Re: Fake news is all around us (Opinion, Jan. 18)
“Fake news” is a serious problem. The U.S. election results may well have been influenced by the proliferation of lies on social media.
But Tom Fletcher misses a critical point when he suggests that environmental groups and First Nations spread fake news when they oppose increasing investment in fossil fuels. Climate change is not fake news.
It’s not even news. Climate change is real, according to 97 per cent of the world’s scientists, many of whom have been warning of the dangers of global warming for more than a generation.
What has hindered political action on this long-known threat to humanity is the fake news promulgated by the wealthy oil and gas sector. These titans of industry have a vested interest in deceiving the public – they are protecting their source of wealth.
Some First Nations communities and all environmental groups, on the other hand, are more concerned about health: of communities, wild species, the ecosystem, public and planetary health.
In today’s world we all need to sharpen our analytical thinking skills to discern the truth. One way to do that is to ask what might be gained by promoting a particular point of view. Wealth? Or health?
I invite the News Mirror to do its part in promoting clear thinking by presenting a point of view which differs from Fletcher’s. Perhaps an editorial from a leading climate scientists on the reality of climate change, and the actions necessary to prevent global disaster.
Karyn Woodland
Metchosin
