The Chairman and Chief Executive Office of Murray Energy, Robert E. Murphy became notorious during the presidential campaign by allegedly forcing workers to go to a Romney rally. Now, Murray has responded to President Obama’s re-election with a prayer and dozens of layoffs.
The Ohio CEO declared that the reelection would continue a “war on coal” and announced a time for prayer and firings — proclaiming “Lord, please forgive me and anyone with me in Murray Energy Corp. for the decisions that we are now forced to make to preserve the very existence of any of the enterprises that you have helped us build.” It appears that he “did not build that” alone, to use an Obama phrase.
Murray then broke away from a request for the grace of God to laid off 54 people at American Coal, one of his subsidiary companies, and 102 at Utah American Energy.
You may recall Murray from the August 2007 mine collapse where six miners were trapped at the Crandall Canyon Mine in Utah.
Later, the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) hit the mine with its highest penalty for coal mine safety violations, $1.85 million. Murray would ultimately lobby heavily against new procedures needed to avoid such deaths in the future.
The employees this week were able to walk out of Murray’s company — a certain improvement. However, before being kicked out, the employees were given Murray’s prayer as solace on their way out the door:
Dear Lord:
The American people have made their choice. They have decided that America must change its course, away from the principals of our Founders. And, away from the idea of individual freedom and individual responsibility. Away from capitalism, economic responsibility, and personal acceptance.
We are a Country in favor of redistribution, national weakness and reduced standard of living and lower and lower levels of personal freedom.
My regret, Lord, is that our young people, including those in my own family, never will know what America was like or might have been. They will pay the price in their reduced standard of living and, most especially, reduced freedom.
The takers outvoted the producers. In response to this, I have turned to my Bible and in II Peter, Chapter 1, verses 4-9 it says, “To faith we are to add goodness; to goodness, knowledge; to knowledge, self control; to self control, perseverance; to perseverance, godliness; to godliness, kindness; to brotherly kindness, love.”
Lord, please forgive me and anyone with me in Murray Energy Corp. for the decisions that we are now forced to make to preserve the very existence of any of the enterprises that you have helped us build. We ask for your guidance in this drastic time with the drastic decisions that will be made to have any hope of our survival as an American business enterprise.
Amen.
Of course, he could not fire the “young people” in his “own family.” This is a familiar lament among some Romney supporters, including one at a Romney fundraiser at the Hamptons who stated:
“I don’t think the common person is getting it. Nobody understands why Obama is hurting them.
“We’ve got the message,” she added. “But my college kid, the baby sitters, the nails ladies — everybody who’s got the right to vote — they don’t understand what’s going on. I just think if you’re lower income — one, you’re not as educated, two, they don’t understand how it works, they don’t understand how the systems work, they don’t understand the impact.”
He is also not alone in threatening or actually firing people if Obama won. Indeed, a Utah CEO fired over 100 people and blamed it on Obama’s reelection. However, Murray does this all with a bit more religious fervor.
Source: Washington Post
http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/11/09/15056607-petraeus-biographer-paula-broadwell-under-fbi-investigation-over-access-to-his-email-law-enforcement-officials-say?lite
Maybe it just keeps Obama from having to fire him after he testifies. Having extra maritial sex didn’t stop Clinton or Edwards.
Seems like the “law of compensation” has worked in one “situation” discussed here, but needs to get cracking in the other…
http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_slatest/2012/11/09/petraeus_resigns_over_affair_with_biographer.html She had access to his email and the FBI is investigating. Does not sound like a fall guy type of situation.
Petreaus had an affair with his biographer. No wonder he was asleep at the wheel during Benghazi. His surges in Iraq and Afghanistan did not work so well either. Obama can get someone better.
Swarthmore,
The Borowitz quote was awesome.
nick, Marc Ambinder and Spencer Ackerman say it has nothing to do with Benghazi. They have deep sources.
Where is it written that a man who has had an affair is an honorable man? I have no doubt he resigned because his “honorable” affair was going to come out. Patraeous lied to Congress and the American people. His affair is no surprise. He never should have been appointed in the first place.
As to the holy CEO, God has had it with you and Christ wants his religion back. It is pretty clear that this guy is a liar and some might say a murderer.
It is time the Labor Board and the mining regulators start taking these guys on. I think the Obama excuse was crafted to get some negative mileage against the president for something he intended to do anyway.
rafflaw, He is flawed, as are we all. “Let he who is w/o sin cast the first stone.” However, he did the honorable thing in resigning.
blouise17, You ask an important question..who was the mistress? Was she someone who could have had ties to another country? However, if you’re the head of the CIA you have the highest standard of conduct expected. Being a libertarian, I don’t care if people f@ck chickens. And, we’re all assuming the affair was hetero. Statistically that’s a good bet. But, we don’t know. As I’ll keep saying, we know virtually nothing @ this point. I’m smelling fall guy on Benghazi, but that’s a shoot from the hip guess..that’s all.
Andy Borowitz @BorowitzReport
Finally, Petraeus pulls out of something.
Blouise, absolutely.
Quote of the Day: America’s Billionaires are Pissed Off at Karl Rove
—By Kevin Drum
| Wed Nov. 7, 2012 10:30 PM PST
158
Via Atrios, this is pretty funny:
“The billionaire donors I hear are livid,” one Republican operative told The Huffington Post. “There is some holy hell to pay. Karl Rove has a lot of explaining to do … I don’t know how you tell your donors that we spent $390 million and got nothing.”….Rove was forced to defend his group’s expenditures live on Fox News on Tuesday night, and will hold a briefing with top donors on Thursday, according to Politico.
If conservative billionaires are looking for something else to be mad about, I’d recommend the Romney campaign’s apparent habit of paying about 50 percent more for TV spots than the Obama campaign. That helped line the pockets of the consultants who both recommended the buys and got the commissions for placing the spots, but it didn’t do much to win the election.
In the end, it turned out that one side ran its campaign like a business, while the other side ran its like a local PTA. Ironically, it was the ex-community organizer who did the former and the ex-CEO of Bain Capital who did the latter. Mother Jones 🙂
When did the affair begin, when did it end (if it is over)? I don’t give a phlying phuck where he sticks his dick as long as in doing so he did not compromise the security of the United States of America. Thus it is very important to know when did the affair begin, when did it end (if it is over)?
His wife and children are his problem or he is theirs. He is only my problem if the nation was made vulnerable by his phucking habits.
Not to diminish the unreasonableness of this CEO’s behavior, (I don’t see how the economic situation in the business could change so rapidly just based on the election of few days ago and the need to make layoffs) But the below is very disturbing on how mining labor sometimes gets treated in this world.
The video on the below link contains some rather disturbing images so you might take this into consideration.
The setting nears a Platinum mine just out of Johannesburg, South Afrika. Miners there went on strike and it turned violent. Previously two police officers were murdered. The strike escalated and a group of strikers rushed on police forces who cut them down with submachines guns. Over 30 strikers were killed. (Later news reports were that machete knives were planted on many of the victims by the police.) This was according to the reporters the worse police shooting of civilians since apartheid ended.
An advert might preceed the video. Sorry, but the video is in German.
http://www.spiegel.de/video/gewalt-in-suedafrika-polizei-toetet-dutzende-streikende-in-platinmine-video-1215733.html
I am so happy Obama won, and these people threw their billions away on Romney and Karl Rove.
I did read the whole thing nick. Time will tell, but there is no red flag here. I am sure he waited until after the election, but he is no better or worse than the politicians that cheat on their wives. If he was so honorable, why the affair to begin with?? If he was forced out it was because of the affair.
Interesting prayer, I wonder how god feels about being pimped out for crass political purposes by a guy that would rather kill his workers than spend a couple of bucks on safety measures? The layoffs were coming no matter who got elected (good post Nal) but this way he gets to seed the political ground for his own purposes. The only justice for a man like that is to leave him at the bottom of a deep shaft, butt-deep in cold water and bad air until nature takes its course. Karma.
***
Malisha, stay away from those christian discipline sites, they will make you crazy. I ended up surfing those sites a couple of times and they were revolting. As a matter of preserving my (already fragile) mental health I won’t go back 🙂
Waldo, Patreus is an honorable man. I know politicians would not resign in this situation. However, being the Director of the CIA has a higher code which Patreus recognized and honored. As I just said to rafflaw, I don’t know what’s going on. But, I was trained to spot red flags. This is a red flag. Time will tell.
rafflaw, Please read what was said..it’s the timing. I don’t doubt he had an affair, I’m questioning the timing a few days after the election. Early reports are this affair occurred a while ago. And, if you read what I said, I’m patient and know it will take time to know the WHOLE truth. The fact that you’re not suspicious is curious @ best.
Nick, you think Obama forced him out? I’m sure anything is possible, but don’t get the motivation. Seems to me that having Patreus inside the tent is best for Obama politically. Having an affair places oneself in a vulnerable position for such an extremely sensitive job. In other words, while it seems quite drastic for your average Congressman or cabinet head to resign over an affair, it doesn’t seem as extreme for CIA head to do so. I do wonder if there’s more to the story, but my mind wonders to whether there’s some cover up of the affair or money or other improper conduct involved that makes it worse than a simple affair.