An Inconvenient Truth

In the anecdote “The Politicization of Global Warming,” Gore says he thinks the reason so many people are resistant to his message is that the inconvenient truth about the climate crisis will force people to change the way they live. It is especially unwelcome to powerful people and companies who want to confuse citizens so they cannot respond properly. First, such people and companies called climate change a myth. Now, they say it’s due to natural causes and will probably be good for us. These opponents also say we can’t do anything about it, so let’s not try. They stress the uncertainty of the science in order to paralyze the political process, Gore asserts, and their propaganda has worked. But “we can’t cannot afford inaction any longer, and, frankly, there’s just no excuse for it” (287).

Gore now focuses on the positive. He starts with listing the American cities that have “ratified” the Kyoto Treaty in defiance of the US government, then works to inspire readers by discussing some of the accomplishments Americans have made. These include wars against fascism, abolishing slavery, giving women the right to vote, passing civil rights legislation, and landing on the moon.