Make a Statement: Skip the Tolls

Despite public outcry, the WV Parkways Authority, with the support of Governor Manchin, exacted a 60% toll increase on the West Virginia turnpike: a highway that runs through some of the poorest regions in the state. Thus, the same people who are struggling the most in this recession will feel the brunt of the increase. Tax the poor because they can’t afford to fight back.

There are three toll booths on the turnpike. On this post, I will give you directions to get around all of them.  Skipping some of the booths is surprisingly easy, while avoiding others can be a little troublesome.  If you know of an easier way, please comment.

WV State Police Donate $1,000 to Coal Industry

I’m not kidding.

And it isn’t the only government institution giving the Coal Industry tax dollars.

First they laugh, Now they get ugly

The same Massey workers that undermine good paying union jobs in the coalfields were out in full force today to subvert a rally to stop mountaintop removal and bring sustainable jobs to the Coal River Valley.  The protest was hosted by Coal River Mountain Watch and the Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition and was attended by hundreds of social and environmental justice advocates from across the Appalachian region. Even a well known celebrity (Darly Hannah) and world renowned NASA scientist (Jim Hansen) came to bring attention to the massive devastation wreaked by Massey.

In an effort to silence dissent, Massey workers were dispatched in mass to heckle, insult, attack, or otherwise drown out the protesters.

Massey Scabs Try to Shake Protesters From Dragline

Fourteen MORE activists were arrested today in an act of civil disobedience to stop mountaintop removal “mining” in the Coal River Valley of West Virginia.

Four of the protesters attempted to scale a 20 story dragline and unfurl a banner. While high in the air, Massey Scabs (non-unionized mtr workers employed by Massey Energy) and Boone County Sheriff deputies attempted to rattle the tower. A fall from such heights would mean serious injury or death.

Equal Treatment Under the Law ::wink wink::

Seventeen people were arrested May the 23rd in a series of protests against coal industry abuses. In one of  three direct actions, two protestors paddled a raft into the middle of Massey’s Brushy Fork impoundment and draped a banner, which read “West Virginia Says No More Toxic Sludge,” across the coal black cesspool of sludge. Obviously the protestors were charged with trespassing, but you will never guess with what else they were cited. Read on.

From www.climategroundzero.org

 

Another Blessing From Coal

Several communities in Mingo County have been devastated over the weekend by flash flooding and mudslides.

Not coincidentally, the places most affected (Gilbert, Varney, Pie) are surrounded by mountaintop removal sites. The picture of the valley fill I included in the post “Is Obama Duped by PR Scheme?”  sits adjacent to Gilbert High School, which lost a baseball field and many classrooms to the flood.

War Torn Area

War, WV, is the southern-most city in the state. It is the home of Big Creek High School, the same school attended by Homer Hickam, whose autobiography Rocket Boys was made into the movie October Sky.

Do Look Down (Part I)

Here are a few of the wildflowers I have encountered so far this spring.  You are welcome to use the pictures, just give credit to this site.  Each of the following species can be found in the rich coves of Southern, WV where they are often burried by mountaintop removal/valley fill coal mining.

The Meaning of Anti-Coal in West Virginia

The meaning of anti-coal in West Virginia is broad.  To be against coal doesn’t mean to be against the mining and use of coal. Thanks to the Coal Industry’s intensive PR campaign, to be against mountaintop removal, a relatively new mining process in which 1/4 to 2/3 of a mountain is blown away and its debris pushed into the surrounding stream-valleys, also means to be anti-coal.

But it doesn’t even stop there. According to the WV delegates who opposed the coal river wind resolution (over half of them), it is anti-coal to support the preservation of ONE mountain from destruction so that it can be used as a wind farm that will bring more jobs, safer jobs, and clean energy.

Coal Cowards Take Name Off Dead Resolution

As you may have read in my post “Strange Goings-on in the WV Statehouse,”  a resolution  in support of a windfarm atop Coal River Mountain was tabled (killed) by the speaker before its sponsors could even speak on its behalf.  Amazingly, things got even stranger yesterday when four delegates stood in session and requested that their names be removed from the dead and rotting resolution.  The four dishonorable misrepresentatives were Jeff Eldridge (Lincoln), Ralph Rodighiero (Logan), John Ellem (Wood), and Tom Louisos (Fayette).

What could possibly be the reason for all this quirky behavior over an innocuous resolution?