Growing apart

These are strange days in El Cabrero's beloved state of West Virginia. Things are a bit schizoid...in a literal sense. There are signs of a pretty big economic bust coming to southern WV even as a boom of sorts is taking place up north.

One reason for this is increased economic activity due to Marcellus Shale gas drilling, even though this hasn't created a whole lot of direct jobs for local workers. But an interesting report from the US Energy Information Administration is predicting a bust for coal production in southern WV (particularly for steam coal) while things look better in the northern part of the state, which incidentally tends to be underground mining with union labor.  Read more about it here.

SPEAKING OF COAL, here's a perspective from a major WV writer who is no big fan.

WHY ISN'T OUR CHAMBER THIS COOL? The Greater NY Chamber of Commerce supports raising the minimum wage.

DUH. Public sector layoffs are hurting the economy.

GOAT ROPE ADVISORY LEVEL: ELEVATED