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Inheriting it, no.
-Keeping- it, while deriving profits from it and doing nothing to at least attempt to stop these depradations? Keeping it while Occidental was doing those things? As I said, I'm more than willing to allow Mr Gore to plead ignorance. Given the things he's forgotten over the years, I find it somewhat believable. But barring that sort of total pig-ignorance (inexcusable on the part of a person holding stock in a company in that kind of industrry), hanging on to that sort of stock is like trading in blood diamonds. Perhaps I have a problem seeing such atrocities as an issue of scale; part of the difficulty with being what I describe as a charitable individualist is that you eventually come to see every tragedy in very individual, visceral terms. I have a truly difficult time seing much difference between The Somme, Cambodia, Liberia, and Amazon oil-piracy; the human tragedy on the -individual- level is still the same. People lose their families, their friends, their homelands, their balls and intestines and unborn children, and then swear vengeance and are either annihilated or begin the killing all over again. What else has the 20th Century shown us? This is why I believe that the only circumstance under which it is acceptable to use force is if aggressed upon: because once force is used you may have to take it to some truly aweful places, and if you don't you may not make it out the other side: it is only when someone initiates the use of force that they forfeit their absolute right to self-defense. On an -individual- level, the level of God-given, individual, unalienable and inviolate Rights, all atrocities are the same: the innocent die. I'm an historian by training, I can count casualties as well as anyone. But under every single last number in those long, long lists was an individual human being. And to -them-, none of this arguing over who was worse matters.
I'm unaware that Mr. Gore has ever divested himselfof his stock in Occidental. I will research further, and would appreciate your help in this matter. I doubt I'll ever have a terribly good opinion of Mr. Gore, but I like to think he best of people that I can, and I should like to be able to think a little better of him if possible.
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