for wEst VirginiA

I was raised in a coal region town in northeast Pa. so the recent tragedy which occurred at the Sago mine near Tallmansville West Va. is an experience with which I am somewhat quite familiar and one which compels me to confess that the more things change the more they stay the same.

My father worked the mines with his father – both experienced and survived a cave in – when something like that occurred alarms sounded throughout the town. When I was a boy in 5th grade during the middle of the last century 5 of my fellow students were called out of class while the alarms were sounding – those of us who remained were informed their fathers were working the mine that day – it would be the last day they worked the mines – the last day these sons would see their fathers. The more things change the more they stay the same – miners still dying underground – families suffering an unimaginable grief.

The miners that did survive a cave in eventually had a high risk for being diagnosed with Black Lung disease which eroded the miner’s quality of life and ended many miners’ lives well before their time. The federal government i.e. via the tax payers picked up the tab for the miner’s disability, the earth was raped beyond recognition, and the mine owners moved to more scenic climates in the continental United States without ever being held accountable. Seems like the American way.

Ten days ago 12 of the 13 miners were buried soon to be forgotten by mainstream media but not their immediate families. The lone survivor, Randal McCloy, will be brain damaged for the rest of his life on this earth from severe oxygen deprivation from the neglect of a union free mine company that was cited for over 200 safety violations since 2004.

Yet the federal government under the direction of George Bush who is so concerned about the safety of Americans that he’d violate the constitution by invading the privacy of our fellow citizens in order to protect us from the boogie man this time “terrorism” - is the same George Bush’s government which never even discussed shutting down that mine nor did it ever seek criminal sanctions against the owner’s of the mine. In fact the biggest single fine was $440 for a mine that reported $110 million net profit the year before 12 men died and one survived in a brain damaged state. The more things change – the more they stay the same.

Sago though isn’t the first mining business to avoid responsibility and accountability under George Bush’s definition of “justice” which is extended to some but not “justice for all”; it’s for those who can afford it and not those who cannot. In fact the nation’s deadliest coal-mining accident in the past two decades occurred in Brookwood Al. where 13 miners were killed in September 2001 after George Bush just finished protecting us against Al- Qaeda.

Inspectors who sought to impose large fines on coal companies have seen those penalties substantially decreased by agency negotiators and administrative law judges. Last year, the operator of a Brook wood, Ala., coal mine, where those 13 miners were killed in the September 2001 explosion was held accountable for $435,000 which was later reduced to $3,000 – a miner’s life worth $33, 461 reduced to less than $233. The more things change the more they stay the same.

But what really caught my attention this time though was that the anger of the survivors was directed at those involved in the misinformation that 12 miners had survived rather than at a government which permitted a mine with over 200 violations to operate in absolute disregard for the safety of those miners whom the politicians and the press now eulogize as salt of the earth, hard working Americans.

They prayed for a miracle from God. One moment their prayers were answered. Jubilation in the streets. Praise God. The subtle implication to the viewer is subliminal – pray, and God will answer your prayers. The presumption is that a “God” exists. In the next moment a faith based community, a microcosm of our larger faith based society meets reality when they learn there was no miracle from the God they pray to this time.

Everyone from the local convenient store to the president is calling for an inquiry into what caused the tragedy and what impeded the recovery process. No is asking the questions that need to be asked in order to prevent future tragedies. Questions like:
How could a business be cited for over 200 violations and still be permitted to operate?

What is one of the rolls of government to insure public safety if not to regulate relationships between business and the people?

Did the people working the mines know about the violations? If so, did the people demand the mine take corrective action?

Is there a god who made all that is or is it a lesser god one created by man that creates man in his own image to destroy the garden, rape the earth for a profit and look the other way while trying in vain to escape the consequences of their actions which are a step closer

And what really caused my nausea was this pravada press, that institution charged with “informing” the public fails with intent to remind the public about the history of those men who work in the black soot of the underground mines and how the owners, their personal armed security forces, the state governments and the state militia as well as the federal government treated those salt of the earth, hard working Americans. The more things change, the more they really do seem to stay the same.