Earth Day at the Varsity

Take Back Our Democracy, a Davis based activist group speaking up for people’s rights over corporate 

interests, will observe Earth Day at the Varsity. There will be a special showing of “Greedy Lying 

Bastards” (GLB) at 11 AM, Saturday April 27 with admission at $7 across the board. Following the film, 

we will meet at Mishka’s Café for those who would like to discuss the ideas of the film and, possibly, 

take action. 

GLB is a documentary of the role of oil tycoons in casting doubt on the substantial scientific data on 

global warming. Such doubts are obviously self serving; they are protecting their profits. 

The oil industry is following the prototype of the tobacco companies. Tobacco’s consistent denial of 

medical/epidemiologic evidence, misleading advertising (aka “free speech”) and gagging of opposing ads 

from public health contributed to and still continues to contribute to millions of preventable deaths and 

disabilities every year worldwide (CDC 12/18/2012). 

The reviews of GLB are that its point of view is unmistakable; but that’s clear just from the title. 

Importantly, however, there are no comments of factual inaccuracies. 

This film comes at a critical time as the proposed route of the Keystone XL pipeline through the US is 

being debated and as California is about to embark on violently extracting large stores of natural gas

throughout the state. These two massive projects will make fossil fuels abundant and, depending on 

price manipulation, possibly cheap. They will also decrease the incentive to grow renewable energy.

They will accelerate global warming by releasing huge amounts of carbon dioxide and methane. Carbon 

dioxide is the end result of burning fossil fuels. The largest sources of methane are natural gas and 

petroleum industries. Carbon dioxide and especially methane are greenhouse gasses that trap solar heat 

and thus decrease or prevent its reflection back into space. These are inherent chemical/physical 

properties that cannot be argued away.

So on this Earth Day, please join us in recognizing the lies that greedy oil tycoons propagate and the 

consequences of their lies. We cannot continue to run this country for the benefit of corporations.