Reply #19: In case someone brings this up around the watercooler. [View All]

[JDPriestly]

This spill is not a natural disaster. It was caused by the negligence of BP and the other parties operating that rig. BP and the others involved in this spill will be found liable if and when they go to court, and they know it.

The fact that the Interior Department and Minerals Safety Management Department did not properly regulate the rig does not make the US taxpayers the responsible party.

If an employee is injured because OSHA did not properly enforce regulations in a workplace, the government is not the liable party. The party that was responsible for the dangerous condition in the workplace is responsible because it caused the damages. Our law requires parties responsible for environmental damage to pay to clean up the damage and compensate the victims.

If you are wondering how this works, do a search on asbestos. You can also do a search on environmental cleanups toxic sites.

Could BP have forced the victims to go to court to get their compensation? Yes.
Was BP under tremendous pressure when it agreed to the fund? Yes.

But, establishing this fund is in BP's own interest. The damage to BP's reputation and to the reputation of offshore drilling in general if BP does not compensate the people in the Gulf as quickly and quietly as possible balanced against the good PR that the quick and fair settlement of claims is likely to bring makes this a no-brainer for BP. The coolest heads at BP know that very well. In the end, the fact that BP agreed to establish the fund will work in its favor.

Sarah Palin does not understand just how devastating this spill is. She does not understand how litigation in cases like this works from the companies' point of view, how they balance their interests -- their need to maintain their positive public image on the one hand, and their need to mazimize profits and limit the losses from compensation and legal costs on the other.

Sarah Palin doesn't just lack experience in this sort of thing. She lacks the intelligence to figure it out. And what is worse, she lacks the ability to feel empathy for the people of the Gulf.

Ironically, as Alaskan residents, Sarah Palin and her family receive personal payments from the royalties that BP pays to Alaska for its drilling leases in that state. Isn't Palin being a bit two-faced here?

Sarah Palin should be quiet about this issue. After all, she could be the victim of an oil spill herself one of these days. And if that should happen, I'm sure she would be demanding that the oil company that caused the spill pay her damages immediately.