Congress has voted to place ExxonMobil, ChevronTexaco, and other major oil companies under public stewardship, with the bulk of the companies’ profits put in a public trust administered by the United Nations, and used for alternative energy research and development in order to solve the global climate crisis.
While unusual, this is not the first time the government has chosen to take control of large corporations. From 1942 to 1944, U.S. car factories were retooled in order to produce tanks for the war effort. And Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were both created as “government sponsored enterprises” with a significant amount of government oversight.
“We can do what needs to be done,” said Senator Charles Schumer, Democrat of New York. “Our planet’s survival is at stake. Plus, public pressure hasn’t given us much of a choice.”
Not everyone felt the move was a good idea. “The climate crisis may or may not be real,” declared Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison, Republican of Texas. “I’m an agnostic and I’m staying that way. But sea level rise has been overblown. And one thing I’m sure of, is that nationalizing private industry is just another name for theft.”
“The private oil interests have been involved in theft for decades,” responded Deputy Under Secretary of the E.P.A. Gavin Newsom. “They’ve stolen our air, our oceans, our health, and our land. They’ve proven they can’t run their business without massive theft.”
“If we’re going to give corporations the same rights as people,” said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, “then we need to hold them accountable like people. When parents abuse their children, the government takes over. When oil companies abuse the planet, the government needs to take over too.”
Arco C.E.O. Rex W. Tillerson was philosophical. “We fought this long and hard. We did everything we could do. But do we want more blood in the streets? Or do we want to move on?”
“You can’t fight the street,” said Mr. Newsom. “The people are going to do what the people are going to do. And the oil companies are just going to have live with it.”
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You gonna nationalize Saudi Arabia and Venezuela too?
Comment on November 12, 2008 06:39 pm