Morality not a factor behind BP’s cleanup efforts

John Dombek, Santa Clara, Utah

Wednesday, June 16, 2010 | 2:03 a.m.

BP will clean up its mess in the Gulf and invest serious money into research and development to discover how to avoid possible future disasters. But not because it caused pelicans to suffer and die, or that it nearly eliminated a species of sea turtles, or that it severely damaged an entire ecosystem, devastated hundreds of businesses, wrecked families, trashed beaches, broke hearts and lives, and battered suffering cities; and especially not because it would calm a guilty conscience. BP has no conscience.

There is no scent of humanitarianism in BP’s decision to clean up and pay for damages. It will fix its mess for one reason only — if it doesn’t, it will be bad for business. The cleanup costs, the substantial fines, the public relations humiliation and the extreme drain on its profits are its main interests, not the pain of the people, the suffering wildlife or the loss of the environment that its greed brought about.

There is nothing humanitarian in unregulated corporate profit considerations. And even though the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled those corporations have the rights of human beings, the facts are they are cold, emotionless, aggressive, self-possessed conglomerates of greed.

Why our government gives them unfair tax breaks is not an unanswerable question. The answer is that the members of our government who support the needs of corporations over the needs of people and the planet are as self-possessed and greedy as BP.

It’ll clean it up. Bet on it.