Okay, so I'm trying to enjoy this month leading up to our big 25th anniversary, not really trying to think about politics much, but then we have these disasters happening - I'm especially thinking about the oil spill in the Gulf.
And then I read things like, from the AP...
Petrochemical giant BP didn't file a plan to specifically handle a major oil spill from an uncontrolled blowout at its Deepwater Horizon project because the federal agency that regulates offshore rigs changed its rules two years ago to exempt certain projects in the central Gulf region, according to an Associated Press review of official records.
The Minerals Management Service, an arm of the Interior Department known for its cozy relationship with major oil companies, says it issued the rule relief because some of the industrywide mandates weren't practical for all of the exploratory and production projects operating in the Gulf region.
The blowout rule, the fact that it was lifted in April 2008 for rigs that didn't fit at least one of five conditions, and confusion about whether the BP Deepwater Horizon project was covered by the regulation, caught the attention of Interior Secretary Ken Salazar....
And this from some Wall St website...
BP... will benefit from a law passed after the Exxon Valdez incident which capped the liability for oil spills at $75 million. BP says it will still bear the costs of the clean-up which its says costs $6 million a day. But, the cap is its financial salvation. The Oil Pollution Act will save it from collateral damage and liability from the fallout of the “accident” beyond its direct costs.
The safety net of the Oil Pollution Act could be cut by Congress. Democratic Senator Robert Menendez of New Jersey wants to raise the cap to $10 billion. It is too early to say how much support he will have among his peers, but it will certainly be politically popular to attack BP and other parties such as Transocean (NYSE: RIG) which were involved in the disaster...
And idiots like this (cited at Politico.com)...
Texas Gov. Rick Perry Monday offered a stern warning against halting oil drilling in the Gulf of Mexico in the wake of a massive oil leak, and he raised the question of whether the explosion was an “act of God.”
“We don’t know what the event that has allowed for this massive oil to be released,” Perry said alongside several other governors on a panel Monday. “And until we know that, I hope we don’t see a knee-jerk reaction across this country that says we’re going to shut down drilling in the Gulf of Mexico, because the cost to this country will be staggering.”
Which would be EXACTLY the wrong conclusion to reach from this. Fortunately, I don't think US citizens hold Big Oil to be their god, like Perry must be thinking. I'm hoping we can learn something worthwhile from this and the recent coal mine disasters. There is no such thing as a free lunch, there is no such thing as "cheap" fossil fuels. The only way fossil fuels have APPEARED cheap so far is because we ignore actual costs and push real costs off on the environment, on our children, on future generations, on the sick and on the poor.
Lord, grant us mercy and at least a little bit of wisdom...
The time has come for judging the dead, and for rewarding your servants the prophets and your saints and those who reverence your name, both small and great--and for destroying those who destroy the earth.
~Revelation 11:18
2 comments:
I'm in favor of increased off-shore drilling. But I have to admit that as the spill grows, so does the efficacy of the safety argument against it.
I agree. You're not the first person I've heard who either actively supports off shore drilling or who, at least, thought "Well, that's one compromise Obama could make with the GOP and let them have their way and it would probably be all right..." who now regrets not staying opposed to off shore drilling.
I hope we can learn something from this. "Big Gov't" with their pesky "rules" and "regulations," I hope we're discovering, is sometimes a good thing.
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