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Fakegate – A Few Thoughts From A Humble Scientist

by Rich Trzupek
on February 21, 2012

Dr. Peter Gleick - No Arrogance There At All...

As a fellow trained in the sciences (chemistry) and who reveres the scientific method, I followed Dr. Peter Gleick’s pathetic, mean-spirited attempt to demean and degrade the Heartland Institute with a mixed sense of disgust and sadness. The former because I have nothing but contempt for a man trained in the sciences who stoops to such underhanded, dishonorable tactics as part of a continuing effort to silence people with whom he disagrees. Sadness, because – like so many others who share my particular views – the work that Heartland does is so important to maintaining scientific integrity in a world rushing to embrace the 21st century version of Lysenkoism.

Heartland is an oasis of independent thinking in a desert of close-mindedness. Where else is a fellow like me – someone who understands the theories behind so-called “climate change”, but who has serious questions about the data that purports to prove the hypothesis – to turn? The mainstream media isn’t interested in my views or my questions, nor are the large, powerful environmental organizations who keep their tame stable of journalists toeing the party line. Even my erstwhile professional organization, the American Chemical Society, feels obliged to abandon the scientific method when it comes to climate issues, officially quashing any dissenting opinions or research that do not fall in line with global warming goodthink. My brother Larry and I both resigned from the ACS over this policy, just as many other scientists have resigned from their particular professional organizations for the same reason.

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The Insanity of Federalized Teacher Evaluations

by Bruno Behrend
on February 21, 2012

Last Sunday’s New York Times had an article highlighting the implementation of the new teacher evaluation system being put in place in Tennessee. The system is part of the Race-to-the-Top attempt to drive education reform in the states by dangling federal cash for reforms.

As you read the article, you should begin to realize why “reform” fails and why many people in both the Government Education Complex and Education Transformation* movement find these rules so absurd.

There simply is no way that a federal bureaucracy (or any bureaucracy, for that matter) can devise a unified system of teacher evaluation. There are too many variables, and teachers are correct to be skeptical of this top-down approach to their craft.

For example, the first few paragraphs of the article expose the unworkable nature of the evaluation process.

Steve Ball, executive principal at the East Literature Magnet School in Nashville, arrived at an English class unannounced one day this month and spent 60 minutes taking copious notes as he watched the teacher introduce and explain the concept of irony. “It was a good lesson,” Mr. Ball said.

But under Tennessee’s new teacher-evaluation system, which is similar to systems being adopted around the country, Mr. Ball said he had to give the teacher a one — the lowest rating on a five-point scale — in one of 12 categories: breaking students into groups.** Even though Mr. Ball had seen the same teacher, a successful veteran he declined to identify, group students effectively on other occasions, he felt that he had no choice but to follow the strict guidelines of the state’s complicated rubric.

“It’s not an accurate reflection of her as a teacher,” Mr. Ball said.

What a shock. A principal knows his teachers better than the federalized check list. Wonders never cease.
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Truth About NC School Lunch Fiasco Makes Things Worse

by Joy Pullmann
on February 20, 2012

The story of a schoolteacher ripping away a 4-year-old girl’s carefully packed lunch from home–containing a turkey sandwich, banana, and snack bag of chips–to make the girl eat school-served chicken nuggets has ripped through the talk show circuit and prompted angry letters to the U.S. Ag Department from her family’s elected representatives.

Now the school principal and Associated Press have come in to set the story straight. Except that learning more facts makes the truth uglier.

The child’s teacher mistakenly sent the girl to the wrong school line at lunch, said Hoke County Schools Assistant Superintendent Bob Barnes yesterday. Instead of handing her a carton of milk to “round out her lunch,” the teacher wrongly made the girl eat the entire school lunch.

“We’re not trying to force government down anybody’s throat,” Barnes said. “All we’re trying to do is make sure that our children get a good education and a nutritious meal every day. It comes back to: We had an employee who made a mistake.”

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Heartland Institute Rebuts Outlandish New York Times Story on Stolen and Fake Documents

by Joe Bast
on February 16, 2012

Justin Gillis and Leslie Kaufman authored a piece in the New York Times today titled “Leak Offers Glimpse of Campaign Against Climate Science.” I say “authored” and not “reported,” because this story is filled with false assertions, innuendo, and outright lies. I will break it down, from the top.

Leaked documents suggest that an organization known for attacking climate science

Actually, we’ve produced more sound research on climate change than all but a very small number of very elite government and university-based organizations. Climate Change Reconsidered  alone is 2 volumes totaling more than 1,200 pages of pure science and economic analysis.

 is planning a new push to undermine the teaching of global warming in public schools,

Actually, we’re trying to make the “teaching of global warming” much more rigorous by replacing propaganda and agenda-driven rhetoric with real science.

 the latest indication that climate change is becoming a part of the nation’s culture wars.

“Culture wars”? we aren’t part of the religious right!! I suspect the reporter has a key programmed to spit out this line whenever writing about a “conservative” group!

 The documents, from a nonprofit organization in Chicago called the Heartland Institute, outline plans to promote a curriculum that would cast doubt on the scientific finding that fossil fuel emissions endanger the long-term welfare of the planet. “Principals and teachers are heavily biased toward the alarmist perspective,” one document said.

Actually, we’re sharing the real opinions of real scientists on the causes, consequences, and likely future trajectory of climate change, and of economists and other policy experts on what should be done about it, if anything. And of course principals and teachers are biased… most are liberal Democrats, and large majorities of liberal Democrats believe in man-made global warming.

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Media Biggest Proponent for BPA Ban

by Matthew Glans
on February 16, 2012

The regulation of chemicals has been an issue of growing importance, as new concerns over the effects of chemicals found in everyday products emerge, a greater emphasis has been placed by governments and consumers on how certain chemicals affect the human body. One chemical that has become a chemical of concern for some environmental groups is Bisphenol A, or BPA.

Chemical BPA is a chemical used in plastics for many consumer products. Amongst other uses, BPA most commonly used in hardened plastics and as part of the safety liner for food and beverage cans.

In a recent piece from the Business and Media Institute Julia Seymour writes about the concerted efforts of the media to brand chemicals like BPA as “toxic” while pushing for regulatory bans on the use of BPA. Seymour argues that these articles and stories do not fit the results that many scientists have found when examining the health effects of BPA.

Fear of chemicals and “toxins” is rampant among the so-called “environmental” left. Unfortunately, that phobia infects national media coverage as well. For more than a decade, the left has been on the attack against BPA, a chemical that is commonly found in plastics and other products.

Anti-chemical groups such as the Breast Cancer Fund and some scientists have crusaded against BPA (known formally as bisphenol A), connecting it to cancer and reproductive problems and claiming that it is “a threat to human health,” despite government agencies that have declared it “harmless” even in baby bottles. Much of the national media have bought in spreading fear of the chemical in ordinary canned goods, on cash register receipts, in dental sealants and more.

The Food and Drug Administration has a deadline of March 31 to respond to a petition by the Natural Resources Defense Council—an environmental group—that seeks to ban BPA. NRDC argues that the FDA should ban BPA on the basis that it causes harm to humans. In making these contentions, they cite animal studies showing potentially negative consequences of the chemical.

Seymour contends that the reports commenting on the negative effects of BPA are receiving more attention from the press, while studies refuting these claims are almost universally ignored.

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Andrew Revkin Finds Journalism Religion AFTER Posting Fraudulent Document

by Jim Lakely
on February 15, 2012

New York Times climate blogger Andrew Revkin on Tuesday afternoon was one of the first to print fake documents attributed to The Heartland Institute. One of Heartland’s senior fellows for environmental policy exchanged some emails today with Revkin, pointing out there were “inaccuracies” in the documents that he posted online — without first verifying their authenticity with The Heartland Institute.

It appears Revkin’s journalistic ethics were reawakened upon his realization that he’s been “had” by lefitst alamarists. Here’s Revkin’s response to our senior fellow from this afternoon:

From: Andrew Revkin [mailto:revkin@gmail.com]
Sent: Wednesday, February 15, 2012 1:23 PM
To: Craig Idso
Subject: Re: the strategy doc

looking back, it could well be something that was created as a way to assemble the core points in the batch of related docs.

there are other errors that another reporter noticed. and of course heartland is now saying all the other docs are – at best – stolen and/or of uncertain provenance/accuracy til Bast gets on the ground..

wacky stuff, this end of the climate fight.

i’m going to hold off writing (including our exchange) til i know more.

i’ll be in the air most of tomorrow, which may leave some time to breath and have the dust settle.

Yes. “Wacky stuff.” A good idea to hold off writing until you “know more” — such as the facts. That used to be called responsible journalism.

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Heartland Institute Responds to Stolen and Fake Documents

by Jim Lakely
on February 15, 2012

Yesterday afternoon, two advocacy groups posted online several documents they claimed were The Heartland Institute’s 2012 budget, fundraising, and strategy plans. Some of these documents were stolen, at least one is a fake, and some may have been altered.

The stolen documents appear to have been written by Heartland’s president for a board meeting that took place on January 17. He was traveling at the time this story broke yesterday afternoon and still has not had the opportunity to read them all to see if they were altered. Therefore, the authenticity of those documents has not been confirmed.

Since then, the documents have been widely reposted on the Internet, again with no effort to confirm their authenticity.

One document, titled “Confidential Memo: 2012 Heartland Climate Strategy,” is a total fake apparently intended to defame and discredit The Heartland Institute. It was not written by anyone associated with The Heartland Institute. It does not express Heartland’s goals, plans, or tactics. It contains several obvious and gross misstatements of fact.

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New Jersey Considers Ban on Winged Monkeys

by James M. Taylor
on February 14, 2012

The New Jersey legislature is considering legislation to ban winged, flying monkeys in the state.

Wait a minute, I got that wrong – the New Jersey legislature is considering legislation to ban natural gas production through hydraulic fracturing, otherwise known as fracking.

The mix-up is an easy one to make. Neither winged, flying monkeys nor hydraulic fracturing exist in the Garden State. With high unemployment, budget deficits, crime, etc., taking their toll on New Jersey residents every day, the state legislature feels it should prioritize its limited time and resources to wage war against winged monkeys – er, hydraulic fracturing.

The Press of Atlantic City published a good article on the topic this morning. The pertinent question is, why are legislators charged with the important job of solving real problems choosing instead to waste their time scoring symbolic points with environmental activist groups regarding issues and problems that simply do not exist?

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Court Case Shows the Evil of Illinois State Government

by Steve Stanek
on February 14, 2012

Alia N. Bernard

As a lifelong Illinois resident, I long ago came to believe that my state government is more than corrupt, incompetent, inept, wasteful, abusive, etc. It is evil.

Last Thursday I read a news story that convinced me of its evil. I was so bothered by it that I could not bring myself to comment on it until now.

The hard-copy version of the Chicago Sun-Times had an article headlined, “7 years for driver who had traces of pot in her system.” I am looking at it this very second. It’s about a woman, Alia N. Bernard, who reached for her sunglasses while driving. She took her eyes off the road and caused a crash that killed two motorcyclists.

Cops and prosecutors admit she was not under the influence of any substance. But a blood test detected a tiny amount of marijuana from several days earlier. Last April the Illinois supreme court had ruled “prosecutors did not have to prove impairment was a ‘proximate cause’ of a fatal crash but just that defendants have any amount of a drug in their systems,” the Sun-Times reported.

Note: ANY AMOUNT of a substance is enough for the state to level felony driving-under-the-influence charges.

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Behold the Golden Toilet: Occupy Protest of Scott Walker at CPAC

by Jim Lakely
on February 14, 2012

While at CPAC last week for The Heartland Institute, I met a lot of old friends, made some new ones, and heard some great speeches (the best I’ve heard from Rick Santorum; Sarah Palin was on fire; and Gov. Scott Walker of Wisconsin was excellent.) Speaking of Scott Walker, the Occupy Wall Street crowd and their union allies targeted him for a special protest.

First, let me say this: The Occupy Wall Street protests were a big dud. Yes, a few got into the hotel — and there was even a scuffle in the hallway. But every time they shouted their tired slogans, they were quickly drowned out by a combination of ridicule and chants of “USA! USA! USA!” by the CPAC attendees.

But as Walker entered the Wardman Park Marriott in DC, the Occupy folks were outside (in a rather small force) to express their displeasure at his reforms, which have probably saved the state from bankruptcy. So I moseyed on down with my iPhone in my pocket and took a couple of videos. A highlight of the juvenile street theater was the parading of a “golden toilet” down the sidewalk.

I’d say more, but the video speaks for itself.

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