Overdose

America, it must be said, is addicted to oil. One can say that such addicts are legion around the world, both south and north. But the United States suffers from a particular dependency in this area. A country where the automobile is queen and the truck rules, America sees the motor vehicle as a metaphor for freedom. The voter punishes any candidate who even acts as if he wants to tax fuel; investment in less oil-dependent public transportation has historically lagged; the oil lobby has undue influence; Republicans argue vigorously for the right to explore and to drill, convinced that what is good for Exxon or BP is good for the United States.

And like any addiction, dependence on oil has its side-effects and overdoses. This is the real origin of the sticky tsunami that threatens the melancholy bayous, the placid pelicans and the Mississippi delta that feeds so many American legends. The frantic extraction of oil off the shore of New Orleans presumes, whatever the precautions taken by the oil companies, an acceptance of risk. This cultural imperative, so to speak, is coupled with financial pressures. The private, multinational companies that supply the petroleum drug are naturally inclined to limit spending for safety in the name of profit. A controversy is developing around the responsibility of British Petroleum, which is facing serious accusations of having been negligent. Oil addiction and an obsession with profitability: That is why your Gulf is contaminated.