coal mining
GRITtv: Apr. 20 2010
Gun advocates rallied this week in support of their right to bear arms, the Pope has said that his church has sinned, Goldman Sachs is giving out bonuses in the throes of SEC charges, and laptops are taking pictures of kids while they sleep! This may sound like a vision of the end times, but really it's just another week in the news these days. Actor and comedian John Fugelsang joins Laura to try to make some sense--or some light--out of all of this. The People's World Conference on Climate Change in Cochabamba, Bolivia kicks off this week (and we will have more from there soon), but you wouldn't know it from the media here in the U.S. Despite the 40th anniversary of Earth Day this month, the subject seems to be falling by the wayside as financial regulation takes center stage. To talk about climate change, cap and trade, international movements and what can be done about any of it, we asked Nation environmental correspondent Mark Hertsgaard and Katherine Kennedy of the Natural Resources Defense Council. Then, remember when George W. Bush told us to go shopping after 9/11? Well, it seems that Massey Energy hasn't forgotten that advice. Laura has some thoughts.
Email this pageGRITtv: The F Word: Coal Company Shopping Spree
Last week, I noted that rating agency Standard and Poors had upgraded Massey Energy from “hold” to a “buy.” Massey's the company that owns the mine where 29 miners were killed in an explosion recently. Now we find out that Standard and Poors were right: Massey's prospects are only going up -- in fact, they're on a shopping spree! Perhaps they're just taking George W. Bush's advice from 2001 to heart: the best way to deal with a tragedy is to go shopping. Anyway, the Wall Street Journal reports that Massey completed a purchase of U.S. coal producer Cumberland Resources Corp. for $640 million in cash and 6.5 million of its shares. Now, we should be fair. Jeff Biggers pointed out on this show that while Massey might be a particularly egregious union-buster and regular safety violator, they're hardly that far outside the norm for their industry. They're serving their investors and the politicians who benefit from their largesse, and they're taking advantage of opportunity -- the purchase of Cumberland was said to be part of a focus on underground mining for Massey in the face of expected federal regulations on surface mining. One can't help feeling that while Massey's CEO may be on the outs -- there are mounting calls for his resignation -- the bigger problem's the coal industry itself. No fine's enough. And until we see some serious structural changes, the industry is going to continue doing what it has been doing: trading death for profit. The F Word is a regular commentary by Laura Flanders, the host of GRITtv which broadcasts weekdays on satellite TV (Dish Network Ch. 9415 Free Speech TV) on cable, and online at GRITtv.org and TheNation.com. Support us by signing up for our podcast, and follow GRITtv or GRITlaura on Twitter.com. Distributed by Tubemogul.
GRITtv: Apr. 16 2010
Elizabeth Streb has been called "superhuman" because her choreography is more extreme sport than dance performance. Pushing boundaries, testing limits, redefining pain and strength--this is what she does every day, and her work has received multiple awards, including the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation "Genius" Award. In her new book from the Feminist Press, Streb explains how she came to dance as a method of expression, and why action matters. She joins Laura in studio for a special interview about action, dance, art and culture in society, and when it was that she first knew she wanted to fly. What kind of a house does a man who has lived in a 6' by 9' box for 30 years dream of? That's the provocative question asked by this week's Got Doc feature, "The House That Herman Built." Herman Wallace, a member of the Black Panther party, has been in solitary confinement for over 38 years in the Louisiana prison system. In 2003, artist Jackie Sumell asked Herman this simple question, and this documentary traces the growth of Herman's house from art project toward reality.
"Democracy Now!": Wed. Mar. 31 2010
Al Jazeera's chief Wadah Khanfar talks about Obama’s expansion of the Afghan War, US policy in the Middle East, and the role of independent media; “We Are Tearing Down Our Mountains,” says photojournalist Antrim Caskey about West Virginia’s fight against mountaintop removal coal mining. "Democracy Now!" is a daily independent newshour.
GRITtv: Senior Citizens March to End Mountaintop Removal
In West Virginia this week, at least 28 senior citizens between the ages of 50 and 88 marched in opposition to the destructive process of mountaintop removal coal mining. In addition to environmental concerns, they stressed the union miners' battle to get their jobs back and the fact that normal mining creates more jobs than mountaintop strip mining. The peaceful walk was 25 miles long and was covered by many local media outlets. Thanks to Mobile Broadcast News for the video!
