Do they pay people to rail against the possibility of global warming?

Question

There are so many ridiculous questions about global warming on Yahoo Answers that I've believe that the fossil-fuel industry is sponsoring them.

This would be similar to the ads for cigarettes that were slipped into movies, where each photo of someone smoking would get a flat payment of a few hundred dollars. (See http://www.mascotcoalition.org/education/movies/lancet.html).

So: do you believe these that the Environment section, in particular, is being saturated by paid advertisers?

Answer 1

Honesty requires that I admit I am paid by oil and gas companies, in dividend checks.

My interest is to get a mandatory reduction in the amount of fossil fuels we are allowed to extract or import. That is clearly in line with the objective of reducing GHG emissions even if it suits my personal interests.

The best interest of extraction companies is not maximum production but maximum price per unit of production.

Answer 2

I do not believe man has anything to do with any increase in the average temperature on the Earth.

Nobody paid me to come on here and say that.  I did not get my opinion on this from right wing talk radio, Fox News, or any other source that many people accuse of putting out false information.  

I listened to Al Gore.  I listened to the "scientists" who are backing this idea.  Then I looked (on my own) to the other side of the argument.  I found many scientists who think that this is bunk and is a scam put out there by a fear mongering politician.  I listened to both sides.

I made my own decision that the side that says that the Earth goes through natural cycles and any warming we are experiencing is not anything man could have caused were more credible.

Answer 3

I hate to say it but I have been considering the same thing. I think that there is, possibly, a very small percentage of contributors here that do have some type of financial gain. It is worth considering that yahoo answers has around 90 million users and access to millions more.

  If this question is removed then I think that you can be sure that there is some type of 'conspiracy' because you will get reported.

  Have you seen this movie? its really interesting and is about a very similar topic

http://www.uctv.tv/search-details.asp?sh...

Answer 4

How much is Al Gore getting paid in kickbacks in the "Carbon Offset" company he owns?

   Sad but true. Just remember that research scientists don’t do their work for free. Right now the biggest grants being handed out "Courtesy of the UN and the US Congress" is for research into Global Warming

   Why would you disprove something if by doing so you stop getting paid?

   Prove me otherwise!

Answer 5

I'd love for them to cut a check to me for what I'm doing for free!  In the meantime, I will continue to be a beacon of reason during this dark age of ignorance.  Global warming is a natural phenomenon.

Answer 6

following the program to reduce smoking, we will soon see printed notes that declare "driving your car / using power at home is hazardous to the health of the world"

at that point the oil / coal / automotive industries will start fighting back, showing how good it feels to use power / drive a car / etc, actually they have been doing it long before the whole story of global warming became an issue.

Answer 7

It's often the case that both sides (or all sides) of hot topics are paying for research and dissemination of this research, just like your suggestion of cigarette companies. This has happened in medical research and it's the same for environmental issues like global warming (car manufacturers and the like have a vested interest in the status quo staying the status quo). This doesn't mean that pro-environment people might not manipulate their research or hide their funding.

I don't think, however, that anyone is being paid to post here but you never know.

This is why I always teach my students to keep an open mind and gather information from multiple sources before making up their mind on any issue.

Answer 8

Yes, ExxonMobil has admitted to a major PR campaign questioning global warming and some of the organizations they fund are listed here:

http://www.exxonsecrets.org/html/listorg...

Whether or not the hundreds of employees of those organizations visit here I can't say, but a lot of the misleading information posted here seems to be from their Web sites.

Answer 9

Maybe, but I doubt it.  Yahoo has just done a crappy job moderating this site so pubescent children have free rein to rant.  

Their customers and their advertisers are moving on to better products such as WikiAnswers (most of the good answers on here are links to Wiki anyway).  They have had to lay off 17% of their staff and are in the the midst of a hostile takeover by Microsoft.  Looks good on 'em!  Maybe the mindless trolls & flamers are getting paid, but Yahoo isn't.

Answer 10

Its an idea, but I don't think so, i'm sure the oil industry have enough money and depenance on them at the moment not to mess around with the limited audience on yahoo answers.

If they really wanted to stir things agaisnt global warming i'm sure they could pay for their own research into the fact and 'fudge' the results - ( if they needed it!)

Answer 11

Both sides pay people to either support the global warming theory or to denounce it. But the funny thing is that the green people pay their people more to scare people about global warming then the oil companies pay their people. Stupid Hippies

Answer 12

LOL, I've wondered the same thing myself.  Especially the people who are "top answerer's"!

Answer 13

Where do I sign up?  I have been doing this for free...I feel so used.

Ahhhh, I love a good conspiracy theory.

Answer 14

Actually, they pay people to stir up the populous' fear of global warming.  All those climate scientists have jobs because they keep the public worried about global warming.  No problem = no job.  Government funding exceeds industry funding 1000:1, so your logic dictates that we hear 1000 pro-warming lies for every 1 lie "railing against the possibility of global warming."

Yes, I do agree that " the Environment section, in particular, is being saturated by paid advertisers."

Answer 15

Yes, I think many of the AGW fanatics are supported by the IPCC. Let's face it, if the AGW theory goes away, all of the IPCC people will be out of their jobs.