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American Tradition Institute's fight against 'environmental junk science'
American Tradition Institute's fight against 'environmental junk science'
ATI is one of several groups ramping up an offensive to turn the American public against President Obama's energy policy
Suzanne Goldenberg, US environment correspondent
guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 9 May 2012 17.49 BST
American Tradition Institute is a relative newcomer to the network of ultra-conservative thinktank and activist groups with a core mission of discrediting climate science and dismantling environmental regulations – including those intended to avoid catastrophic climate change.
But it has grabbed headlines over the last two years by filing law suits demanding access to the entire document and email record of prominent climate scientists, including Michael Mann, James Hansen, and Katharine Hayhoe.
The thinktank claims it is looking for evidence of fraud. But the rash of law suits have been condemned by the main academic teaching body and scientific organisations as an assault on academic freedom. They also accuse ATI of deliberating filing nuisance suits to disrupt important academic research.
Until now, its campaign against wind power has been relegated to the sidelines. But that has been a core mission. ...
It claimed a mission of fighting "radical environmental junk science". But it has been preoccupied with fighting economic measures. It filed a law suit in Colorado last year to overturn a law requiring state power companies to get 30% of the electricity from renewables by 2020. It is also involved in campaigns against renewable standards in Delaware, Minnesota, Montana, New Mexico, and Ohio....
ATI is one of several groups ramping up an offensive to turn the American public against President Obama's energy policy
Suzanne Goldenberg, US environment correspondent
guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 9 May 2012 17.49 BST
American Tradition Institute is a relative newcomer to the network of ultra-conservative thinktank and activist groups with a core mission of discrediting climate science and dismantling environmental regulations – including those intended to avoid catastrophic climate change.
But it has grabbed headlines over the last two years by filing law suits demanding access to the entire document and email record of prominent climate scientists, including Michael Mann, James Hansen, and Katharine Hayhoe.
The thinktank claims it is looking for evidence of fraud. But the rash of law suits have been condemned by the main academic teaching body and scientific organisations as an assault on academic freedom. They also accuse ATI of deliberating filing nuisance suits to disrupt important academic research.
Until now, its campaign against wind power has been relegated to the sidelines. But that has been a core mission. ...
It claimed a mission of fighting "radical environmental junk science". But it has been preoccupied with fighting economic measures. It filed a law suit in Colorado last year to overturn a law requiring state power companies to get 30% of the electricity from renewables by 2020. It is also involved in campaigns against renewable standards in Delaware, Minnesota, Montana, New Mexico, and Ohio....
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2012/may/09/climate-change-american-tradition-insitute?intcmp=239
From the leaked memo that describes ATI's mission in the larger context of the campaign against renewable energy:
Meme (self-replicating messages)
Response Coordinator
(This will help slow the meme effect of the industry, for instance when a company places a seal showing wind power was used to produce the product, we automatically assign a tax wasting symbol to the product and recommend a boycott on the website. When a company uses wind power as marketing tool, or illustration such as a toy manufacturer showing turbines on the box, we automatically contact them to tell them we will list them on the web as actively participating in disinformation by favorably showing wind turbines)
Legal Department for contract review and guidance on communication efforts, and also taking developers (etc.) to court on various issues to cause media exposure.
Maintain a comprehensive collection of court cases on this subject.
Also to provide legal voice for those who have none in this issue.
Develop legal strategies that can be copied in other areas.
Take zoning boards to court to rezone as industrial land to create chilling effect on signing contracts.
Also sue for property value loss to small land holders, and use all legal cases to create media poster child effect.
Sue states regarding RPS.
Sue state utility commission who don't do their job. Etc.
National Organization: Details and Narrative
The minimum national PR campaign goal is to constructively influence national and state wind energy policies. A broader possible goal is to constructively influence national and state energy and environmental policies. The goal will be realized by coordination of a focused message along many channels and with multiple voices. The intent is to target three audiences with consistent messaging to create the change. Public opinion must begin to change in what should appear as a "groundswell" among grass roots.
Response Coordinator
(This will help slow the meme effect of the industry, for instance when a company places a seal showing wind power was used to produce the product, we automatically assign a tax wasting symbol to the product and recommend a boycott on the website. When a company uses wind power as marketing tool, or illustration such as a toy manufacturer showing turbines on the box, we automatically contact them to tell them we will list them on the web as actively participating in disinformation by favorably showing wind turbines)
Legal Department for contract review and guidance on communication efforts, and also taking developers (etc.) to court on various issues to cause media exposure.
Maintain a comprehensive collection of court cases on this subject.
Also to provide legal voice for those who have none in this issue.
Develop legal strategies that can be copied in other areas.
Take zoning boards to court to rezone as industrial land to create chilling effect on signing contracts.
Also sue for property value loss to small land holders, and use all legal cases to create media poster child effect.
Sue states regarding RPS.
Sue state utility commission who don't do their job. Etc.
National Organization: Details and Narrative
The minimum national PR campaign goal is to constructively influence national and state wind energy policies. A broader possible goal is to constructively influence national and state energy and environmental policies. The goal will be realized by coordination of a focused message along many channels and with multiple voices. The intent is to target three audiences with consistent messaging to create the change. Public opinion must begin to change in what should appear as a "groundswell" among grass roots.
Read more at: http://www.democraticunderground.com/112714465 post 12