In case you missed his 60 Minutes interview Sunday night, Al Gore had some less-than-flattering words about critics of his quest to raise awareness about the perils of global warming:
“I think that those people are in such a tiny, tiny minority now with their point of view. They’re almost like the ones who still believe that the moon landing was staged in a movie lot in Arizona and those who believe the earth is flat. That demeans them a little bit, but it’s not that far off.”
Now, if global warming skeptics are “in such a tiny, tiny minority,” why does Gore need to spend $300 million in advertising to promote his crusade? Could his motives be less-than-noble?A 2007 report by the Capital Research Center claims that Gore’s recent motivations are economic, not environmental:
Al Gore, the former U.S. vice president brings emotional fervor to his carbon crusade. He travels the country displaying charts and graphs, quoting scientific experts, and appealing to philosophers and religious leaders to save the planet from global warming. But he says nothing about his business partners who yearn to trade on the emerging carbon market. We know little about his former political associates who now staff the ‘climate crisis’ advocacy groups. And the media pays no attention to the companies offering ‘carbon advisory services’ that will profit from federal carbon emission controls.
Perhaps it’s about time they did.
For example:
When a nonprofit group takes money from oil companies and advocates drilling for oil as a solution to energy shortages, it is certain to be attacked as a tool of Big Oil. So far the groups linked to Gore have avoided similar scrutiny.
The $300 million (!!!) in advertising could go along way to reinforce global panic, greasing the skids for Gore and his partners to earn back millions — if not billions — from the carbon trade. Think of it as a small investment towards becoming, perhaps, the richest man on the planet.
Futhermore…
Al Gore is chairman and founder of a private equity firm called Generation Investment Management (GIM). According to Gore, the London-based firm invests money from institutions and wealthy investors in companies that are going green. ‘Generation Investment Management (GIM), purchases—but isn’t a provider of—carbon dioxide offsets,’ notes spokesman Richard Campbell. (CNSNews.com, March 7, 2007)
GIM appears to have considerable influence over the major carbon credit trading firms that currently exist: the Chicago Climate Exchange (CCX) in the U.S. and the Carbon Neutral Company (CNC) in Great Britain. CCX is the only firm in the U.S. that claims to trade carbon credits.
Al Gore’s co-founder in GIM? Former Goldman Sachs CEO Hank Paulson, who is currently the Secretary of the U.S. Treasury.
On Monday, Paulson “unveiled the most sweeping proposal to revamp the nation’s financial regulatory system since the Great Depression.“
My head hurts.
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