People don't pay attention to this global warming talk because is is all government and political "stuff". People have good reason to be pessimistic. I am the optimist who hopes people are finally starting to look at affordable, practical, and the value added proposition that an electric vehicle brings.
Personally I look at it from the practical, frugal, sensible approach that renewable energy makes more sense than the current alternatives and that electric vehicles really can leverage renewable energies well. It is practical because most of my regular driving is normally short distances to known destinations with little or no concern at all for an electric cars range. It is practical because you get to fuel it up at home, so no wasted time or effort to make sure your have "gas" to get you where you need to go. It is frugal because it is far cheaper to put electricity in my car and drive than it is to put gasoline in my car, and there is none of the maintenance and care issues that come with an ICE car. The last time my car was in the shop they were charging $120 an hour to look at my car. Who can afford to have your car in the shop? With an electric car a lot of those concerns go away. So it is frugal, practical, and sensible especially if you buy one used like I am doing. Let someone else eat the depreciation today and you get a very nice car in a couple of years at an affordable price. The price of these cars new needs to come down so that the price is more mainstream and does not require tax incentives to make them affordable. Since the it is actually cheaper materials cost wise to build an electric car we should see the cost continue to drop and be less expensive than a ICE vehicle in the future. I hope that future gets here sooner rather than later.
Electric vehicles have fewer parts, should require far less maintenance, and are far more efficient. Electric vehicles should wear out far less often so we should see fewer cars ending up being crushed. Electric vehicles are quieter, produce less noise pollution, less air pollution, and should reduce ground and water pollution as the most toxic components are recycled. New battery technologies with solid state batteries bring the promise of batteries that are not toxic, should last far longer, and recharge far faster so even cars like the Leaf could completely get a new lease on life with new batteries that are better for everyone making an already practical car a "no brainer".
I don't think we have to focus on the climate stuff to drive the point home that there are real benefits for people and that will be the reason that these cars sell. Electric vehicles today make more sense than many ICE cars for most of what people use a vehicle for. The electric vehicle situation only appears to be getting better and in the end it will have the broader impacts of real climate concerns that we all share.
I think as people realize how practical electric cars are the sales will only continue to pick up. Now if we could just do something to improve the infrastructure for electric vehicles so that people didn't have to worry about running out of juice then most of peoples concerns would be relieved. Investment in infrastructure needs to be the priority to change peoples thinking faster on electric vehicles. It is happening, but it is like watching paint dry and many places are an EV desert!
When you see EV charge stations as frequently as you see petrol stations you will know we have "arrived".