Reponsibility-Free American Views On Climate Change

Thick haze from western wildfire smoke obscures the view
 of Lake Champlain from St. Albans, Vermont this past 
August. The effects of climate change have far-reaching
effects, but many people still don't regard this as a problem.

Vice News has reported that though 70 percent of Americans think global warming is happening, but 45 percent say these changes are not caused by humans. 

That aspect of the polling by YouGov on behalf of Vice News, The Guardian and Covering Climate Now, to me is pretty depressing.

That 30 percent of us think climate change isn't happening flies in the face of what we see around us. 

There have always been weather disasters, of course, but the many, unprecedented heat waves, the relative shortage of intense cold waves, and the waves of incredible storms should be a clue that something is amiss.

The other key point from the polling is at least as dispiriting. Nearly half of people in the poll say that climate change is not being caused by humans. 

It's the classic deflect: I didn't cause it, so it's not my problem. Or any problem at all. 

That's obviously not to say that any individual is causing the bulk of climate change. That, of course, is silly. But we're all contributing to the problem.  I commute to work in my Toyota Tacoma, heat my house, use electricity from power sources that come in part from fossil fuels and I likely waste stuff to the detriment of the environment.

Like many people, I'm getting better at this, trying to drive less, recycling, composting and thinking of other ways to mitigate my carbon footprint. 

Awareness that we, as individuals are in our own tiny ways contributing to climate change is a useful motivator to do a little better and advocate for change. Just denying that we have a hand in it is just  personal get out of jail free card, if you will.

To be fair, the people responding to the poll who say that climate change is not caused by humans are the victims of gaslighting. They're being fed this bullcrap by the politicians and lobbyists and pundits who, for fun and especially profit, want them to believe that.  

The tribalism that is now endemic in our society has a lot to do with the results of this poll. About 55 percent of Republicans inaccurately say that climate change, if they think it exists, is originating from natural causes, not humans

"Hey, not my fault, you can't control Mother Nature," seems to be the ethos.

Of course, you can read at least some of these poll results and conclude the glass is half full, sort of.  People do seem cognizant that climate change is having an impact. Nearly 60 percent of respondents said climate change has already harmed people in the United States. (Just under 84 percent of Democrats agreed with that statement). 

Many people are also starting to take action. According to Vice:

"A majority of Americans say they're already flying and driving less, using less electricity at home and recycling. About half are also either already eating less meat or willing to do so, and nearly two-thirds support purchasing products from eco-friendly businesses."

Check out the full Vice article. It has a lot of interesting polling tidbits.