USA: Miners Murdered by Massey’s Profits

On April 5, 29 miners were killed in an explosion at Massey Energy's Upper Big Branch coal mine in Raleigh County, West Virginia. This is the worst mining accident in the United States since 1970. Graeme Anfinson in the United States points out that Massey Energy's prime objective was profit and nothing is allowed to get in the way of that, not even the lives of these hardworking miners who produce the profit in the first place.

One is hard pressed to think of a profession that more poignantly sums up the class struggle than mining. The long and often tragic history of the miners’ struggles against the bosses is an essential component of the American working class tradition. The juxtaposition of a dirt-caked man walking out of a mineshaft and a business suit-clad man in a boardroom is one even the most fervent denier of our current societal relations must recognize. The recent tragedy in West Virginia has captured the headlines of all major media outlets, with most agreeing an “investigation” and “more regulation” are in order. These sources of information show great remorse, but offer very little in terms of a real solution.

Twenty-nine miners lost their lives, and many more were injured, when an explosion rocked the Upper Big Branch mine. The company that owns the mine, Massey Energy, has a long history of safety violations. Since 1995 they have been cited for over 3,000 violations, amounting to over 2 million dollars in fines. Of course, much of that money is tied up in the appeals process. And what they don’t appeal, they simply pay and continue business as usual. A few hundred thousand dollars in fines here and there certainly isn’t going to slow down production when there are millions in profits to be made. Neither is concern for the safety of their employees.

CEO Don Blankenship, a “tea-bagger” activist, gives us a glimpse of what industry would look like if it was run by the adherents of that bizarre mishmash of political identities. He’s a stout figure, a perfect villain for a Hollywood movie. Like many on the right, he considers himself a victim, a victim of, primarily, “big government.” What that really means is that his industry is subjected to very limited oversight.

Mr. Blankenship has no time for this, as there’s coal to run. He said as much in a memo that leaked after this latest preventable tragedy. In it, he orders his subordinates to “not do anything other than run coal.” Coal, of course, “pays the bills.” Safety doesn’t. No doubt one of the biggest bills was Blankenship’s salary, a cool $19.7 million in 2008 and purportedly more last year.

The mainstream media line is that yes, they really must “not do anything other than run coal,” but we should try to “beef up” regulations in order to strike a balance between naked greed and unprofitable safety. Blankenship had the brute honesty to not even pay lip service to safety. But why doesn’t the media ask the more serious questions? Such as, why do we allow the profit incentive to blind us to safety and environmental issues? Is regulation, most often administered by market fundamentalists, the best way to temper the anarchic drive for profits? You will see none of these questions asked in any major newspaper, website, or television broadcast.

In place of the market, a rational plan is needed. But you can’t make plans for something you don’t control. And you can’t control what you don’t own. In the final analysis, property relations must change. In other words, the mines must be publicly owned and democratically administered in conjunction with the miners themselves. Really, it makes perfect sense. Who better to ensure the safety of those who work in the mines than those who actually work in the mines? This is a notion that even our friends in most progressive circles aren’t ready to tackle. It’s the elephant in the room many have tried to camouflage with token taxation and regulation, but nevertheless, it remains. Until we, as a class, address this issue both politically and economically, we’re destined to remain expendable commodities for the bosses in their drive to acquire ever more wealth at our expense.