Remember that settlement BP said they reached with the people of the Gulf? Well, it still hasn't technically taken effect yet. But, just in time for Friday's two-year anniversary of the Big Oozy, the two sides filed papers in court to get the whole thing approved, BP said. The filing simultaneously is the first time the public has been able to get a look at what's in the settlement with its own two eyes.

The Lakefront and Gentilly areas will soon be getting some Sass in their lives.

Sassafras Creole & Seafood Restaurant will be opening in February in the Lake Terrace Oaks strip mall on the corner of Leon C. Simon and Franklin Avenue

Do y'all remember when we had that oil spill in the Gulf? You know the reason, they're handing out those checks? And, then remember when everything was magically alright?

Surprise! Apparently, everything is not alright!

We watch some quality footage in which a Cajun fishermen demonstrates the oil's staying power with only outboard motor. [VIA] And then we take a look at some folks a lot smarter than us at MIT usin' science to make us even more concerned about the seafood. [VIA]

Watch for yourself after the break...

Sniffing sardines aside, we have to assume that The Powers That Be have been doing some serious checking up on the seafood being brought out of the Gulf. But so far nobody has been doing anything about the highly unknown chemicals used to attack the spill. I say unknown but of course they are known, to the people who invented them. The recipe used most extensively in the Gulf, the optimistically named Corexit, is kept secret under strict trade laws.

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by Arielle Schecter

Seafood safety testing in the Gulf region has taken a turn for the stinky. Ordinary citizens had presumed that scientists were behind the inspections of oysters, shrimp, and other fishes originating in the oil-tainted waters, but it turns out that anybody with a nose can qualify for the job. Managers of the testing facilities urge the olfactory workers to sniff "like a bunny," according to an NPR report that aired this morning on WWNO. Driving this technology is the belief that people can tell when something's gone bad in their refrigerators. So by extension, they should be able to tell when something's spilled 55,000 gallons of oil on a single catfish.

Riddle: What would make Morris Bart AND David Simon both happy? Susan Spicer (not represented by Bart :() has just filed a class action lawsuit against BP. The famed chef of Bayona, and Treme inspiration is gunning for the polluter citing income lost on account of the oilpill and consequent lack of seafood. You geaux, girl!