The fundamental issue is that it's relatively hard for us to reasonably account for future costs against present costs. I also think it's interesting that in more social equitable countries (like the Scandis) the public and politicians tend to take climate change more seriously. Is Maslow's hierarchy actually coming into play?
Another explanation might be that some countries have much stronger governments than others. In the US, the "man with a plan," pattern almost never plays out successfully.
