Peak indifference: "extreme weather events" drive record US acceptance of climate change as an immediate problem

Peak indifference is the moment at which a far-off problem becomes so obvious that the number of people alarmed about it begins to grow of its own accord; a new Yale Program on Climate Change Communication and the George Mason University Center for Climate Change Communication survey finds that 46% of Americans believe that they are living through adverse effects from climate change right now (up 9% in a year) and 72% of Americans say climate change is '"extremely," "very," or "somewhat" important to them personally' (the highest figure ever recorded); 57% acknowledge the scientific consensus on anthropogenic climate change (also the highest level ever).

After peak indifference, the activist's job changes: once people start self-converting to believers because they are experiencing undeniable negative consequences of inaction, the next job is to convince people who know there's a problem that it's not too late to do something about it. After peak indifference, you have to fight nihilism. (via Naked Capitalism)