Idiot Air Waves

Why are stupid and uninformed people paid enormous amounts of money to act like ignorant buffoons and pollute the radio air waves?

Uninformed Limbaugh Wonders ‘Where Was The Union’ At Non-Union Mine Disaster

Last Friday, Rush Limbaugh asked why a coal miner union didn’t protect the 29 miners who were killed when Massey Energy’s Upper Big Branch Mine in Montcoal, WV, exploded under unsafe conditions:

Was there no union responsibility for improving mine safety? Where was the union here? Where was the union? The union is generally holding these companies up demanding all kinds of safety. Why were these miners continuing to work in what apparently was an unsafe atmosphere?

Listen here

In fact, the United Mine Workers of America (UMW) “tried three times to organize the Upper Big Branch mine, but even with getting nearly 70 percent of workers to sign cards saying they wanted to vote for a union, Blankenship personally met with workers to threaten them with closing down the mine and losing their jobs if they voted for a union.”

Blankenship rose in Massey’s ranks by breaking its union mines in the 1980s. Blankenship said then that busting unions is “invaluable” to profits, as non-union companies can “sell coal cheaper and drive union coal out of business.”

Jeebus, Rush. Aren't there any news sources on your planet?

Countdown with Keith Olbermann

Limbaugh oblivious on miners' union fact

April 13: Keith Olbermann points out that Worst Person in the World, Rush Limbaugh, tried to blame the miners' union for the West Virginia mine explosion, completely oblivious to the fact that the mining company kept the union out.

I think Keith has accurately diagnosed the problem. Again.