Good thread Pat...gonna refrain from posting my thoughts since as the wife of a mining engineer (turned soccer coach), I know where coal comes from, how it is extracted, etc. I know more than I ever wanted to know about coal mining and such...lol.

I see the other side of this issue, too, as I had many a discussion with my husband's professors in college. For Earth Day, I talked with 50 third graders about what they could do to conserve the natural resources they use each day.