Oil: A Juxtagraph

September 16, 2019 8:03 AM

In 1975, Gulf Oil held a series of seminars to educate the Nigerian public on the benefits of the crude Gulf was lifting from that nation’s Delta Region. For comic relief, out came Mr. Emmanuel Omatshola’s Magic Barrel, a magician who produced an endless bounty from a steel drum: gasoline, kerosene, insecticides, nylon socks, rubber shoes, lipstick & rouge, paint for houses, cellophane to wrap fish and meat.

[Disclosure: The author of this piece is a friend.]

posted by Sokka shot first (2 comments total)

Every year humanity uses about nine gigatons of concentrated carbon. Every year the world forms about 0.0002 gigatons of concentrated carbon.

If I were a banker, I think I'd have a problem with this balance sheet.

Beatles: Revolver
Marvin Gaye: What’s Going On
The Clash: London Calling
Carole King: Tapestry
Stevie Wonder: Innervisions
Elvis Presley
Aretha Franklin: Aretha Now
Beach Boys: Pet Sounds
Prince: Purple Rain

Good list of Best of Polyvinyl Chloride LPs. No best of Elvis? Mostly 60's pop? I think we can guess the author's D.O.B.
posted by kozad at 8:21 AM on September 16, 2019

I live and work in the Energy Capital of the World. Needless to say, I think about oil (and gas) a lot. Over the past year, I've taken a lot of steps to use less plastic and oil generally because I am haunted by the facts that this poem mentions. We are using it so quickly. What happens when it's all gone?
posted by librarylis at 10:52 AM on September 16, 2019