Video: Blankenship Touts Safety Record, Blasts Government Regulators

Don Blankenship, the CEO of Massey Energy — whose Upper Big Branch coal mine exploded in April, killing 29 miners — spoke at the National Press Club yesterday, bragging that his company has a superlative safety record and a higher level of expertise than the government regulators tasked with enforcing More…

Judge Allows Unsafe Mine to Remain Open; MSHA Head Emphasizes Need for Reform

A Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission judge ruled yesterday that a mine with a history of safety violations could not be placed on a “pattern of violations” by the Mine Safety and Health Administration, leading the head of MSHA to condemn the ruling and call for reforms to More…

Massey Miner: ‘I Felt Like I Was Working for the Gestapo’

A coal miner working at Massey’s Upper Big Branch mine when it exploded last month, killing 29 colleagues, described the operation this week as “a ticking time bomb,” where the management valued production over safety and workers didn’t protest for fear of being fired.

“The ventilation system they had didn’t More…

Massey Board Member Scrutinized for Safety Record in Appalachia, Environmental Record in Michigan

At our affiliate, The Michigan Messenger, Eartha Jane Melzer today adds another layer to the tale of growing protest by some large investors in Massey Energy who are wary that the company’s dubious safety record is a threat to shareholders.

Nine state pension funds or treasury offices More…

Video: Mike Lillis and Ed Schultz Discuss Massey Energy’s Safety Record

Mike Lillis appeared on MSNBC’s The Ed Show last night, discussing the hundreds of safety violations racked up by Massey Energy, the company whose coal mine in West Virginia exploded on Monday, killing at least 25 workers. Watch the video clip after the jump:

Lillis to Discuss Massey Mine Safety Risks on The Ed Show

In the wake of the explosion at the Upper Big Branch coal mine earlier this week, Mike Lillis dug through federal records and wrote a piece, published this morning, about the dozens of other mines owned by Massey Energy that pose significant safety risks.

Tonight, at 6 pm, he’ll More…

Internal FDA Doc Reveals Agency Stopped Enforcing Safety Standards

Since 2006, the Food and Drug Administration has ignored its own internal regulation and stopped requiring manufacturers of medical devices – such as pacemakers, heart valves and other life-sustaining inventions – to meet specific safety requirements before they are deemed safe enough to be implanted in humans.

As the Project More…

‘Flying While Muslim,’ the New ‘Driving While Black’

The Washington Post reports that a large group of Muslim travelers were removed from a flight Thursday at a Washington-area airport after one of them made a comment about airline safety.

Officials ordered nine Muslim passengers, including three young children, off an AirTran flight headed to Orlando from

More…