Key words :
climate change,
propaganda
,deniers
,climate change
,global warming
,united states
,emails
,university of east anglia
,hâte
"Go gargle razor blades"
7 Jul, 2010 07:27 am
Climate scientists under attack from alleged US rightwing elements following the infamous University of East Anglia emails leak.
The scientists say the threats have increased since the furore over leaked emails from the University of East Anglia began last November, and a sample of the hate mail sent in recent months and seen by the Guardian reveals the scale and vitriolic tone of the abuse.
The scientists revealed they have been told to 'go gargle razor blades' and have been described as 'Nazi climate murderers'. Some emails have been sent to them without any attempt by the sender to disguise their identity. Even though the scientists have received advice from the FBI, the local police say they are not able to act due to the near-total tolerance of 'freedom of speech' in the US.
Professor Stephen Schneider, a climatologist based at Stanford University in California, whose name features in the UEA emails, says he has received 'hundreds' of violently abusive emails since last November. The peak came in December during the Copenhagen climate change summit, he said, but the number has picked up again in recent days since he co-authored a scientific paper last month which showed that 97%-98% of climate scientists agree that mankind's carbon emissions are causing global temperatures to increase.
Schneider described his attackers as 'cowards' and said he had observed an 'immediate, noticeable rise' in emails whenever climate scientists were attacked by prominent right-wing US commentators, such as Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh.
Professor Michael Mann, director of the Earth System Science Center at Pennsylvania State University and leading proponent of the 'Hockey Stick graph', said his experiences of hate mail were 'eerily similar' to those described by Schneider.
'I'm not comfortable talking about the details, especially as some of these matters remain under police investigation,' he said. 'What I can say is that the emails come in bursts, and do seem to be timed with high-profile attack pieces on talk radio and other fringe media outlets.'
Last month, Mann told ABC News in the US that the following message was typical of the emails he has been receiving: 'Six feet under with the roots is where you should be. I was hoping I would see the news that you'd committed suicide. Do it, freak.' Another climate scientist, who wished to remain anonymous, said he had had a dead animal dumped on his doorstep and now travels with bodyguards.
There it is, the denier pecking order in action: The talk shows and other wackaloons at the top of the food chain speak, and their sycophants send death threats and all manner of disgusting e-mail to scientists.
This is nothing more or less than brute force thuggery. It's disgusting and it should be condemned for what it is by everyone on all sides of this non-debate.
Originally posted on www.grinzo.com/energy
Key words :
climate change,
propaganda
,deniers
,climate change
,global warming
,united states
,emails
,university of east anglia
,hâte
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