Climate scientists to fight climate zombies

by DWG

Climate scientists have recently made some eye-opening discoveries. Here are a few of those discoveries. The richest multinational corporations in the world stand to lose trillions in future profits if the United States rapidly shifts away from carbon-intensive energy sources like oil, coal, and gas. Those companies will gladly spend hundreds of millions of dollars every year to fund a media campaign to attack climate science and scientists. This campaign is primarily aimed at conservatives, a fertile ground filled with vested business interests and religious fundamentalism. Conservative politicians have been transformed into climate zombies, claiming that climate science is a hoax while taking millions in campaign contributions from carbon energy companies.

Climate scientists have decided to take the fight to climate zombies.

Faced with rising political attacks, hundreds of climate scientists are joining a broad campaign to push back against congressional conservatives who have threatened prominent researchers with investigations and vowed to kill regulations to rein in man-made greenhouse gas emissions.

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Karl Rove tells the truth: "Climate is gone"

by DWG

In a rare instance of honesty for one of the reprehensible political operatives in our nation's history, Karl Rove told a shale gas drilling association that "climate is gone."

"Climate is gone," said Rove, the keynote speaker on the opening day of a two-day shale-gas conference sponsored by Hart Energy Publishing L.L.P. And Rove told the trade show, "I don't think you need to worry" the new Congress will consider proposed legislation to put the controversial practice of hydraulic fracturing under federal rather than state regulation. The procedure, known as "fracking," is responsible for the dramatic growth of shale-gas drilling in formations such as Pennsylvania's vast Marcellus Shale.

He meant that the climate bill is dead, but the unfortunate reality is that livable climate for future generations is likely to be equally dead thanks to climate zombies elected in 2010.

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Indiana, hotbed of climate zombies

by DWG

Last night, I had the privilege of seeing John Mellencamp perform in his hometown of Bloomington, Indiana. For those unfamiliar with Mellencamp, many of his songs focus on rural and urban decay and the people left in the wake. In the introduction to "Longest Days," he told the story of a friend that died last year because the health insurance company decided his condition was not severe enough to warrant the treatment recommended by his doctors. His story was interrupted several time by shouts from the Tea Party Klan about "Obamacare." Since Mellencamp's message was social ("we have to look out for each other") rather than political, it was a stark reminder of the callousness and belligerence of Tea Party Republicanism.

The Republican Tea in Indiana is heavily infused with religious fundamentalism. That mixture was recently profiled in the New York Times in a story about climate zombies.

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Slay some Vampires for Halloween ... and help defeat the Climate Zombie Invasion

by A Siegel

Vampires are among us. When you aren't looking (or, when you are looking but not seeing), when you are sleeping, when you aren't paying attention, Vampires are sucking up vital juices, threatening our very existence.  

For Halloween, kill some Vampires and contribute to defeating the invasion of Climate Zombies!

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Stupid Goes Viral: The Last Stand of the Climate Zombies

by RLMiller

They roam the sands of the Golden State's shoreline, moaning for caaasshh.

Their stupid has gone viral.

And if they win, humanity loses.

I'm tracking Climate Zombies: every Republican candidate for House, Senate, and Governor who doubts, denies, or derides the science of climate change. Today, I finish the series in California.  Although California is just as badly infected with Teh Stoopid as every other state, it's also the birthplace of the resistance: Climate Hawks who confront the crisis head on.

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Stupid Goes Viral: Toomey's Not A Witch, Either

by RLMiller

They roam the once-pristine shores of Chesapeake Bay, moaning for caaasshh.

Their stupid has gone viral.

And if they win, humanity loses.

I'm tracking Climate Zombies: every Republican candidate for House, Senate, and Governor who doubts, denies, or derides the science of climate change. Today, I visit Maryland, Virginia, Kentucky, and Pennsylvania, where I also stumble upon a ResistNet member running for Congress: Rick Hellberg in PA-02.

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Stupid Goes Viral: "To stop climate change, vote GOP."

by RLMiller

They pay lip service to the Statue of Liberty, moaning for caaasshh.

Their stupid has gone viral.

And if they win, humanity loses.

I'm tracking Climate Zombies: every Republican candidate for House, Senate, and Governor who doubts, denies, or derides the science of climate change. Today, I look at deep blue states of the Northeast, only to find that their red candidates and incumbents are infected with Teh Stoopid.

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Big European polluters funding Tea Party climate zombies

by DWG

The Tea Party Republicans like to pretend to be patriots while they take large sums of cash from European companies. A new report released by the Climate Action Network Europe (CANE) indicates that Republican climate zombies received even more money from European polluters than from the Koch brothers.

Big European emitters Lafarge, GDF-SUEZ, EON, BP, BASF, BAYER, Solvay and Arcelor-Mittal supported climate change deniers in the US senate in 2010 for $107,200. Their total support for senators blocking climate change legislation in the US amounts to $240,200, which is almost 80% of their total spendings in 2010 senate race. This is why those funds are seen as systemic. This amount is higher than the same type of spending of the most notorious US climate denier and Tea Party funder: Koch Industries ($217,000).

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Stupid Goes Viral: "the John Birch Society was extreme, too."

by RLMiller

They prowl the tea party rallies of America's heartland, moaning for caaasshh.

Their stupid has gone viral.

Their supporters: "Some people say I’m extreme, but they said the John Birch Society was extreme, too."

And if they win, humanity loses.

I'm tracking Climate Zombies: every Republican candidate for House, Senate, and Governor who doubts, denies, or derides the science of climate change. Today, Georgia, Indiana, Ohio, South Carolina, and West Virginia, with a highlight from Indiana's Ninth District.

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Stupid Goes Viral: Climate Zombies of the Gulf Coast

by RLMiller

They prowl the oily shores of the Gulf of Mexico, moaning for caaasshh.

Their stupid has gone viral.

And if they win, humanity loses.

I'm tracking Climate Zombies: every Republican candidate for House, Senate, and Governor who doubts, denies, or derides the science of climate change. Today, I visit the Gulf of Mexico states -- Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida -- with a hypothesis to be tested against a small coastal state.

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Stupid Goes Viral: Climate Zombies of AR, IL, MI, NE, ND

by RLMiller

They prowl the halls of Congress, moaning for caaasshh.

Their stupid has gone viral.

And if they win, humanity loses.

I'm tracking Climate Zombies: every Republican candidate for House, Senate, and Governor who doubts, denies, or derides the science of climate change. Today, I finish all states (except California, which I'm saving for last) wholly west of the Mississippi River by visiting Arkansas, Illinois, Michigan, Nebraska, and North Dakota.

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More strange tales from the Republican war on science

by DWG

Climate science is a major front in the Republican war on science. In fact, rejection of climate science is a policy requirement to be a Republican running for elected office. Ronald Brownstein nicely summarizes the zealotry of Republicans in climate change denial in the National Journal.

Indeed, it is difficult to identify another major political party in any democracy as thoroughly dismissive of climate science as is the GOP here.

Virginia provides a perfect example for how extreme Republicans have become in their war on climate science. Last Monday, Virginia Attorney General Cuccinelli announced that he was continuing his witch hunt against climate scientist Michael Mann. A funny thing happened a few days later. George Mason University finally admitted publicly that a misconduct investigation was underway on Edward Wegman whose 2006 report to Congress is the basis for Cuccinelli's harassment of Michael Mann.

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OR-1: Act Blue for Climate Heroes fighting Climate Zombies

by A Siegel

One of the most striking -- and most unreported -- elements in the 2010 elections is the fundamental difference between the two parties candidates when it comes to science.

Quite simply, when it comes to the questions related to climate science, the vast majority of the Democratic Party candidates would rate a categorization of reasonable to extremely good (climate heroes).  While, on the other side, the Republican Party has seen its candidates and Party's message move from Climate Peacocks (acknowledging human impacts on climate change while inhibiting action) to Climate Zombies (rejecting and undermining science, ready to see massive damage to American wealth and security in the name of protecting their fossil-foolish donors).

Today, we have the good news that a Democratic candidate has chosen to highlight the difference -- accurately calling out his opponent as a Climate Zombie.

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Stupid Goes Viral: Climate Zombies of HI, ID, MN, MT, OR, WY

by RLMiller

They prowl the halls of Congress, moaning for caaasshh.

Their stupid has gone viral.

And if they win, humanity loses.

I'm tracking Climate Zombies: every Republican candidate for House, Senate, and Governor who doubts, denies, or derides the science of climate change. Today, I finish up all states west of the Rocky Mountains, plus throw in Minnesota as a bonus, and find not one, but two  Republican incumbents who admit the reality of climate change.  

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Finally, military intelligence that is not an oxymoron

by DWG

The military has begun to deploy clean energy technology into combat zones. The reasons for the military's interest in clean energy are important because they undercut the disinformation campaign by the fossil fuels industry. For the military, clean renewable forms of energy are reliable, cheaper, and produce less supply chain vulnerability.

With insurgents increasingly attacking the American fuel supply convoys that lumber across the Khyber Pass into Afghanistan, the military is pushing aggressively to develop, test and deploy renewable energy to decrease its need to transport fossil fuels.

New York Times, Oct 5, article by Elisabeth Rosenthal

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The Last Frontier's Struggle For Our Future: Climate Hero vs Climate Peacock and Climate Zombie

by A Siegel

"Alaska: The Last Frontier" is so eerily echoing of The Final Frontier.  And, as with ever so many episodes of Star Trek: The Final Frontier, The Last Frontier is seeing a struggle that could have life-or-death implications for a planet.

Alaska's election could, plausibly, be a determining factor on the nation's (and the globe's) path forward toward (or away from) a clean-energy future.

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Climate Zombie Psychosis ...

by worldforallpeopleorg

For five hundred years, much of the world viciously opposed the claim that the Earth orbited the sun. For 500 years -  even though it was allegedly proven by science. And now, that same pathetic and willful ignorance has risen from the dead.

A recent paper in the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society titled "The Psychology of Global Warming" delved into why so many people cling to denialism in locked opposition to evidence and facts.

Why is interesting. But in this instance we do not have 500 years to let reality sink in for those people as they stagger about - grasping not for "brains" like fictional zombies, but for excuses to cling to false beliefs.

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Republicans promise inquisition of climate scientists

by DWG

Here ye! Here ye! Bring your torches and stacks of wood. The practitioners of the dark arts of science will be harassed by an angry mob, defamed, and driven to their knees to confess their lack of respect for our beloved corporate overlords.

In June, Darrell Issa announced that he planned to hire dozens of subpoena-wielding investigators to target the Obama administration if the Republicans regain control of the House. Yesterday, he announced that he also planned to apply the proverbial thumbscrews, strappado, and iron maiden to climate scientists.

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Will Whitman Join Cal's Climate Zombie Prop 23 Supporters?

by RLMiller

Call me shocked, just shocked to find that there's gambling with California's future in this election.  

The state legislator responsible for placing Proposition 23, the anti-climate measure, on the ballot is...a climate zombie.  And one of Proposition 23's out of state dirty energy supporters, Koch Industries, Patient Zero of the climate zombie infection is holding a fundraiser tomorrow night for climate zombie Senate wannabe Carly Fiorina.

WWMWD?  Will Meg Whitman endorse Proposition 23 and its oil-soaked supporters, or will she join the forward-thinking California businesses who urge a no vote?  

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Chicken Little Updated for the Age of Peak Oil and Climate Change

by DWG

The Chicken Little fable* was created as a cautionary tale against panic and mass hysteria in uncertain times. But there are times when the sky is failing and Chicken Little needs to be careful of taking advice from smooth talking strangers wearing Wall Street tweed. On to our story.

Once upon a time, there was a Fox named Loxy, a shrewd little fellow with a big appetite. One fine summer's day, Foxy Loxy was on the prowl for unlocked henhouses when he overheard Farmer Brown proclaim to her husband that their well was running dry. Without water for the corn, feeding the hens was going to be a big problem.

Foxy Loxy had a plan. Pass the bad news to the hens and con them to take a little journey to his den.

Before we return to our story, note that Foxy Loxy in this enactment will be played by Charles Maxwell, senior energy analyst at Weeden & Co.

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