Appalachia's anguish: a way of life unravels. (Originated from Knight-Ridder/Tribune News Service)

    These are the worst times Appalachia has seen in 40 years. 
    The mountainous region has always endured hardship, but now destructive change is sweeping the land. Automation has forever stolen jobs from the one industry _ coal mining _ that kept the region alive. 
    The poverty this has spawned is forcing mass migration from central Appalachia's towns and hidden hollows. The tens of thousands of jobless miners who remain behind are ill-prepared to survive in a changing economy. Poorly educated children _ thousands of whom go hungry each day _ are staring at bleak futures. And for…