Here's BP by the numbers. Corporate felon BP agreed to pay $20 billion into an escrow account. They will build the fund over 3.5 years with the first payment of $3 billion in the third quarter, and $2 billion in the fourth quarter. Then BP will pay $1.25 billion each quarter until the $20 billion is met. The fund will pay only claims from damages related to the spill as well as reimbursements to state and local governments. It will be easy for BP to make its payments out of its $30 billion in cash flow this year and they intend to make $10 billion in divestments over the next year. According to a 2007 study published by Texas A&M University Press the four biggest industries in the Gulf are oil, tourism, fishing and shipping, and account for around $234 billion in economic activity each year, most of which is at risk of being wiped out and which, if my math is right, means over a trillion dollars, about 500 times more money than this little $250 billion "fund" that will be tax-deductible to BP. For example, Louisiana’s seafood industry alone is worth $2 billion annually, and Florida's is over $10 billion. Yesterday, “Pavel Molchanov, an analyst at Raymond James, estimated the total legal cost, including criminal fines, at $62.9 billion.” Moody’s is projecting that the best case scenario following BP’s oil disaster will “cost the Gulf region’s five states more than 16,000 jobs and $1.15 billion from the area’s gross domestic product.” And that's assuming that the oil stops flowing immediately, which doesn't appear likely.