According to a piece on upi.com, James Cameron has talked to the Shirshov Institue of Oceanology, based in Russia, to see if they would allow using one of their mini Mir subs to assist in stopping the oil gushing out of the gulf. They agreed to do it, but when Cameron discussed this with U.S. regulators, BP said no. Cameron worked extensively with the Shirshov Institute on his film, 'Titanic'.
Mr. Cameron, if you are reading this, here is a suggestion: force the issue and become a real hero. Get the Shirshov Institute to send one of these Mir mini subs to the gulf coast. You show up in a Mir in a harbor near the oil spill with the media present, then announce to the world that with everyone's cooperation, this disaster can finally be stopped.
If BP didn't cave in, there would probably be riots in the streets of Louisiana. The prez could even take the time to stick his nose into the matter. Its safe to say as a rule the only way to defeat stubborn greedy types with lots of power, that also happen to control many politicians, is with some real hardball tactics. This daily disaster certainly screams for this type of hardball move. The fact that BP already dismissed this possibility is plenty of evidence for me to conclude that other options that might have ended this nightmare by now have also been rejected by BP. At this juncture, it seems reasonable to conclude that BP's number one priority is not to seal the leak ASAP, but to seal it in a way that suits BP in the long run while taking the heat in the short run. Obviously, this is a totally immoral position, but hey this is multi national corporation and that is typically their stock and trade. For example BP can still make a tidy profit from all the oil in the gulf by scooping it up and separating the water from it.
Another way to speak BP's language would be for the US government to declare this oil the property of the US government and put up for bid this oil to oil companies who want to buy it filter it then sell it. If BP thought this was even a possibility, it might light a fire under their greedy arrogant asses to try all reasonable measures to stop the leak. I mean legally is this really still their oil. The oil is in a very public domain. BP lied to the government that they had genuine backup measures to seal a leak that far under the water. This lie and their incompetence led to countless gallons of oil damaging the environment. This seems enough legally to take this oil away from them. For example if this happened off the coast of China I don't think they would be worried about any legal nuances that would motivate BP to seal a leak. More likely all BP operations would be closed and their properties and finances would be seized along with BP execs in their country marched off to jail until this matter was resolved.
Mr. Cameron, you are onto something good here please don't give up on us all just yet.