Most here have a first world bias. Poor people and people in developing countries have a month by month or even a day by day plan. Food, water, shelter, steady work to provide for family. Abstract things like saving the plant are not in their list of concerns. They are not to be berated as ignorant, lacking responsibility or anything else. They are just trying to survive. The largest increase in the CO2 emissions in the next decade will come from those people escaping to middle class...
I agree with your post. The epicenter of inertia driving us over the edge is in first world countries.
in the story of the Lorax, the Onceler comes in and destroys everything to manufacture and market Thneeds which are things no one needs. Social inertia and standing propels us to buy and build big houses, travel overseas and continually update our wardrobe.
In order to solve the Thneeds problem, it makes sense to understand the social inertia and try to tackle it.
If you use the conventional understanding of the IPCC as a benchmark for ecological damage forecast, we need to reduce emissions by 45% by 2030. There is a lot of credible opinion that this is not doable. I choose not to express an opinion on that matter.
From the perspective of species preservation, humanity is in a situation that can collectively be described as insane while most of the individual decisions can be understood in a logical survival context.
What causes individuals to tip from one mode of behavior to another? That is the most important science IMO.
Your brief analysis doesn't explain why people join Extinction Rebellion, go vegan, install solar panels or give up collapse porn. You only explain why people don't engage in activism. That's half the story.