Translation poem

Ah, would I were a German!
I'd trouble my translator
With nouns the size of Hamburg
And leave the verb till later.

And if I were a Welshman
My work would thwart translation
With ninety novel plurals
In strict alliteration.

And would I were Chinese!
I'd throw them off their course
With twelve unusual symbols
All homophones of "horse".

But as it is, I'm English:
And I'm the one in hell
By writing in a language
Impossible to spell.

By marnanel posted to Linguaphiles.

BP Spill: "Worst effects may be yet to come"

WDSU: Some Oysters Tainted By Oil, Scientist Says

"Sampling by environmental groups has found oysters contaminated with oil along the Louisiana coast befouled by the BP PLC oil spill, a finding that casts doubt on statements by state and federal officials that all seafood tested here is safe to eat."

Southern Studies: Independent tests find oil spill contamination in Louisiana oysters and crabs

Biloxi Sun-Herald: Up to 90% of oysters dead

"Officials from the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources took oyster fishermen out on the reefs off the Pass Christian Harbor on Wednesday to give them a preview of what to expect from the upcoming oyster season."

"DMR officials dredged for oysters and pulled up catches with about 80 to 90 percent of the oysters dead."

Hm, I wonder what might have caused that?

"Scott Gordon, director of the DMR shellfish bureau, said there have been more oyster mortalities this year, but he doesn’t know whether it can be attributed to the BP oil spill.

"“We don’t have any evidence that oil has contributed to these mortalities,” he said."

[Insert your own sarcastic comment here]


Mother Jones: The BP Cover-Up

"BP and the government say the spill is fast disappearing—but dramatic new science reveals that its worst effects may be yet to come."