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I blame Obama and the EPA for the decline in coal revenues as he is trying to shut down more coal power plants across the country. Other liberal Democrats are to blame too. I recently moved from Maryland where the liberal governor Martin O'Malley wants 20% of the states energy to come from "renewable sources" 10 years from now (this also means higher electric bills) he is a liberal nutjob in every way including and especially when it comes ot the environment and development issues and he plans to shut down more power plants in Maryland which means less West Virginia coal going there. There are also many liberals targeting North Dakota and trying to stop the oil extraction there and many liberal propaganda against natural gas in the Marcellus Shale. We have propaganda films like Gasland and Promised Land criticizing the natural gas industry unfairly.
I wouldn't say West Virginians are professional victims. If you want to see professional go find some illegal immigrants or go to Baltimore, Detroit, Harlem, or Philadelphia. I find West Virginians to be proud, hardworking people whose circumstances have been negatively impacted by our federal government and especially by Obama and the EPA who answer to their liberal base in the cities. Those people do NOT live here and have no business coming to West Virginia (or North Dakota) and telling us how to run our state and where we can or can't mine coal or drill for gas and oil.
I blame Obama and the EPA for the decline in coal revenues as he is trying to shut down more coal power plants across the country. Other liberal Democrats are to blame too. I recently moved from Maryland where the liberal governor Martin O'Malley wants 20% of the states energy to come from "renewable sources" 10 years from now (this also means higher electric bills) he is a liberal nutjob in every way including and especially when it comes ot the environment and development issues and he plans to shut down more power plants in Maryland which means less West Virginia coal going there. There are also many liberals targeting North Dakota and trying to stop the oil extraction there and many liberal propaganda against natural gas in the Marcellus Shale. We have propaganda films like Gasland and Promised Land criticizing the natural gas industry unfairly.
I wouldn't say West Virginians are professional victims. If you want to see professional go find some illegal immigrants or go to Baltimore, Detroit, Harlem, or Philadelphia. I find West Virginians to be proud, hardworking people whose circumstances have been negatively impacted by our federal government and especially by Obama and the EPA who answer to their liberal base in the cities. Those people do NOT live here and have no business coming to West Virginia (or North Dakota) and telling us how to run our state and where we can or can't mine coal or drill for gas and oil.
The coal industry has been declining for decades, way before Obama. It was much worse in the 80s and the 90s.
The coal industry has actually been doing better for the last few years.
It is done. The future of WV is shale in the North. Coal in WV isnt declining. It is done.
There are still a lot of operating coal mines in southern West Virginia including in Kanawha County merely 10 miles outside of Charleston. Again while we need to take advantage of every opportunity we have to harvest the natural gas in northern WV the government should not try to hamper the coal industry in any way. Many people still depend on it for a living and coal still accounts for a large portion of power generation in the United States today.
I've not been south of Charleston yet (well as far as Quincy) but I don't think we can just abandon southern WV and write it off as completely hopeless. The coal reserves left there should still be exploited for sure. I don't think we can expect people in the coal towns there to just abandon their communities and move to the northern counties to work in the natural gas industry. Unfortunately I don't think tourism is the answer for West Virginia as a whole because as pretty as the scenery is statewide we would be competing with the Blue Ridge, the Shenandoah, and the Smoky Mountains for mountain scenery. Skiing is only a seasonal business and Maryland's new casinos certainly are cutting down on the gambling business.
I blame Obama and the EPA for the decline in coal revenues as he is trying to shut down more coal power plants across the country. Other liberal Democrats are to blame too. I recently moved from Maryland where the liberal governor Martin O'Malley wants 20% of the states energy to come from "renewable sources" 10 years from now (this also means higher electric bills) he is a liberal nutjob in every way including and especially when it comes ot the environment and development issues and he plans to shut down more power plants in Maryland which means less West Virginia coal going there. There are also many liberals targeting North Dakota and trying to stop the oil extraction there and many liberal propaganda against natural gas in the Marcellus Shale. We have propaganda films like Gasland and Promised Land criticizing the natural gas industry unfairly.
I wouldn't say West Virginians are professional victims. If you want to see professional go find some illegal immigrants or go to Baltimore, Detroit, Harlem, or Philadelphia. I find West Virginians to be proud, hardworking people whose circumstances have been negatively impacted by our federal government and especially by Obama and the EPA who answer to their liberal base in the cities. Those people do NOT live here and have no business coming to West Virginia (or North Dakota) and telling us how to run our state and where we can or can't mine coal or drill for gas and oil.
Yes yes, same old blather different day, everything's the fault of Obama and liberals and immigrants and black people. Why can't they just stay out of our honest, decent, hardworking, lilywhite state?!? Then all of our problems would be solved.
Yes yes, same old blather different day, everything's the fault of Obama and liberals and immigrants and black people. Why can't they just stay out of our honest, decent, hardworking, lilywhite state?!? Then all of our problems would be solved.
I never said anything about black people or immigrants being a problem whether here or elsewhere. My parents are immigrants btw I am simply talking about ILLEGAL immigrants. My point was that the Democrats primary exposure to poor people is in the cities so they witness the entitlement attitude but the same is not true of rural America. The liberal model does not work for West Virginia. People here are not interested in just a handout, throwing more food stamps and expanding Medicaid is NOT the answer to the poverty issues in West Virginia. The answer is to create more jobs, and to save the jobs we have. And the biggest threat to jobs in West Virginia is Obama's policies and the EPA regulators, especially those in the EPA and in Congress who are against the coal industry. Plus those who are not only against the coal industry but against natural gas as well. Environmental regulators are the WORST enemy of the people of West Virginia and other rural places IMHO. In my former state it was the same, with liberal Democrats in the state house destroying the economies of the rural areas through bans on coal mining and natural gas fracking, strict regulations on farming and fishing, and limits on development in rural areas.
North Dakota is a very conservative, Republican state with very few regulations and also has very few unions. The threat to their well being also comes from the EPA regulators and the Obama White House. And there are worse Democrats than Obama who want to be president after him, ones who are radical about wind energy and subsidizing wind farms and solar power with no regard for what happens in coal country. And now Obama wants to push us to war with Syria where we have no business being in and which can only hurt us in terms of our physical and our economic security including with the gas prices.
The Democrats base in the cities also causes a lot of them on the national level to direct funding to public transportation vs highways which hurts West Virginia. Do you EVER wonder why when Baltimore demanded money for a new subway line it was approved almost immediately, while it takes another 20 years to complete the Coalfields Expressway? I also hear there are highway widening projects in Putnam County that are way overdue, yet there is talk of high speed rail between LA and Las Vegas.
New story about the developments to establish this fund since the delegates returned from the trip to North Dakota.
I'm for this as long as each region of WV gets out what puts in. On against this if this is just an attempt to redistribute wealth to Charleston and special interest.
West Virginia is facing massive budget shortfalls. Any windfall revenues derived from natural gas will not only have to plug the almost certain budget gap, they will have to make up for the decline of coal severance tax revenues, as well.
North Dakota is, and has always been, a do it yourself kind of state. People there are tough, steady, self-reliant, proud and inclined towards working for what you have. It is not a welfare state and shiftless layabouts are subject to ridicule. People look down on professional victims. West Virginia does not share these positive attributes.
West Virginia does not have the will, and will not have the money, to emulate North Dakota's success.
Unfortunately, south of Sutton, I suspect you are right.
Right, you just mentioned cities that happen to be filled with them, including a small area (about 100,000 people) called Harlem that some people just might associate with black people. But yes, we're so stupid that we don't think you have a problem with black people or anything.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tom Lennox 70
My point was that the Democrats primary exposure to poor people is in the cities so they witness the entitlement attitude but the same is not true of rural America.
Right, rural America is just hardworking white folks, as against the professional victim black folks in the cities. Oh wait, I forgot you didn't directly mention race, I must just be reading that into this, my bad.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tom Lennox 70
Environmental regulators are the WORST enemy of the people of West Virginia and other rural places IMHO.
IKR? The environment is SO overrated. Fresh air, clean water, FEH! Immediate $$$ should be our only concern!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tom Lennox 70
And there are worse Democrats than Obama who want to be president after him, ones who are radical about wind energy and subsidizing wind farms and solar power with no regard for what happens in coal country.
Yeah, don't you hate progress? Why couldn't everything just have stopped right around 1950, when all was right with the world? I mean, it wasn't so great for blacks, or gays, or women, or midgets, I don't know, but for us hard-working rural folks (wink wink), it was great.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tom Lennox 70
The Democrats base in the cities also causes a lot of them on the national level to direct funding to public transportation vs highways which hurts West Virginia
Yep, you've hit the nail on the head once again. CLEARLY what is needed is more cars on more highways. I bet the dang nanny-state EPA wouldn't even let us pave over the whole country!
Yes yes, same old blather different day, everything's the fault of Obama and liberals and immigrants and black people. Why can't they just stay out of our honest, decent, hardworking, lilywhite state?!? Then all of our problems would be solved.
I don't see how this has anything at all to do with the color of anybody's skin. And, even though illegal aliens of any color pose many problems for our own workers, state and local governments, social service system, hospitals, and other institutions, it is not directly related to them either.
The concept of an endowed fund from resource collections is an excellent one. In our own state, the problems arise when the Boss Hogg politicos see yet another opportunity for pork ripoffs. We could save up a billion dollars, and some group of idiots hanging out in Charleston would just see another excuse to build a super highway around the base of a seldom used mountain in hopes of making their brothers and cousins richer. We can get the money, but we can't change the mindset that has always done major damage to our state.
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