Thomas Friedman wrote a provocative post in his NY Times column about the oil spill.  In it, he quoted a friend who wrote:

“I’d like to join in on the blame game that has come to define our
national approach to the ongoing environmental disaster in the Gulf of
Mexico. This isn’t BP’s or Transocean’s fault. It’s not the government’s
fault. It’s my fault. I’m the one to blame and I’m sorry. It’s my fault
because I haven’t digested the world’s in-your-face hints that maybe I
ought to think about the future and change the unsustainable way I live
my life. If the geopolitical, economic, and technological shifts of the
1990s didn’t do it; if the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11 didn’t do it;
if the current economic crisis didn’t do it; perhaps this oil spill will
be the catalyst for me, as a citizen, to wean myself off of my
petroleum-based lifestyle.”

Is it right for individual citizens to claim some blame for this catastrophe?  Is the public pointing too many fingers and not taking enough responsibility?