Climate Ground Zero Meets with Governor Manchin
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: 304-854-7372, news@climategroundzero
Note: For more info, see:www.climategroundzero.org, www.mountainjustice.org
January 28, 2010
CHARLESTON, WV – Responding to national pressure over the treatment of tree sitters on Coal River Mountain, West Virginia Governor Joe Manchin asked Climate Ground Zero for an emergency meeting. This morning Roland Micklem, 81, and other group members told the Governor that the civil-disobedience campaign won’t stop until mountaintop removal does. They reminded the governor that the campaign is strictly non-violent, and asked the governor to protect activists from threats of violence by Massey Energy and other coal companies.
“The governor attempted to steer the conversation away from the more massive crime of MTR,” said Micklem. “We are here to oppose mountaintop removal mining, which is a crime. Massey Energy has committed any number of illegalities. We will continue non-violent civil disobedience in order to stop it.”
Today is the eighth day that Eric Blevins, 28, and Amber Nitchman, 19, continue to peacefully occupy trees to prevent blasting near Massey Energy’s Bee Tree strip mine on Coal River Mountain. They are preventing Massey from blasting near a sludge dam that endangers downstream communities.
The sitters have faced constant harassment from Massey Security in the form of air horns, bright lights and violent threats. The meeting resulted in a temporary moratorium on the use of the air horns and flood lights, but the sitters remain worried about the possibility of other, more dangerous, methods of harassment.
Governor Manchin recently came out against violence between the opponents and proponents of mountaintop removal mining after a meeting with coalfield residents about the effects of that type of mining.
In response to news of the harassment, hundreds of people from all over the country called Massey Energy, and then Governor Manchin to express their displeasure with his continued support of mountaintop removal mining, and to pressure him to stop the auditory abuse of the tree sitters. “The massive call-ins to the Governor and Massey Energy this week came from all over the country; mountaintop removal is a national issue with national consequences – the coal companies cannot continue to treat central Appalachia like their own personal playground,” said David Aaron Smith, one of the sitters who had to come down Monday.
Today Manchin stated: “Even if we disagree, I believe we can walk away respecting each other but everyone—including activists and property owners—must do so within the letter of the law.” Activists acknowledge that they are taking part in civil disobedience in response to legal violations committed by mining companies. In the debate with Robert Kennedy Jr last week, Massey CEO Don Blankenship said “I doubt it’s possible [to do mountaintop removal] without having a single violation at a single time.”
Stop lieing to these people!!! They are still blasting!!! They are blasting in #1 boxcut which is actually closer to the dam. The dam is safe, we have monitors and seismographs on it to ensure we don’t put off to big of shots! It’s not possible to do any type of mining without having some type of violation with how stringent the laws have become! Look at it back in the day, they released RED water, high iron content all the time. They didn’t have sediment ponds or flocculants to make the stuff in the water sink to the bottom of a pond. The flood lights are used not only to watch what the tree huggers are doing of the night time, but also prevent them from getting resupplied so they will come down. Not to mention that it is also a source of a little bit of heat for these stupid fucks.
You’ll never leave brushy alive…..you sound like a real winner……..NOT!! Get a conscious. Quit being a puppet of Massey Coal. Don Blankenship wouldn’t spit on you or any of your fellow miners if you were on fire. When the coal is gone so will he and so will our mountains. What are you going to do then? Let us taxpayers support you? Yeah, that is what I thought.
YNLBA – Now that the horns are off you should go talk to the tree sitters and start working on some ideas for what to do instead of strip mining. They are committed to stopping mountaintop removal, and working to ensure that there is a transition for those that depend on it for income. That said, we’d love to see more initiative from strip miners on this. Some treehuggers will tell me y’all are a lost cause in this respect (imagining things to do for a living other than destroying the land we all share), but I’m holding out some hope.
LOL… Like you actually fuckin work!!! I find that funny!!! Like the “activists” in the coal river valley I gaurantee that the only work you do is artistic work for the state or federal government drawing checks. Coal will still be here when I am dead and gone, unlike the 20 years that you all predict! The Rowland reserves in raleigh county alone have 30 years!! As a matter of fact, since your such a motherfucker I have a few questions for you… What state do you live in? What is your electricity generated from (and don’t give us a bullshit lie), what kinda of car do you drive, and does it have metal in it? Actually, my biggest question is do you own anything metal??? If so, I thank you for supporting MTR and WV coal! So FUCK YOU and have a nice day!
Oh yeah, and I hope these stupid fucks freeze to death tonight!
Why in the world would the governor grant a meeting with this group,C G Z? I was under the impression they ( C G Z ) have nothing to do with the tree sit or any other protest, after all they,( C G Z ) have denied any culpability in the matter.
Dear “you’ll never leave brusy alive”. Yes, I do work. In fact I work two jobs. I am a registerd nurse and hold down a full time job in a civilian status and I’ ve served my country for 20+ years. OMG….I bet that just ruined your day. My husband and I do use electricity but we are in the process of putting in solar energy. We grow 90% of our own food. We make diesel fuel for our truck from recycled vegetable oil. We recycle everything we can. Now, let me ask you a question. What do you do to make this world a BETTER place? I can tell you are a very passionate person but your passion is misdirected. Stop and think about what you are supporting. A company that chooses to destroy our mountains by blowing them apart. This allows them to hire less people so they can make more money. The company is not even from WV. A company that if you get hurt while working for them will try to find every way possible to fire you. (I know this because it happened to a hard working good friend of mine). I was born and raised here. I love these mountains. I physically hurts me to see what is happening. I will do whatever I need to do to stop it. You have a nice day also.
EM, I am glad that you recycle everything possible, I am glad you grow 90% of what you eat, so do I on my parents farm and I try to be respectful to you and others on here but there are two views to this situation that is going on. What about the vendors the depend on coal for a job, whatabout the WALKER MACHINERY’S, RISH EQUIPMENT, DELTA ELECTRIC, STATE ELECTRIC AND ALOT MORE, that depend on coal to make a living? Whether is be surface, underground, strip or deep mining.
You see my husband works for Walker Machinery, he has been there for 8 going on 9 years and it’s given us a good life thus far, but since these wonderful tree huggers have started running their mouths, his hours has been cut back, his Saturday has been taken away from him. EM my husband doesn’t work for Don Blankenship, he works for Walker and his job is on the line like everyone else’s is around here. While I do think that we can do better with coal, yes I do, but there are jobs on the line, people losing everything they have worked for and it’s not fair to these guys.
Where were the tree huggers years ago? Mountaintop removal has been going on for years, why didn’t they stand up and open their mouths when Massey first blasted the hill off? Why didn’t they try to run Don Blankenship off when he came in here? The union could have did alittle more than what they did, so you see I don’t agree with everything Don Blankenship does, but I do give him credit for the debate again Mr. Kennedy he was the only one who had the guts to stand up against him. Don Blankenship was the only one who paid his workers a days pay to come over and stand against you guys when you had your little meeting at the Municipal Auditorium in Charleston. Once, again let me make myself clear, I don’t agree with what Don Blankenship does, and I do think he is no better than Cecil Roberts either one is without blame, so why don’t you guys blast the Union Mines also while your at it.
What about these guys are made to go back and reclaim the mines? Yes they do reclaim I can personally take you to a place and show you that. I am very passionate about what I have and thank my Lord and Savior for it every day, but what makes you think these mines employe such a small number, your wrong on that sister! Do you think these “beautiful” windmill farms are going to have more men working for them? No their not. You see now, there are more men and women working for these mines now than what they were years ago. And I can give you the facts on that too. My dad was an underground miner at Easter Assoicaiated Coal Company and his crew had only 7 or 8 men that went in underground with him each morning now ask Progress Miner how many men work with him each morning or night when he clocks in.
I love my home, matter of fact there are Mountains all around my parents farm and I am proud to call that place mine but I also know that my husbands job and our future depends on coal so you see EM I am passionate about things as you are and see things differently than you do.
I am thankful for your service to our country the same as I was about my grandfathers service also. I am also glad your a registered nurse but if the shoe was on the other foot and yoru husbands or your job depended on coal wouldn’t your views be different?
Thank you Raychel. That was an incredibly thoughtful post that I don’t see much on these comment forums. I do appreciate that input, though I don’t necessarily agree entirely. Dialogue is key here, and hateful incoherent posts don’t encourage that.
Frankly, if I had a family to support I might not act exactly as I do. However, no one person or their livelihood is more important than the mountains. Maybe you think my heart is in the wrong place, but the environment is much bigger than any of us.
I would love to see a world where no one’s livelihood depends on coal. That is the reason that the majority of the work I do in the Coal River Valley is to promote non coal-based businesses, community health, etc. At the same time I do participate in and promote direct action as part of the larger campaign against Mountaintop Removal coal mining.
Anyway, thanks again for your thoughtful comment. I hope to see more of them.
Mo,
As I stated I do think West Virginia could do better as far as coal is concerned but with all this stuff that is going on, men are losing homes, cars, hours of work to support their family and I think if they wanted to put an end to this, they should have did something years ago. According to the scientist the enviorment has been going for years now and MTR is not going to make any differenence now with everything that we have did up until now. So my thoughts are these kids needs to get down out of the trees, go get food, water and get theirselves checked out and then see what happens after that.
I do hope that in the future we will be able to end this stuff that is going on and everyone get back to the way it was before. But when my husbands job is on the line I am going to do everything possible to see to it that it’s kept and he is able to support his family and take care of the family that he and I have made together.
Thanks for the thoughts and the words…..
I do not think my post is in anyway coming off as hateful but I do see some that are on here. I do however think that we need to voice our opinion just the same as you guys do on here and let everyone know that we aren’t going to back off just as easy as those would like for us to.
Raychel,
I honestly can’t say how I would feel if my husband or myself worked in a field that I knew was harmful to others. I would like to think though that I would not feel very good about myself for “selling out”. You make your choices in life. You choose what career path to take. I’m sure that drug dealers try to rationalize that it’s okay to sell drugs to kids so they can support their families. But when do we draw the line? I agree with Mo. Our Earth is more important than anything. When there is no Earth there will be no you, no husband, no children, no grandchildren, etc. As far as reclamation goes…..a little bit of grass and a few pine trees don’t constitute reclamation and you don’t have to take me there I’ve been there. It looks nothing the same and doesn’t support the ecology that was there before.
By the way Raychel, you think that your husband’s hours being cut at Walker doesn’t have anything to do with the fact that they just sold the company? I hear a lot of back and forth in your words. “I don’t agree with Don Blankenship”….”I thank my Lord and Savior every day”….so if you don’t agree with Don Blankenship and you are believe in a higher power (I’m assuming you’re a Christian) then how can you logically say it’s okay to rip our Earth to pieces just for a paycheck? The Bible plainly states over and over that it’s wrong to do what they are doing. There is a quote I’ve always taught my children……”If you don’t stand for something, then you’ll fall for anything”. Not sure who the author is right now but it says a lot to me. Once again you make choices in life. If you think what Massey is doing is wrong yet you do nothing then you are wrong too. No matter the reason you try to use to make it okay.
“You’ll never leave Brushy alive”…… Does your mother know that you talk like that?
Where in the Bible? Book, chapter, and verse please. I am not arguing, just want to find it. Mo, yes there a few here that would like some civil dialogue, thank you for being one of those. I see your point about the environment,on the other hand it is not more important than any one of us. God made man in his own image. If you do stand behind the statement the environment or mountains are more important than any person or their livelihood, it takes me back. Why take care of the mountains if we are not important? I thought that was the whole purpose? Please, again my questions are in sincerity. God Bless you.
Progress Miner here are just a few.
Genesis 1:26. Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”
Lev. 25:23-24. The land is mine and you are but aliens and my tenants. Throughout the country that you hold as a possession, you must provide for the redemption of the land.
Ezekiel 34:2-4. Woe to the shepherds of Israel who only take care of themselves! Should not the shepherds take care of the flock? You eat the curds, clothe yourselves with the wool and slaughter the choice animals, but you did not take care of the flock! You have not strengthened the weak or healed the sick or bound up the injured. You have not brought back the strays or searched for the lost. You have ruled them harshly and brutally.
Ezekiel 34:10. 0 shepherds, hear the word of the Lord. This is what the sovereign Lord says: I am against the shepherds and will hold them accountable for my flock.
Ezekiel 34:17-18. As for you, my flock… Is it not enough for you to feed on good pasture? Must you also trample the rest of your pasture with your feet? Is it not enough for you to drink clear water? Must you also muddy the rest with your feet?
Isaiah 24:4-6. The earth dries up and withers, the world languished and withers, the exalted of the earth languish. The earth lies under its inhabitants; for they have transgressed the laws, violated the statutes, and broken the everlasting covenant. Therefore a curse consumes the earth; its people must bear their guilt.
Jer. 2:7. I brought you into a fertile land to eat its fruit and rich produce. But you came and defiled my land and you made my inheritance detestable.
Luke 16:2,10,13. And He called him and said to him, “What is this I hear about you? Give an account of your stewardship, for you can no longer be steward. He who is faithful in a very little thing is faithful also in much; and he who is unrighteous in a very little thing is unrighteous in much. You cannot serve both God and mammon.
James 5:5. You have lived luxuriously on the earth and led a life of wanton pleasure; you have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter.
Mark 4:19. …and the worries of the world, and the deceitfulness of riches and the desires for other things enter in and choke the word and it becomes unfruitful.
Revelation 11:18. The nations were angry and your wrath has come. The time has come for rewarding your servants the prophets and your saints and those who reverence your name, both small and great – and for destroying those who destroy the earth.
EM,
for your information, my husbands hours were cut back way before Walker sold out, and I do mean long before and the hours has nothing to do with it, Steve Walker stated in a conference that I saw first hand that his sell out had been going on for years back and forth so no that has nothing to do with it, it had to do with the fact that no one was buying equipment for CAT or the mines had closed down and other factors but not like you mentioned.
MY HUSBANDS PAYCHECK DOESN’T COME FROM DON BLANKENSHIP EITHER SISTER!
So Raychel what is YOUR story. Education? Job? You seem to contradict yourself a lot. First you say it’s the “tree huggers have been running their mouths” so your husband’s hours have been cut back but then you say “where were the tree huggers years ago”? They have been there for at least a couple of years. And many of the “pro mountain rapers” posts they are claiming the sitters have had no effect on their work. So which is it? Then you say the mines are doing good and hiring lots of people then in the last post you claim they are closing and not buying equipment……?????? I’m so confused. If you have a marketable skill perhaps you can get a job and make up the hours. I don’t know it’s just a thought. I’ve worked and raised a family since I was 18yrs old. I don’t rely on my husband for a paycheck. It’s actually very rewarding to know I can take care of myself. You might want to try it.
EM I do work….a funeral home. I have taken care of myself since I graduated high school just like you working various jobs until I got into the funeral home business.
hmmmmmmm….funeral home huh? OMG….I won’t even go there. Talk about a business that makes money off of other people’s suffering and grief.
Raychel, I have supported myself since I was 14 years old. I have, to my knowledge, never been dependant on Massey, Carter, or anyone else that makes their money through the destruction of the earth or the enviorment. I have never asked anyone, who works for those industries, for help of any kind. I have always been a good caretaker of my portion of God’s garden. It seems that your husband is intellegent and industerious and, no doubt, will be a good provider no matter what the future brings. Mountaintop Removal Mining must, and will be, stopped. Put your faith in your husband’s abilities and God’s love. All will be fine.
This is not Raychel, this is her husband. Yes, I do work for Walker Machinery and I am proud of it. I am a Christian first and my life belongs to God, and I do put my trust in him. “Am I perfect? NO, not by a longshot. I am a person that tries to understand and respect other people and their point of view. I also have a duty to take care of my family, the bible states that a man that fails to provide for his own household is worse than an infidel and has already denied the faith. I work at what I am able to work at, this has been and is coal mining country, so guess what industry I work in. No different than if you have lived in Michigan and you work in the automotive industry, by the way look at what has happened up there after all the auto maufacturing jobs has left, the same thing that will happen here if the mining jobs leave without have any infrastructure in place to replace those jobs. I love West Virginia and I don’t want to have to take my family somewhere else to live. I am a seventh generation West Virginian, and I love my state and the people that lives here. Windmills will not replace the mining jobs, some of these mine sites I go on there is as many as 300 or 400 men that works for the mine, not including the Walkers’ or the Rish Equipments’ or the Andersons’ or any other contractor on the property. As for the biblical Quotes that was given by the one lady, I didn’t see anything that supports what she is saying. These quotes were talking on a spiritual level, not on a natural one. When the bible speaks of the Earth in many places it is talking about the people and the shepherds were their spiritual leaders who were supposed to be looking out for their souls. It was not refering to the physical Earth. As far as the verse in chapter he led the animals to Adam, for Adam to name. He created the Heavens and the Earth first, then he created everything else, but man he formed last with his own hands. So yes I think we need to take care of what we have, but he created the Earth for our use. He put the coal in the ground for us to make use of, yes we have to work to get it.We have to work to get anything except SALVATION. I’m on these mine sites everyday, on Massey sites, Hobet sites, Arch, Consol, and on both union and nonunion sites, and yes the mining industry in the past made mistakes and learned from it the same as any other industry, but today I think that on these mine sites are some of the prettiest land in the country, and contrary to what some of you say they are all different types of trees that are planted and growing and many diiferent types of animals, it is not uncommon to see deer, turkey, and bear in the same day.
Thanks for the Bible quotes. New Earth here I come.
Did I stump Mo?
I believe most statistics say that there were around 125,000 direct coal mining jobs in WV in the 1960′s, but now there are around 12,000. This is not because of “environmentalists”, as Coal Companies love to play the loss of jobs card. This is a direct repercussion of heavy machinery from strip jobs replacing human labor. MTR takes away jobs, that is a fact.
For those of you who are Christians and think it’s okay to do what Massey is doing to our Earth…this is a passage from a website called “Christians for Environmental Stewarship….”Every time we, as humans, drive a species to extinction, we are stating that what God created, we can destroy. There is no scripture to support that view. Every time a species goes extinct, we are defaulting on the account that God has called us to manage. We are at the crossroads, able to choose to save or to destroy. It is our choice. The Bible is clear that creation expresses Gods wisdom and power. Christians are called to be stewards, to nurture, to protect, to preserve His creation.” I can’t see how you truly believe that any God that created this wonderful, amazing EArth would be okay with us just blatantly ripping it apart. I know if I built something even half as wonderful as the Earth is I would be very upset and probably really pissed at someone or something thinking it had the right to destroy it.
eM…. I think I would add also, that the Bible says “Thou shall not Kill”. There have been tens of thousands of people killed directly and indirectly from coal and its byproducts. Think of the buffalo creek disaster, all the underground mining disasters that have happened due to coal companies not following regulations/lack of care about their employees, black lung deaths, the little boy killed in his sleep from fly rock from a MTR site, overburdened coal trucks plowing people down (which happened to an electric worker in my former town), and cancer deaths from toxic water and coal dust in the air.
A good article about coal’s detrimental human effects is on Physicians For Social Responsibility’s Website: http://www.psr.org/resources/coals-assault-on-human-health.html . “Every year, particulate matter pollution spewed by coal-fired power plants triggers hundreds of thousands of asthma attacks and causes tens of thousands of hospitalizations, heart attacks and early deaths.” Children are particularly vulnerable. This is a human rights issue as well as an environmental issue.
Not to mention that hundreds of people are being displaced from their homes. It is wrong on every level.
bluemountainmama,
didn’t know about a little boy being killed in his sleep…where did that happen? i myself used to drive from whitesville to charleston every day to work and I can’t even count the number of times I was ran off the road by a coal truck and had two windshields broken. i know that doesn’t sound like a big deal but to a single mom it was a big deal at the time. i don’t live over there any more but i still have family there and they are directly affected by the mines in seng creek…the hollow that once was about four miles long is now just two….the roads are a mess and the noise from something at the mines makes a roaring noise that you can hear 24/7…..so my mom has a hard time sleeping unless she runs a fan. i worry about my parents being in whitesville when that damn breaks….i’m afraid my peaceful protesting will come to an abrupt halt if something happens to one or both of my parents or someone in my family.
in WV in 2004…. a 3 year old boy: http://www.appvoices.org/index.php?/site/voice_stories/voices_from_the_mountains1/issue/33 . again, you don’t get any media coverage of these tragedies. i also have had to dodge coal trucks and had them come bearing down on me and high speeds, almost rear-ending me, with my young child in the car.
sorry… that child’s death happened in Virginia, not WV.
I donated about 14,000 dollars in taxes last year 2 you iditos trying 2 put me out of a job and my kids on welfare. Get a Job pay in some taxes and leave us alone
Nope Progress Miner, didn’t stump me. I do have things to do other than post to this website, not to mention that comment forums are not exactly the best place for dialogue.
I don’t want to save the mountains to save humanity, I want to save the mountains in order to save every single being that lives off of them, and every greater ecosystem that could not sustain without them. As for God, well I can’t say that I believe in a greater being or that I take stock in the Christian Bible, but if there is a deity it certainly lives in the earth. This earth supports life, it is unique and special among all of the other planets that we have any knowledge of. This doesn’t happen everyday in the universe. The absurd sequence of events that led to life, and then sentient life is incredible and I believe that we should support it. This entire earth is an ecosystem, when micro-systems within it die it harms the whole more significantly that we know. We’ve already harmed this planet beyond repair; the least we can do is fucking stop.
I want this earth and these mountains to be here for my children and my grandchildren, but more importantly I want it to be here for the bugs, bears, deer, mushrooms, hickory trees, and everything else.
I do stand by my statement, these mountains are more important than any human being.
Mo, very well said. Most humans have no idea how insignificant we really are. They also don’t understand that before the Earth let’s us destroy her she will destroy us. If we don’t learn to live in harmony with her we will no longer live.
So it’s ok to abort then eM? It’s ok to blow up mountains in Afghanistan to find a monger that is being portrayed more than he is? It’s ok for 3rd world countries to live off vegetation that is grown by their own waste being used as the only fertilization they know? You grab a vapor to ignite a fire, yet you bash Raychel for working at a funeral home. By the grace of God I hope you think working in the medical field does not prove your lifestyle as above the norm or knowing any better. We all have to work, we all have to live. The difference in you and us is YOU think your better. You are not, you come from the very same dust as the rest. If we are not significant you disclaim the very fact that you even have a Faith to believe in. Jesus did not come to save the mountains, it is you and I. Yes we do things in cycles to hurt others in whatever way it may. You and I are a contributor. I do not agree with more than half of what my employer says or does, but he is rightin one thing. You are a friend of coal, being a nurse I guess you would know that more than anyone.
Progress Miner, thanks. My work in the funeral home business does not make EM one more day better than I am. Matter of fact I do not take joy in seeing other people’s greif and pain but we need the funeral homes just the same as we need hospitals! Matter of fact I have stood by and cried along with the families we serve. I take my job just as serious as Em does and I do have a niece that will graduate from St. Mary’s School of Nursing in December and do I bash her over her field of interest? No I don’t I congratulate her and and do all I can to see that she finishes what she starts.
Yes, I agree with you Progress Miner, our Savior came here to save you and I and praise his name I am saved and on my way to Heaven.
Em, I wish you all the best of luck in your field because yes we need nurses just the same as embalmers and funeral directors and I am sure you have had death in your family, did you snub your nose at the funeral director for his or her job? I am sure you didn’t I am sure you were thankful that someone took the time out to be thoughtful to you and your family.
God Bless You Progress Miner…Thanks for standing in there along with all the other coal miners, thanks for keeping my lights on and thanks for the job you do each and everyday….
Raychel why don’t you stop your whining. We need funeral homes like we need hospitals???? Well, now that was a really intelligent observation. Did I snub my nose at the funeral home director in Richwood that made off with hundreds of people’s money that had prepaid for their burial expenses including my Grandmother. Did I snub my nose at the funeral home director that tried to scam another $800.00 from my uncle’s funeral expenses. In his grief his brother gave cash and forgot to ask for a receipt. In my immediate family we are not buried. My father has donated his body for medical science and my mother has yet determined what she will do. I definitely won’t contribute to the the funeral home racket. You are trying to once again justify a choice you have made so you can sleep with a clear conscious. Bottom line you and people like you continually refuse to accept any responsibility for preserving this Earth. YOu talk about God all you want by we were not put on this Earth to destroy what your or my God made. We are probably just here by accident but if not then we should be the ones trying to preserve it and take care of it so future generations even have a future. Just keep on thinking that it will all be okay and that you don’t have to do anything except take, take, take. I for one feel that it is my duty to do EVERYTHING I possibly can so I know my children and grandchildren will have air to breathe, safe water to drink and food to eat that is not full of poison, toxins, hormones…etc.
Raychel, as I’m driving to work this morning I had time to think and I owe you an apology. I don’t want to make this about personal attacks. I will keep fighting for mountain top removal to stop for you, and our future generations. If it doesn’t work then I will know when I lay down at night that I tried.
em, Coming from the same community as you, I understand, but there is one comment you have made that you are 100% off base, well maybe two. 1. The mines at Seng Creek are underground mines,2. We are not here by mistake. This may surprise you but there are some people who respect the actions that others take. Some people can handle that and some people are taken up in a whirlwind that someone actually makes a comment like that. If it is all about having a clear conscience, there are many things in this country as a tax paying citizen you and I both contribute to, that in a indirect way we would not support. eg. Tim Tebow’s mother was told to abort, now look what kind of a man he has grown into, and football is not what I am referring to. He has a commercial to be aired during the Superbowl and is catching heck about it. I support that cause, but my tax dollars support associations such as Planned Parenthood, in some cases is ok, but wants to pass laws saying legally my underage daughter who may become pregnant in no way will have to tell me if she would have an abortion. Groups like the ACLU receive tax dollars, they want to pass laws such as Ministers or Chaplains in the Armed Forces not praying in Jesus name. They want educational systems to fire teachers who let Christian children excuse themselves from a class that may teach evolution, on the other hand call for a set time in school for a Muslim faith child to pray. So you may be thinking what am I talking about, I am just trying to say be careful for what you knowingly support, and come to understand the ones you may not know that you indirectly support. Talking with people I know and spend well amount of time in Seng Creek with they say they mostly lose sleep by watching for thieves. There are many coworkers who come from that area as well, so we are all in it together. I do thank you for the work you do, and probably being a Tide grad also, I know that what you believe in you give all you can, that is what we do.
Progress Miner, I’m pretty sure I never said that the mines in Seng Creek are MTR. I know they are underground but they have still destroyed much of that hollow and the natural flow of the creek. Plus the roads up the hollow are horrible now and my mother is having a terrible time sleeping due to some constant whining noise that is audible all the time. There was MTR going on while my husband and myself were on active duty from 2004-2007 and the blasting caused my house to be knocked from it’s foundation costing us around $6000.00 in repairs and lost wages and the trip home in order to do the repairs that Massey claimed were not their responsibility because we could not give them a specific date as to when the damage occurred. I do try to be informed of the causes I support. Not aware that anyone is a Satanist though that wants to fight to preserve our world. I will not get into the abortion issue with you as this is not the right forum for that and I have really mixed feelings about it. I don’t understand why it would be wrong for the military to ensure that all soldiers of any religiou faith has a representative to be able to talk to. I am in the military and I am wiccan as are many people who serve in the military. In fact the Air Force academy has just established a place for Earth based religions to assemble and hold services. This is good right? That is why I serve my country so that my right to practice my religion is protected. As far as prayer in school goes…there is a reason we have separation of church and state. The world is a melting pot and each person deserves the respect of not having to be singled out for having a different belief than the majority. This is especially true of a child. Plus, I’m a firm believer that you can pray anywhere you want at any time. If God is all knowing then you only have to think it. You’re also right about Seng Creek having a lot of problems with thieves. It comes along with the majority of people being addicted to drugs and trying to support their habits. It’s a shame.
Em, apology accepted…I will keep on fighting for what I am fighting for whether it be, strip, deep, MTR or contour mining.
God Bless you
em, Thank for serving! Some points I tried to touch on were not necessarily pointed at you, they were in reference to my own personal findings of things I didn’t know. As far as I can remember the roads at Seng Creek have not been that great since the early 80′s. Way when the union miners traveled thru the old tunnel. The roads are dispicable everywhere, but the crime is not the miners or the companies setting up shop. The true crime is our elected officials, our tax dollars, and, the decisions they do not make in fixing them. I know personally that the state road guys and the guys at WV Paving would love the work. Anyway, the sound your mom may be hearing is the fans. I am not sure.
Yeah, you’re right the roads have never been very good but I don’t remember them being as bad as they are now. I just drove up there last night and I think I broke and axel. Well, maybe not but it felt like it. Hey if you know anyone that wants to buy a house up there let me know. Between the mines and the drugs my parents are about ready to give up. It’s a shame though. Kind of hard to start over when you don’t have a mortgage payment and real estate is about zero up there. ;(
Yeah, I am looking, but not there. Wanna keep the kids in the same school. The Satan reference was a comment about a 2005 quote from Mr. Roselle. Not an accusation at you.
Didn’t take it that way. I don’t think Mr. Roselle is a satanist though. Perhaps the quote was taken out of context. A lot of people think that we Wiccans worship the “devil”…..and that couldn’t be further from the truth. And the book “The Satanic Verses” by Salmon Rushdie has nothing to do with devil worship but as soon as you say that people get the wrong idea. And on a more “pop culture” note the group Godsmack did not choose that name to persecute any religion…..my point is sometimes things are taken out of context or the meaning behind the quote has a more ……..oh hell can’t think of the word right now…but you know what I’m saying. The statement shoudn’t be taken literally but figuratively.
The quote that Progress Miner refers to can be found here:
http://www.counterpunch.org/roselle01252005.html
I don’t know why he didn’t post the link himself, but as anyone can clearly see, Mike seems to just be using his typically over-the-top, attention-grabbing style when he titled his article “Satan is my Co-pilot.” He was referring to a friend of his, who, for reason unknown to me, calls himself “Floyd Satan”. In fact, the article is mostly about how he can’t stand the big DC-based environmental groups, an attitude shared by many around here on both sides of the issue.
Okay, I guess it was literal but wrong “Satan”….:) Thanks Mat. He probably didn’t post the link himself because that is not the purpose of this forum. We tend to get off the subject in our debate at times. I think we need to stay focused on saving these mountains and helping the brave people that are actually putting themselves in the “line of fire”.
dear Progress Miner,
can you support your assertion that the ACLU and Planned Parenthood get federal tax dollars?
I’m genuinely interested.
Johnny Reb, can you or Roselle support your assertion that C G Z has nothing to do with the tresspass and tree-sit on Massey property? If so why the meeting with the Gov.?
when did I assert that?
(hint, I’m not Mike and I am currently not in WV and while I like everyone in CGZ a lot, I don’t have much to do with what they say or do).
buddy, I really think you need to see a shrink or your pastor or something. Your obsession is a bit much.
Yep, check out ACLJ.org, you may find some things very interesting, that you may not know of. It will open your eyes. You have to do quite a bit of reading. I am sorry to fail you on the exact date, but I would say I learned of this, oh about 4-5 years ago. It’s quite an organization to support as well.
sorry, but a website for the conservative version of the ACLU does not count as evidence that either the ACLU or Planned Parenthood get federal funding. You will have to do better than that.
It’s far from a consevative version, but it’s where I looked, try and you can find it in other places, you seem to call the government a bit, try some one on the other end of the receiver. After all they should answer, our tax dollars are paying them, but with all due respect, in most cases when recommended from some one that you oppose,there is no openmindess in finding facts.