What they DIDN'T Ask BP

Hubby and I watched most of the many grueling hours of testimony as BP CEO Tony Hayward faced down our so-called fierce guardians in the House of Representatives.

It was pretty much a farce, as each legislator got their three minutes in front of the camera, to impress the folks back home. Mostly, they went over and over the same territory, and mostly, Hayward stone-walled them.

Here's the questions I would have asked-which were not asked:

1. Considering the huge volume of explosive methane gas in this well - which made it explode in the first place - is it REALLY a good idea to drill two more "relief" wells into the same explosive stew? Is BP absolutely certain that these relief wells will do the trick - is there even a 1-percent chance that THEY might also explode, leaving us with three huge leaks?

2. Has the Mineral Management Service (MMS) in charge of inspecting these wells, sent squads of people to BP's other rigs, anywhere within 1,000 miles of American shores, to see what the heck might be going on there? Are we assured that BP is working safely on these other rigs? Hayward said there were "hundreds" in the Gulf region alone!

3. If this well was capable of producing 60,000 barrels (43 gallons in each barrel) of oil a day, why were they shutting it down by filling it with mud when it blew? Hadn't they just tapped into the motherload of profits? Did they know they had an uncontrollable "tiger by the tail?" And does that happen often?

We've all worked in companies where the "CEO" is the least informed, least competent person on the payroll - why waste time with Tony Hayward (now being replaced) - why not ask questions that might actually matter a month or so from now?