It's Still Gushing

BP is reporting that they have finally cut off the riser and that they will have the containment dome in place this afternoon. Let's hope so. It just  amazes me that it is taking this long for the leak to be controlled. This really is just another symptom of the conservative campaign 'to starve the beast'. The government now has to rely solely on private industry to get this thing fixed when years ago we might have had the capacity in some part of government to do it. Not only is the lag in getting a resolution symptomatic of a starved government the whole spill is a result of the conservative campaign to let business self regulate and shrink the regulatory capacity and authority of government. This whole disaster would have been far less likely to happen under a strong and capable regulatory system.

That reminds me. I was asking myself the other day why these oil wells don't have a passive closure system. Why can't the BOP be driven closed by the pressure of the oil and must be held open by an outside force whether hydraulic or something else? These kinds of 'fail-safe' fluid handling systems are used in industry, especially for dangerous liquids. If something untoward happens the well would slam shut on its own accord.

I'm off to the garden to put extensions on some tomato stakes. The five foot stakes have now been outstripped by the plants and I need a couple of extra feet to tie them to. The twenty or so six foot cages are still OK but  won't be in a week or two that I will have to 'Rube Goldberg' something for them as well. This latest 'fix' is bamboo attached with cable ties and we'll just have to see if this will do the job. I've still got three months of tomato growth to anticipate so it could get ugly. Everything looks pretty neat and tidy right now but once the tomato plants start getting out of control it will be no longer. Amazing what a little fertile soil, good rain and bright sun will do. Not only do I have problems with tomatoes but my pole beans have just about outgrown my 7 foot bamboo 'tee pees' and it looks as if I am going to need a ladder to pick beans in a few weeks.