More about emotion than reason?

In an age of reason , we all like to think ourselves very reasonable indeed. However the evidence is against us at a public level as they say (Scientists talk about drivers or equations )when you look at what's driving public debate in march 2011 ( Carbon tax for eg in Australia but also responses to recent disasters ) .  Tell me I am wrong
 Emotion is in the drivers seat.  

 How then can we claim that the strange amalgum of opinion that is the public's is reasonable . We know many of us feel guilty about say , " driving around in heavy machines "( our cars )  so we tend to project the problem onto someone else ( "the government must do something"  )
Why trust such reasoning ?
There is also the persistent myth in secular circles that mere technology (reason) will solve all risk problems .We need a technology to manage humans?  - Some leaders call the technology " a tax"  .
But who drives the use of the tax ? Would you trust either of them  (government or the market?) We have humans in charge - is there really then a way forward?