You would get a lot from reading "Strangers in Their Own Land". A sociologist goes to southern Louisiana to talk to people to try to learn why the group of peop

You would get a lot from reading "Strangers in Their Own Land". A sociologist goes to southern Louisiana to talk to people to try to learn why the group of people who is often most directly impacted by pollution is also so often vocally anti-regulation. I grew up the area, in a place literally referred to as "Cancer Alley", and it's a fascinating mixture of culture, cognitive dissonance, power structures, and limited economic opportunities. The short answer is that everyone, everyone makes their life choices in the context of a larger culture that they absorb mostly automatically and unconsciously. We like to consider ourselves autonomous actors that make our own choices, but our culture defines the set of choices that are even thinkable, and provides the heuristics we use to rank those choices. Culture changes slowly, irrationally, and preferentially to the benefit of those in power. The result is that our habits for making decisions are often out of sync with what's materially best for us. On top of that, we are a tribal primate species. We're hardwired to feel a deep emotional need to be included by and valued by our social group. For almost all of our evolutionary history, abandonment meant death. So we feel an innate pressure to conform to the beliefs of those around us. Mix that all together, and it's fairly easy to end up with people acting against their self interest or making unthought choices that go against their values.