After watching coverage this weekend of the BP oil spill and the outrage over it, I began to wonder if maybe we aren't all just a little bit responsible ourselves. Isn't the demand for oil what drove those execs to demand that drilling continue even under dangerous conditions? If we didn't demand so much of it, would the conditions have been safer?
It's as if we are all addicted to crack and must have our daily fix, but when the crack house that we normally buy our stash from suddenly explodes and spreads chemicals into the air we are angry. We e-mail politicians. We march with signs outside headquarters. We hold town hall meetings. Then we turn right back around and search out a new crack house. We are the very example of hypocrites. Damn you oil companies and your unsafe practices ... oh wait ... let's drive the car 1,000 miles for vacation this summer. We are addicted to oil ... plain and simple and until we stop that addiction then the crack houses (oil companies) are going to keep supplying our stash to us at all costs.
Do we have the right to be angry or should maybe some of that anger be directed at ourselves? For the past few weeks, I have been trying my hardest to stay home on the weekends. I drive to work every day, but maybe the not driving on the weekends will help cure my own addiction to oil in some small way. It's a baby step .... but if we all did it could it make a huge difference?
Very astute observation! It's the same as people that protest loggin operations by holding up signs that are made out of PAPER. You know, the stuff that comes from TREES!! It's hard, what can you do when it is such a global issue? We drive a tiny Yaris, live in a small house, don't traveel much and try to be reasonable about what we buy etc. Other than that, just keep smiling baby! :)
ReplyDeleteVery interesting point!
ReplyDelete