The House Committee on Science, Space and Technology recently re-elected U.S. Representative Lamar Smith (R-TX) as Chairman. This, coupled with the Committee's Twitter account posting a link to a Breitbart article denying the existence of climate change, is cause for alarm.
It is the perfect prism through which to view how our elected officials in government plan to govern. In other words: we're doomed. Absolutely doomed.
In case you don't know, Lamar Smith is a spook. Now, he isn't actively trying to start a war, but he is certainly an agent of some shady arm you or I can’t see.
A noted conspiracy theorist and climate change denier, Lamar Smith is on record as saying that one-third of federal inmates are illegal immigrants (which is false) and, in a Wall Street Journal op-ed, claimed that climate reports from the U.N. aren’t “good science”.
In the spirit of transparency, donors of Mr. Lamar Smith, which can be found here, include AT&T, Comcast, Time Warner, Valero Energy and Koch Industries. His list of corporate donors seemingly never ends. Other notable entries on the list include the American Bankers Association, Microsoft and Verizon.
Golly, what a group. I’m sure this doesn’t ever get in the way of decision making.
I didn’t understand how you could sit as Chair on the House Committee on Science, Space and Technology without understanding accepted, proven and good climate science, until I saw his list of donors.
He makes money from being a climate change denier. He is a man beholden to just about everybody who's ever crossed his eye-line on the street. A man who could be no more partisan in matters of science, space or technology than he could refuse money from a stranger.
Just recently, the Bureau of Land Management released a fact sheet on methane and waste reduction. It’s overview states, “The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is proposing to update its regulations to reduce the waste of natural gas from flaring, venting, and leaks from oil and gas production operations on public and Indian lands. The proposed rules, which would be phased in over several years, will help curb waste of our nation’s natural gas supplies; reduce harmful air pollution, including greenhouse gases; and provide a fair return on public resources for federal taxpayers, Tribes, and States.”
I support that. We should all support that. This is good. This is government at work.
Smith’s response reads, “The announcement of the Bureau of Land Management’s methane rule is disappointing. This rule is yet another example of a long list of unnecessary and duplicative regulations finalized by the Obama administration.” He goes on to explain how the BLM didn’t consider stakeholders, and that we should wait for the next administration to decide what steps are appropriate. You can read his full response here.
This man is not fit to hold the position he does.
Mr. Lamar Smith is supposed to be the man in charge of furthering the progression and discovery of the sciences. He's supposed to be the man in charge of helping to find solutions for climate change. He’s supposed to be the man in charge of improvements in weather services and technological advancements.
I’m usually very optimistic about government. I try to stay informed and involved. But this, this is not good.
There is, actually, one good thing to be found here. Trump plans to cut NASA’s funding to research climate change. So, there’s one less thing Mr. Smith must worry about.
