Our local news media consists of poor timid souls who think they're setting the agenda with their puny vision of what's possible in politics.
I will never forget how disgraced St. Augustine Mayor JOSEPH LESTER BOLES, JR. once told concerned Leonardi Street residents, "We can't tell a Big Oil company what to do." (Amerigas ended up relocating in light of safety concerns on LP gas deliveries cutting through a residential neighborhood.).
Generations of American politicians from the state house to the White House have catered to Big Oil companies, and their cowardice is helping ruin our frail planet.
"We can't tell a Big Oil company what to do," corrupt Mayor JOE BOLES said. (That was the moment I concluded he was dangerous, both wicked and stupid, and decided he needed to retire as Mayor for Life.)
In sharp and marked contrast to whorish JOE BOLES, St. Augustine Mayor Nancy Shaver, Commissioner Roxanne Horvath and other local elected officials are on record -- and pass resolutions and attend demonstrations -- against seismic testing. Let's hope they join the litigation. at least with a "me too" amicus curiae brief.
Curiously, our State of Florida and its news media seems not to care, not joining the chorus of outrage from other coastal states. Like the dog that did not bark in the Sherlock Holmes story!
Are Flori-DUH ATTORNEY GENERAL PAMELA JO BONDI and Governor RICHARD LYNN SCOTT both incompetent or merely wicked?
Here's an editorial on seismic testing from the Gannett newspaper in the Delaware-Maryland-Virginia peninsula:
The federal government moved to authorize the use of seismic airguns to find oil and gas formations on the East Coast. Jenna Miller, Salisbury Daily Times
Bipartisanship is still possible, when the threat is clear, imminent and universal.
East Coast states vary greatly in their political leanings, yet most of these states are united in opposition to offshore seismic testing.
Seismic testing is a precursor to offshore drilling.
Just as coastal states, including Maryland, are opposed to seismic testing, they are also opposed to offshore drilling.
Nov. 30, the National Marine Fisheries Services announced final authorizations to allow seismic testing in the Atlantic Ocean. Dec. 20, Maryland joined eight other states in announcing it would sue the federal government to prevent the testing for offshore oil exploration.
East Coast states also share waterfront property and its associated tourism.
Marine life and water quality are major concerns with seismic testing.
The process essentially involves the blasting of pressurized air into the ocean, creating powerful sound waves that provide information about the sea floor. The sound waves echo back to the surface and are captured by audio monitors called hydrophones. The blasts are loud, often producing sounds at and above 140 decibels. These blasts happen every few seconds for days, weeks or months at a time.
The Maryland Department of Natural Resources has repeatedly expressed concern about the individual and cumulative impacts on marine species and habitats.
Like Ocean City, many coastal communities rely on tourism — but only as long as the beach, surf and fisheries are clean and healthy.
Drilling is a risky enterprise capable of destroying a coastline and poisoning its marine ecosystem for generations in the event of a catastrophic spill.
Oil on water spreads with no regard for state lines. The impact on the Chesapeake Bay, oyster beds and more would be devastating and long-lasting.
This risk to property, economy, tourism, jobs and environment explain why such disparately thinking groups have come together against seismic blasting, exploration and offshore drilling for oil.
Drilling off Atlantic states will not make us less reliant on foreign oil.
Will it lead to lower gas prices? More affordable fuel oil for furnaces? Will it provide long-term and high-paying jobs for local residents of these coastal communities?
Not likely.
The blasting can be heard up and down the entire coast, and a spill, should one occur, would affect waters and beaches from Florida to Maine.
This is how to unite left and right, red and blue, conservative and liberal, progressive and libertarian alike: Pose a threat that knows no boundaries, neither geographic, ideological, religious or political.
Opposition to offshore exploration and drilling is something we should all be able to get behind, to protect our home as well as the future home of our descendants.
Our View represents the opinion of the Editorial Board members Laura Benedict Sileo, news director, and Susan Parker, engagement and community content editor.
Other East Coast states on seismic testing
New Jersey: We can unite behind offshore drilling, editorial
Delaware: Senators oppose Atlantic seismic testing
Virginia: Seismic testing's real threat to the region, editorial
South Carolina: Toss seismic testing permits for violating federal protections
Florida:State should join suit against seismic testing for oil off coast, editorial
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