Wednesday, August 08, 2007

Prob'ly We Shouldn't Make Too Much Of The Fact

...that this Bob Murray guy, the CEO of the Utah mine that collapsed, causing a primary temblor of almost 4.0, and and probably seting off the series of subsequent tremors from subsequent, consequent cave-ins which are STILL interfering with rescue/recovery efforts, was on CNN in April openly mocking Al Gore and the environmental/climate crisis movement.
Or that, according to MSHA, the mine has a long record of serious safety violations:
"The Crandall Canyon mine has a record of serious safety violations. Government mine inspectors have issued 325 citations against the mine since January 2004, according to the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration’s (MSHA) web site. Of those, 116 were what MSHA considered “significant and substantial,” meaning they were likely to cause injury or death. Since the beginning of the year, inspectors have issued 32 citations, 14 of them considered significant...

And it would probably be unfair to mention the Murray's open contempt of and distaste for MSHA itself, too, wouldn't it:
..."Robert Murray is a major donor to the Republican Party, with his coal company’s political action committee handing over $200,000 to Republicans during the 2006 elections. He has often testified before Congress on behalf of the National Mining Association in order to press for tax cuts, environmental and safety deregulation, arguing that unreasonable costs were being imposed on operators and were a disincentive to the increase of coal production.

I mean, prob'ly there's no connection at all between those things and the the six trapped (and, I'd bet, deceased) miners.
Nope, nothing here folks. Move along.

1 comment:

Danny Allbritton said...

There is probably also no connection between all the MSHA inspectors who were fired, transferred, or demoted after trying to enforce safety and health laws at Murray's mines and the fact that Murray complained about them by name loudly to Senator McConnell. In his own words, "I'm personal friends with Mitch McConnell, and the last time I checked, he was sleeping with your boss. I'm one guy your inspectors don't want to mess with."

The scientists at U.S. Geological Survey should check that web site and they may want to reconsider contradicting Murray's claims that an earthquake caused the mine to collapse.