Dying Over Oil
On Thursday, May 20th 1993, Bob Van Brocklin left a suicide letter.
“The stress from Exxon which brought about my financial stress, was too much to deal with alone. The end should be good and maybe my spirit will live. I have a lot of fear right now, but faith is all that is left. I wish I could have done more good for others but I guess my time is up.”
He was the former mayor of Cordova, Alaska. He shot himself.
He sat in Cordova High School on the 28th of March 1989, four days after the Exxon Valdez oil spill. Don Cornett had been sent by Exxon to talk to local fishermen and families.
Mr. Cornett lied to Mayor Van Brocklin and everyone else that day.
“I am here to tell you what we are going to do about [the oil spill]”.
“I’m going to show you what we are doing about it. And we are doing the best job that has ever been done on an oil spill. And watch, just watch.. You have had some good luck, and you don’t realize it. YOU HAVE EXXON. AND WE DO BUSINESS STRAIGHT.”
“We will consider whatever it takes, to keep you whole. You have my word on that – Don Cornett. I told you that.”
Sadly, Bob Van Brocklin wasn’t the only suicide over the Exxon Spill. Many Alaskans, desperate for their lost identities, took their own lives.
With no end in site to the BP Hemorrhage in the Gulf of Mexico, recent news of a fisherman taking his own life was hardly a surprise.
William Allen Kruse, 55, a charter boat captain recently hired by BP as a vessel of opportunity out of Gulf Shores, Ala., died Wednesday morning before 7:30 a.m. of a gunshot to the head, likely self-inflicted, authorities said.
I know what it is to go from being a fisherman to an oil spill response contractor. I did it in 1989. It feels as dirty as the beaches, and like you’ve just been spooned by the devil. The term “Spillionaire,” to describe those who made money during the clean up effort, doesn’t make up for salt water on your face and the promise of full nets.
Domestic violence, bankruptcy, alcoholism, and collective depression washed up for years following the Exxon Valdez crisis. Twenty one years later, the herring fishery in Cordova is still decimated – genetic lines of fish erased.
This is the beginning. Being a fisherman isn’t what you do, it’s who you are. The Gulf of Mexico or Prince William Sound is just geography. Even the toughest fishermen can’t win; they drown in court. The erosion of identity is invisible compared to the black wake of an environmental oil disaster.
My father told me suicide was a permanent answer to a temporary problem. The BP disaster isn’t temporary though. There is no end in sight.
Take care of each other.
the ability of the human soul to rebound after destruction is varied …
yes, please take care of each other
SCARY – the same lies from BP and EXXON. Too sad to comment further.
Unfortunately, this shouldn’t be a surprise after we saw that the published spill response reports from several different companies could very well have been copies of the same report with different covers. Several of them even had the specifics for how to deal with walruses…which haven’t been in the Gulf in HOW many millions of years????
Isn’t it comforting to know just how seriously they take their emergency response plans?
Delay, Delay, Delay, Lies and broken promises. Always remember that Big Oil’s only obligation is to it’s shareholders. They don’t care about those people who have been harmed.
All these years later, I still am boycotting Exxon/(and now Mobil). It means little in the grand scheme of things, but it makes me feel better not to support them.
I do wonder if Mr. Cornett still works for Exxon? I wonder what he thinks now? Does he still think Exxon plays straight? I wonder if he thinks BP will also “play it straight”?
The loss of a person’s identity along with the ability to support one’s family. Fishermen go from being independent business owners, enjoying fresh air and the beauty of the ocean to being immersed in the oil, dead sea life. Must be heartbreaking (literally.) I hope mental health services are being offered to all involved.
…and there are still people in Lousiana who want to continue drilling because they depend on the income. That is a very sad relationship. There is a story on NPR about it http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=128064058
I heard that- and then I heard the appeal of the oil moratorium decision was denied. The all mighty dollar wins again. How discouraging that the word “jobs” can cover a multitude of sins.
That is the thing that I just don’t understand. We have the devastation of the Gulf because BP (and apparently none of the oil companies) knew how to stop the oil if there was a problem They were betting that there wouldn’t be. That’s the kind of wishful thinking that one finds in a five year old, not responsible adults.
But now that we all know, and they have admitted, they didn’t really have a plan in case of failure, people want to keep drilling? What? So we can have another disaster before this one is taken care of?
I know they need jobs, but that’s just nuts.
In our mourning and in our anger and in our despair, it is more important than ever to let our little lights shine… I have seen small acts, words and deeds reaching out in kindness, tip the balance for dear ones, young and old, who are tired of fighting and ready to give up. We can’t plug the gusher, but we Can keep lighting our candles against the darkness.
We’re all in this together, so at least we’re in good company here, continuing to watch, to listen, to speak up and act out. (thatcrowwoman is wired to find the silver lining in the stormclouds…)
The Mudflats family is such a blessing in my life. Quyana. Toda raba. Many thanks, dear ones.
We all need somebody to lean on:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Wpof8s5ZTg
What wise and comfortin words, Crowwoman.
My daughter, who lives on the FL panhandle, just called to say that a baby bottle-nosed dolphin had washed up on the shore near her home. Folks were sobbing as rescuers tried to wash off the oil, to no avail. This is one of the saddest times in my life, and the bad thing is, that I don’t see an end to it. I couldn’t believe it when I heard there were over 3,000 oil rigs in the Gulf.
Quyana. . . EEEEEEE!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Gulf_Coast_Platforms.jpg
This link from NOAA just amazed me with a graphic of the oil rigs in the gulf. We don’t have a chance.
wow that is disturbing and they are worried about 33 exploratory wells being shut down ?
Thanks for posting that link. I have been looking for that image!
Did you notice that those were the rigs as of 2006 – what is there now?
Thanks for the link thatcrowwoman – I like this one as well
http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=2539741
Now that’s what we’re talking about!
Music therapy is good medicine.
I had to laugh…I just finished posting a link to the same song on Youtube in a comment below. Isn’t that just one of the best songs ever???
thatcrowwoman, Mahalo Nui Loa, Quyana, Meitaki Maata.
The Mudflats ohana is a blessing in my life as well.
Namaste, Shannyn & all y’all
If you need a little beam of light in the darkness, check out these two videos. I guarantee they will put a smile on your face and joy in your heart
1. Playing for Change was a project started by a musician/producer(?) who put together tracks of performers from around the world to make one song. Their first (and my personal favorite) is Stand By Me. Several of the performers are from New Orleans, including Grandpa Elliott who must be one of the absolute coolest men around. Unfortunately, their main website is down for construction, but you can catch the video of the song on Youtube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Us-TVg40ExM
2. The other video is from D-PAN or Deaf Professional Arts Network. It’s a group of deaf people of all ages, colors and sizes who perform to John Mayer’s song Waiting on the World to Change in sign language. Even if you have no idea what they’re signing, it’s fascinating to watch. I showed this video to the kids in my school for Deaf Awareness Week and even the 6th graders (who don’t get excited about anything) were glued to the screen! There’s a little girl in the video who looks to be about 3 or 4 and, if you don’t smile when you see her, you might need a defibrillator to start up your heart again!
http://www.d-pan.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=173
Enjoy!
It is sooooo sad to hear of the struggles that the Fishermen and their families are having to indure.
I still don’t understand why some still object to the 6 mos moratorium our President has asked for.
The judge has ruled against this moratorium. I have always been told —–You can’t have it both ways. I feel safety should come first.
We still have people in congress who are on the side of big oil. It all comes down to greed.
Perhaps we should all sit down , take a deep breath, and consider what is more important in life.
It seems similar to Alaska, you are either a fisherman, oilman or you make your living connected to those two industries. Such little diversity is not good for the citizens. Maybe those locations are ripe for introducing clean energy production into their economies, bring the jobs to them and they would be less impressed with the drilling.
One of the deaths yesterday in the Gulf was suicide, a fisherman heartbroken.
I read over at Huffington Post that Van Flein has put out a statement that makes it sould like Sarah has a valid legal complaint filed against her that found her quilty. Anymore information?
BP’s Next Disaster – Rolling Stone Magazine – Drilling to begin in the Arctic ?
http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/17390/120130
*** Indeed, top environmentalists warn, the suspension of drilling appears to be little more than a stalling tactic designed to let public anger over BP’s spill subside before giving Big Oil the go-ahead to drill in an area that has long been off-limits: the Arctic Ocean. The administration has approved plans by both BP and Shell Oil to drill a total of 11 exploratory wells in the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas above Alaska — waters far more remote and hostile than the Gulf. Shell’s operations could proceed as soon as the president’s suspension expires in January. And thanks to an odd twist in its rig design, BP’s drilling in the Arctic is on track to get the green light as soon as this fall. ****
“YOU HAVE EXXON. AND WE DO BUSINESS STRAIGHT.”
Exxon’s incompetence, greed and lies were matched one for one and beyond by their contract clean up company, VECO. Yep, good ol’ Bill Allen swooped in and saved the day, you betcha. He used this disaster to line up other people’s heads and shoulders so he could stand on all of them to position himself above the rest, while lining his pockets with oily cash. He was kinda like Frank Murkowski – a good liar who could whip things up and tell you he was going to take care of it all and we’d all come out richer for it. People wanted to believe him as since they were desperate. He used them all, every last one, and never touched a drop of oil pollution with his own hands.
The perfect punishment for Bill Allen would be to stick him in a cell with Sarah Palin so they could have a lying contest – then try to kill each other for the top honor. I say after a month or two with the screechy twit yapping in his ears – well, you can imagine the horror and he’d be begging for solitary!
I will never believe a word out of Exxon’s collective oily mouth, or BP’s for that matter, if it’s coming from the top. Been there, done that, have the oily t-shirt.
Shannyn – thanks for revisiting this sad time. It’s important to remember all the stories.
bendy straws for both of the feckin frauds…send ‘em on down here to the Gulf Coast and tell ‘em to
SUCK IT UP, BUTTERCUPS!
(please ‘scuse my outside voice)
“Take care of each other.” And our earth.
So much suffering and tragedy all around us.
Yes, we are fragile and there are days that many people find it difficult to go on.
Although I don’t post often of late, the Mudflats is a calm and decent place for me to come to.
It renews my faith in the good people all around us who truly care for others and our environment.
Prayers are needed – the good and healing prayers – not the Palinbot Warriors who seek to only protect her and her wishes.
I hope this article goes up on HuffPost. Thank you Shannyn.
Touching. Amazing 21 years later those feelings are the same here 4000 miles away from Prince William Sound. Lessons go unlearned as greed and empathy rule the day. Every day. We are all connected in this country, on this planet, yet we are blind to real cost of catastrophe. Too self absorbed in the micro events of today to pay nothing but lip service to the future of man. We’ll all be guilty of saying what happened?
“If you’re going through hell, Keep going” —Winston Churchill
cause even if we’re on the right road, we’ll be run over if we just sit here…
“You can always count on Americans to do the right thing – after they’ve tried everything else. ” – WC
Let’s hope Churchill was prophetic!
This might help…
http://www.funnyjunk.com/funny_pictures/534747/BP+s+Final+Option
“WE DO BUSINESS STRAIGHT” – - – what the F ?????? Go pray (prey) to some corpses, you cretins. I was married to one of the plaintiffs lawyers involved in the 1989 disaster and let me tell you the defense and plaintiff attys made out a whole lot better than those effected.
Shannyn, thanks for the grim reminder that some things haven’t changed. We have failed to learn from mistakes of the past and the toll is the loss of life. However it happens, it’s tragic.
So sad. One tragic event after another.
I purposely held off reading this, knowing somehow that this would be a powerful post. And it was. Shannyn, you have made me laugh and think, but this is the first time I cried. I don’t write that lightly. I read it twice and both times “felt” what you were trying to share.
Thank you.
Shannyn, excellent writing and the message is extremely powerful. Take care of each other, indeed. Peace.
Very poignant Ms. Moore – thank you.
Shannyn, I worked the Exxon spill, too, pulling water and fish tissue samples from seven sites around Prince William Sound, watching the crews flail at trying to clean up the oil, on & on I could describe, but the bottom line is now, with BP, the volume, the unending spew, the conditions, there is no comparison.
I was a lowly scientist there, not a Spillionaire, and I couldn’t have cared less then about people, only the animals and the environment.
I have never thought for a minute this BP release compares to Exxon-Valdez; it has been massively larger since day one. When I think of the economic impact now on people in the Gulf, because we have seen what happened to people in Alaska, the grief leaves me nauseous and dizzy.
Friends ask me about it: I’ve been watching and listening. The pundits, the responders, the causers, they don’t know that this is the end, truly the end for many generations, of the living and life of the wonderful place it was.
And as you so succinctly explain, the end for people there.