INDReporter

The delusional world of Tony Hayward

by Mary Tutwiler

The oil spill is bad enough. What we don't need on top of the catastrophic destruction of Louisiana's estuaries and the marine life it harbors is the boneheaded remarks of BP chief executive Tony Hayward. The oil spill is bad enough. What we don't need on top of the catastrophic destruction of Louisiana's estuaries and the marine life it harbors is the boneheaded remarks of BP chief executive Tony Hayward. Frankly, I don't know why he hasn't been muzzled by now by the company's PR department. Every time he speaks to the press he reveals how little he really understands or cares about the people of Louisiana. It's all about protecting BP's image and bottom line.

Last week nine cleanup workers were sickened while out in the gulf and had to be airlifted to hospitals in New Orleans. The workers suspect the fumes from the oil and dispersant made them ill. Over the weekend, Hayward had this to say about what made the men sick:
"I'm sure they were genuinely ill, but whether it was anything to do with dispersants and oil, whether it was food poisoning or some other reason for them being ill," Hayward told the Times-Picayune. "You know, food poisoning is clearly a big issue when you have a concentration of this number of people in temporary camps, temporary accommodation. It's something we have to be very, very mindful of. It's one of the big issues of keeping the army operating. You know, armies march on their stomachs." Sunday night, Hayward was interviewed on CNN. While apologizing for spill, he managed to downgrade the disaster to a "disruption" of people's lives. Including his own.
"We're sorry for the massive disruption it's caused their lives. There's no one who wants this over more than I do. I would like my life back." Hayward told CNN that BP is doing "everything we can to contain the oil offshore," but, "as far as I'm concerned, a cup of oil on the beach is a failure." He also seems to be in denial that the dispersant being sprayed by BP is causing undersea plumes of oil, even as teams of scientists are tracking what they say are two huge underwater plumes.
"The oil is on the surface. There aren't any plumes." Hayward told The Associated Press.