Pretty optimistic, neh? Well let's dig a bit deeper (like the eternal cynic that I am). 83% said lifestyle changes will definitely OR probably be necessary. In fact, only 46% said that lifestyle changes will definitely be necessary. Oh details, how slick you are. Sorry for being pessimistic but saying lifestyle changes will "probably" be necessary when no exact figures or examples are given is like saying, "yeah we'll deal with it when we have to...and then we'll make a big fuss about it." Given climate change, which indicates that our lives are out of balance with nature pretty much means that we're going to have to change or be changed. Thinking about hybrid cars versus gasoline cars is a lifestyle change. Buying more efficient lightbulbs is a lifestyle change. Walking more and driving less is a lifestyle change. Come on, who do these people think are going to make the difference? It'd be like everyone sitting on the couch ravenously watching Reality shows on TV and then wondering why the big, evil corporations keep showing the crap... oh wait, I think that may be a little bit too true already.
The Earth isn't magically going to become greener because we wish it. Sure, some people (who actually care) will come up with some nifty energy-saving or waste reduction ways, but none of it is going to be technological silver bullet that slays the beast of our energy-hog lifestyles. This is my number one frustration with people: they see an article about how some family in Northern California doesn't have an energy bill because of solar panels on their roof and then they want solar. And when we assess their energy usage and see that they're hitting 9 kW peak when they can only fit 3-4 kW (for $30-50k, I might add) on their roof, they begin to doubt solar. First, stop setting your AC to 60 during the day while you're at work, and then we'll start talking (As a side note, I never understood why it's such a pain for people to bear the 10 minutes that it takes for the AC to kick in when they get home from work... have some perspective, really).
Well digging even further into the full report, we see that the U.S. has the fourth (out of 21) most people that believe changes won't be necessary. Furthermore, only 48% think change will definitely be necessary (better than the average at least...). None of this bodes well for the country that spews more carbon emissions than entire continents. The U.S.'s response ranks right there with India's. Does the average Indian need to change their lifestyle to assist with global warming? Probably not. Yet MORE of them are willing to change it (probably for the worse) than us. At least our neighbors to the south and north see it differently (probably from years of sucking on our pollution)--Mexico and Canada have the 2nd and 3rd most people that think changes will definitely be necessary. Seriously, more Mexicans are willing to take a hit to their lifestyles than Americans? Open those borders up now, please.So while I was initially excited by this article, I am now just a combination of pissed and sad, as tends to happen when I read about the environment in the news. What I have learned today is that either Americans are too self-absorbed in materialism or that they're blindly faithful to technology. Currently, my hope is not abundant.
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