The Price of Secrecy in Oil Spills

A major reason why I doubt the government will compel full clean up of the Gulf region impacted by the BP spill is the extraordinary levels of secrecy that the government has imposed on coverage of the spill. From the earliest moments until now activities by both BP and the federal government have been treated with levels of secrecy reserved for nuclear weapons programs.Why, it's like they are hiding something.

What's there to hide?

• "Journalists being told they cannot go somewhere simply because they are journalists." ~ Atlantic Wire
• What is the effect of chemical dispersants being spread with abandon? Secret.
• Could the dispersants be poisoning the clean up workers? Secret.

One of the great lies of our times was told by Adm. Thad Allen when he said "the media will have uninhibited access anywhere we're doing operations." (Source) It was a lie because not only is BP continuing to block access, the federal government is actively engaged in the effort (as is Louisiana's Republican governor).

This limiting of information is leading people, including me, to draw their own conclusion that the Gulf oil spill is orders of magnitude worse than anything we have been told.

• The spill will continue unabated for many years. (quite possible)
• BP is not cleaning up, just covering the oil up. (probable)
  
• The 700,000 gallons of dispersant used to date is eating through the hulls of boats. (Note: the dispersant Corexit is being used because BP profits from it.)
• Corexit is killing the clean up workers (If the above is true then this is probably true as well and would explain why the media is barred from medical clinics.)
• Corexit rain is killing crops in Mississippi. (Seems wild but not impossible.)
• Oily rain in Louisiana. (More likely just oil from cars.)
• FEMA is planning to evacuation the entire gulf coast from Corpus Cristi to Key West. (This, of course, is wacky if only because FEMA couldn't evacuate a dingy let alone 20 million, some say 50 million, angry Americans.)

That last rumor has been a boon for FEMA has concentration camps conspiracy theory believers.