A “Gulf Disaster” Every Single Year.

by Little Miss Attila on September 23, 2010

Welcome to Nigeria.

The difference, of course, is that if this happens on another continent, to people who speak another language, my friends and family can pretend that it isn’t occurring at all, or that driving a Prius is somehow an adequate response.

“I care, I care, I care: I want less drilling where the environmental standards are strictest, and more drilling where they are lax. La la la la la—I can’t hear you!”

{ 36 comments… read them below or add one }

ponce September 24, 2010 at 12:25 am

Let the oil companies do what they want in the Gulf or Africa gets it?

Needs a little work.

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Darrell September 24, 2010 at 3:28 am

Let’s send the progressives that made the Unabomber Manifesto US National Policy back to their looney bins campuses! There. That sums it up nicely.

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Ric Locke September 24, 2010 at 7:07 am

So, ponce: The sun rises in the East. That means I want all the selfless, generous bureaucrats commuting in to work on I-66 to be so dazzled that they get in wrecks, right? Is the Law of Gravity an evil Republican plot against pregnant women and paraplegics, in your view?

In other words, you and your boys can advocate actions with obvious and direct consequences of unlimited potential for disaster and congratulate yourselves on your “compassion”, but when we point out those consequences we’re advocating them. It’s no longer working all that well, m’dear.

Regards,
Ric

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ponce September 24, 2010 at 7:42 am

Ric,

I was just saying if LMA wants to continue writing agitprop for the oil companies she needs to punch up her posts.

Take the linked article. How about:

“Generous oil companies pump crude oil directly to third world world consumers free of charge!”

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Ric Locke September 24, 2010 at 8:03 am

Oooh, how wonderful. Translation: “Look! Over there! Bunnies! With teeth!”

The Ex-Im Bank subsidies for Mexican drilling in the Gulf don’t carry any environmental or safety requirements. Neither do the direct subsidies to the Brazilians. I’m really surprised you aren’t advocating that kind of restrictions, because they directly result in expensive oil for Americans and no jobs to pay for it, plus no money or jobs for Mexicans and Nigerians, a perfect trifecta of leftoid “compassion”.

You get to pull the pin and throw the grenade, while smirking self-righteously about how virtuous you are because you can blame the injuries on the guys digging foxholes and yelling “take cover!” It no longer works very well.

Regards,
Ric

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ponce September 24, 2010 at 8:27 am

TRic,

Like many of Durrel’s posts, I struggle to understand what you were trying to say.

Are you saying oil companies should have the right top kill whomever they want?

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Ric Locke September 24, 2010 at 9:48 am

Ooh, how very clever.

Got news: Accidents are almost always more expensive than the precautions taken to avoid them, and the function of regulation and inspection is to make that true in more cases. You bribe the inspector when you believe the precautions you are taking are sufficient to prevent loss and the inspector’s demands are excessive; the inspector confirms your belief by accepting the bribe. This is especially true when the inspector makes it clear that he knows little or nothing about what’s going on and is insulted by the suggestion that he should, and the “precautions” consist primarily of piles of paperwork designed to cover the inspector’s butt rather than having any real impact on safety.

BP and Transocean believed that the precautions they were taking were sufficient. They therefore shoveled “campaign contributions” into the maw of the Obama Administration, who confirmed that they thought the same by taking the money and telling the inspectors to back off. Both parties were wrong, and the accident duly occurred. Obama and company then reacted with the classic behavior of a bribed inspector: by clamping down on unrelated or vaguely related activities while sanctimoniously claiming virtue for themselves and villainy on the part of the people who paid them off.

It wouldn’t have happened if BP/Transocean hadn’t believed that the “safety requirements” were extortionate and Obama &co. hadn’t agreed by taking the money. That’s all there is to it, that’s all there ever was or will be to it, and your bleating and blamecasting serves to confirm that rather than obfuscating it.

Regards,
Ric

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ponce September 24, 2010 at 10:01 am

Ric,

Interesting accusation.

Crazy as usual, but interesting.

How much do you think oil companies should have to donate to politicians before they’re allowed to kill their workers without the government getting involved?

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Ric Locke September 24, 2010 at 10:29 am

Buuuwahaha!

You know what the best-paying non-management or quasi-management job in any dangerous industry is?

Safety inspector.

Companies pay six-figure salaries and seven-figure consulting contracts to people who can tell them whether or not they’re getting it right. It’s a highly sought after gig, especially for people who like to travel. They get to travel the world and pull rank on local operators with full management backing. That’s because the companies know that accidents, especially injury accidents, are gigantic negatives for the “bottom line” to be avoided whenever possible.

Done right, a Government-based inspection scheme is a form of subsidy. Of course, such an inspector can’t work for the Government — being familiar with the industry is a clear conflict of interest! I’m most familiar with the effect in aviation, where I used to make a living. All the old farts who knew the industry have retired and/or died off; the typical FAA “inspector” nowadays is a lawyer or accountant who has to be shown how to turn the reading light on or off, but is Hell on wheels when it comes to making sure alles in ordnung with the paperwork.

But hey, it’s a great issue to demagogue. Go right ahead. It’s kind of fun to watch you try to establish your O’erweening Virtue™ by vilifying the productive. Just remember: the BP safety inspector got fired or demoted for screwing up, and the Marine Safety guys will get the step on their GS rating right on schedule.

Regards,
Ric

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nicholas September 24, 2010 at 12:21 pm

“Just remember: the BP safety inspector got fired or demoted for screwing up, and the Marine Safety guys will get the step on their GS rating right on schedule.”

That’s just how that’s going to go down, isn’t it? The government guys will just keep shuffling along with no accountability. I don’t know how likely the explosion could have been prevented, but it is clear that nothing the Obama administration got around to doing was of any help, just as it is clear that the explosion itself was not the devastating ecological disaster that they made it out to be. Wouldn’t it be nice if just once, they acted on principle, rather than just doing all that acting?

Joy’s post makes a great point in underscoring the hypocrisy of strangling US efforts at energy production, while forcing us to use fuel sources from Saudi Arabia and Nigeria. The nation’s policies appear to be not really all that well thought out.

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ponce September 24, 2010 at 12:34 pm

“But hey, it’s a great issue to demagogue.”

Indeed:

“So far in 2010, the oil and gas industries have contributed $12.8 million to all candidates, with 71% of that money going to Republicans. During the 2008 election cycle, 77% of the industry’s $35.6 million in contributions went to Republicans, and in the 2008 presidential contest, Republican candidate Sen. John McCain received more than twice as much money from the oil and gas industries as Obama: McCain collected $2.4 million; Obama, $898,000.”

http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2010/05/23/palin-a-slip-on-oil-industry-ties/

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tomg51 September 24, 2010 at 1:05 pm

Yes, life in Nigeria, well, it sucks. Its really hard. Its violent, its poor, its diseased, its filthy, there are religious killings, there is oil pollution and the country has changed from a net exporter of food to a net importer in the last 30 years.

And the cause of this horror would be?

Oh yeah, the corrupt government.

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Ric Locke September 24, 2010 at 1:48 pm

Cool, ponce. The “You’re another!” defense. How very impressive. If, that is, you’re into politics as team sport — “yay team!” FYI, I generally support Republicans who are going the way I think they should, and if a Democrat comes along who’s moving in that direction I’ll be happy to support him or her, as well. Whether the scoreboard has more “R’s or “D”s is a matter of supreme indifference, and which Senator has the best office is less important than that.

But tell me, just off the top of your head: Given an oilfield disaster, which is more likely to respond appropriately — a team of professors with no discernible experience outside the Ivory Tower, or a couple of guys who’ve actually run an oil company?

You’ll never forgive Bush for telling Ken Lay he had to take his chances in court, because it ruins Teh Narrative. People who donate to Republicans are announcing intent to stay on the straight and narrow, because if they don’t they’ll be savaged, and they know that well in advance. What they’re finding out is that Democrats will take the money and savage them anyway. Politicians who won’t stay bought don’t get many bids next round.

Regards,
Ric

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Joy McCann September 24, 2010 at 2:14 pm

Ponce,

You’re conflating BP with organizations that have more rigorous safeguards with respect to safety and the environment. While BP has a far better record than, say, Pemex, it still isn’t up to the standards of a company like Chevron.

It’s BP that funneled huge amounts of cash to the Obama Administration. And it’s BP that cut corners that resulted in a huge fire, 11 deaths, and an oil spill with only one precedent in that same Gulf.

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Dave C September 24, 2010 at 5:35 pm

ponce said:
September 24th, 2010 at 12:34 pm

You’re also forgetting the $200 billion slush fun BP put into Barack Hussain Obama’s pocket.

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ponce September 24, 2010 at 7:02 pm

“You’re conflating BP with organizations that have more rigorous safeguards with respect to safety and the environment.”

The Gulf is now sacred ground and I don’t think any oil company should be able to build a platform near the sight of the attack of the Gulf, even if they are more moderate than BP.

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Dave C September 24, 2010 at 7:05 pm

The Gulf is now sacred ground and I don’t think any oil company should be able to build a platform near the sight of the attack of the Gulf, even if they are more moderate than BP.

I think you proved Miss Attila’s point: “I care, I care, I care: I want less drilling where the environmental standards are strictest, and more drilling where they are lax. La la la la la—I can’t hear you!”

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Little Miss Attila September 24, 2010 at 7:07 pm

Um. So the accidental death of 11 people is somehow equal to the deliberate murder of thousands, and an attempt to decapitate the U.S. Government? Um, okay . . .

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ponce September 24, 2010 at 8:37 pm

“Um. So the accidental death of 11 people is somehow equal to…”

All attacks on ‘merica are equal…

Collective punishment is kinda fun.

I can so why you right-wingers practice it every chance you get.

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Ric Locke September 25, 2010 at 6:01 am

You have to watch out for definitions.

According to ponce & co., “take all the money from rich people” is not “collective punishment” because the money is given to poor people (after suitable deductions for expenses, of course). This despite the universal rhetoric defining all rich people as a collective of evil.

Not giving money to poor people (after suitable deductions) is “collective punishment”; the source of the money is irrelevant. Avoiding that evil justifies any necessary measures, up to and including mass murder, which is not collective punishment (as above).

Regards,
Ric

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Texan99 September 25, 2010 at 7:27 am

To make it simpler, stuff coming to people like me is a human right, while stuff taken from people like me is punishment. Whether I persuaded my neighbors to give me something in exchange for something I had that they truly valued is irrelevant, because that’s bad capitalism, which is based on a bad profit motive. What we need instead is wise benevolence in allocating everyone else’s resources.

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Darrell September 25, 2010 at 8:13 am

ponce is here to enforce approved thought and to shill for whatever the pack of weirdos in his party are cooking up now–and next. These are the guys that say the era of oil is over and people don’t need private transportation anymore. Well, their party elite does. And drivers and entourages for their security and hangers-on, and such. But not for you. Forget about counting on something to come out of that wall outlet 24/7/365. Who needs that? Your betters have determined that it’s time to de-develop!!! Yay!!!! They even created phony science to provide a cover. How can you argue with guys that smart? Now these freaks and weirdos don’t drive now for the most part. And if they find one that ever owned a car they put him in charge of General Motors–even though he never had a real job before. That smart. Smart enough to mandate an offshore drilling moratorium when they claim reducing foreign energy dependence is their goal. They are not only smart, they are “concerned”–more concerned than you about the 11 killed on the BP rig. Why? Because it fits their plan. The 12 killed at Fort Hood because of their non-sensical politically correct ideas in action? Not so much. Not at all, actually. Keep oil companies from drill in the gulf until they can’t afford the idle rigs sitting around doing nothing and they will move along to more friendly climes. Problem solved. Their problem, not yours.

You want smart? They will ban incandescent light bulbs. Who cares if they actually reduce overall energy use in the snow belt by providing heat as a free by-product of that light. Or that you will need supplemental heaters installed at great costs to keep the LED traffic signals functioning when the regular old light bulbs did it as a consequence of their design. Control. Regulate. De-develop. Don’t you want things to be like those tourist areas of Switzerland where they don’t even have electricity? Sure you do. Your betters will go to the four-and-five-star hotels in Zurich for the night, but you can make do.
See your energy costs triple over the next four years. See that car priced out of your driveway. The Democrat party heads will be able to make better time getting to the office with the empty streets!!! Yay!!! More time for new smart ideas!!!! Yay!!!!!

If you can’t wait for their new hell dimension–DemocratDystopia–vote for them in November. You might want to consider quicker, less painful ways of slitting your throats, though. This time it’s for all the marbles left.

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ponce September 25, 2010 at 1:15 pm

Darel,

That’s quite a hairball you coughed up there.

Rather than address each of your paranoid concerns individually, allow me to offer you this:

Try to not be so afraid.

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Ric Locke September 25, 2010 at 2:05 pm

Yeah, ponce. Too hard for you.

If it won’t fit on a bumper sticker, you can’t think it.

Regards,
Ric

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nicholas September 25, 2010 at 7:21 pm

Darrell made a number of good points. When you think of all the really ‘great concerns’ on the left and then look at the unintended consequences, and the complete unwillingness to re-consider even after the consequences are known, then it is clear that the ideas themselves are not really all that important to them. It’s just the window dressing for some other unspoken agenda.

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ponce September 25, 2010 at 10:29 pm

“It’s just the window dressing for some other unspoken agenda.”

I enjoy a good conspiracy theory as much as the next mammal, nicky.

Why don’t you unleash your Limbaugh-fueled dementia and lay out exactly what this “unspoken agenda” you’re ranting about is.

Come on, lay it all out for us.

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Dave C September 26, 2010 at 4:04 am

Trying to confront Ponce with facts or reality is like trying to wake a patient up from a coma.

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wolfwalker September 26, 2010 at 4:25 am

Limbaugh? Feh. Not nearly as smart as he thinks he is, Ponce.

The unspoken agenda for the Left is the same as it’s been since the French Revolution: do away with the old aristocracy and create a new one with themselves on top. Maybe you don’t believe that, but I can guarantee the leaders you keep electing do. Why do you think they break laws whenever they want to? Because they, like the kings of old who ruled through “divine right,” believe that the laws of Man don’t really apply to them.

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Darrell September 26, 2010 at 6:34 am

I(a) Destroy American Capitalism
I(b) Destroy America

Socialists don’t want people looking over the wall in the dark seeing the brightly-lit new buildings and stores and all the pretty Mercedes driving around. Don’t like what you’ve got? Who has it better? The only answer they can’t ever do anything about is “We did–a couple of years ago.” But they can and will send you to the re-education camp and people can never be sure that things can be put right again.

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ponce September 26, 2010 at 10:22 am

Next up, Perfessor Durrell will explain to us why the Chinese Commies have been growing their economy 3 times faster than us Americans have grown ours for the past 30 years.

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Darrell September 26, 2010 at 11:32 am

poncepsis,

Because they have adopted American Capitalism specifically, poncewad. That must drive you guys crazy, by the way. You think you are on the verge of wiping out American Capitalism for once and for all and it pops up where you least expect it and you can’t do a bloody thing about it. And they never will go back to your old, tired, tried-and-failed ideas because they suffered under it under a living devil –Mao–you could never hope to equal. But you carried around his little book and you wrote his name in hearts. Hah!

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ponce September 26, 2010 at 12:20 pm

“Because they have adopted American Capitalism specifically, poncewad.”

A simpelton’s rationalization that doesn’t take into account the fact that many successful Chinese companies are owned by the Chinese government.

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Darrell September 26, 2010 at 12:42 pm

Because even the commie leadership has accepted the obvious. That will never happen with you.

Most of those successful businesses were built by American companies as a condition for investment in China. The Euros insisted on just selling goods in China and they failed to get more than a foothold. The general Euro attitude was to let Americans develop China, until the average Chinese had disposable income, then to sell them products. The Chinese buy from the Americans who built their plants and changed their lives. Go figure.

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ponce September 26, 2010 at 1:51 pm

“Because even the commie leadership has accepted the obvious.”

So you’re claiming that the Chinese Commies are the practitioners of the purest form of Capitalism these days?

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Darrell September 26, 2010 at 3:41 pm

No. They are however smarter than everyone who works in the Obama Administration or voted for him. They call him “General Bumblefuck. The Americans on unemployment are the “99 Club.” [or Ninety-Niners] They are part of General Bumblefuck’s army. Cool. Some people get it. Apparently the Marxists indoctrinating Americans on college campuses didn’t–and still don’t. You dumb fucks commie-wannabees got left behind again.

China is of course wholly dependent on the US as its market maker and debtor. That puts us last on their target list, for those keeping score at home. Bet that makes you sad, ponce, huh?

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Hannon September 26, 2010 at 4:08 pm

The linked article is a good example of atrocious journalism. It does not even hint at the responsibility of the government and its regulatory apparatus. In the U.S., the HQ for large oil companies, it works well enough. It is not our response to a spill that is so different, it is the structure of our whole society. Nigeria is a mess on various counts and the oil problems are emblematic of this situation.

The story repeatedly castigates Shell & company while acknowledging that unspecified “rebels” and thieves are probably the source of most of the leaks and spills. Again, where is the government in all of this? If oil is their life blood where are the patrols? Where does all that revenue go?

Politics in the Niger Delta are about what you would expect. One tribal group in that area had been long receiving the lion’s share of oil money entitlements and after a long fight the distribution was “improved” and made more equitable with other Delta groups. Result? More bickering, conflict and bloodshed. Yet somehow the vagaries of human nature are the fault of a few oil companies.

Conflating environmentalism and “social justice” only helps derail them both.

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