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<p><font size="+2"><i><b>September 30, 2021</b></i></font></p>
<i>[after an outed man was deceived and trapped]</i><br>
<b>Bye, Bye, Mr. Exxon Guy</b><br>
The Exxon lobbyist who got caught on tape talking about how the
company manipulates politicians is no longer employed.<br>
Molly Taft - Sept29, 2021<br>
Remember the Exxon lobbyist who got caught on tape admitting that
the company had poured money into “shadow groups” in order to fight
against climate science? He’s officially out of a job. E&E News
confirmed with Exxon on Tuesday that Keith McCoy, the lobbyist in
question, was no longer at the company.<br>
<br>
“Mr. McCoy no longer works for the company,” Exxon spokesperson
Casey Norton said in an email to E&E News. “This is a private
personnel matter, and we will decline to comment further.”<br>
<br>
For those who need a refresher, investigators at Unearthed posed as
recruitment consultants looking to hire a DC lobbyist for a major
client and set up interviews with two then-Exxon employees (the
other interviewee left the company before the exposé aired). The
secret tapes were released in July, and McCoy’s interview was far
and away the more explosive of the two.<br>
<br>
In addition to talking about the company’s history of perpetuating
climate denial, McCoy also openly admitted that Exxon sees a carbon
tax, which it has vocally supported, as nothing more than an
“advocacy tool” He talked up all the politicians he’s regularly in
touch with. His metaphor for capturing them—“you have bait, you fill
that bait out and they say, ‘oh you want to talk about
infrastructure,’ and then you start to reel them in”—is a pretty
stunning admission of how things work. In a separate video released
a day after the first, McCoy laid out in detail how Exxon is working
behind-the-scenes to fight plastics regulation. McCoy later
apologized on LinkedIn, the number one social network for Oil Guys
Who Love To Post. But apparently it wasn’t enough to save his job.<br>
<br>
Exxon wouldn’t tell E&E News when exactly McCoy left, and his
LinkedIn still lists him as employed at Exxon. McCoy still seems to
have a role at the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, but, per
web archives recovered by E&E News, sometime between August 14
and September 8, the website changed his affiliation from
“ExxonMobil Corporation” to “Community Advocate.”<br>
While it wouldn’t be my personal choice to work for a company that
has done more than most to advance our planet’s quickly approaching
heat death, I have to admit that I feel a little bad for McCoy. His
comments lifted the veil on Exxon, but they confirmed what’s been
clear Exxon and other Big Oil boys have been trying to do for a
while. Namely, do everything they can to delay meaningful climate
regulations, hyping the small parts of their business that are
relatively clean, and investing in PR spin while making a killing
digging up oil. McCoy just said the quiet part out loud in a fake
job interview.<br>
<br>
Exxon made quick work of distancing itself from McCoy following the
debacle. After the interview aired, the company claimed in a
statement from CEO Darren Woods that McCoy’s comments “in no way
represent the company’s position on a variety of issues” and that
McCoy was “never involved in developing the company’s policy
positions on the issues discussed.”<br>
<br>
“We condemn the statements and are deeply apologetic for them,
including comments regarding interactions with elected officials,”
Woods’s statement continued. “We were shocked by these interviews
and stand by our commitments to working on finding solutions to
climate change.” OK, Darren. We get it.<br>
<br>
After McCoy’s interview aired, the House Oversight and Reform
Committee asked him to testify about his comments as part of their
larger investigation into oil companies—which makes sense, given
that McCoy basically openly bragged about how the company
manipulates politicians into doing what they want. Exxon declined to
comment to E&E whether or not McCoy would be covered by legal
representation if he’s called to testify. (The House committee
hasn’t confirmed whether or not McCoy accepted their invitation to
testify.)<br>
<br>
No matter! Dirty oil executives always seem to find a way to land on
their feet after a scandal. Maybe there’s a future career for McCoy
in utilities or something.<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://gizmodo.com/exxon-lobbyist-caught-on-tape-sharing-climate-strategy-1847767033">https://gizmodo.com/exxon-lobbyist-caught-on-tape-sharing-climate-strategy-1847767033</a>
<p>- -<br>
</p>
[see for yourself in the 9 minute video]<br>
<b>Revealed: ExxonMobil’s lobbying war on climate change legislation</b><br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5v1Yg6XejyE">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5v1Yg6XejyE</a><br>
<p><br>
</p>
<p><br>
</p>
<i>[ Mental health for firefighters - video]</i><br>
<b>NWCG video about firefighter mental health</b><br>
The National Wildfire Coordinating Group has published a video for
firefighters about about mental health. It features several former
or current firefighters who have been trained as critical incident
stress management peer supporters or CISM Clinicians.<br>
<br>
It was posted July 19, 2021 but as of today it has only been viewed
83 times, perhaps because it is “unlisted”. @DOIWildlandFire
tweeted about the video today. We suggested to them that the status
be changed, which should make it possible to search for it and also
show up on lists of NWCG videos.<br>
<br>
The presenters make an interesting point comparing physical fitness
and mental fitness. As a firefighter you have to work at both of
them, and they lay out several ways to stay mentally fit.<br>
<br>
If you are a firefighter or the spouse or family member of one,
spend 18 minutes watching this video.<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://wildfiretoday.com/2021/09/29/nwcg-video-about-firefighter-mental-health/">https://wildfiretoday.com/2021/09/29/nwcg-video-about-firefighter-mental-health/</a><br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yTVHn2rFuAw">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yTVHn2rFuAw</a>
<p>- -</p>
<i>[important report ] </i><br>
<b>Born into the Climate Crisis: Why we must act now to secure
children’s rights</b><br>
The threat posed to children and their rights by the climate crisis
is not theoretical: it is real, and it is urgent. Save the Children
has partnered with an international team of leading climate
researchers led by the Vrije Universiteit Brussel to quantify the
extent to which children will experience extreme weather events as a
manifestation of climate change, the disparities between
generations, and the widening inequality between high-income and
low- and middle-income countries.<br>
<br>
Without drastic mitigation action to reduce emissions and limit
warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, led by high-income and
high-emitting countries and informed by children’s best interests
and identified priorities, the children of these low- and
middle-income countries will be burdened with the most dangerous
impacts of the climate crisis. They have inherited a problem not of
their own making.<br>
<br>
The window of opportunity to make a difference for children is
quickly closing. Commitments to climate action and financing remain
dangerously inadequate, and unless global leaders scale up their
ambition now, current and future generations of children will
suffer.<br>
<br>
This report has been developed with the support of a dedicated Child
Reference Group, comprised of 12 children aged between 12–17 years
old from across the globe, to lay out how the intergenerational
impacts of climate change are infringing on children’s rights to
life, education, and protection.<br>
<br>
PUBLISHED 2021-09-27<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://resourcecentre.savethechildren.net/library/born-climate-crisis-why-we-must-act-now-secure-childrens-rights">https://resourcecentre.savethechildren.net/library/born-climate-crisis-why-we-must-act-now-secure-childrens-rights</a><br>
<p> - -</p>
<i>[full report is 50 pages]</i><br>
<b>Born into the Climate Crisis: Why we must act now to secure
children’s rights</b><br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://resourcecentre.savethechildren.net/node/19591/pdf/born-into-the-climate-crisis.pdf">https://resourcecentre.savethechildren.net/node/19591/pdf/born-into-the-climate-crisis.pdf</a><br>
<br>
<p><br>
</p>
<i>[follow the money, or insure the money. ]</i><br>
<b>Climate Change Replaces Pandemic as Insurers’ Biggest Worry</b><br>
By Alexandre Rajbhandari<br>
September 28, 2021, <br>
<br>
Climate change has returned to the top of the list of insurers’
biggest concerns as the vaccine roll-out and gradual lifting of
health restrictions see pandemic fears ease in many countries.<br>
<br>
Global warming was ranked as the biggest risk to society over the
next five to 10 years in a report released Tuesday by French
insurance giant AXA SA. While that also topped the ranking in 2018
and 2019, it was outstripped by diseases and pandemics last year as
the virus spread across the globe. <br>
<br>
“Climate change is back at the top of the agenda,” AXA Chief
Executive Officer Thomas Buberl said in a statement. “This is good
news, since last year we feared that the explosion of health risks
may overshadow the climate emergency.”...<br>
- -<br>
Insurers are being increasingly challenged by global warming as
extreme weather events wrought by climate change are expected to
keep rising. Just under a fifth of the 3,500 insurance professionals
polled across 60 countries expressed faith in public authorities to
mitigate the crisis.<br>
<br>
Axa, which chairs the Net Zero Insurance alliance, is trying to push
the industry’s largest players to exclude polluting companies and
focus on those that have clear and credible transition plans, both
in their investment and underwriting universes. The latter policy is
even more powerful, Buberl said in an interview with Bloomberg TV on
Wednesday.<br>
<br>
“On the investment side, we are one of many investors, and if you
want to find funds for a coal factory today, you will”, Buberl said
in the interview. But if a company can’t get insurance to protect
against risk, then it won’t be able to secure investors, he said.<br>
<br>
<b>Cyber risks on the rise</b><br>
The survey also found that cyber risks, which ranked second on the
list, was a fast-growing fear for insurers. This year, some 61% of
respondents put cybersecurity among their top five concerns, up from
54% in 2018. The pandemic dropped to third place.<br>
<br>
“The pandemic and the lockdown have certainly accentuated the use of
digital tools, and we insurers have seen that it has also
intensified cyber risks and attacks,” AXA Deputy CEO Frederic de
Courtois said at a press briefing with reporters. <br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-09-28/climate-change-replaces-pandemic-as-insurers-biggest-worry">https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-09-28/climate-change-replaces-pandemic-as-insurers-biggest-worry</a><br>
<br>
<p><br>
</p>
<i>[The news archive - looking back]</i><br>
<font size="+1"><b>On this day in the history of global warming
September 30 ,</b></font><br>
<p>September 30, 2004: In his first debate with President Bush,
Democratic challenger and Massachusetts Senator John Kerry incurs
the wrath of the right wing by declaring:<br>
<br>
"The president always has the right, and always has had the right,
for preemptive strike. That was a great doctrine throughout the
Cold War. And it was always one of the things we argued about with
respect to arms control. No president, though all of American
history, has ever ceded, and nor would I, the right to preempt in
any way necessary to protect the United States of America. <br>
<br>
"But if and when you do it, Jim [Lehrer], you have to do it in a
way that passes the test, that passes the global test where your
countrymen, your people understand fully why you're doing what
you're doing and you can prove to the world that you did it for
legitimate reasons. Here we have our own secretary of state who
has had to apologize to the world for the presentation he made to
the United Nations.<br>
<br>
"I mean, we can remember when President Kennedy in the Cuban
missile crisis sent his secretary of state to Paris to meet with
DeGaulle. And in the middle of the discussion, to tell them about
the missiles in Cuba, he said, 'Here, let me show you the photos.'
And DeGaulle waved them off and said, "No, no, no, no. The word of
the president of the United States is good enough for me."<br>
<br>
"How many leaders in the world today would respond to us, as a
result of what we've done, in that way? So what is at test here is
the credibility of the United States of America and how we lead
the world. And Iran and Iraq are now more dangerous -- Iran and
North Korea are now more dangerous.<br>
<br>
"Now, whether preemption is ultimately what has to happen, I don't
know yet. But I'll tell you this: As president, I'll never take my
eye off that ball. I've been fighting for proliferation the entire
time -- anti-proliferation the entire time I've been in the
Congress. And we've watched this president actually turn away from
some of the treaties that were on the table.<br>
<br>
"You don't help yourself with other nations when you turn away
from the global warming treaty, for instance, or when you refuse
to deal at length with the United Nations.<br>
<br>
"You have to earn that respect. And I think we have a lot of
earning back to do." <br>
<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://www.c-spanvideo.org/program/FullS">http://www.c-spanvideo.org/program/FullS</a> (59:20--61:22)</p>
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