The Huffington Post published a story today regarding Exxon’s quarter-page advertorial in Thursday’s New York Times. It seems that Exxon can’t quite get a grip on the fact that since they launched a perpetual propaganda campaign for over 10 years to deceive the public about global warming, the public is mad as hell.  But now it appears that Exxon is taking the same deceptive and manipulative track as the tobacco conglomerates took in its deliberate moves to keep damaging evidence of tobacco use from the public.  What Exxon is saying now is that its position on global warming has been “misunderstood”.  Can you believe that?

How would anyone buy their new “improved” image, especially after Exxon’s slick public relations propaganda drive to discredit valid scientific evidence — and, their Competitive Enterprise Institute’s scientists-for-hire push back to the science community?  Exxon spent at least $19 million dollars since the Kyoto Protocol in 1997, to finance an elaborate network including over 75 industry front groups who were mobilized to mislead and cloud the issue of global warming calling it a hoax or sketchy theory.  And in 2005, it paid over $3.5 million to 49 different front groups to perpetuate pseudo scientific denials to derail reforms.

Exxon also gave massive political contributions to steer Bush and his administration in a direction that supported Exxon’s position.  Exxon went so far as to oust the world’s top climate scientist Robert Watson as chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).  Reported in a press release from the Natural Resources Defense Council,

“The memorandum, obtained by NRDC from the White House Council on Environmental Quality under the Freedom of Information Act, shows that ExxonMobil began a secret campaign for Dr. Watson’s removal in the first weeks of the Bush administration, and reveals ExxonMobil’s intention to replace Watson and other key scientists with contrarians known for disagreeing with the prevailing consensus that man-made pollution is causing global warming.” 

I find this so objectionable and offensive that again another huge oil conglomerate was not only trying to control the administration’s energy and climate policies, but also the science itself.   The memo asked, “Can Watson be replaced now at the request of the U.S.?”  And guess what, Bush obliged arranging for Watson’s dismissal.  Also, another damaging Exxon memo surfaced in which the company counseled Phillip Cooney, chief of staff at the White House Council on Environmental Quality, on how he could “improve” administration research on climate change by emphasizing “significant uncertainties” in the science.  Taking Exxon’s lead, Cooney, a non scientist, suppressed and altered several major taxpayer funded scientific studies on global warming.  So, after this was revealed in a Times article, guess what happened two days later?  Well, Cooney resigned only to be hired by Exxon in less than a week. 




So, now that Bush has “seen the light” about global warming and is finally attempting to discuss alternative energy, Exxon is beating a path to win back its image through paid propaganda that attempts to persuade the public that they didn’t deceive us deliberately.  Yeah, it was just an accident I suppose.  And the $37 Billion dollar profit they made last year didn’t have anything to do with it either.  Give me a break!

What makes their claim of innocence even more hollow is that at the World Economic Conference in Davos, Switzerland, Exxon’s chief executive and CEO Rex Tillerson, said that the blame for global warming rests with the consumers and government officials (yeah, the same ones for which his company has spent millions of dollars manipulating and defrauding).    Oh, yeah, that’s right, we’re the ones addicted to oil.  I forgot, Bush told us that last year. 

What Exxon has done is largely declare war on the environment.  With their decade long assault on valid scientific evidence, it has delayed our addressing this very serious threat.  It is sad to think how different things could have been if only Exxon hadn’t pursued their dangerous path of deception.  One thing for sure is, we would have a ten year start on this most serious threat to human life.  And the other thing, just think what $37 Billion dollars could have bought in the form of alternative energy research and development.  If only these “oil” companies would think and act more like “energy” companies instead. I just keep thinking what $37 Billion dollars could have bought.  And, that’s just one year’s profit.  What a waste and what a shame.