DIALOGUE

Spill!!!?? Power of the Word

Posted by Ed Koffenberger on June 21, 2010 at 1:30pm in Depth Psychology General

A friend in class stated that his child had been watching the news about the Gulf and asked, "Why do they call it a spill?" Great question. A spill is what happens out of a coffee cup that you wipe up.

What term do you think would be more appropriate and why?

You need to be a member of Depth Psychology Alliance to add comments!

Join Depth Psychology Alliance

Tags: Gulf, images, oil, spill, words
Email me when people reply –
Follow

Replies

  • Susannah Garrett July 14, 2010 at 9:50pm
    A deep gushing bleed from the core. A very deep wound to the Earth. A crime against nature and a planetary holocaust. Oil, as a substance, not necessarily used for energy, has a nature that is very primary, it is the compressed matter of the ages. There is an ancestral essence about it that feels like a life force of somekind.

    So sad, so very very sad.
    • Ed Koffenberger > Susannah Garrett July 15, 2010 at 12:56pm
      Susannah,
      "Oil, as a substance, not necessarily used for energy, has a nature that is very primary, it is the compressed matter of the ages." WOW!!! This one line is so rich with imaginal potentialities!!!
      Frankly, I need to say it over and over and journal my experiences with it. Thanks so much.

      I wonder if we will soon forget as there is a cap on the bleed. I'll be watching as the words are chosen to frame the continuing discussion (if there even is one).
      • Susannah Garrett > Ed Koffenberger July 15, 2010 at 1:55pm
        Sadly, How quickly we CAN forget. My fear is that the cap will not hold and the pressure could blow the whole area out. They have drilled two other wells to release pressure from the main flow. Let's pray deeply that this will hold the gushing. The next few weeks will be critical.
  • Julie Ann Perkins June 25, 2010 at 4:42pm
    ON an equally empowered note, as a response to "The Gash", here are Hands Across the Sand:
    Please join the Surfrider Foundation and our environmental partners for Hands Across the Sand this Saturday. Folks will join hands, at local beaches, for 15 minutes to say no to offshore oil drilling and yes to clean energy.

    There are more than 800 grassroots 'Hands Across the Sand' events that will take place in communities across the country and around the world in response to the Gulf drilling disaster.

    Tens of thousands of people who support clean energy and oppose offshore drilling are expected to participate in more than 800 Hands Across the Sand events across the country and around the world on Saturday, June 26. Events will take place in all 50 U.S. states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, and more than 30 countries, beginning in Auckland, New Zealand and work its way across global time zones finishing on the North Shore of Kauai, Hawaii.

    NOTE: A complete list of events, all of which begin at 11 a.m. Saturday (in your own time zone), can be found at Hands Across the Sand. Click on your state for the list.
  • Julie Ann Perkins June 25, 2010 at 4:02pm
    It started as a big Puncture, then it became a gush from below, now it is a BURN from above!
    "Reports keep coming in from locals in the Gulf and stories on NPR and in The New York Times -- endangered sea turtles are being burned alive as part of BP's careless oil spill cleanup efforts.

    This is unacceptable. These rare, important turtles are becoming trapped in the oily surface of the Gulf and then torched by cleanup crews in "controlled burns" of corralled oil -- any wildlife caught inside the corral are literally burned alive.

    And it's illegal: As protected species under the Endangered Species Act, anyone responsible for killing a Kemp's Ridley sea turtle -- the turtle most affected by the Gulf oil disaster -- is liable for criminal penalties including prison time and civil fines of up to $25,000 for each violation.

    Take action right now and send this to all your friends. Tell BP to stop torching endangered sea turtles. The turtles should not be burned alive in the process of cleaning up the oil spill that's already destroying their habitat. We can stop it and get the turtles out of harm's way with your help.

  • Bonnie Bright June 22, 2010 at 11:05pm
    Ed: This is such a ripe topic for discussion. I have to admit I am conflicted about the world spill. I get the irony of the term which suggests it might be easily dealt with or quickly cleaned up (like in my kitchen) and find that misleading. It's true the Exxon spill in Alaska 20 years ago WAS a spill from a ship and hence, was more appropriately labeled. This incident in the Gulf is way, WAY beyond that as oil is spewing, erupting and unstoppable. Who knows if it will ever be possible to "clean it up"? At the same time, I do like the fact that "spill" points to the fact that it was caused by something or someone--and we all know if it weren't for humans and our carelessness, it wouldn't be spewing, so for that reason, I'm glad we're using a term that takes some responsibility for that aspect.
    Tonight I read something that referred to it as the "oil disaster". I think I'm leaning toward that as my terminology of choice at the moment....
This reply was deleted.