Environment & Energy
Related: About this forumRepublicans Exploit Voter Fears to Stifle Action on Climate Change
http://truth-out.org/buzzflash/commentary/republicans-exploit-voter-fears-to-stifle-action-on-climate-changeMonday, 22 May 2017 06:35
Republicans Exploit Voter Fears to Stifle Action on Climate Change
FARRON COUSINS FOR BUZZFLASH AT TRUTHOUT
A recent article published in Ars Technica discussed several conservative leaders -- ranging from religious figures to former Republican politicians -- attempting to convince conservatives that climate change was an issue that needed to be addressed by everyone, not just the liberals in the United States. The article discusses various ways that these conservatives are trying to approach the issue, from citing biblical passages about protecting the Earth, to educating conservative voters about the benefits of a carbon tax.
The Ars Technica article touched on a very important subject that is too often left out of discussions on climate change: Why are Republican politicians so successful when it comes to getting voters to vote against protecting the environment?
One possible explanation for why Republicans have been successful could be due to the way in which they frame the climate debate and in the ways the brain processes fear. For too long, Republican politicians have been feeding the public lies about the need to get rid of "job-killing regulations" and rein in "government overreach." These are phrases that are often used to describe the Environmental Protection Agency and the safeguards that are put in place to protect the environment.
When Republican officials frame environmental protections in this way -- telling voters that these protections come at the cost of the voters' own economic security -- they are manipulating the immediate fears of voters. If a person is afraid that they may not be able to feed their family next month because they could lose their job due to "government regulations," they will always place that immediate fear over the "far off" danger of a warming planet.
kristopher
(29,798 posts)This article is (IMO) telling the story of where we were 10-20 years ago. Now, it's just a bubbling mindless hatred of all things "Demon cRat" - there is no longer even a shred rationality involved.
OKIsItJustMe
(19,933 posts)I know people who believe this line.
kristopher
(29,798 posts)What battle am I fighting, and what line do people believe?
OKIsItJustMe
(19,933 posts)People believe that climate change is a serious problem, but we cannot afford to address it now. There are larger priorities, (e.g. the economy.)
Only 17% of the population (labeled alarmed in the Yale work) placed actions to combat climate change as top electoral priorities:
http://climatecommunication.yale.edu/publications/six-americas-2016-election/
Republicans are less than 83% of the electorate.
kristopher
(29,798 posts)...for claiming I'm misattributing the cause.
Your OP claimed it was fear-mongering by Republican opinion leaders.
Your poll showed that the percentage of the Republican electorate not concerned at all about climate is approximately equal to the die-hard core of that party.
Do you have anything to offer showing that these two segments are, in fact, not the same set of people?
Just as they were unresponsive to the evidence that there were no WMD's in Iraq, and just as they deny the overwhelming evidence that GWB's policies brought about the economic crash, so too are they able to deny the world of evidence supporting AGW.
The polling result you posted in post 4 shows a pattern that is repeated over and over on a wide range of topics, yet for climate change, the basis is fear? Sorry, I just don't buy it; the consistent nature of the division suggests a cause that is deeper and more basic to decision-making than than fear within the parameters of a specific topic.
OKIsItJustMe
(19,933 posts)kristopher
(29,798 posts)OKIsItJustMe
(19,933 posts)kristopher
(29,798 posts)Why is that one segment operating on a different wavelength?
I believe they're the same core group that still supported Shrub when he left office. They are against anything that Democrats approve of or endorse. I don't think the basis of their behavior is fear so much as a mindless tribal loyalty that follows their thought leaders through what is perceived as battles against the evil lib'rals.
As we've seen with Trump and the Russians, the overall direction they are tasked with following doesn't really matter to them as long as their tribe is confronting the evil Democrats.
louis-t
(23,199 posts)about the dyke systems in Holland and efforts in south Florida to battle rising seas. During the report, she never mentioned 'climate change' or 'global warming'. When she attempted an explanation of the problem, she simply said water levels were rising "for whatever reason". FOR WHATEVER FUCKING REASON?? Are these people being forbidden to use those words? Wouldn't surprise me.
kristopher
(29,798 posts)As Donald Trump does his best to destroy the worlds hopes of reining in climate change, lets be clear about one thing: This has nothing to do with serving Americas national interest. The U.S. economy, in particular, would do just fine under the Paris accord. This isnt about nationalism; mainly, its about sheer spite.
...
Beyond this, much of todays right seems driven above all by animus toward liberals rather than specific issues. If liberals are for it, theyre against it. If liberals hate it, its good. Add to this the anti-intellectualism of the G.O.P. base, for whom scientific consensus on an issue is a minus, not a plus, with extra bonus points for undermining anything associated with President Barack Obama.
More at the link:
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/01/opinion/trump-gratuitously-rejects-the-paris-climate-accord.html
Thanks to LonePirate for originally posting this as an OP here: https://www.democraticunderground.com/10029146848