Chevron’s Current Approach in Ecuador – Using RICO To Destroy Its Victims
I’ve mentioned several times over the past few years that, though I don’t normally bet against my own longevity, I sincerely doubt that I’ll still be on this planet when Chevron pays a nickel of the $9.8 billion judgment against it, even though the order was upheld in an appellate court, as restitution for the vicious crimes it committed against the people of Ecuador.
Chevron’s current tack? Blame the victims? No, it’s more like annihilate the victims, using the RICO (Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations) Act, enacted in 1970 to go after “the mob.” As viewers will see in this extremely clever and powerful cartoon video, Chevron has focused its legal muscle on using RICO to crush the victims, the scientists who wrote the reports, the journalists who covered the story, and the activists advocating for justice in the case.
I believe that Chevron shareholders generally are not despicable people, and thus I have to think they’re unaware of what’s happening here. I write this in the hopes that a few of them will see it, and tell Chevron senior management that this behavior will not be tolerated in the company they own.