Investigating the BP Oil Spill

Questioning BP - the lessee of the Deepwater Horizon - seems almost natural to us. They were the one's responsible for the drilling rig at the time of the spill, and therefore it is naturally their responsibility to clean up the oil spill. Right? My question is, what about the designer and manufacturer of the blowout preventer (the device that "crimps" the drilling shaft in the event of an emergency)? Aren't they responsible too?

Who is truly to blame? My opinion: The American Citizen. We consume more barrels of oil per day than the 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th largest consumers of oil put together. Ask yourself how you were able to get from home to school this past year (car enamel, paint, tires, belts and batteries are made from oil)? Most likely, in a vehicle that uses oil as its lubricant and its energy source. Oil is refined into many different products that are consumed each day. Tires, shampoos, toothpaste, and plastics just to name a few. Each of these things comes at a cost to the environment. Not only is BP exploring for oil in the Gulf of Mexico, but anywhere else where this natural resource can be found. Again, so they can offer it to you at a price that you can afford and will pay (Simple Laws of Economics).

Off-shore drilling is dangerous. In fact, all drilling is dangerous for the environment. We know that, and we will continue to know that. If you are look for the fail-safe method of getting the environments natural resources without adversely destroying it, sorry, we're just not there yet. As well, to put it bluntly, off-shore drilling will continue to be dangerous. I find it interesting that people are so easy to criticize oil companies for drilling in "natural environments" (isn't everything "natural"), and they are also easy to criticize these same companies when the cost of gasoline rises above $3.00. All of these cheap products produced by oil comes at a cost, and unfortunately the average American has determined that this cost should be put on the environment instead of their wallet (credit cards are made from oil).

For a more complete list of all of the things made from oil, check out:

http://www.anwr.org/features/oiluses.htm

To take an underwater look at the Blowout Preventer, check out:

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2010/06/21/us/20100621-bop.html

Progressive Thinking,

C.S.