The founder, chairman, president and CEO of Murray Energy is Robert Murray, a major donor to the Republican Party who is well connected to the Bush administration and the Republican congressional leadership. At an extraordinary press conference held at the mine site Tuesday, Murray gave vent to the despotic outlook prevalent among mine owners. Evidently, no section of the mass media had any qualms about allowing the mine boss to serve as the primary source of information to the public on the reasons for the cave-in and the state of the rescue operation.
Standing alongside Murray was Al Davis, the chief MSHA official for the region. The participation of Davis in a joint press conference with the mine owner was itself indicative of the real relationship between the industry and the federal agency nominally mandated to police it. The collusion has reached the point where even the pretense of government independence and oversight is barely maintained.
In a self-serving and semi-hysterical rant, Murray began by declaring that “The United States is a great country,” and proceeded to denounce government measures to control global warming and reduce green house gasses as an attack on the American people.
He asserted repeatedly that the cause of the cave-in was an earthquake, a “natural disaster” for which he had no responsibility. “This was an earthquake,” he bellowed. “It had nothing to do with our mining activity. All mining activities at the Crandall Canyon Mine were in accordance with all laws and mining regulations and a mining plan approved by federal regulatory agencies.”
Murray launched into an attack on the press for supposedly spreading false information. At one point he demanded that a media helicopter circling overhead be ordered away, and reacted to vehicle traffic in the area with the command, “Sheriff, stop everybody until I’m done.” Reflecting the typical relationship between local government and police and the coal bosses, the sheriff could be heard snapping, “Will do!”
Murray then denounced widespread media reports that the cave-in was related to so-called “retreat mining,” a dangerous procedure whereby miners remove coal from coal pillars that support the mine roof in sections about to be closed, precipitating the collapse of the roof. There was no retreat mining, Murray declared, but only “primary mining.”
He singled out for attack the Associated Press and Fox News and denounced by name David McAteer, a former MSHA official and vocal critic of mine safety, United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) President Cecil Roberts, and others. The term “retreat mining” was being used, he said, only because of “lackeys” from the UMWA who want to organize his workers and “want to damage Murray Energy, UtahAmerican and the United States coal industry for their own motives.”
Following this harangue, Davis attempted to distance himself from Murray’s claims and accusations, saying MSHA had made no determination of the cause of the cave-in and had not even begun its investigation. However, when he attempted to discuss the progress of the rescue effort he was repeatedly interrupted by Murray and relegated to the background.
Even the CNN anchors and commentators, who earn their salaries by dispensing the vetted pro-corporate pabulum that passes for news, were taken aback. The news anchor described the press conference as “bizarre.”
http://www.wsws.org/articles/2007/aug2007/utah-a08.shtml
Printer-friendly format
Email this thread to a friend
Bookmark this thread
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
