Speaking from a uk perspective, the town serviced the coal mine, the town wouldn't exist with the coal mine. Mining is a dangerous dirty activity so you do get a camaraderie that comes from that.

So if the mine goes, everything goes, you lose your job, the people you know lose their job, but you also lose who you are. If you work in a coal mine, you are a miner in a way that working in a supermarket doesn't make you a check out assistant.

I'll agree there is some appeal to clanking machines, but its missing most of the point to reduce it to that.

Ps IMHO a massive wind turbine can hold its own with any steam engine or tonka toy any day of the week.