"We can't live without it."

Congressman Rahall of West Virginia says "... we are talking about the economic security of the nation." Brett Harvey, CEO of CONSOL Energy says, "This is red, white and blue energy." Senator Rockefeller of W. Virginia states, "...needs to be responsible mountain top removal." And, that "we can't live without it."

What is this collection of statements all about? Why, coal, of course. Hmmmmm. The economic security of the nation? Which nation? Where? It certainly isn't the United States. Politicians are prone to overstating, but the economic security of the nation? Hyperbole, much?

Red, white and blue energy? We will look a long time for that one. It turns out of course, that Mr. Harvey is talking about coal. You know. That black, carbon based stuff laced with mercury, cadmium and arsenic that is poisoning all living creatures on the planet...including humans. Color blind? Drugs? Hard to say. But, red, white and blue is most definitely is not.

Responsible mountain top removal? Just exactly, would that look like? Lifting it gently from it's base, removing the coal from within, then replacing it, ever so carefully back into place? This is certainly someone who is delusional. Or, has no clue whatsoever what mountain top removal looks like.

"We can't exist without it." Air? Water? No, planet killing coal. This is someone who has a very deep, dark problem. Very intensive counseling? Or, perhaps long term hospitalization? Unfortunately, this is a civic leader. Someone sworn to look after the larger issues of the people.

A recent Environmental Protection Agency study finds that roughly 49% of the lakes and reservoirs in the United States have game fish carrying mercury. Burning coal give us about half of the mercury emissions caused by human activity in the United States.

That doesn't sound like economic security to me. Neither does it seem like red, white and blue energy. And, it certainly does not seem like something that I can't live without. In fact. It seems to me that coal mining is as near to a criminal enterprise as anything that exists in society today. If the killing of mankind is not criminal, what then?

It is long since time to stop allowing these people to go about their business as if all was well with the world. These people are poisoning the planet. They must be called out in the loudest and harshest of voice.