The highest paid public employee in almost every state is a sportsball coach. While you speak sanctimoniously about idiots, remember that humans have evolved to not know the difference between leaders and bullies, and everyone who buys advertised products put them in charge. It's not the carbon: it's the consumptionism. Fanatical competition over competing fanaticisms is the 'civilized' way of life. Humans will be the first species to choose to go extinct rather than accept less consumption.