Miners facing quid pro
quo on pension bill
In 2016, coal operators shut coal mines to stress and duress coal miners and affiliated vocations so Donald Trump could get their votes for a promise to put them back to work. It happened and Trump then owed coal operators lower pollution standards to lower costs.
If coal and power plant operators put more people to work cleaning up pollution, coal might be in higher demand. But up his sleeve Trump and his cohorts had invested in fracking natural gas, discreetly perhaps, and tossed aside coal for another fossil fuel to produce power. Trump has betrayed coal miners’ loyalty.
While coal miners lose jobs, their pensions are in jeopardy with no or little contributions from coal operators. Meanwhile, the government is petitioned to sustain miners’ pensions.
Senate President Mitch McConnell, Trump’s buddy, has all along been opposed to advancing funding for coal miners’ pension. Now all of a sudden McConnell and his Republicans for Trump are willing to fund the pensions.
McConnell’s timing is, like President Obama’s U.S, Supreme Court pick, being ignored for Trump’s incoming pick. It is deliberate, having been ignored till now so Trump once again can offer to coal miners — for their votes for 2020 — signing a miner’s pension funding bill.
It’s crooked politics and a dirty ploy to garner election votes for Trump.
Soon the American auto industry will be the debris of transportation production in this world, too, as other countries increase energy and pollution standards for automobiles.
While here Trump dumps those pollution standards.
Delmar Hagedorn Jr.
Morgantown
Let’s raise awareness of
pancreatic cancer Nov. 21
In October each year, we are surrounded by pink and pink ribbons for breast cancer awareness. I’ve been advocating for pancreatic cancer awareness since October 2007. I can even tell you the exact day, Oct. 4, 2007 — the day that my younger brother passed away from pancreatic cancer. Until he was diagnosed just 18 months earlier, basically all I knew about cancer was the pink ribbon, because cancer didn’t apply to me.
In May 2018, Pancreatic Cancer Action Network (PanCAN) CEO Julie Fleshman visited West Virginia due to the success of grassroots advocacy here. In August 2018, Fleshman was diagnosed with breast cancer.
Fleshman’s cancer was caught at early stage due to early screening, which led to her surgery and successful removal of the tumor. She is now cancer-free. As of this date, there are no early screening methods for pancreatic cancer. By the time there is a pancreatic cancer diagnosis, it’s usually too late for effective treatment. When symptoms of pancreatic cancer present themselves, it is generally in later stages, and 73% of pancreatic cancer patients die within the first year of their diagnosis. Fortunately, since I’ve been volunteering, the five-year survival rate has grown from 6% to 9%, which is still not enough. Pancreatic cancer is the only major cancer with a five-year survival rate still in the single digits.
The number of new pancreatic cancer cases in the United States has been projected to increase by 55% between now and 2030. As of this date, pancreatic cancer is the third leading cause of cancer death.
November is Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month, and it would be wonderful if we could see just half the purple in November as pink in October. Specifically, Nov. 21 — World Pancreatic Cancer Day sponsored by the World Pancreatic Cancer Coalition.
We must all work together and with our elected officials to increase federal funding for pancreatic cancer research. This starts by raising awareness — even if it’s just wearing purple on one day! I’m asking everyone who reads this to learn more about pancreatic cancer. Go to pancan.org and remember to wear purple Nov. 21.
Annette Fetty-Santilli
Pancreatic Cancer
Action Network
Philippi
