Big Oil

I found this link somewhere which asserts that 'Of the world's 100 largest economic entities, 51 are now corporations and 49 are countries.' I'm sure it's debatable, but I also assume that these figures are close. It certainly wouldn't surprise me.

The next thing it makes me think is: our global economy is largely an oil economy. The big multinationals are soaked in oil. 9 of the top 11 companies on this list are heavily involved with oil.

I saw a link in passing this week about Ronald Reagan and oil, but didn't follow it. After I got going on this train of thought I looked around a little, and here's what I found.

(Caveat lector: I know these sources are probably biased. Feel free to help me out here with alternative sources and viewpoints.)

On the Issues: Ronald Reagan on Energy & Oil

Reagan removed controls on oil prices. The result was lower prices and a glut. Had Reagan taken advantage of this to fill the nationÂ?s strategic reserves with cheap oil or to reduce U.S. dependency on foreign oil by imposing an oil import fee, or to encourage conservation through a tax, he would have left his successor less a prisoner of events in the Middle East. But Reagan abhorred taxes, and he did not accept the necessity of conservation. His trust was in the marketplace.
Source: The Role of a Lifetime, by Lou Cannon, p. 823 Jul 2, 1991

How Green Was the Gipper?

Interestingly, this article criticizes Cannon as too praising of Reagan, so maybe the gist above is pretty much right, or at least balanced.

"The Reagan administration adopted an extraordinarily aggressive policy of issuing leases for oil, gas, and coal development on tens of millions of acres of national lands -- more than any other administration in history, including the current one," said the Wilderness Society's David Alberswerth.

Before delving further into Reagan's track record, it's worth recalling his infamous public statement that "trees cause more pollution than automobiles do," and that if "you've seen one tree you've seen them all." This is not, in other words, a president who demonstrated much ecological prowess.

Reagan's ignorance in this area is personified by James Watt and Anne Gorsuch, the leaders he selected to head the Department of Interior and the U.S. EPA, respectively. "Never has America seen two more intensely controversial and blatantly anti-environmental political appointees than Watt and Gorsuch," said Greg Wetstone, director of advocacy at the Natural Resources Defense Council, who served on the Hill during the Reagan era as chief environment council at the House Energy and Commerce Committee.