President Barack Obama pretty much stated the obvious when he called the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico "a massive and potentially unprecedented environmental disaster." The oil well pouring a river of crude into the Gulf of Mexico didn't have the normal type of remote-control shut-off switch used in Norway and the UK as last-resort protection against underwater spills, largely because the oil companies themselves are responsible for "voluntary" compliance with safety and environmental standards.
It was in 1994, two years into the Clinton administration, when this practice of putting the fox in charge of the henhouse was legalized, about the same time George W. Bush was doing the same thing in Texas, a program pushed hard in the previous administration by Dan Quayle's so-called "competitiveness council" charged with deregulating industry. The accident has led to one of the largest ever oil spills in U.S. water and the loss of 11 lives. Voluntary safety for oil wells, but you and I can get stopped by the police if we don't fasten our safety belts? Eleven people have died because Halliburton and BP wanted to save money.
In the first hundred years of this republic it was commonplace for rogue corporations to get the corporate death penalty -- being shut down, dissolved, and having their assets sold off. Through the 19th century, it averaged around 2000 companies a year that got the axe. If the Supreme Court now says that corporations are people -- and they did -- then these corporations should be eligible for the corporate death penalty. Time to break up and sell off the pieces of Halliburton and British Petroleum.
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Stuart Whatley: The Capitalist Hagiography Has Little Room for Saints
When a corporation falls short of regulatory standards it does not do so accidentally. Rather, it is a calculated choice based on risible enforcement efforts and piddling penalties passed by legislators on the take.
This will continue until we, as a society, alter our focus on individual rights and the accumulation of wealth by the few at the expense of the many, at all costs. Until then ...
Oil and Nuclear power are, quite literally, the fuels of war and an economy that is doomed to fail for the very reason that it is based on warfare.
The answer is to:
1. Oppose all war funding
2. Oppose oil and nuclear production.
3. Hold those responsible for war crimes accountable. (Here in the US, let's start by arresting Bush and Cheney)
When details are finally forthcoming on what exactly precipitated the explosion on the rig that started the chain of events, if there was a cementing problem then it likely will be procedural in nature.
I can't comment on whether Halliburton should be held responsible for a significant part of the ongoing spill, because I haven't read enough on that to have an informed opinion. I'm certainly
no fan of Halliburton in general, but I will concede OFT's point and leave that discussion to others.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j_H6e6shloU
BTW - this is not a spill. It's a spilling. It cannot be gauged yet how bad the damage will be. This could go on for months, all the while BP spewing propaganda.
It's outrageous that there be a cap on the damages BP can be held liable for. If this disaster causes trillions in damages, then BP (and Halliburton) should be held accountable for the total. Jobs be damned. Too bad if you're a BP employee or investor. You should have worked or invested in a company that didn't put a few bucks into proper safety. You should have worked or invested in a company that had proper leadership.
In the end, BP will pay out a little bit. The taxpayers will pay out a lot. The damage will be irreversible, and affect the environment for generations to come. BP execs will continue to get richer.