Avertible Catastrophe - More on the Oil Disaster

Could something really have been done? A fascinating bit of news has surfaced. avertible catastophe

It seems that help, GOOD help, help probably the most experienced marine engineers and researchers in the world, was offered. And refused.

WHY? Was it because of that precious thing, valued ONLY by those in control of our nations, called SOVEREIGNTY? That thing that has caused more wars than ANY other concept ever?

Wikipedia says "Sovereignty is the quality of having supreme, independent authority over a territory. It can be found in a power to rule and make law that rests on a political fact for which no purely legal explanation can be provided. ... The current notion of state sovereignty was laid down in the Treaty of Westphalia (1648), which, in relation to states, codified the basic principles of territorial integrity, border inviolability, and supremacy of the state (rather than the Church). A sovereign is a supreme lawmaking authority." The whole article is well worth a read.

but the most important part, for me, is its statement of Hobbes' theory
"Hobbes deduced from the definition of sovereignty that it must be:

* Absolute: because conditions could only be imposed on a sovereign if there were some outside arbitrator to determine when he had violated them, in which case the sovereign would not be the final authority.

* Indivisible: The sovereign is the only final authority in his territory; he does not share final authority with any other entity."

Which implies, in this situation, "If the President of the US, who is the SOVEREIGN RULER, shares authority in the sense of accepting ANY help from the Dutch, or any other nation, he is diminishing his own power. No matter what help is NEEDED, unless he is the Commander in Chief of the forces, he would be put under obligation to the other nation, he (and his nation) would be diminished.

Is sovereignty more important than cleaning up the mess? It would seem that for some, it is.