Black Mountain Story Part 1

[MrGamerman001]

this made me cry.

[MrGamerman001]

ANYONE HERE KNOW ANY VAUGHNS IN EVARTS??????? MY GRANDPA WORKED IN A BLACK MOUNTAIN COAL MINE!..... PLZ if you know my family like my comment :)

[Evilmokeynomnom]

No difference in this and the government STEALING farms from people in western Kentucky for Camp Breckinridge. Telling many families that when the base closed they would get their farmland back, so Uncle A-Hole could have their land for FREE! LBJ's wife got all the oil rights to pump it dry, and the land was sold off to corporate ag. The farm families tried to sue the government to get their land back, but you can guess how successful that was...

[BourbonBellflower1]

Government will not drill for oil but they will come in and still the land from kentuckians and ruin our Beauty.

[zachschevelle]

Anyone know the song at 4:13?

[zachschevelle]

@zachschevelle Never mind, I saw it in the credits.

[carnut476]

AND THAT'S A FUCKING SHAME !!

[carnut476]

appalachain mountain people are the most hated people in The USA .

[rhoden24]

Now I understand why the authorities allow these pain pill and meth epidemics to run wild in the appalacian region, they want everyone drugged up enough not to care or realize whats happening or to sick to do anything while they have the land raped of all its precious minerals. Very simalar to what happen to the indians, only they used liquor and it was gold they were after...............

[shilltheshillXXX]

They don't REALLY mine anymore...It's too expensive. Are the REAL miners saying anything?

[IDV82atl]

My ancestors first settled in the shadow of Black Mountain in Letcher County, Kentucky in 1796. 12 generations of my family have lived and are buried in these mountains. The Coal Companies are literally stripping away over 200 years of my families land and history. Where my people first settled in Letcher County is still called "Sam's Mountain", Founded Oven Fork Church, Maggard Cemetery. This makes me feel absolutely violated down to my inner core. This will NOT be allowed to continue!

[starmanskye]

A nation that enslaves its citizens, compelled by need enforced by greedy CEOS, corrupt politicians & theiving lawyers to clearcut forests, raze mountains, stripmine coal, pollute the streams & poison wells, leaving the land scarred & barren, its workers sickened, worn-out & broke, is a nation without humanity, wisdom or spirit.

Blame the woes of struggling families, unemployed miners & loggers, & ghost-town communities on treehuggers and liberals -- Why Not? Easier than takin' a stand.

[alnilam87]

Mr. Ball knows all!!!

[ghostman3331]

the locals striipped the mountain working for the mine so quit bitching bitch

[dljc1979]

@ghostman3331 | what are you? a nigger? TRAITORS STRIPPED THAT MOUNTAIN.

[ghostman3331]

@dljc1979 yeah the locals are traitors and the locals all they talk about is who got put in prison who got shot and whos got the dope so quit crying bout your mountain you stripped nobodys gonna give you a dime your looking for a settlement just live in your own stink hole you created

[dljc1979]

@ghostman3331 | you MUST be a nigger..

[ghostman3331]

@dljc1979 yeah im a nigger with a 12 inch cock so fuck off before i fuck your sister

[shilltheshillXXX]

@ghostman3331 An yo intres in minen be? Wa so fel bad bout yo cok?

[ghostman3331]

@shilltheshillXXX shut up bitch your meth is wack and smells of starter fluid get some good shit then get back to me tard.

[shilltheshillXXX]

@ghostman3331 Oh. so you know your meth. That explains it. ;)

[ghostman3331]

@shilltheshillXXX SEEMS LIKE YOU KNOW

[lambofgod661]

ill stop it

[ltuomela]

strip mining and clear cutting is just a fucked up deal...

[yeabuddy61]

if u all dont like coal u all f**kers can freez in the dark!!!

[bestplugins]

@yeabuddy61 what about electricity?

[livingkoan242]

@bestplugins

Less Than 10% of the nations electricity comes from Appalachia surface mines. And surface mining employs about .4% of Kentucky's population.

[SuperJeremy25]

@yeabuddy61 shut up

[ArkRed1]

One nation under greed, divisible. So sad. 

[James1toknow]

They will not be happy until it's all gone then they will come to you and take whatever they can. They don't care about you because they live in high rises. The day will come when someone picks the owner of the mines up and drops his ass off at the north pole and takes off,, just tell him it's business.

[redbulljustice99]

i live in michigian but im comin down there 2 protest brother this shit aint right oil spill now rippin up the mountains of my ancestors shit we better start doing somthing as a people or we aint gonna have shit left no gulf shrimp no wild life in ky va ect im pissed man

[SuperJeremy25]

@redbulljustice99 agree with you.....quit living for the man and the dollar and live for god and nature..

[iamdiaperman]

i couldnt give a shit. people blow everything up so blow up these people so the welfare burden can be eased. watch my videos assholes

[RayRoark2009]

@iamdiaperman Im from southeastern kentucky in Laurel County Mountains

[livingkoan242]

@iamdiaperman

I thought we were supposed to be the ignorant ones.

[s4r4hd]

Mining or starving are not the only two choices! The solution is to stop the mining and replace the mining jobs with other industry such as sustainable energy.

The coal won't last forever anyways. So you stop it and find other solutions now or you continue to destroy the land and environment for a few more years until there is nothing left and you are forced to find another solution.

[redbeakman]

Easy for you to say.

[OBparamour]

Every place that could be potentially mined, is precious to the residents there. This is unfortunate, but we are a society dependant upon fossil fuels. The mining is destructive, but it does provide income that keeps residents from leaving. I grew up in Fulton Co., IL and strip mining was a big industry there. I'm sure the people of Fulton Co. would love to see the mining start again because there are few living-wage jobs there.

[hballzer]

guess mountain top removal mining dosen't matter to people who have other means... feeding the family...thats my primary objective..take away mining and you will have all the precious land you want because like in the old west...these towns will die overnite..and no-one not already on ssi will be able to live here anyhow...but look at the economy....how long is ssi going to last without the income from good paying mining jobs.....

[joshualeeaslinger]

everybody complains way to much about coal mines when they are the ones makin electricity for people but i guess some people will never learn

[ryanwellsSS2009]

I understand people making a living, but the government of the US and Ky have allowed our land to be abused. Greed and usual. This could have been stopped and gone back to underground mining but no, GREED

[bluetoad2001]

i'm from Mudzoory. i'm coming down there to have a look.

hope the coal companies can stop this madness.

i know the coal company execs don't live near black mountain so they better listen up. buzz

[kbenge89]

I've climbed Black Mountain! :D

[GDAWGMAN14]

Wow! Its so amazing how ironic this situation is. Its just plain proof how history repeats itself in the simplest forms. Native americans shared the same perspective on their land when whites came. Whats sad is, the opposition was much more powerful and we all know how that situation ended.

[thousandkitesproject]

It was great to interview Gary. Thanks for posting!

[krh1974]

That's my dad :)

[benwastyxx]

I live in Wise co. va and spend a lot of time in Ky. The saddest thing about mining and mountaintop removal is the fact that we as a people don't really reap the benefits of the black gold we dig out of the ground. Why would someone up north give a shit about our habitat as long as they have their electricity? Its a damn shame!

[tigerbear9]

I totally agree with you. Those aerial shots of the stripped mountains are totally horrifying. I know it sounds cliched, but not only are the government pussyboys contaminating the whole ecosystem down there, they are basically RAPING nature that God created!!!! And the hardworking miners are just trying to provide for their families, and they risk their lives every day while being blamed for the evils of the government.

[ThePuzzler81]

@tigerbear9

I'm all for preserving nature, but I got a news flash for you, god didn't create nature, we've known that to be true for quite some time. Also, the bible quite clearly say's that god gave man dominion over every living thing on earth, I'm sure ignorant statements like that, made by idiotic, primitive bronze age peasants gives a lot of modern men justification to rape this planet and drive it's species into extinction. Just as slave owners invoked the biblical mandate for slavery.

[ThePuzzler81]

@tigerbear9

I hate the word limitation on comments, anyways, continued!

I'd also say that another one of those terrible beliefs of christianity is the idea that Jesus is going to come back one day and destroy us, I mean if I were a person destroying nature I'd certainly say (whats the point, Jesus is gonna come back and wipe us out) you can't call yourself a christian and not believe that. I'm not saying religion is the cause of mans greed, but it does and always has played a huge part.

[jacawit]

I just wanted to say I just read "Night comes to the Cumberlands" by Harry M. Caudill. It was written in the early 1960s. It is the most insightful book probably ever written about Eastern Kentucky. People like him and Judge George Wooten of Hyden, are real heros.

[thompson271]

You just lost your argument right there by saying... "I work on a strip job." That stream may be as clear as can be, because its treated with so many chemicals that nothing can live in it. I'm not trying to insult your intelligence, my dad is a miner as well (underground). But I think an independent biologist not affiliated with the mining operations may have a better understanding of the ramifications of mtn top removal.

[cknightfan]

You don't need an independant biologist to understand the ramifications of mountain top removal...I was born and raised in Leslie County Ky and that makes me an expert...and everyday i see and live with the effects of raping the mountains!!!!

[WV24985]

I don't believe any of these videos. I work on a strip job, and I want to share a few things that are facts: The creek below us is as clear as any water you will ever see: I also live in a hollow between two coal mines, and my water is clean, and safe to drink: I have relatives that live nowhere near coal mines, that don't have very good water: And my final fact...If There Is a Runnoff From Our Job (not even black, but muddy water), We have to Fix It Immediately, Or Be Fined.

[HMAwill]

Isaiah 5:8

Woe to you that join house to house and lay field to field, even to the end of the place: shall you alone dwell in the midst of the earth?

[jakerocksheckyes]

It's communities like this that have to provided it, and at the same rate are almost completely dependent upon this for what economy Harlan County has. This is our only industry or major job provider other than I guess the school system or the Hosptila/clinics. Coal is also harder to get to... there's plenty of it, but it's deep. We don't want our home destroyed, but at the same time, we don't look into providing any other industry here....

[jakerocksheckyes]

This sort of puts people between a rock and a hard place. In order for this nation to run, it needs energy, which is primarily produced by burning coal.

[sccoast1700]

This is a hard thing to stop because those corporate bloodsuckers don't give a damned about nothing but their short term profits. They can mine coal without doing this kind of damage. If this was near Vail or Aspen do you think they would do this?

[Johnnysuicide941]

I grew up in Harlan and went back there and saw what hs happened...I wanted to hurt someone. God bless everyone still there.

[yousuck937]

anyone else notice the guy who is all about KY and it's heritage is wearing a MI shirt? LMAO. good job.

[xenanna2000]

Im from Harlan-- Not only mountain top removal, BUT the contamination from other companies that was dumped into the river, has affected the area. EPA stated it will take HUNDREDS of years to be cleaned up.

[mountainjustice]

r.i.p. Hazel King

[jakerocksheckyes]

I'll have you know Sam that people have indoor plumbing in Harlan County, thank you very much. I've lived there all of my life and I guess you can only understand fully if you've lived there. Just away from where they were going to strip mine(they never strip mined the top of black mountain in KY), the mountains are completely dessamated. Once you strip mine, all that is left is bedrock. Nothing can grow there... no one can live there. Once the coal is gone, so is everything else.

[krh1974]

Sam you have NO class and have NO idea what you are talking about.

[samsaywhat1]

This video sucks........ Let those guys go back to shitin in outhouses and using candles for light. COAL IS WHAT KEEPS THE LIGHTS ON YOU FUCKIN DUMBASS'S!!!!

[RichardF41230]

....if u lived here you would understand what its like to have your surroundings striped from the place where your history is and where u are and always will be and when u live here it seems like these mnts stay in your blood because i cant go one day withought thinking about how proud i am to be from here and to live in such a beautiful enviroment all my life and if people keep taking it away whats going to be leaft for everyone to enjoy NOTHING!! anyway far eastern ky n proud of it

[crazychrisva]

I can see your point of view. I have also seen progress leave it's ugly footprint behind, from clear cutting all the forests and subrurbian sprawl. My area used to be full of forest and tobacco fields on family farms, but they are becoming no more.

Mt. top removal is a ugly thing, but with the nations energy problems we need more solutions. Maybe nuclear, but there has to be a solution.

[RichardF41230]

im not sure if that reply was for me but anyway i was gonna ask you what you think about underground mining and how it reduced inviromentall damagas on these mnt's......in other words i condone underground but i cant stand mnt top remouval whats your take on it ??? just wondering

[crazychrisva]

I really don't know that much about either except they can both be ugly. Underground mining is very dangerous to the miners as they go deeper. Mountain top removal sounds horrible as well, besides the polution it is like they'er going to far (man was not ment to move mountains).

[LastAmericanPatriot]

Hey Sammy...

...your mental abilities are about as sharp as a sack of wet mice. ..

Those men, and women, are what defines the word HERO!! !!

...pity that you'll, likely, never understand what they are talking about.

[chufuss]

It's people like you samsay that have destroyed Appalachia and our culture

[rmstudio]

This is so so sad... That no man shall consider himself great or more important than these Mountains... I have had sense of being drawn in to these Mountains even though I am from California. Coal miners daughter brought me a little closer to this place at the age of 12... Such magic happens there.

[SPELEOGUY]

The highest point in Kentucky should be a State Park and tourist destination. If you have never visited this beautiful place and the interesting commmunities at its base, I would HIGHLY RECOMMEND that you go.

[MurrayKin2]

***** Will everybody who reads this please put these videos on their personal web pages so the world will be made more aware of what is going on?

[MurrayKin2]

Wiki estimates that by 2010, 1.4 million acres of the Appalachia Mts will be erased, as in gone. Thas's an area bigger than the state of Deleware. You can already see how big the scars are getting from space.

[MurrayKin2]

I just found out about Mountain Top Removal last night. Seeing the pictures made me sick to my stomach. I guess it's my gut telling me how seriously, seriously sick MTRM really is, besides the fact that it's just plain wrong!

[MurrayKin2]

Well.. what do you expect when you have two ex-Big Energy company executives rinning the country and the Energy Commission. God help us all.

[krh1974]

Hey, that's my Dad!!! (Gary) He spoke the truth, but I am sad to say it didn't matter much. I have now lived back in Michigan for 10 yrs. There was not much left to offer us. Such beautiful country being destroyed by strip mining. I can't tell you how many people we used to know have died from cancer. Kinda makes you wonder if it has something to to with the contaminates from the mining. What a shame!!!!!

[snooch45]

I agree.I am so mad it makes me want to scream.I love the mountains and animals but i am starting to hate people like that.What is going to happen to this world.

[kunky22]

This is a bunch of b.s. they should not be allowed to destroy the beauty that god created

[shelldawv]

The people from WV and KY need to unite and get someone as a spokesman to speak up and show the nation what is happening to the environment here!!

[fordroad]

STOP THE MINING THIS IS GODS COUNTRY. Im seein not believin whats happening. From the Blue Mountains in Australia.

[vanderhoosy32]

seriously ya'll!!! i live there!

[wvlavender]

These people ought to be shot! who is these crazy polititions that are allowing this? This is like flattening the rocky mountains in the west.. never would be allowed! why is it allowed in our great wonderful eastern mountain? I'm soo mad!

[abovethewaves]

we all should be mad....destroying Appalachia is actually even worse than losing the rockies because Appalachia is home to the most biologically diverse ecosystems in all of North America and they are the oldest mountains in the world...the Appalachians have a much more diverse ecosystem (and cultural history) than the rockies, and they are much older...we must act now!

[wvlavender]

What are the studies on the weather changes this is/will cause, the destruction of the forests as well as the loss of the hight of the mountains, this seems to me to be the next cause of nation wide drought and floods causing starvation and food prices to rise, what are they crazy to allow this?

[wvlavender]

It is already documented that our drinking water is being turned into posion because of this, it got to be stopped.