The WV Mining Disaster,

which was the worst in over 25 years, is a stark illustration on how little clout unions have today:

The deaths of at least 25 West Virginia miners in the worst mining disaster in more than a quarter century is a tragic and stark demonstration of the state of class relations in America today.

In many regards, conditions in the Appalachian coalfields resemble those of a century ago. Faced with high levels of unemployment and poverty, workers are forced to jeopardize their lives in dangerous mines.

Multimillionaire mine operators, like Massey Energy CEO Don Blankenship, disregard elemental safety regulations and compel miners to work 12-hour shifts in order to maximize profit. They know full well that once the news media have left and federal and state agencies have held their hearings, they will be free to continue profiting from the killing and maiming of coal miners.

As one woman from the area told the media, “We’re nothing but disposable commodities.”

News

Twenty-five miners were killed as a result of a West Virginia mining blast:

Though names have not been released, three members of one family all died in the disaster, Manchin said. Another member of the family was also in the mine, but survived, he said. That man lost his son, nephew and older brother, said Manchin, who lost an uncle in the Farmington Mine disaster in 1968.

One of the four men still missing was believed to be running the longwall miner deep in the mine, Manchin said. The others were believed to be in another section, deep in the mine.

Giannato said that some emergency breathing devices were missing from a storage cache deep in the mine. Rescuers are operating under the assumption that trapped miners may have grabbed those to help them survive until help arrived, he said.

The accident occurred at about 3 p.m. at Massey Energy subsidiary Performance Coal Co.'s Upper Big Branch Mine-South.

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A Sumatra earthquake of 7.8 hit today, but evidently the tsunami warning has been lifted.
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Palin

Sarah Palin continues to walk into a minefield of questions, this about her standing on a mining initiative.

Campaign Notes

It doesn't take much to "perplex" Congressman Dean Heller.