Climate Prank: Chamber Responds to Climate Change Press Hoax (updated)

by Brad Peck

Update, 3:15pm: U.S. Chamber of Commerce Senior Vice President for Communications and Strategy Thomas J. Collamore issued the following statement on the fake press activities today which muddled the Chamber's position on climate change:

"Public relations hoaxes undermine the genuine effort to find solutions on the challenge of climate change.

"These irresponsible tactics are a foolish distraction from the serious effort by our nation to reduce greenhouse gases. The U.S. Chamber believes that strong climate legislation is compatible with the goals of improving our economy and creating jobs. We continuously seek opportunities to engage in a constructive dialogue to achieve these goals.

"We will be asking law enforcement authorities to investigate this event. Beyond that, the Chamber will simply continue to focus on a positive vision for getting people back to work and growing our economy."

Comments

[NFL Jerseys]

The Chamber should find out who sent these imposters and they should be prosecuted for fraud. I am so afraid the Gov't itself is involved in this, and that senerio is not good for this country.

[cabinet pulls]

Is that how you describe green washing? ""These pointless policies and plans are a waste of effort by our nation to reduce greenhouse gases""

[poker en ligne]

Now is your chance to change that. Don't be duped by the misinformation of this site. It cites nothing specific about the bill. I read it and I love it. I encourage you to read more about the bill and its intent as I have. And for you old farts that rely on open discrimination and bias instead of fact, close your mouth and stop farting, your emissions are much worse than carbon.

[buy viagra]

To all the nutjob posters here. Your position on climate change and the steps needed to be taken are irrelevant to this story! The fact is that these idiots misrepresented themselves. They deserve nothing. If they are lucky, they won't go to jail or be sued. They have plenty of rights to hold a press conference by legitimately representing themselves, however, once they fraudulently claimed to be member of the USCoC, they lose any credibility.

[Buy Valium]

Mmm. Good comments here

[generic viagra]

I can't believe in climate change after all.

[Amina]

Dear Sir,

I wanted to share with you some facts from science museum about climate change and Africa. If you love safaris,the rain forests,viewing gorrillas in rwanda please read this, because if you come to africa in 2050, there will be nothing to see, no people,no livestock,no forest. just plain desert.

Africa 2050

Africa uses less fossil energy per person than any other major world region. But it may be the continent most vulnerable to climate change, because widespread poverty affects countries' capability to adapt. Nothing has been done to slow climate change and 2050 looks bleak for much of Africa.

Famine

Thirty million more people have been hit by famine since 2001. Rains have failed across Africa, causing crops to die and populations to starve.

Drought

Climate change by 2050 has caused severe drought in large areas of Africa - including Kenya, Morocco, Somalia and South Africa.

Prolonged drought - lasting a season or longer over a widespread area - is the most serious climatic hazard affecting African agriculture, water supplies and ecosystems.

Droughts in the Sahel and eastern and southern Africa have also devastated wildlife, and caused further poverty by reducing income from tourists visiting nature reserves

Southern and central African populations have been worst hit by climate change. Yields of millet - the most important grain crop and the staple diet of many poorer communities in Africa - have declined by 20 per cent.

By 2050, east African tea and coffee farmers are facing lower crop yields and incomes. They have been forced to clear forests in higher, cooler areas, adding to environmental damage.
Sea level rise

Africa's coastal areas are densely populated, generate significant amounts of national wealth and contain important and diverse ecosystems. They are highly vulnerable to sea level rise, coastal erosion and flooding.

Senegal, Nigeria and Egypt have been the worst affected countries. Egypt has lost 15 per cent of its arable land and over 14 million people have been displaced.

Africa's coastal countries have not had the capacity or resources to adapt.

I hope this will make you think sir.

Amina
Kenya/Africa

[Amina]

Climate change is not a a hoax, i am emailing you from a country already experiencing climate change, our rivers have dried. People and livestock have died in Northern Kenya. Climate change for us is real, it has created climate refugees,drought,famine.Our regions are turning to desert. Infact, Africa by 2050 will be 90% desert/arid. There will be no wildlife to see, no rain forests.

Climate change is real for me and my people, The yes men are making a point. Take it SERIOUS. I applaud the yes men, i hope we can have more yes men in this world.

God bless the yes men!

Amina
Kenyan

[hterrya]

The reason the US Chamber of Commerce can be so easily "punked" is that the Chamber's views have been radical, the same way the NRA is radical, and focused on only one thing, the love of money.

The Chamber's claim that they are sincerely concerned about the way their member organizations affect the environment and the lives of all Americans, is made a lie by the local Chambers' thwarting of those who would seek to improve the environment and people's everyday lives at the local level. Their claim is also made a lie by their absolute refusal to take part in "constructive dialogue" at the local level with those with whom they disagree.

That allows the Chamber to being wide open to being "punked," and in this case, they were royally punked!

[Pat Malcom]

The Chamber should find out who sent these imposters and they should be prosecuted for fraud. I am so afraid the Gov't itself is involved in this, and that senerio is not good for this country.

[Scott]

I am an unemployed carpenter, but I have worked every day of it, bartering for what i need, including rent. I have produced more products this way. My car was totaled by a lead footed LA driver, but now I embrace using a bicycle. I no longer pay in excess of my car note for insurance, and no longer worry about the price of gas. I enjoy a timely daily ride on my 14 pound bicycle, albeit surrounded by tons of cars. I often pass them in gridlock. I manufactured a trailer with a recycled scooter motor, all electric, to assist in the transport of tools and materials for my projects. I have built a walk in closet and will build a kitchen, without a truck.
To those that worry about the escalating price of energy and loss of jobs, have no fear. The human spirit is indomitable. These are small prices to pay to secure the health of our planet. We are killing her, choking her with pollution. There are islands of plastic in the ocean 30 meters deep and wider than the area of the entire United States. Global Warming is not a hoax, it is a historical fact embedded in the layers of the earth and ice cores from Antartica. Do not sell your planet short simply because you could not find a means of convenience.
Your home is worth nothing under the inevitable rising tide, but you can count on beachside real estate to always rise in price. Your health is pointless in an uncapped polluted air of industry being held unaccounted for emissions, yet you can count on the price of medicine and health insurance rates to always increase. You can always count on a corporate entity who's lifeline is limited by its cash value to steadily do whatever it takes to increase revenue. This is inherit because it is only held responsible for monetary values. It wants to inflate the value of everything it makes. It wants to act as middlemen and management for every opportunity. It does not want to be limited by any means.
I do not support this attack on a reasonable clean energy bill that in fact will increase local jobs. I further reject the Chamber of Commerce's stance in supporting the opening of Federally Protected lands to further oiling, also revitalizing the unprofitable nuclear power plants and their toxic waste issues, and purporting that coal can ever be clean... coal mining is inherently dirty as it levels mountains, exposing entrapped toxic materials, and contributes directly to GHG emissions without leaving the mine... increased mining increases air infiltration and coal fires. China inadvertently destroys the equivalent of Germany's annual production of coal every year through uncontrolled mine fires alone, contributing 2-3% of the worlds greenhouse gases without ever contributing to any power plant! The Chamber of Commerce claims to be supporting clean energy, but they are carrying on with business as usual hoping you will believe them!
The Chamber of Commerce does not support solar power, citing that the area required to pursue this sun powered resource would be greater than the combined cities of LA, NYC, and so on in a dramatic attempt to sway the listener into thinking it is such a large area. I say let's cover the roof of every city. If 74 million roofs were covered by 1000 square feet, we could meet our 2020 greenhouse gas emissions goal. Solar power is real and present right now. Any smart person would replace their roofing with it, as it lasts twice as long as any roof, and can be purchased by a company that sells the energy. You read that right. You don't buy it, they do. Consider it when you need to replace your old roof.
There are many things you can do, and this is important because they are citing that buildings are responsible for half of greenhouse emissions.
Buy LED lights for your home, curved fluorescent bulbs use mercury in construction and emit a painful sound and dead light. Invent greywater solutions. Ride a bike to work. Live closer to work. Buy food from your farmers market. Stop using plastic bags at the grocery store, use canvas bags. Use radiant heating for your home. Insulate your home better, using recycled denim. There are a million ways to improve your efficiency, and believe me people across the nation are doing it. Look at your workplace. What are they doing? Are you packed into an office with cubicles and a forced air system full of mold? What kind of lighting and soundscape is in your workplace? Do you work in an oversized metal shed? Industry doesn't care about your comfort, it only cares about the dollar it makes.
Now is your chance to change that. Don't be duped by the misinformation of this site. It cites nothing specific about the bill. I read it and I love it. I encourage you to read more about the bill and its intent as I have. And for you old farts that rely on open discrimination and bias instead of fact, close your mouth and stop farting, your emissions are much worse than carbon.

[Mark Fairchild]

I see there are a few loony capitalists posting here too.

Less climate regulation
= increased stress on the environment (that supports consumer's physiological processes)
= increased consumer poverty, ill health, and deaths
= less consumer ABILITY to purchase business' products
= spiraling decrease in profits
= increased business insolvencies
= more pain, trials and tribulations, and failures for producers, middle men, and consumers alike.
Can you conservatives stop chasing bailout money long enough to figure this out?

Simply put, your consumer's LIVES and HEALTH matter more than your profits. You might, perhaps, stop reacting to market forces *after* the fact long enough to pull your heads out of the sand and see the bulldozer bearing down on you . . . and the rest of us! Otherwise, I guarantee, YOU will be viewed as the villains by posterity!

Why not join the more enlightened business community that sees an opportunity to CREATE jobs and technologies that you whine are not available. Try being a team player and help the businesses that are trying to DO something helpful!

Finally, I don't really see why I should trust products from capitalists who think only of the past, when they ought to be looking at the future; and when there are OTHER capitalists and non-capitalsts who ARE looking at the future. (Gee! A competitive, capitalist outlook from a liberal! Go figure!)

Sorry, but the rest of your inane banter is not worth replying to.

[Big Al]

But one thing is for sure, being punked does make you react and ultimately consider the message above the prank.

James Coburn you should learn more about the Yes men. Then you'll understand why your comments, especially "they lose any credibility" are hilarious.

[Steve]

HAHAHAHA! The Yes Men did a GREAT job of exposing the US Chamber of Commerce as the greedhead assholes they are. HAHAHAHAHA!

[Peter C]

James Colburn,

You couldn't be more wrong. The story here isn't this particular set of events, it's the message behind them. If more people got that, perhaps they wouldn't have to stage fake press conferences to draw attention to the absurdity of the Chamber's stance on climate change. And any credibility you feel they lost by misrepresenting themselves has no bearing on the validity of the actual argument they are making.

[James Colburn]

To all the nutjob posters here. Your position on climate change and the steps needed to be taken are irrelevant to this story! The fact is that these idiots misrepresented themselves. They deserve nothing. If they are lucky, they won't go to jail or be sued. They have plenty of rights to hold a press conference by legitimately representing themselves, however, once they fraudulently claimed to be member of the USCoC, they lose any credibility.

[John in Seattle]

I hope you refund the money to the people who rented the room. Just because they showed you up as the head-in-the-sand ideologues that you are is no reason to gip them out of a good press conference.
Believe me, they were making far more sense than you ever have.

[Justin]

Actually, I'm PRO-Capital. I think about the days when I never thought a Compact Disc would ever fly because the drive was too expensive. Brave venture capitalists brought a valuable technology to the market that has borne itself out. Photovoltaics are getting cheaper by the day, and you can ask any Silicon Valley millionaire about the value of Moore's law.

We see time and time again that the market supports true innovators. I hope someone will take up the call.

[Mike Willikinson]

Look at all these loony anti-capitalists posting here. More climate regulation = increased burden on businesses = higher costs to produce = increased prices on the consumer. Can you lefties figure this out?

People talk about green jobs and green technologies. The fact is that these jobs and technologies are not available. If they were readily available and profitable, then business would use them. If they are not yet technologically available and are too costly to use (or unproductive), the only way to have such inefficiencies is for the government to MAKE people use them. This is Cap and Trade. Government creating artificial forces on the market and technology and this is all counterproductive.

Keep smoking your peace pipes and stop breathing so you don't produce any CO2 that could harm our environment...

[mark metcalf]

I hope this incident draws more attention to the Chamber of Commerce working against the interests of citizens.

[Kathleen Williams Bryson]

The tragedy is that American business has ignored the interests of the American worker and the American consumer. Perhaps the actions of numerous conscientious American businesses in renouncing the US Chamber of Commerce's actions will result in enhanced awareness of how the perceived interests of the Chamber are not the interests of America. I, as a consumer and a mother/grandmother, will do my best to encourage American businesses to renounce the behavior of a Chamber that has abandoned corporate responsibility/ethics (if it ever embraced those concepts).

[ChamberPost]

Shari - A real debate about the actual legislation would be wonderful. We are very worried about a jobless recovery - that is why we want policy makers to think about free enterprise and its role in growth and jobs "when they cast every single vote." (quote from http://twitter.com/freeenterprise)

Ingo - No.

Lee - um...

Nick - You know that Congress can write other legislation right? We don't need climate action legislation; we need GOOD climate action legislation.

[Shari]

Chamber, I think you totally deserve this duping. I believe your lobbying tactics are irresponsible. Maybe you will finally have a real debate about climate change? How's this "jobless recovery" fitting into your "positive vision" of growing the economy?

[Ingo]

Is that your definition for green washing? ""These irresponsible tactics are a foolish distraction from the serious effort by our nation to reduce greenhouse gases""

[Lee Kierig, Architect]

CofC: WHEN will we ALL realize that there is no such thing as "smart growth" or "responsible growth"?? The capitalistic ruse, requiring continual expansion in order to fuel the hungry desires for "free rights prosperity" is clearly manifesting now as a chief source of all malady exhibited by World culture and all offerings of EARTH. There can be no continual growth, people. The clear facts show that we are poised on the brink of calamity, catastrophe and collapse. Ganging up with corporate pirates and standing against the necessary charge set before us to re-create the age-old manners of wealth extraction, aggression and the spiritual piracy plied into humanity is clearly wrong and cannot be sustained. World population is beyond sustainable limits and within 40+- years we will be in the midst of a world-wide food, water, energy and biosphere crisis of disastrous consequences. Quit standing against the plainly visible and imperative need to re-create ALL manners of Human Acting toward an EARTH-cost economy free of profiteering; free of avarice; free of oppression and free of coercion, fear, domination and fleecing through ruses of cheat and scam running rampant on ALL streets. Get a grip, you guys...the world is crashing all around us and we continue wearing our old coat, showing off our medals of conquest, shiny pop-gear spangles and our faces of many fronts with our pockets and carpet bags jammed full of Earth-rape trinkets, blood money and salvation booty for all to see. Continuing is both annihilistic and moronic. Looking the other way, hoping for more pie is a vile and recklessly false hawking of "good for community" ruses into the Heart of World Humanity, all sentient life and EARTH. Do YOU have the courage to say what needs to be said? Will we collapse and skin our EARTH until she is awash in degradation, despoliation and ruined...like "white trash" junk keepers? Believe it, fools...capitalism and pushing for "prosperity" is stupid...put a rope around our neck for a buck, shall we? For what is strewn upon the trail of all human history, I can assure you there is little to be proud of. The EARTH-skinners of all their grimy kinds, the fleecers of human spirit claiming special alliance legion and favor of a Jekyl-Hyde bipolar "god" reeks and has virally infected the Domain Of Public Trusts. There is no "growth"---WHERE...is the Infinite Love in what we do? WHERE are the calls for Vital Planning? Meager ruses and claims for "prosperity" - "free rights" and "my land" and "my stuff" and "what about me?" are the products of monkey shine tree-brained concoctions cooked up in antiquity....
http://www.ThePetitionSite.com/1/fixxit-now
www.StrategicBookPublishing.com/WhereIsInfiniteLove,html

[Nick]

If the Chamber was actually serious about supporting action on global warming, it would not be steadfastly opposing the Kerry-Boxer Clean Energy Jobs bill - the only comprehensive climate legislation now moving forward at the federal level in the US. Major business leaders like Nike have been retracting their support for the Chamber on the grounds that the Chamber of Commerce is standing in the way of progress on climate issues. Get real: the US Chamber of Commerce is one of the largest remaining obstacles to comprehensive climate legislation.