Did they just buy the fire department? Norfolk Southern Railway giving the fire department in East Palestine, Ohio: $825,000! Who on the fire department would dare testify against the train company after receiving all that money?

submitted by In-the-clouds from (wfmj.com)

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[–][deleted]  (1 child)

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    [–]In-the-clouds[S] 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

    It was not me that told you that.... I think you are right, though, to beware of signing any contracts.... and make sure you know what you're agreeing to.

    [–]aaarrgh 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

    they call that 'hush money'

    [–]EternalSunset 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (6 children)

    That also explains why the toxic spillage absolutely "had" to be set on fire, it was slow and expensive to clean up and Norfolk Southern was losing money while the tracks were closed for traffic.

    [–]In-the-clouds[S] 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (5 children)

    Aren't they actually losing money? Their expense of $825,000 to the fire department alone is not a small amount of money.

    Norfolk Southern ignited the fire three days after the derailment. They could have saved a big expense if they had transferred the chemicals to other containers sometime during those three days, and then they could have safely resumed railroad traffic.

    [–]EternalSunset 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (4 children)

    They reported billions of dollars in profits just in their last earnings call, 825k is pocket change to them.

    [–]In-the-clouds[S] 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (3 children)

    I didn't realize their income was so great.

    Even so, I think they could have moved the chemicals safely into another container, like another train car, instead of launching a death cloud into the sky. Move it all out of the way and then resume traffic. It doesn't make sense that they could save time or money by causing an explosion. There is such a huge mess now to clean up, and that takes both time and money.

    [–]EternalSunset 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (2 children)

    There is such a huge mess now to clean up, and that takes both time and money.

    From what I have seem they aren't going to clean up anything. In strictly official terms it was the local fire department that signed off on this "controlled burn", so even in a worst case scenario they can still argue in court that they aren't responsible for anything since it was the local authorities that approved these actions (even though we know that the influence of the company over the local and federal government probably played the major role in this).

    The Federal government is also downplaying this catastrophe and the mainstream media isn't bringing any attention to this at all. So the chances of them actually paying for what they have done are minimal.

    [–]In-the-clouds[S] 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

    It appears that few in our nation want to do what's right any more. That is a sign that this nation has reached its end.

    Who approved the burning of hazardous train chemicals? "the Department of Defense, the National Guard as well as state and local officials all signed off on the move," said Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw.

    [–]In-the-clouds[S] 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

    One more thing I will say.... The fire department chief, before Norfolk Southern ignited the chemicals, said he could not work on the fire until given permission.

    ~

    Fire Chief of East Palestine, Ohio said he waited for Norfolk Southern to give him permission to do his job. "When they say it’s time to go in and put the fire out, my guys will go in and put the fire out...” His words did not come true. Norfolk Southern ignited the chemicals, causing more fire. Source

    The chief (who came from out of state and took the job only a year earlier) will surely be even more friendly to Norfolk Southern since he and his department are collecting such a big payoff.

    [–]package 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (2 children)

    That doesn't logically follow; a one time donation to the department carries no expectation of additional donations nor does it translate to higher pay for the firefighters. It doesn't "buy" anything other than a more positive public image.

    [–]In-the-clouds[S] 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (1 child)

    Why then do corporations donate money to politicians? Do you not see how corporations benefit financially from their "donations"? These companies know how to work the world system, until it crashes and burns.

    [–]package 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

    ... because unlike this scenario, there is an expectation or at least a possibility of future donations when companies donate to politicians. In this case the money is essentially a reimbursement for damages for a very specific event that the company was responsible for. While it might make it harder to sue for additional damages, it simply doesn't make sense to suggest that it would motivate people not to testify.