Recently, I admonished someone asking, “Is this the We Drive Cars So Can’t Yell At BP argument?”
Don’t get Jeffrey started.
Any stupid hippie who wants to tell you “we’re really all to blame” because we drive cars is letting the criminals off the hook … Yes, I believe we need to make changes in the way we produce and consume energy. But those changes will only happen if we identify specific institutions and policies that need to be pressured. Nothing happens if all we ever do is throw up our hands and say, “we’re really all to blame”.
Cliff doesn’t say that we ought not to take BP to task, but eloquently points out that Louisiana’s dependence on oil as a source of income will take us right back to square one. When I vocalized this same thing the other day, I was told “That Obama Guy” would make sure we never drill in our own waters again. Uh huh, wait six months. This will be a faint memory.
… Our country is going to drill for oil anywhere and everywhere we can. President Obama has already stated he’s committed to it so there is no need to worry. We’ll be back to risking our wetlands and hurricane protection in no time. That’s what dependent people do. Louisiana is acting like the welfare queens of America. We want to do the right thing for our people and our culture but we are too afraid of what’s going to happen if we lose that check so we let bad choices happen.
And then there’s this jackass who says BP should tell whining American hypocrites to take a hike.
Hayward should go on TV and say: Excuse me, which country is the biggest oil consumer on the planet? Who refused to do anything about climate change, or even to put sensible taxes on gas? Heck, your president even flies around in a 747 when a modest Gulfstream jet would get him there just as fast. So of course the oil companies have to drill in more and more dangerous places. If you insist on being addicted to cheap oil, you have to recognize there are risks attached. So grow up, and stop acting like children.
Let me get this straight. Because we lease out our territorial waters to a profit-making corporation who sells our oil back to us and to other nations, minus royalty, transportation and refining costs of course, we should just bend over and let them take unacceptable risks. Speaking of “acting like children,” why is it that other oil companies don’t have the same awful track record BP does in North America? And 5000 feet water depth in the Mississippi Canyon of the Gulf of Mexico is not “drilling in more and more dangerous places,” it’s highly routine. If you can’t get that right, go home. To quote my very conservative father-in-law on this spill, “If you’re gonna run with the big dogs, you gotta learn how to lift your leg.”
Or you get run over by Toonces the driving Turtle.
Toonces the Driving Turtle? That means the driving off cliffs is going to be excruciatingly slow.
I do think it’s legitimate, however, to point out that we as a nation and specifically as a region have voted for candidates who promised us lax regulation. Running for office in this part of the country and saying that you think potentially dangerous business activities should be closely regulated to protect public safety is pretty much political suicide. So, while everyone is talking about how horrible it is, I find myself thinking, “So how did you vote?”
Absolutely, John. But, how did you specifically vote? We cannot let our individual votes and requests for regulation be subsumed by the general economic will of the region.
Well, my point is more general: if you don’t want disasters, you need regulation. if you wait for a candidate from either party who’ll be serious about it, you may be waiting a long time. (Thought Bill White is one of the rare ones who is serious about environmental regulation in TX.) You have to ask about it. you have to say, “This is important to me.” Which nobody does until times like this.