> It seems like the Gulf oil spill has become a Rorschach inkblot test
> that people are interpreting according to their ideological dogmas
> and phobias.
Indeed.
> Anyway, prior to this disaster, the volume of oil spilled in U.S. waters
> had dropped from an average of 11.8 million gallons per year over
> the two decades prior to 1990, to 1.5 million gallons in the ensuing
> decades.
Yes, but 1.5 million gallons is still significant.
Why is anything as risky as ocean drilling or tanker shipment of something as toxic as petroleum even legal? As I see it, the only reason is that various gov'ts are unduly influenced by oil & auto industries.
I crack up at various people's fanatic fears of nuclear power. Yes, there are obvious & substantial risks, but how do those compare to oil industry damage and the risks in coal mines?