Category Archives: oil spill

What’s In a Name?

Oil, Coal To Get New Names
Fossil Fuel Industry Launches Major Rebranding Campaign

Oil wells are a thing of the past.

Richieville News Service – WASHINGTON, D.C. 

In a major re-branding campaign aimed at countering negative public perceptions of their products, the fossil fuel industry today announced that oil and coal would be sold under new names, ones designed to highlight their “likeability” and “friendliness.”
“Oil and coal are things of the past,” said Terry Podsnap, a spokesman for Earth.Green, a fossil fuel trade organization. “Today, let me introduce you to Ollie and Carol, your energy friends.”

In addition to being the new names for oil and coal, Ollie and Carol are also the names of characters created by the same design team that came up with Wenlock and Mandville, the mascots for the 2012 London Olympics. According to press material, Ollie and Carol live in a magic organic garden at the base of an ancient redwood tree near an unspoiled wetlands in a house powered by the wings of friendly butterflies.
The public will be introduced to Ollie and Carol over the next few weeks through  print, television and Internet advertising,  YouTube videos and  Twitter posts. They will have their own Facebook page and the Disney Channel is developing an animated Ollie and Carol television program. 

Earth.Green said it hoped the re-branding effort would go a long way to repairing the damage caused by the Gulf oil spill and the recent West Virgina mine disaster.Mountain top removal for coal mining sounds bad,” said Ms. Podsnap, “but who could be against getting Carol out from under a ton of rock? Everyone is against oil spills, but Ollie on the water sounds like fun, doesn’t it?”

The Earth.Green spokesman said if the early response to the Ollie and Carol marketing campaign was positive the trade group would move ahead with its next re-branding effort. “Say good-bye to Global Warming,” she told reporters. “And say hello to Willy Weather!”

For more Richieville humor, read the comic sci-fi novel, Rate Me Red.

Who, Us?

BP Is Satan, Say Exxon Mobil, 
Chevron, ConocoPhillips and Shell

Richieville News Service – WASHINGTON, DC
Executives from four major oil companies testifying before a Congressional committee unanimously agreed that rival British Petroleum was not only responsible for the massive Gulf Coast oil spill but is in fact the spawn of the devil, Lucifer, Beelzebub, the embodiment of true evil in the world, the Prince of Darkness and really, really bad. The Chairmen of Exxon Mobil, Chevron, ConocoPhillips and Shell made it clear, however, that their companies, the four biggest oil producers in the world, had absolutely nothing in common with British Petroleum, also known by the names the Great Serpent, Adramelech, Leviathan, Bael, Vinz Clortho and Zuul.

“We would not have drilled the well the way they did,” said Rex Tillerson, chief executive of Exxon Mobil. “That’s because we are good and BP is the Great Antichrist.”

The four executives went to great lengths to assure the lawmakers and the public that they would never, ever, do anything irresponsible in the quest for a bigger return on their investment, like say, pollute the Niger River delta in Nigeria, home to 30 million people, or Prince William Sound in Alaska, or the Atlantic, the Pacific and even the Fergana Valley in Uzbekistan. 
“We are pure of heart, our souls are immaculate and angels sing our praises,” said John Watson, Chairman of Chevron. “Trust us, we’re nothing like BP.”

For more Richieville humor, read the comic sci-fi novel, Rate Me Red.