Ahead of us, a loaded coal truck lumbered, gears grinding and engine sputtering. Before anybody storms The Charleston Gazette, let me explain more fully. I am offended in part on behalf of miners and thousands of others who make their living from coal. I am offended by an industry that had to be forced by federal law to provide a workplace that is even remotely safe. Even now, the industry sabotages efforts to control coal dust.
Coal dust causes black lung.
In sufficient concentrations, it causes mine explosions. Before the Mine Safety and Health Act passed in 1969, hundreds of miners lost their lives every year. The industry accepted that as a cost of business. Actually it was a savings. Safety measures cost money - more money than industry bean counters thought the lives of miners were worth.