Blame British Petroleum for the Oil Spill?

Fred Allebach

06/21/10

The huge outcry against BP and the rush to place blame instead of finding any larger context is similar to blaming Detroit for the former demand for giant SUVs; it shows that people don’t really care to understand complex systemic issues. Blaming is easier than facing one’s own part.

The presumption with focusing primarily on blame is that with the proper controls and oversight, the US economy can continue on the same path of wanton oil consumption and continued growth. Focusing on blame makes it seem that the BP oil spill is an aberration. The overall system is not at fault, just an individual player.

What is the larger context? The whole economy is run on cheap oil and every person depends on whatever sources of oil to lube the machinery of consumerism and hence the American dream. Blaming BP sidesteps having to face any hard music. Everyone wants it easy. Anyone who has a car, who wants cheaper prices on food or goods, who participates in any way in the US economy they are all responsible for this spill.

Everyone rails against excessive regulation and bureaucracy, stifling government controls and inefficiencies yet when the business foxes get in the henhouse what happens? You get the popped real estate bubble and this BP oil spill. And people all wanted it that way; they wanted giant gas hog SUVs, wanted to see their home prices constantly rising, wanted to see prices go down at the pump.

What could be the solution to this denial of citizen responsibility? Planning ahead for the long term. If we connect the dots, thirst and demand for cheap oil drives an economy based on growth and consumerism. No real social benefit is provided by endless consumption, consumption for consumption’s sake is a false demand; the whole enterprise is industrial revolution inertia; this is not quality of life, it is quantity of life.  This constant growth, consumer economy is a house of cards that is bound to tumble down. The real estate bubble and the oil spill are 2 prime examples.

Yet when you look at federal and state government all you see is parochial, partisan politics, gridlock, half measures and fear of not getting re-elected. There are no bold voices in power, no dynamic leaders shaking things up to inspire the masses for necessary collective action. Facing the music is hard for politicians and citizens alike so I guess it is ultimately easier to find someone other than ourselves to blame. By the time we get hit we’ll know the freight train was coming.