Yeah it is kind of sickening, we have all this potential almost like a genie in a bottle that won't come out to give us even one wish. I concur on your assessment and would like to add one of the many items in the news that caught my eye, it was the mention of longhole mining.

The L10 zone remains open along strike in both directions as well as to depth. The drill hole intersections as listed above within the L10 zone are located between 270 meters and 430 meters in depth and over a strike length of approximately 160 meters. The L10 Zone is tabular and steeply dipping to the north and possesses robust widths with consistent mineralization which appear to be amenable to mechanized (possibly longhole) mining methods. The L10 zone is accessible from the Hinge/007 decline; development is underway and will reach the L10 zone early in the first quarter of 2011.

H955-10-010 226.4 239.7 13.3 43.4 36.3 1.06 L10

http://www.sangold.ca/i/pdf/2010-11-09-pr-L10.pdf

Long Hole Stopping
In paces where big blocks of ore can be identified and the adjoining rock is quite strong, then a long hole mining method is by and large the lowest cost mining technique. The result is not unlike an underground excavation. Entrance to the top and bottom of the ore block is established with drifts or tunnels. A vertical hole is produced inside of the ore from the top of the block to the bottom. Long holes are drilled to blast vertical slabs off the ore block. On average a loader takes care of picking up the broken ore from the lower tunnel and takes it away to an ore pass. Due to precautionary motives the loader is operated distantly by a radio control when it is in the large open stope. As soon as the ore block has been blasted and extracted, the stope will usually be filled with waste rock so as to even out the empty space and make way for the extraction of adjoining ore blocks. This mining technique is very well known of, and is nearly the underground analogy to the advances accomplished in automating a great open pit. Where big blocks of ore can be recognized in moderately hard rock this technique is prolific and the cost is low.