Roger Scheuermann of Helix Well Containment Group (HWCG) standing next to the 30-foot-tall capping stack that the consortium would use to contain an out-of-control well in the Gulf of Mexico. HWCG is comprised primarily of smaller, "independent" oil companies that operate in the Gulf. Federal regulations require drillers to prove they could contain a well if something goes wrong.
Oil Firms Seek To Prove They Can Contain Spills
()A year after the blowout at BP's Macondo oil well, the government is starting to issue drilling permits in the Gulf of Mexico again. But the bar for such permits has been raised substantially: Drillers must prove they can contain an out-of-control well if something goes wrong. In response, two huge efforts to create containment systems were launched.
Books
White-Collar Criminals Weave New 'Tangled Webs'()
Journalist James B. Stewart admits in his new book that lying isn't by any means new, but argues that "concerted, deliberate lying by a different class of criminal — sophisticated, educated, affluent ... threatens to swamp the legal system and undermine the prosecution of white-collar crime."
Around the Nation
FAA Jarred Awake By Air Traffic Controller Issues()
Federal Aviation Administration chief Randy Babbitt is meeting with controllers nationwide about an issue that has gotten the agency a lot of unwanted publicity lately: sleeping on the job. Babbitt says it won't be tolerated, but controllers say it's a common problem with no easy answer.
Conflict In Libya
Libyan Rebels Look For Ways To Fill Coffers()
In Libya's rebel-held east, cash supplies are dwindling, shortages are emerging, and prices are rising as officials scramble to hold the economy together and fund a revolt against a much stronger army. The opposition government will need an infusion from somewhere soon to keep meeting demand.
Violence At California's Psychiatric Hospitals
Changes Sought After Death At Mental Hospital()
There has been a dramatic increase in violence at California's state psychiatric hospitals. A patient at Napa State Hospital died there last week, less than six months after an employee was killed. The state's secretary of Health and Human Services has lifted a hiring freeze to add more clinical and security staff.
