The Sky is Falling! The Sky is Falling!

If there is ever any doubt that West Virginia is being blown off the map, read this!

Blasting Advertisement from the Lincoln Journal (West Virginia) May 15, 2008

Notice is hereby given that Hobet Mining, LLC, P.O. Box 305, Madison, WV 25130, phone (304) 369-6780 intends to conduct blasting activities on the following surface mining permits:

Permit S-5003-96 located at or near Lukey Fork and Connelly Branch of Mud River and Fawn Hollow of Big Ugly Creek of the Guyandotte River, Boone and Lincoln Counties, West Virginia.

Permit S-5011-01 located at or near Mullins Branch of Mud River, Lincoln County, West Virginia.

Permit S-5016-92 located at or near Sugartree Branch and Stanley Fork of Mud River and Boone Block Hollow of Jack Smith Branch and Spruce Lick of Big Horse Creek of Little Coal River, Boone County, West Virginia.

Permit S-5004-04 located at or near Lukey Fork of Mud River and Fawn Hollow of Big Ugly Creek of the Guyandotte River, Boone and Lincoln Counties, West Virginia.

Permit S-5003-06 located at or near Unnamed Tributaries of Berry Branch of/and Mud River.

Permit S-5008-06 located (at or near Berry Branch of Mud River).

Permit S-5003-07 located (at or near Sugartree Branch of Mud River and Jack Smith Branch of Big Horse Creek of the Little Coal River).

Permit S-5002-03 located at or near Berry Branch of Mud River, Lincoln County, West Virginia.

All blasting shall be conducted in accordance with the following schedule of dates and times, unless emergency conditions dictate unscheduled detonation.

Blasting will be conducted between 6:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m. (approximate daylight hours) during May 15, 2008 through May 15, 2009.

Public access to the area prior to blasting will be controlled by personnel employed by the permittee, who will be posted at key positions at least ten (10) minutes before each blasting activity.

The pre-blast audible warning shall sound three (3) minutes prior to blast. A warning signal audible to a range of one-half (1/2) mile from the blast site will be given consisting of three (3) short signals for five (5) seconds duration with five (5) seconds between each signal.

The “ALL CLEAR” signal shall consist of one (1) long warning signal of twenty seconds duration.

No blasting shall be conducted on Sundays.

No Blasting on Sundays - How Nice!

Student Reaction to Mountaintop Removal - One Word at a Time!

Mary Miller and Pauline Canterberry, better known as "The Sylvester Dustbusters," traveled with me to Kermit, West Virginia on Feb. 24 where we showed "Rise Up! West Virginia" to 27 students from Wheeling Jesuit University. There's nothing like being in a room full of young people to lift you up and keep your head on track!

They crowded onto the floor in the after-school room at the Able Families Center. Mary, Pauline and I sat on pint-sized chairs overlooking the room full of bodies, heads poking out of sleeping bags, toes pointed toward the ceiling.

When the movie ended Sister Janet Peterworth stood up and said, "Let's be still for a few minutes and leave the lights off. Just take all of this in and think about what you are feeling." Their response - one word at a time:

SAD - MAD - ANGRY - SAD - OUTRAGED - SICK - SAD - ASTONISHED - GUILTY - ASHAMED - SELFISH - SELFISH!

INSPIRED! UPLIFTED!

Today I got the following note from one of the students who was there.

I just wanted to thank you for the movie. I was one of the students that had the honor of watching your movie in Kermit, WV. Rise Up! WV is such a powerful movie and it really hit home with me. I live in WV, but I was unaware of the damage that mountaintop removal is causing to this state and other states, for that matter. Thank you so much for enlightening me. It is absolutely shocking how companies can keep disregarding people's lives. When will it be ever enough for the companies? When will they value other's lives instead of money, instead of their own comfort? Thank you for lighting a fire of questions within me.

I also want to thank you for bringing the "Dust Busters" along. It is so much more impactful when there is someone who is living in the thick of the problems to talk to. I really enjoyed listening to them and was appalled that the coal companies and the government would let that continue. Thank you and I thank them for sharing their story.

I would love to learn more about mountaintop removal so if there are any websites, literature, etc, you could direct me to that would be really great. If there is anything that I could do to help please don't hesitate to contact me. Keep Fighting!

Bless you all for caring.
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