A Glorious Whorl In Time: in response to Krissi's comment below...

i had wanted to respond with my owns words, in agreeance, about the oil companies being responsible for the environmental disasters they have caused. i began to think about that and wondered if the government or any other environmental group did in fact hold them accountable. i did not know the answer to this. either way, we can't just simply sit here and want/expect them to be responsible. the donations that citizens make towards the effort to clean up the Gulf isn't a way of letting the oil companies get out of their responsibilities. those donations go towards the volunteer efforts and whatever that may involve.

this morning i got a response from the Audubon Oil Response Rescue Team about by interest in volunteering. granted, a generated response, it addressed this issue.

"...It is important to remember that when a catastrophic oil spill happens, the company responsible for the release must lead the emergency response, in coordination with the U.S. Coast Guard and other federal and state agencies. To protect wildlife, the environment, and people, our volunteer efforts must be coordinated and managed so as not to create chaos and more damage. We all want our efforts to be safe and effective.

Our staff is in close contact with three entities: Tri-state Bird Rescue and Research, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the Joint Incident Command. Those who have signed up with wildlife certifications and/or HAZMAT training will be called on first to assist in the recovery of oiled or injured wildlife. You will hear from us as the need arises...."

i stand by the belief that where ever the blame lies for such a disaster i will not sit here and say "it's not my responsibility" because it IS my responsibility. this earth was given to us on loan and every day people are disrespecting Her, abusing the privilege of living here during our life time. every time the oil spill topic comes up my heart feels heavy, i feel sick to my stomach, and images of oil slicked birds and drowned fish flash through my minds eye...and i feel weak. i have always been this way. when i was a kid the sight of a three legged dog would bring tears to my eyes and with my silly little speech impediment (that i no longer have) i'd say "poor dog" and sing songs about it. as i got older my love for living creatures, people and animals, with birth defects, disabilities caused by injury or accident, and physical attributes generally deemed as "abnormalities" became beautiful things to me. i wanted to know the stories behind people who had missing fingers, visible scars, a limp in their walk. i never believed these features to be an embarrassment, although i'm sure to most other's it would have been.
i'm not saying that oil spills are beautiful. i'm saying my heart is BIG for LIFE. and i'm not going to write off my responsibility as an inhabitant of this land. this isn't just going to cause some recoverable injuries. this is a *disaster*. there will be death. there will be suffering. all of it unfair to those who are victims. no matter what the theories are about whether or not it will hit the beaches, the gunk is there and it's gushing and it's toxic. it's not just crude oil...it's mercury and all other kinds of harmful-under-the-ground metals and substances that are extremely cancerous, and no one knows how to clean it up. it's gushing so fast that the oil itself is emulsifying...which means it is breaking down and mixing with the water. not your usual substance reaction of separation where the oil can be burned off. nope. it has made a new home for itself.

i'm almost scared to be a volunteer...all the first hand images that will be filling my brain...but i willingly offer up my dues. so i sit and wait for them to call me.

20 years after the Exxon Valdez in Alaska...still recovering...and the Gulf spill is worse than this.