PRESS RELEASE
Tuesday, April 20th 2010
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Jeff Davis
Washington, DC — Penn State University’s Michael Mann, one of the central figures in the Climategate scandal, has threatened legal action against Minnesotans for Global Warming (M4GW) over the group’s popular satirical YouTube video “Hide the Decline.” The No Cap-and-Trade Coalition, a group that includes M4GW, responded today at an event at the National Press Club, releasing Mann’s threatening letter and an updated version of the “Hide the Decline” video.
“We understand why Michael Mann is eager to silence public discussion of the hockey stick scandal,” said Jeff Davis of No Cap-and-Trade, “but truth is an absolute defense.”
The original “Hide the Decline” video, which had more than 500,000 viewers, was removed today from YouTube by M4GW’s Elmer Beauregard. It received national attention when Rush Limbaugh played it on his radio show and was later featured on CBS Evening News in the wake of the Climategate email scandal. “Hide the Decline” parodied Mann, the Penn State professor who is largely responsible for the creation of the now debunked “hockey stick” graph, which purported to show a dramatic spike in average global temperature during the 20th century after 900 years of relatively constant temperature.
The video spotlighted a phrase from one of the central “Climategate” e-mails in which the University of East Anglia’s Phil Jones explains how he used Mann’s “Nature trick” to “hide the decline” of key temperature data. The hockey stick graph relied on “hiding this decline.”
When asked why he removed the video, Beauregard said “Right now, the last thing I need is a lawsuit. I can barely afford my electric bill.” Beauregard recently converted M4GW’s world headquarters (a recreational vehicle parked in Northern Minnesota) from propane to wood heat. “Mann should be glad to know that we don’t burn fossil fuels anymore — just trees,” said Beauregard.
“M4GW was started to poke fun at Global Warming because I knew it was a joke, it’s hard to believe in Global Warming when you live in a place like Minnesota. During last winter we all wished we had some global warming, hence the name of our group,” said Beauregard. As global warming developed into a political issue, M4GW has tried to educate the public that CO2 is not harmful but part of the natural carbon cycle.
Minnesotans for Global Warming did comply with Mann’s cease and desist demand, taking the “Hide the Decline” video down from their YouTube account and webpage. The No Cap and Trade Coalition unveiled a new video they’re calling “Hide the Decline 2,” however. It was screened at a press conference on April 20th and is available on YouTube and NoCapAndTrade.com.
“If Doctor Mann decides to sue,” said Davis, “we would welcome the opportunity to do legal discovery. I believe he’s hiding more than just ‘the decline.’”
Speaking at the No Cap-and-Trade Coalition press conference was M4GW spokesman “Chicken Little,” a man in a chicken suit who goes to rallies crying “The globe is warming, the globe is warming!”
When asked about the situation, Chicken Little said, “I used to believe in global warming — of course, I used to believe the sky was falling too, but Elmer set me straight.” Chicken Little went on to say, “I think it’s horrible that Elmer had to take down the video. Can’t a person have a little fun on YouTube anymore? Those Global warming guys sure don’t have any sense of humor.”
At the press conference, the No Cap-and-Trade Coalition handed out a historical review of the hide-the-decline controversy entitled, “Michael Mann: Defamed or Defined by Hide-the-Decline?” as well as mini-hockey sticks that read “Mann-Made Global Warming: Why We Should Be Worried About the Intellectual Climate.”
Both versions of the “Hide The Decline” video can be viewed at http://www.nocapandtrade.com/michael-mann-controversy/.
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Minnesotans for Global Warming (M4GW) uses humor to illustrate the absurdity of anthropogenic global warming fears. Their slogans are “Turn your snow shovels into lawn chairs,” and “Nothing would be green without CO2.” – M4GW.com
The No Cap and Trade Coalition consists of over 40 state and national organizations that are opposed to cap and trade legislation. For more information, see NoCapAndTrade.com
There are no winners in this.
Science has taken a right royal kick in the bollocks, a polarised population yips and yaps to cheer lead the team, Media and PR whores spin it both ways, or try to bury it. Conquered and divided, real issues pushed to the margins.
Mann must be under Icelandic Volcanic pressure, which is nothing to gloat over, it could happen to any one, hell it even happen to some of we skeptics,
in truth, many of you have borne worse with grace, above and beyond the call of duty.
This whole period in history is ugly and lowers the bar for stupid and vindictive, the white flags are far and few between, but at least a few were hoisted here. (not surrender, but open dialogue)
I suspect sooner than later, Mann will be fed to the wolves, and a new, convivial, media savvy, useful idiot will be propped up in his empty seat. A false new dawn will begin of non-partisan (but still biased), joint research, minor faults will be admitted too, but that was then,…now we’ve chased out the bad eggs, we’re back to proving AGW was sound, in fact we always knew it was.
And the media will roll over, again,…and get its belly tickled,…again.
And on that day, i’d say get ready for round two.
If Mann sues & wins, Sarah Palin should sue Saturday Night Live.
Count me in on a donation if needed.
No political donations this year for anyone who isn’t sane ; )
“It is naively assumed that the fact that the majority of people share certain ideas or feelings proves the validity of these ideas and feelings. Nothing is further from the truth… Just as there is a ‘Folie à deux’ there is a ‘folie à millions.’ The fact that millions of people share the same vices does not make these vices virtues, the fact that they share so many errors does not make the errors to be truths, and the fact that millions of people share the same form of mental pathology does not make these people sane.”
Dr A Burns (15:50:34) :
Why isn’t Mann being sued for fraud ?
I’ve been wondering that for some time. All 4 elements have been met, IMHO.
Bob Edelman (18:22:50) :
I too would be happy to contribute to a legal defense fund. My attorney friends tell me that discovery in a civil suit can go very wide and deep. Anything that might be relevant can be supoenaed with few exceptions. This might expose every problem in Mann’s questionable career.
You mean Michael Mann may have opened a Pandora’s Box into himself?
This may be just the court case (if it happens) that people like Christopher Monckton and John Coleman have been wanting!
Thank you Mr. Mann!
btw – Global Carbon Taxation is fraud and any fool who supports it is just that – part of the “sane society”. ; P
The Mann Hockey Stick graph is in the UN/IPCC report and it is in Al Gore’s movie. Am I to believe Michael Mann is not a public figure??
Amino Acids in Meteorites (19:51:13) :
It may be time to log the first International class action law suit against governments on behalf of the peoples of the world. I wonder how many billions we could get to sign on in day or so? 4 many 5 billion would make a solid statement ; )
sorry, s/b 4 maybe 5 billion signatures would make a solid statement
I hope every AGW promoter tries to sue their way to scientific scrutiny.
hmmmmm – fund raiser for this effort can’t be “send us a Liberty dime”, the postage costs more. Maybe Bush’s odd ball approach when the towers fell – “Give a buck”?
20 April: UK Telegraph: Iceland volcano: UK airports reopen as BA claims shutdown ‘unnecessary’
Boris Johnson, the Mayor of London, questioned the science behind the lockdown.
“What I would really like to know is whether we are absolutely certain that the initial decision taken to close down UK aviation at this level of risk was correct,” he said.
It emerged that two vastly differing maps of the ash cloud were being circulated by official bodies.
One, prepared by the government-controlled Met Office and used by the CAA and Nats, showed the ash cloud covering much of Europe.
A second, produced for the European air traffic control co-ordinator Eurocontrol limited the areas of danger to two high-density clouds over the Atlantic.
This second map and extensive test flights which have shown no negative effects on aircraft helped persuade many other European countries to reopen their air space. ..
Bob Ainsworth, the Defence Secretary, whose department is responsible for the Met Office, made no public statement about the crisis.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/travelnews/7612109/Iceland-volcano-UK-airports-reopen-as-BA-claims-shutdown-unnecessary.html
What if he wins? Will he get fame, and a wood heated RV, formerly the home of a man who plays guitar dressed as a Viking?
Tragedy is there isn’t anything left to trust.
So why would he threaten this suit now? New viewership must be tailing off quite a bit by now. All this does is put the spotlight on him again. Can he be that desperate?
Curious (16:36:43) :
Rajendra K. Pachauri must believe he’s this generation’s L. Ron Hubbard.
Indeed, his badly written fiction knows no bounds.
… other then the second law of thermodynamics
Phil Jones to Mann on his citation index, “Problem is my surname. I get a number of 62 if I just use the software, but I have too many papers. I then waded throughand deleted those in journals I’d never heard of and got
52. I think this got rid of some biologist from the 1970s/1980s,
so go with 52.”
Mann has a chance to tell the truth. What do you think he does?
Mann, “HI Phil, OK–thanks, I’ll just go w/ the H=62. That is an impressive number and almost certainly higher than the vast majority of AGU Fellows.”
He is a proven liar, no doubt about it.
Omigosh he’s stepped in it now!
If he sues, he’s subject to discovery, and I mean REAL discovery, not namby pamby white wash discovery that he just went through by a jury of his conspirators… I mean peers. He has to put it ALL on the table to prove the ridicule was unfair. He understands this…doesn’t he? He has to prove is claims to LEGAL standards? He could be held liable for legal costs if he loses, which he also understands? And if he backs down now, after having made the threat…. everyone will claim it was because he couldn’t make it stick and knew it. Who will he call as supportive witnesses?
Professor “no statistical warming” Jones?
Dr “I have a tree that matches that graph, but only one” Briffa?
Oooh, oooh, I know.
Bailiff swears in witness:
“Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?”
Dr Ravetz:
“Well, uhm… define truth….”
LOL
I think all the action heros should step on stage from Doctor Who and redress the tweens – teach some Physics.
I am currently unemployed, but donated to M4GW tonight. Missing a few meals this month is the least that I can do.
Defend? Hell no, ATTACK!
good thing that i saved a copy of the original. Download Helper plugin for Firefox is great for saving videos off the net.
Some interesting comments @Climate Audit: click
I’ve been wishing for months that I was still rockin’ for a living. I’d be leading off my second set with that gorgeous parody every night. Even in my “kinky hippie chick” days I think I would have done that. Now there’d be no hesitation at all: It’s just too right there.
I will also, with great pleasure, donate to a legal defense fund for M4GW. The need is not likely to arise, unfortunately, as the video has disappeared from their website. However, if you Google Hide the Decline it can still be seen, as it has been re-posted by other fans (although the first version I saw has disappeared already). I’ve tried downloading the video but the available links do not seem to work – not that I’ve ever attempted such a download before, so the problem may be personal incompetence.
The traffic to view ‘Hide the Decline” probably declined in recent weeks, but Mann has managed to put himself back in the spotlight. Well done! I’ve watched the video three times already tonight!