Exxon conducted research on global climate since the 1970s and knew that CO2 could threaten life on earth. It is now being revealed by some of the research scientists involved that Exxon deliberately withheld important information from the public and Congress and knowingly launched a concerted campaign to discredit the science of climate change to protect their profits as the largest and most profitable corporation in the history of money.
Some leaders in Congress and beyond are calling for an official Justice Department investigation in accord with Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act — the legislation that was used to convict the tobacco companies of lying to the Congress and to the public about the cancer causing properties of tobacco.
http://ecoethics.net/2014-ENVRE120/20151101-EV&N-198-Link.html
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For further information about the long history of Exxon’s long history of deception see:
Transition Studies 