Discussion for article #230147
The wheels of justice sometimes turn slowly, but they do turn. Except of course if you are a Wall St. banker, in which case please help yourself to whatever you’d like, the “Justice Department” will be happy to work something out with you whenever it’s convenient.
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Couldn’t happen to a sleazier humanoid. I believe he lied from day one of that tragedy, and he has never stopped lying. 30 years is wayyyy too low. 20 years per fatality with no parole. Yup, 500 years or so suits me just fine.
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I hope he’s convicted and sent to prison for a long time.
He’s a repulsive, hateful, greedy person, and deserves to get his comeuppance.
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The GOP just announced they are sponsoring a bill to hold him harmless for this totally unforseeable tragedy, since holding him accountable would just hurt business and make corporate assholes sad.
Also, they added a rider to gut the ACA (of course).
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He couldn’t be guilty of such a massive evil crime against American workers, could he? I mean I sure in his own little bailiwick back there in the fine upstandin crisitianist state of West Virginia, he’s respected by all his social equals as an honest God-fearin loyal true family values kind of guy. How could he not have had his worker’s personal safety and welfare uppermost in his mind. God forbid that his behavior was swayed by the lure of filthy lucre… Oh never mind, I just can’t make the defense stick. Why not a nice neck tie party for the bastard
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damn, look at the photo… he’s the personification of an evil, murderous coal baron
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Lying to the Feds gets you every time.
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Sometimes good things happen to deserving people. Don Blankenship definitely deserves this indictment. Too many good people have died in service to this rich cretin. He deserves a conviction and a long prison sentence. He needs to be put away. But, I’m not holding my breath.
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If there WERE justice, Mr. Blankenship would be currently serving a VERY long sentence, but Mr. Blankenship operates in an area where the justice system is essentially the coal industry. For a great read on what he has managed to get away with over the years and how he has done it, despite a decade long effort to bring him to heel, this book The Price of Justice provides it. From stiffing customers to cutting corners and safety to vacationing in Europe with the Chief Justice of the State Supreme Court, Mr. Blankenship is one of the best and most sordid examples of the power of the coal industry.
Today, that industry is in trouble and maybe his powers are slipping, but don’t count on it. This guy is slipperier than Scott Walker and now has both Joe Manchin AND Mitch McConnell holding even more power to help him:
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Of course, proving this when he has the dream team on his side is going to be something else BUT finally the corporate execs have their heinnies on the line.
I’m sure his 1,000 hours of community service will be grueling! It is hard to imagine such fierce sentencing, but by golly he’ll get his!
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Personally, I suggest dropping him in his deepest mine and then blow the entrances and exits closed. Then drill a 6 inch hole down to where he is at and begin filling it with water. throw in a few small bombs every now and then to get his attention along with a $100.00 bill. Then continue on for as long as it takes before he takes the cheap road out and kills himself with insanity.
But hey, thats just me and my opinion.
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Good-when he is convicted drop him to the bottom of one of his mines!
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Couldn’t happen to a worse POS.
However, were West Virginia not a state where Coal’s greed and corruption were not so widespread; he would also be facing state charges for 29 counts of involuntary manslaughter.
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I agree. I will enjoy watching him squirm, or at least reading about it. However, I think the other s involved in the disaster who were mentioned in the article, got off light. 3.5 years and 1 year and a few months for disabling a methane detector, that’s manslaughter! Falsifying records and participating in cover ups on safety violations deserves more than 1 year and several months or 3.5 years. None of them should do less than 20 years…
I’m normally opposed to the death penalty, but in his case burying him alive in the Upper Big Branch mine is more mercy than he deserves.
He perfectly exemplifies the worst attitudes of the majority of mineral interests, those short-sighted Neanderthals to whom best practices and simple human decency are alien and frightening concepts.
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About time!
So white people can be indicted. But then this isn’t MO.
Finally some good news. This lying parasite belongs in jail, and his indictment is the first step.