A bedrock question for deepwater drilling off the US is whether the Macondo well would have blown out if a different company had been operator. While still incomplete, an answer is coming into focus. It is not flattering to BP.Facts have been elusive amid the uproar under way since the Apr. 20 explosion and fire aboard the Transocean Deepwater Horizon semisubmersible off Louisiana. To a public outraged by deaths on the rig and a monstrous spill, BP is a villain. To a government under pressure to show resolve, it is a whipping post and source of cash. The company has acknowledged its responsibilities and committed huge resources to killing the well, mitigating the spill, and compensating s...