Government must hit big business hard

Don Ellis, Henderson

Monday, June 7, 2010 | 2:04 a.m.

The Gulf of Mexico oil-gushing debacle is one of, if not the, greatest environmental disasters ever recorded in the history of the United States.

I personally believe our government has the authority to pass major legislation to help solve the woes of the industries damaged by this spill. The legislation could force the perpetrators to set up a $50 billion escrow fund to cover punitive damages to those affected.

Hardships may occur until the legislation is passed, but remember BP and its subcontractors make tens of billions of dollars yearly in profits. (BP’s net profit in 2009 was $17 billion.) It will hurt them for a short time, but it will not completely destroy their needed services.

The $50 billion escrow could help bring many new jobs to this and other areas and it could help create new technology for cleanup and prevention for these types of disasters.

If this situation ends up in the courts, the fight will go on for years and the attorneys will pocket a great portion of the compensation.

Lastly, we must not go off half-cocked by trying to shut these industries down. Remember, many of our 401(k) dollars and pension plans are tied to these industries, and who knows what financial disaster would occur with that outcome? We must keep big business accountable and lucrative along with maintaining small healthy businesses.

Our elected officials are in a position to make a very strong statement to punish big business for negligence and its profit-at-all-costs mentality.