Reject BP/Arco merger
Nichols builds bridges between GSSS, LGBTU with Hewlett
Sanctions are the 21st century's weapon of mass destruction
To the Editors:
Federal regulators should block the proposed merger of BP Amoco and ARCO. The proposed merger would give one foreign, multi-national corporation control over almost 75 percent of the oil from America's Arctic, a virtual monopoly on oil from the largest field in the U. S.
BP Amoco and ARCO are the two largest oil companies in Alaska, and own 73 percent of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System (TAPS). Owners of TAPS have a competitive advantage in Alaska. Since 1990, seven of the largest oil companies in the U.S. have sold or abandoned all or part of their holdings on Alaska's North Slope. In almost every case, the property was acquired by BP or ARCO.
The new company would contribute to an excessive concentration of political power in a small number of huge oil companies. The original authors of the antitrust laws sought to avoid excessive concentrations, and as a result Standard Oil was broken up into 34 companies in 1911. If these mergers are approved, the oil industry will consist of three companies: BP Amoco, Exxon Mobil, and Shell.
The merger of BP Amoco and ARCO would also hurt consumers. Less competition means higher prices. We've already seen the price of oil jump since BP merged with Amoco and Exxon announced their plan to buy Mobil. Mergers also hurt workers. In addition to less competition, mergers also mean fewer jobs.
Before approving this merger, regulators should force BP Amoco to voluntarily cancel their drilling plans for the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.
To the Editors:
My name is Dianne M. Green and I serve as the Co-Coordinator for the Coalition for Gay/Straight Student Support in Oberlin. I would like to take this opportunity to write a letter of recommendation and commendation for Angela Nichols, Coordinator for the LGBT Community at Oberlin College.
I met Angela in September 1998 when she accepted my invitation to attend a Coalition meeting. In fact, she brought along a large number of Oberlin College students who were interested in volunteering and assisting with the Coalition's work to provide a safe space and resources for pupils at Oberlin City Schools. Angela's enthusiasm for her work, and interest in forging a strong connection between the College and City became apparent at this meeting.
Shortly after this meeting, Angela informed me about a new grant being offered at Oberlin College, the Hewlett Grant. It was designed to allow organizations without much previous interaction to "bridge" their differences and make an impact in the City and College Communities. Angela was instrumental in putting together the parties for this grant and I believe that, were it not for her diligence this opportunity would have been lost. We were awarded the grant and have begun ordering the $1,400.00 worth of educational materials, training packages, and resources which the grant affords us. Without this grant, our 1999 plans for expanding teacher's training packages, offering Community Forums, and developing "safe space" for school students would be impossible.
In her role as Coordinator of the LGBT Community, I have also seen Angela perform the very difficult job of remaining a career professional and role model, while also being attentive to the Oberlin College student's needs. Her ability to lead members of LGBTU is without question, but it is her willingness to allow autonomy and thereby empower the students which is her greatest contribution to the Multicultural Resource Center. She has been willing to forego her own self-interests in order for students to learn to design and plan programming, run programs, and to develop accountability for their actions. The publicist for the coalition, as well as the leader of the Tuesday Safe Space meetings are examples of this effort. Angela's ability to lead by example, and allow students to master their own ideas, shows her to be a fine example of a great teacher.
I feel truly fortunate to be able to work with Angela. There had been attempts in the past to forge a bond between the Coalition and LGBTU, however these were always hampered due to LGBT staff turnover and lack of LGBT Coordinator professionalism. I am very excited that Oberlin College has finally hired such an outstanding and professional person for their LGBT Community Coordinator. I look forward to a continued successful working relationship with Angela, the MRC and Oberlin College.
"They died in silence for humanity had closed its ears to their cry" - Gibran Khalil Gibran
The UN-endorsed, US-enforced sanctions against Iraq are just that, weapons of mass destruction. There are too many governmental statements that describe the toll the sanctions have had on innocent Iraqis so we will only restate a few.
"Thirty-two percent of children under five, some 960,000 children are chronically malnourished - a rise of 72 percent since 1991. Almost one quarter (23 percent) are underweight - twice as high as the levels found in neighboring Jordan or Turkey." - UNICEF, November 1997.
"Since the onset of sanctions, there has been a six-fold increase in the mortality rate for children under five and the majority of the country's population has been on a semi-starvation diet." -World Health Organization (WHO), March 1996.
"More than one million Iraqis have died - 567,000 of them children - as a direct consequence of economic sanctions . . .. As many as 12 percent of the children surveyed in Baghdad are wasted, 28 percent stunted and 29 percent underweight."-UN FAO, December 1995.
"Sanctions are inhibiting the importation of spare parts, chemicals, reagents, and the means of transportation required to provide water and sanitation services to the civilian population of Iraq .... What has become increasingly clear is that no significant movement towards food security can be achieved so long as the embargo remains in place. All vital contributors to food availability - agricultural production, importation of foodstuffs, economic stability and income generation, are dependent on Iraq's ability to purchase and import those items vital to the survival of the civilian population." - UNICEF, 1995
Our government is fully aware of these facts, but actively chooses to shirk the responsibility for the generational genocide of the Iraqi people. They blame Saddam Hussien for all the disastrous consequences of the sanctions. Rather convenient isn't it? We all know that Saddam and his clique are eating "high on the hog" at the expense of the Iraqi people. Most likely, Saddam is doing so deliberately to generate support for the lifting of the sanctions, but does this justify our complicity in mass murder? Our government makes a habit of reminding the world that Saddam does not care about his own people, but should we be just as heartless? Should we allow our government to stoop to his level and assist him in killing an entire generation of Iraqis? Have we, as Americans, closed ours ears to their cry? Has humanity closed its ears as well? For all our sakes, we sincerely hope not.
Copyright © 1999, The Oberlin Review.
Volume 127, Number 19, April 9, 1999
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