Coal Miner's Cousin

After hearing Barack Obama's audio taped remarks about how his plan would intentionally cause the coal industry to go bankrupt, I had a flash-back to my childhood when I grew up in St. Louis, Missouri. We had family just across the Mississippi River in Illinois, and traveled there often to visit. In particular, there was a small town named Livingston with a population of around 800, who were nearly all relatives of mine -- first, second and third cousins. Most of them lived below the poverty line, in modest homes and trailers. Even though my cousin Frank and his wife had little to live on, they adopted a little girl who lost her parents. She and I use to play with her blind pet raccoon in the backyard.

They lost many sons in the Vietnam War, so we often attended funerals in this little town. Many of my relatives in this town were ill with chronic diseases. Many suffered since in their 30s from a disease known as black lung. One of my cousins had a leg that was black as tar, which was crushed in an accident. He kept it propped up and the pain would sometimes be debilitating. But with all of these difficulties, they were kind and positive-thinking in nature, and they fed me well with homemade meals and tucked me into a warm bed at night whenever I was there for a visit.

My cousins were all coal miners. Grandfathers, fathers, sons, brothers, uncles and cousins, the tradition to get the coal was a patriotic one. They served the mines with the same strength of character as any soldier. They knew that our country depended on their labor to prosper.

Not far from this town was a memorial to the coal miners of Illinois. I went there once with a cousin and we wept the whole time. Here is a brief video clip about that memorial -- please watch:
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-4905946925729825874

If you have ever known a family who were part of a dedicated hard-working mining community, then you probably felt like a knife was jabbed into your back when you heard Barack Obama talk casually about putting these people out of business in order to move his energy agenda forward.

No matter what improvements in energy technologies our future holds, we must not forget these heroes. These families, companies and communities must be supported so that they can continue to survive while they transition to a new technology, whether it be clean coal or another line of business. Someone needs to remind Barack Obama of this little community of 800 who call Illinois their home.

Here is what Joe Biden said about the dirty coal plants in China and his statement of "no coal plants in America"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJ55UzAsp6M

Biden Says Corn Syrup And Coal More Deadly That Terrorism
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8TTfCE1QfYg&feature=related

Fox News story on Barack Obama's interview with the San Francisco Chronicle:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=08FgJP-RCGs


Monday, the Ohio Coal Association sent out a news release in reference to the story.

Mike Carey, president of the Ohio Coal Association (OCA), today issued the following statement in response to just-released remarks from Senator Barack Obama about the nation's coal industry.

"Regardless of the timing or method of the release of these remarks, the message from the Democratic candidate for President could not be clearer: the Obama-Biden ticket spells disaster for America's coal industry and the tens of thousands of Americans who work in it.

These undisputed, audio-taped remarks, which include comments from Senator Obama like 'I haven't been some coal booster' and 'if they want to build [coal plants], they can, but it will bankrupt them' are extraordinarily misguided.

It's evident that this campaign has been pandering in states like Ohio, Virginia, West Virginia, Indiana and Pennsylvania to attempt to generate votes from coal supporters, while keeping his true agenda hidden from the state's voters.

Senator Obama has revealed himself to be nothing more than a short- sighted, inexperienced politician willing to say anything to get a vote. But today, the nation's coal industry and those who support it have a better understanding of his true mission, to 'bankrupt' our industry, put tens of thousands out of work and cause unprecedented increases in electricity prices.

In addition to providing an affordable, reliable source of low-cost electricity, domestic coal holds the key to our nation's long-term energy security - a goal that cannot be overlooked during this time of international instability and economic uncertainty.

"Few policy areas are more important to our economic future than energy issues. As voters head to the polls tomorrow, it is essential they remember that access to reliable, affordable, domestic energy supplies is essential to economic growth and stability."

The Ohio Coal Association (OCA) is a non-profit trade association representing the interests of Ohio's underground and surface coal mining producers. The OCA represents nearly 40 coal producing companies and more than 50 Associate Members, which include suppliers and consultants to the mining industry, coal sales agents and brokers and allied industries. The Ohio Coal Association is committed to advancing the development and utilization of Ohio coal as an abundant, economic and environmentally sound energy source.