Monday, June 7, 2010

Behind the Gulf oil crisis: Big Oil extends its political influence

from World Socialist Web Site. This is the way democracy works--capitalist style. The author fills in the details of how BP, and other such corporations, manage governments in the pursuit of profits.
While the public disgust in the wake of the disaster has skyrocketed, it has not stalled the collusion between government and Big Oil. In fact, the opposite is true. Halliburton, the energy company involved in making the cement casings for the rig, which may have ultimately contributed to the explosion, last month ramped up its political spending to the highest levels since just before the 2008 elections.
If this article doesn't convince you, then read this from the Associated Press.
More than half of the federal judges in districts where the bulk of Gulf oil spill-related lawsuits are pending have financial connections to the oil and gas industry, complicating the task of finding judges without conflicts to hear the cases, an Associated Press analysis of judicial financial disclosure reports shows.