Bob Lutz, senior General Motors executive, thinks global warming "has nothing to do with CO2" and "everything to do with solar activity", the January 21 Sydney Morning Herald said.
Lutz, who in 2008 described global warming as "a crock of shit", would no doubt feel right at home with the satirical group Billionaires for Coal. That is, if they weren't taking the piss.
On January 3, the Billionaires crashed the launch of the 2010 Green Left Weekly fighting fund. After attempting to convince the crowd of slogans such as "the future can wait" and "let's just buy another planet", they urged people to boycott "Green Spew Weekly" and invest instead in their campaign to privatise the atmosphere.
The campaign was "win-win" they argued, because the Billionaires would make billions of dollars while the people would get to breathe — those who could afford it, anyway!
Reportedly, the Billionaires have sent a membership form to Lutz, hoping he will head up their public relations department this year.
A newspaper like GLW will never be able to compete financially with the big corporations and the "greenhouse mafia". But we can satirise their ridiculous comments, and we can certainly wage a struggle to combat their political influence.
To do that we can't rely on funding from their billionaire mates, we can only rely on the generous support from people like you: people in communities struggling every day not only to survive, but to change the system that puts the privileges of big corporations ahead of people's needs; people who keep GLW coming out each week.
This year, we're aiming to raise an ambitious $300,000 for our fighting fund. We won't be holding our breaths for Lutz to donate, but can you help us?
Please donate online today to our fighting fund at www.greenleft.org.au/donate.php. Direct deposits can be made to Greenleft, Commonwealth Bank, BSB 062-006, Account No. 00901992.
Otherwise, you can send a cheque or money order to PO Box 515, Broadway NSW 2007 or phone a donation through on the toll-free line at 1800 634 206 (within Australia).
Readers in Australia can also support GLW by taking out a Solidarity Subscription. This costs $240 for a one-year (44-issue) subscription. By becoming a Solidarity Subscriber you not only get the paper sent to you each issue, but also the satisfaction of making an important financial contribution to the GLW project.