And if there is a spill? Well, think of the billions in payoff the government (and presumably the citizens) can get even if not a drop of oil reaches the beaches.

I just don’t get it. After the windfall that is now Gulf Coast Triumph Funds why are Governor Scott and Senator Nelson opposed to offshore drilling? How are the drilling platforms and underwater structures harmful to the environment again?

Do we not now spend millions of dollars placing artificial structures and sinking ships, planes, and tanks in the Gulf to enhance fishing because of the micro-environments they create? The Louisiana coast is arguably the most lucrative fishery in the world now only as a direct result of all of the offshore infrastructure that drilling created.

And in reality there are, essentially, already drilling rigs off of our shores right out of Pensacola and in Mobile Bay. Why shouldn’t the State of Florida (and presumably the citizens) reap some of the economic benefit if we are already at risk of the dangers of a spill?

And if there is a spill? Well, think of the billions in payoff the government (and presumably the citizens) can get even if not a drop of oil reaches the beaches.

Just don’t use illegal dispersants the next time to try and hide the oil (from presumably the citizens) and make it sink to the bottom where it does kill everything!

Robert Barnes, Panama City