Posted on 03/20/2009 8:48:49 AM PDT by reaganaut1
PRINCETON, NJ -- For the first time in Gallup's 25-year history of asking Americans about the trade-off between environmental protection and economic growth, a majority of Americans say economic growth should be given the priority, even if the environment suffers to some extent.
Gallup first asked Americans about this trade-off in 1984, at which time over 60% chose the environmental option. Support for the environment was particularly high in 1990-1991, and in the late 1990s and 2000, when the dot-com boom perhaps made economic growth more of a foregone conclusion.
The percentage of Americans choosing the environment slipped below 50% in 2003 and 2004, but was still higher than the percentage choosing the economy. Sentiments have moved up and down over the last several years, but this year, the percentage of Americans choosing the environment fell all the way to 42%, while the percentage choosing the economy jumped to 51%.
The reason for this shift in priorities almost certainly has to do with the current economic recession. The findings reflect many recent Gallup results showing how primary the economy is in Americans' minds, and help document the fact of life that in times of economic stress, the public can be persuaded to put off or ignore environmental concerns if need be in order to rejuvenate the economy.
The Economy Versus Energy
Although the importance of energy as a policy concern in Americans' minds has moderated since last summer's high gas prices, a different trade-off question shows that Americans are more inclined now than in past years to favor giving the priority to energy production over the environment.
(Excerpt) Read more at gallup.com ...
Ironically, it’s probably the same majority that voted Zero into office.
“environmental protection” = The great modern mythology.
There’s no trade off in the first place. CO2 is not a pollutant.
Finally. I think Americans are just getting numb to it all and oversaturated with “green” this and “green” that.
I subscribe to a lot of fluff magazines: Redbook, Working Mother, Oprah, Time, Newsweek, Coastal Living, InStyle (yes I do read a lot of junk), and EVERY SINGLE ISSUE has articles like “The Status of the Polar Bear Green Initiative;” “How to Have a Green Valentine’s Day Party;” “Best Green Beauty Products,” etc. I skip all of them, every time, as soon as I read the word “green.”
Enough. Hopefully people are sick of the whole fad. Particularly since so many are unemployed or have lost their 401(k) value; there is no luxury of worrying about such crap anymore.
This poll makes Al “Manbear” Gore very sad.
In other words, when faced with a real choice and real pain, Americans don’t think the environment is so important.
I think we’re going to find a lot of liberal causes and movements get the same treatment...reality’s a bitch.
when faced with a real choice and real pain, Americans don’t think the fake hoople about the environment is so important.
The choice between “economy” and “environmental” is a false one. Oil fields are for all intents and purposes huge wildlife refuges. You find every kind of creature living in the oilfields undisturbed. There are relatively few workers out there and they stick to the roads and the work sites; the rest of it belongs to the critters.
Nuke plants are the cleanest source of energy there is bar none.
The areas offshore where the oil is already leak oil up through the ocean floor. Drilling releaves and reduces the amount of oil leaking into the ocean.
Right now we are headed for an economic train wreck of the first order. You don’t fix an economy by printing money; printing money will destroy this economy. You fix it by building and creating, by putting people to work generating energy, infrastructure, and tangible wealth. Thats how you do it. Printing a trillion dollars and paying yourself interest on it is going to collapse this economy.
Let’s not throw all the green stuff overboard. We really do need to reduce our dependence on foreign oil and part of the solution can be reasonable conservation methods.
Our local energy company has backed off of including the Global Warming nonsense in their ads. They should push for lower energy consumption and we should too!
“Enough people are starting to realize this to make any kind of green tax very unpopular right now.”
It’s just sad that people cannot think this rationally when times are good...for if they did, most of this garbage would never pass, and Obama would still be firing up the masses in Chicago.
Yes, but even in a booming economy “environmental concerns” are in the vast majority, an utter waste of time, money and resources.
Puny man can hardly put a scratch on the environment even IF we were actively trying to inflict harm. Of course, sound business practice by definition, already INCLUDES reasonable environmental precautions.
Well, yes, but unless you're switching to electric cars it won't reduce your use of middle east oil by a single drop.
All the talk about wind farms and solar cells is great, but it doesn't change anything in terms of OPEC oil imports. For that you have to drill, develop your oil shale deposits, build coal-to-diesel plants, or else switch to electric cars and do it now and start building nukes yesterday already.
The unspoken problem with nuclear power generation is that it produces no CO2 and therefore can't be taxed under the upcoming carbon tax. Obama’s energy czar is Carol Browner. Energy Secretary Chu is a figurehead. Browner is closely linked to Al Gore whose Generation Investment Management LTD holds billions in now deflated EU industrial carbon credits. Gore desperately needs to unload these coupons before they shrink further. A carbon tax will create a U.S. cap-and-trade market that can be merged with the global market. Gore will have a captive U.S. market where he can reap billions.
That's what the “green” is about in the Obama/Browner/Gore crusade—”greenbacks.”
In 1993 California had their big chance to vote in the mother of green initiatives, called Big Green. It was sure to be a shoe-in, but a nasty recession intervened and it lost - and that was California.
If the DEMOCRATS in Congress think that they can support Obama’s trash without feeling it at the ballot box, they are DREAMING. The only thing that can hurt the Republicans is if they go along with the Dems out of sheer STUPIDITY. They may not, for once...as the “Stimulus” bill was a good start.
We're about to find out what happens when you let the vampires into your house.
Same with the gas fields( natural that is)I have been in. Colorado springs to mind. Small unobtrusive well sites,miles and miles of open country full of wild animals.
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