MSNBC hosts on Friday enthusiastically touted the demands of high school-aged global warming protesters, cheering their call for the passage of the Green New deal and “a halt to any and all fossil fuel infrastructure projects.” This all seemed normal for host Katy Tur as she recounted her own childhood indoctrination.
Talking to Ali Velshi, she recounted, “I had climate change as part of my curriculum.... when I was in middle and elementary school. I remember, I would have climate activists or save-the-whales activists or recycling activists come in to tell us what we can do.”
Tur uncritically recited the “demands” of these teenage activists:
Here is what they're demanding adults in power do right now. These students want Congress to pass the Green New Deal. They demand a halt to any and all fossil fuel infrastructure projects. They want Washington to base all of their decisions on the best available and most current research. They want the President to declare a national emergency on climate change. They want kindergarten through eigth grade students to receive education on climate change and its impact
The price of the Green New deal is estimated to cost in the “tens of trillions.” Shouldn’t that be a discussion point? Apparently not because Velshi declared, “These kids' demands are not unusual. There’s nothing weird about them. It’s like, you know what? We’re wrecking the Earth, let’s stop wrecking the Earth.”
On Thursday, Velshi seemed to notice the price tag, admitting, “A quick rough estimate – which doesn’t include all of the promises listed in the FAQ – adds up to about $6.6 trillion a year.” However, he immediately dismissed this, saying, “I hate estimates that don’t have anything on the benefit side of the equation, including the fact that maybe we’ll save planet Earth for our children.”
On Friday, Tur boiled it down this simplistic question: “When do we start demonizing science? When it did become acceptable?”
A better question would be when did journalists start demonizing and ignoring basic accounting and economics?
A transcript of the segment is below:
MSNBC Live
3/15/19
2:58pm ET
KATY TUR: One more thing before we go, thousands of young students today are walking out of class to demand action on climate change. This was organized, state by state by teen leaders inspired by the lack of action by Washington and world leaders, angered really, by the lack of action. Student leaders say they're sick and tired of the political bickering that’s bargaining with their future. They were compelled to act and here is what they're demanding adults in power do right now. These students want Congress to pass the Green New Deal. They demand a halt to any and all fossil fuel infrastructure projects.
They want Washington to base all of their decisions on the best available and most current research. They want the President to declare a national emergency on climate change. They want kindergarten through 8th grade students to receive education on climate change and its impact. They want the country’s public lands, wild life and water supply protected and preserved. We should also note that today’s strikes are not just in the United States, high schoolers have walked out of class in 100 countries as well. That’s going to do it for me. Ali Velshi, I had climate change as part of my curriculum.
ALI VELSHI: did you really?
KUR: Yeah, when I was in middle and elementary school. I remember, I would have climate activists or save-the-whales activists or recycling activists come in to tell us what we can do to in order to sure that we're keeping the environment clean. If the soda — six packs for soda cans, those plastic holders, you snip them, so turtles don’t get caught. Or even better, you put them into a recycling bin if they could be recycled. We had all this composting. Maybe it’s because I’m from California.
VELSHI: And yet, 27 percent of Americans still do not accept that climate change is a real thing.
...
3:00 PM
VELSHI: These kids demands are not unusual. There’s nothing weird about them. It’s like, you know what? We’re wrecking the Earth, let’s stop wrecking the earth.
TUR: When do we start demonizing science? When it did become acceptable? Exxon-Mobile.
VELSHI: I would go further back than that. I would say cigarettes.
TUR: Yeah, so that started it, yeah,
VELSHI: The merchants of doubt have been in petroleum, tobacco, climate yeah.
