The Improperly Sealed, In Some Cases Leaking, Abandoned Oil Wells Of The Gulf Of Mexico.

The thousands of oil wells in the Gulf Of Mexico are a disaster waiting to happen. There was a news story today regarding the abandoned oil well of one company that has been leaking oil for years, and will continue to do so until the oil is depleted, which might take another decade. Thousands of abandoned oil wells that were supposed to be permanently sealed have not been. All kinds of loop holes allow these companies to walk away from their abandoned wells without properly sealing them. The well of the company mentioned above that has been spilling oil into the gulf for years apparently has been able to do so with impunity. Weigh out the threats the United States faces, foreign and domestic, many of which we respond to with massive funding, and then consider the enormous harm that can be unleashed from this threat, which we barely respond to at all. Destroy the Gulf of Mexico, and millions of jobs will be lost. Tourism will collapse. Fishing, commercial and recreational, will collapse. The real estate on the gulf, worth billions, maybe trillions, will become worthless. All the jobs that a healthy real estate market provides will be lost. All the service jobs that keeps a vibrant area alive and healthy will be lost. Many people will become sick. Who will want to visit a polluted, contaminated Gulf of Mexico? Who will want to live there? Are oil special interests and their pocketed politicians that important? Every oil well in the Gulf Of Mexico needs to be permanently and properly sealed if no longer in use. And we need to think hard whether jeopardizing the health of the gulf is worth new offshore ventures, and the lax oversight that is now provided for existing active wells. We spend trillions on military hardware that will never get put to use. Properly and permanently sealing abandoned, unused oil wells in the Gulf Of Mexico is in the national interest. To do anything less is unpatriotic and plain reckless.