Submitted by hahahoudini t3_1133s31 in Pennsylvania
Comments
hahahoudini OP t1_j8nxg5f wrote
Let's hope so
the_real_xuth t1_j8p0k6j wrote
As much as this might be the case, I'm not sure what all he can do beyond complain a bunch. The railroads have worked really hard to make it so that they only answer to the federal government and then neuter the limited oversight that exists there. And as long as at least 50% of the members of the federal legislatures are made up of some combination of republicans and a handful relatively conservative democrats, this isn't going to change barring a much larger catastrophe than this one.
IamSauerKraut t1_j8pep8k wrote
>As much as this might be the case, I'm not sure what all he can do beyond complain a bunch.
There are federal and NS dollars to be spent in PA in terms of monitoring and remediation. DEP is part of his admin, so he can do much more than merely complain.
the_real_xuth t1_j8pgm6j wrote
Those entities will be active in the remediation and they will certainly be trying to bill NS for their time and resources. But what teeth do they have? What authority do they have to compel NS to do much of anything?
IamSauerKraut t1_j8ploc8 wrote
So much teeth gnashing, so little thought put into the words.
Booplympics t1_j8pwh6i wrote
Just because you don’t like what he has to say doesn’t mean he’s wrong.
At the end of the day there is very little a state governor can do to increase rail safety and it’s by design. Fines and remediation fees aren’t going to force a company to increase safety measures when cutting those corners makes them more money in the long run.
IamSauerKraut t1_j8q87s6 wrote
A state is never without avenues.
Booplympics t1_j8qqnnk wrote
And you are going to say other people arent putting thought into their comments?
smh
IamSauerKraut t1_j8rq6qm wrote
This is not the first derailment in the US. Or in Ohio. Or near a state border.
Events are investigated by state and federal agencies. Reports are written. I've read more than a few of them. Indeed, I posted at least a couple in this sub for folks to read. Read a few and then come back with the "nothing can be done" line of non-thinking.
IamSauerKraut t1_j8rptz5 wrote
>What authority do they have to compel NS to do much of anything?
This is akin to throwing the hands up in the air and saying nothing can be done. Things can be done. Not thinking makes it seem otherwise.
felldestroyed t1_j8pa5vk wrote
500 total people - including support staff - in the DOT look over 50,000+ daily trains.
Booplympics t1_j8pwukh wrote
Which sounds a lot like the conditions that lead to the deepwater horizon disaster.
felldestroyed t1_j8px9d3 wrote
Lol, Louisiana as a whole and the off the coast of Louisiana are ticking time bombs. Thankfully only poor people live there, according to the Louisiana state government. They can apply for the 12,000$ grant and just move right?
politehornyposter t1_j8pcoy8 wrote
I'm hoping he can exam our rail operations critically also and examine who he can talk to. God I fucking wish Conrail was still a thing.
hahahoudini OP t1_j8nqvlg wrote
Shapiro said Norfolk Southern put people at risk in the following three ways:
He said there was no “unified command,” creating confusion and a lack of awareness.
The railway provided inaccurate information about the impact, making decisions hard to determine.
There was an "unwillingness" to explore alternate actions.
There are three separate town halls scheduled on Wednesday to discuss the impact of the train derailment.
politehornyposter t1_j8pcwh4 wrote
Good. This is a great response by him.
IamSauerKraut t1_j8pexkv wrote
Anyone reporting on these town halls that you know of?
randominteraction t1_j8pstjf wrote
So I don't have a solid source for this but a friend of mine told me that Norfolk Southern officials bailed on at least one town hall meeting because of "safety concerns."
Edit: The following link confirms that they didn't go. https://www.cbsnews.com/pittsburgh/news/east-palestine-resident-questions-derailment-chemicals/
IamSauerKraut t1_j8q4g7y wrote
They weren't attending anyway. And, as long as they keep signing the checks and cleaning the mess up, not really necessary. It will all come out in the EPA/NTSB/NRA report.
DesertedPenguin t1_j8pvrxg wrote
Local news out of Youngstown has been solid.
IamSauerKraut t1_j8q68pl wrote
$1000 per resident seems a bit low. Does not say on average which makes it even less appropriate. Those who lived nearby should get relocation expenses. Those further away, less, but certainly more than just $1000.
hahahoudini OP t1_j8pfim5 wrote
Not that I know of, but will respond to this thread if I see anything
saintofhate t1_j8o1kui wrote
Everyone should be critical of this whole thing. There's so much fucked up about this, how this happened, how this was handled, and the long term consequences that are going to be fumbled.
hahahoudini OP t1_j8o3ohd wrote
100%
aoeudhtns t1_j8p3hl0 wrote
Indeed. The headline gave me a chuckle. Did anyone expect the PA gov to "applaud" or be "ambivalent about" the train derailment?
saintofhate t1_j8p75ug wrote
I mean a lot of government officials have been ambivalent about this
gamaknightgaming t1_j8pdpuu wrote
very unlikely anything comes of this, and if something does happen, it will probably be something along the lines of “hurr durr trains are outdated technology so we’re banning them for this” which is fucking insane
-js23 t1_j8o1yoe wrote
Well, understaffing and overworking employees, avoiding safety upgrades to protect record profits and burning hazardous chemicals to avoid cleanup costs is rather sussy IMO
Imprettystrong t1_j8op697 wrote
Don’t forget lobbying to be able to self regulate , because those damn liberals want to impede profits over people
Blexcr0id t1_j8w3crr wrote
Gotta prioritize growth every quarter or the shareholders will get cranky...
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Blu_Skies_In_My_Head t1_j8oyej4 wrote
Pennsylvania used to have environmental regulation with real teeth, until Corbett rolled it bs k to appease the gas industry.
Conservation and environmental protection used to be something even PA republicans cared about and advocated for.
Hopefully Shapiro can ramp up the DEP to be like it used to be.
Atrocious_1 t1_j8o9a8f wrote
Remember, that train was heading here. Worse, there is likely air and water contamination throughout Pennsylvania.
There's a lot for Shapiro to run on here. And the Republicans in the legislature are going to have a time trying to block any investigation or lawsuits from the state.
Blu_Skies_In_My_Head t1_j8oyk5i wrote
And Norfolk Southern runs trains all though PA.
Atrocious_1 t1_j8oz0gt wrote
This exact one was going to Conway, PA.
cbini t1_j8oudth wrote
Who are the republicans trying to block investigations or lawsuits?
ArcherChase t1_j8p0c8r wrote
Obama set regulations for safety but the lobbyists got it watered down to not include this type of train and cargo to NOT be considered hazardous and dangerous.
Trump repealed the regulations on safety after big donations from that industry to his PAC.
Biden has yet to restore the damages done by Trump and his Sec. Of Transportation is absolutely useless and too cozy with corporate America to address and attack this violence against the American people.
We need a Shapiro to put the screws to evil (yes, they knowingly and willingly harm others to boost their profits so they are evil) corporate ghouls and hold them accountable not just financially but with criminal and long term laiability for the inevitable cancer clusters that appear in this region down the road for the people who have to move back.
Atrocious_1 t1_j8p1phd wrote
Mayo Pete can't really do anything that isn't run CIA ops or fix bread prices
hahahoudini OP t1_j8pi0el wrote
Wish I could give you an award for this assessment of Pete, i've been getting sick of the attacks for pointing this out.
ArcherChase t1_j8pt21e wrote
I have such a distaste for Mayor Pete. He gets praise from normies because they see him with snappy retorts on Fox News shutting down jackasses. They ignore his absolute incompetence from day 1 in this job. He is a corporate puppet and uses identity politics to make it seem like he is the next big thing. I don't know if it is worse that he is such an empty suit or that people are so gullible and if orant that they buy into his BS.
hahahoudini OP t1_j8q3o5v wrote
Most people seem to engage with politics the way pro wrestling fans engage with wrestlers. 'I like Sergeant Slaughter bc I love America and he waves a flag around; 'I like George W Bush because he seems like a good dude i'd have a beer with,' or, 'I don't like Elizabeth Warren because she seems like an angry librarian.' Like over 90% of people who vote conceptualize politicians this way, completely ignoring that candidate's platform, their competency, anything. I'd rather have a root canal than try to explain to one more person that their priorities and opinions line up with Bernie Sanders' platform at like 95%, vs 20% for Pete, or 5% with DeSantis, or whatever lousy candidate they're fooled by. George Santos is the penultimate example of this. Anyway, yeah, Pete is a thoroughly useless, centrist, corporate, neoliberal, who branded himself as smart early on, so it's extra infuriating to me that his fanbase don't understand the first thing about how anything political works, yet view themselves as super smart, and therefore like Pete, 'bEcAuSe hE's sMart LiKe mE!' And they're equally smug about their ignorant opinions, on some Dunning Kreuger level. Rant over.
big-D-ronnie t1_j8xpw1s wrote
Hey buddy, say what you want but don't you ever dare try to denigrate Sgt Slaughter.... That man was a childhood hero!
Emerson3381 t1_j8pht9c wrote
One thing to add, Biden got big donations from that industry as well. Slightly more reported than Trump, in fact.
https://www.opensecrets.org/2020-presidential-race/industry-totals?highlight=n&ind=M04&src=a
Atrocious_1 t1_j8oysz5 wrote
Well since there aren't any lawsuits or investigations yet, there aren't any. But you know that the GOP isn't going to sit idly by when Dems can get an easy win, saying they forced Norfolk to pick up the tab, nor allow a corporation of all things be held accountable and maybe heavier regulations be enacted.
cbini t1_j8p3jzx wrote
I don’t know that the GOP will try to do any of that…
Atrocious_1 t1_j8p60gk wrote
Ok cool
ProleAcademy t1_j8oy0y6 wrote
Unfuck the regulatory agencies, give the workers a good contract, nationalize the railroad company's holdings, yeet the executives
Wickersaltlamp t1_j8phvil wrote
100% correct. That would require a strong federal response. Biden and Pete have been useless. We knew this was coming when Biden screwed the rail unions a few months ago.
SquareConfusion t1_j8q255c wrote
Biden is partially to blame but let’s not forget the rollback of Obama rail safety policies and additional deregulation by the previous admin. There’s a whole lot of blame to spread around on this and it doesn’t fall squarely on one side of the political divide or the other.
Wickersaltlamp t1_j8qbtgl wrote
Absolutely! It is interesting to see when a bad decision directly leads to a horrible outcome. And of course, Democrats and Republicans both love to screw over workers especially when it comes to the rail workers.
IWantAStorm t1_j8rdk7p wrote
At this point I am convinced most of our government agencies are a single landline phone to an 86 year old woman named Janice who is half deaf and only answers the phone from 10-2.
ProleAcademy t1_j8pp34j wrote
We sure did. Should've been a wildcat strike, not too late
Wickersaltlamp t1_j8prwnk wrote
I don't really agree there because people would have been put in jail. Maybe if it was nearly perfectly and seamlessly executed it could have been successful but I don't want to see people in jail.
ProleAcademy t1_j8pukaw wrote
You might be right. But I don't see the labor movement, the environmental movement, or the movement to radically reform democracy succeeding until a lot more people are willing to risk jail. And the prevailing system is very, very good at making us hesitate to do that.
Allemaengel t1_j8ojjkx wrote
Good.
DeWine sure isn't going to do anything.
artisanrox t1_j8ortox wrote
They voted him in to not do anything. I hate repeating this but almost 50% of voters screeched against regulations for decades and I'm tired of them indirectly causing preventable disasters.
ArcherChase t1_j8p0mej wrote
GOP voters love the line of Regulations are bad and handcuff the free market blah blah blah.
Then when they repeal them we start to see more and more why we NEED them to begin with... Because every corporate board room would vote to slowly kill and harm their own workers and citizens if it means increasing their stock by a few points and cushioning their bonuses.
arnott t1_j8p2kmk wrote
Who made the decision to allow Norfolk Southern to burn hazardous chemicals?
hahahoudini OP t1_j8p65b6 wrote
IIRC there was a meeting with state officials, railroad execs, and chemical experts.
arnott t1_j8p70ub wrote
No one from EPA or FEMA?
hahahoudini OP t1_j8pefot wrote
I honestly don't know all the details, i watched a local news segment this morning that included an Ohio state rep who said he was in the situation room when they made the call, and answered from memory
arnott t1_j8pg4al wrote
Ok, thanks. Hopefully there is an investigation on this.
SquareConfusion t1_j8q1qof wrote
No one with half a brain. The correct method of dealing with these chemicals is liquid nitrogen and then dig it up and store it in a container.
arnott t1_j8rhszr wrote
Thanks for the info. Why has this post been removed?
Update: Strange, not sure if this post has been removed or not.
HeyImGilly t1_j8o5jm6 wrote
Then fucking do something about it. The Conway Yard is one of the largest in the country, owned and operated by NS. This shit is just gonna keep happening in that area since a lot of their trains have to go through there.
cbini t1_j8oupzh wrote
I don’t know why you’re being downvoted. Being critical doesn’t mean dick if you don’t do anything to 1. Help those affected and 2. Prevent it next time. This isn’t a situation you can take your time with.
Tidusx145 t1_j8oxwjb wrote
This happened in Ohio and he is the governor of PA. What are his options? Not trying to gotcha you or anything, but is there much he has the power to do besides use his mini bully pulpit?
Blu_Skies_In_My_Head t1_j8p3gxk wrote
The accident was so close to the border that it may have caused air and water pollution in PA.
cbini t1_j8ozrjz wrote
I’m not really sure what kind of powers a gov has when a “disaster” directly affects their state. But if all he can do is be critical then this article is useless haha
Canopenerdude t1_j8p1nct wrote
Not very many, since the GOP gimped those powers following covid
artisanrox t1_j8orj7r wrote
Good, SOMEONE in an elected position has to say this, even if people in Ohio don't want to ffffkn put them in office.
HogwartsKate t1_j8pnlj1 wrote
It amazes me the cleanup crew are in hazmat suits yet they say its safe? I can smell it in NEPA. The regular air should not smell like new car plastic.
dominantspecies t1_j8p7l5f wrote
And yet nothing will happen to the company or the members of the board. In a just world the individual members of the board would be fined into poverty and then jailed or hanged.
theresourcefulKman t1_j8owg40 wrote
He could really make his name on this crisis
hahahoudini OP t1_j8p4snn wrote
He's already made quite a name for himself for similar causes, i'm just hoping he hasn't lost a sense of clarity since his roots. He's vocally pro-fracking lately, so i'm interested in seeing how aggressively he pursues this.
shogun221 t1_j8p2qea wrote
The "pro derailment" camp is starting to look pretty sparse.
FnSmyD t1_j8pdumi wrote
Is the a pipeline vs train comment?
I don’t know much about either side of the argument, but just guessing here… I imagine maintaining a rail system is cheaper, easier, and less disruptive than maintaining a pipeline.
I have doubts about either method being maintained though.
Neghtasro t1_j8pkoya wrote
I think it's more a comment on the headline. Who isn't critical of a train derailment causing a chemical spill?
IamSauerKraut t1_j8pkx3j wrote
Rail system uses existing rails whereas the pipelines are essentially put in nilly-willy and in too large a number. Scarring up Penn's Woods.
And sometimes both go boom.
Neghtasro t1_j8pa0ps wrote
I am also critical of the Norfolk Southern train derailment.
iadas t1_j8p42km wrote
Come on gov, we need more big dick energy here. Time to show them the results when people fuck around.
pm_your_masterpiece t1_j8qa3ol wrote
I'd love to see the headline "PA Governor says that Norfolk Southern Railroad executives should be disgorged of wealth to compenstate the victims of their negligence"
Wuz314159 t1_j8qu1d1 wrote
Given how close this is to the border, I'm surprised no Disaster Declaration.
ravenx92 t1_j8oqroc wrote
critical! oh no! /s
he should be FUCKING LIVID! calling these mfers out every chance he gets. go get em.
PSU2001 t1_j8srkrk wrote
Can’t wait to see the movie with Julia Roberts about this in 10 years
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egJohn t1_j8pjqf7 wrote
as a Shapiro supporter i give the universal "wanking and rolling my eyes" to this. left or right, politicians in this country are all a bunch of (insert insult) when it comes to standing up to corporations
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iron_vet t1_j8qkls2 wrote
Yeah cool. Everyone speaking out after the plume already went over western PA. I am pissed. There is no hope. What's he gonna do? Say he is mad about it now. Too late dude. He and fetterman were my last hopes. This is bullshit. Republicans are fucking scum but they are correct when they say "do nothing democrats".
PregnantSuperman t1_j8nufy3 wrote
His attorney general instincts are kicking in.