I personally think that five of the top six concerns on that breakdown is linked to the environment ( Social Security being the lone exception ) so I find it a little disquieting that people would be so quick to shuffle 'Environment' down the list of concerns. I'd really like to see a more unified and intelligent approach under the new administration, where issues are compartmentilized less and handled as a whole more. After all, you don't just set aside the environment at will, you have to go out and exist in it each day. For instance, reading the popular media suggests that there's plenty of people who think they can have Economy, Jobs, and heck, even Health Care, be promoted at the cost of Environment, but you can certainly also argue that that it is not quite that simple. Agricultural burning, for example, may save the farmer money in the short run ( I'd love to see some figures, and I also realize if they truck their waste with their lower emission standards off-road diesel vehicles, that just creates different pollution, but doesn't the crops also suffer from the resulting air pollution, which may have an economic impact? The haze doesn't let the sunlight through, the dust and soot cakes on the leaves and produce, neither of which inspires a plant to give its best.

I, personally, hope Obama stays his intended course as far as environment goes.