Really Sarah???
Exactly 20 years ago, one of my favorite bands Midnight Oil; played a half hour concert in front of the Exxon building in New York City:
And 40 years ago, the oil spill that spawned the modern environment movement, happened right here on the coast of Santa Barbara, where we visited this weekend. As reported by the Sydney Morning Herald:
The damage was enormous. About 4000 dead sea birds and large numbers of seals and dolphins fatally poisoned. The oil also killed innumerable fish and ruined kelp beds. But then something unexpected happened; tens of thousands of people arrived to help with the clean-up. They laid out mountains of straw to soak up the oil, carted away tonnes of contaminated sand and gathered up the dead and injured wildlife. They were of all ages and affiliations, causing then president Richard Nixon to remark: “The Santa Barbara incident has frankly touched the conscience of the American people.” The Santa Barbara spill fully awakened the West Coast environmental movement and led directly to the declaration of the first Earth Day in November, 1969, the founding of the US Environmental Defence Centre and the first university Environmental Studies Program. Offshore drilling was banned for the next 16 years – until the Reagan administration came to office. Read more…
It took Santa Barbara decades to recover. We may not be so lucky this time…and poor BP, just wants their old life back! Suffice it to say if Sarah Palin ever becomes president, the number of disasters like this would increase ten fold. Speaking of Santa Barbara, here are my photos from this weekend.
I also took Chazz on a photoshoot recently, to showcase the beautiful flowers California constantly has blooming. Enjoy the show:
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