Hello V:

No.. People are ignorant.. That's WAYYYY different than careless. There was a time when we didn't know any better.. After all, there was SOOOO much ground, who'd think that our trash would ruin it? But, it did, and now we know better. At least some of us do. The rest are ignorant.

excon

Careless is not giving sufficient attention or thought to avoiding harm or errors. That may be A factor but not the main one.

I think the worst offenders are people who just don't care at all and those who know there is a problem but refuse to change because they want what they want and damn anyone else.

An example of those who don't care are those that toss their trash out of their car window or burn tires.

Those that refuse to change are the kind that are so hellbent on keeping the things they want that any suggestion of changing to something different that is healthier and better for all, is seen as an enemy and an affront to their rights, mostly because they "don't wanna".

Even if you:

a) Get everyone to reduce, reuse, and recycle, as much as possible, and

b) Get all wastes sent to appropriate landfills, and

c) Get the best treatment technology on water and air pollution problems,

We would still have too much pollution.

Which pretty much invalidates the theory it's just carelessness. Being perfectly caring about it still doesn't make the problem go away. It might make it better in the short or long run. But it doesn't eliminate it as the only cause of the problem.