A Slap Heard 'Round the Coalfields

The debate over mining, particularly the mountaintop removal method, has been one of West Virginia's top stories of 2009.

The Associated Press focuses on a June confrontation between two coalfields residents at the front lines of this battle -- mining supporter Cordelia Ruth Tucker and environmental activist Judy Bonds -- to report on its heightened tensions.

"Both sides are fighting for a way of life," writes AP's Vicki Smith. "The miners see the mountains as their livelihood. The environmentalists see them as divine and irreplaceable creations."