# The BP Oil Spill Has Negatively Impacted My Attitude Towards Brits **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [September 8, 2010, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bp-oil-spill-has-negatively-impacted-my-attitude-towards-brits/553015 "2010-09-08T03:28:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Wallenstein](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b5a626/32.png) [@Wallenstein](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wallenstein)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2010, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bp-oil-spill-has-negatively-impacted-my-attitude-towards-brits/553015/21 "2010-09-08T14:09:53Z")
> [@Try2B\_Comprehensive](#): > > The announcer crows, "Who cares about a silly oil spill anyway?’ (or some such), and then they spend about 10 minutes more or less discussing how the whole thing is not that big a deal. I thought that was Rush Limbaugh? He’s not British. ---
**Author:** ![villa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/bc79bd/32.png) [@villa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/villa)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2010, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bp-oil-spill-has-negatively-impacted-my-attitude-towards-brits/553015/22 "2010-09-08T14:18:55Z")
The stupidity of some Yanks has negatively impacted my attitude towards Yanks. I try not to let it overflow, given that I live amongst them, and I have wonderful friends who are Yanks, but when I see the utter retardation of some, it is hard not to let that overflow into my day to day interactions. ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2010, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bp-oil-spill-has-negatively-impacted-my-attitude-towards-brits/553015/23 "2010-09-08T14:19:43Z")
BP internal investigation [http://www.bp.com/sectiongenericarticle.do?categoryId=9034902&contentId=7064891](http://www.bp.com/sectiongenericarticle.do?categoryId=9034902&contentId=7064891) ---
**Author:** ![Baron\_Greenback](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baron_greenback/32/48_2.png) [@Baron\_Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baron_Greenback)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2010, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bp-oil-spill-has-negatively-impacted-my-attitude-towards-brits/553015/24 "2010-09-08T14:22:54Z")
> [@Kyla](#): > > Isn’t Shell Dutch-owned? It’s complicated, the HQ is in The Hague, but the registered office and primary listing is in London. Oddly enough, the “Shell” part of the company name goes way back to a seashell collecting business. That’s diversification for you. ---
**Author:** ![straight\_man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/straight_man/32/3027_2.png) [@straight\_man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/straight_man)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2010, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bp-oil-spill-has-negatively-impacted-my-attitude-towards-brits/553015/25 "2010-09-08T14:34:19Z")
> [@Hal\_Briston](#): > > > [@Wile\_E](#): > > > > We should get revenge on those Brits! Let’s … um, I don’t know, throw all their tea in the harbor or something. That’ll teach 'em! > > Tea? Who the hell is talking about tea? Let’s dump all their oil in the gulf – that’ll learn 'em! Damn it, Hal! I was just about to post, “It would really be more topical to dump their oil in the harbour… oh, never mind, that’s already been done”, but then you beat me to it. Very annoying. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2010, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bp-oil-spill-has-negatively-impacted-my-attitude-towards-brits/553015/26 "2010-09-08T14:36:32Z")
> [@Quartz](#): > > You do know that Shell is short for Royal Dutch Shell, don’t you? …which arose from the merger of the Shell Transport & Trading Company and the Royal Dutch Company. It was Royal Dutch/Shell until quite recently, and the company is as British as it is Dutch. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Weird\_One](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7bcc69/32.png) [@The\_Weird\_One](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Weird_One)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2010, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bp-oil-spill-has-negatively-impacted-my-attitude-towards-brits/553015/27 "2010-09-08T14:53:20Z")
> [@Baron\_Greenback](#): > > Oddly enough, the “Shell” part of the company name goes way back to a seashell collecting business. Does it now? Thanks for that bit of info, I’ve long wondered why an oil company was called “Shell.” ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2010, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bp-oil-spill-has-negatively-impacted-my-attitude-towards-brits/553015/28 "2010-09-08T15:00:29Z")
> [@The\_Weird\_One](#): > > > [@Baron\_Greenback](#): > > > > Oddly enough, the “Shell” part of the company name goes way back to a seashell collecting business. > > Does it now? Thanks for that bit of info, I’ve long wondered why an oil company was called “Shell.” My history teacher told us a completely different story, which is that the company took the scallop shell logo from the [Shell of St. James](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shell_of_Saint_James#Shell_of_Saint_James), the scallop shell worn by pilgrims traveling to Santiago de Compostela, which later became a symbol of travel in general. I was a bit surprised to find out such a specific story was a complete load of horseshit. ---
**Author:** ![Doughbag](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@Doughbag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doughbag)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2010, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bp-oil-spill-has-negatively-impacted-my-attitude-towards-brits/553015/29 "2010-09-08T15:09:29Z")
The reasons and how: [The BP Oilspill explained in details](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mSujCHfvTb0) _Just in case you didn’t notice, Clark & Dawe are not British._ ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2010, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bp-oil-spill-has-negatively-impacted-my-attitude-towards-brits/553015/30 "2010-09-08T15:16:29Z")
> [@straight\_man](#): > > Damn it, Hal! I was just about to post, “It would really be more topical to dump their oil in the harbour… oh, never mind, that’s already been done”, but then you beat me to it. Very annoying. That’s why you’re the straight man. ---
**Author:** ![Fuzzy\_Dunlop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/848f3c/32.png) [@Fuzzy\_Dunlop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fuzzy_Dunlop)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2010, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bp-oil-spill-has-negatively-impacted-my-attitude-towards-brits/553015/31 "2010-09-08T15:22:55Z")
> [@spanna](#): > > And its been a l\*\*ong time \*\*since it was called British Petroleum, that may have been where it started but it is now BP They officially changed their name to BP _9 years ago_ after being British Petroleum for 47 years during which time they were casually referred to as BP anyway. I don`t know what’s stupider, blaming the UK because of something done by a company that happens to have “British” in its name or pretending companies can change their name for marketing purposes and everyone **has** to follow along. Companies are free to try and rebrand all they want, it doesn’t mean anyone else has to adopt their new brand. BP stands for British Petroleum, KFC stands for Kentucky Fried Chicken, and PPL stands for Pennsylvania Power and Light, in spite of any corporate reorganizations to the contrary. Also, Altria is still Phillip Morris. Xe is still Blackwater and they’re both stupid names. That’s all. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2010, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bp-oil-spill-has-negatively-impacted-my-attitude-towards-brits/553015/32 "2010-09-08T15:34:02Z")
> [@foolsguinea](#): > > BP in the USA is substantially Amoco, whom they bought out. So Yanks too. It’s substantially a merger of Amoco (Standard Oil of Indiana) and Sohio (Standard Oil of Ohio). ---
**Author:** ![Trom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/958977/32.png) [@Trom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trom)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2010, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bp-oil-spill-has-negatively-impacted-my-attitude-towards-brits/553015/33 "2010-09-08T15:45:42Z")
> [@Fuzzy\_Dunlop](#): > > > [@spanna](#): > > > > And its been a l\*\*ong time \*\*since it was called British Petroleum, that may have been where it started but it is now BP > > They officially changed their name to BP _9 years ago_ after being British Petroleum for 47 years during which time they were casually referred to as BP anyway. I don`t know what’s stupider, blaming the UK because of something done by a company that happens to have “British” in its name or pretending companies can change their name for marketing purposes and everyone **has** to follow along. Companies are free to try and rebrand all they want, it doesn’t mean anyone else has to adopt their new brand. > > BP stands for British Petroleum, KFC stands for Kentucky Fried Chicken, and PPL stands for Pennsylvania Power and Light, in spite of any corporate reorganizations to the contrary. > > Also, Altria is still Phillip Morris. Xe is still Blackwater and they’re both stupid names. > > That’s all. Don’t forget those bastards at the Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company! ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2010, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bp-oil-spill-has-negatively-impacted-my-attitude-towards-brits/553015/34 "2010-09-08T15:46:40Z")
> [@Try2B\_Comprehensive](#): > > I do have one really good example… the BBC through NPR from 8/1/2010. The announcer crows, "Who cares about a silly oil spill anyway?’ (or some such), and then they spend about 10 minutes more or less discussing how the whole thing is not that big a deal Strangely, one of those “BBC are environmental lefties” blogs says: [“the BBC seems to have aligned itself with Obama as he takes shots at BP”](http://biased-bbc.blogspot.com/2010/07/evil-bp.html). Here’s the [BBC website coverage of the disaster](http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/special_reports/oil_disaster/). It doesn’t seem _particularly_ pro-BP. Like I always say, if they’re getting it from both sides, they’re probably doing something right. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2010, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bp-oil-spill-has-negatively-impacted-my-attitude-towards-brits/553015/35 "2010-09-08T17:13:48Z")
Funnily enough, Calgary and Alberta are home to the Canadian head offices of most of the big players in the oil and gas industry, and I thought the BP crap was just oil company business as usual. 🙂 ETA: In other words, it’s not the British that are doing bad things, it’s the oil and gas companies. ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2010, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bp-oil-spill-has-negatively-impacted-my-attitude-towards-brits/553015/36 "2010-09-08T17:17:59Z")
> [@spanna](#): > > I don’t know where you’ve been hiding but people have been saying this > > And its been a long time since it was called British Petroleum, that may have been where it started but it is now BP I honestly haven’t heard anyone saying this stuff (not that they haven’t been, but I haven’t heard it.) But certainly politicians and pundits aren’t saying it, are they? I really think they would be if it was Mexican Petroleum. They’d call the company an invading army. ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2010, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bp-oil-spill-has-negatively-impacted-my-attitude-towards-brits/553015/37 "2010-09-08T17:37:29Z")
> [@The\_Weird\_One](#): > > > [@Baron\_Greenback](#): > > > > Oddly enough, the “Shell” part of the company name goes way back to a seashell collecting business. > > Does it now? Thanks for that bit of info, I’ve long wondered why an oil company was called “Shell.” It’s a shell company. Actually they are international corporations based in England. Is Haliburton American? They are headquarted in Dubai. Many corporations are based in the Caimans. That is a ruse to escape taxes and regulation though. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2010, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bp-oil-spill-has-negatively-impacted-my-attitude-towards-brits/553015/38 "2010-09-08T18:25:37Z")
Did you even read the rest of the thread before posting? It’s only one page. ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2010, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bp-oil-spill-has-negatively-impacted-my-attitude-towards-brits/553015/39 "2010-09-09T01:26:47Z")
> [@Try2B\_Comprehensive](#): > > Yes yes… used to like to listen to the BBC off and on…Now those plummy accents themselves suggest all kinds of negative personal characteristics… Ah, but I’d suggest that those “plummy accents” can also bring you out of your Anglophobic Funk. I prescribe listening to a couple of P.G. Wodehouse audiobooks, followed by some _Blackadder_, _Beyond the Fringe_ and _Monty Python_. Then segue into Michael Palin’s travelogues, back to Fry & Laurie for _A Bit of Fry & Laurie_ and/or _Jeeves and Wooster_, and _then_ try a few hours of The Beeb. You’ll be humming “Rule Brittania”… … even as you shake your fist at BP proclaiming “Sod the buggahs!” ---
**Author:** ![Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/try2b_comprehensive/32/65_2.png) [@Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Try2B_Comprehensive)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2010, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bp-oil-spill-has-negatively-impacted-my-attitude-towards-brits/553015/40 "2010-09-09T03:38:54Z")
> [@villa](#): > > The stupidity of some Yanks has negatively impacted my attitude towards Yanks. I try not to let it overflow, given that I live amongst them, and I have wonderful friends who are Yanks, but when I see the utter retardation of some, it is hard not to let that overflow into my day to day interactions. So, you got it all figured out, and everyone else is retarded. I’d wager you are the first Brit in history to take that attitude :rolleyes: [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bp-oil-spill-has-negatively-impacted-my-attitude-towards-brits/553015.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-bp-oil-spill-has-negatively-impacted-my-attitude-towards-brits/553015.md?page=3)