--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There is basically no one not on the…" description: "\"There is basically no one not on the payroll of Exxon Mobil or coal companies who any longer contend that this is not something to worry about.\" — Bill..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e62/bill-mckibben-1057_coal_there-is-basically-no-one-not-on-the-pay_274111.jpg" --- # There is basically no one not on the payroll of Exxon… ![“There is basically no one not on the payroll of Exxon Mobil or coal companies who any longer contend that this is not something to worry about.” quote by Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e62/bill-mckibben-1057_coal_there-is-basically-no-one-not-on-the-pay_274111.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e62/bill-mckibben-1057_coal_there-is-basically-no-one-not-on-the-pay_274111.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e62/bill-mckibben-1057_coal_there-is-basically-no-one-not-on-the-pay_274111.jpg) > “There is basically no one not on the payroll of Exxon Mobil or coal companies who any longer contend that this is not something to worry about.” [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote highlights how corporate influence has co-opted climate discourse, making denial rare among those tied to fossil‑fuel interests. **In simple terms:** Corporate ties silence climate concerns. Key Takeaway Recognize and challenge corporate bias. Themes environment corporate power climate denial media influence Mood critical concerned Type activist analytical When to use this quote - policy advocacy - public awareness campaigns - journalistic investigation Key Concepts conflict of interest greenwashing political economy Questions to Reflect On - How do corporate ties shape public narratives? - What can individuals do to expose bias? A Different Perspective The statement may overgeneralize and ignore independent scientists who dissent. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Company](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/company/) [Worry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worry/) ## Related quotes > [This is a very practical discussion about the fact that one of the largest coal companies in the world, Adani, wants to build one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-brandis/this-is-a-very-practical-discussion-about-the-fact-that-one-of-the/) [George Brandis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-brandis/) > [“New Rule: Coal companies have to stop calling coal "energy." That's like a lumber company calling wood "fire." Or Budweiser calling beer "urine." Okay,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-maher/new-rule-coal-companies-have-to-stop-calling-coal-energy-that-s-like/) [Bill Maher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-maher/) > [...Senate Doc. # 259. The 65th congress(:)...The coal companies made between 100% and 7,856% on their capital stock during the war (to end all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/smedley-butler/senate-doc-259-the-65th-congress-the-coal-companies-made-between-100/) [Smedley Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/smedley-butler/) > [“Because it’s Appalachia. The coal companies are destroying our mountains, towns, culture, and lives, and it’s not a story.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grisham/because-it-s-appalachia-the-coal-companies-are-destroying-our/) [John Grisham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grisham/) > [I'm the only candidate which has a policy about how to bring economic opportunity - using clean, renewable energy as the key - into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/i-m-the-only-candidate-which-has-a-policy-about-how-to-bring-economic/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [From the industry's point of view, the problem is not that coal companies blast the top off mountains, turning the area into a moonscape…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-goodell/from-the-industry-s-point-of-view-the-problem-is-not-that-coal/) [Jeff Goodell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-goodell/) > [Coal companies have a lot of power in the media, and unfortunately a lot of information doesn't get out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-richardson/coal-companies-have-a-lot-of-power-in-the-media-and-unfortunately-a/) [Kevin Richardson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-richardson/) > [The Environmental Protection Agency rarely follows up prosecuting coal companies and their fellow polluters, even when the evidence is clear-cut that they are dumping…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzy-shuster/the-environmental-protection-agency-rarely-follows-up-prosecuting/) [Suzy Shuster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzy-shuster/) > [“Well, coal companies create a lot of problems, most of them anyway. There are a couple of decent ones, but most care nothing about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grisham/well-coal-companies-create-a-lot-of-problems-most-of-them-anyway/) [John Grisham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grisham/) > [“So why do these guys hate your guts?” “Because they believe strip-mining is a good thing. It provides jobs, and there are few jobs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grisham/so-why-do-these-guys-hate-your-guts-because-they-believe-strip-mining/) [John Grisham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grisham/) > [I think the world on the other side of fossil fuel is more local - the logic of sun and wind is diffuse and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/i-think-the-world-on-the-other-side-of-fossil-fuel-is-more-local-the/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [I am not a great fan of the payroll tax holiday because I'm nervous about what it does to the future of Social Security.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/i-am-not-a-great-fan-of-the-payroll-tax-holiday-because-i-m-nervous/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) > [Timing is everything. Tell me how a young man spends his evenings and I will tell you how far he is likely to go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-c-forbes/timing-is-everything-tell-me-how-a-young-man-spends-his-evenings-and/) [B. C. Forbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-c-forbes/) > [“The big change has been in the hardware/software cost ratio. The buyer of a $2-million machine in 1960 felt that he could afford $250,000…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-p-brooks-jr/the-big-change-has-been-in-the-hardware-software-cost-ratio-the-buyer/) [Frederick P. Brooks Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-p-brooks-jr/) > [The big story now is that President Bush is coming under attack for his service in the National Guard. The White House said, 'no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-leno/the-big-story-now-is-that-president-bush-is-coming-under-attack-for/) [Jay Leno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-leno/) ## More by Bill McKibben > [I try not to be either optimistic or pessimistic. I try not to think about outcomes on that scale. My job, it seems to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/i-try-not-to-be-either-optimistic-or-pessimistic-i-try-not-to-think/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [Oil companies are radical because they're willing to alter the chemical composition of the atmosphere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/oil-companies-are-radical-because-they-re-willing-to-alter-the/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [Whenever anyone challenges anything, the powers that be try to paint them as extremists or radicals or whatever. And I think that's actually nonsense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/whenever-anyone-challenges-anything-the-powers-that-be-try-to-paint/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [My guess is that liberating the fossil fuel industry to frack anywhere they want will drive down the rate at which we're converting to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/my-guess-is-that-liberating-the-fossil-fuel-industry-to-frack/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [What makes us different? We're the creature that can decide not to do something that we are capable of doing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/what-makes-us-different-we-re-the-creature-that-can-decide-not-to-do/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [“The snow was coming down so hard. It looked like the flakes were hurrying to get out of the sky so the next ones…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/the-snow-was-coming-down-so-hard-it-looked-like-the-flakes-were/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [Most of the men and women who vote in Congress each year to continue subsidies have taken campaign donations from big energy companies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/most-of-the-men-and-women-who-vote-in-congress-each-year-to-continue/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [“I’ve sat behind a microphone and listened for decades as Americans learned to stop talking with each other and start shouting instead. No discussions,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/i-ve-sat-behind-a-microphone-and-listened-for-decades-as-americans/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [People in low-lying countries like Bangladesh with almost 140 million people who are managing to feed themselves, whose carbon emissions can't really be calculated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/people-in-low-lying-countries-like-bangladesh-with-almost-140-million/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [We're putting more carbon into the atmosphere than the atmosphere can absorb. And everybody told us when we started, coz we knew nothing when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/we-re-putting-more-carbon-into-the-atmosphere-than-the-atmosphere-can/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [Everything that the administration has done has been counterproductive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/everything-that-the-administration-has-done-has-been-counterproductive/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [We use the web to help people organize in the flesh, and then we take the images of those events and put them back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/we-use-the-web-to-help-people-organize-in-the-flesh-and-then-we-take/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [everyone knows, at some level, that the sharp line between "good weather" and "bad weather" is a fiction, that we need rain as surely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/everyone-knows-at-some-level-that-the-sharp-line-between-good-weather/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [The thing about global warming is that you can address it on a great number of levels - in fact you have to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/the-thing-about-global-warming-is-that-you-can-address-it-on-a-great/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) > [Where people aren't as deeply reliant on fossil fuel as in the United States, it's far easier for them to imagine change on this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/where-people-aren-t-as-deeply-reliant-on-fossil-fuel-as-in-the-united/) [Bill McKibben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) [Explore all 299 Bill McKibben quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/) ## More Coal quotes > [Assuming normal winter weather, we currently anticipate the coal markets to remain difficult through 2015; while we always strive to operate a full capacity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-craft/assuming-normal-winter-weather-we-currently-anticipate-the-coal/) [Joe Craft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-craft/) > [Coal lay in ledges under the ground since the Flood, until a laborer with pick and windlass brings it to the surface. We may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/coal-lay-in-ledges-under-the-ground-since-the-flood-until-a-laborer/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [The only difference between black coal and a precious diamond is the amount of pressure it endured.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-osteen/the-only-difference-between-black-coal-and-a-precious-diamond-is-the/) [Joel Osteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-osteen/) > [In that sense, I became politicized because the people in the coal mining villages who were involved in the struggle knew why they were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-bragg/in-that-sense-i-became-politicized-because-the-people-in-the-coal/) [Billy Bragg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-bragg/) > [Dusty, dark, cold, and hard, coal has no beauty of its own, but when it is consummated by fire it is beautiful and becomes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederica-mathewes-green/dusty-dark-cold-and-hard-coal-has-no-beauty-of-its-own-but-when-it-is/) [Frederica Mathewes-Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederica-mathewes-green/) > [a TEN-YEAR-OLD lad in Indianapolis who was arrested for picking up coal along the side of railroad tracks is now in jail. If the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mother-jones/a-ten-year-old-lad-in-indianapolis-who-was-arrested-for-picking-up/) Mother Jones > [Coal is the moral choice, particularly for the developing world... The model for the world right now should be Australia. Australia gets it. Scientifically…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marc-morano/coal-is-the-moral-choice-particularly-for-the-developing-world-the/) Marc Morano > [Iron and coal dominated everywhere, from grey to black: the black boots, the black stove-pipe hat, the black coach or carriage, the black iron…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-mumford/iron-and-coal-dominated-everywhere-from-grey-to-black-the-black-boots/) [Lewis Mumford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-mumford/) > [I remember being very influenced by 'Taxi Driver', and also Tommy Lee Jones in 'Coal Miner's Daughter' a little bit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-rockwell/i-remember-being-very-influenced-by-taxi-driver-and-also-tommy-lee/) [Sam Rockwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-rockwell/) > [I have visited sweatshops, factories, and crowded slums. If I could not see it, I could smell it. The foundation of society is laid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/i-have-visited-sweatshops-factories-and-crowded-slums-if-i-could-not/) [Helen Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/) > [Shakespeare doesn't belong to the past. If his material is valid, it is valid now. It's like coal. The only meaningfulness of a piece…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-brook/shakespeare-doesn-t-belong-to-the-past-if-his-material-is-valid-it-is/) [Peter Brook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-brook/) > [Coal is My Worst Nightmare.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-chu/coal-is-my-worst-nightmare/) [Steven Chu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-chu/) > [America is the Saudi Arabia of coal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-duhigg/america-is-the-saudi-arabia-of-coal/) [Charles Duhigg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-duhigg/) > [“...those others - they're looking for trends - subjects to catch a spark - but I have you - a coal from God's altar…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-geddes/those-others-they-re-looking-for-trends-subjects-to-catch-a-spark-but/) [John Geddes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-geddes/) > [We're not going to be living in a world of abundant coal power in a hundred years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-chait/we-re-not-going-to-be-living-in-a-world-of-abundant-coal-power-in-a/) [Jonathan Chait](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-chait/) Browse all 720 Coal quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "There is basically no one not on the payroll of Exxon Mobil or coal companies who any longer contend that this is not something to worry about.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Bill McKibben" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/there-is-basically-no-one-not-on-the-payroll-of-exxon-mobil-or-coal/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Coal" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/there-is-basically-no-one-not-on-the-payroll-of-exxon-mobil-or-coal/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e62/bill-mckibben-1057_coal_there-is-basically-no-one-not-on-the-pay_274111.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e62/bill-mckibben-1057_coal_there-is-basically-no-one-not-on-the-pay_274111.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e62/bill-mckibben-1057_coal_there-is-basically-no-one-not-on-the-pay_274111.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“There is basically no one not on the payroll of Exxon Mobil or coal companies who any longer contend that…” — Bill McKibben", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Bill McKibben", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-mckibben/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "There is basically no one not...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/there-is-basically-no-one-not-on-the-payroll-of-exxon-mobil-or-coal/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-mckibben/there-is-basically-no-one-not-on-the-payroll-of-exxon-mobil-or-coal/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```