I'm willing to bet that a vast majority of North Americans remember what happened in Prince William Sound, 1989. The Exxon Valdez oil Spill was and still is a travesty. The headline above is that there's some justice to this case. And there is. Exxon has to pay out a billion dollars to Alaskan Natives, Fishermen, business owners, and others harmed by the spill.
What really needs to get discussed here is how many time Exxon appealed this case to stay away from paying out what they should have 20 years ago, why they only have to pay 1/5 of the original 5 billion that they were supposed to pay out, and why there's any question about paying for their mistakes-a corporation that set the world record for profit margins in recent years that literally pulls the life force out of Alaska and makes money off it, then just pollutes one of the most pristine areas in the world, and runs. That's a good corporation isn't it?
What's really sad here is the environment, Indigenous people, and working class and lower income people face the brunt of the burden associated with this. Some fishermen have even said that today, in 2009, that the Sound has not fully recovered as the greater ecosystem faced irreparable damages based on Exxon's drunk captain. Not to mention the other impacted wildlife as well as those who've sustained themselves from fishing for thousands of years.
Here's a link to some more information...and another questions...so the US Court system works right? Lawyers are good right? That's why Exxon has to pay 20% of what they should've, and 20 years down the line? Please, I wonder how the insurance companies were involved in this?
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