“Nearly every day without fail…men stream to these [mining] operations looking for work in Walker County. They can’t pay their mortgage. They can’t pay their car note. They can’t feed their families. They don’t have health insurance. And as I stand here today, I just…you know…what’s the use? I got a permit to open up an underground coal mine that would employ probably 125 people. They’d be paid wages from $50,000 to $150,000 a year. We would consume probably $50 million to $60 million in consumables a year, putting more men to work. And my only idea today is to go home. What’s the use? I see these guys—I see them with tears in their eyes—looking for work. And if there’s so much opposition to these guys making a living, I feel like there’s no need in me putting out the effort to provide work for them. So…basically what I’ve decided is not to open the mine. I’m just quitting. Thank you.”
That is a quote from Ronnie Bryant of Jasper AL on a coal mine he was attempting to open as reported on theblaze.com. The link is below so that you can watch the video if you wish. The bottom line is that he got fed up with the red tape he was being bound by, and decided to heck with it. In some regards I can't blame him, but it is more than a little sad and a very bad day for the residents of Walker County who really needed the work.
The real issue is that many tell me that this won't happen. That more and more can be heaped on the producers and they'll just smile and take it. They won't, and I don't expect Mr. Bryant is the last. Heck, I wonder how many went quietly before him with no cameras to document it.
Ronnie Bryant
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