The good, the bad and the downright criminal.
September 2, 2009 by Dusty
First, a documentary on what Texaco/Chevron has done to the people and the land in South America. It really needs to be seen, and this trailer gives you a look into the dark, dastardly souls of the Oil Industry. It’s called..”CRUDE”.
The following video is not for people that get squeamish. It is brutal. I have it up only to inform as to what is done in our name to keep the price of egg’s cheap. I won’t even tell you what it did to me, all I am going to say is there are alternative methods of euthanizing living creatures. I don’t care if the price of eggs doubled, there are alternatives you sons of bitches.
This next video will hopefully make you laugh, its true but the delivery of their message is great!
Finally, something beautifully breathtaking from Ken Burns. His newest documentary, National Parks, will show on PBS sometime in mid-Sept in sections. This is a 25 minute long preview..and its fucking awesome. It will hopefully heal the horror you experienced if you watched videos number one and/or two.
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“Petroecuador, the state-owned oil company, has owned and operated the oil fields for more than 15 years, but the plaintiffs’ attorneys nevertheless blame Chevron and Texpet for all oil-related problems in the region.”
http://www.texaco.com/sitelets/ecuador/en/PlaintiffsMyths.aspx
Ok, the source is Texaco, but consider what they say even though they’re a big, bad oil company. There is no doubt there’s a big mess in Equador, but let’s not let their government off the hook.
On the chickens, our three are just about the most pampered ever. They each produce an egg a day. Anyone that feels strongly about chicken abuse in the egg industry should look into having their own chickens.
Looking forward to the Ken Burns series.
Texaco would do and say anything to get out from under the ten year old lawsuit over their involvment in the carnage.
Wow, you have your own chickens? Cool Robb! I am trying to find somewhere local..until then..I am not eating eggs, the video just freaked me out waaaay too badly.
Dusty´s last blog ..The good, the bad and the down right criminal.
Robb, here is a 60 Minutes report on the trial and the ecological nightmare:
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/05/01/60minutes/main4983549.shtml?source=mostpop_story
I have a whole page of links to the shit that went down there, but figured this one would be the best in terms of telling the story without prejudice.
I saw the 60 Minutes same ol’, same ol’ first run. There was nobody addressing the Equadorian government’s involvement in there either. It’s easy to blast away at Texaco and their deep pockets, but when it comes to sleazy third-world government corruption, there’s no getting a dime out of them, especially when they’re long-gone.
Oh well, and so it goes…
No one says the Ecuadorian govt isn’t corrupt.
Texaco constructed and operated the wells. They told the govt of Ecuador they would handle everything, and all the govt had to do was collect royalties aka rake in the money.
The govt is still running some of the wells and created their own. They aren’t breaking their collective ass to clean up their own messes either.
This is about Texaco/Chevron trying to blow off responsibility, just like Exxon did in Alaska. Chevron keeps using the system to their advantage, they have enough money to keep it in the courts forever and ever..only paying their legal team, until they get a favorable result..like Exxon finally did from SCOTUS on the Valdez spill.
Scott Pelley grilled the shit out of Chevron’s attorney and she refused to cop to squat.
I believe the Ecuadorian government that did the deal with Texaco originally just enriched themselves until they had to leave. The present Ecuadorian government engaged in the current “shakedown” says “Hey, that wasn’t us.”
I didn’t know squat about the oil biz until I lived in Bakersfield. Kern County’s mineral rights were equally divided between Chevron and Texaco before the merger and it was pretty hard not to run into somebody working for either. They’re still there! I always thought it humorous to see letters to the editor in The Californian blasting away at the evil oil companies when the writer probably had two or three neighbors in the business. There seems to be a disconnect between real people, good people, working in oil patch, the customer filling up the car they love at the corner station and the acidic rhetoric thrown at oil companies that’s always warmly accepted as if Pontius Pilate occupies the corporate penthouse suite.
There will probably be a settlement between the Ecuadorian government and Chevron/Texaco where the former will have to give up on it’s total railroad job and the latter has to pay out more than it’s responsible for. Or both sides could go for broke. I’d guess a compromise would be better for the Ecuadorian people.
I wasn’t very knowledgeable about the oil bidness either until I moved to Bako Robb.
Chevron and Texaco were awarded mineral rights to places they had no business drilling..like Native American land here.
Both the Ecuadorian govt and Chevron/Texaco are responsible and corrupt, that goes without saying. But I still will not give the oil company the benefit of the doubt on anything after seeing how those bastards do business when they fuck something up..forever..which is a real-long-fucking-time, and many people get sick and die.
Dusty´s last blog ..It’s just downhill from here right?
http://www.reuters.com/article/marketsNews/idAFN1720020520090917?rpc=44
What do you suppose the corrupt government of Ecaudor will do with $27 billion? Help out their poor countrymen or open Swiss bank accounts for their friends and family? Yeah, who cares as long as a big oil company gets a public spanking…
“Chevron Corp. on Wednesday filed suit against the government of Ecuador for trade violations, an effort to protect against a potentially negative ruling in a separate $27 billion suit over environmental damage.”
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Chevron-sues-Ecuador-under-apf-1840638725.html?x=0&.v=1
Add to that, their PR campaign on YouTube and they are obviously worried.
“Ecuador rejects Chevron arbitration claim”
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Ecuador-rejects-Chevron-apf-2710855423.html?x=0&.v=2
What a surprise!
“In blow to plaintiffs, judge is replaced in Chevron pollution lawsuit in Ecuador”
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Ecuador-court-replaces-judge-apf-1560250737.html?x=0&.v=5
‘Nunez asked to be removed this month after Chevron released clandestinely recorded video in which two businessmen repeatedly ask him if he planned to rule against Chevron and he is heard to answer “yes.”‘
“Chevron says the businessmen were asked to pay million-dollar bribes for a remediation contract by a political ally of President Rafael Correa, who has expressed sympathy for the plaintiffs.”
“Ecuador to Europe: Pay us not to drill in Amazon”
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091027/ap_on_bi_ge/lt_ecuador_amazon_oil_2
“Under the plan, rich countries would pay Ecuador at least half the revenues that the 850 million barrels of heavy crude oil estimated to be in Ecuador’s remote Yasuni National Park would be expected to generate over the next 10 years — or about $3 billion.”
Looks like South America’s cynical political economics has hit a new low. What do you suppose this tinhorn Correa will do with the windfall he expects to extort from Chevron? Not f**k something else up? It reminds me of Cleavon Little:
“Hold it! Next man makes a move, the n***** gets it!”
Morning Robb!
I am freezing my ass off in Billings MT this morning. I fly home tomorrow and I can NOT wait. It’s beautiful here..but very friggin cold.
I want to thank you for keeping me updated on this horseshit. I know the government is corrupt and sadly that changes the dynamics of the whole issue.
http://www.reuters.com/article/idAFN1119616520100311?rpc=44
NEW YORK, March 11 – Chevron Corp may pursue an international arbitration claim over environmental pollution allegations in Ecuador, a judge ruled on Thursday, part of a long-running case that carries a potential $27 billion liability for the second-largest U.S. oil company.
Chevron lawyer Randy Mastro argued that the government and the plaintiffs were “acting in concert” in their hopes of receiving a multibillion-dollar judgment.
“We need a level playing field … to decide our rights vis-a-vis the Republic of Ecuador,” Mastro told the judge.
They will drag it out just like the Alaskan disaster was for decades…no surprise here.
The Exxon Valdez disaster comparisson lacks a couple of third parties that the Ecuador disaster has: A corrupt South American government du jour and their own oil company. With neither of these entities admitting responsibility, hearing the case in Ecuador amounted to a kangaroo court.
At least international arbitration has a “fair” ring to it. Perhaps that would have worked better for Alaska given the two sides involved there and their lawyers.
I know the two situations aren’t mirror images but oil companies have never owned anything without decades of courts involved.
Dusty´s last blog ..Neocons in TX change school books.