I think most people haven't directly experienced the problems so they've forgotten the justifications, and other assorted cognitive biases/distortions. The cit

I think most people haven't directly experienced the problems so they've forgotten the justifications, and other assorted cognitive biases/distortions. The city where I live was ranked the most polluted city in the USA a few decades ago, but people forget what it was like, and newer residents never knew what it was like, so they get very upset about Their Freedoms being encroached upon by EPA regulations and such.