Bishop Hill Another Climategate investigation
Apr 30, 2010 Climate: Mann The headline today is the news that the Virginia attorney general has launched an investigation into Michael Mann's time at the University of Virginia.
In papers sent to UVA April 23, Cuccinelli’s office commands the university to produce a sweeping swath of documents relating to Mann’s receipt of nearly half a million dollars in state grant-funded climate research conducted while Mann— now director of the Earth System Science Center at Penn State— was at UVA between 1999 and 2005.
If Cuccinelli succeeds in finding a smoking gun like the purloined emails that led to the international scandal dubbed Climategate, Cuccinelli could seek the return of all the research money, legal fees, and trebled damages.
How many investigations have now been started as a result of Climategate? Here's the list:
- Science & Technology Select Committee
- CCE Emails
- Scientific Appraisal Panel
- Norfolk Police
- Commonwealth of Massachusetts
- Penn State University (now two separate investigations)
- State of Virginia
And how many of them had any meaningful interactions with sceptics? Arguably none so far. Although the select committee accepted evidence from sceptics, most of it seems to have been ignored. Sir Muir has also taken submissions from critics of the CRU, but at the moment one rather gets the impression that CRU will get to justify themselves to his panel after which things will be brought to a close.
Bishop Hill
And of course there's the UN investigation of the IPCC too. (H/T Stephen in the comments)
Reader Comments (62)
Jabba the Cat: "Lol...methinks that most of the upset with the AG, Ken Cuccinelli, stems from the fact that he is, horror of horrors, a Republican."
Nearly right I think.. it's that he's political. Republican or Democrat (which are both irrelevant to me, as I'm a Brit with American Facebook friends)doesn't matter, because it all comes out as political first, and judicial a perceivably poor second.
An investigation into Mann, as it should have been into Jones and the CRU, should have been judicial and it shouldn't be based on a loose claim of suspicion of financial malfeasance. There's a greater separation between politics and the justice system in the UK and outside of the House Of Lords, demonstrated political bias just isn't what's expected from those who have the power to decide who is prosecuted and who is not. I suspect most of those who aren't entirely supportive of Cuccinelli's move aren't American, and perceive the appropriate functioning of a judicial system differently. It's not political, it's apolitical, just as the science should be and just as the MSM should be.
@ Pete Hayes, my humble apologies to you! :o)
Well here we go, perhaps another brick out of the wall….unless the bricklayer and plasterer turn up to do a bit of pre inspection maintenance.
Keenan's on it. Under oath, the 'censored file'.
=================================
Why hypocrits? They don't like excessive gov't spending. They threw out the republican congress in 2006 for spending too much (you didn't think the democrats finally decided to vote, did you?), and they aren't about to change their minds about excessive gov't spending just because the democrats are now doing it. Unlike your facebook companions, teabaggers have been fairly consistent.
anon, are you confusing me with someone who actually gives a rats about the minutiae of ANY of US partisan he-said/she-did politics? I recognise and understand the compunction to try to lambast me for a "teabagger" reference made, as I explained, without knowing the extended sexual connotations therein - that sexual language may be some peoples', but it's not my native tongue. While an unfortunate error on my part, I'm not exactly feeling burdened to go and get myself a sexually explicit colloquial lexicon. After I apologised, I laughed. It was funny.
While it obviously matters a great deal to you and a few others (and it should, it's relevant to you), it doesn't matter to me one iota what the dems or repubs did in 2006 or since. I'm not American.
The Bish asked to draw a line under it. Let's do that.
SimonH:
Our host, His Grace, has asked us to kinda cut off something, but I'm not entirely sure what. You confess to being somewhat unfamiliar with US politics... but what we decide affects the world. I would submit that what the UK decides affects us. We can't be indifferent. If you would like to take your holiday here, in New England, one hour and forty minutes from New York (I can arrange discount Broadway tickets) I've got a BIG house, on the shore... July the third, a Saturday, should be fireworks day here.... you and yours are welcome to stay with us. His Grace has my permission to send you my e-mail address.
Many thanks, Robert! I should clarify that while I do of course acknowledge that the sharp end (arguably the blunt lump-hammer end) - or the net worth or product - of our politics have clear ramifications across the pond, and cause reverberations around the world. The domestic machinations and intricacies that form that bludgeoning effect, however, need not necessarily be less fuzzy to those of us farther afield until they form effective policy.
I believe firmly that we are all in the larger part responsible, individually, for the way others perceive us. I must bear the burden of perception for my own misguided textual error, just as more extreme politically agitated individuals (in all extremes) must bear the burden of the risible image they occasionally present.
I'm immensely grateful to you for your invitation. If my personal circumstances were different, I would certainly love to take you up on your offer, and offer the same. :)
Finally. There is something being done about these questionable activities these people and establishments are doing. Our tax money is finally working for us.
Eduard Dawson
Grant Forums
In my state it is a criminal offence to obtain a benefit or cause a detriment by dishonesty. I am sure that is the case in every jurisdiction. I understood the criticism of Cuccinelli's investigation to be based on a particular Virginia statute concerned with defrauding the government in certain specified ways.
As I see Mann's case, he has been plain dishonest, at least with the hockey stick, and caused a detriment at least to the Virginia taxpayers and gained an obvious benefit for himself.
Am I barking up the wrong tree ring here?
It doesn't have to be public funds if the allegation is based in the common law of deceit or a criminal code that derives from the common law. It can be anyone. Cuccinelli should just follow that line. If he does, I think he'd nail Mann.
JimB
I'm an ex-chemical engineer and a practising (unfortunately not retired) barrister. I thought I was the only one so crazy in the whole world.