A Fine Mess

All the news about the gulf oil spill brings to mind a signature line from old Laurel & Hardy routines, "It's a fine mess you've gotten us into, Ollie."

Stan Laurel would say that to Oliver Hardy when they had blundered into something totally ridiculous and the audience would roar with laughter.

But "It's a fine mess you've gotten us into, BP" draws no laughter.

The massive oil spill in the gulf that is now coming ashore along the coast of Louisiana and pushing into the marshland is a catastrophe that just seems to be getting worse and worse. It has shut down the fishing industry all along the coastal area, and it is now killing birds and other wildlife.

Meanwhile, BP and the federal government appear to be spending too much time talking and thinking and talking and thinking about what to do in between futile attempts to stop the leak. While they are doing that, any other efforts to clean up the oil or plug the leak -- that continues to pour thousands of gallons of oil into the water a day -- are put on hold.

A fisherman from Louisina said on the evening news last night that there are boats equipped for cleanup that are just sitting out there.

Last week Kevin Costner offered the use of equipment he developed for his film Waterworld that can clean the water of oil.

People who have ideas on how to stop the leak or clean up the oil, call BP with their ideas and they can't talk to anyone in charge. They have to go through a process of paperwork that can take several days.

Okay, I understand that there needs to be a chain of command, that people need to respect certain boundaries when it comes to the impulse to jump into a mess and try to do something. But in this case, I think a month is long enough for the chain of command to do its thing. And it hasn't.

So my suggestion is that anyone with an idea of how to clean up this mess and stop the leak should just, well, do it. Go down to the gulf with your idea and your equipment and get to work. After all, the ocean waters do not belong to BP or to the federal government.

Fixing Financial Woes

I read this news item today: Prodded by national anger at Wall Street, the Senate on Thursday passed the most far-reaching restraints on big banks since the Great Depression. In its broad sweep, the massive bill would touch Wall Street CEOs and first-time homebuyers, high-flying traders and small town lenders.

This is a good first step toward easing the tensions so many people are feeling due to the financial crisis that just doesn't seem to be going away as quickly as hoped. It's sort of like that oil spill in the gulf. Things have been done to try to stem the flood of oil pouring into the water, but all efforts have had little effect.

Passing more legislation to control businesses and establishing more government agencies to enforce the new legislation is like BP's goofy idea to shoot golf balls into the broken pipe in hopes of stopping it up.

When are the people who have the power in Washington going to wake up and realize that it would benefit the economy if they CUT THE COST OF GOVERNMENT?

Excuse the shout, but I just had to get that out there.

Imagine the savings if there was a 10% pay cut for government employees who make over $100,000 a year.

And what about cutting the massive retirement packages that congressmen and senators receive?

Instead of trimming the fat at the top, the government looks at cutting social security, Medicare, and other services that so many Americans rely on for basic necessities. Kind of an upside-down approach I'm thinking.

If government operated the way the businesses in my small town operate, there would be a significant reduction in the national debt. Revenue in these small businesses goes into keeping the business running: Buying merchandise, paying for the basics of overhead, serving the customers. If there is anything left over, the owner may get a salary and perhaps put something into savings for retirement.

So, what about it. Do you think this would work for government?