Ensuring Change Takes Place This Time Around.

31-years ago, on June 13, 1979, while the Trans-Alaskan oil pipeline (right) -  technically 800 miles of pipleline with a diameter of 48 inches that crosses three mountain ranges and over 800 rivers and streams, that connects oil fields in northern Alaska to a sea port where the oil can be shipped to the lower 48 states for refining - was in a state of "repair" (continuous)  from the previous oil leak(s) that allowed 1500 barrels of crude oil to escape, the Gulf of Mexico was trying to handle a much larger oil spil(June 3, 1979) that dumped 30,000 barrels of crude per day into the Gulf.

Sound familiar?  Well, that's not all. The techniques used to contain the 1979 spill are all too familiar to us today, and on August 7, 1979, reports of oil containment workers were still dominating the news. Then, on n August 8, 1979, reports of that all too familiar loop current, that we hear so much about today. On September 25, 1979, it was reported that "Operation Sombrero" that tried to put a 300 ton steel cone over the mouth of the runaway well, that once in place will collect over 90% of the crude oil, gushing from the well for over 3.5 months. BP's "Top Hat", anyone?  Yes, they even tried their own brand of "Top Kill", and pretty much every other technique we see trying and... failing today.

And the best part? All of these failed techniques used over thirty years ago, failed in 200 feet of water! What in the hell has possessed the minds of these over-the-top, highly paid, oil-drilling "experts" that makes them think these failed techniques will work at a depth of 5,000 feet?  Could it be "royalty breaks of $1 billion over five years" that is drying up the brains of these high-paid executives? Royalty Tweaks Target Deep Reserves?

Well, as we've seen in the banking industry, "royalty increases" greed can drain the capacity for all forms of high level cognitive activity in even the most brilliant of minds.  And therein lies the problem. It's all well and good to develop oil and gas resources, even when they are the most costly to develop and access, if they will more than likely pay off to line the pockets of those in charge.

Anyway, the 1979 "historical" oil spill continued for nine months, until relief wells were created to relieve pressure on the blown-out well, so that eventually it could be capped.




In the end, the only way to ensure change takes place is if we are willing to raise our standards of what we deem acceptable. If we contiue to allow personal gain to trump all else, things will never change...ever.

Thanks to Rachel Maddow's fabulous report on how much oil disasters and oil disaster response has not changed one iota in over 30 years.