Fall-out from the BP oil spill

There is not much question that the radical anti-carbon groups will seize upon the tragedy to promote their alternate energy schemes and conservation ideology.. This is inevitable and probably beneficial from a global perspective. Environmentalists will seize upon this tragedy as an opportunity to further turn public sentiment against the " Big Oil" companies.What should our response be as members of the fraternuty of oil worker and investors?

Over my career, I have  continually been amazed at the lack of understanding the general public has about the oil business. We need to arm ourselves with facts about oil employment, economic share and etc.and begin to makes appearances on liberal and environmental blogs and web sites. I suggest that we take a firm but unemotional stand on the value and importance of oil and gas to our economy. I further suggest that we compare the cost of the current BP spill to the cost of drunk driving accidents annually. If rig explosions are a "fixable" wrong then so is drunk driving.

Another thing to drive home to the public is the % profit of oil versus groceries, movies, cars, and etc. Our detractors have made much of gross profits without mention of % return on investment. The radical liberal promotes the idea that companies exist to serve the public and that profits should not be a goal or requirement. We must promote the idea of free markets. The profit motive has always been the driving force behind our successful economy and the radicals would take that away from us. It is important that we not allow that to happen.

Here are some facts that I've found on the net .In 2004 there were 316,000 workers in the Oil and Gas Industry. Their pay scale was from $12 to $50 per hour. The link: Oil Company Earnings has excellent information on Oil Company earnings as compared to other industries. Oil Companies actially are less profitable than many other industries. The charge of obscene profits is definitely a Red Herring.Earnings for a large company are always huge sounding to the lay person. Percent return on investment is a much fairer statistic for comparing companies and industries. One figure that stood out for me was the spending on Carbon Mitigation. The Fed has spent next to nothing on it compared to Industry..
Another link: Oil & Gas Investment  gives fact about the investments that O & G makes in the U.S. Economy. In 2006 new investments amounted to $174 Billion. This is a very significant part of the Total U.S. economy. The current administration is constantly trying to demonize the industry and especially its profits..Armed with the facts we need to fight back, not just for our own sake but for the poor innocent citizens who do not understand the economics of energy and have been swayed by the most heinous missrepresentations of "Big Oil".
Here is the best set of figures yet: Oil Jobs and GDP share . Nine million jobs and 7.3% og GDP depend on the O&G industry. Lets all arm ourselves with the facts and go out and fight for our industry.