The barons of Big Oil and Big Coal will undoubtedly chink glasses with their paid mouthpieces this weekend over news that fellow cynic Marc Morano is leaving his taxpayer-funded propaganda job to establish a climate change “news” website.
Morano, if you don’t already know, has been the Roscoe P. Coltrane to one of the Senate’s many wannabe Boss Hoggs, in this case James Inhofe, Republican from Oklahoma. Morano told Greenwire ($ub req’d) that he’s leaving Inhofe to launch a site about climate change.
Morano-dot-con will probably echo Inhofe’s blog, on which Morano has been disseminating climate-skeptic talking points for the past two-and-half years, becoming a go-to source of climate disinformation for pretty much every right-winger in the country.
The new site will be funded by the Committee for a Constructive Tomorrow (CFACT), a Washington-based free-market public policy group funded by Big Oil and, most entertainingly, billionaire Richard Mellon Scaife, the wackjob who spent millions in the 1990s trying to prove that Bill and Hillary Clinton committed a list of crimes that would make Hitler blush. (Wonk Room’s Brad Johnson has more on CFACT.)
You can’t make this stuff up, folks.
‘Copenhagen Diagnosis’ offers a grim update to the IPCC’s climate science
Copenhagen talks ready for take off: 5, 4, 3…
Obama administration may (finally) offer greenhouse-gas targets
Comments
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stevenearlsalmony Posted 11:37 pm
06 Mar 2009
At no time prior to recent days can I recall more vibrant and worthwhile discussions of humankind's distinctly human-driven predicament. For me, the Gristmill community is a microcosm of what needs to be occurring ubiquitously. This work, the work of other groups, organizations and institutional instrumentalities appear to be necessary parts of an overall effort that simply has to continue, I believe, because our efforts will eventually lead to change.
Change from unsustainability to sustainability is the goal of the human community, I suppose.
It seems that if our leaders keep doing precisely what they are doing now and the family of humanity keeps getting what it is getting now, then the chance of some sort of unimaginable collapse of human civilization at some point in space-time appears likely..........perhaps sooner rather than later. On the other hand, if we can determine what human behavior changes need to be achieved and then move forward boldly to encourage policy formulation and implementation of the changes, perhaps the mere perception of the necessary behavior changes would be experienced as tantamount to another sort of crash, one that would accompany the unwelcome change of worldviews, expectations and lifestyles. While in the former instance, Nature would be in control of the fate of the human species, in the latter circumstances perhaps the human family could assume at least a modicum of control, initiate behavioral changes and, by so doing, take some degree of control over its fate.
Please note that I am a psychologist. For a moment imagine a patient that is suffering from an addiction to a patently unsustainable way of living in the world. You ask the patient, "As you see it, what can you do about your addiction?" The patient replies, "If I keep doing precisely what I am doing now and have been doing for a long time, I am sure to be dead soon. On the other hand, if I choose a different way of living in the world, then I am afraid I might die." The avoidance of an actual danger exposes the patient to a perceived danger. Behavior change would also mean that the patient's experience of comfort would be exposed to the time-limited experience of subjective discomfort.
Despite the best efforts of Kate, Jon Rynn, David Roberts, Joe Romm, Geoff Dabelko, Gar Lipow, amazingdrx and many other sensible people, there are people in high places who vigorously object or remain willfully blind to efforts such as these. Gatekeepers {Bilderberger Group and Trilateral Commission members are excellent examples} of the global political economy and the status quo are not large in number; nevertheless, these self-proclaimed Masters of the Universe are so well-entrenched within the most recently reconstructed Tower of Babel {called the global economy in our time} that it is difficult to imagine how the family of humanity prevails against them. But prevail we shall because we must. Alternatives to our success would be ever so much more catastrophic and destructive than what is wrought in the process of voluntarily making necessary changes in the unsustainable ways human beings live today.
Let's keep going and hope others will choose to join us by doing the same.
With thanks to all for what you are doing here and elsewhere,
Steve
Steven Earl Salmony
AWAREness Campaign on the Human Population,
established 2001
http://sustainabilityscience.org/content.html?contentid=1 ...
http://sustainabilitysoutheast.org/index.php
http://www.panearth.org
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amazingdrx Posted 2:00 am
07 Mar 2009
Capitulation is right around the corner. It was easy to see it coming after the widespread anticipation of improvement with the Obama administration.
Does anyone know of a depression era diary that could console us enough to get back in the fight? Maybe it's time for Michael Moore to make a movie based on this topic. A sort of fictional documentary.
If he could illuminate the journey from despair to recovery in that era, maybe people could see a way forward now? He surely did it for the narrower issue of healthcare in "Sicko", is there anyone else who could do it?
Obama needs help getting a better mood to start overtaking this collective despair.
http://amazngdrx.blogharbor.com/blog John Schneider, Northern Wisconsin
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stevenearlsalmony Posted 5:07 am
07 Mar 2009
Hopelessness and collective despair are real. Thankfully, these feelings are momentary and will pass once people begin to reasonably and sensibly do what they know to be best.
The time is coming, in large part because of the election of Barack Obama, that those who have betrayed America will be held to account. Let me be crystal clear. The so-called "brightest and best" from Wall Street and their bought-and-paid-for politicians in Washington, DC are the ring leaders of a colossal pyramid scheme that has "cratered", as George Bush has said repeatedly. These greedy 'leaders' have eschewed honesty, accountability and transparency in their duplicitous double-dealings. America has been done in by thieves of the highest order, I believe.
Even as the global economy was cratering late last year, the greediest of these self-proclaimed Masters of the Universe were passing out billions of dollars in unearned bonuses to themselves and their cronies, while binding one another to secrecy with regard to their illegitimate business activities. Rather than allowing avarice and arrogance to be institutionalized and richly rewarded as if they were virtues, the day is coming when the people who elected Barack Obama will insist that the liars, cheats and double dealers be named, shamed, held to account and removed from positions of power.
Sincerely,
Steve
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Delay And Deny Posted 7:21 am
07 Mar 2009
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/200882451 ...
<blockquotes>Accumulations could be 1-3 inches -- "if a convergence zone forms" -- and possibly more in higher-elevation areas, said forecaster Art Gaebel.
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christophersj Posted 8:30 am
07 Mar 2009
Certainly the fact that a propaganda machine spreading lies with taxpayer's money from Inhofe's staff's offices couldn't last.
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redambrosia99 Posted 4:02 am
08 Mar 2009
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christophersj Posted 8:42 am
08 Mar 2009
Just a hunch.
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Benny Big Eye Posted 9:57 am
08 Mar 2009
Here goes....
RPJr: they cannot engage me on the substance, and instead resort to the strategy of "attack the man," probably indicates that they feel that they cannot win an argument on the substance of the matter.
Pot/Kettle/Black. Are you being serious?
RPJr: I was once invited to write a paper for publication in the Cato Institute's journal Regulation.
How much money did the Exxon Mobil funded Cato pay you for your thoughts on climate change?
RPJr: I have testified before Congress at the request of both Democrats and Republicans. Whenever I am invited to testify I recognize full well that the invitation is offered because there is some expectation that my views are somehow politically useful to the party doing the inviting. This is of course how politics in the U.S. Congress actually works, and it goes for every witness ever invited, including scientists and other academics. Thus, I take care in my prepared remarks to clearly spell out my views and their policy implications, based on my expertise and experience. I have never been told what to say, nor has my testimony ever been critiqued or edited beforehand by staff. When I testify you can be sure that my views are my views.
Basically an admission that you were compliant with Republicans using you to undermine a hearing on the Bush Administration's politicization of science in the corporate interest. Good for you!
And so we can all be clear. It is common Hill practice that all written testimony is first approved by the committee. Whether that resulted in you making any changes or not to make the Republicans happy is unknown. We'll take your word on it.
RPJr: People who argue that I have claimed to be an "honest broker" are not telling the truth...
This is true! But you insinuate it nonetheless with your pattern of haranguing other scientists such as Naomi Oreskes, Evan Mills, Michael Mann, Gavin Schmidt,Jim Hansen...etc...etc...
RPJr: My policy is that anyone who is written about here on this blog has an open invitation to respond, and we will publish their response unedited as a main line entry.
First bait them, then offer a chance for defense on your home territory. Brilliant.
RPJr: Do recognize that discussing people's actions or words is not an "attack" even if that discussion is critical at times.
Unless the focus of the discussion is the actions or words or Roger Pielke Jr. In that case, it's personal and ad hominem.
RPJr: if you ever notice something that you think is inappropriate, just let me know and we'll deal with it.
Please print out this comment. Put it in your wallet. Pull it our every ten minutes. Read closely. Repeat for the next thirty days.
And please put to rest your the Royal We nonsense.
Benny Big Eye
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RiHo08 Posted 3:40 pm
14 May 2009
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