The minister, the cardinal and the billionaire climate sceptic you’ve probably never heard of

Rupert Murdoch and his influence on climate politics are front and centre of debate right now but there is a second, less well-known Australian billionaire operating from afar who has used his money and access to back conservative political causes. His name is Michael Hintze. 

Former Prime Minister Tony Abbott and Australian billionaire, Michael
Hintze. The latter uses his money to back conservative political causes. 

Hintze is a leading free marketeer and sceptic of the role of carbon emissions in climate change. He is a Liberal Party donor. He also has a long-running business relationship with Angus Taylor, Scott Morrison’s minister in charge of emissions reduction. Hintze is also a conservative Catholic who has links to former prime minister Tony Abbott and now gaoled Cardinal George Pell, both of whom are climate change denialists — with Abbott trotting out his denialism at a conservative US think tank today. 

Taylor’s office denies that he has discussed climate issues with Hintze, while Abbott has declined to answer. Both though have led Coalition attacks on the idea of government support for renewable energy. Hintze has declined to say whether or not he has discussed climate policy with Taylor or Abbott. In emailed answers he told Inq he donates funds to parties he believes are “best for the country” and that “no influence is sought”.

Read the story from Crickey by David Hardaker - “The minister, the cardinal and the billionaire climate sceptic you’ve probably never heard of.”

Rupert Murdoch Says Climate Change Should Be Approached With Great Skepticism

Rupert Murdoch is chairman and CEO of News Corporation, one of the world’s largest media conglomerates, which includes Fox News and The Wall Street Journal. Since launching The Australian newspaper 50 years ago he has also become one of the richest people in the world. In a wide-ranging interview aired Sunday in Australia to mark this 50-year anniversary, Murdoch reflected candidly on climate change, saying he thought it should be approached with great skepticism.

Rupert Murdoch.

“At the moment the north pole is melting but the south pole is getting bigger,” he said. “Things are happening. How much of it are we doing, with emissions and so on? As far as Australia goes? Nothing in the overall picture.”

While Antarctica has been losing ice more slowly than the Arctic, and the geopolitical implications are less salient, studies show that parts of the massive continent’s ice sheet have entered irreversible decline and that melting is likely to accelerate.

Read the Think Progress story by Ari Phillips - “Rupert Murdoch Says Climate Change Should Be Approached With Great Skepticism."

California fires bear down on exclusive Los Angeles suburbs

Los Angeles: At least six homes in one of Los Angeles wealthiest suburbs - the iconic Bel Air - have been destroyed and a winery owned by media mogul Rupert Murdoch is under threat as a firestorm in California burns out of control.

A wildfire threatens a home in Ventura, California.

Part of Murdoch's Moraga Bel Air vineyard, where the 86-year-old Australian has a home, has been destroyed by fire, and it is one of a number of properties affected by a mandatory evacuation order, issued by emergency services today.

The fires have also closed one of America's busiest freeways - the traffic-choked 405 - with video emerging of one of the four fires reaching the edge of the freeway.

The pre-dawn sky of Los Angeles was lit bright orange with fire as traffic moved at a slow, silent crawl past the inferno until police made the decision to close a 15km stretch of the freeway because of the risk.

Read Michael Idato’s story in today’s Melbourne Age - “California fires bear down on exclusive Los Angeles suburbs.”

A controversial coupling that could help cool the world

by Jo Romm



Jerry Hall and Rupert Murdoch -
activist and denier engaged.
 

So I don’t normally cover engagement notices. But on Tuesday, climate activist Jerry Hall and climate super-denier Rupert Murdoch announced their impending nuptials in one of his many newspapers.

This is one of the most unusual couplings since James Carville and Mary Matalin or Lyle Lovett and Julia Roberts or James Inhofe and Barbara Boxer. OK, I made up that last one, but still.

I mean, we have the actress and model who had four children with the Rolling Stones’ Mick Jagger (and who has argued “climate change is the biggest threat the world has ever seen”) getting engaged to the man Rolling Stone magazine labeled “The Disinformer” in a 2010 story naming the “The Climate Killers: 17 polluters and deniers who are derailing efforts to curb the climate catastrophe.”

Read the ClimateProgress story - “Rupert Murdoch Is Marrying A Climate Hawk.”

Dick Cheny's company goes after oil, gas in the Golan Heights

I

srael has granted a U.S. company the first licence to explore for oil and gas in the occupied Golan Heights, John Reed of the Financial Times reports.

A local subsidiary of the New York-listed company Genie Energy — which is advised by former vice president Dick Cheney and whose shareholders include Jacob Rothschild and Rupert Murdoch — will now have exclusive rights to a 153-square mile radius in the southern part of the Golan Heights.

That geographic location will likely prove controversial. Israel seized the Golan Heights in the Six-Day War in 1967 and annexed the territory in 1981. Its administration of the area — which is not recognised by international law — has been mostly peaceful until the Syrian civil war broke out 23 months ago.

Read the Business Insider story - “Israel Grants First Golan Heights Oil Drilling licence To Dick Cheney-Linked Company.”

Disappointment, validity and credibility



Bjorn Lomborg.

Disappointment envelops me when I see major newspapers with international credibility publishing stories of questionable validity.

Both the Wall Street Journal and the Washington Post recently published an opinion piece from Bjørn Lomborg, who is an adjunct professor at the Copenhagen Business School where he directs the Copenhagen Consensus Centre.

Lomborg, the author “The Skeptical Environmentalist”, “Cool It” and “How much have global problems cost the world? A scorecard from 1900 to 2050” had his views published in the Washington Post in in story headed; “Don’t blame climate change for extreme weather”.

Lomborg’s “The Skeptical Environmentalist” had been discredited by many influential climatologists and the publication of his article drew this comment from one reader:

“I might have taken this article seriously had it been written by a research climatologist with peer-reviewed publications in climatology. I am offended, though, that the WP accepted this piece for publication, knowing full well that the author could only claim a pretense of actual knowledge (adjunct professor of business). It would have been equally meaningful for a writer to step outside the WP building and ask passers-by on the street what they think about climate change and then publish their comments as though they were scientific results. Bad journalism here and appalling editorial work”.

The Wall Street Journal is owned by Rupert Murdoch who, along with his cohort of editors, is known as a climate skeptic and the Washington Post was only recently bought by amazon.com owner, Jeff Bezos.