oil spill

[PassedOut]

Fellow conservative David Brooks has put into words some observations that realistic people cannot fail to make: The Oil Plume

 

In times of crisis, you get a public reaction that is incoherence on stilts. On the one hand, most people know that the government is not in the oil business. They don’t want it in the oil business. They know there is nothing a man in Washington can do to plug a hole a mile down in the gulf.

 

On the other hand, they demand that the president “take control.” They demand that he hold press conferences, show leadership, announce that the buck stops here and do something. They want him to emote and perform the proper theatrical gestures so they can see their emotions enacted on the public stage.

 

They want to hold him responsible for things they know he doesn’t control. Their reaction is a mixture of disgust, anger, longing and need. It may not make sense. But it doesn’t make sense that the country wants spending cuts and doesn’t want cuts, wants change and doesn’t want change.

 

At some point somebody’s going to have to reach a national consensus on the role of government. If this disaster teaches anything, it is that we are a venturesome, entrepreneurial society. We rely on corporations like BP to bring us energy. At the same time, it is clear that even well-meaning corporations sometimes take shortcuts when it comes to controlling pollution and protecting worker safety.

 

So we want government to regulate business. We want regulation to be strong enough to reduce risk but not so strong as to stifle innovation.

Like everyone, I want the leak fixed. But I also want Obama to use the leak as a lever to force stronger government regulations upon large corporations.

[vuroth]

Perhaps better is to vote for a 3rd party or independent candidate rather than feigning apathy.

No question. People who don't vote don't worry the politically entrenched at all. A third party or candidate gaining a foothold would change the flow of money and power considerably.

[TimG]

Perhaps better is to vote for a 3rd party or independent candidate rather than feigning apathy.

No question. People who don't vote don't worry the politically entrenched at all. A third party or candidate gaining a foothold would change the flow of money and power considerably.

There should be a "none of the above" option.

[mike777]

IT will be interesting if the claims become so high that at somepoint the owners of BP simply hand over the keys to the front door and walk away.

 

At the very least if leases are taken away, customers boycott and the company is criminal, it could be crippled.

 

Keep in mind payments must come from customers or the sale/stripping of company assets at fire sale prices.

 

 

The owners of FNMA, Freddie Mac, GM basically did so.

[Winstonm]

Teddy Kennedy famously said that his greatest failure was his unwillingness to work with Richard Nixon towards health care reform back in the late 60s / early 70s. Kennedy preferred to hold out for something better and health care reform was delayed by close to 40 years (and what we have now isn't nearly as good as what was on the table back then)

 

Newt Gingrich self destructed when he and his merry band of yahoos decided to "shut down" the government.

 

These are good observations, Richard. I understand I often go way overboard in decription of actions but it is not meant to be taken as a realistic portrayal but as a caracituristic description.

 

I agree that Obama is centrist. And perhaps in today's climate he has done some things well. However, I think he has squandered historic opportunity in order to cater to Rahm Emmanuel's misguided ideas of creating a Democratic powerbase by catering to the center and ignoring the progressives. The disenfranchised are on both ends of the Democratic spectrum and the only ones whistling Dixie are the Democrates who think Dixie is the national anthem, anyway.

[y66]

http://content.archives.newyorker.com/djvu/Conde%20Nast/New%20Yorker/2010_06_07/webimages/page0000001_3.jpg

[y66]

Why James Cameron Is Diving Deep On Gulf Oil.

 

In a 20-minute phone conversation on Friday, the film director described the meeting of deep-sea minds, which took place on Tuesday and has resulted in a memo, signed by the participants, that he provided to the Coast Guard and other agencies overseeing BP’s efforts to stanch the seabed gusher. He told Andrew Revkin of the NY Times he’ll make the document public once the agencies have had time to review it.

 

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_gmR8fkmAnjw/TAl3mwURfxI/AAAAAAAABuo/wpYM4y3QxxI/CameronPaxtonAbyss480.jpg

[kenberg]

I really like that New Yorker cover drawing. Imagining ourselves hauled in front of a court of dolphins and pelicans to explain our actions is more than a little frightening.