An old fashioned clock, a family heirloom holding its place on a worn fireplace mantle, chimes the ten o’clock hour. The silence the strikes disrupt is loud, louder than the churning waves of the gulf, of the boat motor that once went out into the waters, of the wall-phone ringing… Probably just another creditor. The couple sitting at the table don’t even look up. Answering … Continue reading A family, not a statistic…
From the Walton Sun: The Gulf Coast Claims Facility (GCCF) announced Monday that more than half of the claims submitted to the organization for losses associated with the Deepwater Horizon oil spill have been processed. Ken Feinberg, GCCF administrator, reported more than 54 percent of the roughly 256,000 claims submitted since the end of the emergency payment period in November have been processed. “We are … Continue reading Well Ken, I suppose congratulations are in order?
In a word? Climate. I’m not talking about environmental climate change, I’m talking about the political climate, the deregulation climate, the climate that continues to sweep through this country and threatens you, the American citizen at your door with not a polite knock, it’s more akin to home invasion, battering rams that splinter the wood with its force until the whole thing smashes in and … Continue reading What does Wisconsin have to do with the Gulf Coast?
When Feinberg first proposed the methodology for interim and final payments he clearly made everyone unhappy. Even BP weighed in with their dislike of his payment system as far too generous, and while their now apparent total disregard for their public relations department can be summarily dismissed, the people who matter here, namely the people injured by this spill, well, they were equally unimpressed. A … Continue reading Feinberg’s revised rules: the good and the bad…
Imagine: You are the neutral arbitrator of a large compensation fund and you are being roundly criticized. The people making damage claims say you are underpaying them, being too slow, denying too many and tell anyone who will listen how you are not neutral, but are working for the company who is paying out the damages. It’s gotten so bad that local and national politicians … Continue reading Bad Cop, Worse Cop…
As I wrote a few days ago, a new phenomenon is occurring on the Gulf Coast. Some claimants who have applied for the quick pay from the GCCF, an application the GCCF stated would be automatic for people who had received an EAP and would require no further review, have suddenly found their EAP’s under investigation for fraud. Guidepost Solutions, the investigative arm of Ken … Continue reading Being investigated by Guidepost Solutions and the GCCF? The media is listening…
Guidepost Solutions, the investigative arm of Ken Feinberg and the GCCF = British Petroleum, have apparently been stirring up the Gulf’s waters these past couple of weeks. From their website’s masthead: “Guidepost Solutions LLC is a global investigations and security company with expertise in designing and managing the installation of physical security and life safety systems for both new and existing sophisticated facilities and operations. The … Continue reading It would appear Guidepost Solutions getting busy in the Gulf…
When Feinberg posted the GCCF’s methodology, he opened up a two-week public comment period and requested claimants in the Gulf Coast post their thoughts directly to the website. He pledged to monitor the public feedback and make adjustments to his methodology as necessary, taking into account the concerns of the people most affected by the oil spill and the claims process. A perusal of the … Continue reading People eager to tell Feinberg their opinions on GCCF methodology…
On Wednesday, Ken Feinberg and the GCCF released their methodology to show how interim and final payments will be determined. They highlighted a chorus of retained and consulted experts who expect the Gulf to be back to normal by 2012. They also pointed out, a few times, how claimants would be eligible for twice their documented 2010 damages and eligible oyster harvesters could receive four … Continue reading The GCCF Methodology…experts, experts and more experts, paid for by BP
Late yesterday afternoon, US District Judge Barbier issued a ruling that bans the “neutral” arbitrator of oil spill claims from repeating his mantra that he is independent of British Petroleum. “After reviewing the facts and submissions by the parties, the court finds that BP has created a hybrid entity, rather than one that is fully independent of BP,” Barbier wrote in his ruling. “While BP … Continue reading Judge Barbier Rules! Feinberg is not independent…
Drake Toulouse: Photography and Words 