NickLawFilmAnnotations10

Nicholas Lawrence Black Wave
 * 1) 1. Black Wave, Robert Cornellier, 2008


 * 1) 2. The film analyzes the legacy of the Exxon-Valdez spill. It takes a look at the response by Exxon and long term effects of the spill on the surrounding wildlife.


 * 1) 3. The overall argument of the film is that a spill was just waiting to happen due to neglect in maintenance and lack of response equipment. Exxon promised many things to ensure the surrounding communities safety but didn’t carry through on any of them. Today, 20 years later oil is still everywhere on Point Sound.


 * 1) 4. Environmental, risk-analysis, corporate responsibility and precautionary principle.


 * 1) 5. What I found rather compelling was the video of the town meeting with the Exxon Mobil spokesperson. Pretty much everything he said is lie. It’s very clear that, excuse my language, he was full of shit. Every statement he said turned out to be pretty much false. Basically Exxon Mobil is so rich and powerful that think they can get away with anything. And they did. Another thing I found rather compelling was the video footage of all the cleanup workers coughing. Just seeing them in their oiled covered jackets in the damp compartment of a ship coughing just gives a very clear unhealthy feeling.


 * 1) 6. One thing I wasn’t convinced by was the townspeople trying to gain compensation. They have a very solid case; Exxon is clearly at fault. Yet getting compensation from corporations, especially one as large and powerful as ExxonMobil, is near impossible. They have just tons of money and people to throw at the problem to forestall any actual action.


 * 1) 7. The groups of people who are addressed by this film are: fishermen, Alaskans, Americans in general, anyone who uses oil, seaports that service oil tankers and coastal communities along shipping routes.


 * 1) 8. The environmental effects of this spill can clearly be seen to be negative. The film showed several images of dead animals covered in oil along with a several statistics about all the known animals that dies due to the disaster. Like 22 killer whales were killed by the disaster. Also many images of just oiled covered rocks and beaches were shown. Lastly, some beaches shown looked clean, but if you dig down about a foot or soil you can just find a layer of oil.


 * 1) 9. The problem here is holding corporations responsible and instilling corporate social responsibility in corporations. These are two very tough issues to tackle, especially as an individual. There are few courses of actions I can think of for an individual to take. Try using less oil. Avoid ExxonMobil gas stations. Protest oil companies. Beyond that there is little any one person can do.