The BBC recently polled 22,000 people in 21 different countries regarding their willingness to make personal sacrifices to address climate change. You can read a recap of the poll here (the full PDF report is also available for download).

While the overall results were encouraging, I'm astounded by the degree of denial and/or selfishness that continues to exist in this country:

The United States was among the top-five countries in responses that said lifestyle and behavior changes will not be necessary to reduce the amount of climate changing gases produced! Nineteen percent of Americans polled joined denialists from Kenya, Egypt, Nigeria and India with their heads in the sands on this topic.

A third of Americans think that increasing the cost of energy sources that contribute to climate change will not be necessary to encourage conservation.

Fifty-one percent of Americans oppose raising taxes on the types of energy, such as oil and coal, which contribute to climate change.

To be sure, there is some encouraging news from the BBC poll:

Overall, 83% of respondents throughout the world agreed that individuals would definitely or probably have to make lifestyle changes to reduce the amount of climate-changing gases they produce. Some 70% said they were ready to make personal sacrifices.

But I've chosen to look at the half empty side of the glass.

Why? Because I'm a pessimist on this subject.

• I'm afraid there are more than 19% of Americans who are unwilling to change their lifestyle or behavior in the interest of reducing greenhouse gas emissions;
• I'm afraid the 32% of Americans who don't think increased energy costs are necessary to encourage conservation actually represent a much larger group of Americans in denial;
• and I'm very afraid that an apparent majority opposition to raising taxes on oil and coal is likely to embolden the current administration's pledge to veto the energy bill currently under consideration.

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