A local resident and American Indian talks about the politics in the area of East Palestine

John Reimann
So we’re talking with somebody that lives in the next county over from, from his pelvis thing. So you want to talk about what county you live in and what’s the, like the political situation.

speaker 2
I live in Mahoning County, I’m about 17 miles away from the derailment site. But I also worked in that area. The political agenda there is it mostly Republican. Oil and gas, steel mills, waste incinerators, all pollutants that they, they also did to the Native American Indians in Navajo Nation.

John Reimann
And you yourself are part of the Navajo Nation.

speaker 2
I’m not exactly because of my percentage, because that’s the way it happens if you break the chain. You know what I mean? You won’t get the money as in not being a full blooded Indian. That’s another story.

John Reimann
Right. But before we started this call, we were talking about it and you kind of touched on it. The whole issue of pollution in that whole in that whole area. You want to talk about that a little bit?

speaker 2
Yes, it’s mostly oil and gas waste incinerators. Republican runs this area of Columbiana. County, mostly, they tried to get a foothold in the Mahoning County, but they’re being stopped by the Democrats because they know what they’ve done to their own county with prior cover up. Environment environmental issues.

John Reimann
So, as I understand it, that whole area is pretty poverty stricken, like because of deindustrialization. Is that Is that true?

speaker 2
Well, not the whole area, it was once run, and controlled the government by the factions of the Pittsburgh-Cleveland mafia. And it was all politics then. It still is. That’s why Ease Palestine residents. They don’t know this, but probably going to be left behind to do all this thereselves. They’re gonna make a show, a dog and show pony show, of it, and make it all look good. When actually, when it all goes away, and people get sick, they’ll be nowhere to be found.

John Reimann
When you were saying that there’s been a lot of pollution in the area, all along, like dioxin and so on.

speaker 2
Oh, yeah, there used to be a nice chemical plant that that was a Superfund site. But it took them forever to get that cleaned up. People that swim in the creeks ended up blind with like black heads all over their body, other health issues. That, that I’m just talking to the people that I met personally and knew that these health situations happened to them. And they kind of covered that up for years and years and years.

John Reimann
Which creek you’re talking about?

speaker 2
In particular, the one that runs into the Ohio River, little Beaver Creek. It’s southside of Salem. Different names for different parts, too. But it’s mainly it was called Little Beaver Creek that came out of Salem, Ohio.

John Reimann
So this has been going on for a long time now.

speaker 2
Yeah, part of the disaster that you see it now. They had a prior environmental disaster in Salem, Ohio years ago with a chemical plant called Neece (?).

John Reimann
And before we talked, you were you were sending me some comments about the issue of dioxin in relation to I believe you were talking about the 911 crash site, and so on.

speaker 2
Well, yeah, once you have the initial plume of chemicals You’re having a fallout of the dioxin. Where’s that stuff going? Like they say, if you shoot a gun up in the air, it’s got to come down somewhere. And it’s coming down, you know, their us fallout throughout the surrounding areas. The wind was blowing that day of the derailment, the direction, you got to know the speed, also of the wind that day and so called controlled burn, you know, where did that wind blow? And what what radius? Could the toxins be affecting?

John Reimann
So you know, I think you’d probably be aware that one of the main effects of that or dioxin is birth defects, but it’s what the reproductive, what it does to the women and having kids and, you know, the cancer. That won’t show up till later.

speaker 2
They’re all doing all this right now. If the water so safe, why are they bringing in all this water and donating? They’re gonna say, “Oh, we’re giving it to the people that don’t want to drink the tap water. You know, I mean, that’s what you’re gonna say, they know the watersheds. You know what I mean? They didn’t even clean up the, underneath the tracks, they left track so the train can run in two days. And it’s still there. The CEO was on CNN saying well we’re going to do it in March or something. They should be doing that now. That stuff’s still seeping into the ground, in the people’s wells, the groundwater, the watershed, you know, besides the soil, you know, just they’re saying they’re going to do everything they can – why aren’t they doing it now? Picking them tracks up and getting rid of that contaminated soil.

John Reimann
Right. And as you say, the longer they wait, the more that those toxins are going to seep into the soil below it.

speaker 2
Exactly. It’s already the damage has been done. It stirred up the creek. Test that!

John Reimann
right

speaker 2
Test and farm animals, all kinds of health issues.

John Reimann
And number one, you know, they’re now saying that they are not going to pay for testing of water outside of the immediate evacuation area, which is a half mile away from the crash itself.

(Bad transmission at this point. Some of conversation lost.)

speaker 2
The reason why I believe it’s for corporate greed. Money, and his top administratives of transportation were true executive from the freight liner industry.

John Reimann
Do you think that people are going to think about it? You know, look at that contradiction, people who support Trump now, in that area that they’re going to look at what was Trump’s role in all of this that created these conditions?

[discussion broken up. Bad reception.]

speaker 2
It’s because of all the safety reasons, you know, they were gonna go on strike [on] the railroad. The less people that are on that are working there – They’re overworked, they’re underpaid, or they’re making them work harder with no paid leave. You know, I mean, nowadays, that’s automatically paid leave. It’s a Republican conspiracy.

John Reimann
Yeah. I mean, the worst part as far as a railroad condition is not even the question of paid leave, if they are ordered to come to work, even outside of their normal shift. And let’s say, let’s say somebody in their family just had a heart attack, and they can’t come to work.

speaker 2
They don’t care. That’s right. That’s right. They make you come to work, when you know what saves a lot of people. And it’s sad to say, was COVID. COVID made these corporations think… [unclear]

John Reimann
Right. Right. But to get to this issue of how people in the area see things. I mean, just for instance, there were the safety regulations regarding braking systems on the railroads. And there was some very weak regulations installed under Obama and they were weak, but at least they existed. And then right, remove those regulations. So do you see that contradiction and all the people in the

speaker 2
I used to work for Donald Trump at the Taj Mahal, in Atlantic City, back in 1990. I did security and worked in the main kitchen. When I worked in security. I guarded the Moscow circus, which was Russian equivalent to the Ringling Brothers and here in the US, I guarded them from the animal activists. And he was in with the Russians back then. You know, he, they say he was money laundering because he was going bankrupt.

John Reimann
Yeah. He was.

speaker 2
Right. And if that’s the case, what else there you are, you’re gonna believe him about what he had to say yesterday. He can’t do anything here get indicted in Georgia for what he did on January 6.

John Reimann
Were you around yesterday when when Trump showed up?

Trump made political hay out of the derailment when he visited East Palestine. What he left out, and what nobody pressed him on, was his record for deregulation of the railroads and the environment.

speaker 2
No, I watched it on TV, but I watched him and the mayor have cheeseburgers at McDonald’s. And all the county Republicans and Republican for the state of Ohio show up for Trump Water in the photo op that they had. What are they gonna do? They’re bashing the EPA like I am. And you know, Biden, and everybody, and what are they doing for themselves? They’re creating their own [unclear]. They need to get out. Who cares about your house, and what you owe? You know what it’s like to live in the ghetto that the African Americans been telling you how their conditions and the Native American Indians how their conditions were living conditions. Them houses are contaminated through the drywall, through the wood through the brick. And then that’s all contaminated toxic?

John Reimann
Do you think that people in the area that supported Trump up until now that they’re going to start to see through him? Due to this experience?

John Reimann
Some of them, but a lot of them don’t know better. They don’t understand the Republican Party is the party that got money. And the people that don’t know no better. Right? And the reason they don’t know better, is because they’re fighting for a cause. If you look, that majority is all Caucasian. And the Caucasians – if you watch January 6, if they don’t get their way, this is how they’re gonna do it.

speaker 2
The lesson was always down in that county, and in that area, as long as we keep the African American out of our town.

John Reimann
So a lot of racism. So in other words – cutting off your nose to spite your face?

speaker 2
Yes, yes, that is basically the answer there, because they’re afraid that their property value will go down. And they’ll do anything to keep you out? Well, I have a personal experience with that. I have personal experience through that with my father that owning property, and

John Reimann
I mean, the property value is now gone down, you know, has been flushed down the toilet, because of this train wreck.

speaker 2
Well, who, who wants to live there? Nobody wants to be in chemical area, right? The only thing that can happen to that county is all the rich people go there and buy up all the land and put wind farms or solar panels and try to make it a clean energy situation.

speaker 2
it’ll be an agenda. Their agenda is at all costs, whatever it takes. It’s our way or no way. The area, too, is is divided, not by Democrats, Republicans. It’s all it’s also Cleveland against Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh against Cleveland. Youngstown is in the middle of it all trying to keep everybody you know, I mean,

speaker 2
Well, it goes back to the Youngstown mob.

John Reimann
You say it goes back to the Youngstown mafia?

speaker 2
Exactly. Pittsburgh against Cleveland fighting for a territory, province.

John Reimann
And these were actually mafia gangs, you’re seeing?

speaker 2
Quite a few of the biggest some of the big. Now, what you’re seeing is the fallout of it. You know, the bad blood. If you’ve killed one of my family members, and you come from the other side? We don’t forget. You know. And they don’t forget. So my role [would be], I don’t care if you’re my best friend or not. And I hear that you’ve done that? And you were part of that? “See you later, buddy. I don’t want to be around you.” And that’s the way it is. And that’s the way it is in politics here.

John Reimann
And do you think that a lot of people just the average person, the average resident around there is caught up in that?

speaker 2
Yeah, cuz they were part of it. Their family was. Their grandfather was. Or their uncle. You know? Something like that their last name would tell you what side they’re on or where they’re from. Right? It still goes on to this day. Yeah.

John Reimann
Do you have anything further to add about just the historic pollution and in that area?

peaker 2
Yes. If I was an East Palestine resident, and I lived there when this happened, I wouldn’t be complaining about it. I wouldn’t be caring about my mortgage. I wouldn’t be caring about the money. I’d be worried about my health, my kids, my family, my farm animals, my pets, I would be getting out of the area. Now. Where do you go? Who knows? Where’s where’s it really safe? They’re not safe in their own community. You know, they don’t need a bank robber or robber to come in to rob their house. They are been robbed of their belongings and everything because it’s nothing but “wait”. It’s like a flood. When you have flood you don’t go and change your furniture? Well, you’re not going to save your furniture in your house with all that chemicals in it.

John Reimann
Right and the dioxin — The problem is where can you go?

speaker 2
And what you’re seeing now – you’re gonna see even weirder stuff. Follow? Follow the environmental around that area. Even if it’s only 100 mile radius, it’s probably more than that. You may have a actual, like a nuclear bomb go off. We’re like it’s Chernobyl, you know, Three Mile Island. You know? The radiation that’s never been the same. The wildlife, the deer, you know, go on a deer hunt a couple years from now and go eat it and see what see what’s inside that deer? You know, or what have you. Right? Your your dog starts having respiratory problems. They’re already having chickens dying. What’s that tell you? Right? Chickens feed off the chicken feed, but they also feed off the land, and the dirt. Now all that, and they’re dying off. And it’s it’s not the initial derailment exposure. It’s the last couple of weeks and just previously, probably now, the animals are gonna die, they’re gonna show you first they’re gonna warn you should watch your animals. And they will warn you about anything first.

John Reimann
Right. That’s like the proverbial canary in the coal mine.

speaker 2
Exactly. You know, they send in the governnor to drink the water? Well, he’s not gonna be around because he’s an older gentleman. But you know, what? What about the people that he showed and lied to just because he drank the water that means everyone else should drink the water and he’s saying it’s safe because of their tests? Well, they tested in Navajo Nation reservation for that uranium and they always said to test and everything was below you know, EPA or whatever standards they had. So they’re not telling you the truth.You know what? If I was a person that lived on that land, I would save it and wait because you know what? They would be ridiculed by the government for exposing the truth.

John Reimann
Well, even the the the levels below which is considered safe, I mean, what that means is below a certain level we cannot prove that it causes any significant amount of cancer

speaker 2
Well, that’s your whole point. But that’s not they want to make it look like it’s safe. So they don’t have to be sued. The EPA which Navajo Nation did [sue]. Where’s the state at in all this too? their shown up with [Ohio Governor DeWine but they’re blaming all that Norwalk southern do all this. What are the Republican Party doing? That’s their town. Arne, what are they doing to assist with the state? Why don’t they give the money back that they took for their campaign finances and the lobbyists in Ohio? Give it back. Once donating to the fire department? Okay, great. What about the visitors and the people? You know?

speaker 2
They think, well, it’s when you use a term that I don’t like to use, maybe hillbilly nation, you know, I mean, because it’s on the panhandle of West Virginia. So they think they’re not as smart as they are. And they can sneak things in behind their back and get away with it.

John Reimann
Right. Right. Right. Yeah. So Well, so far they have been getting away with it actually.

speaker 2
Worked out for now. But just a better time, when people start feeling the real effects of all these talks as the beginning. They’re only seeing this. I don’t care how much they clean up. It’s hard. The damage has already been done. A cleanup begun. Yeah, clean it up. Yeah, I got in a car accident. I had the guy fix my car. Yeah, he cleaned it up. But it’s never the same, it will never run the same.

John Reimann
Anyway, as far as the cleanup, I mean, they can remove that soil. But the soil has to go somewhere.

speaker 2
Well, they mentioned where they’re taking it, they gotta take it to a landfill, wherever, whoever takes it. But they’re not telling you know…. Another thing is that stuff being tarped out. Was it safely being transported without dioxins getting in the air on the travel time? You know what I mean? Wherever they’re going, wherever long it takes. Was that stuff and containers that are contaminated, you know, contaminated proof. You know, it wherever they’re taking, and everybody is getting exposed? Right, exactly. Who wants that part of it?

John Reimann
Right? And then wherever they put it. I mean, there’s so much of that stuff, not just from that site, but a lot of other sites that they can write. They can’t just put it somewhere and and like feel that off from everything in the world, you know, outside of it.

speaker 2
Right. Well, they probably put more garbage or something on it to hide it or whatever else they do. You can’t delete it, you can’t get rid of it. You know, where do you bury their probably bury it in the ground somewhere? Who knows what they’re doing with this? You know, they’re saying that’s what they’re doing with it, but we don’t know that. They don’t.

John Reimann
Right. So well, anyway. I think you know, that those are probably the main issues. And if you have any final words.

speaker 2
Well, I like to say that from our point of view that we’re sorry that we have to see that we go through this with you. And we know how your heart feels. Because we’ve been through it as the Navajo Nation, that the government will just show up. Do what they gotta do. And then “see you later.” And, you know, are you going to be left behind? Probably, but not at first because you know, the media is on you. But after it’s all done and gone away, why is it only Norfolk Southern? Are they going to go bankrupt, and then not pay the claims, then the government gonna take over? And then when the EPA takes over, but do the same thing that they did on American nation? I mean, they’re gonna go bankrupt. You got to watch your stock. BlackRock, Vanguard, Norfolk Southern, and their stock keeps going up within you know, a certain amount of time. There’s your cover up, follow the money.