Beyond that, and not to cast a too political light on the subject of the song, the wreck of the 97 was directly due to the arrogance of corporate bosses...not the engineer, as the company would have everyone to believe, afterwards. They had a lucrative contract with the U.S. Post Office to haul mail, the contract included a penalty clause for each minute the train was late delivering the mail. The engineer was under intense pressure to get it to its destination ON TIME. He was running an hour late, and the only way to fulfill the contract was to increase his speed...to the point of not being able to negotiate a critical curve at a critical ravine. Even in 1903, a corporation valued money over the people who worked for it. Shameful then...shameful now.
Damn...he made that cigarette look good!
ReplyDeleteBeyond that, and not to cast a too political light on the subject of the song, the wreck of the 97 was directly due to the arrogance of corporate bosses...not the engineer, as the company would have everyone to believe, afterwards. They had a lucrative contract with the U.S. Post Office to haul mail, the contract included a penalty clause for each minute the train was late delivering the mail. The engineer was under intense pressure to get it to its destination ON TIME. He was running an hour late, and the only way to fulfill the contract was to increase his speed...to the point of not being able to negotiate a critical curve at a critical ravine. Even in 1903, a corporation valued money over the people who worked for it. Shameful then...shameful now.
JadedJ...nuff said
ReplyDelete"History is a lie!" The liars always say.
ReplyDeleteJesus... You guy better get a hobby. Good song Punch.
ReplyDelete