An Inconvenient Truth: Al Gore Sells Current TV to the Emir Of Fossil Fuels

Impact

Late last week it was announced that former Vice President Al Gore struck a deal to sell his television network, Current TV, to the Qatar-based network Al Jazeera. Despite the red flags that such a deal spawns, many in the media failed to explore the crucial elements that surround the sale, and decided to focus on Glenn Beck's rebuffed offer to buy the network instead.

Gore's decision to sell the network, alone, raises questions concerning the sincerity of his self-proclaimed ideologies. Especially when considering to whom he sold the company, Gore’s moral servitude can be questioned as well.

Al Jazeera, which was launched in 1996, is headquartered in Doha, Qatar and is funded by the Qatari government — more specifically, the Emir of Qatar, Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani. Since its inception, Al Jazeera has received criticism for its critical coverage of U.S. and Israel policies.

As described by the U.S. State Department, Qatar's "customs, laws and practices" are founded by "Islamic beliefs and tribal traditions," also known as Sharia Law. Of which, is a religious practice that is widely contested and seen as void of human rights, especially women's rights.

Qatar is also extremely homophobic, and the U.S. State Department has outlined the severity of the situation, stating that "homosexual activity is considered to be a criminal offense, and those convicted may be sentenced to lashings, a prison sentence, and/or deportation." Views that seem to heavily contradict the video that Gore released a few years back, which addressed and supported gay rights.

The country has even provided funding to known terrorist groups. Most recently, during a visit to the Gaza Strip, Emir Al-Thani pledged $400 million to the terrorist organization Hamas, which is responsible for countless terrorist attacks, especially in Israel.

Possibly the most surprising part of the whole ordeal, however, is the fact that Qatar is one of the world's largest exporters of oil, and is the largest exporter of liquefied natural gas. And anyone who has heard Al Gore's name outside of this article knows that he's a staunch defender of the environment and finds oil repulsive at best. The sale of Current TV to Al Jazeera is an inconvenient truth indeed.

Gore's pro-environment agenda is so extreme that he's even compared the global warming strife to the civil rights movement and has advocated for "fertility management" as a means of curbing the world's population and ultimately pollution.

Of course, when a $500 million deal is involved, disregarding the actions of your sugar daddy may be an easier task to overcome than one may think, even if it means overlooking the rights of many, selling out your beliefs, and parting ways dignity.