Through billions of dollars poured into elections, funding of political front groups, and fomenting of Tea Party protests, Bill and David Koch are attempting to weaken democracy in the United States. If you don’t know much about the modus operandi of these two fanatical right wingers, I suggest that you spend some time reading Jane Mayer’s article “Covert Operation” in the August 30, 2010 issue of the New Yorker.
I appreciate articles exposing the Koch’s shenanigans and encourage anyone to write them and send them to The Tallgrass Activist. People should know what Bill and David Koch are up to and how they go about their sleazy political business.
The following letter by Clark Coan appeared in the Lawrence Journal World:
September 26, 2010
Billionaire Charles Koch reportedly runs privately held Koch Industries as an autocrat, so a case can be made that he is responsible for any malfeasance.
In 2000, a federal grand jury issued a 97-count indictment against the company for knowingly releasing 91 metric tons of benzene and concealing this crime from regulators. The company was subject to $350 million in fines, and four Koch employees faced a combined total of 100 years in prison and $50 million in fines.
Also in 2000, the Justice Department imposed a $30 million fine against Koch, the largest civil penalty ever levied against a company under federal environmental laws. It was determined that Koch was negligent in causing more than 300 oil spills that polluted waters in six states, including Kansas.
A federal jury issued a verdict in 1999 that Koch Industries had, “purposely falsified oil measurements on federal and Indian lands, a practice that allowed it to collect more oil than it paid for. Several Koch employees testified that they were instructed to alter their measurements. Koch Industries admitted it received about $170 million worth of oil it didn’t pay for.”
To paraphrase Balzac, “Behind every great fortune lies a great crime.” Maybe several crimes.