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Why not boycott all BP stations to show them Our dislike for people that ruin our friggin ecology...After they pay all the cost and clean up every last drop of their messy oil. pay every person who has lost money from this and replanted every killed plant and animals to take the place of the killed ones.................Then start shopping at BPs again,,,,,,,It will show BP that we have a say and its not always about them and what they want...
That's stupid. BP shouldn't be boycotted. To the extent possible, we should boycott ALL oil based products.
BP should stand for "Boycott Petroleum".
Of course, no one wants to do that because it involves effort and sacrifice.
Last edited by mysticaltyger; 06-11-2010 at 09:16 AM..
England Swings.. I wonder which side the American people are on ? BBC where are you...at the Gulf Shores....no spill in Britian I hear... Its not time to cow down to the Brits, but it IS time to kick some butt !
Des. I see your point but just WHAT can we do to punish the ones guilty of this environmental crime? Its a waste of time to write our congressmen. They are the ones who stood back and let BP get around the safety rules and cut deals. They also share the blame.
There's no way around it, if we don't want this to happen again, we must reduce overall demand for oil.
--Buy a more fuel efficient car when your old one dies.
--Use the cruise control when on the highway.
--Buy and ride a bike instead of driving.
--Walk instead of driving.
--Keep your tires properly inflated.
--Get junk out of your trunk.
--Move closer to work or telecommute at least 1 day per week.
--Take the bus or other public transit.
--Use your own re-usable bag at the grocery store (plastic bags are made from petroleum)
--Lobby your local government for better land use planning (e.g. more high density housing of quality construction on mass transit routes & less auto oriented sprawl that requires a car for every errand)
--Lobby local government for better mass transit.
--Make your home more energy efficient
--Live in a smaller home or apartment/condo that costs less to heat and cool.
--Replace old appliances with the most energy efficient models on the market.
Yes, and just like with the financial crisis, we all run around demanding Goldman Sachs or BPs heads on platters, when in reality, it was lax governement oversight and regulators getting far too cozy with the businesses they are supposed to be regulating that should be blamed (when they're not sitting back watching online porn, that is). If you want the real culprits in both of these disasters, look no further than Washington, DC.
What about the American people? Are we not guilty of anything? We drive the biggest SUVs the bank will lend us money for and want to live in the biggest houses, etc. We give little thought to the energy efficiency of homes or cars.
Last edited by mysticaltyger; 06-11-2010 at 09:17 AM..
Whoever would " buy" BP, would also assume the huge,unknown liability debt. I don't see any oil co. that stupid....The only one who could take over BP in the States would be the Government. I can see that as a plus for BP Worldwide.
Except BP is a British company, so I don't think that will happen.
Except BP is a British company, so I don't think that will happen.
Actually the US arm of BP could be spun off. Anythings possible, its a new ball game with the worst environmental disaster in the history of our country. The only way for BP to survive the endless liabilities would be for the Government to take over the US part of the company. Before this is over, maybe very soon, BP will announce the possibility of taking Bankruptcy.. They have no intentions of paying all the costs related to their " spill". Turning over the Company in the US to the Government would limit their liability, save face for the Government, and somewhat satisfy the Brits. The Dividends will not be paid out, anytime soon.
You know it would be great if we took over BP and then the billions of profits would go towards paying our bills. Im afraid after BP pays out what it can it will pull some legal stuff to go bankrupt and the american people will be left holding the bag. This thing is costing billions more than anticipated every day. Maybe we should demand they pay us in euros .American dollars arent worth that much today..Real damage = real value paid...maybe we should demand it be in GOLD....Maybe if BP goes broke that it will cause such hardships on the poor Brits that we end up GIVING THEM A FRIGGIN LOAN,,,,,,,,
If BP attempts to go the BK route, the effort still must be approved by a federal BK court. It just won't happen, the Public and the mood of the Country is too strong for BP to just walk. Taken over, maybe, but at a cost that will make the People whole or at the very lest, a little more than the 5,000.00 they have paid so far.
Gas station boycotts have to rank up there as among the most idiotic of ideas. They all carry the one fatal flaw: Although they may reduce business towards one company, it does nothing to reduce overall demand.
If every person in America stopped buying BP products-which includes Amoco and Arco, two things would happen.
1. Scores of independant dealers who run the stations on lease or franchise-and had nothing to do with this mess-would be out of business and in the street. To say nothing of all the Americans employed by BP who likewise had nothing to do with it.
2. BP would still make their money because of shifted demand. If the Chevrons, Exxon-Mobils, etc were to 'pick up the slack', BP would simply sell their tender shipments. This actually happens all the time, given how most companies are interconnected through a labarynth of pipelines (look up Kinder Morgan for instance). You'd be amazed at how often that when you fill up at a Shell station, it is with gas supplied by Valero, who bought it from Exxon. IS anyone out there really gullible enough to think that BP is going to sit there and "choke on unsold inventory" while the Mobil stations are all hanging up their "out of gas" signs? Give me a freaking break.
This is exactly why those "one day gas outs" that hit the Top 40 DJ radio circuits and "pass it on" e-mails that come up from time to time never seem to work. Everyone gets urged to "not buy gas on Wednesday". So what do they do? They simply buy it on Tuesday or Thursday instead. Nothing gets fundamentally changed.
In any event, it's all a moot point anyway. BP-especially Arco on the West Coast-is known for being a few cents cheaper. When it comes to filling up their cars, 99% of the population will look the other way when it comes to principle if it means saving a dime or two at the pump.
Bingo.
Unless there were a serious excess supply of oil that would mean BP wouldn't be able to sell their oil, a boycott does nothing. In a tight market, if we stop buying from BP, then the other we buy from will need to stop supplying certain other of their customers, who will then buy from BP.
Plus, if a boycott worked and BP were put out of business, who'd pay for the cleanup?
The fact is, this could have happened with any oil company. It happened to be BP this time. Next time, it may be somebody else.
Populist ideas rarely make any sense, and the BP boycott is no exception.
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