In soccer it’s called an “own goal”—a player mistakenly kicks the ball into his own net, scoring one for the opposition.  There were a couple of own goals scored this month during the World Cup in South Africa, but none was bigger than the one committed here in the United States.

“Without question, there is going to be a blistering, scalding indictment of the practices the industry engaged in,” thundered Rep. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) in response to the headline-grabbing accident that dominated daily news coverage. No, not the Upper Big Branch mine accident; that was the subject of last week’s indictment. Markey was shaking his rhetorical fist at the oil industry for the BP spill.