Today I attended a Memorial Service for a friend, Robert Horachek, from the past that I knew in the Morgantown Community Arts Orchestra where we both played cello. And today I was playing in that same orchestra wondering how could someone in the prime of their life, only 36, who used to sit besides me, suddenly, mysteriously just like a wisp of smoke simply fade away from this world? He was just setting up his own medical practice when apparently he had an episode during his sleep caused by asthma that killed him. While the police labeled his death accidental, Cornell University Chronicle has an article that says that 80% of asthma related deaths are caused by common asthma medication.

The real tragedy in this story is what caused this live-wire guy to have asthma in the first place. I suspect it had a lot to do with his originally living in a part of the world that has one of the highest asthma levels in the United States. The West Virginia Asthma Education and Prevention Program is loaded with wonderful statistics:

IN WEST VIRGINIA, THE BURDEN OF ASTHMA IS HIGHEST AMONG

Children – 4th highest prevalence of childhood asthma in the nation in 2003. Nationally, asthma is one of the leading chronic diseases among children, and causes more absence from school than any other chronic disease.

Elderly – 9.4% of adults 65+ have asthma, the 3rd highest rate in the nation in 2006. Between 1996 and 2004, the rate of asthma hospitalizations more than doubled among West Virginians aged 65 and older.

West Virginia is a powerhouse producer of airborne pollutants that can be tied to the prevalence of this disease. We are the top net-exporter of electricity in the United States. Coal-burning power plants account for the majority of the production of this electricity. Meanwhile, while WV already has a humid environment to begin with, the release of CO2 into the atmosphere further exacerbates humidity levels. This combination of pollutants and humidity is a great recipe for asthma.

Unfortunately, with the way things are progressing, Robert is not going to be the only one of a growing multitude of asthma causalities. There is a huge amount of information about the relationship between Global Warming and asthma, NRDC has a great article and study about the increase in ragweed and ozone. You may try to run, hide and protect your children, but you will always loose because the atmosphere doesn’t have any boundaries; pollutants from WV will end up wherever you go. Many people in WV don’t get it, the coal and power industry represent the only types of jobs they have ever understood; they are in denial that there are any negative effects. I remember an inhabitant at a public hearing for a local proposed power plant proudly saying that he had never developed any illness as a result of living besides a power plant. “Power Plant are great,” he said, “they provide construction jobs when the plants are built, and maintenance jobs afterwards.” There is something macabre about attitudes like this, they are like an image from the land of the living dead. You may not see this relationship, but I certainly do, and I know Robert definitely did.

In the end, the music of the souls of the multitudes murdered by the conscious or unknowing sins of the billions will rise up so loudly that even the deaf will not be able to escape hearing. If only it were that simple! It’s funny how many people know about the relationship of their actions to Global Warming, yet there seems to be no slowdown in their activity. The amount of CO2/smog producing cars on the roads increases all the time, I think the problem is human nature, and only by addressing human behavior through human interfaces can we properly address complete solutions. It is our own activity that demands energy, and if the technologies that our activities utilize could be altered unknown to our normal behaviors, then this would be a substantial step in the right direction. Because you see, in the case of Global Warming when the time of the terrible catastrophes come, it will already be too late for people to suddenly realize that now they should change their ways.

All in one blog at the Sierra Club Compass called Instant Carma, I suddenly find myself overwhelmed with links to great sources of information.

There is CARMA, Carbon Monitoring for Action, that within the first two days of it’s existence has already been hit by 150,000 visitors since starting operation on November 14, 2007. Indeed, the news is spreading fast. I found out about this site from a mailing list I manage before I observed the Sierra Club blog. From CARMA’s about page:

At its core, Carbon Monitoring for Action (CARMA) is a massive database containing information on the carbon emissions of over 50,000 power plants and 4,000 power companies worldwide. Power generation accounts for 40% of all carbon emissions in the United States and about one-quarter of global emissions. CARMA is the first global inventory of a major, emissions-producing sector of the economy.

CARMA has a Google map interface to their database and so does the Sierra Club’s New Coal Plant Tracker that has a map in relation to their United States data. The tracker site allows you to find information about proposed coal plants that hopefully will not become contributors to the information found at CARMA.

And at http://www.ilovemountains.org, if you live in the Appalachia region of the United States like I do, you can find out which power plants in your area directly utilize mountain top removal (MTR) coal, and which ones indirectly utilize it at the myconnection page. And you guessed it, Google maps comes into play again.

All these sites are awesome. From the World, to the National, to the Regional level you obtain a close account about one of the major power sources responsible for Global Warming. This leaves the obvious question, what can be done? Stay tuned to this blog as I explore solutions and alternatives.

Here is Fred’s report on the rally, which he and wife Emily attended:

“The rally went okay, over 2.5 hours. Some press and media coverage. Former Sen. Craigo was there out of support for me and I never thought he was close. I was overwhelmed. He used to be Sen. Finance Chair. Two from Legislative Services were there and the state Legislative Auditor sent his regrets but he did not want to give the appearance of a conflict of interest. Sounded like this may bring on an audit. I have been telling everyone to call for it when they write their legislators. In the interviews, I try to connect to the governor’s statement about good government, good service and compassion, then compare and connect work at archives to these (and) wrap up with a reference that so far I have not heard from the governor to discuss my position on this. Tonight when he walked thru (from the Governor’s Mansion to a Cultural Center function), one of the group asked him if he would like to sign the petition. His reply, so as to avoid his poor (”deer in the headlights”) performance of last Friday, was, “Isn’t it a fine night!” He certainly did not win any friends with that.”

Joy Doss, former student of Fred Armstrong, has put together an excellent site to keep people informed about news and links about Fred’s termination.

If you haven’t already sent a letter to Governor Manchin expressing your outrage, Joy created a page at CitizenSpeak that allows you to do this electronically: http://citizenspeak.org/node/1169

Great job, Joy!

Fred wrote to me the other day, and I gave my thoughts regarding Governor Joe Manchin:

Fred, you are in the truest sense of the word a public servant because you unselfishly serve the needs of the public. However, there are other public servants who are clearly serving their own needs and behave as though they are rulers.

Obviously, this needs to change. Manchin is going to be interested in saving face, because it is clear to me that this event has real political implications for him, unless he is too arrogant to recognize this reality. In fact, he didn’t come to speak at a scheduled League of Woman Voters “meet your candidate” forum in Morgantown for the 2004 election. He was on the roster, but provided no indication of the reason why he didn’t come, or any apologies. He was so confident that he was going to win, that he didn’t see any need to speak to the inhabitants of the fastest growing, and economically viable city in WV. I didn’t vote for Manchin, but I did vote for Jesse Johnson of the Mountain Party because I was able to hear him in person, and his platform made a great deal of sense in comparison to Manchin, who was mysteriously missing. However, Manchin did have a very expensive election celebration in the Radisson in Morgantown!

Governor Manchin are you reading this?

In other news, there’s going to be a protest tomorrow at the Cultural Center, read this article in the Charleston Gazette.

Here are more letters to Governor Manchin of West Virginia concerning the dismissal of the Director of archives and history at the State Capitol, Fred Armstrong:

The Honorable Joe Manchin III
Governor, State of West Virginia
1900 Kanawha Boulevard,
East Charleston, West Virginia 25305

Dear Governor Manchin:

As a native West Virginian, a historian, and a graduate of WVU, I write to you from a personal and a professional perspective about the abrupt dismissal of Fredrick Armstrong from his long-time position as Director of Archives and History while you were on a trade mission to China. From a personal perspective, I have known Fred since he, George Menas of Farmington (whose mother Eva worked in Papa Joe’s supermarket), and I attended graduate school together in history at WVU in the early 1970s. Having known Fred well the past 35 years, I can truthfully say that I have never encountered anyone who was more honest, devoted, and hard-working at any job assigned to him. Given a responsibility to execute, Fred always goes “way beyond the call of duty” and strives to produce the best product with the resources at hand. He willingly, uncomplainingly has given countless uncompensated hours of time and labor to help people, whether they be poor folks needing home repairs in Clay County, or local officials needing assistance with the acquisition and preservation of historical documents. From my 45-year career as a teacher, veteran, research analyst, communications director, and congressional affairs officer, I have never seen anyone give his all to the mission at hand as has Fred Armstrong. By every account, that unstinting dedication has been a hallmark of his service as West Virginia’s Director of Archives and History.

From a professional standpoint, Fred has been a superb director. Under his expert leadership and management, the archival collections have more than doubled in size, the photographic repository has expanded from one filing cabinet to more than 85,000 images, the audio-visual collection was begun and is now acquiring tapes of news broadcasts by major radio and television stations, veterans’ records from the Civil War through the Vietnam War have been made accessible on-line, the files of former corporations have been preserved, the Mining Your History Foundation was established for genealogists to volunteer time and raise funds to supplement the limited budget of Archives and History, workshops have been held with churches on the keeping of religious archives, and initiatives to preserve and protect historic documents were launched with officials in every county (this year, the legislative auditor gave a perfect evaluation of the county records preservation program under the auspices of Archives and History). While overseeing these major efforts, Fred–often on his own time–has personally talked to thousands of West Virginians about where to find information on the history of their families. Not surprisingly, as an active member of the Mid-Atlantic Regional Archives Conference and the Society of American Archivists, he is highly respected by his peers and has represented the State of West Virginia in an exemplary manner.

Sir, in your capacity as Governor, I appeal to you to reconsider Commissioner Reid-Smith’s ill-advised decision to fire Fred Armstrong without cause and to restore him to the position he so ably and conscientiously filled. Doing so will correct a gross injustice and clearly signify the compassion you said you expected to be extended to a loyal, long-serving state employee.

Sincerely,

Charles Emerson Walker, Ph.D.
West Virginia University, 1973

Dear Governor Manchin:

I would like to speak up on behalf of Fred Armstrong who has so effectively served as State Archivist. I have known Fred for over 35 years as a fellow graduate student, professional colleague, and friend. He is an outstanding individual who has been highly committed in his dedication to the people and to the state of West Virginia.

As a historian, I know that at any time that I needed help, I could call on Fred. On several occasions, he guest lectured to students in my “West Virginia History” classes at Glenville State College on utilizing the state’s many archival resources to learn about our history.

As I have conducted research on West Virginia’s history over the years, Fred has been available to provide help in locating the original sources which are so necessary for achieving results. My current research is on ethnic diversity in West Virginia, including the many different immigrant groups which contributed to building our great state. Fred has been an invaluable resource in helping locate the proper documents, as well as in identifying individuals to interview.

His dedication and devotion to building the archives over the years has earned him the respect of historians and researchers throughout West Virginia, as well as throughout the United States. He has been a true asset to our state.

I urge you to review the unfortunate decision of the administrator in charge of the Department of Culture and History and reinstate an individual who has made such a significant contribution to the study of West Virginia’s history and families. Justice and fairness will truly be served by such an action.

Sincerely Yours,

Duke Talbott, Ph.D.
Professor Emeritus

In this video Amanda Barren of WSAZ is interviewing Governor Manchin who tries to place the blame on the States Legal System. There’s a legal system in WV? Let me rephrase that, is there a legal system in WV that serves the interests of the people of WV, rather than their public servants who act under the influence of the special interests of big business?

http://www.wsaz.com/news/headlines/11145516.html

You will hear Manchin placing trust in Kay Goodwin for making the right decisions. This entry at the Gazz Blog from July 23, 2006 goes into greater detail about “what W.Va. Education and Arts Secretary Kay Goodwin and the Manchins think education is for.”

You can listen to Fred’s response to his firing as the WV Director of archives and history on WV MetroNews here.

Also, on Monday, the National Public Radio network in W.Va. is expected to broadcast a segment on Fred’s dismissal from state service.

Just this afternoon, this message was sent to all the librarians in WV on the West Virginia Library Association mailing-list at http://www.wvla.org.

Good afternoon, everyone.

Am I the only person shocked and dismayed by Fred Armstrong’s termination? I certainly hope not. In case you’ve missed it: http://wvgazette.com/section/News/2007110118 What, perhaps, shocks and horrifies me even more is the lack of response from the library community in our state. (I should mention that I heard about his firing from my LISnews listserv last [Tues.] evening.) As we all know, Fred has served not only historians, archivists, genealogists and countless people at Culture & Archives, but I would also bet he’s been of service to just about every public & academic library in the state. I do not know whether he is a current or lifetime member of WVLA, or even hasn’t ever been a member, and I think that would be beside the point. The fact is that what happened to Fred strikes at the very core of librarianship and what librarians themselves are all about–namely, service in access to information–and for that very reason, we should, I think, have an organizational response denouncing his termination, demanding a rational explanation for his firing rather than the vainglorious “will and pleasure” excuse, and I think an email campaign to the governor or an online petition would show our support. Anyone out there care to respond?

Thanks for listening,

Charley Hively

A university is just a group of buildings gathered around a library.
— Shelby Foote

There were many letters by outraged people in today’s WV Gazette:

http://www.wvgazette.com/section/Opinion/200711067?pt=0

http://www.wvgazette.com/section//200711065

Regina asked me to post this letter she sent to the Governor:

Dear Gov. Manchin:

This is a very shabby way to treat a long-time state employee, especially one who goes above and beyond the call of duty, as Fred Armstrong always did.  I would like to see Fred reinstated so we can continue to benefit from his long experience and his superb work ethic.

I am also dismayed at the proposal to put a gift shop and snack bar in place of the library.  We will presumably have a good cafeteria facility in the Capitol Building.  We should accommodate the people doing research in every way possible and give their contributions priority over a gift shop and snack bar.

Regina Hendrix