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Oil and Natural Gas Industry Playing McSame Dirty Games, Scaring Many to Ballyhoo Few

Big Oil, Big Money, Big Slap in the Face.

Unfortunately, I fear that slap won’t register properly with enough people in the status quo, those who cling to oil and more oil as if it’s the only way forward.

During a commercial break from MSNBC’s coverage of the final night of the Democratic National Convention held in Denver, the American Petroleum Institute, the trade organization for the Oil and Natural Gas Industry, ran a spot touting domestic oil and gas reserves that Democrats are keeping us Americans from reaching.

They said there’s enough resources to fuel 60 million cars and 160 million homes for 60 years.

They highlighted in Dubya-style threat-level-red the zones along our east and west coasts, the areas just ripe with savory offshore energy deposits that the holy Republicans would just love love love to hand over to the public, if it weren’t for those mean greenies and liberals and anti-American Americans.

Domestic Oil Leads to Environmental Protection?

Oh, and by the way…psst…We need it and could get to it, and we could protect the environment…the spokeswoman says.

Ahh, yes. Those magic words: protect the environment.

Well, then, it’s all better — if you are one of those who didn’t notice the backhand across the jaw that came with such a demeaning commercial message.

How is the oil and gas industry going to protect the environment, might one wonder if s/he was inclined to feel that sting of arrogant oil industry knuckles across the face?

Well, the commercial doesn’t mention that. The sentiment disappeared as suddenly as it came. It was merely a brisk sentence to check the box…

Oil is good. Check.

Plenty of it. Check.

Create fear so the ignorant will follow. Check.

Mention the word "environment." Check.

Oil is good…is good…is good. (Just close your eyes, go to sleep and trust us…..shhhhhh.)

Another Commercial — Starring T. Boone Pickens

Oh, look. It’s T. Boone Pickens. Famous gazillionaire oil man-turned-wind power impresario, back on the telly to mention there is at least one other source of energy besides oil.

Sure, he made his wealth off of the dirty ooze. And sure, he’s probably only into the wind business because he aims to make billions until his dying day. I don’t say he’s a great guy, or not a great guy, for his turn to wind power.

But how odd that this oil man has turned to the future with wind — and all of his cronies are still staring into the rearview mirror as they drive straight to the cliff’s edge.

I know, it’s business, strictly (dirty, lying, conniving, misleading, fear-mongering) business.

Related posts:

How America Lost the (Self-Appointed) Title of ‘Greatest Nation on Earth’ to Denmark

Petroleum-Based Products Shape Our Lives: Does That Mean We Are Irreversibly Dependent on Oil?

Top Five Micro Wind Turbines

Gas Hole the Documentary: History of Oil Prices and Alternative Energy

Photo: Adam Williams

5 comments
  1. adam

    we are more powerful than them. they are closed-minded and ancient. we are fresh and numerous. it will be us who are responsible for the future of our habitat.

    the only reason they have any power is because we give it them by valuing what they value.

    they think they are clever. we dont have to see them do it, we know how they think, what they are going to.

  2. Bobby B.

    MSNBC ran the API advertisement after B. Hussein’s and the DNC’s convention coverage? Isn’t MSNBC the employer of Chris Matthews? You know, the guy who said, “”When I see Obama I get a thrill going up my leg. … I’ve never seen anything like this. … He seems to have the answers. This is the New Testament.” They also employ Keith Olbermann, who according to Gov. Ed Rendell (D-PA) “should be on the Obama payroll.”

    I really believe that your anger is misplaced. You should not be upset with the API for making the commercial. You should be upset that the left-leaning MSNBC sold such a choice time slot to big oil. Of course, for MSNBC to pay their bills they do have to sell time to paying customers. And lest we forget, MSNBC is a subsidiary of NBC which is wholly owned by General Electric which makes turbines and generators to feed our hunger for power. Follow the trail paved with gold to find your answers.

  3. moe33

    The dirty energy lobby certainly knows how do business–from the so-called “clean coal” ad blitz at the Denver convention to these ad spots on TV. It knows energy is one of this year’s most critical issues, and while the Republicans have always been and continue to be the biggest receivers of contributions from the oil industry, this year’s Democrats are taking more or that money than they have in years.

    Is there anyone else who finds this preemptive Dem targeting by energy corporations disturbing?

    Check out a great site: , to find the numbers on contributions to specific members and how that money matches up with their votes on energy bills. (Incidentally, there’s a sister site for oil money at .)

  4. Kevin

    The “drill baby drill” mantra is pretty effective.

    The “dirty oil industry” is not an effective counter attack. You need to get the plain, pragmatic, boring facts about the lack of domestic oil in people’s faces.

    The US just doesn’t have enough oil to power our economy. There are only 21 billion barrels of reserves in the US according to DOE stats. US production is only 5 million barrels, while consumption is 20+ million barrels. Domestic oil production has declined steadily since the 1970s, not because of environmentalists, but because it’s too expensive to get the remaining reserves out of the ground.

    The punch line of all these oil industry ads, and drill baby drill chants is that the $12B profit per quarter Exxon needs SUBSIDIES to extract more American oil. The supposed rugged individualist wild-west capitalists up in Alaska need tax dollars to get oil out of the ground.

    It’s a little bit like the nigeria scam. I am a oil tycoon in Alaska, if you give me your bank account number, I can get all of the oil you need!

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