Alan Caruba

{{denialism|1}}{{bronze}}
'''Alan Caruba''' {{lived|1937|2015}} was a [[public relations|PR man]], freelance writer, and [[wingnut]] [[crank]]. He ran the "Caruba Organization," a PR firm, and the "National Anxiety Center," a [[think tank]], both of which were basically just himself recycling his old material.

==National Anxiety Center==
The National Anxiety Center's mission, in its own words:

{{cquote|The original purpose was to debunk the many claims made by environmental and consumer organizations that were engaged in deliberately false, media-driven [[Scare story|scare campaigns]]. Since purposefully raising fear and anxiety over various issues is the main weapon used by various special interest groups, the Center was named for this practice and exists to refute it.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20020605191108/http://anxietycenter.com/about.htm National Anxiety Center about page]</ref>}}

This translates to [[denial]] of just about every [[anti-environmentalism|environmental problem of the past fifty years]]. [[DDT]]? We need more! [[Rachel Carson]]? [[Reductio ad Hitlerum|An environmental Hitler.]] [[Acid rain]]? Doesn't exist. Hole in the [[ozone layer]]? [[Environmentalism|Greenie]] blatherskite. Endangered species? Hey, species went extinct before humans even existed! [[Global warming]]? One of the greatest [[hoax]]es in history! [[Coal]]? Burn more of it! [[Peak oil]]? Doomsday [[fear-mongering]] nonsense. We've got [[abiotic oil]]!<ref group=note>[[Poe's Law|Yes, much of the site really does read like a parody.]]</ref>

For all of the outlandish claims, Caruba didn’t even provide much original material at the National Anxiety Center. Most of the information on the site is recycled from denialist think tanks like the [[Heartland Institute]] and the [[Competitive Enterprise Institute]] and "journalists" like [[James Delingpole]].

===Don't be scared. Be very scared!===
Despite [[psychological projection|wailing about the supposed fear-mongering]] of the nutty greenies, Caruba himself took a [[black helicopters]] approach to just about every issue. He promoted all aspects of the [[global warming conspiracy theory]] ([[Climategate]], of course, is the smoking gun), which in turn, is all part of a massive [[communist|commie]] plot by the [[United Nations]]. He also believed [[public education]] is part of this vast [[conspiracy theory|conspiracy]] (although, in [[stopped clock]] mode, he did slam schools for focusing too much on rote memorization instead of comprehension). He also really [[Racism|hated]] [[Mexicans]] and [[Islamophobia|Muslim]]s. According to Caruba, we must [[secure the border]] before [[illegal immigration]] destroys the fabric of our society, [[Islamofascism]] is just around the corner, and the [[UN]] is an enabler of the Muslims' secret plots. We must also be wary of the dreadful [[homosexual agenda]].

==Other activities==
Caruba was something of an acolyte of [[Robert W. Felix]], whose books and [[pseudoscience|pseudoscientific]] brand of [[catastrophism]] he promoted. Caruba frequently cross-posted to Felix's Ice Age Now site, which shorts out [[irony meter]]s as he whines about the "alarmism" of global warming proponents while predicting an imminent and likely catastrophic ice age.<ref>[http://factsnotfantasy.blogspot.com/2010/09/cassandra-says-it-will-get-very-cold.html Cassandra Says It Will Get Very Cold] at Warning Signs</ref>

He was also a semi-[[birther]]. He said he doesn't really care about the birth certificate as such but believed in the [[pseudolaw|pseudolegal]] theory that [[Barack Obama]] is not eligible to be president because his father was not a natural-born citizen.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20110430102613/http://www.themoralliberal.com/2011/04/28/things-i-dont-care-about/ Things I Don't Care About], Alan Caruba</ref>

His writings mostly appeared on fringe wingnut sites, largely [[Canada Free Press]], though he occasionally got some play in the bigger wingnut outlets like the [[Moonie Times]].<ref>[http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2010/oct/20/of-morons-and-put-ons/ Of Morons and Put-ons], Caruba in the Times</ref>

He also ran a spoof site called The Boring Institute.

==External links==
*Caruba-net:
**[http://factsnotfantasy.blogspot.com/ Warning Signs, his blog] (where the insanity spreaded from)
**[http://www.anxietycenter.com/ National Anxiety Center]
**[http://carubaeditorialservices.blogspot.com/ Caruba Editorial Services (Caruba Organization)]
**[https://web.archive.org/web/20100926142544/http://theboringinstitute.blogspot.com/ The Boring Institute]
**[http://www.canadafreepress.com/writers/alan-caruba.htm Profile and articles at ''Canada Free Press'']
**[http://www.google.com/custom?domains=www.iceagenow.com&q=Caruba&sa=Search&sitesearch=www.iceagenow.com&client=pub-1569921610551402&forid=1&ie=ISO-8859-1&oe=ISO-8859-1&cof=GALT%3A%23008000%3BGL%3A1%3BDIV%3A%23336699%3BVLC%3A663399%3BAH%3Acenter%3BBGC%3AE6E6E6%3BLBGC%3A336699%3BALC%3A0000FF%3BLC%3A0000FF%3BT%3A000000%3BGFNT%3A0000FF%3BGIMP%3A0000FF%3BFORID%3A1&hl=en Articles at Ice Age Now]
*[https://iji2.wordpress.com/2008/07/28/face-the-science-face-the-science/#more-388 Face the science... Face the science...] ''International Journal of Inactivism''
*[http://www.snopes.com/politics/soapbox/makebelieve.asp "Obama's Make-believe Life"], [[Snopes]]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20110413232600/http://www.agbdavis.com/2010/12/alan-caruba-bingo.html "Alan Caruba Bingo"], ''Anarchy is Hyperbole''
*[http://www.rightwingwatch.org/category/individuals/alan-caruba "Caruba" category at ''Right Wing Watch'']

==Notes==
{{reflist|group=note}}

==References==
{{reflist|2|80%}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Caruba, Alan}}
[[Category:Birtherism]]
[[Category:Bloggers]]
[[Category:Conspiracy theorists]]
[[Category:Crank magnetism]]
[[Category:Global warming denialists]]
[[Category:Homophobes]]
[[Category:Internet kooks]]
[[Category:Islamophobes]]
[[Category:Pseudoscience promoters]]
[[Category:Racists]]
[[Category:Right-wing activists]]
[[Category:War on science]]

Categories: Birtherism, Bloggers, Conspiracy theorists, Crank magnetism, Global warming denialists, Homophobes, Internet kooks, Islamophobes, Pseudoscience promoters, Racists, Right-wing activists, War on science