Dividends

It's all fine and good to blame BP for the Gulf oil spill.  They are taking responsibility, so why not let them do their best to clean up the mess and pay the valid claims?  No, we have to meddle and coerce them not to pay their shareholders their dividend even though BP claims to have enough money anyway:

The company’s $10.5 billion annual dividend has become a point of contention as President Obama has said BP should not be paying stockholders when fishermen, oil workers and small-business owners are saying they cannot get the company to pay their loss claims from the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. (NYT, June 14, 2010)

And the company, Transocean LTD (RIG),  that was operating the drilling rig? We'll see.

BP Gulf of Mexico Response page.