That's not true. There's equipment in the Gulf from several different nations.

They turned down the help that they could not use and are using the help that would be useful and not in the way ...geeze!

Simplistic, knee-jerk thinking for a complex problem does not help! But I guess that is what happens when you give your independent mind up to people who manipulate you for power and money. It's like a drug - you have to watch/hear them so you will know what you think - and even proud of it! They've got you hook, line, and sinker all the way to THEIR banks! What? You think it will rub off on you or make you sound like them? Won't happen any more than the "trickle down economics" shell game where everything trickled up!

Get educated, think for yourself! Try getting the news to learn something rather than to have something to react to! Or had you rather listen to the half/truths and outright lies of those desperate for power and control of their true religion: $$$? They love YOUR support all the way to THEIR banks!

Obama was never in charge of the clean up BP was. The offer was made by 17 country's on day 3 of the spill and even I have to defend Bp somewhat here because at that time no one knew how bad it was. BP is going to have to ay a penalty for every barrel of oil dumped into the GULF so I do not see how they would deny assistance from an outside source. There are ships assisting in the cleanup from several countries flying their country's flags. This stupid right wing troll story was manufactured by a right wing blog and has no value. In the end the Dutch offered either the booms that skim or the booms on their ships. BP chose to have the booms airlifted to the gulf and are using them as we speak. Only place yu find negativity on the move is a right wing blog or two

PSzymeczek - the foreign vessels were only allowed to help after a Jones act waiver was processed by the administration. This bureaucratic step took time that prevented the immediate acceptance of this help. And just to clarify BIACKBENZ's statement, Jones Act was 1936.

Hayward has been under intense pressure since this whole mess started. It is not fair to deny this guy a short break with his family. It is not like his taking this break had any impact on the progress of the clean-up or containment efforts. His choice of activity may be questionable, but then he does not control the timing of the race. Everyone needs a break to relieve the stress, but maybe he should have taken the time in private instead of in such a public venue.

Hayward may be making some PR gaffes, but he is not the one that caused the spill. As CEO he had no direct involvement in any of he decisions that led to this accident. I know that sounds like a cop-out, but it is reality. The guy runs a multi-billion dollar international corporation, he is not involved in routine operational decisions surrounding one oil well. BP as a corporation has made numerous mistakes and Hayward is the face of the company, but he is not the one personally responsible for the accident. All leaders take breaks regardless of the condition their company, or country for that matter, is in. Our country is in a mess and the president takes vacations to go golfing at great expense to the country when people are out of work and can not put food on their tables or roofs over their heads. How is this any different from Hayward taking a break. If Obama can spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to take air force one and his entire entourage on a vacation trip when that money could go to pay off the debt or feed people, surely Hayward is entitled to a break that is not costing the people on the gulf any money.

First...I have heard the ever-changing excuses for Bush and his "good job Brownie". They continue, but they make sense like a toddler with his hands over his face saying "You can't see me!"

Bobby's Sand Berms are going to wash away, if not before the first hurricane or heavy tide, after. Throwing money at something before getting the facts of the situation is a knee-jerk reaction. We lived thru 8 yrs of knee-jerks and look where that got us! We had enough and now the same people have gone off the deep end.

The spill is being stopped the only known way they know how at such depths and even then the force of this gusher is a concern if stopped - it could seep from fissures in the Gulf's seabed- that's why the "nuke it" was a boneheaded idea! The effects are happening in slow motion and will get bigger than you realize and then continue for years!

We are fortunate that we have a No-Drama President rather than one who would do something like lie about getting us in a war and put us in a huge debt of money and obligation in the process!

President Obama is doing his job FOR the people of our country rather than BP. His priorities are straight and has netted results. He is busy doing his job with the hounds snapping at his feet.

We need to be hoping the mass of oil that is now the size of Oregon and 1,500' below the surface doesn't land on The Coast. It is sucking all the oxygen out of the water...and that doesn't address the dead zone that the methane and chemical dispersants are creating. The Gulf of Mexico, for miles and miles off the coast of the USA, will be a Dead Sea! Gaming politics about the oil spill is the same as gaming politics in regard to every vote in Congress. If you aren't going to help, then get out of the way!

AMERICANS WORK TOGETHER AND COME TOGETHER IN TIMES OF TROUBLE.

BP chose to have the booms airlifted to the gulf and are using them as we speak

Actually, you are wrong! There are miles and miles of Booms sitting in a wharehouse in Maine. A company called Packgen contacted the administration begining on day two of the spill and begged them to use the booms. John Lapoint has been on television asking the administration to reconsider.

The real purpose of the Jones act, was and is, to keep a shipping company from just dumping a injured worked; the worker gets wage, maintenance and cure until recovery; the second part is really not ever enforced, ALL cruise ships sailing from U,S. ports have 100% foreign seaman, captain and all are foreign flag vessels; that is because the workers work for tips, not wages!

Saxon - you do not have a clue. The Jones Act has a few provisions and while one is to protect seamen as you said, your second statement is dead wrong. The Jones Act says that any cargo carried between two U.S. ports must be carried in US flagged and crewed vessels. Most cruise ships operating from U.S. ports go to foreign ports before returning to the U.S. and are therefor not subject to the Jones Act restriction. It is not a case of the law not being enforced, it just does not apply. The provisions of the Jones Act are vigorously enforced. One of the provisions of the Jones Act is that any vessel working in U.S. territorial waters be U.S. flagged and crewed. This is the reason that waivers are needed for foreign flagged and crewed vessels to work in U.S. territorial waters.

This is a stupid article that didn't deserve to be published. Maybe he is wearing his hairshirt to the race. Who knows, or why should anyone care. His personal life is his to live as he sees fit.

And this too is President Obama's "fault"?? - you people are soooo predictable and ridiculous - what are YOU doing about what's going on in the Gulf? Do YOU have a solution, have YOU gone down and volunteered to do anything? Have YOU donated a minute or a dime? Hmm.. thought so. Good grief get a life will ya.

talk about getting a life! the only thing Obama did wrong was to act to quickly, as per laws made many presidents ago.so i suggest you find another patsy to blame, like the person in the mirror! who refuses to Unite cause Obama is pres!

Most of the foreign equipment was BP Owned OR in some cases some came despite the formal turn down by the president and applied for, and were granted a waiver from the Jones Act.

13 countries formally offered held and were turned down. Bush publicly waived the Jones act 5 days after Katrina hit and accepted any offers of help from foreign country. Bush is supposed to be arrogant.

Arrogance is having potentially the largest oil spill ever,

1) turning down help from 13 countries with available equipment,

2) not following the 1994 protocol for oil spills in the gulf,

3) not releasing the 1994 stockpiles of equipment and oil-eating microbes

4) waiting 17 days to approve 2% of the requested man-made sand bars (so long that oil reached the shores already. Not even informing Jindal about the approval for 4 days

5) not seriously considering all inventions and ideas for weeks - some are now being approved

6) Blaming how much damage is occuring on BP. They may have blown the well, but you can't say they have blown the response, the fed has done so bad, that Jindal now using unapproved methods now instead of waiting for Federal approval.

7) Demanding BP turn over a sum of money to be used in answering claims even though BP was turning claims around in 2 - 3 weeks instead of 2 - 240 months like the Exxon-Valdez did.

8) Blaming BP for shortcuts taken that the MMS (regulatory agency approved).

I understand the anger and ire, but assign the blame to the right places and right people - ALL OF THOSE INVOLVED INCLUDING THE GOVERNMENT LEADERSHIP!

dorrit

We lived thru 8 yrs of knee-jerks and look where that got us!

AHHHHHHHHH! I see.

So, the hurry, hurry, hurry of the TARP, GITMO, $TIMULU$ and of course the criminal passage of the now over $1 BILLION DOLLAR Health Care Redistribution were all thought out so well.

Liberals,,,,so easy.

I'm waiting to see all top level personnel of the MMS, including the fired woman that used to head up the department, and their boss Ken Salazar....dragged before those committees and bullied by Waxman and Bart Stupak....Grandstanding SOB's.....

and don't forget what Obama's brain (Rahm Emmanuel) says..."never let a good crisis go to waste"....getting the biggest scam of all time passed....Cap & Trade.

The law was not enactred to protect unions. It was enacted to protect shipping companies. Remember, it was 1920 and organized labor was still considered a communist activity by many, especially the owners and oligarchs.

Our governments neglect and incompetence under this lawyer and community organizer that NEVER ran his own household least to say any other business or organization is the root cause of this mess and every other mountain of disfunction. AND you smacks that voted for Obama are to blame for electing him. YES BP is to blame but all these corporations are money machines. Our government did not do what we paid it to do, watch the corporations and regulate them for our safety.

I bet the majority of you demonizing the person of Tony Hayward don't know what to do to get your own lives on track! I would bet serious money that most of the left wing are upside down financially, in debt and probably owe your republican parents for everything. You all probably always have you hands out because you're as useless and disfunctional as the Obama administration.... Just a guess!

Don't cast dispersions at hayward. He contnues to employ people and struggle to get through this. You idiots would prefer that the crew and all the workers involved in the race which generates millions in salaries and thousands of jobs associated with the event pay mortgages and college tuition and to put food on tables. BUT NO! You retards can't see past your own miserable pathetic noses! Wake up and get off the Obama pessimistic express straight to poverty and pain.

I took a look at this "Jones Act", it's purpose and how it affects the Gulf. Accordingly, it states that some equipment from other countries "WAS TRANSFERRED" to US vessels and is being used in the Gulf; BUT, some of the best oil skimming ships in the world are not being used. Mainly Dutch, Norwegian, and Belgian. Now, you're going to tell me that BO and congress bogged down the clean up of the Gulf over some 1917 law that is hardly applicable today. BP doesn't have a thing in the world to do with that. They said in the beginning they'd take what help they could get. A waiver should have been granted from day 1 and those skimming ships should have been put to use. I'm sorry. BP may have many, many, faults in this spill, but asking for help and not getting it isn't one. This thing is really starting to stink and I guess we're just suppose to tell our government----that's A OK. I'm stunned beyond belief.

Js, you are correct; except, the drill ships are all foreign flag vessels, their Captains are all foreign license, ;plus Obama does not have the authority to override a act of congress; however no one is going to complain, since this is a crisis of unheard of proportions.I overstated, I was venting my anger at how this thing has been mishandled by all party's!

Plug in "Jones Act Emptysuit". That'll tell you many things. It is the Jones Act of 1917.

diane-488628

Have YOU donated a minute or a dime?

Yes. I have.

I have sent $2,500.00 to the Colbert Nation Gulf of America Fund. This is a disaster relief fund through the Baton Rouge Area Foundation. I couldn't match Microsofts offer of paying $2,500 each time Colbert mentioned "Bing" on his show, which he did 40 times by the way for a great $100,000 contribution, but it seems like the right thing to do now.

People interested in donating to the Colbert Nation Gulf of America Fund can visit,,,

www.braf.org.

My family also pooled together $32,603.28 for our brother-in-law who owns a propellar maintenance business in Mandeville, LA. He doesn't think the money he needs to continue his business of 13 employees will ever see any of the people who need it any time soon.

Oh, by the way, the $3.28 in the above donation was from my 4 yo nieces Barbie purse she wanted to give uncle JoJo.

What have you done diane?

obama is doing a good job as a Bananna Republic prez.

If memory serves me correctly, a significant amount of help was offered by other nations during Katrina and Bush turned it all down. Not smart then either.

USARogue (#1.21) You have done more to help then most members of the ObaMao Cult followers and Koolaid Drinking Society. No matter how we try they can not reasoned with. They too blinded by the meer mention of ObaMao's name to see they have sold their Nations soul for a bill of goods.

If Obama can go golfing 7 times since the oil spill, what's wrong with a day off for Hayward, who's been under enormous pressure and gets berated every day when he didn't even cause the oil spill. And please, don't give me the "He's in charge" line. So is Obama, and I don't see him giving up his golf, vacation time with his family, and time for fund-raisers with the Hollywood crowd.

PSzymeczek "That's not true. There's equipment in the Gulf from several different nations."

Are you saying that Obama has waived the Jones Act to allow foreign skimmers to operate and collect the surface oil?

When did this happen, and why was it not reported in the media?

I suspect that you are engaging in wishful thinking. Omama won't do anything to upset his union base.

Saxon - He has the authority to waive it in a time of emergency. Obama didn't, Bush did.

Get Real - your memory fails you - Bush did not turn anything down during Katrina. BUT . . . . . Bush never gave Cuba an answer and that was the only. In a sense that was wise because other hurricanes were already in the pipe and Cuba is a prime target. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9311876/page/2/

Thanks for the info Stan, but the word is that about a dozen individual foreign vessels did join in, but they came without the mother country's orders, and individually applied for waiver, which they were granted.

The big deal here is we were offered better more efficient means to do the clean-up and those countries offered were turned down. We have to suffer ridiculous losses just as we did on the Normandy invasion in WW II. We refused to accept better equipment, and what we did accept was not the approapriate equipment which cost us even more lives. You'd think we would get this kind of thing right 65 years later.

Tony Haywood can go where ever he chooses imo. The Gulf disaster happened, he is supposedly the face of BP and the spill because it happened on his watch.

Is he the only one that is supposed to put his life on hold and wear a hairshirt and sleep on a bed of nails because of the greed, stupidity and lack of backbone by all concerned including Transocean, Halliburton et al? Including some in Louisiana.......

What about the BP America management teams....you know the CEO, COO etc here? ....shouldn't they be held to the same standard of accountability (or maybe even higher) as Haywood - who was responsible for BP International ie the whole ball of wax all over the world --- while they were responsible for the operations here in this country....supposedly their own country?

Weren't they here in this country and the disaster happened on their watch also. They said stuff that did not pass muster either. And if they were sooo for this country and Louisiana in particular because they are from the region, why didn't they try to affect change of the supposedly pennypinching, cost cutting, shortcutting, at the expense of safety etc that was supposedly taking place here in this country, when workers have been dying in refinery fires, oil spilled etc and now the Gulf gusher? hmmm

What are they ie the BP America management team, doing to solve the problem in the Gulf. Didn't they know about the short cutting of projects there too? Who made the decision to not cap with mud? Who was the 'BP man' that pushed the short cutting to seawater instead of mud? Was that Haywood personally voicing that decison or could that person i.e. 'BP man' be actually on the BP America management team here? Hmmmm

Transocean and Halliburton could have stood their ground and do the project at their supposed standard of safe practice.......instead of bowing to pressure by BP...couldn't they?

There is a lot of blame to go round here........from the sound of things. The matter is being investigated by the Justice Dept et al.... so let them do their job.

Haywood lawyered up for his meeting with Congress..... just like every other corporation management team CEOs etc would or have done in the past and especially as there is other ongoing investigations and various law suits to come, thus he is not going to say anything to jepardize himself or the company for which he works ..... That is actually the way it works. This is what they do. Whatever Haywood says to Congress is said under oath and he is liable for whatever he says.

Hold him to the same standard of behaviour before Congress as any other company CEO, COO etc in the hot seat who have also said nothing to incriminate themselves or their company imo.

What is..... right...... with you people who just pile on and blame everyone and everything for your or everyone elses misfortune and every misfortune that has ever occured, no matter who caused it?

How often have you not done the right thing or just gone with the flow.... the old 'go along to get along' even at the expense of the reputation and job/position of a collegue or even a friend at work, instead of standing up for that person who may be being unfairly treated, penalized for something they didn't even do etc? How often have you been just a Sunday christian?

Now a man, who has been under enormous pressure for policies that were put in place before he took over the job as CEO of BP International must take the blame for everything that happened even if the corporate culture was already set down by the previous CEO. Hmmmm. WOW.

So he has been with the company a long time and knew the corporate culture.... Did he agree with it, continuing it, trying to change it now he is incharge, or...what?.....that is the question. No doubt one will have to wait and see...... sometimes a calamity occurs that hits at the heart of the matter/problem and produces or acts as the catalyst that brings about needed change.... Perhaps this calamity will force these companies to change their corporate culture...Hmmm

Does Haywood have a share in the blame for what occurred in April or in the past few years since he took over as CEO? Yes, he is the big honcho of the whole international corporation...... he may not be the honcho of honcho's in the company.....and is still answerable to an even higher authority i.e the Board of the corporation..... so these board members also should share the blame too imo as well as everyone else that is in the management teams of this or these corporations imo.

Now just because Haywood said some unfortunate things (perhaps some out of frustration/pressure/stress etc) and said did others things that no doubt is on the advice of the company's legal team, their media consultants and lobbiests etc, presented himself and his company in the media per their advice and he is being hammerred for same......hmmmm .....

As if we all don't screw up sometimes. And just because he (and maybe the Chairman) does not supposedly look or sound 'sorry enough' whatever that means...... At least he (and the Chairman) did not look and sound fake/slick and pretentiously sincere like .....others? hmmmm ...... Sounds familiar huh.

Ah...yes, it is the same like our President being blamed for all the crap that has happened in the past and present from policies that was set down by the previous administrations...

With even all the other crazy talkers who keep piling it on pretending that they actually care about this country more than he the President does, and they would have done better if they were in the hot seat....while they sit or sat in Congress and did or do nothing except say no and or appologize to the offending companies while sticking it to their fellow citizens of this country.LOL

Tony Haywood went to a yachting event....good for him. Perhaps he will now be able to come back and think more clearly to get the job done after decompressing. Every one needs down time... it helps them to work better....and accomplish more imo.

And the same goes for President Obama when he takes time off to decompress.....cause his job is even more stressful, (imagine having to deal with everyone in congress too..LOL) as he deals with and carries more responsiblity than any CEO or Chairman of any multinational company no matter how massive that company may be imo.

I am sorry this disaster happened. But maybe this needed to happen to bring focus to how energy is produced and used in this country, and what needs or can be done or the way we as a country need to go, as not to end up destroying ourselves and our environment and to actually give us the push to not just talk about it .....but get it done..... i.e. produce and use cleaner, renewable energy and becoming more fuel efficient...with.cars, homes, trains etc.....

BZe1 - All of the thought you put into your posting, and you can't even get his name right. He is Tony Hayward, not Haywood. Come on!! If you are going to write a long comment on something, at least get the basics right. And by the way, this disaster DID NOT "need to happen". That is a horrible thing to say. I think you have forgotten that 11 people died in the explosion.

I think they should hold the yacht races in the Gulf of Mexico!

GETREAL-1897842, You are right about GWB. He did say it was our problem and we'll handle it. So, we have 2 dumb moves by 2 presidents. I'm not really sure how far back they've come since Katrina? Thing is, GWB's handling of Katrina doomed his Presidency. Why should BO escape our wrath? Congress grilled BP for not accepting ideas and help from other sources. What makes BO different? It was stated that he refused help from some of the best oil skimming ships in the world. Maybe, still has?

logdump is a really good name for you...logdump.

NCL#1.29, Perhaps you should re-read my 'little' missive. :) What basics are you referring to?

I not only referred to the workers that died in April but the others workers that died or were injured in the refinery fire a few years ago also, and the various spills and the present gusher all that occured within American borders or on American soil so to speak for example the Alaska pipeline, Texas refinery as well as the Gulf.... etc

Are you a part of the BP America management team? Are you upset because I asked if all members of the management team for BP America were from other countries or were some Americans also? LOL

I noted that BP has a lousy safety and maintenance record that did not just start when Hayward became CEO as it seem to have started with the previous CEO with his cost cutting for higher profits modus operendi and the various management teams going along with it. The other members of the management teams are equally as culpable imo.

Was it the my querying of where do the management team for BP America fit into this mess..... and that it appears they were all Americans and may be from Gulf region too... which would make it even worse, because it happened in their own country in their own back yard? And also where were their commitment to their own country and their fellow Americans that is getting your back up? LOL

But then what's new? Perhaps you do not realize that there are other American companies that do not seem to care about their own American people/workers/country either..... Like...

Were all the financial firms on Wall Street foreign companies?

How's your pension funds, 401ks, IRAs etc? Lost a lot of or most of its value didn't it?

How is the interest rate on your credit cards? How are those fees...even on your bank account?

What interest rate are you getting on your savings account etc in comparison to the interest rate on your credit card or other loans. LOL Banks charge about 15 -25 odd % interest on credit cards while paying less than 1% interest on savings accounts. LOL Talk about profit making and taking....

How is you neighborhood faring? Many for sale signs or forclosure signs? How many homes are underwater?

How many folks are now unemployed, under-employed or stopped looking for a job? How many folks have lost everything.....or are/were having health issues and little to no healthcare coverage?

Have you noticed that health care costs are skyrocketing due to the cost cutting on services that these companies will cover, even as they increase premiums and higher deductibles, co pays etc on their fellow Americans....by the private health insurance companies and even the employers?

How is big pharma treating you? Americans pick up the cost of R&D by paying a higher cost for drugs in this country while other countries don't, yet benefit from the R&D that is paid for by Americans.

How about the millions of jobs outsourced overseas by these very same American companies, as they send these jobs/industries to, for example, China and India etc? How does that affect you ...do you care?

As I have stated here and on previous other message posted, I am sorry that this disaster happened and all those folks were killed and beaches beaches bespoiled, wetland, marshes, wildlife dying or dead and the livelihood of those folks in fishing, tourism etc destroyed or deminished.

What has happened has happened. And it is oftentime more difficult to put the cork back in the bottle than it was to take it out.

We can either continue to blame the bottle, blame the bottle maker, blame the cork and or the cork maker or the person or persons who pulled the cork out of the bottle or even the corkscrew, Or clean up the mess caused by the removal of the cork.

We can also get busy and make the necessary changes so that removing the cork the next time round does not cause the same negative results/disaster or maybe not even to need the contents of the bottle so there is no need to pull the cork out in the first place imo.

The sad part is that even with a disaster of this magnitude some folks, maybe even you, still don't get it and instead only seek to criticize for meanness sake or to play slick or show how clever they are. They have no intention of changing their lifestyle or see any need for change and only want things to go back to same as usual. You know pay lipservice only......

For example, Barton in Congress appologizing to BP's CEO for what Barton refers to as a 20B dollar shakedown of BP by the President of the USA, for negotiating for monies that is needed to help the Gulf area immediately.

Aside from being disrespectful to the President of the USA, and uncaring about the plight of the people of the Gulf coast, who he- Barton - like others, no doubt would perfer to go through the legal system, and wait years for a payout -if any - he was also disrespectful to the people of this country to dare to criticize the President and leader of this country in such a negative, rude, disgusting manner showing his cluenessness and classlessness, and at a Congressional Hearing with the CEO of BP on the Gulf disaster, which was a open and public one to boot, for all to hear and see round the globe.(LOL) How UNAMERICAN at the very least.

Perhaps he should be shunned. Perhaps it is time that He and the rest of the Republicans/GOP better buy a clue with some of that corporate donations.....

Barton was also disrespectful to the Chairman of BP, and to Tony Hayward as he put Hayward in an awkward position imo.

The Chairman of BP made a business decision, agreeing to the amount of the initial award as is his right as head of BP International, after meeting and negotiating with the President of the USA and the USA financial team. Barton in essence therefore is implying that the President of the USA was a shakedown artist or con man and that the Chairman of BP was so weak and feebleminded that he fell for it.....ie the shakedown/con job. LOL

What did Barton think that Hayward was going to say 'thank you for showing what a wuss and how gullible my Chairman and the BP legal teams are'? LOL How crass can one get ...He (Barton) criticize a guy's boss to him...and in public at a hearing on the BP disaster problem that his boss - the Chairman- has just been addressing and that he (Hayward) will now have to answer to him(Barton)on his role in it or what he knew..?LOL

Perhaps Barton, like Bachman, Boehner and Burgess- would perfer for the people of this country and folks in the Gulf -in particular - to live on the HOPE that BP will or would do as they Promised to make them and the area whole.....LOL But as the saying goes ' a promise is a comfort to a fool' but 'a bird in the hand is better than 2 in a bush'.LOL

On the other hand no doubt these 'leaders' would perfer the cost of the capping, containment, cleanup and initital compensation to be paid for by the American taxpayors....again.....because this time this industry is ' too necessary to fail'....LOL

Anyway Haywood, Hayward...... still started with Hay, had a W and ended with a D. So I gave him 2 Os instead of AR, at least you know who I was referring to. LOL

And just what do you think your president has been doing? Fund raisers,golfing, evenings with stars.

I'm much more concerned about obama's Muslim ties and BP's Iranian ties.

We will get through this oil spill, but we may not ,as a Country, make it through the Muslims and Iran.

this is a right wing talking point that has been debunked. The Jones act didn't apply so didn't need to be waived and there are lots of foreign help that have been there since day 1. But hey, never let a good talking point no matter how false go to waste.

But that wouldn't be very American of us.

Well, maybe it was once upon a time but not any more.

In America today, what you have is approaximately half the country actively wishing for things to go very wrong just so it will make the party in power look bad (it happened both with Bush & Obama).

With this sort of mindset, I sincerely doubt this nation can ever come together again. Instead of coming together to overcome challenges, you have one big cynical schadenfreude party.

I agree. Although sometimes I may be opposed to the president and congress's decisions, I never want them to do the wrong thing just so they'll look bad-- no matter who's in power. Anyone who wants the opposing party to fail just so they'll be voted out is a traitor to our country. We need to work together. I may be a democrat but I would gladly back up anyone who's making progress on the issues.

Craig...good point. I sometimes wonder if we would be better off splitting this nation into two parts.

it allready is

Those who have

and

those who have not.

where have you been? people refuse to Unite for the simple fact Obama is pres!

Naaaa, bitching and complaining are more "en vogue"!

America would be no less screwed up and the gulf would be no less filled with oil if McCain were President.

Go kiss Ronald Reagan's dead ass and pray for his second coming.

Well his dead ass would be doing a better job than shamwow the magnificent

America would be no less screwed up and the gulf would be no less filled with oil if McCain were President.

McCain IS President.

McShame is just as spineless and wishy-washy as Obumma is. They are both progressives. Progressive is a code name for commie. I despise them both.

Go kiss Ronald Reagan's dead ass and pray for his second coming.

You are a nasty one, aren't you?

By God, I'll tell you this...

Ronald Reagan LOVED his country and SERVED in the military during WWII like ALL patriotic Americans during that time.

Contrast that with the hate America first crowd residing in Hollywood today, who revere Chavez, Mao and Castro.

Reagan didn't seek deferment like Clinton. He didn't despise the military like obumma does.

Reagan LOVED the US.

Obama loves OBAMA (and Karl Marx, and Trotsky, and Chavez, and Frank Marshal Davis and Saul Alinsky). Mostly himself.

Crimson Ghost - son, you really need some therapy. Plus, ranting on like that just destroys your credibility.

so you're saying even "evil" people need to play on a $700,000 boat? how about he donate his boat to charity to clean up that mess so he can have the benefit of sailing in clean water?

...or gathering all of his rich friends and spending a little money on the Gulf Coast!

Because he doesn't sail in the Gulf. Duh Ginny.

As we speak 37% say he is right to do so. Same people thought it was wrong for Obama to attend a McCarthy concert at the WH.

As we speak Obama is at an MLB game.. why aren't people outraged about that.. I mean it took him well over a month before he even responded to this disaster!

OMG people, do you see anybody in our government giving up their toys for the mess they has this entire country in.

And why don't I see this kind of outrage for our government taking breaks and worried about vacation (Memorial Day) when we have hundreds of thousands of people out of work and needing unemployment; seems to me they are far worse than Hayward wanting to spend time with his family.

I don't believe ANY of their comments were in any way meant to be mean-spirited!

Obama got BP to dig the 2nd relief well before you even knew what was happening!

Jenn-1736011 - As a resident of Louisiana, I can say we are upset with Obama and his delayed reaction to the explosion and oil spill. Obama is LYING when he says he and/or his administration was on top of this disaster from DAY 1.

Kim-1871061 - Again, speaking as a resident of Louisiana, I can tell you that the comments were RUDE and INSENSITIVE. Hayward wants his life back? Well, you know what, so do the people on the Gulf Coast!!! We don't want to see the pelicans (our state bird) covered in oil and dying. We don't want to see dead dolphins washing up on the shore. We don't want to see the protective marshes destroyed. We don't want to see our fishermen lose their jobs or way of life. These thoughtless comments have just added INSULT TO INJURY.

How the hell do you know what the administration was doing from day 1? Your right, he woke up and said screw it, I'm not going to do anything about this oil spill, how stupid of an argument. It is just as stupid as the whole Jones Act reasoning, you do realize that these countries offered to help, as long as we payed them for their equipment and getting it here and doing the job? But heh why not just go with the right wing talking point as it fits your narrative. Honestly what did you want the government to do when no one knows how to fix it, maybe it is a problem that has no easy answer and throwing money at it is not going to make it any easier to fix. To say that there are all these ways to fix it if only the government would let them is just plain ignorant, do you really believe that the ideas were so wonderful and would solve the problem they wouldn't have tried them, if for no other reason than to get "their lives back".

dorrit

Obama got BP to dig the 2nd relief well before you even knew what was happening!

You are joking right? You really think Obama woke up the first day of the spill and commanded relief well drilled, just like that? He must have looked into his crystal ball and without consulting a Oil drilling expert at all knew a 2nd relief well was just the thing to stop the oil.

And on the 57th Day Lord Obama raised his hand and declared : "Behold! it was I who has been in charge since day one..er...can someone point out who's ass I need to kick?" and it was all good. The small people got money, he had great PR mileage from it and he got lotss of money handed to him for shaking down of a private company. (a private company that was already wroking to stop the oil and clean it up) Sweet deal for him!

The rhetoric coming out of the POTUS reminds me of a commercials for a personal injury lawyer "I'm Barrack THE HAMMER Obama! If you have been injured in an accident as a result of the negligence of others, "I'll make those &@!#*$ pay and get you every dime you deserve! Call me at 1-800-555-LIES)"

If one plays golf and the other choses to goes sailing nothing is changed. BOTH are powerful, obscenely rich, elitist men who are out of touch with the "small people." Neither have the experience to hold the title and responsiblity for their prespective positions. (ala the Peter Principle)

The Peter Principle states that "in a hierarchy every employee tends to rise to his level of incompetence."

Everyday I learn more and more about less and less. When I finally know nothing I will become POTUS.

tjcenter - I know what was happening from day 1 because I live in Louisiana, as I mentioned above. I know what the Obama administration WAS NOT DOING - they were not dealing with this disaster of epic proportion. Since I am right next to this catastrophe, I have access to information in real time. We hear about the progress, or lack thereof, day in and day out from our local tv news, local newspaper, and first-hand knowledge of seeing this continuing disaster with our own eyes.

You said it yourself - "no one knows how to fix it". That is the whole problem right there. BP CEO Tony Hayward is completely clueless and admitted as much when he testified this week before members of Congress. And let's face it, Obama just does not have the experience needed to deal with this huge disaster; being a community developer/leader/whatever does not cut it. So we have to sit here and wait while these people, who don't know what they are doing, who would clearly rather be doing something else, try to fix the problem. Yeah, that sounds like a great situation to be in for an extended period of time. Hayward and Obama are both leaders, and we look to them for answers and guidance. When the people in charge have no answers, where does that leave us? Up s*it creek, I guess. The only hope we have are the relief wells, and even those are not guaranteed to work.

One last thing, this oil spill could easily make its way around Florida and up the East Coast. So really soon, A LOT of other people, including you, may be seeing things from a different point of view. It's one thing to watch a disaster happen to other people, but it's a completely different story when it happens to you.

It appears to me that Kevin Costner's company will sell their machines to BP for cleanup. At least, as a very rich movie star, he has been spending his time productively and not working on his tan.

Go look up the Mexican disaster. There is no solution to this. Best they can do is the relief well and that is not a sure thing. Took them 9 months to stop that leak and it was in much shallower water. It was a year before they declare the waters back to normal and that one dropped less oil into the Gulf.

hahaha, touche.

Barton is a embarrassment to THIS Texan. But with all the money he received from the oil lobby what else could he do??

Maybe you will be happy when more businesses move from US due to this kind of over-the-top treatment.

Put those kinds of posters on ignore. I love seeing their name come up without their dumb and disrespectful posts. They are trolls anyway.....cruising the 'net to see if they can spew some hate out here on Saturday afternoon.

I agree that people need a break, but people in these high profile positions should be smart enough to realize how this looks to the general public....especially to the people who are suffering through this mess with the loss of their job...It would seem as a slap in the face if I were in their position.

Agreed. He should've taken a break away from the public eye...or at least gone to the race incognito. Now he's pissed off a bunch of people who read MSN. You won't like us when we're angry Mr. Hayward.

From his testimony he should be back at headquarters learning something about his business cause he sounded like he did not know jack about it before congress.

Where I come from you *take a break* AFTER you have done some work. Hayward hasn't done anything other than "get clocked in".

Hayward didn't get where he's at by being stupid, he knew no matter what he said, the

imbeciles in congress were going to roast him as a diversion from the utter incompetence and

anti-americanism of the obama circus!

Dr. J - such as you are - I repeat -

And this too is President Obama's "fault"?? - you people are soooo predictable and ridiculous - what are YOU doing about what's going on in the Gulf? Do YOU have a solution, have YOU gone down and volunteered to do anything? Have YOU donated a minute or a dime? Hmm.. thought so, bet you're just way too busy "swaning" around. Good grief get a life will ya.

Don't let it get to you, diane, the cult of bush just can't deal with the fact that their messiah told them nothing but lies for 8 years.

Dr. J - you are funny. Swanning? Are you a Dr. of Ignorance?

This disaster happened on Obama's watch - bottom line. He has been president for a year and a half now, so that's plenty of time for him to know what is going on in this country. Simply put, he did not respond to the oil spill in a timely manner. He was off doing other things, recreational things, when he should have been paying attention to this catastrophe and dealing with it. So much damage was done before he even acknowledged there was a problem - that is why many people are angry. So stop blaming the Bush administration, for crying out loud. That excuse is getting really old and tiresome. The problem is Obama's lack of concern right after this disaster.

People are angry about Obama's slow response to the oil spill, and they have a right to be angry for that reason.

@hey-------- At least the Japanese feed themselves, but you're probably a big fan of imbeciles that let their children starve for any number of reasons , and drag the developed nations down by having to feed the bums! I am against driving any species into extinction, but I'm way more worried about "globalists " that want to control the actions of all humans with senseless, over-

bearing regulations and oppression!

Yes! Put everyone who fishes or anyone involved in petroleum products in jail! Yay!

That was so bad I hit the ignore button twice on you

WOW - that's really sad.

how about food poisoning from some bad seafood.

Yes! Let's start a petition to make the drilling and pumping and refining of oil a crime!

ut it was ok wen the right was assailing Obama for attending a concert at the Wh though.

when something goes wrong at your work place, does it cause the mass pollution of a major sea, killing all forms of sea animals, birds, and plant life?

We aren't talking about hitting the water cooler while we wait for the copy machine repair man.

obama was on this from day 1- who the hell gave the coast guard the authority to monitor this mess - think with you head for once before you make a fool out of yourself

Thanks for being another apologist for BP I am sure the people in the Gulf really appreciate you right wingers licking the boots of the BP leaders.

I don't think anybody is licking boots, but really this is just so out of control. And, I really believe in the old saying "don't throw stones when you live in a glass house" - I'm sorry, but there is more than enough blame to go around - including the horrible lack of oversight by our own government.

Let's talk about the Coast Guard.. what did they do the other day, but stop the ships that were in the process of cleaning up the oil to check to see if there were enough life vests on board! Are you f..ing @!$%#ting me... Seriously, we're dealing with an enormous disaster and you stop their work because of that.

Here's an idea.. how about allow them to continue working while you check the life vests.. give me a break.. EVERYONE in our government from the President to Congress needs to be thrown out on their ass (regardless of their party).. they ALL SUCK!!

I agree whole heartly! Lets all get together and get working on this mess instead of all the name calling.

If you want to help fix this *mess*......

THEN

Ride your bicycle; instead of your EVIL car, to the store.

Refuse the plastic shopping bags at the store....plastic is made from oil...DUH.

If you are not taking your own bags; made from organic cotton or bamboo, with you when you go shopping....then you ARE the problem.

How many pelicans need to die because you are stupid and lazy? Stop acting like a worthless American.

im sorry but kind of funny. do you think the cotton/ bamboo was harvested by oil burning machinery or transported in oil burning trucks. i dont think at times people realize just how deep petroleum goes into every day life. You can ride your bike and that makes a difference but the tires paint everything on the bike is related to oil. maybe we can all get naked and walk barefoot to the forest and pick fruit to eat. better get rid of the palms and computers etc... I agree that we need to work on other technology but we are truly locked in for a long time yet with oil

*small people*

Ron1127 He at least gave up some of his life of the rich and famous for a while - Obama did not miss a beat. He still hosted expensive dinner parties on the Tax payers dime, noshed with the likes of Paul MaCarty, shot some hoops, played a little golf, watch MLB.

it was the bush regeime who gave them the permit to drill in 1 mile deep water. permits for deep water drilling should not be given out unless they can have a full proof way of stopping this if it ever happens again. when it comes down to BP's chief engineer saying it was a disaster in the waiting to happen it says it all

after all Bush and Cheney were oil men and they really did not give a rats ass what happened because BP has 2 huge messes during that a-hole's reign of stupidity and it hardly made the news - the alaska disaster and the Texas City refinery disaster - yep, the Bush regeime really covered them up for BP and if that idiot was still in he would say what leak

Pres. George W. Bush still does not know the location of the Gulf of Mexico.

who is doing the best they can to fix what ?? all you have to do is look at their safety record for the past 45 or so years and you will see that nothing has changed in all that time - it has just got worst. profits before safety never works

Yes, he would look good in sack cloth and ashes. What will the people who lost their livelihood be wearing in a few years?

Well, yes.

When the boat is sinking, you do not take a nap....you help bail water and if you haven't got a cup then you keep rowing for shore.

Again, WOW - and you actually think he's a horrible person.

Kim - Do you work for BP or something? All of your comments are in support of BP and Tony Hayward. Tony Hayward IS a horrible person, and it sounds like you might be one too. I think Dan's comment is quite interesting. Some people don't comprehend loss or sadness until it happens to them directly, so maybe something does need to happen to Hayward for him to show some real empathy for the people on the Gulf Coast. At the very least, Tony Hayward needs a slap in the face for his comments and attitude.

or poetic justice...karma, if you will.....Hayward's home could blow up because of a natural gas leak.

Maybe some British enviromentalist could sneak onto the Hayward compound and dump some motor oil into his swimming pool.

Really? You think this guy flew out to the rig and cut some pipes and lit a match to watch this rig burn? If so, then your comments about trying to sabotage his home make sense, otherwise, take a look in the mirror for the "horrible person".

I would have to agree with Happy on this one. I guess no one on here works for a large business. A corporation like BP that employs hundreds of thousands of people and you people expect one guy to know the intimate details of all operations, at every division! Wow, if I were that guy they would have to pay me our National Debt per year as compensation. Oh, then you would attack that to wouldn't you.

I'm not defending BP, Hayward or Obama. There is not a single point of failure here. Maybe the company cut corners, definitely the government failed in their oversight which is paid by us taxpayers. Everyone forgets that anything that happens in a regulated environment is a direct failure of the job we pay for with taxes. Absurdly enough, instead of firing the true crooks (Government, not Party), we asked them to spend more of our money! I think I'll run for office, it's a no brainer

I've always said that there are two kinds of people in this world.....the rich and the honest.