"FIRE AND BRIMSTONE...DOES ELECTRIC POWER & PROFITS WORTH THE PRICE OF ONES LIFE?

Coal mining companies have successfully thwarted tough new safety rules that were intended to help prevent a disaster like the one that killed 25 West Virginia miners Monday, top labor and mine safety officials said, by overloading the regulatory system with appeals.

Massey Energy Co., CEO Don Blankenship speaks to reporters, Tuesday, April 6, 2010, in Montcoal, W.Va. The blast Monday at Massey's Upper Big Branch mine — the nation's deadliest mining disaster since at least 1984 — was believed to have been caused by a buildup of highly combustible methane.

The companies, including the massive coal producer Massey Energy, which owns the Upper Big Branch mine, developed a novel strategy to respond to more aggressive safety regulations that were imposed by Congress after two deadly mining accidents in 2006, the officials say.

The companies now appeal twice as many citations as they did just four years ago. IS THE COSTS TO PRODUCE ELECTRICITY WORTH THE PRICE IN THE LOSS OF LIFE THAT PRODUCE WINDFALL PROFITS FOR A SELECT FEW? http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2010/04/08