What you'll need:
• A mermaid costume
• Black paint
• BP protest sign
Everyone likes a terrifying Halloween costume. This year, forget the bloodsucking vampires and hockey-mask-wearing serial killers and opt for what is truly the scariest of all evils: pollution. It was the biggest news story of the year: more than 100 million gallons of oil spilled into the Gulf of Mexico in the months that followed the April 20 explosion on Transocean's Deepwater Horizon. The disaster at the oil rig, operated by BP, sparked worldwide outrage over the damage the thick black sludge could cause to the Gulf Coast and the world's oceans. Express your oil-fueled outrage by splashing black paint on a store-bought or homemade mermaid costume (fish, dolphin, seagull and turtle costumes work as well) and you'll look like a victim from the depths of the defiled ocean. If you're not big on seafood, try a jumpsuit splattered with oil and you'll look like a member of the cleanup crew.