Beam me to Planet Gore !
Posted on 07/26/2011 11:32:26 PM PDT by STARWISE
Complete title:
Right Out of Atlas Shrugged’: Hear an Exasperated Alabama Businessman Tell the Feds – ‘I’m Just Quitting’
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Leaning against a wall during a recent Birmingham, Alabama, public hearing, Bryant listened to an overflow crowd pepper federal officials with concerns about businesses polluting the drinking water and causing cases of cancer.
After two hours, Bryant—a coal mine owner from Jasper—had heard enough and, in a moment being described as “right out of Atlas Shrugged,” took his turn at the microphone:
(note from audio site: For readers of my website, this is the audio of Ronnie Bryant at a public meeting in Birmingham on July 20, 2011. The recording was made on my iPad just to have a record of correct quotes, so the audio quality is poor since it wasn't intended for broadcast purposes.)
Transcript:
Nearly every day without fail…men stream to these [mining] operations looking for work in Walker County. They can’t pay their mortgage.
They can’t pay their car note. They can’t feed their families. They don’t have health insurance. And as I stand here today, I just…you know…what’s the use?
I got a permit to open up an underground coal mine that would employ probably 125 people. They’d be paid wages from $50,000 to $150,000 a year. We would consume probably $50 million to $60 million in consumables a year, putting more men to work.
And my only idea today is to go home. What’s the use? I see these guys—I see them with tears in their eyes—looking for work. And if there’s so much opposition to these guys making a living, I feel like there’s no need in me putting out the effort to provide work for them.
So…basically what I’ve decided is not to open the mine. I’m just quitting. Thank you.”
The Blaze contacted Bryant, and he remains as resolute as he was at last week’s public hearing. To him, it’s just not worth the time, money, and regulatory hassle to open up a new mine—even one located in a remote area with less environmental impact.
God created in us a strong desire to MATTER.
That is the “God-shaped hole” in our hearts that is supposed to be filled with Him.
Unfortunately, those who reject God still have that hole to be filled, and they’ll fill it with anything that makes them feel good about themselves.
“Saving the erf” makes them feel good about themselves,
and if you point out how their efforts are counterproductive or at least nonproductive,
you are attacking their sense of self worth, and they react just as you would expect - angrily.
I was a business owner (17 employees) and sold out in 1999 at age 57.
I saw a lot of this crap coming and decided it just wasn’t worth it any more. I took the money and just quit. Amen
I honestly can’t think of a single industry in this country that these people have not targeted, destroyed, or harrassed out of business. Can you? Every producing sector of industry is a target. And they have been doing it for decades.
Atlas Shrugged really affected me a few years ago when I read it.It hit really close to home. My husband’s family owned a steel mill(just like in the book)for almost 70 years. His grandfather built it from scratch from the ground up. It employed a couple hundred people and by the time my husband began working there in later years, the government,the environmentalists and the unions were already pushing it into bankruptcy as best they could. The company put up a galant fight for years but we finally had to sell. Within another year..the place closed down for good..never to run or employ people in this town again.I remember hubby telling me that every year they had to pay anyone that lived within so many blocks from the plant to re-paint their cars. I never understood it because he went to work there every day for years and we never needed to repaint his car. The dust washed right off. He said it was cheaper for the company to just pay the people every year than continue to fight the frivolous lawsuits in court.
The unions were always causing trouble but if you would talk to the workers..they hated the unions. Most of them had been employed there for decades. They didn’t have much turn-over at all. We even had father and sons who worked there together. It was a family business and everyone was treated like family. The environmentalists were always harrassing them.
Very sad indeed.
BUMP!
DEFUND socialist collectives, foreign AND domestic.
Great thread. Thanks to all posters.
Bucktoothed and proud of it.
It’s been in the works for awhile now, but I agree with you, obama has started his proxy war on the US through the assorted alphabet soup agencies under his control. I can’t think of any other reason that his actions lead to.
Levin read “I, Pencil” one day on his show.
http://webpages.charter.net/mad_prophet/articles/other/pencil.html
We’ll be lucky if the EPA doesn’t declare pencils hazardous because they have lead.
And he got elected anyway.
By his actions he seems intent on shutting down the USA. What motive does he have? There will be nothing left but huge Obama bribing corporations and an overpowering bureaucracy. He is literally destroying the USA. I can only assume that most of his supporters have no idea of the long term consequences.
This is nothing more than a straight-up power grab for the control of energy production and distribution in the United States. Obama knows that if he can gain complete control of energy production, through regulations, taxes, permits, and outright efforts at nationalization, he will own the means to bend this country to his will.
To date, everything that I have seen that involves the EPA is targeted at destroyng anything involving energy production. It was once said that those who control the food supply, control the country (or something like that). What I say is that when is the last time you saw a combine that didn’t run on diesel?
We are being deliberately cut off at the knees as far as energy production is concerned, and now is the time to put a stop to it.
I asked our Pastor to Pray for the producers so there is money to provide for the sick and infirm he mentions every Sunday...
It appears to me that socialism is winning.
Actually I think we're much closer to a classical description of facism.
There is also a lot of crony capitalism thrown into the mix.
Above said, there are other possibilities such as government monitored health, life and social security insurances. Maybe even the possibility of citizens sharing in the proceeds from resources as the citizens of Alaska do. Just don't take from one to give to another. I'm for not pulling the rug out until other arrangements can be made.
Why did Hitler do what he did?
Why did Stalin do what he did?
Why did Mussolini do what he did?
Why did Castro do what he is doing?
Why is Chavez do what he is doing?
Why did Mugabe do what he did and is doing?
Why did Mao do what he did?
Why did Pol Pot do what he did?
Why did Che do what he did?
Why did Caesar do what he did?
Why did Genghis Khan do what he did?
Great and small they all were seeking something and it looked ugly. Nothing new here. The world has always had and has tyrants.
To be remembered in history as the worst ever? The most powerful of all?
This is the battle between good and evil.
Mankind seems to be easily deceived ... over and over, since the garden of Eden. People do not learn.
God has given us His Word. It tells us how to live and please Him. It is not onerous. Let us do whateveer it is we do for the glory of God.
Rather many and even most follow the wiles of Satan. Never realizing that is what they are doing. Some do and do it anyway.
Until we turn to God, change our life and live according to His instructions, we will have destruction, hate, wars, disease, and other tribulations. Until the great day comes when Christ comes again.
We keep focusiong on how to have the good life when our government is looking to end the good life and make the whole world except for them (elite) a third world global society.
Choose who you will serve, good or evil, blessing or cursing, and life or death. Choose life.
We show our love of God by obeying/following His commands.
Praise God, honor God, love God, love our neighbor and do good to him. He loes those who seek Him and will bless them.
This is how I see it.
See post 72. It is perhaps best described as a corporate socialism sliding towards something worse.
GE pays no taxes and their CEO travels with the President and gets invited to advisory boards. The Government all but owns GM to support an unrealistic union wage structure. The same union that solely supports one political party.
There is no clear seperation between government and private sector for certain large companies. Look at the revolving door between Goldman Sachs and the White House economic team. Why does Goldman Sachs do so well economically? I am sure they employ lots of smart people but one can’t deny that it helps when “your guys” are making the decisions that lead to so many of those profits.
The politically connected businessmen are doing the best and that erodes the rule of law. The big corporations have former and future employees writing the business laws and regulations that they use to erode their competitors.
America is no longer a level playing field. Those who have the best lawyers, own the most politicians, and play the corrupt system the best win. Those who don’t (often the little guy) lose.
She looks intelligent to me with no need for affirmative action. She is another slick black racist (same as Lisa Jackson, head of EPA) destroying white people's jobs. Blacks do not work in coal mining. Black participation in all energy production such as oil drilling and gas fracking is very very low.
Well said. Large corporations like large government need to be reigned in. Not sure how to do that though. Maybe it's time to end legal entities??? :)
You have freepmail.
P I N G - O!
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