How is it that America is only now asking how to clean up their environment.

Question

Before Al-Gore brought out his book about the environment people were more concerned with$$$ than anything else

Answer 1

Political pressure ,and propaganda

It makes them look good.

Answer 2

Google Teddy Roosevelt. The environmental movement goes back at least a century. If you want something more recent, look into NEPA, only 30-odd years old. Guess what. The world did not begin when you were born.

Answer 3

If you think about it, We still are only thinking about money. The only reason that we are doing this is becasue they can make money off of it. For an example, More people are going to by Energy star air conditioners, refrigerators an so on because it willsave them money. I think that it is a great new buisness that is going to help bring the economy out of its current slump.

Thanks for asking

Answer 4

Al Gore's book on the environment was written over 20 years ago. The modern surge in environmental clean up came with Love Canal, NY when the river burned back in the mid 70's and when people were dying from the smog in L.A. California's stringent environmental laws are not the consequence of progressive thinking, but simply an issue of need. Since then the United States has cleaned up most of the 'Superfund' designated sites. Today, aside from some 'Brownsfield' sites, our only major environmental problems are CO2 from energy production, and the energy production itself (ie. Coal & Oil). Europe will fail to meet it's Kyoto obligations next year, and that is with a much larger Nuclear Energy program than the US & expensive Carbon Credits from Russia. Per capita CO2 increase in the US has been the lowest in the World. None of this comes cheap, it has all been funded by the American People, either through taxes or free market purchases. Now China & India love all of this, because in the next Climate Round, Kyoto Countries will have to start paying them to buy the newest, and thus cleanest Technology.  America is Clean and getting better every day!

Now China...... those poor Athletes!  

Answer 5

Did you miss the last 30-40 years?  The US is many many times cleaner now than in the 70's.  We spend billions every year cleaning up lakes, rivers, factories, cars, and everything else.

Al Gore is probably the biggest hypocrite around.  He uses more electricity in a month than most people will use in a year.  Then he tells people to cut back on anything that pollutes while he flys around in a private jet.