May 27th, 2010
04:30 PM ET

Web Pulse: Oil, 'Idol' and Coke

Oil: Overwhelmingly, the most searched topic on the web on Thursday was the crisis in the Gulf of Mexico, now in Day 38. New estimates of the amount of crude in the water may make it bigger than 1989's Exxon Valdez disaster and the worst oil spill in U.S. history.
Everyone was on edge about whether BP's latest effort - called "top kill" - would cap the flow of oil from a well that has been gushing since late April. The public might not have heard much about the Minerals Management Service (it oversees offshore oil drilling), but they were Googling it fiercely as former Director Elizabeth Birnbaum resigned under pressure. At an afternoon presser, President Obama said he didn't know the circumstances of Birnbaum's departure but praised Interior Secretary Ken Salazar for "cleaning house" and addressed criticism that the administration hasn't been aggressive enough in responding to the spill. "Those who think we were slow," he said, "don't know the facts." Obama admitted he was wrong about one thing: believing that the oil companies had "their act together."

"Idol": There couldn't be a more opposite topic to the oil spill. Congrats, Lee DeWyze, for becoming America's next voter-approved star, but hey, let's move on to what everyone is burning about: Why were past Idols M.I.A. on Wednesday night? David Cook? Crickets. Daughtry? Absent. Adam Lambert told Entertainment Weekly he wasn't there because he was sick but then tweeted that he had not been asked to join the long list of crooning alums that included (really) William Hung! The hottest performance of the night, if you're counting clicks, and we are, was Janet, Miss Jackson If You're Nasty. For you kids who don't remember, that's a shout-out to the "Nasty" video, which ex-"Idol" judge Paula Abdul choreographed and Jackson reprised on the finale.

Coke: Jamaica rarely makes major news, but this week was different. Fighting has raged in the streets of Kingston, and dozens of people have been killed. The chaos erupted this week after Prime Minister Bruce Golding said he would allow the courts to decide whether to extradite Christopher Coke, a request the U.S. made last year. Some in Jamaica call him a neighborhood hero. Others say he's a violent cocaine and gun runner who needs to be stopped. A diplomatic imbroglio is brewing.
Filed under: BP • Gulf Coast Oil Spill • Louisiana • Web Pulse
soundoff (14 Responses)
  1. RonJohn

    DON'T LET BP CUT THE PIPE ABOVE THE BLOW OUT PREVENTER (AMERICA WILL BE DOOMED)! INSTEAD, CRIMP THE PIPE LIKE BENDING A DRINKING STRAW IN SEVERAL PLACES(AFTER THE BOP BUT BEFORE THE FIRST LEAK!!!!!! ALSO, THE MUD/CONCRETE SLURRY WON'T WORK BECAUSE THE FLOW VELOCITY (SPEED) OF THE MIXTURE IS TOO FAST OUT OF THE LEAKS TO SET UP AND HARDEN! I HAVE A CRIMP DESIGN THAT WILL WORK!:: PICTURE A BOX THAT IS CLAMPED TO THE PIPE AND INSIDE THIS BOX IS A PINCHPOINT GATE VALVE THAT BENDS/CRIMPS THE PIPE CLOSED. DO THIS IN SEVERAL LOCATIONS. ASKS YOURSELF, WHEN WILL THEY RUN OUT OF MUD AND CAN CONCRETE REALLY SETUP IN A FRACTION OF A SECOND IF ITS FLOWING?? BP IS RUN MY IDIOTS WHO REFUSE TO HIRE TALENTED PEOPLE!!!! AMERICA IS FULL OF COMPANIES LIKE THIS AND IS RUN BY TOO MANY ACCOUNTANTS IN TECHNICAL POSITIONS!! THEY CAN ONLY COVER-UP ISSUES BECAUSE THEY ARE NOT TECHNICAL ENOUGH TO SOLVE PROBLEMS!!! I CAN NAME A FEW OTHERS COMPANIES!

    May 27, 2010 at 4:57 pm | Report abuse |
  2. Damião Carlos

    Oh my God, I can't believe what I'm seeing. Terrible. http://www.englishtips-self-taught.blogspot.com

    May 27, 2010 at 5:00 pm | Report abuse |
  3. Gil

    Unbelievable! 38 days and still no end in sight. The worst catstrophe ever. What a disturbing photo.
    Here's a song about the oil spill:

    http://gilsmusic.bandcamp.com/track/drill-baby-drill

    May 27, 2010 at 6:29 pm | Report abuse |
  4. Natalie

    America is full of pure talk, they cant even get MR. "COKE" and jamaica is such a small island (wow) lol...
    so how do they have any chance at getting bin ladin????

    May 27, 2010 at 7:56 pm | Report abuse |
  5. David Foster

    Simplicity – Set two huge ankors on either side of the leak, attach chains with a winch from one ankor to the other, have the chains go right over the leak, weld a curved steel plate to the chains right over the leak, attach a thick flexible fabric material to the steel plate – winch the assembly down pulling the fabric down over the leak.

    May 29, 2010 at 7:30 pm | Report abuse |
  6. Madeline

    The responsibilities for coping with the gulf oil crisis should be divided. The "stop leak effort" should be separated from the "clean-up effort". That way the level of energy applied to the clean up could be vastly increased. If a high level, competent military commander was appointed with the authority to use all resources nationally and internationally, including the military structure, equipment and personnel much more would be accomplished. BP would still be supervised by the government appointee(s) who would not be distracted by the other huge problems caused by this leak.

    May 30, 2010 at 5:40 am | Report abuse |
  7. H. C

    Hoepfully this catatrosphic event will cause our buisinesses, politicians, media, and consumers to finally demand and implement some real and immediate ways in which we address our energy needs. This tragic oil spill doesnt have to become just another blame game, it can become a global catalyst to steward our resources and knowledge to transform the technology we use to power our world. I hope that this becomes the foundation of a positive global revolution to address this problem short and long term less we continue to repeat events that devastate our environment.

    May 30, 2010 at 10:02 am | Report abuse |
  8. Betty Tradup

    Please, please, will someone at least look into this demonstration I watched on TV last night. Sometimes the "experts" are those people who grew up in the seafood industry and have known the good and bad of it since they were 5yrs. old......some can neither read or write BUT they do know their waters and some simple answers. They showed that putting hay on the oil slick made the oil stick to the hay and was removed with the hay upon skimming. Actually, the remaining water looked almost clean enough to drink. This has to be a cheaper and more effective way to treat this spill....at least it should be considered. It seems it would be easy enough to do; after all we drop hay to keep animals from starving in the bitter cold northwest when needed so the method of disbursement is already devised.

    June 8, 2010 at 4:13 pm | Report abuse |
  9. Jose Perez

    David cook has one of the great voices that i have ever heard in american idol:,`

    June 10, 2010 at 11:23 pm | Report abuse |
  10. Carter Ward

    I could say that David Cook deserves to be a winner in American Idol. he posses great talent.**'

    July 16, 2010 at 12:52 am | Report abuse |
  11. Noah Martin

    David Cook is way better than that David Archuletta kid~:-

    August 30, 2010 at 12:16 pm | Report abuse |
  12. Brooke Young

    i would have to say that adam lambert have a much better voice than david cook*'"

    October 11, 2010 at 5:33 am | Report abuse |
  13. Event Management Courses :

    David Cook's vocal range is very good, i bet that he would be more famous in the future'~,

    October 22, 2010 at 1:11 pm | Report abuse |
  14. David Begum

    both David Cook and David Archuleta are the best in my opinion, they have this unique voice *;:

    December 12, 2010 at 12:26 pm | Report abuse |
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