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I have attempted to write about the oil “spill” many times. Each time I dash off about 3,000 words of hateful venom and despair then I toss it out and start again. Some topics that hit the headlines I can dig right in and produce a blog. Some are so revolting I simply can’t do it right away. So on the really tough topics, I wait, count to ten or a thousand, then one day I can write without fear of being arrested or kicked off the Internet. I’m actually at that point today so I believe I can calmly and intelligently discuss the Gulf oil “spill” without emotion.
First, “spill” does not describe what is gushing out of the giant hole at the bottom of the ocean in the Gulf. It’s more like a volcanic eruption of goo and sludge. Unlike volcanic eruptions that produce lava, the oil will not settle and form land mass and mountains for the planet and eventually produce life and beautiful flowers and trees and squirrels. Instead, it has taken away eleven human lives, injured many other humans on the day of the disaster, is taking away the lives of ocean and land creatures, destroying pristine wetlands and sandy beaches, and is taking away the livelihoods of folks who depend on the ocean for their survival, including those who depend on oil rig jobs and oil tanker jobs in the region. It is so devastating that early predictions are that much of the damaged area is not recoverable environmentally or economically. Ever.
Our oceans have been suffering for years. General pollution close to shorelines, over-fishing, other oil rig and oil container ship leaks, the continuing Exxon Valdez disaster that just keeps on giving much like Chernobyl continues to give, untreated sewage and industrial waste spewing seaward in some parts of the world, and the list goes on. Some humans are killing the oceans, some out of need and ignorance, most out of greed and avarice. I know that’s redundant. I’m struggling to find words that aren’t vulgar.
Second, we’ve all noticed a trend over the years, especially those of us who have been here a while, that when anything happens that hits the news the blame game begins. So much of the Gulf reporting revolves around blame that sometimes an entire report is aired or printed and nothing new about the actual gushing is reported. BP says “this,” Transocean says “that,” and Halliburton comes in last as innocent as a newborn babe.
Lastly, very little is said about the eleven who died and reports on how the injured are doing are almost nonexistent. Eleven people died. Seventeen or more were injured. Then there’s the story of a ship and its crew who risked their lives to rescue fleeing oil rig workers who were plunging from the rig into the sea. I watched video on the rescue and photos of the rig dying and I hope medals are being prepared for those brave rescuers.
One report early on stated that oil rig workers know the dangers of their jobs before they sign on as if to say, well, they asked for it. Unfortunately, that report was incorrect because the unusual dangers of this particular oil rig were hidden from everyone except the top execs. This was a failure waiting to happen. Not only did it happen, as anticipated by a few, but it keeps on failing. It continues to take lives in a variety of ways.
How are the injured and their families? What about the families of the eleven who died and were lied to about the safety of their “dangerous” jobs. Danger is one thing. Knowing that a worker is going to work on a rig that is set for dynamic failure is another. Would they have accepted employment if anyone had told them there was an excellent chance of it blowing up and sinking to the bottom of the ocean because it was defective?
Thousands of ordinary people and scientists have submitted thousands of suggestions for sucking up the oil. Some are incredible (check out YouTube) and some are heartfelt but silly. There are ordinary people in the world trying their best to figure out ways to stop this nightmare. There are children in schools studying ways to solve the gushing (which was very touching and I lost it when I saw their sweet faces filled with concern in a report on TV). When disasters strike some humans pull out all the stops.
So it’s time to stop blaming everyone and place the blame where it belongs, on Tony Hayward, CEO of BP. Tony gambled that BP could pump the oil out of there by the zillion gallons without the defective rig failing and move on to rape another part of the ocean. Tony is exhausted and says no one wants this disaster to come to a speedy conclusion more than he does because: he wants his life back. Poor guy. Bet he hasn’t played golf at the club in weeks. And his charming, affable cuteness is not going to save him.
Early reports stated that people at the top knew the rig had serious problems. Proof will be offered at trial down the road in the distant future. Not too distant I hope. At trial, those in the know will spill their guts to protect themselves and will send Tony down the path to ruin. (I watched as much of the subsequent early hearings as my delicate stomach could handle. The trial will be a Pepto Bismol event.)
So I am proposing that blame, as in criminal negligence and murder (yes, murder), be placed totally and 100% on Tony Hayward. (If charged, talk about gut spilling. He will sing like a canary.) We know that all blame should be placed at the top of any organization, big or small. He’s at the top of BP Oil. That’s his oil gushing in the ocean. He’s the Bernie Madoff of the Gulf oil disaster. And we know where Bernie is. And Bernie had that sweet grandfather thing going for him. Let’s not forget that monsters come in pretty packages. Anyone remember Ted Bundy?
Tony commissioned Transocean and Halliburton and ancillary companies. If found guilty, he should go to jail, should not pass go, and all of his personal wealth and that of BP should go to the families and communities ravaged by his heartless and mindless inattention to humanity. (And let’s not forget us, the taxpayers. Somehow, in some way, I know we will end up paying for some of this mess. It will be hidden and come at us through a back door but we will bear some of the costs eventually.)
Once Tony’s dealt with in a court of law then a few of his cronies in the other companies can go along as accessories to murder and whatever else might apply. If Tony is punished harshly maybe it will send a message to other CEOs, like the mortgage industry, the insurance industry, etc. The list is long.
Here’s my analogy on Tony’s fate: If I cut the brake line on my neighbor’s car (allow defective oil rig to operate) and watch her drive off to the supermarket (allow employees to work on the rig), I know she could die, or get hurt, or I could gamble that she would discover the brakes aren’t working and pull over (rig wouldn’t explode before Tony pumped the oil out). However, if she dies (rig employees die) and the police discover I sent her to the supermarket knowing there was a chance she could die by my negligence, my premeditated, gambling-on-fate negligence, guess where I’d go? Even if I didn’t mean to hurt her (Tony didn’t want anyone injured, just wanted the oil), but I just wanted to slow her down a bit so I could have an affair with her husband (oil for BP), I would be in big trouble. Whatever the reason, if I knew she was in danger of death and/or injury and I caused it, I would go to p-r-i-s-o-n. Depending on the jury and the location of the trial I could be put down like a mangy dog.
Oh, dear. I thought I had my emotions under control. Guess not.
Each week in this spot I will report an instance of good customer service (if any) but without embellishment. Just a business or entity that knows how to treat customers at least some of the time if not always.
This week I received excellent customer service from:
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[No part of this content may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author. Blog series began in March 2009.]
