Over the past few years, politicians, media and radio talk shows, partisans, radicals and ideologists are putting stock in polls. If you seek provision to sustain your agenda, just follow the polls. Somebody somewhere will reinforce your futile hunt for satisfaction. Polls have become verification to insinuate our intent. The variable numbers give direction bolstering our feelings concerning many events in the world today.
The Iraq war is certainly one of the biggest. There are polls saying Americans champion the troops but oppose the war. There are polls saying the majority of Americans want out, and vice versa. There are polls concerning [everything from] 11-year-olds using birth control to our government’s involvement with [the destruction of the] World Trade Centers; from global warming to universal health insurance. Everybody can locate polls that defend their policy.
The polls supply our world leaders [with] numbers to authenticate their beliefs … [a] fictional foundation supporting their idealistic diplomacies. Politicians reference poll numbers suggesting what Americans desire. This aids the favored direction for the politician’s belief. Using polls in this fashion is most dangerous and disingenuous. It misleads the underexposed voters to embrace the manipulative leaders and their poll-driven conclusions.
A possible illustration that polls are corrupt by means of infiltration is the latest Republican-debate poll conducted by Fox News. Fox’s cell-phone text-messaging results showed Ron Paul as the winner. This advocates-influenced poll [is] shady. Another situation is the CNN poll stating 88 percent of us believe our government was willing to kill its own citizens. Could this be an imbalanced flux of opinionated Internet-poll voters?
Polling different areas of the United States will facilitate consensus numbers. For example, if a more conservative answer is needed, poll the Southern states. If a more liberal response is warranted, probe the West Coast or the extreme Northern states. Is this how the pollsters get their backing? Are you doubting or agreeing with this process? Do the opinion polls carry any foundation? How do we trust the canvasser is bipartisan?
Does the Internet provide inaccurate direction, allowing dangerous groups to explore and expand their ideology? Are individuals skillfully using survey numbers as fact? Are the interpreted factual polls keeping the [divisive] fire burning? Is citing polls as fact creating dangerous truths?
Desperation in worried times encourages false solutions, easing one person’s mind and, simultaneously, sparking fire in others. The Internet polls offer inaccurate fabrication that can create paranoia, fear, anger, helplessness, hopelessness and vulnerability.
— Jerry Soesbee
Asheville
Before you comment
The comments section is here to provide a platform for civil dialogue on the issues we face together as a local community. Xpress is committed to offering this platform for all voices, but when the tone of the discussion gets nasty or strays off topic, we believe many people choose not to participate. Xpress editors are determined to moderate comments to ensure a constructive interchange is maintained. All comments judged not to be in keeping with the spirit of civil discourse will be removed and repeat violators will be banned. See here for our terms of service. Thank you for being part of this effort to promote respectful discussion.