Election 2012: the dueling Romney in eastern Ohio:
Romney, campaigning in coal-rich eastern Ohio, said Obama was misleading Ohio voters by claiming new jobs in coal producing regions. He also promised to make the U.S. independent from Venezuelan and Middle Eastern oil.
"By the end of my second term, I'll make this commitment: We will have American, we will have North American energy independence," Romney said at a coal mine in Beallsville. "We won't have to buy oil from Venezuela and the Middle East. We're going to be independent."
Standing not far from a bulldozer filled with coal and decorated with a sign that read, "Coal Country Stands With Mitt," Romney accused Obama of lying to voters in this coal-rich region.
"He (Obama) talks about how wonderful it is and how we're adding jobs in the coal industry and adding more coal," Romney said. "I thought, you know, how in the world can you go out there and just tell people things that aren't true. This is a time for truth. If you don't believe in coal, if you don't believe in energy independence, then say it."
Yeah, Mittzer.
So you really stand with coalminers, do you?
Where are you on mine safety?
Where are you on collective bargaining for miners?
How's about Arsenic?
Mercury?
Carbon monoxide?
Carbon dioxide?
Nitrogen oxide?
Sulfur dioxide?
Hydrocarbons and stuff?
How's about the general efficiency of coal-burning plants:
A lot of the heat created by burning coal is lost to the atmosphere. Only 30 to 35 percent of the heat produced by burning coal becomes "energy".
That means that 65 to 70% of what is mined is for nothing.
Jeepers! And what about Toxic Coal Sludge Spills:
TVA Kingston fossil plant released more than a billion gallons of toxic coal sludge when a retention pond crumbled outside of this Tennessee Coal Burning Power Plant. The Tennessee River -main water supply- is downstream. Very high arsenic levels would later be found by the EPA.
About 400 acres of land was coated by this sludge.
Final Note:
"Alternative Energy guru Amory Lovins estimates that by the time you mine the coal, haul it to the power plant, burn it, and then send the electricity out over the wires to the incandescent bulb in your home, only about 3 percent of the energy contained in a ton of coal is transformed into light."
Thanks! Squidoo!