The other thing a lot of people forget is the sheer size of the US, and how absolutely shit mass transit is in most places. Cars are pretty much a necessity here in ways that they aren't in other countries. So we're pretty much going to generate far more waste in that respect than most other places, regardless of whether we're using combustion engines or electric.
It's also worth remembering that electric cars aren't necessarily carbon-neutral or "green", either, because that electricity still needs to come from somewhere, and unless you're getting it from fully hydroelectric/geothermal/wind-powered/solar-powered sources, there's still a carbon cost. Along with the environmental impact of batteries, plastics, and other manufacturing elements.
And most of this ultimately doesn't matter if you focus most of your attention on the individual level rather than the corporate level. Outlawing plastic bags at supermarkets or pushing people to buy electric cars doesn't really help if companies are still dumping tons of waste into the environment and there's tons of fuel being used on airplanes and trucks for cargo transport. It's a scenario where we need to change from the top down more than from the ground up.
(And THAT'S not even getting into the impact of raising animals and farming crops with modern fertilizing methods, which in many places can be hard to roll back without outright culling the population - humans have grown far beyond the planet's ability to sustain us at the most basic "natural" level.)
Things are far more complex than the "Why don't we just do X?" solutions the average person comes up with.
...which is not to say that we should just shrug and give up, either, because we're pretty much fucked as a species in the next century or so.
All I have to say is Cali is begging people to not charge their cars while still charging what most people would consider an astronomical rate for fuel.
Zeus posted...
If the GND refers to AOC's trash propaganda, I think most supporters I know don't have kids, although a few have had kids lately and, honestly, they have more problems being the kids of those parents than anything else.
GND = Green New Deal. I have zero kids. I plan to be non-hypocritical in that department.
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If the truth is bothersome, then change what's true.