Saturday, February 22, 2014

Can You Help The Climate Science Defense Fund ?



This latest round in the Dr. Mann case vs. CEI, Steyn, etc. reveals that the opposition to a rational review of the scientific evidence for manmade global warming remains as ruthless and disconnected from Earth's realities as ever.  Instead of learning they want to stifle and silence.  

Considering 
the war chest that these corporate interests have amassed to further their campaign of dirty tricks and that awful repetition of slander and out'n out lies they depend on - scientists need lawyers on their side.  


Unfortunately, lawyers don't come cheap.   

Fortunately an organization has been formed to help defend scientists against malicious attacks, such as those by Steyn and CEI.  I have copied some information off their website to share with interested readers.


Can you help?



The Climate Science Legal Defense Fund was established with one goal: to protect the scientific endeavor. Scientific research has brought us amazing advancements in technology, medicine, and in our basic understanding of the planet. Over the last twenty years, a small handful of politically-motivated think tanks and legal foundations, because they disliked certain scientific findings, have taken legal action against scientific institutions and individual scientists. In recent years, the legal attacks have intensified, especially against climate scientists.

The scientific method is designed around the belief that skepticism is good. Results should be subjected to the utmost scrutiny through the peer review process, followed by close examination and replication by others in the scientific community. Those whose ideas do not live up to the standards of rigorous science have instead chosen to litigate.

For the individual scientist these legal actions are a painful burden. Academic salaries were not designed to support ongoing legal expenses. Legal actions also have taken many of our brightest scientific minds away from their research to focus on frivolous lawsuits. This state of affairs is unacceptable. The United States of America should be the leader in science and technology, and it cannot do so if unscrupulous people subject our scientists to these actions.

The Climate Science Legal Defense Fund was established to make sure that these legal claims are not viewed as an action against one scientist or institution, but that they are seen as actions against the scientific endeavor as a whole. As such the Fund will defend climate scientists who are dragged into litigation and act aggressively to protect the interests of the scientific endeavor.
In addition, the Climate Science Defense Fund will create platforms and opportunities for members of the scientific community to gain a better understanding of the legal issues surrounding their work.

Protecting the Scientific Endeavor
The Climate Science Legal Defense Fund was established to make sure that legal actions are not viewed as an attack against one scientist or institution but as attacks against the scientific endeavor as a whole. Our goal is simple: let scientists conduct research without the threat of politically motivated attacks.

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Purchase your very own Climate Science Legal Defense Fund T-Shirt and support the cause.
Donate
Your donations help us further our mission of protecting scientists.
Join the Mailing List
Find out about the latest Climate Science Legal Defense Fund News.
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To get an idea of the forces that are dedicated to misrepresenting the science of global warming, check out this report by Robert J. Brulle PhD.

NOT JUST THE KOCH BROTHERS: NEW DREXEL STUDY REVEALS FUNDERS BEHIND THE CLIMATE CHANGE DENIAL EFFORT
PHILADELPHIA, DECEMBER 20, 2013


A NEW STUDY CONDUCTED BY DREXEL UNIVERSITY ENVIRONMENTAL SOCIOLOGIST ROBERT J. BRULLE, PHD, EXPOSES THE ORGANIZATIONAL UNDERPINNINGS AND FUNDING BEHIND THE POWERFUL CLIMATE CHANGE COUNTERMOVEMENT. THIS STUDY MARKS THE FIRST PEER-REVIEWED, COMPREHENSIVE ANALYSIS EVER CONDUCTED OF THE SOURCES OF FUNDING THAT MAINTAIN THE DENIAL EFFORT.
{…}

BRULLE, A PROFESSOR OF SOCIOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE IN DREXEL’S COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES, CONDUCTED THE STUDY DURING A YEAR-LONG FELLOWSHIP AT STANFORD UNIVERSITY’S CENTER FOR ADVANCED STUDY IN THE BEHAVIORAL SCIENCESTHE STUDY WAS PUBLISHED TODAY IN CLIMATIC CHANGE, ONE OF THE TOP 10 CLIMATE SCIENCE JOURNALS IN THE WORLD.

THE CLIMATE CHANGE COUNTERMOVEMENT IS A WELL-FUNDED AND ORGANIZED EFFORT TO UNDERMINE PUBLIC FAITH IN CLIMATE SCIENCE AND BLOCK ACTION BY THE U.S. GOVERNMENT TO REGULATE EMISSIONS. THIS COUNTERMOVEMENT INVOLVES A LARGE NUMBER OF ORGANIZATIONS, INCLUDING CONSERVATIVE THINK TANKS, ADVOCACY GROUPS, TRADE ASSOCIATIONS AND CONSERVATIVE FOUNDATIONS, WITH STRONG LINKS TO SYMPATHETIC MEDIA OUTLETS AND CONSERVATIVE POLITICIANS.
{…}
THE FINAL SAMPLE FOR ANALYSIS CONSISTED OF 140 FOUNDATIONS MAKING 5,299 GRANTS TOTALING $558 MILLION TO 91 ORGANIZATIONS FROM 2003 TO 2010. THE DATA SHOWS THAT THESE 91 ORGANIZATIONS HAVE AN ANNUAL INCOME OF JUST OVER $900 MILLION, WITH AN ANNUAL AVERAGE OF $64 MILLION IN IDENTIFIABLE FOUNDATION SUPPORT. SINCE THE MAJORITY OF THE ORGANIZATIONS ARE MULTIPLE FOCUS ORGANIZATIONS, NOT ALL OF THIS INCOME WAS DEVOTED TO CLIMATE CHANGE ACTIVITIES, BRULLE NOTES.
KEY FINDINGS INCLUDE:
  • CONSERVATIVE FOUNDATIONS HAVE BANK-ROLLED DENIAL. THE LARGEST AND MOST CONSISTENT FUNDERS OF ORGANIZATIONS ORCHESTRATING CLIMATE CHANGE DENIAL ARE A NUMBER OF WELL-KNOWN CONSERVATIVE FOUNDATIONS, SUCH AS THE SEARLE FREEDOM TRUST, THE JOHN WILLIAM POPE FOUNDATION, THE HOWARD CHARITABLE FOUNDATION AND THE SARAH SCAIFE FOUNDATION. THESE FOUNDATIONS PROMOTE ULTRA-FREE-MARKET IDEAS IN MANY REALMS.
  • KOCH AND EXXONMOBIL HAVE RECENTLY PULLED BACK FROM PUBLICLY VISIBLE FUNDING. FROM 2003 TO 2007, THE KOCH AFFILIATED FOUNDATIONS AND THE EXXONMOBIL FOUNDATION WERE HEAVILY INVOLVED IN FUNDING CLIMATE-CHANGE DENIAL ORGANIZATIONS. BUT SINCE 2008, THEY ARE NO LONGER MAKING PUBLICLY TRACEABLE CONTRIBUTIONS.
  • FUNDING HAS SHIFTED TO PASS THROUGH UNTRACEABLE SOURCES. COINCIDING WITH THE DECLINE IN TRACEABLE FUNDING, THE AMOUNT OF FUNDING GIVEN TO DENIAL ORGANIZATIONS BY THE DONORS TRUST HAS RISEN DRAMATICALLY. DONORS TRUST IS A DONOR-DIRECTED FOUNDATION WHOSE FUNDERS CANNOT BE TRACED. THIS ONE FOUNDATION NOW PROVIDES ABOUT 25% OF ALL TRACEABLE FOUNDATION FUNDING USED BY ORGANIZATIONS ENGAGED IN PROMOTING SYSTEMATIC DENIAL OF CLIMATE CHANGE.
  • MOST FUNDING FOR DENIAL EFFORTS IS UNTRACEABLE. DESPITE EXTENSIVE DATA COMPILATION AND ANALYSES, ONLY A FRACTION OF THE HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS IN CONTRIBUTIONS TO CLIMATE CHANGE DENYING ORGANIZATIONS CAN BE SPECIFICALLY ACCOUNTED FOR FROM PUBLIC RECORDS. APPROXIMATELY 75% OF THE INCOME OF THESE ORGANIZATIONS COMES FROM UNIDENTIFIABLE SOURCES.

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