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I know everyone has their opinion (opinions are like A** Ho**s, and every one has them. Some just stink) on what should be done and how to fix the problem. But at the end of the day this accident is going to affect all of us on one way or another. Some will be affected sooner than others. Here is my opinion / story, not that anyone wants to hear it. I am not a political person and am not very good writer. I speak my mind and that usually gets me into trouble.

I myself am a Rig Worker and live in the Far North Central Texas area. I have been a Paramedic for 12 years. I have worked Private Ambulance services ($20k to 30k per year), County Ambulance / City Fire Departments (30-40k per year) and for the past 2 years off shore as a paramedic (50+ per year). I work 14 days on and 14 days off. I see my family more now then i did when i worked close to home because to make close to the max i had to work most all the time 2 and sometimes 3 jobs. All to make sure my wife and kids have the best possible life I can provide.

11 Men lost their lives. My heart goes out to their family's. This accidnet should have ever happened. But as a rig worker they, we, I knew / know the risks and dangers of working in this remote environment and the dangers involved. I can not speak for BP or Transocean, but the Co that I work for and our operators have always encouraged the absolute most safe practices. I can say that there has only been a few times that the since of urgency has ever been stressed to the employees to get something done but it was also said do it fast but do it safe. I have seen the result of people trying to take short cuts to hurry a job. I have seen the Operator and the Drilling Company terminate people for not working safely. Time is money..... But how much is it really worth if you get someone hurt. It was not long ago before the Horizon Accident that our rig was faced with the same situation. But with superior training, equipment, and such a strong safety culture that we did not have the "blow out" as seen with the Horizon. So I could very easily could have been one of the 11.This very easily could have been my rig. This very easily could have been me that did not come home to my family. Again my heart goes out to the families of those that were lost and I do not mean any disrespect if any of them read this. They paid the ultimate sacrifice, doing the absolute best to support their family's. But all those that work off shore are aware of the risks involved and am willing to take that risk to provide the best life for our families.

The rig I am has around 400 people working that live all over our country. The 2 that I work with the most One lives in the Seattle area and the other in Pennsylvania area. No were near the Gulf Coast. With the current Moratorium we are in the 100's. And now I am being told that if the moratorium last for any length of time we will all be laid off. So now we have around 300 men and women not working just on my rig and possibly all of us.

From what I understand, everything we are doing now is for our future 1-5 years. So if we are not working now then in 1 to 5 years we will be hurting as a nation not to mention the current job losses, and as result of this accident the other non-oil industry related jobs that are being lost. So those men and women are not spending so the other local business are not making what they will need to survive. This is a domino effect and will continue to effect everything we use. All of our daily needs: food, clothing, fuel, ect. Imagine your current income with the current price per gallon of milk, fuel, clothing, electricity. Now imagine what would happen if all of our cost increased by 10%. 20%. 30%. Imagine paying $8 for a gallon of gas and $10 for a gallon of milk.... Now imagine that with facing a loss of your job or taking a job that pays less then what you make now and just get by??? I know that many have already been faced with this in the past few years, and now I truly understand the feeling. All I can do now is pray that I do not loose my job and if I do, that I am able to find another quickly.

The Moratorium effects everything. Let me explain a least for myself. I fly from Dallas to New Orleans ($200) each time I go. Rent a car from New Orleans to were I do crew change ($100). Get a hotel the night before crew change ($100). Dinner and Breakfast ($20-$30). I do this at least 13 times a year ($5100+). My wife takes me to the airport and picks me up when I return. Gas about a tank of gas ($40) we usually go out to dinner the night that I leave and when I get home as a family ($125) again 13 times a year ($2145). Lets say approx 1/4 of the people on my rig do this (a number of them do) that would be approx $750k per year spent. just coming and going to work. This don't include our support vessels, workers, ect. My numbers are not exact and I am using it for an example. The moratorium will set us back as far as our economy. I read a article from a economist (if I can find it again i will post it) that if the government enforces the moratorium for 6 months like planned to expect 120K job losses nation wide to start. They explained that the economy will become worse then the past few years. I am sure that there is alot smarter people here that will read this and agree or disagree. It is my opinion, but if people are telling this to our government then why take the chance. Lets continue working, correct the problem, and implement new safety guidelines all while keeping everyone working and spending money locally in a already distressed region and nation. I am pro alternative energy sources. I believe that we need to preserve our natural resources for our future generations. I completely agree with the idea of a Moratorium but disagree with the way it is being handled. I agree that we need time to completely figure out what happened, develop and implement new and improved safety programs and equipment.

I hold BP completely at fault for the accident. This should have never happened but it did, and we all knew it could happen. The Federal Government is equally to blame. Although BP is financially responsible for this accident, they should not be in charge. When I was a firefighter at a house fire or a accident scene, i did not let the property owner call the shots. I did. The same principal applies. Our national leaders should have stepped in, had a plan in place for response long before this ever happened, and taken over. BP should not be responsible for correcting the problem. We should. BP has a general interest to get the well shut-in as soon as possible but they also have a general interest in hiding facts, problems, conditions to preserve as much money as they can. If the government did not have have a plan in place they should brought other drilling / oil operators in to correct the problem. The only response that they should have any participation in is paying all those that have lost as result of this accident. BP should pay for all the expenses but not have a say in how we correct the problem. Don't be fooled. The root cause into why and how this accident has occurred is already known. It was known the first few days into the accident. That information just has not made it out fully. I do not know the real cause but know enough and have talked with enough to understand what had happened.

Sorry got on my soap box.

The size of this accident is going to be felt for generations. This has damaged our ecosystem in the gulf and potentially our eastern sea board not to mention the economic effects that are going to be felt for years.

And yes... Everything come back to the all mighty dollar.