[governsleastgovernsbest]

Today Show/NewsBusters ping.

[DainBramage]

The union is not the answer. These men were most likely

making more per hour there because they were not unionized.

[Tennessee_Bob]

A better question is why MSHA allowed the mine to stay open.

[The G Man]

Huh? Why is it the Governor's fault?

[Jaxter]

"Bennett decried the absence of the United Mine Workers to protect the men in the non-union Sago mine."

The regulations for a non-union mine are exactly the same as for a union mine. Is he saying that federal and state mine inspectors don't enforce the regulations in non-union mines?

[governsleastgovernsbest]

By the way, to Today's credit: in the second half hour Lauer interviewed NBC reporter Bob Hager, at the scene. They agreed that it was premature to start pointing fingers at the mine owners, and important to let the investigations play out.

[LOC1]

For once, why don't we all wait for an investigation to find out what actually happened, and what caused it, before castigating the usual suspects?

[beyond the sea]

Thanks for that excellent report, glgb.

There are a lot of stories here, but as I watched the news most of the night, I thought and felt that Mr. Hatfield of the mining company was a good and decent man. Just my opinion.

Now here is something from another thread to give you all some thought as to who may have spread the disinfo.

****

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1550633/posts?q=1&&page=2601

There is also a very strong possibility that the news purveyor was a United Mine Workers of America plant in the official area tasked with the responsibility for bypassing the official chain of communications controlled by "the Company."

The UMWA is perpetually at war with "the Company" and such a plan and course of actual action should not be discounted.

There is a very vocal man on Fox interviews delivering a strong anti company message. He is a hardcore UMWA member.

2,650 posted on 01/04/2006 8:00:42 AM EST by bert

****

I saw this operative on FoxNews last night. We acted like a thug and a questionable character with his heavy-handed demeanor.

[silverleaf]

Once in a while, it happens. TV serves up human drama in real time

Oh please...headline should read:
"The "Today Show" Exploits Grieving Suffering People for Entertainment of Its Viewers. Again .... Ratings Soar".

[add925]

Matt Lowlife is probably wetting his pants....a dream come true...such passion....such drama....gotta be an award-winning broadcast....(BARF)...Exploitation at its worst, Baldy. The family members should have been respected, not grabbed for interviews by "celebrities".

[Mr. K]

Liberals: Why did the government fail us??? We must need more government!

[Niteranger68]

Bush has had many opportunities to ban all natural lightening, yet he has failed to do it. Shame on him!!! It's his fault!!!

[DCPatriot]

This reminds me of the erroneous reporting of raping and pillaging at the New Orleans sports complex during Katrina.

Another example of just how poor the MSM are at doing their thing.

[MEGoody]

I understand the anger of the families, but I wonder if the mine had been closed while safety issues were addressed, would the miners have gotten paid?

[numberonepal]

What I can't understand (I'm no miner) is why these mines were underground rather than a strip mine. All the graphics I've seen show that the mine itself is only 260 ft down, but the shaft is 2 miles or so. Does this mean that the mine is under a mountain?

[WV Mountain Mama]

Let's hear what the citations were for before we judge. My father has a business that has unnannouced OSHA inspections. The inspector told my father that if he comes back to his boss without any citations, his boss will grill him for not doing his job. It is impossible to not get warnings, citations, etc when getting an inspection.

[Alberta's Child]

Sounds like the son and/or Lauer are thoroughly ignorant about issues related to mine safety and regulation. When you have an industry like this that is governed by Federal mine safety regulations (which were passed, BTW, in the aftermath of that West Virginia mine disaster in the late 1960s that killed the uncle of the state's current governor), taking the governor to task for mine safety violations is ridiculous.

This is like blaming the governors of Massachusetts and New Jersey for 9/11 because the aircraft took off from airports in Boston and Newark.

[foreverfree]

bump

[Paved Paradise]

The thing that stands out to me is that the Governor seemed to think his loss of an uncle is the equivalent of those that lost husband, father or son. I don't think so. In my life I was fortunate to have two beloved uncles. I had others but not that I loved or knew so dearly and there is no way I would ever equate them with my own dear father, my son, or my husband, not to mention my two brothers. Sorry, it's not the same, unless this uncle was a surrogate father or something such as that.

[Vaquero]

if the coal had been strip mined, there probably would have been less of a chance of disaster. sounds like an EPA fault here somewhere.