[Hoot Gibson]

Spadaro and his teammates had been uncovering information that had far-reaching implications for both Massey Energy (the parent company of Martin County Coal and a major contributor to the Republican Party) and the coal industry as a whole. Testimony and documents revealed that executives at Martin County Coal and federal regulators were aware that there was potential for a catastrophic failure at the slurry impoundment but didn't take proper actions to avoid it. In particular, an MSHA engineer had made a list of specific safety recommendations to Martin County Coal and MSHA district officials following a 100-million gallon spill in May 1994. But MSHA and Martin not only largely ignored the recommendations, MSHA actually allowed Martin to add coal waste to its impoundment.

They knew of The risk. And Yet Couldnt Care less for what could have happened. They could have made another pond. If the thing was a hazard with a 100 million gallons kinda pushing it with 300 million gallons dont you think.

You are quoting a disgruntled former employee and providing no specifics. MSHA does not make suggestions when it believes that there is an "imminent danger." Specifically, what did Massey do to cause the inundation of the old mine works with coal slurry? Do you know for a fact that another location was available to Massey in the area that had not been previously deep mined, on which it could have build another impoundment?

Sound engineering is based on good science but it is not 100 percent fool proof. Do you understand that the alternative for Massey to continue operating the refuse impoundment was to fire all of its employees at the coal preparation plant and cancel its contracts? Obviously, you anti-coal people could not care less about the employees and families that depend on mining for a livelihood but the people affected do care.

What makes you believe that Massey could not care less about what happened? Is your theory that Massey knew that they were going to cause a disastrous slurry spill that cost the company millions of dollars to clean up, yet continued to mine. Why would a company do so to their own detriment?

You and your left wing friends are so busy spouting all of the environmental extremists' talking points that you are not thinking rationally. It is reasonable to question Massey's judgment in this case but demonizing the company and suggesting that they knew what would happen but continued to operate makes no sense whatsoever. Had Massey believed that there was a high probability that it was going to suffer the large financial loss and public relations nightmare, it would have wasted no time shutting down the operation.

[Beetle01]

Come on Hoot, you cant possibly believe Massey or any of these other companies care one bit about the employees or the people living in the area.

That slurry spill ruined the drinking water for 27k American citizens. They knew it was risky, just as BP knew it was risky with their drilling technique. A big part of the problem is our govt, giving passes to these companies. However, if these companies did have the best interest of the American people in mind they would not have used these questionable techniques and would have adhered to the warnings.

So what if they would have had to cut production and a few hundred people lost their jobs. Thats not as bad as ruining the drinking water for over 25,000 American citizens.


It makes me sick to think other Americans will stand up and defend these corporations and their greed.

Im about as conservative as you can get, and I cant even stand these companies. These CEO's and board members deserve nothing less than a public tar and feathering.

[Hoot Gibson]

Come on Hoot, you cant possibly believe Massey or any of these other companies care one bit about the employees or the people living in the area.

That slurry spill ruined the drinking water for 27k American citizens. They knew it was risky, just as BP knew it was risky with their drilling technique. A big part of the problem is our govt, giving passes to these companies. However, if these companies did have the best interest of the American people in mind they would not have used these questionable techniques and would have adhered to the warnings.

So what if they would have had to cut production and a few hundred people lost their jobs. Thats not as bad as ruining the drinking water for over 25,000 American citizens.


It makes me sick to think other Americans will stand up and defend these corporations and their greed.

Im about as conservative as you can get, and I cant even stand these companies. These CEO's and board members deserve nothing less than a public tar and feathering.

And it makes me sick to see people claiming to be conservatives tarring all corporations and capitalism in general with such a wide brush. When the recession hit Indiana the company for which I worked kept the entire staff on the payroll for 5 months after losing nearly all of its business while the owner attempted to renogiate the terms of a contract to keep us working. He spent over a million dollars of his own money to keep us employed while we scrambled to find new jobs.

Massey has spent hundreds of millions of dollars in eastern Kentucky and has provided thousands of Appalachians with a good living. When I was employed in the coal business, part of my job was to negotiate contracts with coal companies. Of the largest coal companies with whom I can think of only one that I considered to be managed by outlaws. Shady characters were more common in smaller coal companies, but most of them were run by honest people as well.

Accidents happen but it is very hard for small companies to survive long enough to become large companies if they ignore laws and regulations and mistreat their employees. Of course there are always exceptions to the rule and good large companies will always have a few bad apples in them, just like any other large organizations of human beings. But it is wrong to demonize an entire company over an accident or the actions of a handful of people.

Capitalism has lifted more people out of poverty than any economic system in the history of the world. If you do not believe that, then you are not nearly as conservative as you believe.

[TheRealVille]

And it makes me sick to see people claiming to be conservatives tarring all corporations and capitalism in general with such a wide brush. When the recession hit Indiana the company for which I worked kept the entire staff on the payroll for 5 months after losing nearly all of its business while the owner attempted to renogiate the terms of a contract to keep us working. He spent over a million dollars of his own money to keep us employed while we scrambled to find new jobs.

Massey has spent hundreds of millions of dollars in eastern Kentucky and has provided thousands of Appalachians with a good living. When I was employed in the coal business, part of my job was to negotiate contracts with coal companies. Of the largest coal companies with whom I can think of only one that I considered to be managed by outlaws. Shady characters were more common in smaller coal companies, but most of them were run by honest people as well.

Accidents happen but it is very hard for small companies to survive long enough to become large companies if they ignore laws and regulations and mistreat their employees. Of course there are always exceptions to the rule and good large companies will always have a few bad apples in them, just like any other large organizations of human beings. But it is wrong to demonize an entire company over an accident or the actions of a handful of people.

Capitalism has lifted more people out of poverty than any economic system in the history of the world. If you do not believe that, then you are not nearly as conservative as you believe.

:Clap: You are sold out at all cost, good going. Of course, living in Jackson, MS., you don't have to worry about the water or anything else in EKY. We don't need your kind back here, feel free to stay south. I hope the oil get's in your water supply.

[Hoot Gibson]

:Clap: You are sold out at all cost, good going. Of course, living in Jackson, MS., you don't have to worry about the water or anything else in EKY. We don't need your kind back here, feel free to stay south. I hope the oil get's in your water supply.

Classless and predictable as always.

[TheRealVille]

Classless and predictable as always.

I mean really, you have moved out of our country. Come back and drink the water that causes a higher cancer rate than anywhere else in the US, then you will have a say about EKY. You don't give a **** about EKY, you only care about selling capitalism.

[Wildcatk23]

I mean really, you have moved out of our country. Come back and drink the water that causes a higher cancer rate than anywhere else in the US, then you will have a say about EKY. You don't give a **** about EKY, you only care about selling capitalism.

Believe me he wouldn't drink the water long.

[Hoot Gibson]

I mean really, you have moved out of our country. Come back and drink the water that causes a higher cancer rate than anywhere else in the US, then you will have a say about EKY. You don't give a **** about EKY, you only care about selling capitalism.

Let's see those statistics that prove that the water causes cancer in eastern Kentucky. Is there any topic on which you can actually voice an informed opinion? Or are personal insults your only dubious field of expertise? I can imagine how popular you must be as both an atheist and a socialist living in Johnson County. Nobody who supports Obama and the destruction of the coal industry is a friend of eastern Kentucky.

[Old School]

Come on Hoot, you cant possibly believe Massey or any of these other companies care one bit about the employees or the people living in the area.

That slurry spill ruined the drinking water for 27k American citizens. They knew it was risky, just as BP knew it was risky with their drilling technique. A big part of the problem is our govt, giving passes to these companies. However, if these companies did have the best interest of the American people in mind they would not have used these questionable techniques and would have adhered to the warnings.

So what if they would have had to cut production and a few hundred people lost their jobs. Thats not as bad as ruining the drinking water for over 25,000 American citizens.


It makes me sick to think other Americans will stand up and defend these corporations and their greed.

Im about as conservative as you can get, and I cant even stand these companies. These CEO's and board members deserve nothing less than a public tar and feathering.

You do realize that the men and women who work and manage these mines live here in Appalachia. Do you really think these people would
intentionally harm their family and neighbors?

The drinking water was not ruined for 27,000 people FYI there are only about 13,000 people that live in all of Martin County, the slurry spill contaminated two drainage areas. The water treatment facilities in Kermit, Crum, Inez, Fort Gay and Louisa were shut down for a few days until the water was deemed safe by federal and state agencies.

Who are the greedy owners that you people speak of? These larger companies are owned by the shareholders, which are people like you and I. Many retirement and 401k's have purchased stock in these companies.

[TheRealVille]

Let's see those statistics that prove that the water causes cancer in eastern Kentucky. Is there any topic on which you can actually voice an informed opinion? Or are personal insults your only dubious field of expertise? I can imagine how popular you must be as both an atheist and a socialist living in Johnson County. Nobody who supports Obama and the destruction of the coal industry is a friend of eastern Kentucky.

You don't care about EKY, only conservatism, it shows in every post.

[Hoot Gibson]

You don't care about EKY, only conservatism, it shows in every post.

So, when asked to put up or shut up you do neither. Again, predictable as always. Apparently it is too much work for you to attempt to support your ridiculous claims on here - we learn to name call early in elementary school but most of us move on and grow into rational adults.

[Wildcatk23]

You do realize that the men and women who work and manage these mines live here in Appalachia. Do you really think these people would
intentionally harm their family and neighbors?

The drinking water was not ruined for 27,000 people FYI there are only about 13,000 people that live in all of Martin County, the slurry spill contaminated two drainage areas. The water treatment facilities in Kermit, Crum, Inez, Fort Gay and Louisa were shut down for a few days until the water was deemed safe by federal and state agencies.

Who are the greedy owners that you people speak of? These larger companies are owned by the shareholders, which are people like you and I. Many retirement and 401k's have purchased stock in these companies.

A Few Days? Are You Kidding me? You still cant drink the ****ing water. You can see the **** in it. You can drink it and become sick minutes later. I dont care what the state or federal agencies are paid to say. Come to martin county and tell me the water is safe to drink. Go out for a swim in coldwater. The **** fish cant live in the water and you think you can drink it. The 13,000 people that live in martin county yes, but what about the people in surrounding counties? Do you really think it only effected the people in martin county.

[TheRealVille]

So, when asked to put up or shut up you do neither. Again, predictable as always. Apparently it is too much work for you to attempt to support your ridiculous claims on here - we learn to name call early in elementary school but most of us move on and grow into rational adults.

Come back home and drink our water then. It's easy to live in MS and claim to worry about EKY.

[Hoot Gibson]

A Few Days? Are You Kidding me Hoot? You still cant drink the ****ing water. You can see the **** in it. You can drink it and become sick minutes later. I dont care what the state or federal agencies are paid to say. Come to martin county and tell me the water is safe to drink. Go out for a swim in coldwater. The **** fish cant live in the water and you think you can drink it. The 13,000 people that live in martin county yes, but what about the people in surrounding counties? Do you really think it only effected the people in martin county. Typical for someone 1000's of miles away telling me if my water is safe to drink.

Do tell. :Clap: The thing is, the post you responded to was written by life long eastern Kentucky resident, Old School. I only lived there for about 35 years myself.

[Wildcatk23]

Do tell. :Clap: The thing is, the post you responded to was written by life long eastern Kentucky resident, Old School. I only lived there for about 35 years myself.

Looked wrong, Cant Tell You Conservatives apart from your opinions.

Well come back and take a drink hoot.

[Hoot Gibson]

Come back home and drink our water then. It's easy to live in MS and claim to worry about EKY.

I don't live in MS and I drink the water every time I visit family there. However, I prefer bottled water wherever I am because I trust private bottling companies more than I trust our government. No stats on the cancer claim, huh?

Maybe the high cancer rate in eastern Kentucky is related to the consumption of fried foods, soup beans, and tobacco products. The same was true in Mississippi. Great tasting food but the local cuisine tends to be heavy on saturated fats and carbs.

[Beetle01]

I havent trusted the govt when it comes to saying water is safe to drink for a few years now. they think its okay to put fluoride in your drinking water.

Do me a favor Hoot, and go and read about what ingesting fluoride on a regular basis can do to you. thats why I only drinked triple distilled bottled water that also uses osmosis in its cleaning technique. And to be honest even that isnt all that great due to the plastic containers.

But of course companies care about us, thats why McDonalds got busted using the same chemical in silly putty in their chicken nuggets. you dont see that on tv do ya? They are also owned by shareholders also. you think that is ok? Why dont you educate yourself some and see what that chemical can do to your body.

[Wildcatk23]

I don't live in MS and I drink the water every time I visit family there. However, I prefer bottled water wherever I am because I trust private bottling companies more than I trust our government.

I didnt know the government filled our streams with sludge......

[TheRealVille]

I don't live in MS and I drink the water every time I visit family there. However, I prefer bottled water wherever I am because I trust private bottling companies more than I trust our government.

Why do you have Chimneyville as your address then? Everybody knows that Chimneyville is Jackson, MS. You trust private bottling companies over the Johnson Co Water?

[Hoot Gibson]

Looked wrong, Cant Tell You Conservatives apart from your opinions.

Well come back and take a drink hoot.

You know what they say about great minds. We think alike. :biggrin:

Anyway, I think that living most of my live in eastern Kentucky and working in the coal industry for most of my adult life makes my opinion about the mining there as valid as most other people. People are entitled to their own opinions but they are not entitled to their own facts. (Not an original thought but a true one nevertheless.

[Wildcatk23]

You know what they say about great minds. We think alike. :biggrin:

Anyway, I think that living most of my live in eastern Kentucky and working in the coal industry for most of my adult life makes my opinion about the mining there as valid as most other people. People are entitled to their own opinions but they are not entitled to their own facts. (Not an original thought but a true one nevertheless.

Its very True, All im saying is things have changed. The water is always on a boiled water advisory. School closing year round because no drinkable water at the schools.

[Old School]

A Few Days? Are You Kidding me? You still cant drink the ****ing water. You can see the **** in it. You can drink it and become sick minutes later. I dont care what the state or federal agencies are paid to say. Come to martin county and tell me the water is safe to drink. Go out for a swim in coldwater. The **** fish cant live in the water and you think you can drink it. The 13,000 people that live in martin county yes, but what about the people in surrounding counties? Do you really think it only effected the people in martin county.

People are drinking the water everyday, people are raising gardens in Coldwater Creek every year.

If you had read my post you would have seen where I addressed the water plants in the towns downstream of the spill. As usual you liberals only read what you want to and not what is written.

[Wildcatk23]

People are drinking the water everyday, people are raising gardens in Coldwater Creek every year.

If you had read my post you would have seen where I addressed the water plants in the towns downstream of the spill. As usual you liberals only read what you want to and not what is written.

As Liberals? Im Sure as a conservative you read everything thoroughly and look at all sides of the matter? Give it up.

Do you really believe that the water doesnt effect people?

[Hoot Gibson]

Why do you have Chimneyville as your address then? Everybody knows that Chimneyville is Jackson, MS. You trust private bottling companies over the Johnson Co Water?

I thought that I had updated the address. I left Mississippi last month and began working in the DC area. (Jackson has no trains or subway.) I would have loved to have remained in the Jackson area longer but most of the good jobs remaining in my particular field are here.

To answer your question, yes I trust Nestle, Coca Cola, and other bottlers more than I trust government operated water treatment plants.

[Old School]

As Liberals? Im Sure as a conservative you read everything thoroughly and look at all sides of the matter? Give it up.

Do you really believe that the water doesnt effect people?

I used to listen to just one side, but over the years I have learned to listen to all sides and base my opinion on the information in front of me. I'm sure one of these days you may do the same.

[Wildcatk23]

I used to listen to just one side, but over the years I have learned to listen to all sides and base my opinion on the information in front of me. I'm sure one of these days you may do the same.

Once again you ignore the question.

Do you really believe that the water doesnt effect people here in martin county?

[Hoot Gibson]

Its very True, All im saying is things have changed. The water is always on a boiled water advisory. School closing year round because no drinkable water at the schools.

I will not dispute that mining operations have damaged some water wells in the past. However, many (most, IMO) claims made against coal companies for well damages are bogus and are made by people who never had good wells and are looking for somebody to buy them an expensive treatment system or drill them a deeper well.

[Wildcatk23]

I will not dispute that mining operations have damaged some water wells in the past. However, many (most, IMO) claims made against coal companies for well damages are bogus and are made by people who never had good wells and are looking for somebody to buy them an expensive treatment system or drill them a deeper well.

I'm not disputing the bogus assumptions about coal ruining private wells. I', disputing the fact they they say are water is clean to drink.

[Old School]

Once again you ignore the question.

Do you really believe that the water doesnt effect people here in martin county?

Does everyone who drinks the water become sick? No I don't think so. Since the water quality reports have come back negative, I can only assume the water is safe to drink.

[Wildcatk23]

Does everyone who drinks the water become sick? No I don't think so. Since the water quality reports have come back negative, I can only assume the water is safe to drink.

Probably not. Would you let your family drink the water?