The New Climate War: the fight to take back our planet
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- Author：Michael E. Mann
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Summary
A world-leading expert exposes how fossil-fuel companies have waged a thirty-year campaign to blame individuals for climate change while taking no responsibility themselves， and offers guidance on what we must do now to reverse global warming。
Recycle。 Fly less。 Eat less meat。 These are some of the ways that we’ve been told we can save the planet。 But are individuals really to blame for the climate crisis？
Seventy-one per cent of global emissions come from the same 100 companies。 Companies that have spent the last 30 years using clever marketing techniques to place the responsibility for reversing climate change on individuals， whose actions — however well meaning — simply won’t be enough alone。 The result has been disastrous for our planet。
In The New Climate War， renowned scientist Michael E。 Mann argues that all is not lost。 He draws the battle lines between the people and the polluters — fossil-fuel companies， right-wing plutocrats， and petro-states — and outlines a plan for forcing our governments and corporations to wake up and make real change。
Recycle。 Fly less。 Eat less meat。 These are some of the ways that we’ve been told we can save the planet。 But are individuals really to blame for the climate crisis？
Seventy-one per cent of global emissions come from the same 100 companies。 Companies that have spent the last 30 years using clever marketing techniques to place the responsibility for reversing climate change on individuals， whose actions — however well meaning — simply won’t be enough alone。 The result has been disastrous for our planet。
In The New Climate War， renowned scientist Michael E。 Mann argues that all is not lost。 He draws the battle lines between the people and the polluters — fossil-fuel companies， right-wing plutocrats， and petro-states — and outlines a plan for forcing our governments and corporations to wake up and make real change。
Reviews
Anne-Marie Bonneau
，
I had trouble putting down Michael Mann's latest book。 Vested interests—the fossil fuel companies， their sham think tanks， well-funded lobbyists and bought politicians—can no longer deny that climate change is occurring and that burning fossil fuels drives it。 So， to keep the oil flowing and the money pouring in， they’ve moved onto more devious tactics， “an array of powerful Ds: disinformation， deceit， divisiveness， deflection， delay， despair-mongering， and doomism。” Mann explains how these vest I had trouble putting down Michael Mann's latest book。 Vested interests—the fossil fuel companies， their sham think tanks， well-funded lobbyists and bought politicians—can no longer deny that climate change is occurring and that burning fossil fuels drives it。 So， to keep the oil flowing and the money pouring in， they’ve moved onto more devious tactics， “an array of powerful Ds: disinformation， deceit， divisiveness， deflection， delay， despair-mongering， and doomism。” Mann explains how these vested interests use these tactics and how some well-meaning climate activists do as well。 Many people have written books on the climate crisis。 Some are reporters。 Some are businessmen。 I appreciated this one， not only because it is so well-written， but because a highly respected climate scientist wrote it。 。。。more
Robert
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The main point of this book is to rail against "climate inactivists"。Since straight up climate denial is becoming less common， the fight is now about what to do about it。 What we need are government polices， for example（1） Carbon pricing， so that goods and services which release more CO2 will cost more。（2） "Cap and Trade" which does the same thing as carbon pricing but in a more capitalist way。（3） Massive investments in electricity generation from renewable sources and then transitioning everyth The main point of this book is to rail against "climate inactivists"。Since straight up climate denial is becoming less common， the fight is now about what to do about it。 What we need are government polices， for example（1） Carbon pricing， so that goods and services which release more CO2 will cost more。（2） "Cap and Trade" which does the same thing as carbon pricing but in a more capitalist way。（3） Massive investments in electricity generation from renewable sources and then transitioning everything that uses fossil fuels to using electricity。But some of the challenges to getting these things passed are:Personal Responsibility Deflection: Putting all the blame on people's individual choices。 Things like calling for everyone to become vegan or to stop flying or shaming environmentally conscious celebrities for their carbon footprint。 This deflects focus from needed government policies and the companies that are actually profiting from polluting。Climate Dooming: Claiming that the climate is already ruined so there is no point in even trying。 There are a surprising number of people on the left who take this "apocalyptic" approach。 This depresses people and discourages them from taking any action。I liked that he highlighted the role of corporate astroturf campaigns and industry lobbyists。 A lot of the opposition is not organic。I also liked that his argument that we are making progress on reducing emissions despite how bad the situation may seem。 This is something that is not reported and I wish he had discussed this more。The only downside is that it felt like a bit of a rant at certain points。 Mann is obviously very passionate about this topic and felt personally aggrieved at all the attacks he gets and that annoyance definitely comes through。 。。。more
Stephen
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Whoever wrote the description of this book covered the ground well。 Prof Mann is a card-carrying climate scientist who encourages action and discourages despair。 Much of the book is about the categories of inactivists ranging from flat-earth denialists to jaded enviros who think there's nothing to fight for 。 Some wry lines: He memorably alludes to Tolkien in saying about the journalists and social media trolls who pick on Greta Thunberg and Alexandria Villasenor "the eye of Sauron is on these k Whoever wrote the description of this book covered the ground well。 Prof Mann is a card-carrying climate scientist who encourages action and discourages despair。 Much of the book is about the categories of inactivists ranging from flat-earth denialists to jaded enviros who think there's nothing to fight for 。 Some wry lines: He memorably alludes to Tolkien in saying about the journalists and social media trolls who pick on Greta Thunberg and Alexandria Villasenor "the eye of Sauron is on these kids。" 。。。more
CorinneLea
，
This book is full of passion and facts， but it does seem a bit biased。 While it does bring up the whole world should be working on the climate crisis， it focuses a lot on American politics。 While it did have a lot of good information， the author kind of seems very full of himself。
Colette Marie McLaughlin
，
Climatologist Mann's informative， readable， hopeful book focused upon the urgency and agency necessary to mitigate the trajectory of climate change。 The author thoughtfully explains and supports with authoritative research why the Hockey Stick Graph does not mean life on earth is doomed。 Mann cautiously maintains that climate change described by the statistical multi-proxy model within his co-authored 1998 paper， "Global-scale temperature patterns and climate forcing over the past six centuries" Climatologist Mann's informative， readable， hopeful book focused upon the urgency and agency necessary to mitigate the trajectory of climate change。 The author thoughtfully explains and supports with authoritative research why the Hockey Stick Graph does not mean life on earth is doomed。 Mann cautiously maintains that climate change described by the statistical multi-proxy model within his co-authored 1998 paper， "Global-scale temperature patterns and climate forcing over the past six centuries" can be abated。 He posits governmental intervention is needed for systematic change to the trajectory that his model predicted。 。。。more
Mysteryfan
，
I picked this up after I'd seen Michael Mann discussing climate change with Kim Stanley Robinson。 It's extremely good at discussing some of the myths that have grown up around climate change。 Individual effort is helpful but the large business polluters are that ones that have to change their ways。 He's quite good at analyzing the politics of deflection that enable corporations to set the terms of the discussion。 I picked this up after I'd seen Michael Mann discussing climate change with Kim Stanley Robinson。 It's extremely good at discussing some of the myths that have grown up around climate change。 Individual effort is helpful but the large business polluters are that ones that have to change their ways。 He's quite good at analyzing the politics of deflection that enable corporations to set the terms of the discussion。 。。。more
Scott
，
I try to read every important book on climate change， and this is clearly an important book。 There are vast areas where I completely agree with Michael on。 He spends a lot of time passionately arguing that we cannot let opponents divide us。。。 and then he complains that Bill Gates is too techno-centric， and that David Wallace-Wells is too much of a doomist。 It definitely felt like driving on the freeway， where everyone driving faster than you is a nut and anyone driving slower than you is way too I try to read every important book on climate change， and this is clearly an important book。 There are vast areas where I completely agree with Michael on。 He spends a lot of time passionately arguing that we cannot let opponents divide us。。。 and then he complains that Bill Gates is too techno-centric， and that David Wallace-Wells is too much of a doomist。 It definitely felt like driving on the freeway， where everyone driving faster than you is a nut and anyone driving slower than you is way too timid。 I just had a really hard time reconciling these viewpoints。 I really liked Bill Gates' latest book， and I _so_ wanted Bill to be acknowledged by Michael as an important voice to listen to。 But， no， Michael doesn't seem to respect him much。 Anyway。。。 this book has important suggestions for being practical in our response to climate change。 I do recommend it。 Read it！ Just， don't get caught up in Michael's arguments against others who are concerned about climate change。 。。。more
Marcelo Ardon
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I really enjoyed this book。 However I do wish there was less Twitter conversation recaps。
Jim Witkins
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3。5 - useful overview of the tactics being used by fossil fuel interests and their political allies to divide us and delay climate action。 （The in-activists） Offers big picture， science based， political reforms to tackle the climate challenge and remake a healthier， more just world。
Paul
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I found this a constant mix of enlightening discussion and frustrating waffle。 There is much to take away in arguments for particular policy solutions to climate change。 However， it also reads as super-defensive， needlessly antagonistic， and at times condescending and hypocritical。 Mann has no time for people who disagree with him on any point， particularly if they are at all on the left of the political spectrum。 If you agree with anybody who disagrees with him， e。g。 you see a link between clim I found this a constant mix of enlightening discussion and frustrating waffle。 There is much to take away in arguments for particular policy solutions to climate change。 However， it also reads as super-defensive， needlessly antagonistic， and at times condescending and hypocritical。 Mann has no time for people who disagree with him on any point， particularly if they are at all on the left of the political spectrum。 If you agree with anybody who disagrees with him， e。g。 you see a link between climate justice and social justice， you are either a shill for fossil fuels， a Russian bot， or as a last resort you could be a well meaning idiot。It’s also strange to read of the danger of identity politics （not at all defined） and outrage that somebody could accuse him of mansplaining。。。 shortly followed by an accusation of mansplaining of others who disagree with him。 Now the accusation may be true in both， one or neither of these cases， but without any contextualisation， it reads as hypocritical。Having said all that， I did get a lot from the discussion and get some good nuggets of info from a climate expert。 I’m definitely going to have to read a book from one of those pesky people who want social justice with their climate justice though to get the other side of the argument。 。。。more
Kerry
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Interesting insight into the state of the climate change "debate"。 This was written by an American climate scientist and it was very disturbing， but not surprising， how often Australia and particularly The Australian newspaper， featured at the centre of climate denialism and misinformation。 Another reminder that the Murdoch media is the greatest threat to science and democracy world wide。 This was an interesting and well researched text with lots of up to date information and happenings on this Interesting insight into the state of the climate change "debate"。 This was written by an American climate scientist and it was very disturbing， but not surprising， how often Australia and particularly The Australian newspaper， featured at the centre of climate denialism and misinformation。 Another reminder that the Murdoch media is the greatest threat to science and democracy world wide。 This was an interesting and well researched text with lots of up to date information and happenings on this vital issue。 Worth a look。 。。。more
Tomasz Onyszko
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Maybe I picked this one with wrong expectations thus three stars。 The book delivers its message however there is a lot of examples and discussions about specific people or even tweet exchanges to prove a point - it does prove a point but there is too much of it vs the actual message。 The references to specific documents， articles， people and discussion who said what makes it hard （for me） to go through first 30% of a book。 Author delivers a good overview of tactics and narratives which are targe Maybe I picked this one with wrong expectations thus three stars。 The book delivers its message however there is a lot of examples and discussions about specific people or even tweet exchanges to prove a point - it does prove a point but there is too much of it vs the actual message。 The references to specific documents， articles， people and discussion who said what makes it hard （for me） to go through first 30% of a book。 Author delivers a good overview of tactics and narratives which are targeted to divert attention by the industry from the problem or to switch the narrative to put the burden of the cost of change on the ordinary people。 Among it， it also discuss the current status of the efforts around replacing the fossil fuels and what might be done in this area。 I would gladly see replacing the references to discussions， people and tweets with more ideas and data around the problem， but that might be why I picked it up with a wrong expectations :） 。。。more
Brownguy
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Excellently researched， honest， and hopeful。 This book has been inspiring。
RRinDC
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Mann is a notable climatologist and geophysicist at Pennsylvania State University who has been long involved in climate issues， and is convinced that public policy--government action--is essential to address the problem。 I expected to find the the history of climate change research， data on climate change， and policy recommendations。 Instead， the book identifies the actors and funding sources for the information war surrounding the issue。 This media war frames the public understanding of climate Mann is a notable climatologist and geophysicist at Pennsylvania State University who has been long involved in climate issues， and is convinced that public policy--government action--is essential to address the problem。 I expected to find the the history of climate change research， data on climate change， and policy recommendations。 Instead， the book identifies the actors and funding sources for the information war surrounding the issue。 This media war frames the public understanding of climate change。 Mann identifies and refutes the arguments of climate change deniers。 He outlines the disinformation campaign waged by the fossil fuel industry to confuse the debate and slow the pace of change， listing their tactics as deceit， division， deflecting responsibility away from industry to individuals， delaying policy action， and promoting despair and defeatism。 Anyone who's read about litigation surrounding tobacco and cancer， or civil or women's rights will recognize these as the same tactics used to oppose change to address these issues。 It's an interesting book and an easy read， but desperately needs a good editor。 Much of what he said could have been said more concisely。 。。。more
Marion
，
I expected a different book， but am genuinely glad I read it。 It details the politics， actors and debates about climate-change and is not about climate-science per se。 This could have been a difficult "meta-read"， but was not。 It is a useful book。 Though I'm not sure I land on the same conclusions as Mann in every single question， his warnings about pitfalls in climate-debates are important。 The book is useful as a road-map when parsing through-， or responding to arguments。 Do NOT heed the inact I expected a different book， but am genuinely glad I read it。 It details the politics， actors and debates about climate-change and is not about climate-science per se。 This could have been a difficult "meta-read"， but was not。 It is a useful book。 Though I'm not sure I land on the same conclusions as Mann in every single question， his warnings about pitfalls in climate-debates are important。 The book is useful as a road-map when parsing through-， or responding to arguments。 Do NOT heed the inactivists。Recommended reading。 （When lifting the issue of nuclear power I am decidedly in the "Mann-camp"， not with Gates。 Bonus points :））。 。。。more
Ron Piovesan
，
I really wanted to like this book more。 There is a strong message here about the importance of confronting climate denialism and doomism， and Michael Mann is clearly on the forefront of responsible， fact based discussion on how to tackle the climate emergency。 But the book is repetitive and spends too much time outlining social media wars between all manner of climate commentators。 The core message of the book is important and needs to be heard， I just wish the writing and the substance of the b I really wanted to like this book more。 There is a strong message here about the importance of confronting climate denialism and doomism， and Michael Mann is clearly on the forefront of responsible， fact based discussion on how to tackle the climate emergency。 But the book is repetitive and spends too much time outlining social media wars between all manner of climate commentators。 The core message of the book is important and needs to be heard， I just wish the writing and the substance of the book itself was better presented。 。。。more
Michael O'Hara
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A very clear and cogent account of the battles between the people and organizations arguing for action on climate change and those forces working for denial， delay and diversion written by a person who has been on the front lines of this war for a long time。 The reader will learn much about how and why this conflict was created， the personalities involved and the techniques used。 I recommend the book to anyone who has taken this problem seriously and wants to help our species deal with it。
Adam
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Although the author is a scientist， this book is mainly an overview of the politics of climate change， with a focus on the tactics employed by those who oppose the large scale action needed to address the crisis， and how to take them on。
Mike
，
If you want to be serious about actually helping the planet read this book！ Follow Michael E。 Mann on twitter @MichaelEMann Make use of some of his favorite resources like skepticalscience。com@CliimateNexus，@TheDailyClimate@InsideClimate@GuardianEcoOther resources that I like:https://www。desmogblog。comhttps://www。realclimate。orghttp://theconsensusproject。com If you want to be serious about actually helping the planet read this book！ Follow Michael E。 Mann on twitter @MichaelEMann Make use of some of his favorite resources like skepticalscience。com@CliimateNexus，@TheDailyClimate@InsideClimate@GuardianEcoOther resources that I like:https://www。desmogblog。comhttps://www。realclimate。orghttp://theconsensusproject。com 。。。more
Carrie Jensen
，
I love the message - hopeful and pragmatic！ That being said， I feel like the second half of the book rambled on a bit too long and went on and on about particular tweets， which while they may have been relevant to the argument， they also got to be a bit tedious。 I think this could have been edited down a bit， but overall the message was a good one。
Grant
，
I’m glad Michael has spent a good portion of this book covering the problem of nihilism and the doomer mentality although it’s drawing a long bow to call Assange a strong part of Russian propaganda and some of the political tales are a little off。 Overall this book is still very much vital to read。
Anita
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This is a brilliant and extremely useful critique and expose of the language and constructs used by those that are opposed to fighting the war to take back the planet。 This book exposes the methods used by climate change deniers ie disinformation， deception， deflection， downplays， and doomsayers。 Mann believes that with the current unprecedented extreme weather plus the obvious impact of a worldwide epidemic， together with the collapse of climate change denial arguments that we are in a moment w This is a brilliant and extremely useful critique and expose of the language and constructs used by those that are opposed to fighting the war to take back the planet。 This book exposes the methods used by climate change deniers ie disinformation， deception， deflection， downplays， and doomsayers。 Mann believes that with the current unprecedented extreme weather plus the obvious impact of a worldwide epidemic， together with the collapse of climate change denial arguments that we are in a moment where we have an unprecedented opportunity to change the course of human history。 。。。more
Hanno
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I really enjoyed the book。 It offers many good talking points and provides a much needed reality check。 I would have preferred more scientific facts and fewer twitter quotes。
Matthew
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Quite simply one of the best books I've read about climate change -- far from the usual hodgepodge of doom， gloom， and statistics it's an easy to read， systematic look at the problem and what needs to be done。 As the longtime climate scientist points out， we have all the tools we need to succeed -- we often just lack the political will to implement them。 But even that's changing， as he warns of the danger of climate deniers is passing but a new danger is emerging the "climate doomers" those who Quite simply one of the best books I've read about climate change -- far from the usual hodgepodge of doom， gloom， and statistics it's an easy to read， systematic look at the problem and what needs to be done。 As the longtime climate scientist points out， we have all the tools we need to succeed -- we often just lack the political will to implement them。 But even that's changing， as he warns of the danger of climate deniers is passing but a new danger is emerging the "climate doomers" those who argue that problem has become so intractable that there's no reason to do anything。 Part of his dangerous D's: disinformation， deceit， divisiveness， deflection， delay， despair-mongering， and doomism。 He also warns of the danger of well meaning groups with laudable aims attempting to bootstrap their hope for systemic change onto climate legislation as in certain aspects of the Green New Deal。 Highly recommend！！！ 。。。more
Archy O
，
Too many tweets and not enough structure The first portion of this book does an excellent job summarizing the history of the environmental movement and drawing parallels between the fossil fuel lobby and other malevolent corporations。 The second half， however， is rather rambling。 There’s far too many verbatim quotes of Tweets that the author thinks are interesting， and a few recurring authorial tics （« if this sounds like。。。。 that's because it is。。。 »） which detract from the force of the argumen Too many tweets and not enough structure The first portion of this book does an excellent job summarizing the history of the environmental movement and drawing parallels between the fossil fuel lobby and other malevolent corporations。 The second half， however， is rather rambling。 There’s far too many verbatim quotes of Tweets that the author thinks are interesting， and a few recurring authorial tics （« if this sounds like。。。。 that's because it is。。。 »） which detract from the force of the argument。 The author rather crudely transitions from a chapter on why environmentalists ought to stick together and not split hairs to a chapter on why he vehemently disagrees with several fairly mainstream ideas in energy and climate science （carbon capture， nuclear power）。 I was hoping for a more deft handling of this tension between an inclusive and decisive climate movement。 。。。more
Wouter
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Zet vooral in op verschillen in klimaatbeweging en te weinig op de collectieve actie die nodig is。
John S Sadowsky
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Disappointing - Gates' book is much better。Michael Mann has certainly been at the center of past climate wars。 I soundly agree with his thesis that denialism is largely dead （although it stubbornly persists with far too much of the Republican base and right-wing media） and has been replaced by "inactivism。" I agree with much of what he has written。 However， none of this is news。 This is just a political rant。 Unfortunately， Mann doesn't give us much about how to actually achieve the zero-carbon Disappointing - Gates' book is much better。Michael Mann has certainly been at the center of past climate wars。 I soundly agree with his thesis that denialism is largely dead （although it stubbornly persists with far too much of the Republican base and right-wing media） and has been replaced by "inactivism。" I agree with much of what he has written。 However， none of this is news。 This is just a political rant。 Unfortunately， Mann doesn't give us much about how to actually achieve the zero-carbon goal。 OK， the political rant has its place， but people who are actually interested in solutions should look elsewhere。After reading Mann's book， some friends asked me what I thought of Bill Gates' recent book "How to Avoid a Climate Disaster。" I initially regurgitated what Mann had written， mostly unflattering， about Gates。 In one sentence in a section entitled "Let Them Burn Coal，" Mann equates Bill Gates with Rex Tillerson。 In a wildly audacious statement， Mann writes "It's the tendency for members of a particular， privileged demographic group （primarily middle-aged， almost exclusively white men） to think they can just swoop in， surf the Internet， interview a few hand-selected "experts，" and solve the great problems that others have spent decades unable to crack。 It is almost inevitable that the product， in the end， is a hot mess， consisting of fatally bad takes and misguided framing couched in deeply condescending mansplaining。 On climate change， we've seen it with Bill Gates， Nate Silver， and Michael Moore。" I suspect Moore deserves this。 I don't know about Silver's positions。 Having read Gates' book， I can say unambiguously that this does not even remotely describe Mr。 Gates。 （And， hey， I'm a hardcore Mac guy！）And what good does this do？ Both Mann and Gates agree on immediate urgency。 We need to electrify transportation and manufacturing as much as quickly as possible。 We need to decarbonize are rebuild a smart electric grid。 Both strongly agree that renewables （wind， solar， geothermal & hydro） are cost-effective and will get us a long way down the road to a zero-carbon future （which should be obvious to anybody paying attention）。 But are renewables enough？ Mann has little to offer on this important question。 Gates gives us a sober sector-by-sector assessment。Take Carbon Capture （CC）， for example， often panned because of its association with "Clean Coal" （the all-time winner in the oxymoron category）。 Of course， CC is a stupid idea for resurrecting coal。 It doesn't make coal clean， and renewables are cheaper！ However， as Gates points out， we don't have any zero-carbon solutions to manufacture cement， steel， and other materials， so CC will likely have an important role in manufacturing。 How does Mann expect to build that new smart-grid infrastructure without a LOT of carbon-intensive steel and concrete？ - He doesn't say。The Gates book is full of technical details and facts， and he is investing his billions in solutions。 Gates prioritizes solutions by calculating their green premium - the percentage cost increase for a zero-carbon alternative to business-as-usual fossil fuel。 That is extremely important to understand。 Today， solar and wind have a near-zero green premium， so yes - deploy， deploy， deploy！ But roughly half the transportation sector will be difficult or impossible to electrified （large trucks， ships， and planes）。 That requires zero-carbon liquid fuels， which currently have a huge green premium。 Gates rightly tells us we need to expand our R&D efforts to bring down those premiums down to the point that they are economically deployable on a global scale。 That's how we priorities climate actions！ That's smart investing。Is that what Mann means by a "hot mess， consisting of fatally bad takes and misguided framing couched in deeply condescending mansplaining"？ Really？ So， the climate scientists lecture the businessman on investing。 Just who is doing the mansplaining here？ 。。。more
Matt Heavner
，
Great and important。 If you are already "elbow deep" in Climate （science and/or policy） this is a well organized status update。 If you aren't "elbow deep" （why not！？！） this is a great intro/overview。 Great and important。 If you are already "elbow deep" in Climate （science and/or policy） this is a well organized status update。 If you aren't "elbow deep" （why not！？！） this is a great intro/overview。 。。。more
Lynsey Sharp
，
Mann discusses climate change denialism， deflection， and doomism， outlining how all of these ideas and their accompanying rhetoric are hindering our ability to take concrete action and make broad changes （meaning not just on an individual level， but at a societal level） that will help prevent further damage to our environment。
Debjeet
，