Guest Post by Chris Horner
I don’t know if you recall this, but, following FakeGate’s trajectory and the pretense in certain quarters that Gleick was operating somehow in a zone of exclusion for his movement — farcically absurd upon even a moment’s scrutiny of those other quarters — I was reminded of the reality that Greenpeace made a practice of taking peoples’ trash, on a regular (in my case, and the case of then-White House aide Phil Cooney, weekly) basis.
I first learned of it when they were shopping the offal-stained bits and pieces around the Washington press corps, then affirmed it later and had some fun with them. Washington Post, National Journal and Roll Call, to my knowledge, passed on the non-story, so Greenpeace got creative, and enlisted the help of David Adam, then with the Guardian. In Gleick-like style he mocked up a story around my trash, without calling me, cobbling together snippets from unrelated emails to tell a story they wanted to tell. Without quite telling the whole story, of course.
It’s how they roll.
And so with this experience I opened Red Hot Lies, whose full title surely resonates: How Global Warming Alarmists Use Threats, Fraud and Deception to Keep You Misinformed.
Greenpeace Steals My Trash
It was spring. Young men’s hearts turned to fancy. And Greenpeace started stealing my trash.
I noticed that my garbage was getting collected much more efficiently than normal—and at about midnight. I also noticed that soon, private memos of mine were showing up in the media, revealing a secret cabal I orchestrated from my basement. At least, that’s how London’s left-wing Guardian wrote the story, cobbled together from unrelated, offal-smeared notes plucked from my refuse and promptly handed over to them. If I ever questioned the hippies’ dedication to their cause, no more: in those summer months of mystery trash disappearance I had rededicated myself to strict obeisance of local requirements to collect the weekly out- put of my two large breed dogs.
“You too!?” howled the amused wife of a White House aide when we realized we were experiencing the same, selectively hyper-efficient, midnight garbage service. Apparently Greenpeace was just certain that her husband, who in fact hardly spoke to me, was part of my cabal.
Soon, European Greenpeace franchises were issuing press releases in German about who had lunch with me in Brussels, and spinning phony tales to Spanish newspapers of secret meetings I supposedly had with pretty much anyone they found problematic.
I had arrived. If they would spend so much energy to beat me up, I must be important, right?
But I soon learned from others that this is standard operating procedure for the global warming industry—and they often do much worse things. They have ruined careers, blacklisted scientists, knowingly spread lies about dissenters, called for the imprisonment of skeptics, and used government pressure to cut off rivals’ funding. One associate has had the lug nuts on his tires secretly loosened when his rejection of climate orthodoxy became public.
Which got me thinking: shouldn’t the public know about this? Are these tactics consistent with the environmentalists’ image as philanthropic, self-sacrificing, earth-lovers? Doesn’t their desperation reflect a fundamental weakness in the truth of their arguments and the soundness of their proposals? Wouldn’t the media expose such tactics by the other side?
Isn’t it relevant to the debate about global warming—what to do about global warming—that the alarmist side engages in this systematic campaign consisting of intimidation and threats, wheels falling off cars, abuses being inflicted on schoolchildren, demands of censorship, revising history, and telling flat-out lies?
Well, yes. People should know. And now they will.
I really gleick the direction this thread is going.
Green-shirts.
The most interesting thing about this fakegate deception by these frustrated alarmists is that they are now blatantly using lies and deception as a weapon in what they are now calling an information war. I do not care for that sort of inflammatory language.
I say, let them use all the lies and deceptions and frauds they like, for I would far rather have the truth on my side in this, or any, debate, and for me, Gleick’s behaviour, and particularly, the left wing media’s reaction to it, tells me all I need to know about who is correct in this debate. For them to raise him up to heroic Martyr status, for his deception and fraud, clearly illustrates their side’s opinion on the value of honesty or truth.
Simply put, if you are telling the truth, you do not need to use fake documents and revert to deception to win the debate.
If you have to lie to justify your argument, then your argument is not a just one.
This whole sorry episode is the equivalent of the alarmist’s conceding defeat in a childish and most unsporting, despicable manner. It is just a shame that they do not understand that.
You know what they say about Climate models – GIGO.
Ideology functions as a tripartite tale, a narrative rationale with which the utopians impose their Visions of Salvation upon us.
It was LSE political scientist Kenneth minogue who has done most to theorize this insight: Leftists repackage Christian salvation ethic like this: if you want to get into Heaven, since sin exiles you, then you must get there indirectly by Confession (or Good Works in the protestant catechism). Ask for redemption of your sins one way of the other. otherwise, your eternal soul will be lost to damnation!
Likewise in classical Marxism: the Great communist utopian future is blocked by the evil Capitalists. The only path to liberation is through worker (proletarian) solidarity to depose them! This explains our ongoing immiseration.
Similarly, the Green Utopia is blocked by a conspiracy of the Rich Capitalists. Only those enlightened by the necessity of Direct Action are doing the altruistic Holy work we won’t do ourselves.
This explains why the LA Times editorializes against the “anti-science” Heartland Institute, condemned of the Big Lie – ie, AGW is a controversial theory – that’s only comparable to Hitler’s “Mein Kampf.
Thus, a theory of demonology substitutes for facts – agenda driving “necessity” displaces close correspondence with reality. The unhinged aren’t unethical – they are only Angels taking up license to do the necessary dirty work in our own Best Interests.
And so to Daily Kos, to De Smog blog, and others, Gleick is a HERO!
When the say Gleick is only using the Tools that the Mother Earth Rapists are already using against you and the our Mother, they really mean it: this only enobles Gleick’s cause.
WUWT readers, meet the enemy: utopian ideology which drives the Green cause-heads insane.
It can get much worse. Though this is not Greenpeace (should they even have the word “peace” in their name anymore?) here is an example of just how far these far left wing groups will go. With the advent of the canonization of Gleick by the most rabid alarmists, and the declarations that he was justified because “we are at war with the deniers”, it demonstrates that, if their public image continues to deteriorate in the public eye, this is where the Climatistas are headed!
Mr. Horner ,
I read your book shortly after it was published . While I had been suspicious of the whole global warming thing for years , Red Hot Lies really opened my eyes . I had had no idea what these people were up to and how far they would go . Nor had I had any inkling of how close they were to reaching their goals . In my opinion , you are one of the heros in the the the continuing battle against psuedoscience , misinformation and outright fraud . In addition , your work has led me to investigate a number of topics that I had assumed to be mere paranoid fantasies only to discover that they were indeed true . I thank you sir , not just for your book , but for pointing me to WUWT .
It isn’t really out of character. Their entire cause is based on fraud and manufacturing evidence.
I think you over estimate the public. And you under estimate the stranglehold AGW has on the press.
Gleick is a non story.
Video, apparently a month ago, Peter Gleick.
He talks about pretty much everything we later find in the forged memo.
Give the poor boy some hits.
I saw one ridiculous comparison of Gleik to a “whistleblower”.
Waht arrogant and insulting nonsense.
Whistleblowers are courageous people who expose criminal misdeeds of organisations they usually work for despite personal risk – both physical and economic – to the appropriate authorities in the public interest.
Gleik is a self confessed fraudster theif who deliberately spread misinformation, none of which can pass the “public interest” test to support his biased views on “science” and to belittle his opponents.
I see nothing moral or courageous in this fiasco, and, given that he has been caught, nothing even demonstrating intelligence.
Wish I could spell !
I would think that having someone going through your garbage would be a great opportunity to do legally what Peter Gleick was attempting. With a little imagination you could plant a lot of misinformation and get it published in the Guardian. Perhaps a bunch of email printouts describing our successful hacking into the HadCRUT database to make it appear that there was no statistically significant warming since 1998.
Too bad our side is so ethical.
Mr. Horner- I basically agree with you, but your writing style ties me up in knots. Try diagramming one of your sentences some time.
“the pretense in certain quarters that Gleick was operating somehow in a zone of exclusion for his movement — farcically absurd upon even a moment’s scrutiny of those other quarters…” What are you talking about- the characterization as a “whistleblower”?
Mr Horner; might I suggest a shredder for all unwanted receipts / paperwork? Add to that your dogs ‘leavings’ and the resultant melange should keep the Greenpeace trash sorters entertained piecing things together for weeks.
Mike McMillan says:
February 21, 2012 at 3:53 pm
“With a little imagination you could plant a lot of misinformation and get it published in the Guardian. ”
But they already do misinformation so what would be the difference?
The only application I would see is a pump-and-dump scheme but then, no investor would believe the Grauniad.
If someone were going through my garbage regularly trying to misuse information, I’d quickly find a way to insert tracking devices into folders and pay a PI to follow them with cameras.
There’s nothing quite like sunshine.
Chris….. keep up the heat. This is, indeed, “how they roll”. They aren’t confined by the common understanding of morality, because they are misanthropists. Morality and common social mores is how we function as a society. Given their misanthropy, anything which works towards the common good of humanity must be evil. This includes morality and common social mores.
Rosco says:
February 21, 2012 at 3:51 pm
Google Chrome can do it for you although it can’t protect you from rendering “its” as it’s. or any other homophone error.
https://www.google.com/chrome/index.html
Gleick was a whistle blower? Did he work for Heartland? That is the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard.
“But I soon learned from others that this is standard operating procedure for the global warming industry—and they often do much worse things. They have ruined careers, blacklisted scientists, knowingly spread lies about dissenters, called for the imprisonment of skeptics, and used government pressure to cut off rivals’ funding. One associate has had the lug nuts on his tires secretly loosened when his rejection of climate orthodoxy became public.”
While this is shocking, it doesn’t surprise me given what we know from the climategate e-mails.
We can stop this madness in November…
[snip – wayyy off topic and ugly – no place for that here – Anthony]
We are clearly fighting an uphill battle.
But then, it should not be a battle. Science is not supposed to be a battle. It is supposed to be a dispassionate pursuit of the facts by all those involved.
If I post my address, will Greenpeas come and take out my trash too?
Greenpeace, the only greens that wont leave people in peace.
You do know why most of the people join green shirts? It’s because they want to be like the anti-democratic violent anti-fascist crowd and the ever violent communist jugend patrols but they’re too much of the pansies to assault people who dare to fight back–that’s why they go after poor democratic Japanese fishermen and not Russian s*ck-on-my-torpedo-whalers.
Greenpeace thinks they’re anonymous but they’re not, they’re just standing on the shoulders of the glory of a sunken ship. And for all their green in Greenpeace it’s kind of ironic that it have taken them so long to actually make one of their ships go running “green”, what with Greenpeace Energy and all them other evil “energy” companies who finance them indirectly by persons “unknown”.
If I were to get back at them, for stealing my trash (which is illegal to do from private property in my country), by looking at their digital trash, all legal like, I would consider getting a couple of prepaid 3G capable phones or modems and a couple of proxy services. Then get online onto their forums, all inconspicuous bastardly like. Now to be really included into their community I would think, and to not rouse any suspicion when digging around in sticky digital trash, that to behave like a semi-moderate version of themselves would probably work quite well. And they, apparently, think the legality of online anonymity in EU is bad. :p