More Canadians now care more about global warming than they do about health care. This phenomenon has become commonplace in our political scene. All the parties are trying to be greener-than-thou, other than the Green party, which doesn't need to pretend.

All of this is familiar. Now let's move on to more slippery terrain.

Let's consider the question of why, quite suddenly, Canadians should overwhelmingly view global warming as an issue that must be dealt with right away, even if this involves some sacrifices.

The easy answer is that global warming, as has been attested to by an overwhelming majority of scientists, is indeed a serious issue – if not a potentially lethal one – that must be dealt with, for the sake of humanity and as a matter of morality.

That answer is largely correct. In fact, there are more unanswered questions than are generally admitted.

Quite clearly, global warming is taking place. It's less clear just what forms it will take. Experts tacitly admit this by employing the ambiguous phrase "climate change" rather than the popular one of global warming.

But the why – about Canadians' response to global warming – still needs to be asked. After all, Canadians account for less than 2 per cent of the globe's greenhouse gases. What we do, thus, contributes little to the problem and, at best, we can only marginally improve matters.

Another reason to wonder about our sudden environmental awareness is that, although little attention has been paid to this, global warming will actually benefit Canadians, on balance.

A warmer climate will lengthen our growing season and so expand our agricultural output. It will melt our Arctic ice, creating opportunities for speedier sea travel to Europe and Asia, and make it possible to increase exploitation of our northern resources. It will also reduce our death rate, which always increases during our winters.

Our unearned luck is not yet complete. One of the most feared of the consequences of global warming – a rise in sea levels – will have little effect on us. As a rich country, we are far better situated to cope with climate change's negative effects than is a poor one, like Bangladesh.

So, why are we so stirred up about global warming, and so ready – at least, so we say – to take painful measures to deal with it?

There are several important factors, including the effects of former U.S. vice-president Al Gore's movie, An Inconvenient Truth, the recent doomsday forecasts by the highly regarded British economist, Sir Nicholas Stern, and detailed United Nations' environmental reports.

But there is also, I would argue, an "X" factor at work that has nothing whatever to do with global warming itself.

People, I believe, are looking for some grand, ennobling cause. We've run out of these. The Cold War is long over. One casualty of it was socialism, or social democracy, or the belief that government could solve all social and economic problems.

Also, the era of "human rights" is encountering some serious questioning. Notions such as "the right to protect," meaning that the world community (really, the West) has the right and duty to intervene in societies where people are being oppressed by their own governments, are being put into doubt.

The attempt to impose democracy in Iraq has turned into a disaster. In fact, the general attempt to promote "our" values – human rights, gender equality, the rule of law – in quite different societies, looks questionable now.

So all that remains for us to devote ourselves to is individualism – our personal needs and wants. Which is never enough. Humans are social animals. We live in society, not just in our own cave or condo.

Combating global warming is the ultimate collective cause. It's about doing good, not just to ourselves but to our grandchildren. It's about doing good not to and for just our own country, but to the globe itself.

Lastly, it is, in a way, the answer to terrorism. Terrorists just want to end the lives of as many people as possible. We want to try to preserve life.

I may be wrong. But when was the last time so many Canadians cared so deeply about something so remote from their personal interests – unlike health care?

Copyright 2007 Toronto Star

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