Plimer at the ABC

Ian Plimer was interviewed by the ABC’s “award-winning journalist” Matt Peacock. The subject was supposed to be Plimer’s new book How to Get Expelled From School.

The “interview” began like this:

MATT PEACOCK: To the geology professor and climate sceptic whose book, How to get expelled from School: A guide to climate change for pupils, parents and punters, was launched last night by the former prime minister John Howard.

Ian Plimer, Professor of Mining Geology at the University of Adelaide, claims that much of the concern about global warming’s the result of political activism, opportunism and is unrelated to science. But that’s not his only controversial view.

Professor Plimer also argues that white asbestos, known as chrysotile, is not really asbestos, and three years ago he even asserted that it was not a carcinogen.

It ended like this:

MATT PEACOCK: A final question, with respect Professor, have you ever taken any money from the coal industry or the asbestos industry or their lobbyists?

IAN PLIMER: Not at all. But have you, sir, ever taken any money from the tax payer? And that is what you are doing to paint an ideological picture which in most cases can be regarded as misleading and deceptive.

Read the "interview" here…

Why was Matt Peacock so interested in talking about asbestos? By a strange coincidence:

More recently he authored a book on the former Australian asbestos manufacturer James Hardie, “Killer Company” (HarperCollins, 2009), which is soon to become a dramatic mini-series.

Source: Matt Peacock’s website