Friday, July 13, 2018

Hold on to Your Snowballs:  More Americans Accept the Reality of Climate Change than Ever Before

James Inhofe (Credit: C-Span) Click to Enlarge.
Seventy-three percent!  That’s the proportion of Americans who now think there is “solid evidence” of global climate change, according to a new report released by National Surveys on Energy and the Environment (NSEE).  It’s the highest percentage since the survey started in 2008.

Good news?  Sort of.  Even those who accept the reality of climate change are still hazy on the causes.  Only 34 percent of those sampled believed that climate change is due primarily to human activity, as established science indicates.  As for the rest, 26 percent thought it was partially due to humans and 12 percent blamed natural causes.  Come on, people!

Before you tear your hair out, here’s a quick lesson in the types of climate denial.  “Trend deniers” are people who question whether the climate is changing at all — like the infamous snowball-throwing James Inhofe.  “Attribution deniers,” on the other hand, question whether the changes can be linked to human influence — more in line with Scott Pruitt’s oh-so-vague climate beliefs.

Evidence suggests that trend deniers are on a sharp decline.  Only 15 percent of those sampled in this study believed the climate was not changing at all.  “That’s the lowest percentage since we started the survey,” says Barry Rabe, coauthor of the report and professor at the University of Michigan.

This has been a long time coming.  Americans are experiencing more extreme weather on a personal level (heat waves, anybody?) and are seeing a growing number of reports about rising sea levels and melting polar ice.

Read more at Hold on to Your Snowballs:  More Americans Accept the Reality of Climate Change than Ever Before

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