Dark and Light XI

Bad Frightening news: - An outbreak of mysterious, persistent rashes from southern Louisiana across to Florida has ensued following the oil and chemical release of BP's massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

A resident of Mobile, Alabama reported red welts and blisters on her legs after wading into the water of Mobile Bay with her two dogs in early May. In the following days, she also observed hundreds of dead fish washing up on the beach. When the blisters healed, she was left with black bruises and scars. Both residents and visitors to the Gulf Coast reported similar rashes or peeling palms.

The rashes have been identified as staph infections, including MRSA, the potentially lethal Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus bacteria. Most cases lingered for months, as the rash did not respond well to antibiotics, steroid creams, or steroid shots.

NOAA and the EPA's decision to use dispersants in the Gulf without considering what harm the chemicals and dispersed oil might do to people was criticized by Dr. Sylvia Earle, former chief scientist of NOAA. A Texas Tech University professor testified in Congress that the chemicals break down cell walls, making organisms (including people) more susceptible to oil. The professor called the Gulf an "eco-toxicological experiment."

Will it never end, the carelessness, the greed-based thinking?

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Good Now-seems-like-extra-good news: - A permanent cement plug sealed BP's well nearly 2.5 miles below the sea floor, five agonizing months after an explosion sank a drilling rig and led to the worst offshore oil spill in U.S. history.

About time, BP and all responsible-you careless, greedy plonks.