Americans Are Slow To Wake Up To New Realities, But When We Do—Watch Out

Americans are unique in the way they shift their viewpoints, and that seems to be true regardless of which type of “viewpoint” we’re discussing: political issues, the appreciation of a new musical genre, and even the acceptance of basic science.

Having said that, when we Americans do change our positions, we do it in a big way.  A good example of this is in the news right now: animal rights as the subject applies to large mammals.  When we recently became aware of the cruelty with which elephants and whales are trained (and treated more generally) we forced change in an industry that has been in place for centuries, i.e., the circus.  It took a while for Americans to wake up to the incredible level of brutality inflicted on these amazing and beautiful animals, but when we did, we saw tickets to SeaWorld plummeting, and compelled the Ringling Brothers Circus to scrap their elephant acts entirely.

This is reminiscent of the 1960s, during which mink coats disappeared.  It took a while to happen, but when it did, it was almost instantaneous; in a period of a month or two, mink went from a must-have for every American woman to something that only a demented sadist would be seen with.

The issue is the same here with regard to environmental issues; there is ample evidence that the typical American is beginning to take this subject very seriously, and a good example is the acceptance of the reality of climate change.  Watch what happens to Republican presidential hopefuls who equivocate on this matter; they won’t last any longer than popsicles on a hot day.

Of course, this is part of the reason that I’m bullish on renewable energy; in addition to all the other financial/market pressures, the people are starting to demand a cessation to the burning of fossil fuels.