The top thing on my wish list - bankruptcy

Peter Zack · 06-03-2010, 07:44 PM

Simple wish, once all the bills are paid (which could take years), all I want is BP to go bankrupt. The company should be dissolved and anyone who made decisions to save money over safety should be thrown in jail. Maybe one year for each bird, turtle and dolphin that has died. 11 counts of murder would be a good start.

All this destruction could have easily been avoided had they properly installed a remote operated blow-out protector. But no they decided to save $500K.

Second wish. Obama gets booted from office. Sure I know he's only been there for 16 months. But where are the inspectors? They just continued the free pass the oil companies have had for far too long.

I worked offshore for 3 years in Canada and we were inspected regularly by government guys. We also had to have the remote BOP's installed. Why that isn't law in US waters is beyond me.

Last edited by Peter Zack; 06-03-2010 at 08:34 PM.

lithos · 06-03-2010, 07:48 PM

Originally posted by Peter Zack

I worked offshore for 3 years in Canada and we were inspected regularly by government guys. We also had to have the remote BOP's installed. Why that isn't law in US waters is beyond me.

No offence, but it's because all you Canadians are godless commies with no respect for free enterprise

.

Parallax · 06-03-2010, 07:54 PM

Originally posted by Peter Zack

..... Why that isn't law in US waters is beyond me.

Very simple, Peter. The Canadian government isn't a fee for service outfit the way the U.S. Government is. The more ~~fees bribes~~ "campaign contributions" you make, the more service you can demand. The "look the other way" service is a very popular one.

graphicgr8s · 06-03-2010, 08:03 PM

Originally posted by Parallax

Very simple, Peter. The Canadian government isn't a fee for service outfit the way the U.S. Government is. The more ~~fees bribes~~ "campaign contributions" you make, the more service you can demand. The "look the other way" service is a very popular one.

A truly bipartisan effort I might add.

subeeds · 06-03-2010, 08:07 PM

Some things in politics, like the inspections, run and are run by the "good ol' boy" network. I would bet that 98% of the inspectors have been on the job for at least 15 years if not longer. Things like that in the system are corrupt and need to be changed. I don't think anybody in government was all too concerned about oil rig inspections 47 days ago.

graphicgr8s · 06-03-2010, 08:16 PM

I don't really want to see them go under. That would be a greater loss of jobs with no real gain. The acoustic bop isn't required in the US. In fact it's not required in most countries. Brazil is one that does require it. Of course they don't know what to do. It's not happened all that often. If ever.
Relate it to the first shuttle disaster. NASA got cocky. An insurance company gave McCauliffe a million dollar policy. For free. The thought the shuttle goes up. The shuttle lands. It works. Until it doesn't. What needs to happen? What should always happen. Study it. Learn from it. Make it less likely to ever happen again with full realization that it will. Maybe not today. Maybe not even in the next decade. But it WILL happen.

Peter Zack · 06-03-2010, 08:27 PM

Maybe so. Oil companies have been screaming that we insisted that for every well drilled in the Artic, a second rig had to drill a relief well at the same time. Oil companies were putting heavy pressure on Canadian politicians to remove the rule. Most citing costs. Ever since the gulf crisis, they have shut up.

I am thoroughly disgusted with the images we're seeing, dead birds, ruined habitat etc. These B'stards all need to rot in jails.

graphicgr8s · 06-03-2010, 08:32 PM

Originally posted by Peter Zack

Maybe so. Oil companies have been screaming that we insisted that for every well drilled in the Artic, a second rig had to drill a relief well at the same time. Oil companies were putting heavy pressure on Canadian politicians to remove the rule. Most citing costs. Ever since the gulf crisis, they have shut up.

I am thoroughly disgusted with the images we're seeing, dead birds, ruined habitat etc. These B'stards all need to rot in jails.

Have they broken any laws though?

Peter Zack · 06-03-2010, 08:33 PM

George, one accident is far too much. The Exxon accident is still a mess 20 years later. Fish populations have not recovered to this day. People have had serious health issues.

Plus you say it happens rarely. That's not true. This has happened in the Gulf twice before. Once for 150 days before they could stop it. The rig I was on had 2 serious blow outs in 3 years. One needed the remote BOP to save the rig and crew. There have been rigs sink, explode etc in the Persian gulf, the north sea and so on. This industry cuts corners everywhere they can and always will. I know from first hand experience.

Look at BP's safety record. Last 3 years 760 infractions. Screw them, dissolve the company. Throw the CEO and the rest in the brig.

graphicgr8s · 06-03-2010, 08:49 PM

Peter you'd have to shut them all down. And that's not practical. 760 infractions but for what safety violations?

As for comparing this to the EV. This is in warmer waters so microbial breakdown of the oil will be about 5 times faster.

SteveM · 06-03-2010, 09:00 PM

It took a year to get the relief well operational from the blowout in the north sea, and that was much shallower. They will be able to drill the hole there by August.....then the fun starts. There is also a chance that we will have another blowout (they are drilling a second relief well...now) and have filed that if that happens, there will be up to 220,000 barrels released per day.

Anyways, we have our own wingnut in office here in Canada......he has just dismantled our regulatory protection as of last December..... Corruption is illegal in Canada...hopefully they can eventually nail him.

Quote:

OTTAWA — The Harper government has watered down regulations governing oil drilling off Canada's East Coast so that oil companies don't need a backup plan to drill a relief well in the event of a blowout.

Feds watered down regulations governing East Coast offshore drilling

Harper is the same guy that wants to model our financial institutions after the US system that failed, has crippled our food safety system.... He is one of those fundamentalists that wants industry to police itself no matter what the cost.

Peter Zack · 06-03-2010, 09:04 PM

I sure hope so George. And to shut them all down. I know that's not practical. But they need much tighter regulations and these new rules need to be forced on all of them. IE remote BOP's for all.

mel · 06-04-2010, 05:03 AM

I was watching some of the live footage of the underwater gusher this morning. And listening to the commentary and some of the penalties they've been required to pay. Basically, the penalties for violations are less than the costs of revamping operations to not be in violation. Sickening.

Now, when (or if) they get this stopped, if those involved get big ol' bonuses for the achievement, I will seriously vomit.

seacapt · 06-04-2010, 06:57 AM

Peter and the rest , you need to stop thinking about dead birds , turtles and porpoises. Think about the devastation at the bottom of the food chain and it's effects on everything else.

Mel and all the other Mid- Atlanticers don't forget that Obama openned up an area in the Atlantic from Va to SC just a short time before this disaster. Keep track of local politics with regard to Atlantic offshore drilling they will try to slip it through. Our governor was trying to sell exploration leases 8 months before Obama openned the area. Kinda makes me wonder

clmonk · 06-04-2010, 07:05 AM

Not that it would make any difference to BP's bottom line, but I wonder how many Americans are choosing to purchase their petroleum products from othercompanies right now. There really doesn't seem to be anything the average Joe can do to indicate our displeasure. At least no way we can actually "vote with our wallets" as is usually suggested.

06-03-2010, 07:44 PM	#1
Peter Zack Pentaxian Moderator Emeritus Join Date: May 2007 Location: Edmonton Alberta, Canada Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 10,643	The top thing on my wish list - bankruptcy Simple wish, once all the bills are paid (which could take years), all I want is BP to go bankrupt. The company should be dissolved and anyone who made decisions to save money over safety should be thrown in jail. Maybe one year for each bird, turtle and dolphin that has died. 11 counts of murder would be a good start. All this destruction could have easily been avoided had they properly installed a remote operated blow-out protector. But no they decided to save $500K. Second wish. Obama gets booted from office. Sure I know he's only been there for 16 months. But where are the inspectors? They just continued the free pass the oil companies have had for far too long. I worked offshore for 3 years in Canada and we were inspected regularly by government guys. We also had to have the remote BOP's installed. Why that isn't law in US waters is beyond me. Last edited by Peter Zack; 06-03-2010 at 08:34 PM.

06-03-2010, 08:32 PM	#8
graphicgr8s Guest	Originally posted by Peter Zack Maybe so. Oil companies have been screaming that we insisted that for every well drilled in the Artic, a second rig had to drill a relief well at the same time. Oil companies were putting heavy pressure on Canadian politicians to remove the rule. Most citing costs. Ever since the gulf crisis, they have shut up. I am thoroughly disgusted with the images we're seeing, dead birds, ruined habitat etc. These B'stards all need to rot in jails. Have they broken any laws though? Last edited by graphicgr8s; 06-03-2010 at 08:44 PM.

06-04-2010, 06:57 AM	#14
seacapt Veteran Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: North Carolina , USA Photos: Gallery Posts: 2,271	Peter and the rest , you need to stop thinking about dead birds , turtles and porpoises. Think about the devastation at the bottom of the food chain and it's effects on everything else. Mel and all the other Mid- Atlanticers don't forget that Obama openned up an area in the Atlantic from Va to SC just a short time before this disaster. Keep track of local politics with regard to Atlantic offshore drilling they will try to slip it through. Our governor was trying to sell exploration leases 8 months before Obama openned the area. Kinda makes me wonder Last edited by seacapt; 06-04-2010 at 07:07 AM.

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
K-x 2 lens kit (18-55/55-300) #7 on Amazon top selling dSLR list	johnmflores	Pentax News and Rumors	12	02-05-2010 03:35 PM
K-x in top 10 selling DSLR cameras list	rawr	Pentax News and Rumors	7	11-03-2009 11:32 AM
K200D in Top 25 & K-7 out of Top 25 at Amazon	Samsungian	Pentax News and Rumors	8	10-20-2009 07:06 AM
The most annoying thing on TV	RichardS	General Talk	37	08-19-2009 10:51 AM
My wish list...	DanLoc78	Pentax SLR Lens Discussion	1	05-18-2008 06:18 PM

06-03-2010, 07:48 PM	#2
lithos Inactive Account Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Brisbane, QLD, AUS Posts: 3,261	Originally posted by Peter Zack I worked offshore for 3 years in Canada and we were inspected regularly by government guys. We also had to have the remote BOP's installed. Why that isn't law in US waters is beyond me. No offence, but it's because all you Canadians are godless commies with no respect for free enterprise .

06-03-2010, 07:54 PM	#3
Parallax Senior Moderator Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: South Dakota Photos: Gallery Posts: 19,332	Originally posted by Peter Zack ..... Why that isn't law in US waters is beyond me. Very simple, Peter. The Canadian government isn't a fee for service outfit the way the U.S. Government is. The more ~~fees bribes~~ "campaign contributions" you make, the more service you can demand. The "look the other way" service is a very popular one.

06-03-2010, 08:03 PM	#4
graphicgr8s Guest	Originally posted by Parallax Very simple, Peter. The Canadian government isn't a fee for service outfit the way the U.S. Government is. The more ~~fees bribes~~ "campaign contributions" you make, the more service you can demand. The "look the other way" service is a very popular one. A truly bipartisan effort I might add.

06-03-2010, 08:07 PM	#5
subeeds Veteran Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: Camden County, Ga. Photos: Gallery Posts: 333	Some things in politics, like the inspections, run and are run by the "good ol' boy" network. I would bet that 98% of the inspectors have been on the job for at least 15 years if not longer. Things like that in the system are corrupt and need to be changed. I don't think anybody in government was all too concerned about oil rig inspections 47 days ago.

06-03-2010, 08:16 PM	#6
graphicgr8s Guest	I don't really want to see them go under. That would be a greater loss of jobs with no real gain. The acoustic bop isn't required in the US. In fact it's not required in most countries. Brazil is one that does require it. Of course they don't know what to do. It's not happened all that often. If ever. Relate it to the first shuttle disaster. NASA got cocky. An insurance company gave McCauliffe a million dollar policy. For free. The thought the shuttle goes up. The shuttle lands. It works. Until it doesn't. What needs to happen? What should always happen. Study it. Learn from it. Make it less likely to ever happen again with full realization that it will. Maybe not today. Maybe not even in the next decade. But it WILL happen.

06-03-2010, 08:27 PM	#7
Peter Zack Pentaxian Moderator Emeritus Join Date: May 2007 Location: Edmonton Alberta, Canada Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 10,643 Original Poster	Maybe so. Oil companies have been screaming that we insisted that for every well drilled in the Artic, a second rig had to drill a relief well at the same time. Oil companies were putting heavy pressure on Canadian politicians to remove the rule. Most citing costs. Ever since the gulf crisis, they have shut up. I am thoroughly disgusted with the images we're seeing, dead birds, ruined habitat etc. These B'stards all need to rot in jails.

06-03-2010, 08:33 PM	#9
Peter Zack Pentaxian Moderator Emeritus Join Date: May 2007 Location: Edmonton Alberta, Canada Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 10,643 Original Poster	George, one accident is far too much. The Exxon accident is still a mess 20 years later. Fish populations have not recovered to this day. People have had serious health issues. Plus you say it happens rarely. That's not true. This has happened in the Gulf twice before. Once for 150 days before they could stop it. The rig I was on had 2 serious blow outs in 3 years. One needed the remote BOP to save the rig and crew. There have been rigs sink, explode etc in the Persian gulf, the north sea and so on. This industry cuts corners everywhere they can and always will. I know from first hand experience. Look at BP's safety record. Last 3 years 760 infractions. Screw them, dissolve the company. Throw the CEO and the rest in the brig.

06-03-2010, 08:49 PM	#10
graphicgr8s Guest	Peter you'd have to shut them all down. And that's not practical. 760 infractions but for what safety violations? As for comparing this to the EV. This is in warmer waters so microbial breakdown of the oil will be about 5 times faster.

06-03-2010, 09:00 PM	#11
SteveM Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Vancouver Island, BC, Canada Photos: Gallery Posts: 3,294	It took a year to get the relief well operational from the blowout in the north sea, and that was much shallower. They will be able to drill the hole there by August.....then the fun starts. There is also a chance that we will have another blowout (they are drilling a second relief well...now) and have filed that if that happens, there will be up to 220,000 barrels released per day. Anyways, we have our own wingnut in office here in Canada......he has just dismantled our regulatory protection as of last December..... Corruption is illegal in Canada...hopefully they can eventually nail him. Quote: OTTAWA — The Harper government has watered down regulations governing oil drilling off Canada's East Coast so that oil companies don't need a backup plan to drill a relief well in the event of a blowout. Feds watered down regulations governing East Coast offshore drilling Harper is the same guy that wants to model our financial institutions after the US system that failed, has crippled our food safety system.... He is one of those fundamentalists that wants industry to police itself no matter what the cost.

06-03-2010, 09:04 PM	#12
Peter Zack Pentaxian Moderator Emeritus Join Date: May 2007 Location: Edmonton Alberta, Canada Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 10,643 Original Poster	I sure hope so George. And to shut them all down. I know that's not practical. But they need much tighter regulations and these new rules need to be forced on all of them. IE remote BOP's for all.

06-04-2010, 05:03 AM	#13
mel Veteran Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Virginia Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 2,531	I was watching some of the live footage of the underwater gusher this morning. And listening to the commentary and some of the penalties they've been required to pay. Basically, the penalties for violations are less than the costs of revamping operations to not be in violation. Sickening. Now, when (or if) they get this stopped, if those involved get big ol' bonuses for the achievement, I will seriously vomit.

06-04-2010, 07:05 AM	#15
clmonk Senior Member Join Date: May 2009 Location: Eastern TN Posts: 269	Not that it would make any difference to BP's bottom line, but I wonder how many Americans are choosing to purchase their petroleum products from othercompanies right now. There really doesn't seem to be anything the average Joe can do to indicate our displeasure. At least no way we can actually "vote with our wallets" as is usually suggested.