Bad news for Mr Obama. Just after selling the American public out to private health insurance companies he's caved in to another demand from neocons. He issued licenses to drill at the US coasts for oil. Self-sufficiency is the magic word here, and you can't blame the US for trying. What boggles the mind, however, is that these oil drilling platforms do not even have safety mechanisms that seal the borehole in case there's a catastrophic accident. Incompetence on a grand scale! Or is it just another exercise in terms of environmental corner cutting that these oil companies are so well-known for.The environmental disaster that is at the moment unfolding in the USA is painful to watch. How can it be that in the 12st century they drill in highly fragile marine environments without having most basic safety switch-off's in place? I am the first to admit that I am not an expert in these matters, but it seems obvious to me that you should not get a permission to drill for oil in such an environment unless you are able to ensure that there's no major spill in case something goes wrong.
Post scriptum May 03 2010: Turns out that the platform had a so-called blowout-preventer to prevent the disaster that happened. A German news agency has investigated these so-called blowout-preventers. There are at least 171 known cases where they failed to do their job. It's a bit of a misnomer then to call them blowout-preventers, isn't it? Makes you wonder why drill baby drill President Obama notices only now that there's a problem and he wants to investigate...
