Posted by
Average Voter on Wednesday, August 08, 2007 7:30:20 PM
Wandering around a few web sites, I came across an interview given last year on
Gristmill.grist.org with none other than our favorite guy, Al Gore. One of the questions asked , frankly, caught me by surprise. I was further shocked by the candid answer Mr. Gore gave.
There's a lot of debate right now over the best way to communicate about global warming and get people motivated. Do you scare people or give them hope? What's the right mix?
I think the answer to that depends on where your audience's head is. In the United States of America, unfortunately we still live in a bubble of unreality. And the Category 5 denial is an enormous obstacle to any discussion of solutions. Nobody is interested in solutions if they don't think there's a problem. Given that starting point, I believe it is appropriate to have an over-representation of factual presentations on how dangerous it is, as a predicate for opening up the audience to listen to what the solutions are, and how hopeful it is that we are going to solve this crisis.
Over time that mix will change. As the country comes to more accept the reality of the crisis, there's going to be much more receptivity to a full-blown discussion of the solutions.
Now, we all know people in power have to "tweak" the truth a little to get their point across, especially if they want the other party to listen. But this is an out-right fabrication.
Read the whole thing
here.