Becca Hedges

Dr. MacLean

Geo 3010-01

14 Apr. 2017

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Reflection 12

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Money and politics seem to go hand in hand. While most people genuinely have good intentions and morals most corporations do not. The bottom line is money. If you have a product that no one wants or is harmful in some way what do they do? Well, if they have morals and such they would no longer sell that particular product or if they could, find a way to make the product less harmful. Like the tobacco industry did big oil and gas companies try to cover up or twist the truth to keep up their sells. They give the public the impression that they care by investing large sums of money into research. What they don’t tell you is that they produce “cherry-picked” information to cast doubt on harmful effects just so they can keep making money.

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When the Rockefeller family decided to no longer donate money to companies like ExxonMobil they did so because oil and gas companies were not being truthful. The family knew that they were intentionally deceiving people with their think tanks and half-truths. In an article put out by The Guardian in 2016 the Rockefeller family was quoted calling ExxonMobil as “morally reprehensible”. They did not want to contribute nor be associated with that type of business practice. Through some investigations that took place it was determined that the hard factual science proving the effects of climate change is directly related to humans burning fossil fuels. These investigations also proved that they have been known and understood since the 1980’s.

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With the fear of losing profit and even power big companies chose to deny and subsequently block legislation for changes that could have improved what is being done to the earth because of CO2. They try to hid who and how much are being paid to intentionally issue false information. The fact is climate change is real. What they failed to see is the paper trail they left behind. Reports and Documents they used to corrupt the public image is now backfiring. The Rockefeller family was trying to show that these companies need to be held accountable for their falsehoods as well as take a stand for climate change. Here we have a foundation that like big companies they also have lots of money and power but they are doing the right thing. This delivers a powerful image that not everyone is only out to get what they want. It displays courage to stand up and compassion for the world. If a big powerful family like the Rockefellers are willing to make that kind of statement then others should be able to do the same.