Had it with Massey

Some Democrats in the legislature have a worthy philosophy when it comes to investments made by the state pension fund: Lie down with dogs and get up with fleas. Thus, they want State Treasurer Janet Cowell to sell the state's investment in Massey Energy, which amounts to only $17.4 million in stock out of a pension portfolio worth $68.7 billion. This step should be taken immed1iately.

Massey, based in Richmond, engages in mountaintop strip mining, an efficient but environmentally disastrous 1method. Worst of all, in the last 10 years, 52 miners have died in accidents with Massey mines, including the Big Branch underground mine calamity in West Virginia this year. The company has been hit with more than $12 million in federal and state fines.

These are bad actors, and the state needs to get off the stage with them. Greensboro Rep. Pricey Harrison, a Democrat, says, "It would probably take only about five minutes to divest the state's money from Massey and invest it with a more responsible company."

Cowell joined other state pension plan administrators who wanted current Massey board members booted in view of the company's safety record. But those members were re-elected, even though in addition to the safety problems, the stock price was diving.

Massey, in other words, isn't really interested in critics. Perhaps they'll take notice if North Carolina and other states divest themselves of Massey stock. But this isn't about the state being part of a movement. It is about good conscience and good investment, which ought to be able to figure into the same formula.