Only 12% of Americans in a new survey are "very worried" about global warming

First of all, when you see the words "the latest poll" always ask who paid for and carried out the poll.

We will have to change our entire consumerist way of life, or the Earth will change it for us.

Kitty Beer

author of the novels on climate change: What Love Can't Do and Human Scale

kittybeer.net

planetprospect.blogspot.com

Be wary of any environmental information, especially global warming, coming out of George Mason University, as David Koch of Koch Industries and other conservatives wield undue influences there. Koch is on the Board of Directors and is a known polluter who has killed more people than the current wars.

G., Thomas Farmer, Ph.D.

As mentioned above polls are easily swayed by wording. This is something they even teach in marketing classes! Although I must say, if this poll is accurate that it is shocking to say the least that less people would believe in global warming. Makes you wonder what changed?

Quote:

Originally Posted by QTgogreen 

More depressing news!

I'm not surprised, though. In a recent survey by Yale University's Project on Climate Change of 1,001 American adults, a majority of adults (>50%) in the nation understand that many activities commonly considered "environmentally friendly" ( recycling, re-use shopping bags, biking/walking ect.) are actions that are somehow important. However, very few follow through on a majority of the activities included in the survey. 

This shows that a majority of Americans don't care about protecting the environment. (It also shows that we are very lazy!) 

Whoa - just because people don't agree that climate change is man made, doesn't mean they don't carry about the environment or are lazy. Quite a number of people I know have put their money where their mouth is in the building industry and have done great practical thing to move the industry into a less consumptive  place yet totally deny climate change as the media sees it. Granted many of them are older and have a longer perspective on life. My point is that doing great things for the environment is more important than agreeing with one philosophy. 

I'd say that this isn't a serious issue though.  The reason I say this is that the Growth of China, India, Pakistan, Brazil etc has pretty much put pay to any changes we've made.  However, as an Environmentalist, I'd say the glass is half full and the changes we've made have off-set environmental damage caused by the Growth of the aforementioned Countries.

As for the changes in people's perception of Global Warming, I would also put this down to the recent spat in the Sun's activity, which has resulted in short term global cooling and as a result, some short term stabilizing of the world's weather (amazingly coincided with Global Economic downturn).  Believe that this is now over and we should see a return to wild weather patterns and higher temperatures (no more snow in the UK this year).  Interestingly, the global outlook has revealed no correlation between energy consumption and economic downturn (something that was previously directly linked in prior recessions)- hence the continual hike in global fuel prices. 

I would just add that people also are motivated to worry about things that they cannot deny - it's human nature.  So for some, if it's possible to deny the existance of global warming - especially when mountains of cash are pouring in from those who want to promote this denial - denial it will be.  Other things are more obvious and less deniable. 

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My blog - Renewable Home Energy Options

Part of the issue is that too many people have proclaimed that global warming has caused every weather ill recently experienced (too hot, too cold, too wet, too dry, etc.).  Also, after every weather episode, like hurricane Katrina, come forcasts that this is "the new normal" and to expect conditions to resemble this every year.  The problem with these proclamations is that these are rare occurrance, and when the "new normals" fail to materialize, people lose confidence in these and other predictions.  When Barack Obama campaigned in 2007, he said that global warming was causing states like New Hampshire to lose jobs due to a shorter ski season.  Amazing what just a few winters have done.  The problem is that global warming was oversold.  Global warming does not cause every weather ill, and many of the proclamations will not occur for a century or more, if ever.

If anyone do "not worried" global warming, please visit Hong Kong in summer.  Face it directly...air pollution, green house effect, very hot... we are losing winter

That's why no progress is being made to curb emissions; not enough people believe the facts.

Maybe when half the planet is in drought or burning, and the other half is under water, they might get a clue.