Government by corporation:
Meanwhile, in a letter over the weekend, the oil company defended its use of Corexit and took issue with the methods that the E.P.A. had used to estimate its toxicity.
Last Wednesday, the federal agency ordered BP to propose one or more alternative dispersants to regulators within 24 hours. Then it gave the company 72 hours after that deadline to stop using Corexit and make a switch. Officials and scientists from the E.P.A. and the oil company met Sunday night and were apparently unable to reach a compromise before the deadline passed.
“We are continuing to use Corexit while we look at other alternatives,” Mark Salt, a spokesman for the oil company, said by telephone from Texas on Monday.
It's okay, because we can trust BP, right?
“I give them direction or the federal on-scene coordinator gives them direction, we get a response,” [Coast Guard Commandant Thad] Allen said. “I've got (BP CEO) Tony Hayward's personal cell phone number. If I have a problem, I call him. Some of the problems we have had that we've worked through are more logistics and coordination issues.... I trust Tony Hayward. When I talk to him, I get an answer.”
Asked about criticism that the U.S. Coast Guard has been too cozy with BP, Lt. John Kousch told ABC News’ Ryan Owens, “we all have a vested interest in making sure it's land on the shores of LA or anywhere else. If it does, it's cleaned up as efficiently as possible...BP is our friend.”
With all due respect, BP is not our friend. BP may be a necessary evil because they have the infrastructure in place to deal with this leak, but they cannot be trusted. And if we emerge from this crisis without having taken steps to end our dependence not only on oil companies like BP but also on oil itself, we will have failed miserably -- and condemned ourselves to a repeat of this disaster.