Government Fears Bungled Crisis Might Traumatize Children

Brandon Stewart / August 10, 2010

One of the persistent disappointments of the government’s response to the Gulf oil spill has been their refusal to immediately rescind the drilling moratorium. The tragedy of the initial spill and the resulting damage has only been magnified by the President’s decision. The moratorium has had a devastating ripple effect across the local Gulf economy with suppliers, service industry and port personnel joining their neighbors in the oil and gas field in the unemployment lines. Rigs have already left the Gulf as a result.

Several weeks ago, we reported that the President sent the Surgeon General to the Gulf to educate the public on the mental health problems which could result from spill-related stressors (including, no doubt, no longer having a job due to the President’s moratorium). Now, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has followed suit, producing a new guide, Tips for Talking to Children & Youth About the Oil Spill Disaster (PDF), which lays the blame for your children sucking their thumbs or trying to get out of chores on the possibility they heard the news of the spill. Next time your teenager begins to “resist authority” or “become disruptive or aggressive at home”, two of the listed “symptoms”, you’ll know the culprit. It’s not teenage angst, it’s the oil spill. (more…)