A constructive approach to the Gulf oil spill is required.

Needed: a concerted effort to solve or minimize the tragedy

The tragic gulf oil spill has caused and will probably continue to cause great damage to the U.S. environment and economy. It might become one of those events, such as September 11, that produce fundamental shifts in the collective mood and behavior of the nation. It is imperative that the tragedy be approached constructively, in order to convert it, if at all possible, into the basis for an improved U.S. energy sector and a safer environment in the western hemisphere. At this moment the tragedy is generating public and government reactions that could be adding to the problem rather than leading to an effective solution.
There is a need to differentiate between the causes of, and responsibilities for the tragedy, on the one side, and the alternatives for minimizing the damage and establishing better energy and environmental policies. This differentiation is not apparent to the public at this point in time. Actions taken by the federal government emphasize punishment of the company involved in the tragedy while postponing action on better energy policies and upgrading of offshore oil operations. Both the president and congress have dealt harshly with the company responsible for the tragedy. This is understandable at the political level since it responds to popular indignation about the event, but it could well be counter-productive at this stage, when there is maximum need for concerted efforts from all sides to combat the spill. Investigations on what happened are still in progress and clear responsibilities are yet be determined. Punishment of those responsible will be necessary but at its proper moment, not by installments dictated by national emotion.
At this moment the highest priority of all actors concerned should be remedial action. The spill is either technically solvable or it is not. This should be apparent by now but the U.S. public, the whole world, remains largely in the dark on this all-important point. As insufficient information on this point continues, fantastic and apocalyptic theories about extensively fractured seabed and possible tsunamis replace this knowledge, turning fear into terror. If there is no a possible cure there must be means to minimize the impact of the damage. Although this must surely be in consideration in private, there is no systematic information to the public in this connection, either from the oil company or the government. Information has been largely overlooked in favor of presidential demands that BP fund a escrow account to guarantee proper indemnity to those affected by the tragedy. Since the company accepted responsibilities for payment from the start this is a red herring that has already caused much political friction and bad blood among those who should be searching together for solutions.
In parallel with solid information on the current emergency, work to design better energy and environmental policies should start immediately. All tragedies have a silver lining. The one in this case could be the acceleration of the replacement of fossil fuels by other sources of energy, something that has been improperly considered as a purely economic issue. In fact, it is a strategic issue of the utmost importance for the very survival of the U.S. as a nation and, even, of the whole planet.