After hearing countless news stories about this horrific oil spill, I have to say that I think the pictures of the wildlife are what hit me the most. I am right alongside those who believe that BP should take responsibility for their actions. Accountability-it's what we teach children and it is what we expect from adults. However, I can't help but think that we as Americans need to also reevaluate the actions that brought us to this point. I am in no way trying to diminish the intensity of this disaster, but I also think this event needs to be used as a call for change. I can't help but wonder whether or not this could have been prevented if we did not have such a great demand for oil...
On a recent episode of 60 Minutes, which can be found here, one of the last crew members to escape the explosion stated that it was common knowledge that the most important safety feature of the oil rig, and the part that would have prevented the explosion in the first place, was severely damaged 4 weeks before this happened! When management was notified of the damaged safety feature, they chose to not fix it and even ordered that the pressure be lowered so they could drill faster.
While I realize that 60 Minutes is a show that is ultimately looking for the highest ratings possible, this really made me stop and think. Would oil companies drill in these difficult areas if there wasn't so much pressure to produce as much oil as possible? If we are so horrified by this oil spill and become so emotional while looking at these pictures, this should be our wake up call to start making changes in our lives that include changing our demand for oil (energy). I still believe that BP should be held accountable for their actions, but we cannot stop at that. We need to make changes if we do not want this to happen again.
