Gov. Crist: Oil sheen 4 miles off Pensacola Beach

[Ed Barrow]

Source: Miami Herald

Gov. Charlie Crist took an aerial tour of Florida's northwest Gulf coast Thursday and spotted a patch of light oil sheen closing in on a panhandle bitterly bracing for its turn at the Deepwater Horizon oil disaster.

The sheen was 3 ½ to 4 miles off Pensacola Beach, ``much closer than we'd like it to be,'' with the bulk of the sheen about 10 miles away, the governor reported.

Hours earlier his office warned that weathered oil -- brown blobs, a sheen or a rusty brown mixture called a mousse -- ``could impact the Florida Panhandle as early as this week due to a shift in winds and currents.''

``I can't even watch the news anymore,'' Panhandle fisherman Rick Lowe said near Fort Pickens in the Gulf Island National Seashore. He described the mood among locals as ``quiet anger.''


Read more: http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/06/03/1661584/florida-panhandle-braces-for-gulf.html

[Jefferson23]

1. Corporations out of control, destroying everything in their path. Have

you seen this, from Mark Ames? I enjoy his irreverent style.

Check out the pictures of the "castles" for the sea.

Class War For Idiots / June 2, 2010
Escape From America: The Strange & Scary Billionaires Behind The Libertarian-Inspired Sea Castles
By Mark Ames


What happens when Americans plunder America and leave it broken, destitute and seething mad? Where do these fabulously wealthy Americans go with their loot, if America isn’t a safe, secure, or even desirable place to spend their riches? What if they lose faith in their gated communities, because those plush gated communities are surrounded by millions of pissed-off Americans stripped of their entitlements, and who now want in?

We finally have the answer, and you’re not going to like it: a new fleet of castles that float in the oceans. The super-wealthy are already building their first floating castle, a billion-dollar-plus luxury liner that offers permanent multimillion-dollar housing with the best protection of all: moats made of oceans, keeping the land-based Americans they’ve plundered at a safe distance.
The first such floating castle has been christened the “Utopia“–the South Korean firm Samsung has been contracted to build the $1.1 billion ship, due to be launched in 2013. Already orders are coming in to buy one of the Utopia’s 200 or so mansions for sale--which range in price from about $4 million for the smallest condos to over $26 million for 6,600 square-foot “estates.” The largest mansion is a whopping 40,000 square feet, and sells for $160 million.

It’s the first of its kind to offer permanent housing units to buyers, and there’ll be plenty on board the Utopia for the global elite inhabitants to keep themselves entertained: an outdoor movie theater, casino, miniature golf course, nightclubs, restaurants, shops, and a water park for the elites’ heirs (featuring a “Lazy River,” rock-climbing wall and water slides). At nearly 1,000 feet, the Utopia is almost as long as a nuclear-powered Nimitz-class aircraft carrier.

reminder in full: http://exiledonline.com/escape-from-america-the-strange-scary-billionaires-behind-the-libertarian-inspired-sea-castles/

[w4rma]

2. Here we go. Goodbye Spring Break. (nt)

[amerfayed]

3. Oil reported at Marathon Key in the Florida Keys

Source: Florida Oil Spill Law

This is a report from Laurie Greeley Diefenthaler In the Florida Keys.

“They have totally lied to everyone. The BP Oil is here….it is on our lures, on our fingers and on our fishihg line. It is in the gulf stream and it is not being reported on the news ANYWHERE. This makes me sick.”

LAURIE REPORTS THIS ALSO: AND BY THE WAY, WE ARE IN DUCK KEY, RIGHT OFF MARATHON ….FLORIDA KEYS.

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=260597&id=119101198107726&fbid=128041073880405

Perhaps this is why a BPclaims office was opened in Marathon Key on May 30.

Read more: http://www.floridaoilspilllaw.com/oil-reported-at-marathon-key-in-the-florida-keys

---

Perhaps that NOAA forecast was a little late

[Towlie]

4. Marathon is a TOWN in the Florida Keys that encompasses several keys.

Technically it's a "city" although you wouldn't call it that if you drove through. It encompasses Knight's Key, Boot Key, Key Vaca, Fat Deer Key, Long Point Key, Crawl Key and Grassy Key.

Duck Key is a few miles "north" (actually east) of Marathon.

[nashville_brook]

5. here's a map:

[saigon68]

24. DRILL BABY DRILL

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H9D3epQL704

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xhvRQyRdVEI&feature=related

[nashville_brook]

6. Keys map and pre-oil Marathon pics...

http://www.edtruthan.com/tileproxy/keys/07%20-%20Marathon%20Key%20-%20Airport%20(KMTH).jpg

[Scuba]

7. Sickening, disgusting, outrageous...

...I was diving in the Keys in February. Beautiful reefs, abundant sea life, almost everyone I met had a conservationist mindset. BP can never undo their damage.

My recommendations: nationalize BP and use future profits to try to clean up their mess and to compensate their victims.

[ixion]

8. I lived in Key West for more than 4 years

it is (was?) by far one of the most incredible places on the planet. It makes me sick-to-death to know that it's going to die just because BP wanted oil. :argh: :cry:

[Mojorabbit]

12. I lived there in the late 70s

Fond memories.

[ixion]

22. Hello, fellow Conch

Indeed. Many fond memories. I was there in the 90's, but I hear the 70's were much more fun.

[formercia]

27. I was stationed in KW while in the Navy in the mid 60's

It was just a sleepy little town.You could walk over to the Shrimp Boats and buy it in bulk for 50 cents a pound. I'd eat the big ones and keep the small ones for bait. The reefs were beautiful back then. I used to go diving almost every weekend that I didn't have duty.
It was a great place.

[meeshrox]

9. I'm there (here) now...

in Key Largo on business this week, was in Marathon and Islamorada on business last week...

I grew up in Florida and live in Tampa Bay. I consider this as my last hoorah in the Keys. I want to return with my husband later this year on vacation, but we'll have to see. It's too gorgeous to describe! (especially Bahia Honda :loveya:)

:cry:

BTW, just got here. But, I haven't seen or heard anything yet about this.

[catzies]

30. I grew up in Key Largo. Mile Marker 104 Representin'!

A chunk of my heart and soul belongs to Florida Bay. :cry:

[meeshrox]

32. Well...for now, I scoped out the keys from Largo to West!

So far, clear and beautiful!

I heard of sheen in Duck Key and went to investigate. The pic must have been taken in the marina, because I was not able to find anything (at any of the public access points). ETA: I don't have a boat, so I wasn't able to go offshore.

I'm at MM101 right now, I think...at the Holiday Inn (Resort, not really) and had a day off from work. I drove down to Key West for a last hoorah. Not sure when I'll be able to get back that far.

My heart out to all of the key-dwellers past and present. Y'all have always been so groovy to me! I grew up in west Broward and envied the "island life".

[catzies]

35. Thanks for the report! Be well and happy travels!

:hi:

[Skelly]

10. I live in Marathon

Bay side (Gulf of Mexico).
There is NO oil.
Duck Key is ocean side. For there to be oil from BP off of Duck Key, it would have had to have hit the gulf side of the Keys first.
The oil is currently no where near us!
However, there have been reports of fisherman (commercial)who may be taking advantage of the oil crisis, dumping barrels of oil in the gulf (it is a hard process to dispose of these barrels of oil, and costly to commercial fisherman).
Oil slicks are common, coming from private boats.

Our economy is heavily based in tourism. Many local resorts/hotels are already experiencing cancellations because people across the country are receiving erroneous information.

Please do not propagate this mis-information.

[ixion]

23. Uh, I've heard no such reports, and even if true

it would be easy to verify whether the oil was processed and used, or was from the BP Gusher.

[Skelly]

25. You are right

But do you really think someone who 'discovers' some oil on their lure is going to take it for processing? Or will they take a picture of it and post it on facebook saying the BP oil spill has hit the keys?

I apologize if my use of 'report' sounded too official. This is really a small town. Fisherman are not always known for their discretion, especially after a few drinks.

[Igel]

29. It's confirmation bias writ small.

Same with the tar balls a week or two ago.

You may not notice them, but if there's suspicion that it's a Big Deal you do because then the interpretation reinforces what you want to believe. Lab tests don't count, because you believe.

You may not notice grimy hooks, or would pass it off as some idiot dumping oil or leaking oil from their old decrepit boat. Unless you can connect it to the Big Deal and the interpretation reinforces what you want to believe. True, small-town fisherman wouldn't submit the oil for testing. Then again, the test results wouldn't matter because it's more important that they believe.

Similarly with the dead bird/animal count. You'd have to believe that no animals die of natural causes this time of year in the Gulf most years because all the dead animals are BP's fault. Some are probably due to the oil spill, more than we'll ever know; but some of those counted would have died anyway. It makes the numbers hard to use rationally. Just like this report is hard to use rationally. On the one side are those who believe. On the other side are those who are unsure. It's not a fair fight.

[Divine Discontent]

11. what bunk, the beaches are clean & safe, take your newborn baby in the water with you & enjoy!

:sarcasm:




don't believe a word anyone says about anything if they're going to waste breath on saying the Gulf is safe...

[Skelly]

28. Accurate reports

are what is needed.
We all fear of the oil hitting our coast or fishing waters. We believe it is inevitable and are making plans for its containment.
However, tourism makes up 60% of our economy. There has been and always will be spills, tarballs, etc found on our beaches and in our waters. They originate from many places.
We do not need every tar ball or slick reported as being from the BP oil spill. This does nothing but give a false impression of our circumstances.
We do not need individuals to "pull the plug" early on our local businesses. A prize is not given to the first person who finds a tar ball.

[joecooool]

13. Oil reached the Florida Keys

Source: CNN

Oil in the Keys

Read more: http://www.ireport.com/docs/DOC-454191

---

Here is my iReport I just submitted to CNN. Pictures are from my home.

http://www.ireport.com/docs/DOC-454191

[alstephenson]

14. Thanks for posting.

And welcome to DU - wish the circumstances were different.

[OhioChick]

15. Welcome to DU...

And thanks for posting. :hi:

[BrklynLiberal]

16. If it were not so sad, it would be comical....how reluctant the Coast Guard, and other

authorities are to say it is BP Gulf spill oil.....Exactly how many sources of floating oil are there out in the Gulf??????



...and welcome to DU

[obxhead]

17. If it's not from the BP spill, where the hell is it from?

If they are so clear as to which oil comes from where, lets have every rig send in a sample. Locate the source of the "not BP oil."

[BrklynLiberal]

19. Exactly!!!!!!!!!!

[aquart]

18. Shit. I'm so sorry.

And welcome to DU.

[WillyT]

20. Welcome To DU...

And man do I wish it were under different circumstances.

:grouphug:

:hi:

[Captain Hilts]

21. Shit shit shit SHIT!

[Mari333]

26. huge knr for your post alone

[amerfayed]

31. Confirmed by Coast Guard

did you alert them?

[wordpix]

33. my condolences. We are all Floridians and Louisianans

[wordpix]

34. quick, get out the bamboo stakes & boom no one monitors

:sarcasm: See Rachel's show tonight if you don't know what I'm talking about