or a remediation using corexit. If this one is somehow unique in its ramifications, demonstrate it. Evidence is a marvelous tool, and infinitely more convincing than conclusion-first speculation.

[Generic Other]

42. I have read the toxicology reports of people who paid for their own testing

They are out there. It isn't my job to prove they are sick and why.

And while you are right this is not the first time people have been exposed, it is one of the major spills of all time. And we do have a huge body of evidence coming from Exxon-Valdez. These are not random small events. And there's lots of information available on the effects of the oil and the dispersants in Alaska. The fact that there is less available about the Gulf IS a major issue. This is directly BP's fault. It is not conspiracy theory to say they have limited access, suppressed information, harassed researchers, sicc'd Homeland Security on people. It is not conspiracy theory to say they have refused to act in good faith on promises to clean up the mess, to test for problems, to settle with people of the Gulf region for the devastating impact their errors caused.

BP has spent 75 million out of the 75 billion they pledged to settle claims. They have spent the same amount advertising that everything is A-OK. Clearly it is not. They want to stop paying claims. They want to close the books on this. They are colluding with the government to sweep it all under the rug. And oil imndustry people post to threads to discredit people who demand answers.

You have so much knowledge, share it. Go talk to Ott personally. Post the answers you get. I email people and ask them outright when i have questions. They respond if you write them!!! Amazing.

[TheMadMonk]

48. Does the average age of death for Exon-Valdez responders count?

Somewhere about 55.

Cleaning up after a major oil spill cost/is costing these people about 1/3 of their lives.

Time and time again, well after the fact the stories come out. MKULTRA, Trinity tans, Syphilis.

Every time the mantra is the same:

Of course we don't do that. No one could do that and get away with it. The're a disgruntled employee with an axe to grind. Well it's national security, so you can't have those files. Yes, well the exingencies of war. It all happened so long ago, it's not happening now....

AND EVERY BLOODY GENERATION, Americans are shocked and horrified to learn what was done in their name. Great resolutions are passed and nothing ever changes.

[Generic Other]

56. To me they sure do

And to anyone who looks at the past as a model for what is being done in the present.

[defendandprotect]

62. "Floating" the cause and effect hypothesis? Read what Corexit Mfg says about its own product --!!!

MSDS on Corexit EC9527A says:
“**EMERGENCY OVERVIEW**
WARNING
Eye and skin irritant. Repeated or excessive exposure to butoxyethanol may cause injury to red blood cells
(hemolysis), kidney or the liver. Harmful by inhalation, in contact with skin and if swallowed.”

“ENVIRONMENTAL PRECAUTIONS :
Do not contaminate surface water”

“HUMAN HAZARD CHARACTERIZATION :
Based on our hazard characterization, the potential human hazard is: High.”


How brazen of us to think that Corexit might be harmful!!!

:evilgrin:

[Generic Other]

71. I think the BP apologists only work the day shift

You'll have to wait until tomorrow for a reply.

[LTX]

79. No, I just learned my lesson.

Don't ask for evidence if the conclusion is politically useful. (And by the way, it probably isn't politically useful to equate evidentiary support with corporate allegiance. That just hands the keys to the wrong group.)

[Generic Other]

81. flat earth society also felt the evidence was on their side

They were wrong. The evidence is not on anyone's side. Some of it is being deliberately hidden and under reported perhaps.

[LTX]

83. Indeed. Evidence is evil. What matters is the conclusion. I'm on board.

[Generic Other]

85. You refuse to examine the evidence

People are getting sick. They can't afford to test for toxins. When they do, they discover elevated levels of toxins in their blood. Toxins consistent with corexit poisoning. They can establish how they were exposed (clean-up workers, fisherman, swimmers). They are going to their doctors. They have been recorded by health departments in 4 states.

The EPA has sent letters to labs warning labs they will not be recertified if they test private citizens. Hard to gather evidence when you are discouraged at every turn.

BP can lay all of the questions to rest by taking resposibility for their actions and doing as they promised. Instead, they are refusing to act responsibly about anything.

The industry only cares about drilling and more drilling.

[defendandprotect]

109. Evidence is that capitalism is a killer -- environmental terrorism here ...

as Pentagon pointed out to W Bush, Global Warming is more of a threat to US

than terrorism...

Well, capitalism is war on nature and environmental TERRORISM!

[LTX]

80. Um, yes. A colloquialism for what scientists actually do.

And it's not a bad thing, believe it or not.

[Generic Other]

82. Acting like there is no causal relationship between massive poisoning

of populations and reports of illness is ridiculous. The corporates and the government are playing with the evidence and you know it. BP could put it to rest in a nanosecond by doing the tests as they promised to do. They are the ones who don't want to find out the truth, not me.

You sound a little like a holocaust denier at this point.

[LTX]

84. Ok. Ok. I told you, I'm on board.

No more stupid hypothesizing. The scientific method? Garbage. It's a brave new paradigm, and I'm all in.

[Generic Other]

86. Go write to Rikki Ott

What do you have to lose? Your preconceived notions?

[LTX]

88. Oh, and by the way, be careful tossing around

that Holocaust denier accusation. On an anonymous internet forum, you might end up lodging the accusation against someone like, well, me.

[Generic Other]

89. Crude Awakening - USA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_x-b97LX0k

Of course they are all liars. You know.

[Generic Other]

90. BP (British Parliament) admits Corexit 9500A “among the MOST CYTOTOXIC” dispersants studied

The contingency plan also includes a provision to use the controversial dispersant Corexit 9500 manufactured by American company Nalco. <42> Use of Corexit is restricted in the UK, after failure of the rocky shore tests required for its approval, <43> and there remain concerns over the overall effects on shore-based animals and wildlife as well as the general toxicity of the product and its effects particularly on fish and marine mammals. <44> Two million gallons of the product has been used in cleanup operations in the Gulf of Mexico despite a public outcry and major concerns by lead scientists.

<44> See for example: Andrew Rogersona and Jacques Berger, ‘The toxicity of the dispersant Corexit 9527 and oil-dispersant mixtures to ciliate protozoa’ Department of Zoology, University of Toronto, 24 November 1980. Concluded that: “Chemically dispersed oil was more toxic than either the dispersant or crude oil alone.” And US Environmental Protection Agency Office of Research and Development, ‘Analysis of Eight Oil Spill Dispersants Using In Vitro Tests for Endocrine and Other Biological Activity’, 30 June 2010 where Corexit ranks among the most cytotoxic of the eight dispersants in the study.

http://www.floridaoilspilllaw.com/bp-british-parliament-admits-corexit-9500a-among-cytotoxic-dispersants-studied

[Generic Other]

91. “Coast Guard and law enforcement became the BP MILITIA” at times — “Tactics continue

Chilling reports of government pressure and tactics continue to be commonplace, even to the point that people joke about it. My colleagues have felt that heat. It often comes with not-so-subtle suggestions that maybe they lacked legal permits or are somehow going to get themselves into trouble. …

When the ultimate impact of the BP spill is finally known, we’re going to be astounded at the almost casual way the Coast Guard and law enforcement became the BP militia in certain cases.

http://www.floridaoilspilllaw.com/coast-guard-law-enforcement-became-bp-militia

[Generic Other]

92. 46% of BP Oil Spill wildlife cleanup workers reported RASHES, itchy skin, or red skin —

In June and July 2010, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) evaluated potential exposures and health effects of workers involved in Deepwater Horizon response activities due to the BP oil spill.

The evaluation included on-shore wildlife cleaning and rehabilitation workers in Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, and Mississippi.



http://www.floridaoilspilllaw.com/46-bp-oil-spill-wildlife-cleanup-workers-reported-rashes-itchy-skin-red-skin-35-headaches

[Generic Other]

93. Cleanup worker describes being sprayed: Throwing up foamy brown liquid… probably blood --

Like Nitromethane.

http://www.floridaoilspilllaw.com/cleanup-worker-describes-being-sprayed-throwing-foamy-brown-liquid-blood-like-nitromethane-video

[Generic Other]

94. Biggest coverup in the life of the world — “Oil everywhere”

“Orange oil” for miles, “a signature image of the spill” returns — BP, Coast Guard not responding say captains (PHOTOS)

http://www.floridaoilspilllaw.com/biggest-coverup-life-world-oil-everywhere-video

[LTX]

95. Wouldn't it be easier to just link to the site itself?

I don't know anyone who's interested in the subject who isn't familiar with it.

[Generic Other]

97. You are the one demanding more evidence

And these are all separately important findings. Of course, only for those interested in knowing the truth.

[Generic Other]

98. Scientist "astonished" that he found so much crude -- Questions Fed's estimate of oil in Gulf

Government estimates of oil in Gulf may miss mark, Fox 8 New Orleans, October 25, 2010:

Transcript Excerpts On a dock in Cocodrie, Paul Sammarco unfurls a 15-foot long piece of fabric, a highly absorbent cotton-like material, which may spark a whole new debate over how much oil remained in the Gulf of Mexico this summer. Dr. Sammarco and a team from the Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium (LUMCON) sampled waters two months after BP plugged its crippled well. He was astonished at what he found... n underwater video shot by a LUMCON researcher weeks after the spill showed globs of oil were visible in the water column with the naked eye. ... "My feeling is that it's an underestimate of what was actually there." ... If a canister happened to have captured one of the globs, he notes the NOAA estimates would have skyrocketed.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bMKXaWvhFPw&feature=sub

More stuff we supposedly all know or don't need to know or are tired of hearing about or whatever...

[defendandprotect]

110. Wouldn't it be easier to acknowledge the conditions being reported .....

and the lethal nature, not only of having oil spilled all over the Gulf --

but of COREXIT having been used?

[laughingliberal]

50. You could write the good doctor and request her autopsy reports.

I accept those a clinical reports.

[Generic Other]

31. One google click can get you many doctors and researchers looking at data

Dr. Michael Harbut has provided up-to-date information for physicians. Michael R. Harbut, M.D., M.P.H. is a Clinical Professor of Internal Medicine at Wayne State University, Director of the Karmanos Cancer Institute's Environmental Cancer Program & Past Chair of the Occupational & Environmental Medicine section of the American College of Chest Physicians. He is Chief at the Center for Occupational and Environmental Medicine, P.C. and has treated many patients with solvents and petroleum exposures.


Many medical care providers have seen only a limited number of persons with disease processes attributable to exposure to chemicals generated by the current Gulf of Mexico oil spill. The following does not constitute comprehensive medical advice and should not be construed to be patient care in any individual presentation. It does offer an approach to evaluation of this patient population and does constitute the initial steps which clinicians may wish to adopt in their care of patients in the non-the emergency room setting.

* An exposure history directed toward times and places of exposure and a characterization of
exposures should be obtained. The guide to Taking an Exposure History by ATSDR/CDC can be
very helpful: http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/csem/exphistory/ehexposure_form.html.
* A complete history and physical should be performed.
* Testing should, of course, depend on the individual clinical presentation, but often includes special attention to the respiratory apparatus, the skin, the central nervous system, neuropsychological
changes and establishing a baseline to which future hematologic and other possibly mutagenic
and/or carcinogenic indicators may be compared.

In the Environmental Cancer Program at the Karmanos Cancer Institute in Detroit*, persons presenting with applicable signs or symptoms of exposures would, at a minimum, receive the following:

* complete pulmonary function testing, including diffusion capacity
* gamma-glutamyltransferase
* beta-2 microglobulin
* a complete blood count
* serum protein electrophoresis with immunofixation
* urinalysis
* antihistamine antibody
* a mental status examination
* a minimum of a chest x-ray and if pertinent abnormalities are found on the radiographs
or other applicable studies, a high-resolution CT on the 64 slice unit



http://www.rikiott.com/medinfo.php

[LTX]

35. Of course, what you meant to say was that one google click

can get me the procedures for doing a proper study of the toxilogical effects of an oil spill and remediation. Thanks. Now my questions . . .

[Generic Other]

37. "Significant upswing in cancer incidence" in Gulf region won't surprise cancer doc

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HK0BksdOINE&feature=related

[LTX]

40. "Not being surprised" is not evidence of cause and effect.

Read a bit about cancer-cell fallacies.

[Generic Other]

43. Read about Exxon-Valdez, Love Canal, Three Mile Island

Ecuadorians in Amazonia...corporations never are forthcoming about health risks. You act like I am treading virgin territory on a trail that has never been traveled before.

[WinkyDink]

49. You were tough to convince about Agent Orange, too, weren't you?

[Generic Other]

57. And the First Gulf War spawned Gulf Syndrome 1

I guess we are seeing Gulf Syndrome 2 here. I recall the military was slow to admit the illnesses of soldiers were real back in Desert Storm as well. Yes, between Agent Orange and Desert Storm, we saw how forthcoming our government can be about any kind of chemical contamination of soldiers.

[defendandprotect]

64. NOR is it evidence of No cause and effect -- !!! Read what mfg says about Corexit ....

MSDS on Corexit EC9527A says:
“**EMERGENCY OVERVIEW**
WARNING
Eye and skin irritant. Repeated or excessive exposure to butoxyethanol may cause injury to red blood cells
(hemolysis), kidney or the liver. Harmful by inhalation, in contact with skin and if swallowed.”

“ENVIRONMENTAL PRECAUTIONS :
Do not contaminate surface water”

“HUMAN HAZARD CHARACTERIZATION :
Based on our hazard characterization, the potential human hazard is: High.”


Pretty much a death sentence for anyone coming in contact with it --!!




:nuke:

[Generic Other]

69. And before anyone says it's just Dawn detergent again--STOP

Whatever is in Dawn is watered down a zillion times compared to what has been sprayed in the Gulf.

Anyone who doesn't think breathing really high doses of paint thinner or solvents like stripper isn't bad for the lungs, is in denial!! They can lie to themselves. I do not believe their lies for a second.

[Mr Generic Other]

47. LTX you know exactly what the "sound bites" mean just like other

readers and posters at DU know. they mean that BP, the US government, and evidently even you are attempting to question the real testimony of real gulf coast residents about real symptoms they are experiencing since the introduction of both oil and corexit into their environment. and it is equally obvious that you hope to discredit those testimonies by your questions.
the fact that neither BP or the government has acted in a responsible manner toward this disaster and done tests to establish baseline data does not negate the the testimonies or symptoms being reported.
unfortunately, US citizens are on our own when it comes to protecting our health and the environment in which we live. so this is the sort of information that percolates out after disasters and is only later admitted to by those charged with protecting us from such events.
you protest too much.

[FedUpWithIt All]

112. I wanted to share this link...

http://www.floridaoilspilllaw.com/pensacola-gregg-blood-tested-hexane-charts-video-lab-results

This shows the tox report for a man who called himself Pensecola Gregg. He was early on the beaches filming things like children playing in the water. He is very ill and his test results show extremely high levels of...

* Ethylbenzene
* Xylene
* Hexane was “off the charts”
* 2-methylpentane
* 3-methylpentane
* IsoOctane

[Generic Other]

114. Gregg has been walking the beaches at Pensacola daily for months filming tarballs

He paid for his own testing. His bloodwork shows alarming results. I know this guy. He's the real deal.

He's been trying to get the word out for months. Thanks for the post!!

[maryf]

30. What good will all that profit be when everything/body is dead??

Stop the profit mongers before they destroy all life. K&R

[defendandprotect]

66. Capitalism is a ridiculous "King-of-the-Hill System" .....it's about power ....

Corporations are without conscience --

they are there to EXPLOIT ... nature, humans, the planet!

They are the destroyers --

[maryf]

78. amen.

the destruction must be stopped. :fistbump:

[laughingliberal]

51. K & R nt

[CLANG]

55. If your esophagus disolves, isn't that bad?

I mean doesn't that create serious medical problems? Is there a doctor in the house?

[Generic Other]

59. ulcers and acid reflux act on the esophagus this way

so does breathing corexit

[CLANG]

65. Yes, but if your esophagus completly disolves? I think you'd be screwed.

[Generic Other]

68. When acid enters your esophagus, it dissolves the lining

It leaves ulcerous lesions and causes constricting of the airways. Acid reflux can do this. Corexit can do this. Breathing any number of chemicals can do this!!

And you are correct, it is not good!

[CLANG]

70. They didn't say the lining, they said 'the esophagus". That would be nasty.

[Generic Other]

73. Where do you suppose the dissolving process starts? Inside the esophagus...

And yes, if it totally dissolves, I would say you are in a very bad way.

[CLANG]

75. That's all I was trying to say, but am more interested in the long

term prognosis for such a thing, and how you would need to live.

[Generic Other]

76. pig esophagus transplants?

or they cut a piece of colon to make an esophagus? Neither sounds like a minor thing.

[defendandprotect]

67. BP could probably find some value in that ..... like weight loss, for instance -- !!

:nuke:

[phasma ex machina]

63. k&r

[datasuspect]

72. wait, i though magic rainbow unicorns made this go away in about one week

where is it in the news cycle?

[Generic Other]

74. The Times Picyune reported degraded oil on Friday

They said it fisherman working for BP reported long stretches of degraded oil. The Coast Guard was dispatched by helicopter to do a fly by sniff test and said it was algae. And I am supposed to trust their testing methods?



http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x4585973

[Panaconda]

87. Horrifying

Too late to K&R.

Troubling to say the least.

[earth mom]

99. OMFG! Meanwhile the government & BP are in cahoots to cover it all up.

Disgusting bastards!

:grr:

:puke:

:cry:

[Generic Other]

100. As long as we keep shouting they aren't able to hide it all

Anything we do to keep the topic in the forefront means BP squanders the money they spend trying to suppress the info. What starts out as info shared by 100's become 1000's when we are persistent. ")

[earth mom]

103. You are exactly right!

:thumbsup:

[TheKentuckian]

102. and this is why the system must be brought down

and why BOTH parties are corrupt to the core.

Allowing this is no different than open war on the population and habitat.

Reagan's eighth term in full swing with no end in sight.

[AlabamaLibrul]

104. I've been doing a lot of photography at the beach this past couple weeks and

I've been having breathing issues and terrible, 3 day headaches that aspirin won't fix.

My smoking has gone down lately and it's nothing like I've experienced before when I smoke less. It's more like a terrible stuffy nose, with no, you know, discharge when I blow my nose. To the point of not being able to breathe through my nose at all.

Phlegm-filled coughs not like I've ever had before without a good reason. More like the kind of coughs I'd get when I would catch a really nasty bronchitis and have to go get narcotic cough syrup to breathe well and sleep at night when I was young. I otherwise feel healthy, no other cold or flu symptoms. The breathing usually clears back up about 18 hours later with the coughing mostly happening the day after I go to the beach.

To be short, I can't explain what goes on except that I've gone down to the beach more in the past 2 weeks than I probably have in total since April. I do a lot of night photography so nothing visible to me.

Yes, it makes me a bit nervous.

[Generic Other]

105. Please take care of yourself! Go to a doctor if you can

Get it documented. Make sure they know where you were and what potential sources of contamination. There are some bad spots in all 4 Gulf States. Every person I have been following on Youtube who films the beaches has gotten sick. A few have been able to have their blood tested and found elevated levels of toxins.

Don't dismiss your symptoms. Don't let health professionals in your area dismiss them either. Report your symptoms to anyone who will listen. Be a pain in the ass!! That's all we can do. We don't have BP's money. But we have questions and we are entitled to answers.

Florida Oil Spill Law just started a new forum for posting about health issues. They are interested in hearing your anecdotal stories. It's all we have at this point. And we need to get the information out! I hope uyou will post your experience there.

http://www.floridaoilspilllaw.com/forum/

[SheilaT]

107. I actually have a real problem

with the lead sentence: People who's esophaguses are dissolving . . . . Who apostrophe s means who is, so the sentence makes no sense at all: People who is esophaguses are dissolving . . . .