President Obama's speech last week, if nothing else, conveyed how he truly cares about the people living around the Gulf of Mexico and his serious desire to stop the leak and begin cleanup. However, while President Obama's words may have been emotion-filled, the entire speech felt very much like 'the President's Weekly Adress' to be released for internet hounds and podcast subscribers; it was very informal. President Obama was not angry. He was not furious with BP. He needs to be.
Sure, BP is not entirely at fault. Lackadaisical federal regulators did not do their job, and Congress did not do its job. None of this, however, excuses BP for their horrific business practices.
BP's rescue plan in the case of an oil disaster was the equivalent of a seventh grader's semi-plagiarized term paper. BP has threatened to fire any and all employees who wear pertinent protective gear while working on the cleanup, presumably for PR reasons. This goes beyond terrible regulation. This is disgusting. Why aren't congressmen- why isn't President Obama- mad about this? The righteous, populous anger America so desperately needs right now was glimpsed when Rep. Joe Barton apologized to BP. The remarkable unity seen in response to Barton's comments needs to be channeled, and channeled towards getting something done.
In a time when an endless swarm of indistinguishable voices dictates the personality of the internet, when rant-like, all-caps comments are posted on extremist sites, providing the textual equivalent of screaming at your idealogical twin, it may seem that instigating more anger is not the solution. However, it is the responsibility of Congress to get angry at corporations that hurt the American public and precious American environment, to get angry at regulators who fail to even basically protect Americans, and even to get angry with themselves and their institution for doing nothing. The solution is not instigating more anger; the solution is instigating the right anger.
Nearly fifty days since oil began leaking into the Gulf of Mexico at tremendous speed, impacting local business, environment, culture, and health, the federal government has estimated that around 1,000 barrels of oil have entered the Gulf per day. BP and the US government are rapidly reaching an unfortunate conclusion: no solution will be reached before August; no cleanup will begin until at least the fall. No matter how heavily the federal government lines the coast with boom, no true success will be reached for keeping oil off the shore until BP finishes creating a viable solution. This explosion and leak exemplify exactly why off-shore drilling is not a good idea. We can't control it, and, when there is a problem, we cannot fix it.
Our understanding of what works to stop an oil spill like this (a relief well) has done nothing to stop BP from trying less secure solutions. Last week, robotically operated devices were sent to the pipe. The machines made incisions in an attempt to fit a cap to the leak, however, due to complications, the plan was- temporarily, at least- abandoned. Before that, 'top kill', in which BP bombarded the rig with heavy drilling mud at extremely high pressures, also was declared a failure after a few days.
The Gulf community is desperate. However, the current 'solutions' that only worsen the condition and disperse oil into the air do not help. Someone last week suggested simply nuclear bombing the rig. Why are money and manpower being spent on these ideas, as opposed to investing in real solutions? It is time for BP to find answers that are not ridiculous, and to stop focusing on those that are. More importantly, why weren't these real solutions invested in before drilling began? BP is ranked among the world's most profitable companies. It should be obvious to everyone where those profits went. It wasn't to solutions in case of disaster, that much is certain.
Read more »
The Liberal Hype site claims no credit for any images featured on this site unless otherwise noted. All visual content is copyrighted to its respective owners. Liberal Hype is in no way responsible for, or has control of, the content of any external website links or embedded streaming videos. Information on this site may contain errors or inaccuracies. If you own rights to any of the content and wish to have it removed please contact at liberalhype@gmail.com. My Tangled Tale, Vinyl, The Dull Drama, First Draft Magician, and other partners are produced by respective owners, and Liberal Hype claims no connection to any information they publish.
President Obama's speech last week, if nothing else, conveyed how he truly cares about the people living around the Gulf of Mexico and his serious desire to stop the leak and begin cleanup. However, while President Obama's words may have been emotion-filled, the entire speech felt very much like 'the President's Weekly Adress' to be released for internet hounds and podcast subscribers; it was very informal. President Obama was not angry. He was not furious with BP. He needs to be.
Posts
