[BITList] Louisiana still loves Big Oil

[CT's]

oops.....................!

Despite BP oil spill, Louisiana still loves Big Oil
Democratic Sen. Mary Landrieu is steadfastly against a moratorium on Gulf Coast deepwater drilling - as are other members of Louisiana's congressional delegation. 

Republican Sen. David Vitter has seen fit to chastise Congress for holding hearings on the growing crisis before the deep-sea leak has been plugged. [vitter is known to be into chastising and patronising prostitutes]

BP has come in for some harsh words, and in some cases even legal action. But one parish that is suing BP takes pains to explain its purpose: The suit is aimed at BP, not the oil industry, a lawyer says.

That local leaders facing such a disaster feel compelled not to antagonize Big Oil is telling.

It is quintessentially Louisiana.

Louisiana is entwined with offshore oil more closely than any other state. The world's first offshore oil well was drilled in the Gulf, south of Morgan City, in 1947, and the ties binding Louisiana and offshore oil have strengthened since then.

For a relatively poor Deep South state, plentiful stores of oil and natural gas have become a crucial source of wealth.

Moreover, in 2008, oil and gas made up 6.5 percent of Louisiana's revenue, more than five times the national average. As a result, Louisiana and offshore drilling have become synonymous.

"One third of the oil produced in this country comes from offshore, and 80 percent of offshore production comes from deep water off Louisiana," says Eric Smith, associate director of Tulane University's Energy Institute.

Indeed, 40 deepwater platforms operate in depths comparable to that of the Deepwater Horizon rig, producing petroleum from more than 400 wells off Louisiana, according to Mr. Smith. "Deepwater is ... the most productive area of oil production and that's where the big companies are working," he says.
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