The forgotten daughter

For anyone who doesn’t know this, the state of Mississippi was the 20^th state admitted to the Union.  The state was named after the Mississippi river which flows along it’s western boundary and has Indian roots in the name stemming from “great river”.  Mississippi’s catfish farms supply the majority of catfish in the USA’s seafood industry, while the state also offers a large supply of all seafood in the industry.  Mississippi is bordered on the North by the state of Tennessee, on the East by Alabama, on the South by Louisiana and a coastline along the Gulf of Mexico and on the West (across the Mississippi River) by Louisiana and Arkansas.  There are 5 major rivers in Mississippi and 4 major lakes.  The coastline includes large bays at the cities Bays St. Louis and Pascagoula.  It is separated from the Gulf of Mexico by the shallow

HORN ISLAND, MS GULF COAST JUNE 2010

Mississippi sound and partially sheltered by Petits Bois Island, Horn Island, East & West Ship Islands, Deer Island, Round Island and Cat Island.  I’m telling you all of this because I think many people don’t know Mississippi and it’s time you should.  Mississippi is the forgotten daughter of this nation in my opinion and Mississippi is a beautiful gem somehow kept secret from our brothers and sisters that need to know.  There’s a reason why I’m telling you all of this, so please don’t get bored and stop reading.  It’s important to me, and it should be important to you too … even if you live in a favored state of this nation, Mississippi is still your sister.

While the media does not favor this great state, Mississippi is not what they may lead you to believe.  The media wants to convince you that we haven’t moved forward since the civil war.  That our mindset remains prejudiced,

OPRAH WINFREY IS A MS NATIVE

backward, and ignorant.  They don’t want you to know that great musicians, authors and artists came from this humble state.  They don’t want you to know about the culture and beauty that is overflowing here.  The coast of Mississippi hosts beautiful beaches, classic homes, talented musicians and artists and some of the best fishing any enthusiast could ever ask for.  The coast of Mississippi was the place where Hurricane Katrina actually made landfall 5 years ago this summer.  But, the media overshadowed that fact with reporting of our neighbor and more popular city, New Orleans.  The difference, however, is that New Orleans flooded due to a failure on their local government’s part by ignoring repairs to their levee system that was decades overdue while Mississippi’s coastline faced the brunt of this (the nation’s worst

WILLIAM FAULKNER IS A MS NATIVE

natural disaster in history).  Mississippi was raped and pillaged and in areas like Bay St. Louis, Waveland, and Lakeshore the damage completely wiped out homes and businesses up to 8 miles inland and widespread destruction so deep inland that even the northernmost cities of the state faced destruction.  But, while the people of Mississippi were ignored by the government, media, and celebrities looking to lend a hand we remained strong and took matters into our own hands.  We are a resilient people who are no strangers to being the forgotten daughter, so we worked hard to do things on our own.  And we were blessed by many volunteer groups who did come to aid our efforts in rebuilding the secret gem that is the Mississippi Gulf Coast.  But once again, despite the fact that this information is important  … this is not what I am here to blog about today.  However, I am here to blog about the fact that we are yet again treated as the red haired step child of this nation and now I’m going to tell you why.

HURRICANE KATRINA SATELLITE IMAGE 8/05

JAMES EARL JONES IS A MS NATIVE

I am a resident of the resilient and beautiful Mississippi Gulf Coast.  I was born and raised here.  This is my home.  I love this place.  Before Hurricane Katrina, the cities of this coast had it all … quaint little shops and pubs lining the beach, fine dining restaurants and entertainment as well as prosperous industries in seafood and tourism.  We have been struggling to rebuild what we lost and we have held fast to our hopes and dreams of recovery.  Today, in the wake of a disaster that heavily overshadows Katrina, many of us are losing our strength, our hope and our dreams and waking up to just how forgotten we truly are here.  Once again, I don’t want to write this as if any reader is living under a rock and doesn’t know the disaster I speak of, but I’m speaking of the BP Deepwater Horizon rig explosion that occurred April 20, 2010 and continues to spew millions of gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico daily. If, by some crazy chance, you don’t know what I’m talking about you can read about it here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deepwater_Horizon_oil_spill .

During the last 3 months we have learned all about the damage to Louisiana’s marshes and seafood industry and Florida’s beaches…etc… We have seen footage of what is and isn’t being done to protect these popular states’ coasts ecologically and economically but we have seen and heard very little about the forgotten sister that is Mississippi.

DEEPWATER HORIZON OIL RIG EXPLOSION APR. 20,1010

Though this sentiment has been in my heart since Katrina, yesterday two incidents spawned my desire to write this blog.  First of all, I traveled my local coastline yesterday to see what the BP clean-up efforts were like, what the media was doing and what the people were doing.  What I

BP Clean Up-Waveland, MS 7/10/10

found was disappointing.  I did see some laborers raking the sand and picking up tar patties that washed upon our shorelines and placing them in garbage bags.  The workers were far and few between and absent in many areas.  I waited until they ended their work day before I went out to do my own inspection and what I found was very disturbing.  Oiled litter, tar balls and oiled water was still as far as the eye could see.  Exhausted boom remained desperately needing replacement as oil seeped past it.  It was heartbreaking and painful to see.  I wondered why, but then quickly answered my own question … because the media doesn’t care about Mississippi so the nation doesn’t know that we are being treated this way and the government doesn’t care about the people of this state so our cries will not be heard.  Last night, after a trying day of dealing with this reality, I went out to have a drink.  Much like after Hurricane Katrina, the bar was full of transients who came here to make a buck following yet

Oiled litter post clean up-Waveland, MS 7/10/10

another tragedy.  In other words, laborers for BP here to do clean-up work.  I was seated between men working on Louisiana clean-up to my left and Mississippi clean-up to my right.  They were discussing what their work days consisted of.  The comparisons were mind boggling to a point that I couldn’t hold my tongue.  In Louisiana’s clean-up efforts there are more safety measures, crews, EPA involvement, BP and

Tar balls found post clean up-Lakeshore, MS

Government employees present and more detailed demands.  Louisiana’s clean up focuses on getting the oil out of the water and the marshes as well as getting the tar balls off the coastlines in heavy detail with inspections and safety measures as well as quickly replacing used boom with new boom to continue to protect the delicate marshes and waters of Louisiana.  At the end of the day, all clean-up boats in Louisiana waters must be thoroughly cleaned before returning to their ports as to not carry oil and contaminants inland.  NONE of this is occurring in Mississippi clean-up efforts.  There are less employees working in Mississippi, the EPA & Government are not present, boats are not cleaned and oil and contaminants are carried into our ports daily and Mississippi workers even complained that they feel their efforts are in vain because of the lack of supervision and precaution that are only spreading the oil and contaminants around rather than removing them.  The skimming methods on Mississippi waters are far less professional and hardly working compared to that of Louisiana.  Booms are not being replaced in Mississippi and our marshes are not being protected.  After hearing all I could stand of these comparisons, I blurted out the obvious question “Why?” and received the answer from both sides “Because Louisiana is ecologically and economically more important to the country than Mississippi.”  Ouch.  That hurt.  But, I guess the truth hurts.  And so, I have a few photographs I took yesterday to share this truth with you.  These were all taken within a 5 mile radius of Waveland and Lakeshore, MS , just a small portion of what is going on here that I wanted to share with you because if I don’t care, who will?

EXPIRED BOOM SITS IN FRONT OF DAMAGED MARSHLAND

Oil Mixed with toxic chemicals seeping past boom in marshland

High tides push oil onto the streets

Without proper protection or prevention, oiled water moves inland

Without proper protection or prevention, toxic soup forms in our marshes

Without proper clean up, toxic soup stagnates roadside

Oiled sand post clean up every 6" or less

an all too familiar sight along our beaches...

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SUSAN
7/11/10

See no evil, Hear no evil, Speak no evil…

You have just been offered at job earning TEN TIMES your current pay rate working for a major corporation that has been successful for over 50 years and continues to be successful.  You don’t have to relocate or change very many aspects of your life.  Would you accept?
Ok, your new job is working for Acme Cigarette Co.  You will be part of their marketing team.  In doing so, you have to start smoking.  That’s right, you HAVE TO.  Acme carries two types of cigarettes… Full Strength or Lights.  You are allowed to choose between the two, but you must start smoking one of the two in order to get paid.  While smoking is always dangerous, of course, the lighter cigarettes are slightly less dangerous.  The lights have 10% less chemical additives.  But, that’s really irrelevant.
So, you choose the lights.
You work for Acme for 10 years before you get laid off, but you get a nice severance package that buys you an additional 5 years to obtain a new career.
In the first two years, you find out you have lung cancer because of the chemical additives in those cigarettes.  It isn’t 10% lighter than the cancer you would’ve gotten from the full strength cigarettes because … well, chemical additives are chemical additives, right? So… smoking is smoking, cancer is cancer, toxins are toxins… But, you’re shocked because Acme never told you this could happen.  Any time you questioned your health, they would simply show you a mirror and ask you if you looked unhealthy? Well, due to the fact that lung cancer isn’t externally visible… this was easy to dismiss, right? Acme would reinforce it by telling you how healthy you look, and how great you look puffing on that light cigarette. But, when you would have respiratory issues … maybe a cough or trouble breathing, Acme was able to prove to you that there is no direct link to smoking and it cannot be proven that your respiratory problems are connected.  Period.
If you can’t see the problem, it isn’t there.
Lies are lies.
British Petroleum’s Deepwater Horizon oil rig was drilling in dangerous territory under dangerous circumstances.  Safety issues and red flags were ignored in order to meet the bottom line.  An irreversible, horrible incident occurred taking the lives of 11 rig employees and creating the largest (man made) ecological disaster in US history.  For over a month today, oil has been gushing from gaping holes in the Earth and filling the Gulf of Mexico.  But, many find this easy to over look because much of the oil is not visible.  Despite the fact that this disaster has already eclipsed 1989’s Exxon Valdez oil disaster times 8, BP has hidden many of the facts from the public regarding the damages that have already occurred and continue to occur, as well as the what the future holds.  The truth is, the future is really questionable even by scientists as to just how bad this could turn out to be for the Gulf Coast, the nation and the world ecologically and economically.  But, one thing for sure, BP has not only hidden the facts but the oil as well.  How do you hide a huge amount of oil that has gushed millions upon millions (upon more millions) of gallons into the waters? Chemical dispersants is the answer! Currently, the Gulf has been using those full strength dispersants and the cancer has only started to grow but now the EPA is questioning why full strength and not lights? Lights are so much better, right? So, they’re being forced to switch to a “safer” chemical dispersant to continue to break up the oil and push it to the ocean floor.
Years from now the hidden cancer that we couldn’t see will be revealed.  Just because you can’t see it, doesn’t mean it isn’t there.
Just like, if you took that job and discovered you had cancer later on … it would be too little too late.  And, if you found out that cancer was terminal, all the money you could sue Acme for wouldn’t make a bit of difference, would it?

DON’T BE A MONKEY!!!!

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Understanding Fossil Fuel

With all this chatter about global warming, being green, energy sources and the spewing oil nightmare that is rocking the nation I thought I’d give myself a little assignment.  I thought not only would I educate myself, but some of you too.  In all seriousness, when you are fueling up your gas tank do you ever consider the life history of where that fuel came from? Was it really once a dinosaur?
What is fossil fuel?
Fuel that was formed through anaerobic digestion of microorganisms in the earth from prehistoric times which break down into biodegradable material in the absence of oxygen from remains of living-cell organisms.  Some commonly known fossil fuels are oil, coal and natural gas or their by-products (such as petroleum).  The age of the organisms and their resulting fossil fuels is typically millions of years, and sometimes exceeds 650 million years.  Fossil fuels range from volatile materials with low carbon:hydrogen ratios like methane, to liquid petroleum to nonvolatile materials composed of almost pure carbon like coal.  Because they take millions of years to form, fossil fuels are a non-renewable energy source and are being depleted much faster than new ones are being formed.  Fossil fuels are of great importance because they can be burned, producing significant amounts of energy. (To read a more detailed explanation of fossil fuel, go here: http://www.umich.edu/~gs265/society/fossilfuels.htm )
When did man begin to use it as an energy source?
Fossil fuels have been used since cavemen discovered how to burn peat (decayed plant materials that have not reached the coal stage) or coal for heat. Plutarch, a Greek historian, wrote about the “external fires” in the area of present day Iraq. These fires were probably caused by natural gas that was seeping through cracks in the ground and ignited by lightning. Alexander the Great burned petroleum to scare the war elephants of his enemies. The Egyptians used asphalt, a derivative of petroleum, to preserve human remains. Coal was discovered by explorers in 1673, but it was not mined commercially until the 1740’s in Virginia. Before then, coal had been used by the Hopi Indians in the 1300’s for heating and cooking. However, prior to the latter half of the eighteenth century, windmills or watermills provided the energy needed for industry such as milling flour, sawing wood in mills, or pumping water.  Burning wood provided domestic heat.  The wide-scale use of fossil fuels (coal at first and petroleum later) to fire steam engines (to perform mechanical work using steam as it’s working fluid) enabled the Industrial Revolution[1].  Also during this time, sources for light were using natural gas or coal gas derived from fossil fuels.  Natural gas was first sought commercially in 1821, when William A. Hart[2] drilled a 27 foot deep well in Fredonia, NY, to get a larger flow of gas from a naturally occurring surface seepage. This natural gas was sent through wooden pipes to nearby homes for lighting. The wooden pipes allowed some gas to escape and was not an effective way to send natural gas long distances. It was more than 100 years before an efficient distribution system allowed natural gas to be sent long distances to homes, factories, and businesses. In 1859, Edwin L. Drake[3] began the modern day petroleum industry in Titusville, Pennsylvania, when he drilled a 69 foot deep well and discovered crude oil. The crude oil that was obtained from this well was used to form kerosene to use in lamps for illumination and to form grease for machinery. The invention of the internal combustion engine, also during the mid 1850’s, greatly increased the demand for gasoline and diesel (both fossil fuels) thus creating a huge demand for such fossil fuels in the transportation industry for automobiles, trains and aircrafts.  Major use for fossil fuels became the use of generating electricity and, of course, the petrochemical industry.  Also tar, a leftover of petroleum extraction, is used in road construction.  “The capital fact to note is that petroleum was born in the depths of the Earth, and it is only there that we must seek its origin.”-Dmitri Mendeleev, 1877[4]
What are the pros of using fossil fuels?
The main reason behind the immense popularity of fossil fuels is that combustion of fossil fuels generates a large amount of usable energy and they are considered high efficiency fuels.
The pros of using fossils fuels begin with the benefit of increased income for our country’s economy. The sale of fossil fuels involves much more than simply providing a finished fuel product to a buyer. A long list of businesses exists along the supply chain employing millions of people. Mining fossil fuels here in the U.S. also helps our country in avoiding dependency on foreign energy supplies.  Another pro is that it is really is easy to transport fossil fuels in liquid, gas or solid form. The cheap cost of fossil fuels tops the list of pros. In addition, technology currently exists to use fossil fuels, which makes their use immediate. The cost of obtaining and using fossil fuels may become an issue in the future, however, currently large deposits of oil, natural gas and coal are available.
What are the cons?
Some studies show that with combustion of fossil fuels, large amount of carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere. In the atmosphere, it absorbs heat and contributes towards the green house effect. However, other studies disagree with this concept.  Cons include both the limited supplies of fossil fuels and the fact that no fossil fuel can be recycled. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, fossil fuel use accounts for 85 percent of total energy use. To continue at our current rate of consumption, suppliers must tap existing and new reserves of fossil fuels. Excavating and oil drilling are dangerous and expensive endeavors requiring long-term planning and research. The biggest disadvantage lies in the fact fossil fuels are only housed deep within the earth’s surface, making acquisition a difficult task. Cons can also include the cost of advancing technology to use fossil fuels more efficiently as well as reduce the acquisition impact on the environment. Both require extensive research to develop new techniques for extraction of fossil fuels. Extraction is expected to become even more dangerous as mining gets deeper and farther out in the ocean.  Also, extraction of fossil fuels is harmful to the environment in numerous ways ecologically as well as some of the gasses produced in the burning of these fuels creating pollution.
What are the alternatives?
The renewed interest in alternative energy sources is steadily gaining popularity as people become more aware of the globally damaging effects of the extraction and use of fossil fuels.  Though it would be nearly impossible for mankind to completely stop the use of fossil fuels, we can use other renewable energy sources and work toward preserving the longevity of fossil fuels for more necessary uses.  In doing so, we can also help to better the environment and possibly save lives of plants, animals and human beings too!
Solar powered energy is a great idea and one of the most resourceful sources of renewable energy available today.  Solar energy, radiant heat and light from the sun, has been harnessed by humans since ancient times.  Unfortunately, today only a small fraction of solar energy available is actually used. The ways for people to obtain solar power in most cases is unaffordable or not very easily obtained.  Now is the time for our government to step up to the plate and make this resource easily available to the people.  There comes a time when greed and the desire for capital gain must be put aside in order to ultimately save the planet before there is nothing left to fight for or fight over any more, right? Why are we ignoring a free, natural and renewable energy sources? The creation and maintenance of solar panels would generate employment in place of the employment lost as well as income.  Of course, solar power would depend on the weather which may cause complications.  In my opinion it could be used as a primary source in a household for powering appliances with fossil fuels as a secondary source or back up should the solar energy fail for some reason.
Wind is another natural and renewable source of energy which also relies on the weather (more than solar powered energy), but through the use of windmills producing energy we can avoid damaging the environment using this as an energy source for some smaller necessities.  The fins of a windmill rotate in a vertical plane which is kept perpendicular to the wind by means of a tail fin.  On average, the power that can be produced when an wind mill is facing the wind of about 10mph is around 50 watts.
As we know, in the past water was often used as an energy source.  It’s a relatively simple concept, but can be slightly expensive to achieve today in order to meet modern energy needs/standards.  Hydroelectricity comes from the damming of rivers using the potential energy stored in the water.  As the stored water is released at a high pressure, it’s kinetic energy is transferred onto turbine blades and used to generate electricity.  While this system does have enormous costs up front, it is relatively low maintenance and provides power quite cheaply.  Again, this would provide employment and income in the construction and maintenance of the dams and turbines.  Once again, I am made aware of the greed involved in the industry of power production when I learn that in the U.S. an estimated 180,000 MW of hydroelectric power potential is available but only about 1/3 of that is being harnessed.  (Learn more about renewable energy resources here: http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/home )
The alternatives are plentiful and the desire to use them should be too! Cars fueled by renewable sources such as lard or water have been in existence for decades, but not approved for market sales.  Why? Geothermal energy uses the heat of the earth and while it does require excavation, the process is much simpler and safer than the extraction of fossil fuels.   Why are these alternatives not being used? What will it take to activate the use of renewable energy? A disaster?

Sources:

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Industrial_Revolution
[2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fredonia_Gas_Light_Company
[3] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edwin_L._Drake
[4] http://www.chemistry.co.nz/mendeleev.htm

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