The Correct Response to the BP Oil Spill

Many on the left have criticized those who were pro-drilling and pro-business because of the recent catastrophic oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico. They use this tragedy as evidence that America shouldn’t be exploiting its offshore resources and instead should be looking toward other energy sources to provide for our needs in the future.

This kind of argument is nonsense. It’s like saying that we shouldn’t drive cars because they crash. This kind of oil spill – of course disastrous – does not happen frequently enough for the market to say it is inefficient for oil to be extracted for commercial use. The left wants to use an extreme disaster to provide evidence for a point that simply cannot be supported by such a tragedy. A more nuanced and long term view shows us that companies that find it economically viable – within the means of the law – to drill offshore should be allowed to do so. 

The problem with the Gulf of Mexico’s oil spill is that BP simply did not take the necessary precautions or have a decent contingency plan to deal with such a disaster. The problem is not that oil companies are drilling off the shore of the United States and therefore it is not viable to use this unfortunate incident as an example of why we shouldn’t drill offshore.

The fact – even President Obama has acknowledged this – is that offshore drilling is relatively safe when done properly. The market will punish BP for its lack of readiness with regard to the disaster; they will be charged for the cleanup operation and their reputation has taken a big hit around the world. Furthermore, other companies will learn from BP’s mistake and ensure that their oil rigs are not as vulnerable to the kind of disaster that happened in the Gulf.

We shouldn’t let the left use this tragedy for political gain. Offshore drilling is economically viable and relatively safe: we refuse to be held hostage to the leftist green agenda because of a tragedy and a mishandling of the tragedy.

The Correct Response to the BP Oil Spill