Reply #5: My guess is [View All]

[Time for change]

that the graph begins in 98 because that's when Gallup began taking that particular poll. The purpose of the graph was to show the growing gap between Dems and Republicans, so independents were omitted from that graph to make the contrast easier to see.

I doubt that there is any one particular point in time when awareness of climate change "first showed up". My recollection is that, though climate scientists were probably aware of it in the 1980s, very few ordinary people were. I read a fair amount of material on environmental issues in those days, and I don't believe there was much at all written about it. Awareness received a big boost in the early 21st Century, with Al Gore's writings and movie on the subject.

Americans made a big mistake by voting for Reagan, but climate change was not an issue in that election. It should be considered a black mark on our country. In my opinion, slanted news coverage was a big part of the problem.