blamebrampton (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
blamebrampton) wrote2010-06-12 12:42 am
blamebrampton) wrote2010-06-12 12:42 am
Oh FFS ...
I know the Americans on my flist aren't wackos. Some of you take the occasional foray into loopiness, but as a rule, you're mostly sane. But I have been watching and reading the news again. So this isn't really addressed to my American flist as much as it is to sundry American politicians, who will never read it.
You will receive no argument from me that the Gulf of Mexico oil spill is a tragedy and a disaster. But let's talk briefly about your wacky anti-British attacks that have been peppering my news reading and watching today.
BP is 40% owned by British interests and 39% owned by American interests. It employs about 10,000 Britons and 22,000 Americans. Those dividends that American politicians are demanding not be paid are very often major parts of the pension packets of British pensioners.
You remember British pensioners, don't you American politicians? They're the same people you fucked in the arse with the GFC, brought about by your years of campaigning for deregulated markets. Let's not pretend anyone's forgotten about Lehman Brothers.
Now I am ALL for companies taking responsibility for their environmental impact. BP should absolutely pay the costs of this spill (if only the banks who caused the GFC would pay the people they fucked over ...), and just maybe the whole wacky idea of energy efficient cars that people like me have been raving about since the Carter administration might catch on. (That's probably as likely as responsible banking, isn't it?)
But while we're talking about corporate responsibility, I want to mention that seven Indian businessmen went to jail this week for two years each (eight were convicted, but one is dead). They were found guilty of causing death by negligence. They used to work for the American company Union Carbide, and were 'responsible' for the Bhopal Gas Tragedy.
People of my vintage probably know what that is, but for you younger set, let me give you a brief rundown of the events. In December 1984, a Union Carbide pesticide plant in Bhopal, India, began leaking toxic fumes. At least 2259 people died pretty much immediately, this is the lowest official figure, the Indian government released a revised figure of 3787 deaths directly linked to the gas leak. They were mostly poor people, many women and children, who lived near the gas plant.
Film and photographs of rows of sari-clad bodies with blackened hands horrified us in the West, as did stories of their agonising deaths -- so wrongly reminiscent of the worst tales of gas in wars from which Europeans were still trying to recover.
Indian government agencies and NGOs working in the area have estimated 15,000 deaths from the gas leak and up to 200,000 people severely affected. Campaigners say that 25,000 people have died. The area continues to have dramatically higher cancer and birth defect rates than the rest of India, and there are hundreds of tonnes of leaking chemicals in storage and polluted soil still at the site.
Warren Anderson was the CEO of Union Carbide at the time and there is a large body of evidence that he was personally aware of major defects in the Bhopal plant, which had been brought to his attention in detailed reports two years earlier. Those reports formed the basis of upgrades to American Union Carbide plants before the disaster, but not Indian. Moreover, the ingredient that caused the toxic gas, methyl isocyanite, had been phased out of use by most other pesticide manufacturers by December 1984 due to its risks being seen as too great despite its cheaper cost.
At the time of the disaster, Anderson, who was in India, was arrested, but was quickly released and fled the country. He has never returned and has never faced court over the incident. Union Carbide declared that the disaster was not in fact their fault, since the Bhopal plant was operated wholly by Indian personnel.
In 1989, Union Carbide paid US$470 million in damages for the tragedy. This was the amount covered by its insurer, plus interest. This is less than US$2350 for each of the individuals affected by the disaster. It won't surprise you to learn that the money, which was insufficient to clean up the site, did not flow through to to the victims.
So although BP could be doing a better job, and the death of those 11 oil workers is a tragedy that should not have occurred, that spill is a fucking disaster, and yeah, Tony Hayward is a tosser -- a sense of proportion would not hurt.
Also, Sarah Palin? Fuck off.
You will receive no argument from me that the Gulf of Mexico oil spill is a tragedy and a disaster. But let's talk briefly about your wacky anti-British attacks that have been peppering my news reading and watching today.
BP is 40% owned by British interests and 39% owned by American interests. It employs about 10,000 Britons and 22,000 Americans. Those dividends that American politicians are demanding not be paid are very often major parts of the pension packets of British pensioners.
You remember British pensioners, don't you American politicians? They're the same people you fucked in the arse with the GFC, brought about by your years of campaigning for deregulated markets. Let's not pretend anyone's forgotten about Lehman Brothers.
Now I am ALL for companies taking responsibility for their environmental impact. BP should absolutely pay the costs of this spill (if only the banks who caused the GFC would pay the people they fucked over ...), and just maybe the whole wacky idea of energy efficient cars that people like me have been raving about since the Carter administration might catch on. (That's probably as likely as responsible banking, isn't it?)
But while we're talking about corporate responsibility, I want to mention that seven Indian businessmen went to jail this week for two years each (eight were convicted, but one is dead). They were found guilty of causing death by negligence. They used to work for the American company Union Carbide, and were 'responsible' for the Bhopal Gas Tragedy.
People of my vintage probably know what that is, but for you younger set, let me give you a brief rundown of the events. In December 1984, a Union Carbide pesticide plant in Bhopal, India, began leaking toxic fumes. At least 2259 people died pretty much immediately, this is the lowest official figure, the Indian government released a revised figure of 3787 deaths directly linked to the gas leak. They were mostly poor people, many women and children, who lived near the gas plant.
Film and photographs of rows of sari-clad bodies with blackened hands horrified us in the West, as did stories of their agonising deaths -- so wrongly reminiscent of the worst tales of gas in wars from which Europeans were still trying to recover.
Indian government agencies and NGOs working in the area have estimated 15,000 deaths from the gas leak and up to 200,000 people severely affected. Campaigners say that 25,000 people have died. The area continues to have dramatically higher cancer and birth defect rates than the rest of India, and there are hundreds of tonnes of leaking chemicals in storage and polluted soil still at the site.
Warren Anderson was the CEO of Union Carbide at the time and there is a large body of evidence that he was personally aware of major defects in the Bhopal plant, which had been brought to his attention in detailed reports two years earlier. Those reports formed the basis of upgrades to American Union Carbide plants before the disaster, but not Indian. Moreover, the ingredient that caused the toxic gas, methyl isocyanite, had been phased out of use by most other pesticide manufacturers by December 1984 due to its risks being seen as too great despite its cheaper cost.
At the time of the disaster, Anderson, who was in India, was arrested, but was quickly released and fled the country. He has never returned and has never faced court over the incident. Union Carbide declared that the disaster was not in fact their fault, since the Bhopal plant was operated wholly by Indian personnel.
In 1989, Union Carbide paid US$470 million in damages for the tragedy. This was the amount covered by its insurer, plus interest. This is less than US$2350 for each of the individuals affected by the disaster. It won't surprise you to learn that the money, which was insufficient to clean up the site, did not flow through to to the victims.
So although BP could be doing a better job, and the death of those 11 oil workers is a tragedy that should not have occurred, that spill is a fucking disaster, and yeah, Tony Hayward is a tosser -- a sense of proportion would not hurt.
Also, Sarah Palin? Fuck off.
no subject
This is truly one of those catch 22 situations, I really wish we didn't have to "blame" anyone, because truly there is more than just BP responsible for the f**king disaster. I just want the oil to stop gushing, I don't want to watch anymore birds drowning in the oil and i want it cleaned up!! But I don't want BP to go bankrupt over it, I don't want to see old age pensioners in Britain losing their pensions while at the same neither do I want americans who have lost their source of income for, god only knows how long to not get any compensation. No, I don't know the answer-I'm just glad at times like these I"m not a decision maker.
As for the GFC. I can't help but think that there are times when this global economy is not necessary I good thing.
The Butterfly Effect is well and good in our age. The possible ramifications for the entire earth for this oilspill disaster, simply cannot be imagined.
no subject
The company at first behaved badly: htey separated the parts of their organisation that held the liabilities off from the main company, then set up an underfunded 'foundation' that they said would meet all the future compensation needs. The main company then buggered off and set up headquarters in the Netherlands.
The NSW government said 'Hang on, that foundation has nothing like the amount of money needed!' to which James Hardie said 'Nothing to do with us!'
At which point the Australian Federal government and all Australian state governments said 'Right, then, we're blacklisting your products', and the unions here began a global campaign to boycott Hardie everything everywhere.
James Hardie said 'We can't fund it properly, it'll bankrupt us!' The Australian Federal government said 'All right, let's sit down and look at your books and taxes and work out a way that you can manage this and remain successful as a company even if it means we lose a bit (a bit, mind you) of tax revenue.'
By dint of combined effort and hard work (alas, only coming from JH at the end when they had a new executive), the compensation fund was fully funded.
And all the executives who lied along the way are facing charges, which is my favourite part of the story.
Governments can be massively effective, but they need to be well directed. They were lucky in Australia because the objectives were clear cut and unidirectional (the compensation fund). The Gulf spill will be more complex than this, but it is achievable!
And in the meantime, yeah, animal relief is going to be a very big issue. And spare time and funds could be well directed there. Do your lot use little jumpers on the animals after they have been denuded of oil? I made a stack for penguins once - quite the best knitting job in the world!
no subject
That's what nns to happen here, but unfortunately because we *americans* seem to feel we need to try and destroy the responsible party, which in the process means we usually lose out on proper compensation, that will never happen. (sorry for the run on sentence, but it had to be done.)
I don't know of any little jumpers being made. I've not seen any, but that doesn't mean they're not there. Not sure if that would inhibit the birds flight, hmm interesting.
no subject