CEO: The Idea That Regulators Care More About Coal Miners’ Safety than Cos. Do Is “As Silly As Global Warming”

Here is a youtube video of Don Blankenship, the CEO of West Virginia coal co. involved in the recent tragedy.

Mr. Blankenship, dressed in American flag apparel, and appearing at an anti-union rally on Labor Day (9/7/09), states:

“… I know that the safety and health of coal miners is my most important job… But … I also know that Washington and state politicians have no idea how to improve miner safety. The very idea that they care more about coal miner safety than we do is as silly as global warming.”

I don’t want to jump on the bandwagon against this man, or make assumptions that he does not feel sadness or remorse about what happened.  But the larger point, to me, is this: we all need to subject ourselves to competent and independently-enforced laws, so there will be barriers to our own destructive self-interests, intentions and mistakes.

We should know we need to be saved from ourselves and our own dark or careless forces.  See this post about cloverleaf on-ramps for more on this concept.