Alcoa lies

From Carter Wrenn, via Ed Cone, an excellent summary of the aftershocks of Alcoa-gate. Note to self: Whenever a multinational corporation promises they're telling the truth, it is safe to assume they're lying.

By the time Ms. Vajda finished playing her documentary Alcoa had gone from a victim of Socialism to a corporate villain. And, off balance, Alcoa stumbled again.

Alcoa Vice President William O’Rourke stood up and asked Senator Hartsell if he could have his say and, as soon as he finished telling how much Alcoa loved trees and wildlife and rivers, a Senator asked him if Alcoa had ever done any studies of kidney and bladder cancer rates among its employees.

No, O’Rourke said.

Alcoa’s chickens come home to roost two days later when a Deputy Attorney General, after reading a transcript of the hearing, fired off an email to Senator Hartsell saying he had copies of two studies Alcoa had conducted into kidney cancer rates at its smelters and one of them had Mr. O’Rourke’s name on it so he didn’t see how Mr. O’Rourke’s testimony could be what he called ‘factual.’

Alcoa’s credibility which had hit rock bottom dropped again and Senator Hartsell’s bill (with a provision included about cleaning up Alcoa’s pollution) sailed through the State House with every Democrat and over half the Republicans voting for it.

So Alcoa which earns more each year than the entire state government of North Carolina was undone because a State Senator played a blonde Hungarian anchorwoman’s documentary for a Senate Committee on a Tuesday night.