Free Republic

Today I came across an old video of a cartoon from 1948 called "Make Mine Freedom." The quality is not the greatest, but the message is crystal clear. First, the video and then a little commentary: It's funny to think today that even at the height of capitalist propaganda versus communist propaganda, people were ashamed of being capitalists. What is it that makes success so shameful? Why is it that when one man makes a fortune and spreads wealth throughout society, it's considered greed or selfishness, but when the snake-oil salesmen from the government steal our money and freedom while...

A poster mentioned something on a previous thread that needs exploration. Why not drill and mine federal lands and use the profits to clean the national debts. There must be billions or even trillions in Alaska, the Gulf, and on other federal lands. We could clean up our debts and become solvent and not put us into default. End cap and trade and cut great deals with differnt companies. Oil, natural gas, timber, mining rights. There is a lot here. Why not use it?

Slovakia mourns 20 killed in coal mine blast, fire (AP) BRATISLAVA, Slovakia — Slovakia is observing a day of mourning for 20 fatal victims of a fire and explosion in a coal mine, one of the worst accidents in the country's history. Rescue officials have recovered 18 bodies from the Handlova mine in central Slovakia and say they are certain that the two missing miners are also dead. Flags are flying at half-staff across the country Wednesday, and radio and television stations have canceled broadcasts of any entertainment programs. The explosion, caused by gases released in the fire, trapped the...

Here's a fascinating politics/energy/international relations story that's flying below the radar now, but feels as though it could get huge. The news starts with Uranium One (UUU), a Toronto-listed uranium miner, whose shares plunged 38% on news that the Kazakhstan government was probing whether certain Kazakh mines it owns were acquired illegally. Specifically, it's looking at potentially illegal asset sales by Mukhtar Dzhakishev, the former head of state-owned uranium miner Kazatomprom, who later sought favors from the man who sold the assets to, Frank Giustra, and Bill Clinton. Reuters: [O]ne deal in question was the sale of a 30 percent...

The Princess Diana Memorial Fund has given almost £2million to the Bill Clinton Foundation - even though the former US President betrayed a promise he made to Diana to ban landmines. The news has shocked the Princess’s many supporters who still remember how, despite his pledge, Mr Clinton ultimately bowed to Pentagon pressure and refused to sign a treaty forbidding use of the weapons. The US still uses landmines in hotspots such as the demilitarised zone between North and South Korea. Under the Clinton administration, American agents also bugged Diana’s phone calls when she stayed with her friend Lucia Fletcher...

Suzie's hair gel is arriving in San Diego. But will a cheap and elusive mine or other explosive device give not just Suzie but the whole nation a lot more to worry about? Threading her way through the channel of a congested San Diego harbor, the containership Devonshire Trader-stacked to the pilot house with shipping containers including Suzie's Royal Paradise hair gel from New Zealand-is just moments away from the end of a routine, almost monotonous crossing of the Pacific. Without warning, a tower of seawater suddenly envelops both sides of the bow and a massive shudder passes down the...

Fatal Mine Collapse Covered 50 Acres ScienceDaily (Jun. 3, 2008) — New calculations show that the deadly Crandall Canyon mine collapse -- which registered as a magnitude-3.9 earthquake -- began near where miners were excavating coal and quickly grew to a 50-acre cave-in, University of Utah seismologists say in a report on the tragedy. The University of Utah Seismograph Stations estimated the size of the collapse is about four times larger than was thought shortly after the time of the Aug. 6, 2007, disaster that resulted in the deaths of six miners and, 10 days later, three rescuers. The seismologists'...

This map shows the part of the Crandall Canyon Mine that was being mined in August 2007, when a collapse occurred. A smaller collapse in March 2007 (red rectangle marked... Click here for more information. SALT LAKE CITY� New calculations show that the deadly Crandall Canyon mine collapse � which registered as a magnitude-3.9 earthquake � began near where miners were excavating coal and quickly grew to a 50-acre cave-in, University of Utah seismologists say in a report on the tragedy. The University of Utah Seismograph Stations estimated the size of the collapse is about four times larger than...

The Utah mine where six workers were entombed after a thunderous collapse has been sealed, leaving expensive mining machinery inside, federal regulators said Tuesday.

A Chinese mining company has won a tender to develop one of the world's largest copper mines in Afghanistan. The state-owned China Metallurgical Group says it will invest nearly $3bn in the mine at Aynak in the province of Logar, south of Kabul. Officials say it will be the largest foreign investment in Afghan history and will employ 10,000 people. When construction is complete the company will pay the Afghan government $400m a year. 'World-class' The Afghan government wants to attract foreign companies to make mining a key sector of an economy that is on a slow recovery after three...

Ukraine gas blast kills 63 miners, traps 37 Last Updated: 1:40am GMT 19/11/2007 A gas explosion tore through a Ukrainian mine killing at least 63 men and trapping another 37 underground in shafts engulfed by fire and smoke. Officials said the chance of rescuing the survivors was "poor". A pocket of methane gas detonated at around 3?am local time at the Zasyadko mine in the Donetsk region at a depth of more than 3,280 feet, the Emergency Situations Ministry said. Yuri Zayats, the head of the Zasyadko coal mine's trade union council, said: "There is thick smoke in the shafts...

Thousands Trapped In SA Gold Mine Updated: 21:39, Wednesday October 03, 2007 Three thousand workers are trapped in a gold mine near Johannesburg, in South Africa. More follows...

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) - The federal Mine Safety and Health Administration on Thursday announced proposals it says will improve rescue operations at the nation's 653 underground coal mines, in part by cutting maximum emergency response times in half. The agency published two proposed regulations in the Federal Register aimed at complying with a federal law passed last year in the wake of an explosion that killed 12 West Virginia miners. The proposed rules would require rescuers to reach underground coal mines within one hour. The current rule is two hours.

One Girl Dead, One Injured After Falling In Arizona Mine Shaft, Two girls riding an all-terrain vehicle fell into a mine shaft, killing one while the other remained trapped overnight, authorities said Sunday.

HUNTINGTON, Utah - The latest holed drilled into a collapsed mine where six men are trapped broke through a chamber too small for the men to survive, a lawyer for several of the men's families said Saturday.

As rescuers drilled a final hole into a Utah mountain Thursday to search for six missing coal miners, the U.S. Senate added its voice to a growing chorus of questions raised over the safety of the mine. The Senate Appropriations subcommittee that oversees labor issues announced plans for a hearing on the mine collapse when Congress returns from its summer break Sept. 5. Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., chairman of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, also demanded a list of documents Thursday from the Labor Department about the Crandall Canyon Mine and its operators. Kennedy wants to review several...

A Cabinet minister sought Wednesday to portray a mining accident that left 181 miners trapped and presumed dead as a natural disaster, deflecting criticism that more could have been done to save the workers. China's coal mine industry is the most dangerous in the world. Coal feeds most of China's energy needs, but accidents kill an average of 13 miners a day. Mining company officials also visited families and told them to stay at home. Some families said they received $265 — more than two months of the average miners' wages — to keep quiet.

HUNTINGTON, Utah — Lashing out at criticism he was abandoning six trapped coal miners, the mine chief promised Wednesday to keep searching through the weekend and punch yet another hole into "this evil mountain." Bob Murray, the face of the rescue effort since the August 6 cave-in, dropped from public view for a time after three men died trying to tunnel toward the miners, but he said he's always been focused on finding the six - dead or alive. "I didn't desert anybody," Murray, the mine's co-owner, told The Associated Press. "I've been living on this mountain every day, living...

This past week, America has watched in anticipation as workers attempt to rescue six trapped miners in a Utah coal mine. Daily news conferences and minute updates have kept us on the edge of our seats, anxious for any sign that the trapped miners are alive. Murray Energy and the Department of Labor’s Mine Safety and Health Administration have deployed over 130 miners to dig into the mine. Without hesitation or question, local mining companies have devoted much of their resources to this rescue mission. No one ever stopped to consider the bottom line. For a moment allow me to...

SALT LAKE CITY (ABC 4 News) - The families of the Crandall Canyon miner's aren't the only ones raising questions about the handling of the rescue effort. Many news organizations and blogs are also now asking questions about the governments role and the man chosen to lead the rescue effort, Mine and Health Safety Administrator, Richard Stickler. Sunday, the questions that had been whispered about for days, the miner's families themselves finally made public. Sonny Olsen, families spokesperson said, "We are at the mercy of the officials in charge and their so-called experts." Increasing attention is now being paid to...

HUNTINGTON, Utah — Officials extinguished nearly all hope of finding any of the six miners alive on Sunday, nearly two weeks after the men were trapped in a violent collapse deep with a mine. The latest results from a fourth hole drilled more than 1,500 feet into the mountainside found the air quality could not sustain life, said a top executive of the company that co-owns the Crandall Canyon Mine. "It's likely these miners may not be found," said Rob Moore, vice president of Murray Energy Corp.

XINTAI, China — Pumps began working Sunday to drain a flooded coal mine where 172 miners have been trapped underground for two days in shafts filled with water estimated at more than 60 feet deep. Nine more miners were trapped in a second flooded shaft in the area. Access to the main flooded mine was blocked, and there was no indication whether the miners were still alive or how long it would take to pump out the water. About 60 angry relatives crowded the gates of a company compound, complaining no information had been released — not even a list...

The Utah mine tragedy underlines the importance of oversight of presidential appointments Saturday, August 18, 2007 T he United States Senate knew exactly how to respond when Richard Strickler was nominated to monitor the health and safety of U.S. miners. It rejected him. Twice. Last year, President Bush waited until October, when senators were out of town, to hand Stickler what's called a "recess appointment," meaning he got the job without having to be confirmed. As the drama unfolds beneath Utah, it seems none to soon to re-examine quite what was the Senate's concern? It turns out that senators, who...

Magnitude 3.9 - UTAH <!-- .map{ padding:10px 10px 10px 10px; width:120px; float:left; display:block; height:175px; text-align:center; } <p> .map a { text-decoration:none; } --> 2007 August 18 13:16:30 UTC Details Maps Where can I find...? Earthquake Details Magnitude 3.9 Date-Time Saturday, August 18, 2007 at 13:16:30 UTCSaturday, August 18, 2007 at 07:16:30 AM at epicenter Location 38.102°N, 113.404°W Depth 0.1 km (~0.1 mile) (poorly constrained) Region UTAH Distances 44 km (27 miles) WSW (254°) from Minersville, UT 47 km (29 miles) SW (226°) from Milford, UT 50 km (31 miles) NW (320°) from Enoch, UT 112 km (69 miles) ENE...

A national mine safety expert believes the two collapses at the Crandall Canyon Mine [snip] were caused by "bumps" that resulted from the way operations were being conducted at the Huntington mine. Mining bumps are pressure-shifting seismic events than can cause the walls, pillars, ceiling and even the floor of a mine to literally explode and disintegrate. They can cause deaths and injuries, and can result in cave-ins. [snip] And while an investigation ultimately will determine the cause, Ferriter told the Deseret Morning News on Friday he feels certain the bumps were caused by mining activity. "In my opinion, based...

HUNTINGTON, Utah (ABC 4 News) - Equipment used in the Crandall Canyon Mine rescue efforts picked up "significant noise activity" early Wednesday evening. Mine officials say the sound came from the area where a third hole broke through the mine Wednesday. "Don't read too much into this," said mine owner Robert Murray. Mine officials say the noise is not necessarily an indication of life in the mine, but are saying it is a reason to continue hope. Officials expect to get video back from the third hole by 9:00 p.m. Air sample readings are expected around 11:00 Wednesday night. A...

The problem-plagued effort to rescue six miners trapped in a Utah coal mine suffered its most grave setback Thursday night, when a seismic shudder sent rock tumbling onto rescue workers, killing three and injuring six, authorities said. The mountain "bump" occurred about 6:30 p.m., as the group of more than 100 rescue workers continued to carefully tunnel through the collapsed Crandall Canyon Mine. Since Aug. 6, when a predawn cave-in buried the miners, regular seismic tremors have slowed the dig to a virtual crawl. There has been no indication of whether the trapped miners are alive, and officials emphasized that...

HUNTINGTON -- Underground efforts to reach six miners trapped in central Utah's Crandall Canyon mine since Aug. 6 have been suspended indefinitely following a Thursday night cave-in that killed three rescue workers. Richard Stickler, assistant secretary of Labor over the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration, said efforts deep inside the coal mine would remain halted unless some way is found to safely resume them. "This was a tragic accident [that] was the result of seismic activity, a mountain 'bump,'" he said at a late-morning briefing near the mine. "We had put in the strongest ground-support system . . ....

The rumble echoed in the flicker of a heartbeat, striking instant fear through bones and nerves. For that split second, as the mountain shrugged, mining equipment weighing several tons bounced inches off the ground. For the miners working in this dark tunnel—men who count their experience in these coal veins not by years, but by generations—they paused, looked up, took a breath and then continued to dig for their brothers.

The mine collapse last night that killed and injured rescuers at a Utah coal mine generated seismic waves that reveal the event was a collapse and not a natural earthquake, seismologists say. And increasingly strong evidence also supports the claim that the magnitude-3.9 seismic event that initially trapped six miners on Aug. 6 was the mine collapse itself and also not a natural earthquake, say seismologists at the University of Utah.

A disastrous cave-in Thursday night killed three rescue workers and injured at least six others who were trying to tunnel through rubble to reach six trapped miners, authorities said. Mining officials were considering whether to suspend the rescue effort.

Two medical helicopters enroute to Utah mine after report of new collapse

Rescuers trying to find six miners missing a week in a devastated coal mine failed to see any sign of them through a video camera lowered through a drill hole and will drill yet another hole in an attempt to locate the men, a federal official said Sunday. Poor lighting allowed the camera to only see about 15 feet into a void at the bottom of the drill hole, far less than the 100 feet it's capable of seeing, said Richard Stickler, head of the Mine Safety and Health Administration.

A co-owner of the Crandall Canyon coal mine, where six men were trapped following a cave-in on Aug. 6, 2007, recently got into a combative debate with U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer -- over the carbon emissions from his mines. Robert Murray, vice president of Murray Energy Corp., testified before a Senate committee on June 28, 2007. "You people inside the Beltway, you Senators... don't have the foggiest idea what a person does to pack a lunch and go to work, or wear a hard hat," Murray said, angrily.

Three people have been killed in a mine accident in the US state of Indiana, police said. It is not yet known how many people were in the Gibson County Coal mine at the time of the accident. The incident occurred at an air shaft under construction at about 1100 (1700 GMT). A coroner has been called to the scene, local television reports said. Separately, in Utah, six miners are missing 1,500ft (457m) underground after a mine collapsed on Monday. The three died in a basket used to transport people along the 600ft (183m) air shaft, Detective Mike Hurt said....

HUNTINGTON, Utah - If the six trapped miners are alive, they may be sitting in inky darkness, their headlamps having burned out. Wearing thin work clothes in the 58-degree cold, they could be chilled to the bone if water is seeping into their chamber 150 stories below ground. How much air they might have is anyone's guess.... I'm sure their lights have died by now. I'm sure it's pitch black," said miner Robby Robertson, 27, of Orangeville, Utah, who worked in the mine several years ago. "Imagine the darkest place you've ever been." Murray, however, said that if the miners...

A mine collapse in Emery County may have trapped six miners inside the Genwal Mine near Huntington Caynon. The Emery County Sheriff's Office says the six miners are unaccounted for and emergency workers are currently trying to free the miners. County officials say they do not know what caused the cave in at the mine.

OSHKOSH, Wis. - A new combat truck with a V-shaped bottom designed to withstand blasts from roadside bombs is performing with such success in Iraq that the U.S. military is pressing a Wisconsin company and others to churn out hundreds more in the coming months. About 200 prototypes of the Mine-Resistant Ambush-Protected vehicles have been deployed in Iraq since 2004, said Capt. Jeff Landis, spokesman for the Marine Corps Systems Command in Quantico, Va. No Marine has died while in one of the trucks, Landis said. "This is the best vehicle available for safety and survivability," he said. "The MRAP...

NASA is studying a multi-role robotic lunar lander able to put an automated mine on the Moon to aid human settlement. The first version would likely go to the permanently sunlit area of Shackleton crater at the Moon's South Pole to confirm the probable location of the first human outpost. Eventually, many of these landers would deploy a range of machines that would prove the concept of in-situ resource utilisation (ISRU). "[The robots] locate, excavate, extract, transport, process, store and perform waste disposal. This is a mine," says NASA lunar precursor robotic programme deputy programme executive David Atkinson, speaking at...

Gold mine holds life untouched by the Sun 19:00 19 October 2006 NewScientist.com news service Debora MacKenzie The first known organisms that live totally independently of the sun have been discovered deep in a South African gold mine. The bacteria exist without the option of photosynthesis by using radioactive uranium to convert water molecules to useable energy. Similar life forms may exist on other planets, experts speculate. The bacteria live in ancient water trapped in a crack in basalt rock, 3 to 4 kilometres down. Scientists from Princeton University in New Jersey, US, and colleagues analysed water from the fissure...

Poor farmers invoke land law to get their hands on South Africa's richest diamond mine Stephen Bevan in Taaibosch (Filed: 01/10/2006) Deep in the bushveld of South Africa's far north, 20 miles down a dirt track from the nearest road, the dusty township of Taaibosch is an unlikely place to find the owners of one of the country's most valuable pieces of real estate. Yet the residents of its rows of tiny brick huts, baking in the harsh sun, may soon be declared joint proprietors of South Africa's richest diamond mine. John Matlathi, 66, the village's head man, and other...

Soldier Hit by Anti-Tank Mine Praises Up-Armor Up-armored humvee saves the lives of soldiers hit by anti-tank mine. U.S. Army Pfc. Durwood Blackmon 25th Combat Aviation Brigade Public Affairs TIKRIT, IRAQ, Sept. 18, 2006 -- U.S. soldiers are issued cumbersome protective gear that they have to lug, carry and drag everywhere they go. With heavy steel doors and blast shields, vehicles in the Army are no exception either. For one soldier of the 25th Infantry Division, Combat Aviation Brigade, however, both of these security defenses helped to save his life and the life of his fellow comrades when their...

WASHINGTON, June 28, 2006 – A coalition soldier was killed and three others were injured today when their vehicle struck a land mine in Afghanistan's Helmand province, and Afghan and coalition forces today killed 12 terrorists at a Taliban compound, military officials reported. The dead and wounded soldiers' uparmored vehicle struck a land mine likely left behind from 25 years of war, according to Combined Forces Command Afghanistan officials. "We sincerely regret the loss of our fellow soldier today; his sacrifice will not be forgotten," Army Maj. Gen. Benjamin C. Freakley, commander of Combined Joint Task Force -76, said. "Our...

More than 17 million tonnes of tailings from the abandoned Clinton Creek asbestos mine in the Yukon are slowly sliding down a hillside, reshaping the landscape and blocking water flows. The environmental eyesore does, however, have one redeeming quality. The pile is sucking tonnes of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere. "It is happening at a higher rate than anyone expected," says geologist Gregory Dipple of the University of B.C., who sees big potential for mines -- and mine tailings -- to be part of the global warming solution. Unlike schemes that entail pumping carbon dioxide underground where it's hard...

The Climax mine will pour molybdenum once again. Owner Phelps Dodge of Phoenix on Wednesday said it would spend $200 million to $250 million to resume strip-mine operations at the top of Fremont Pass - after shuttering it for more than 20 years. The company expects to begin harvesting the stainless steel-hardening mineral by the end of 2009. It plans to produce up to 30 million pounds of molybdenum per year for at least 20 years and hire 300 to work in the mine.

Sago Mine Blast Survivor Leaves Hospital POSTED: 10:11 am EST March 30, 2006 UPDATED: 10:49 am EST March 30, 2006 MORGANTOWN, W.Va. -- Sago Mine survivor Randal McCloy Jr., looking thin and stiff but walking on his own, offered his gratitude Thursday as he was released from a hospital Thursday after almost three months. "I'd just like to thank everybody for their thoughts and prayers" McCloy said softly, wearing a ball cap and a racing-team jacket at a morning news conference. He paused, then added with a weak smile, "I believe that's it." His wife, Anna, who held his hand...

Mine Owner Blames Lightning for Sago Blast Wednesday March 15, 2006 12:31 AM By VICKI SMITH Associated Press Writer MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) - An explosion that killed 12 workers at the Sago Mine likely was caused by a massive lightning strike that ignited methane gas in a sealed-off area, the mine's owner said Tuesday. The company's own investigation turned up three pieces of compelling evidence of a lightning strike, all from 6:26 a.m. on Jan. 2, said Ben Hatfield, chief executive officer of International Coal Group Inc. He said weather monitors confirmed an unusually large and powerful lightning strike near...

ABOARD USS ARDENT – While conducting maritime security operations (MSO) in the Arabian Gulf, March 6, USS Ardent (MCM 12) responded to a distress call by an Iraqi-owned commercial vessel. Ardent arrived on scene after the crew of Motor Vessel Gulf Queen reported via bridge-to-bridge radio that the vessel was dead-in-the-water with no topside or navigational lighting visible. The Avenger-class mine countermeasure ship deployed two rescue and assistance teams (RNA), which performed a security sweep of the crippled ship and conducted an assessment of its electrical and engineering conditions as well as the welfare of the crew. According to Engineman...

<p>QUETTA, Pakistan -- A crowded bus carrying a wedding party hit an anti-tank mine in a volatile region of southwestern Pakistan on Friday, killing at least 26 people, a senior government official said.</p>

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) -- The sole survivor of an explosion that killed 12 men at a West Virginia coal mine is responding to simple commands as he continues to emerge from a light coma, doctors said Tuesday. Randal L. McCloy Jr., 26, can now follow movements with his eyes, but he remains unable to speak, Dr. Larry Roberts said. McCloy, who survived the Jan. 2 blast and more than 41 hours of exposure to carbon monoxide, is also receiving physical therapy. He began opening his eyes last week. One of the 12 miners may have died in the explosion, and...