The recent Associated Press interview “ExxonMobil CEO: Arctic exploration is worth the risk” (April 2) is outrageous. What “softball” questions! They are setups for oil industry talking points about the virtues of getting oil in the Arctic oceans.

How is it possible to publish an interview on this subject without a word about climate disruption? Does the oil industry “own” our major media outlets? Shame on the AP.

The focus is exclusively on oil spills. The potential for catastrophic spills is high. A recent environmental impact study done for the U.S. Department of Interior concludes there is a 75 percent probability of a major oil spill associated with drilling for oil in the Arctic seas.

Whoa! If you knew your behavior translated to a 75 percent chance of getting cancer, you would stop doing what is causing the risk. It is folly to drill for oil in the Arctic oceans.

The biggest issue is climate disruption. Global heating is leading toward unimaginable suffering, both for humans and others. The major cause is burning fossil fuels.

It is imperative to diminish the use of fossil fuels as rapidly as possible, via a combination of voluntary and regulatory actions (including a global carbon tax). The Arctic oceans are the most vulnerable environment on the globe for oil drilling – a place we should never develop.

Eastern North America just experienced a brutal winter. Paradoxically, this is an indicator of climate disruption. It does not indicate that global heating is slowing down.

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (www.noaa.gov) data from this winter clearly shows that while it was colder than normal in our part of the world, just about everywhere else on the globe was warmer than usual (compared to the last 30-year average).

Let’s use our common sense and act responsibly in all we do. Choose life.

Steve Weems

Brunswick

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