Tell Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid: No Giveaways to Big Oil

One of the reasons why British Petroleum has been so lax on safety and why they have been so apathetic about stopping the oil deluge and cleaning the mess is that they have the expectation that they have that they won't have to pay for more than a small fraction of the damage they have done. $20 billion isn't going to be even close.

Making Big Oil pay for the damage they create will have two beneficial effects. It will pressure them to follow safety guidelines, which will reduce the number of spills. However, there is no such thing as safe offshore oil drilling. Keeping evil oil companies from British Petroleum from dumping their financial risks on the tourism and fishing industries will create a financial disincentive for engaging in the unethical practice of offshore oil drilling, especially in the cases of wells with marginal profitability or higher risk.

CODEPINK then takes things a logical step further, calling for a ban on offshore oil drilling. This is critical. Spills like British Petroleum's or even bigger ones are inevitable if we don't stop this heinous practice. Alternative energy, public transportation, increasing mileage standards, and pro telecommuting policies could easily replace all the oil we get from offshore wells.

CODEPINK calls for an end to subsidies for fossil fuels. The Iraq War funding is definitely one of those subsidies.

CODEPINK is fighting back and asking you to join them in doing it. Please contact Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid and demand that Big Oil has to accept its financial responsibilities. Here is the sample text from CODEPINK's action alert (which you should replace with your own).

Dear Senator Reid and Speaker Pelosi,

Our communities in the Gulf of Mexico are suffering from the recent oil spill, and will be for decades. It's obvious that we cannot continue doing business as usual.

As leaders in the House and Senate, I ask you to take the following steps:

Polluter pays, no exceptions. BP and future polluters must be held accountable for all costs associated with clean-up and remediation. Let Congress vote on the Big Oil Bailout Prevention Liability Act.

No drilling, no spilling. President Obama has placed a 6-month moratorium on off-shore drilling, but Congress must take action to make this ban permanent. With your support, the No New Drilling Act of 2010 should be brought to the floor for a vote.

No giveaways to Big Oil. All direct and indirect fossil fuel subsidies should be halted immediately and indefinitely. Public investments should be directed to clean, renewable energy sources and energy efficiency technologies that create 21st Century jobs and reduce pollution

Separate Oil and Politics. Urge all elected officials to reject all campaign contributions from fossil fuel companies as a way to show their independence and their determination to safeguard the public good.

I urge you to work with Congressional members on both sides of the aisle to lift the liability cap, ban off-shore drilling and ensure passage of strong comprehensive climate and energy legislation this year. Our future demands no less.