Mining Jobs

We humans are a short sighted bunch. Whether its cheeseburger's and flavored sugar water, the last tree on Easter Island, or the very life of the planet, we live for the most part, strictly in the moment. If we could just raise our heads from the immediate and contemplate the horizon for just a few moments, our destructive behavior would become clear and common sense would prevail.

Therein lies the problem. First one must raise the head toward the horizon. If we are focused on the task at hand, and that task is say, earning a living to support one's family, raising the head becomes problematic for many of us.

Suppose that the job one has is the only kind available in the area in which one dwells? That due to geography, education, or other constraints, job prospects are diminishingly small? Mix with this some portion of fear. Not just of losing one's means of supporting the family, but the fear of not being of utility to society. And, the general fear of humankind of the unknown.

Now let us add the company. Let's say it's a longwall coal mining company. If they tell us that they are on our side, that we matter to them, that our job matters to them, that this really is one of the few jobs available to support one's family, does that encourage one to stay a little more focused? Of course.

Is it possible that, given the above, we might not pay so much attention to the fact that somewhere down the road the coal will all be mined and the job will also end? Could we skip over the fact that there are fewer and fewer of these type jobs due to advances in technology? That the company, with a huge capital investment in the enterprise, might exaggerate some on our value to them? How valuable they are to us?

Let's raise our head's for a minute here. The enterprise is about profit. It is not about jobs, or people. Since technology eliminates jobs, why would the company add it if jobs were the important issue? We matter only to the extent that we will risk our lives to accomplish the goal of the enterprise. Profit. If the job can be eliminated, there is increased profit. Given that, our job will end as quickly as they can manage.

Hopefully, we can, after a quick glimpse of the horizon, refocus. Only now, rather than focusing on where we are told to focus, we can begin to focus where it is most needed. The future of our children, theirs and many, many more are at stake.

The coal companies are lying to us all. Climate Change is real. It is killing us. Coal from it's discovery onward is responsible for the largest part of that act. What is important is profit. They are lying about jobs.

Lying for Coal

Lying for coal would fit above most any post written about the coal industry, either pro or con. Clean coal? Pizarchik, law enforcement? Coal jobs? We've seen them so many times, that some are inclined to take them as truth. Of course, they're not. They are all lies perpetrated upon the public by those who would destroy homes, creeks, and the planet at large, for profit.

Longwall mining is, from beginning to end, a very large and very dangerous set of lies. The first is that it must be done in the name of the country's need. In reality, the coal is being shipped to China.

The next lie concerns the mitigation of the damage that will be done by the mining itself. Will? Will. They buy insurance for that specific purpose if there is no need? Duke Lake was destroyed by the longwall mining operation of Consol Energy. There has been no attempt by Consol to build a new dam and replace the lake. Farmers have lost their water, and so their livelihood. Does anyone believe for a moment that those farmers will ever be made whole? Homes, some historic, have been reduced to rubble by mining that goes directly below them. None of those homes has been restored to their previous condition.

This one is very simple. There is not now, nor will there be by the time coal ceases to be used, any such thing as clean coal. That is a lie.

The land will be restored, as soon as it is first destroyed. The reclamation of the property destroyed is as laughable as clean coal. Part of the process of mining is the release of arsenic and mercury. After grading it flat, the industry says it has been reclaimed. That is a lie. Land that has been taken from a pristine state and polluted with dangerous materials,is not usable for anything.

Lying for coal is the norm. What seems to be lost on the longwall, and the mountain top destruction folks as well, is that a goodly amount of their handiwork is available for all to see. A quick trip to Google or YouTube, will bring before the viewer, these and other lies in abundance.

Follow the Money

Follow the money. Rather like have a nice day, it is said often, and means about as much. How else to explain why it appears in so many venues, so often and gets such little response? Does it not suggest that we are talking about accountability? That we are talking about someones credibility?

There are a lot of politicians and appointees in the states of W. Virginia, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Montana. Yet there are not many continuing articles written about the money that flows quite freely from Consol, Peabody and the rest of the longwall mining criminals, to those politicians and agencies we the citizenry have charged with protecting the common good.

If creeks are still disappearing or polluted to extinction, homes collapsing, and peoples lives being destroyed after all these years of longwall and mountain top destruction mining, doesn't that suggest collusion? Doesn't that suggest that those in whom we have placed our trust have sold us out not once, but thousands of times in countless ways?

Joseph Pizarchik is the pimple on the end of the nose of longwall mining. With enough pancake makeup he appears as just part of the bland face that is presented as the agreeable head to the Office of Surface Mining, Reclamation and Enforcement, (OSMRE). Like Clean Coal, he is an illusion.

There is the possibility of a lawsuit concerning Mr. Pizarchik in the near future. This would be the makeup remover exposing the pimple, connecting it directly to the criminal enterprise that is longwall mining. This is where follow the money becomes meaningful. Meaningful because it is this money, which is buying longwall mining the ability to destroy the planet.

Your house, or mine?

Your house, or mine? Depending upon the situation and setting, that could be a reasonable question. In the setting in which I am going to apply it, it's not.

We are all aware of the destruction that longwall mining causes. Not to mention it's cousin, mountain top destruction. But, it seems to me that its always about someone else's home. A house in another locale. People that we don't know lived, or used to live there.

But, supposing that this were not the case. Let us suppose that the question posed were to be applied to the reader and an exec for one of the planet killing companies. Just as a refresher, that would be Consol, Massey, Peabody or one of their ilk. Do you believe for one moment that there would be any real question at all? Can you imagine that one of those bloated, soulless individuals would say something like, "no problem, I'll take the hit?"

As long as its someone else's house, as long as it doesn't materially affect them, they really have no interest whatsoever. So, you're house or mine, would/could never come up. There is too much money and power involved not to destroy your/my house. There is also too much money and power for their's to ever be in jeopardy.

Mining Thugs and Hearings

What do you call hearings meant to address an important issue, where one side is allowed to speak while the other is intimidated by thugs and the police? Where even the press is not present to hold participants to account for their actions...or, inactions? I don't know either. But, it is certainly happening.

Knowing that this is the scenario that will take place at other hearings, what should be the strategy of those left out of the hearing? We know that the other side is going to use intimidation. The police are going to use the excuse that they are overwhelmed and cannot protect those in the minority.The moderators are impotent. And, the coal exec's are as involved in the thuggery as the goons outside the hearings.

Thugs are cowards. They, like cockroaches, don't want light shined upon them. The police certainly don't want any bad publicity either. Lest they be held responsible for not doing their jobs. The coal exec's? They really don't care. They have a lot of money to make sue their message gets out.

The first thing that comes to mind is cell phones. Twitter was used by those involved in Iraq during the demonstrations against the government. Video clips of any interaction with the thugs or the police should be taken and uploaded to YouTube.

If this is the type behavior we are to expect, then planning by those familiar with the legal system would be prudent. It is to be expected that the coal types have attorneys if not seated at the table, then certainly very nearby. It might behoove those involved to have an attorney present at any hearing. Perhaps the ACLU could lend a hand and have someone at each hearing?

Further ahead, I have a growing concern for those in less densely populated areas. If the longwall and mountain top destruction mining companies can pull off a one sided show in places like West Virginia, where there are more people. What chance do the folks in Wyoming and Montana have of standing against these criminals?

A Way of Life

Of the attention paid to the longwall mining in the US, most of it, and rightfully so, is paid to the man-made disaster that has become the daily routine for those living in West Virginia and Pennsylvania. However, these folks are not alone in fighting this insanity.

In eastern Montana, near the small town of Roundup, there is a looming mining disaster on the way. The sentinel's for the area are two families. They have lived in this place for decades, and are the last of those remaining who eked out a living raising cattle in an unforgiving land.

They will fight. They will fight for all they are worth. They will fight to continue making a living the way they have for these many years. They hope that their in-town neighbors will join them in the fight against this danger to their way of life. They may. They are folks known to have strong feelings about outsiders coming in and changing things. Or, they may not.

Yes, indeed they will fight. But, there are few to carry the message from this place. There is likely to be little written of the battles fought and the crimes committed against these people. As I said, there are only two families remaining. And, as we all know all to well, the mining industry cares nothing for people, animals or the planet at large. They will destroy whatever is in their path. In this case, it will be a way of life.

Here at this blog, I will attempt to chronicle the fight and it's outcome. My fervent hope is that they will somehow survive the onslaught of dirty coal and it's killing legacy. But, with railroad tracks and cars already in place, and trenches for the tracks of the longwall mining machine being cleared, it will likely be a very, very long fight. I am hopeful that their way of life remains intact when the fight over.

George Ellis, Mining Clown

George Ellis, mining clown, is the president of the Pennsylvania Coal Association. In this capacity, it is his charge to do whatever is necessary to make coal look good. Whatever is necessary includes clouding the water about global warming.

Out loud and in public, George exposed his brain for all to see, or rather, hear. This comment, "I don't think there is a scientific consensus on climate change" was if not the most, then certainly close to being, the most revealing he has made lately.

Whether he is able to think or not, there is indeed scientific consensus on climate change. Those who signed the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) represent climate scientists from around the globe. They believe there is enough information available that the world should be told that there is in fact a problem. Those arrayed against this information, the non-climate scientist part of the population, think otherwise..

What George Ellis knows about coal is hard to say. Whether he knows that mercury and arsenic are part and parcel of the coal operation is hard to discern. Or, whether he knows that the algae that killed the organisms in Dunkard Creek were very likely caused by the chloride dumping from a Consol Energy plant, I can't tell. But, what he knows about climate change is obvious to all. Because he took the time to tell us.

It's the job of George Ellis, mining clown, to whine and complain about anything that would restrict in any way, longwall mining or mountain top destruction. But, with the nonsense that pours from his mouth, he certainly can't be trusted or taken seriously. Except in this regard. Whatever he says, you can bet that reality is just the opposite.

Longwall Mining Struggle

This post is in direct response to a comment Steve made to my "Common Sense is not Common" post. He wondered how it was that our Federal/State Agencies, created to protect us from Environmental degradation, had become our enemy. And, more importantly, what we could do about it.

The first part is pretty simple. Those with money have access, those of us without, don't. People in Federal/State, or whatever type of government, act generally on the information they have at hand. If one point of view is all that gets through to them, that is likely to be the way their decisions are skewed.

There is a long term struggle going on in the world of longwall mining. The industry is on one side. Their primary purpose is to get coal out of the ground as cheaply as possible and get it to market. Since they are beholden to their stockholder's, they are bottom line driven.

On the other side are those of us called, for the sake of brevity, environmentalists. Our side of the struggle concerns our homes, our water, the organisms that populate our local environment, followed naturally by our global environment.

Those in the longwall mining camp have very deep pockets and are quite adept at buying influence no matter the political Party. Therefore, they have access to those who make the decisions in government.

Those of us arrayed on the other side generally speaking do not have a lot of money and are splintered, so that although we may be fighting like hell, we have no access. And, our outcries to those in power seem like simply a few disgruntled crazies.

There are however, ways of shining a very bright light on things of import. In this case, I will use a recent action by the nonprofit organization, Citizens Coal Council. They have issued a letter of intent to sue the Department of the Interior for failing to enforce the laws they have been charged with upholding.

Two large issues are brought into the light with this action. First, the obvious, Interior hasn't been doing the job for which they are responsible. The other is to expose the cockroaches in the room. Specifically, Joseph Pizarchik, the coal industry shill who has been nominated to oversee the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement. Since we know that Joe is in the pocket of industry, the way to force those deciding his fate in government to do their due diligence is to place his malfeasance squarely in front of them, and us.

This struggle, any struggle, generally has a host of skirmishes before the thing is settled. This is a skirmish. If we win, that is a good thing for us and the world writ large. If we lose, we move on to the next skirmish and continue the struggle. That Steve, is what we do about the government not doing what it is we elect them to do. We continue to fight.

Longwall Mining's Joseph Pizarchik

With all of the lying done in the name of mining, specifically longwall and mountain top destruction, it seems only appropriate that the industry would favor someone like Mr. Pizarchik as their Federal Government guy.

Joseph Pizarchik has been nominated to be the head of the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSMRE). He has for many years been part and parcel of the problems we are now dealing with in the mining fields of southwestern Pennsylvania.

Joe (let's call him Joe) was head of Pennsylvania's Bureau of Mining and Reclamation. As head of such, he allowed mining companies to dump their coal ash, containing such yummy delights as mercury and arsenic. And, views it today as an "insignificant" problem.

As a bought and paid for shill for the longwall coal mining industry, Mr. Pizarchik has great standing. But, as a representative of the people of the United States with duty of oversight and enforcement of the mining laws of the nation? Not even in the worst possible scenario.

Foisting this unsavory character onto the nation would be akin to hiring Al Capone as head of the ATF. This guy should get about a 5 minute hearing and then be promptly arrested and jailed for his complicity in water theft, home invasion and destruction and the absolute ruin he has caused the people of Pennsylvania.

Soulless/Consol Energy

It's difficult be believe that anyone could be as morally bankrupt as Brett Harvey, CEO of Consol Energy. Someone who stood before his fellow human beings and claimed that his company was not responsible for killing the organisms in Dunkard Creek. But rather that it was the algae and not the pollutants that his company dumped in the creek.

The algae wouldn't be there without the pollutants being there first. Mr. Harvey knows that. Anyone at all remotely knowledgeable of the character of longwall mining and it's sorry trail, knows that. But, Mr. Harvey stands before us and claims that its the fault of the algae. That he and his death machine called Consol Energy, are blameless for the tragedy that has befallen Dunkard Creek.

Longwall mining is an unmitigated disaster. It has knowingly caused death and ruin in every place that it has been employed to destabilize the natural carbon sink, coal. And, with soulless brutes such as Mr. Harvey leading them, it's not hard to figure out why.

Yes, Mr. Harvey, the algae bloom killed all of the living things in Dunkdard Creek. But, the pollutants brought into that place are the responsibility of Consol Energy. Not hunters or fisherman. Consol Energy. And, anyone who could buy the load of garbage you tried to foist on people, likely lacks the ability to reason. Or, is as soulless as you are.

One Anti-Longwalling Tent

In my last post, I said that the ranchers and small town folks are fighting a losing battle against the large mining operations. Are those people fighting the Consols of the world? Of course. In fact, they have been fighting for years and years.



For the most part though, they fight as individuals. They can fight for a short time, 5-10 years perhaps, but they are finally beaten by virtue of longevity. The large mining operations have very deep pockets. As well as Congressmen, and state Environmental Agencies. You might win. But, the odds are vanishingly small.



However, we may begin to see something a little bit different coming down the road. Bud Shields of Harrison, Arkansas brought this item to my attention. In Madison County, Illinois, a resolution was passed that states that they are against any longwall mining. Will it make any difference? Can't say for sure at this moment. One rural county may not have much more sway with those folks as an individual.



But, suppose several rural counties were to decide to pass resolutions? That would bring a great deal more light to bear on this fight. Together, they could begin to file suits against the longwall mining operations and force them to slow and perhaps stop this destruction of the planet.



There are individuals fighting this fight in Pennsylvania and West Virginia. In Wyoming and Montana. They are for the most part quite separated by their rural locations. It seems to me that what is needed is to bring all of these folks into one anti-longwalling tent. Connect all of these people, and counties, into a single group and suddenly you have more of a chance of getting the ear of both the Legislators/Agencies and the energy companies.

Common Sense is not Common

Those who oppose mining, mountain top destruction, longwall or any other kind, are on the losing side. Wonder why that might be? Me too. How can something so catastrophic to human life not be seen by any and everyone as something that should be stopped?

Marie's (Mother) favorite saying to me as a kid, besides, "Stop that!!" was, "Common Sense is not common," taken from Mr. Voltaire. Therein, it seems to me, lies the problem. Folks who run mining operations are not thinking in the same way as most of us. The things that seem important to them are far, far removed from those things the rest of us consider to be important.

Profits. It is the all pervasive thinking of people in mining. It has nothing to do with anything else. They will do whatever they deem necessary to get the coal so as to make a profit. Destruction of peoples homes, farms and ranches through the use of mountain top destruction and longwall mining is a small price to pay for coal/profit.

That what they do is in fact destroying peoples lives and livelihood is of the same importance as flies in the dining facility. Both should be removed as quickly and with as little fanfare as possible, so as to continue the operation at hand.

It is indeed a pity that Common Sense is not Common. And, among those who seem to be the least capable of understanding that, are the coal mining companies who are doing the most damage to the people and planet.