Corporations Fight to Stall Climate Talks

In a recently released investigative report, the US based "Center for Public Integrity", detailed the intense corporate pressure that is being applied to block an effective global treaty at the December, United Nations climate summit in Copenhagen.

The report reveals that vast sums of money and much effort have been poured into a campaign to stall  effective climate change legislation. "There are now about 2,810 climate lobbyists for every member of Congress -- a 400 jump from six years earlier ", says the report.

Exxon Mobil, Peabody Coal, along with other energy and agricultural groups are  fiercely lobbying behind closed doors -- spreading misinformation about the impact of meaningful emission regulation.The tactics are changing over time. Previously, the lobbyists fervently denied that global warming was actually happening. A few scientist who publicly supported this view were found to be receiving grants from  the corporations.

But now, the lobbyists mostly acknowledge that climate change is real but still persist in their attempts to water down and stall progress on emission reduction

Coal magnate Don Blankenship, hosted a country music rally in the Appalachia region of the eastern United States for "Friends of America" and to inform the locals "how environmental extremists and Corporates are both trying to destroy your jobs."

I recall from many years ago a mining boss told me -- "If God didn't want us to burn coal he wouldn't have put it in the ground". It seems that not much has changed!