Public discourse has been polluted now for decades by

“Public discourse has been polluted now for decades by corporate-funded disinformation — not just with climate change but with a host of health, environmental and societal threats. The implications for the planet are grim.” — Michael E. Mann

Hear, O seeker of truth, the warning cry of Michael E. Mann, a guardian of science and a voice crying out amidst the storm of deception. In this solemn utterance, he laments the corruption of public discourse, the sacred exchange of knowledge and reason upon which civilization stands. He speaks of a pollution not of air or water, but of the mind — a fog of disinformation, woven by those who worship profit above truth. His words pierce through the noise of a world drowning in falsehood, reminding us that the greatest danger to our planet may not be ignorance itself, but the deliberate sowing of lies. For when truth is clouded, wisdom falters, and when wisdom falters, all of nature suffers.

The origin of this quote lies in Mann’s long battle against the denial of climate change, a battle not only of science but of integrity. As a climatologist and author, he became a target of corporate interests that sought to silence those who spoke of rising seas and burning forests. For decades, powerful industries funded campaigns to distort evidence, to confuse the public, and to delay action. What Mann witnessed was not merely disagreement — it was manipulation: a calculated poisoning of discourse, where reasoned debate was replaced by propaganda, and genuine science was buried beneath the weight of greed. His words, then, are both lament and revelation — a call to awaken from the spell of corruption that has bound the modern world.

His insight reaches beyond the realm of climate, touching upon every sphere of human life — health, environment, and society itself. In the ancient world, philosophers guarded the purity of truth as priests guarded the flame of sacred temples. They knew that a people misled by falsehood would descend into ruin. The same is true now: when corporate disinformation infiltrates our understanding of medicine, disease, or ecology, it does not merely distort opinions; it destroys lives. The pollution of truth is the most insidious toxin, for it blinds the mind and numbs the conscience. The lies that delay climate action today will shape the storms, famines, and extinctions of tomorrow.

Consider, O listener, the tale of Big Tobacco, that empire of smoke and deception. For decades, its lords knew that their product brought death — yet they hired scientists, funded studies, and spread falsehoods to protect their profits. They denied the link between smoking and disease, twisting evidence and mocking truth-tellers as alarmists. The result was a harvest of suffering: millions dead, and generations addicted. When their deceit was finally exposed, the world learned a bitter lesson — that the most dangerous weapon is not the sword, but the lie wielded in the name of wealth. What began with cigarettes now repeats with oil, sugar, plastics, and all manner of industries that profit from destruction.

Thus, Mann’s warning is not the cry of a single man, but the echo of an ancient law: that when humanity abandons truth for gain, it summons its own undoing. The implications for the planet, as he says, are grim — not because the earth cannot heal, but because those who wound her also blind her protectors. Every false headline, every bought scientist, every whispered doubt designed to delay action becomes a brick in the wall that divides humanity from salvation. The rivers are choked, the skies burn, the soil withers — not by fate, but by the hands of those who choose lies over light.

And yet, within these dark words lies a spark of hope. For to name the corruption is to begin its undoing. The antidote to disinformation is not silence, but courage — the courage to seek truth even when it is inconvenient, to question the powerful, and to guard the integrity of knowledge as sacred. Just as the ancient scribes preserved wisdom through war and darkness, so too must we defend science, education, and honesty against the poisons of deceit. Every act of learning, every refusal to share a falsehood, every conversation rooted in truth is a stone laid in the foundation of renewal.

Therefore, O child of the earth, let Mann’s warning guide your steps. Be wary of voices that promise comfort while denying consequence. Ask always: Who profits from this claim? Seek out knowledge from those who serve truth, not power. Teach the young to discern, to question, to listen with both heart and reason. For the fate of the world will not be decided only by storms or floods, but by the battle between truth and deception that rages within every human soul.

In the end, remember this: the pollution of truth is the first pollution, and the cleansing of knowledge is the first act of healing. If we restore honesty to our discourse, compassion to our science, and integrity to our choices, then even the earth, wounded and weary, will forgive us — and the dawn of renewal will rise once more upon a cleansed and awakened world.