Climate change is not a single disaster waiting to happen at t=x, but a gradual process. There’s plenty of evidence suggesting that extreme weather events like wildfires, floods, and storms have been increasing in number and severity in recent years [1]. Some people have already been directly impacted, most are indirectly sharing the burden of the societal costs.

Unfortunately, humans collectively are very shortsighted, and it’s hard to communicate issues with seemingly intangible or long-term consequences. So we continue to argue pointlessly while slowly boiling like the proverbial frog in a pot.

1: https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/climate/climate-and-ext...

That's part of the question isn't it? 1.5C isn't the problem - it's 1.5 over 10 years. If it is (or if we make it) 1.5C over 100 years then the problem is easier to deal with. If it's over 200 years then the problem is much easier to deal with.

It's not shortsightedness on the public's side, it's "boy who cried 'wolf'" messaging making the doomsayers untrustworthy.