Abstract

No area holds more promise for the revival of grass roots politics in the 1980s than the issues related to energy and the environment. Reagan's election, his subsequent cabinet appointments, and budget proposals promise further environmental degredation. The problems that this will generate are difficult to solve since adverse economic and health effects are not viewed as legitimate consequences of capitalist enterprise.

All of this and more adds up to a credibility problem for corporate interests. An April 1979 poll reveals that Americans, by a wide margin, trust the government rather than the oil companies to develop new energy resources.