Source Notes
Summary: On February, 12th, 2009, Josh Hurd, a blogger on wildlandscrp.com, shows evidence of a correlation between economic recessions and consequently lack of support for environmental issues.
Category:
Institutional.
What is it.
Publication Information:
Author:
Josh Hurd.
Location:
http://www.wildlandscpr.org/blog/unemployment-and-environmental-protection
Accessed:
Support:
March 2008 Gallup Poll.
Rasmussen Poll.
The blog asserts that “When unemployment goes up, people become less concerned about the environment and more concerned about strengthening the economy.” Hurd cites three polls to support his claim. First, the January 2009 study conducted by Pew shows that “the number of people supporting environmental protection as their top policy concern greatly decreased over the past few years.” Second, a less current poll—the March 2008 Gallup Poll—shows that U.S citizens believe that “economic growth should be given priority, even if the environment suffers to some extent.” Finally, the Rasmussen Poll found that the “public perceives that economic growth and environmental protection cannot be pursued at the same time.”
Audience and Agenda:
Wildlands CPR is a non-profit organization that is funded by donation and private interest groups. The organization revives and protects wild places by promoting watershed restoration through road removal, preventing new wildland road construction and stopping off-road vehicle abuse. Quantcast.com reports that www.wildlandscpr.org is not quantifiable at the current time.
Usefulness:
These studies, polls (Pew, Gallup Poll, Rasmussen Poll) and commentary by Hurd provide a supported assertion that says “When unemployment goes up, people become less concerned about the environment and more concerned about strengthening the economy.” The American people will not support environmental issues if they perceive that the government and public can only focus on the economy. This is problematic for my argument. Without public support, environmental issues will no longer be at the forefront of policy discussions. However, my focus is aimed at persuading my audience that both protecting the environment and supporting our local and federal economy can be accomplished at the same time.
Works cited:
http://www.wildlandscpr.org/about-us
http://www.wildlandscpr.org/blog/unemployment-and-environmental-protection
March 13, 2009 at 9:11 am |
[...] timing: The current state of the economy is very poor. According to “Unemployment and Environmental Protection”, when unemployment goes up, people become less concerned about the environment and more concerned [...]