President Obama on June 3 reportedly expressed “upper-level outrage” at the situation in the Gulf of Mexico, where a runaway British Petroleum oil well has spilled millions of gallons of oil. The rest of the nation’s outrage is perhaps only beginning, since the impact of the spill has just started to be felt onshore, where the oil will foul beaches, destroy tourism, devastate the seafood industry, disrupt communities and undermine delicate habitats.
As oil continues to spill into the Gulf of Mexico, churches and religious organizations along the Louisiana coast are providing food, money and support to parishioners whose livelihoods hang in the balance.
Millions of gallons of oil have contaminated the gulf since an oil rig explosion on April 20, bringing the region’s fishing industry to a screeching halt. It’s been particularly hard for churches like St. Patrick Catholic Church in Port Sulphur, Louisiana, where many parishioners are fishermen.
The sudden, hideous explosion of oil in the Gulf of Mexico is the latest reminder of who we really are. By we, I mean:British Petroleum: Broken Pipe? Bigtime Pollution?Our government: The Bush administration's constant deregulation is a factor, but Barack Obama avoids offending the big oil and coal companies. We as in us: Every politician in America notices that Americans scream any time the price of oil begins to rise.