Is the United States a classic case of an addict? What the BP oil spill may imply

It seems a bit obvious that environmental awareness was not the greatest priority (or ultimately even one at all) when plans surrounding the entire Deepwater Horizon executions were put into effect (which then led to the BP oil spill); but is that really a surprise? Sure, for years there has been constant talk of the United States being addicted to oil; this would often be put in little quotes and while it may be a hot topic and political platform, is all of the talk really just lip service?

When one thinks of an addict what images pop to mind? Is it a junkie huddled on a street corner, out of money, but foregoing food and shelter to scrounge up enough cash for their next hit? Well perhaps in terms of ethical consumption and environmental awareness the visage of another kind of addict would instead be the businessman who commutes two hours to work through gridlock while staring into the window of his neighbor driving beside him? The soccer mom topping up her van, heading out for her third round of errands; the butcher only getting his meats shipped in thousands of miles away; or the executive playing down just how 'bad' their spill was? There may or may not have been conscious skewing of the estimates in regards to the BP oil spill; but then could not the same be said of a drug addict when telling his concerned friend just how much he actually used that day? The husband who gambled away too much but didn't want to burden his wife with the exact figures; sometimes isn't it just easier to cushion the blow or pad the truth? Isn't a diluted version of the truth just what the addicts want to believe too?

Lots of questions, yes, but when it comes to being addicted to oil, just how well does that description fit with the current United States and to the masses? No doubt there has been plenty of talk about heightened environmental awareness and lots of plans thrown out there on how to get back on track. Still, isn't that generally the case with any other addiction? One more drink, one last spin of the wheel, one final binge before starting that diet tomorrow. There are many signs of addiction and perhaps the first would be 'neglecting one's responsibilities;' would that merit a check against the US? Up until this point has it already not become clear that even through years and years of planned propositions and green talk has there really been a big enough turnaround? Aren't then responsibilities to our environmental awareness being ignored despite more and more glaring warnings?

A second symptom of addiction would be 'using drugs under dangerous conditions or taking risks while high.' Should we ask BP to answer that one for us? In all honesty though, setting up a disaster waiting to happen in a fragile region has occurred many times before and is still currently going on. Another interesting sign of addiction is when 'drug use is causing problems in your relationships;' surely the United States has not been the most popular child in the sandbox over the years or at the present moment.

When the nonprofit organization of Helpguide.org outlines common signs of addition they do cite drugs when referencing that 'you've built up a drug tolerance,' still here again in terms of environmental awareness the term drug and oil could be used synonymously. Is it not true that as a whole the country has established a higher and more pressing need for this resource and the amounts for which we are able to reduce consumption for, or that companies are willing to budge, has become more marginal? Instead of ever even breathing the word cold turkey (for this would be the equivalent of taking wings off of an airplane) there are negotiations for exactly just how much of a reduction would be 'enough.' There then becomes the question of whether companies are more interested in purchasing carbon offsets just to erase the 'guilt' they have over their own usage and using that as a means to absolve the problem rather than work on it? Could the same not be then said with propositions for additional oil taxes; instead of making certain it never happens again there is just more additional planning for where the funds for clean-up will come from and the consequences that transpire once it is repeated.

How high do gas prices really have to get before there is a significant drop in the amount of cars on the road? The truth is that there is still going to be the reliance on oil, but how can we downgrade from full blown addict to shall we say recreational user? That comes in not only volume but also recognizing it for what it is; has the United States hit rock bottom yet or even close? Until there is the internal shift and urge to change there is often no chance to break the cycle; environmental awareness has grown, to say otherwise would be to demean a lot of good work that has been done and green progress. Still, recovery is a bumpy road and there are always setbacks and varying degrees of being 'healthy.' It is possible for on one level to desperately want to end an addiction, usually due to the results that its continued usage brings, and still be torn on another in the all-consuming need to use. So it still begs to ask if the United States is just another 'drug addict'…but more importantly is it willing to accept that for what it is and then change?

In continuation of this post follows the Oil Addiction Scorecards that were created by Tiffany and myself to see what steps to take to wean ourselves off of our drug of choice. Further, follow ongoing news and how it relates to the BP oil spill across all of the news sections.

Photo credit: Giuseppe Bognanni