September 24, 2009
Updated
Public Policy Poll (as discussed by Brendan Nyhan) tried to compare truthers and birthers, which, of course can never be done in a scientifically sound manner, no matter the questions.
Perhaps it was a microscopic aftershock to Van Jones’ about time outing as a self-proclaimed Commie truther. More likely it was to “prove” Republican birthers are more prevalent and whacked out (ergo dangerous) than Democratic truthers.
And the Democratic birthers and Republican truthers?
Whatever the case, the two are not, nor can they ever be, comparable.
Birthers question the present president’s Constitutionally eligibility to hold office.
Truthers question the motives of a past president.
Eight years have passed since the truther issue was first questioned. And in the interim it has been investigated by, yes, the MSM.
barry’s birth certificate/Constitutional eligibility still has not been addressed by the MSM. Except for those false inflammatory statements that barry released his birth certificate and birthers are anti-Muslim sore losers and crazy racist conspiracists.
And as much as folks like to use the word “conspiracy”, it is not – by definition – a conspiracy until the best available evidence has been presented and rejected.
The best available evidence is barry’s long form birth certificate, which has not been seen.
Folks bandying about “conspiracy” are the same ignorant souls who think barry’s BIRTH CERTIFICATE is online and was vouched for by Hawaii officials.
How many polls have addressed their across the board ignorance on those two points?
There are plenty about where barry was born, how racist the birthers are, whether Alaska/Hawaii are states and whether barry’s a Muslim. And then there’s Kos’ ridiculously skewed poll (quoted by Nyhan), CNN’s desperately skewed poll, and yet, nothing about the disinformation promulgated and propagandized by the MSM, as in barry’s birth certificate is online and was derived from what Dr Fukino saw.
There is no connection.
And the fact that Dr Fukino has given two separate statements — neither of them addressing that COLB — should be enough to raise some eyebrows – but the mindless sarcasm continues.
Even Chris Matthews, who humiliated (relative term) himself for over a week, waving that worthless one-sided nothingness realized his mistake.
What/who finally got through to him?
And why is he letting his pals Olbermann and Maddow continue to make fools of themselves – at least as regards the birth certificate?
Because someone has to keep up the Party line.
Someone has to keep indoctrinating the mesmerized masses that birthers are crazy racists capable of great violence.
How many times has Matthews, Maddow, Martin and Herr Olbermann blamed the birthers for that deranged Nazi’s rampage at the Holocaust Memorial Museum?
And how many times did they mention that 27 years ago the very same Nazi arrived at the Federal Reserve Building, armed with a .38, a knife and a sawed-off shotgun, with the intent to kidnap the board members? Only that time he didn’t shoot.
But the birthers sparked the hatred that had been festering for 88 years. The birthers were responsible for half a century’s worth of hateful rantings available for all to see in his books, essays and on his websites. And most egregious of all, the birthers were responsible for the death of an innocent man.
One wonders why the birthers are angry? Why they carry angry signs? Why they are angry with their politicians and demand to be heard?
When is the MSM going to be held accountable for their (in) actions? For their obvious bias and non-vetting of barry? For their continued refusal to run any story that is potentially damaging to him?
Bill O’Reilly is as corrupted as his fellow ranter Keith Olbermann.
What was the exact purpose of this poll? Of what benefit was it to be to society?
To draw baseless conclusions to further inflame?
Polls are only as good as their neutral intent.
If a poll sets out to prove its assertion, it is at the very least subconsciously biased.
What caused this poll to have its question changed and why did they believe the second was any better?
It is a conditional complex sentence with at least 13 separate variables (not counting a combination of the separate variables), all of which have to be yes/no to answer yes/no.
New question: “Do you think (1) President Bush (2) intentionally (3) allowed (4) the 9/11 attacks (5) to take place (6) because (7) he (8) wanted (9) the United States (10) to go (11) to war (12) in the Middle East (13)?”
For instance, in order to answer yes one must “think” (no relative certainty) that what President (was he?) Bush (acting alone) intentioned (was able to rationalize, plan, and be relatively certain he wouldn’t be discovered) that he (acting alone) was capable of allowing (he had to first possess the power) and that he was absolutely certain the attacks w/could take place and because (for only that reason and nothing else) that they w/could cause the amount of damage and lethality that w/could even cover a suggestion of the United States (alone or in concert) going (had the manpower) to “war” (war being undefined only now in retrospect, which required Congress to not completely oppose and that even if he fully intentioned, he could not be sure of) in the Middle East (overly broad).
The birther question, as asked, was straightforward: not born in US (not even a stipulation to country like Kenya, Indonesia, Canada or other) or unsure.
And the “born” had no qualification: native, natural born, naturalized, dual allegiance or unknown/undocumented.
One can believe he was born in Hawaii and still not think him eligible because of the possibility he lost his NBC status.
The birther question is not confined to the question asked: born in the US or unsure.
It revolves around one thing and one thing only: Is he Constitutionally eligible to serve, which absolutely requires him to be a Natural Born Citizen.
So, the question, as asked, does not cover the entire birther issue and thus not all the birthers – an insurmountable flaw.
What makes the poll completely worthless is they use the term “myth” – a prejudicial word for which the truth must absolutely known.
“Myth” defined: a widely held but false belief or idea; a misrepresentation of the truth; a fictitious or imaginary person or thing; an exaggerated or idealized conception of a person or thing. [Mac New Oxford]
X cannot be labeled a myth, if the truth about X is not known with absolute certainty.
If one were to ask the poll folks to name, with absolute certainty, the actual physical birthplace of barry – as in hospital – they would not be able to answer.
Therefore, by definition, they cannot use the term “myth”. Just as they cannot, at this point, use the term “conspiracy”.
By using “myth”, they predetermined the result – another insurmountable flaw.
Now, Mr Nyhan does touch briefly on the non-equivalence of the two questions, but does so only after he reaches and states a conclusion that I would argue, he sought.
Bottom line: No conclusion can be made.
Mr Nyhan should have discarded any possible “results” as scientifically unsound, simply based on the fundamental questions asked. Even with his amendment.
“Think” and “believe” do not have equal weight.
Contemporaneous and 8 years previous do not have equal weight.
Loose example.
Asking someone to experience the color, texture, smell, feel and taste of the orange they had in their hand eight years ago is not the same as asking someone if they believe the apple they presently hold in their hand is not a fruit.
The objective of a poll is to be surprised by the results – not the answer – the spread – the potential of results at odds of one might intuit.
If the poll is exactly as expected then a) there was no need for it, b) it was skewed to get the expected answer from the sample, question asked, or way in which it was asked, or c) a combination.
Final assessment: Poll not scientifically sound = no logical conclusion can be drawn from it = worthless.
And, yet, it will make the rounds like that ridiculous Kos poll and the birthers will continue to hassled and ridiculed and misrepresented, which will lead to additional agitation, (especially with the barrymedia), the expression of which will lead to more blanket charges of racism, which will add fuel to a raging fire.
And who is it doing the inciting?
Who is feeding and perpetuating it?
Their next poll should be something useful:
What is it the anti-birthers are after and what are they attempting to cover up?
