It is even more of a shame than you can think. These men and women workers are the poorest in the land. The companies don't even pay the men that well. They don't care about their employees and had it not been for a local ordinance here, our mountains would have been gone too. Here, there is an ordinance that will not allow any above ground mining unless they "fix" it up back the way they found it when they are done. That includes structural and plant life. The Appalacians are my home and I have not seen much change in the mountains in my area. The mountains here are the backdrop of our town. Many prefer underground mining to above ground mining for the mountains' sake but fail to realize the danger involved. I admit, some men just love it. They (including my father, husband, brother and a handful of uncles) sacrificed their lungs for little pay underground. Ky no longer pays for black lung (that also killed my grandfather), so there is no compensation for their troubles in that respect either. The truth is the whole thing is political. This is our home. But there just aren't any jobs here that pay for the average joe because the city councils and governments have conspired (publicly and unapologetically) to keep out other manufacturers and would-be jobs in our area. I know we should probably just pack our bags and leave the area. But that doesn't really accomplish anything other than another kind of misery on our part. Like I said., This is our home. I can say, I have pictures to prove that our mountains look the same today as they did back in the 1970s. I wish I had a scanner to show them to you. I live in eastern KY where those videos were made. And my husband works miles and miles beneath those mountains you laid eyes on.