Paying the Price

It has been months since the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, but many people are still feeling the effects of that devastating gulf gusher.

Many of the independent owners of BP gas stations are still reeling from the disaster. Although they had no part in the actions that caused the spill, they are dealing with large dips in sales, which in many cases equates to problems maintaining middle-class lifestyles.

As someone who was raised by self-employed people, I cannot help but be upset for these small business owners. I know how hard it was for my mom when our local convenience store was struggling, and the idea that innocent people are suffering because of bad calls made at a corporate level is infuriating.

In an article written by John Collins Rudolf in the New York Times about the station owners' struggles, single, independent BP store owner Jayendra Patel described that his sales have fallen to almost 50 percent of what they were before the spill.

Although it is the people's right to decide where they want to spend their money, BP should support the owners of its independently branded stores so that people such as Mr. Patel may not worry about having to lose their livelihood because of something that was out of their hands.