Apparently, Americans love themselves a bunch of greedy, grasping, profiteering, war-mongering fools when there is an enemy on the horizon. That is the conclusion to draw from a Gallup poll which shows that,
By a 23-percentage-point margin, Americans say Republicans are the party best able to protect the U.S. from terrorism and military threats, the largest GOP advantage to date.
Even more incredibly, and despite having economically ruined this nation the last time they “protected the U.S. from terrorism,” Republicans “also have the edge on keeping the nation prosperous.”
Considering that the worst terrorist attack on U.S. soil occurred while George W. Bush, a Republican, was in office, and that the numbers show that the American economy does better when a Democrat is president, and that President Barack Obama has outperformed Reagan, this latest poll does not show that the public perceptions are true, but rather that Republicans are winning the propaganda war thanks to a mainstream media that is more than willing to be complicit in Republican deceptions.
And it shows that American voters can be as foolish as the Republicans who are leading them by their noses.
Gallup reports that,
The strong Republican advantage this year is most likely related to the increasing news coverage of ISIS and its beheadings of two American journalists. Although the Obama administration has initiated air attacks against terrorist positions in Iraq, the president’s widely quoted comments that he had “no strategy” for dealing with the issue may help explain why Americans have become less likely to say the Democrats could better protect the U.S. from terrorism and military threats.
Apparently, two beheadings count for more than 3,000 civilian deaths on 9/11, more than thousands of combat casualties in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Apparently, in the public mind, actually thinking about what you are going to do is worse than blindly jumping into a pair of 10-year-long wars that ruin the economy.
Apparently, Cowboy Diplomacy is more compelling than Realpolitik.
That is, if you are somehow able to convince yourselves, as the public apparently has, that the Republicans never ruined the economy, just like you have convinced yourselves that a major terrorist attack has never occurred on U.S. soil while a Republican was in the White House.
You know, like George W. Bush on 9/11, right before he embarked on a lucrative career as a war criminal.
And of course, nothing says strong economy like two unfunded wars and tax cuts, right?
In addition to the GOP advantage on matters of security, Americans also give the Republican Party an edge as the party better able to keep the country prosperous, with 49% choosing the Republicans and 40% the Democrats.
Polls like this are discouraging. The Republican elite has the power and the money and wield them like magic swords, cutting across all bonds of truth and fact, seemingly rearranging Americans’ memories to suit their carpetbagging purposes.
The only Republican solution for any foreign policy crisis is military invention. This suits them well. It generates profits and it creates an easily pliable populace, willing to endure the erosion of their own rights – the very rights Republicans say are threatened by the enemy – in order to defeat the enemy, thus doing their work (i.e. dismantling the federal government) for them – all in the name of patriotism.
You have to almost admire the Republicans their ability to destroy this country while getting Americans to willingly participate in their own demise with flag-waving and cheers.
Like a shark is a perfect feeding machine, the Republicans Party has become a perfect chaos machine, breaking down order at every point of contact, with the ruthlessness of Ebola or a flesh-eating bacteria.
Republicans have already shown that they define the expansion of rights as tyranny. And it is our rights and freedoms, our livelihoods, our prosperity, and our very lives, that are being eaten by the Republican Party.
We’re losing the war of ideas, folks. And if we lose the war of ideas, we lose it all, because if there is one thing Republicans have shown America and the world, it is that they have no ideas of their own.
Hrafnkell Haraldsson, a social liberal with leanings toward centrist politics has degrees in history and philosophy. His interests include, besides history and philosophy, human rights issues, freedom of choice, religion, and the precarious dichotomy of freedom of speech and intolerance. He brings a slightly different perspective to his writing, being that he is neither a follower of an Abrahamic faith nor an atheist but a polytheist, a modern-day Heathen who follows the customs and traditions of his Norse ancestors. He maintains his own blog, A Heathen’s Day, which deals with Heathen and Pagan matters, and Mos Maiorum Foundation www.mosmaiorum.org, dedicated to ethnic religion. He has also contributed to NewsJunkiePost, GodsOwnParty and Pagan+Politics.
With my apologies to “The Boss” (and Manfred Mann), it appears these poll responders were “Blinded by the RIGHT“.
That’s Our GOP, its not a lie if thy are telling it.
Americans are idiots. They just are. You give them facts they dismissed them. You give them magic underwear they line up saying do you have that in my size
Consider with all the “dark money” now being dumped into politics and how all that money could be laundered, I wonder about the very real possibility that some of this money could originate from the very enemies of state simply buying influence over our affairs. Makes me worry that the Koch-roches may have outsmated themselves in their conspiracy planning!
Our country would rather feed the youth and the financial resources to the Molech god of WAR, rather than to invest in infrastructures, education, health care, ourselves and the future.
Too broke to help one another. Too trigger happy to get into a war.
I suspect that ISIS is kept going, and rescue attempts foiled,through certain connections very near at hand. And if there is a major incident today, it may well have a similar source.
The Twenty-First Century is a mistake which is likely to be followed by the Nineteenth.
Let’s see, who was it that ignored the memo
that terrorists were going to strike the US with planes? They forgot!
Let’s see, who was it that got the perpetrator
of that 9/11 attack?
Let’s see, who went to war with the wrong country (based on lies)?
Could it be……SATAN??!!!
Was it Gallup that was found to sometimes skew polls toward Republicans/Conservatives? I remember one of the major polling agencies was found to do so, and I’m pretty sure it was Gallup.
Regardless, I seriously doubt Gallup did a good job of polling in this instance, and I’d really like to know how this poll was constructed, where it was done, and on how many people, because this does NOT reflect what I’ve been seeing, and I live in a Red state where a lot of people are fed up with GOP hogwash.
I note that there’s nothing in the data indicating if they asked the respondents whether they identify as or see themselves as Republican or Democrat—and sorry, but that’s a MAJOR flaw here. What you want in a survey like this is to ask that question, and see whether or not people choose the *opposite* party as the one that would do better for either or both questions.
Here’s what Gallup said:
Survey Methods
Results for this Gallup poll are based on telephone interviews conducted Sept. 4-7, 2014, with a random sample of 1,017 adults, aged 18 and older, living in all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia.
Samples are… also weighted to match the national demographics of gender, age, race, Hispanic ethnicity, education, region, population density, and phone status (cellphone only/landline only/both, and cellphone mostly).
(Click link in article for full info on survey.)
They would be so great at defending the country is why they wanted Obama to arm ISIS a year or so ago…if Obama would have listened to the GOP we would be in many wars right now!
Listen folks, don’t trust Gallup B.S.
I take this poll with a grain of salt. It all depends on what the questions were, how the questions were phrased, and other variables. For all we know, they asked more people who are white and id themselves as republicans.
And we already know they suffer from the Dunning Krueger effect. September 11, 2001 happened under a Republican President, not a Democratic one.And it was avoidable, as Bush had been warned, and took no precautions.
” You have to admire Republicans their ability to destroy this country while getting Americans to willingly participate, in their own country with flag-waving and cheers”
Best description of what is going on in America today.
With rethugs there is always money for war, not so much for people, schools,roads bridges jobs. They provide military jobs by war! They fear monger and feed more fear at every chance.
If this country falls once again for all this rethug Bs, I am glad, I am the age, I am. Very glad I don’t have grand children.
There will be no happiness with these people if the republicans are elected. Everything will be sucked up into the war machine and into the pockets of the 1%.
By then I question if it will ever be possible to elect Democrats again
I saw this poll in an email this morning from Gallup and I just have a hard time believing it, but then I have to remember that the Republican propaganda machine is very efficient.
The willingness of the MSM (no liberal media there) to promote right-wing lies without challenge is going to destroy this country. There is no way that our media should be owned by just a handful of corporations with a right-wing agenda.
There is no longer any balance in what information is being spread by “news” agencies, it is bought and paid for by those who want to rule this country with their money. I don’t know what to do, but these polls are very disturbing to say the least.
Yes, another came out that majority Amer. believe 1- Romney killed OBL, 2- 9/11 was Obama fault..
Only thing left to say, WTF..
I’m always interested in these polls as I know absolutely no one under the age of thirty with a house phone anymore. Hmmmmmm.
The majority of American’s still have a landline in their home
That has always been the myth that Republicans are better at defense and commerce yet time after time we see the Repubs. FU(K up everything they touch. One would think that after so many egregious mistakes that people would get the clue that the Reich Wing is dangerous to any one who is not Republican. I’ve said it before and it bears repeating, It is not Republican versus Democrat any more..It’s Americans Versus Republicans.
Of course the facts do not prove this true, but Americans have never let that get in the way of mythology.
My husband golfs and flies with a ton of these idiots and he has proven to them time and again that everyone is better off under D than R. They do not care, even if their bank balances and portfolios are staring them in the face, they just know what they know and fu(k the rest.
American elections are decided by the uncommitted and the inattentive.
I’ve been waiting since Reagan for the American people to “wake up” but I am beginning to give up hope. It seems that the right is just too good at lying, and too many Democratic politicians are too timid to speak up.
I am 57 now, and I just see us sliding backwards over the years. I thought we had turned the corner but the right-wing has honed their propaganda skills to a fine art.
I just have no idea what can be done as our representatives seem more concerned with keeping their jobs than they are about doing what is right.
Um, it’s the Republicans that got us into all this mess. How in the hell can anyone think the Republicans could get us OUT of it?
They’d just dig a bigger hole for Americans to jump into.
Honestly, with the myriad of places people can get good information nowadays, you’d think we’d all be a little smarter.
I call bullshit on this Gallup pole. For one thing, Gallup has always slanted towards the right in their questioning.
Number two polls are skewed because the samples are from people who still have land lines. Who still has land lines? Mostly old people. Old people tend to be, not always, but tend to conservative. Look at your average Fox Noise viewer: 67 years old, high school or less.
I know of many liberal elderly people, my parents, in their 80s, die hard Obama supporters would have skewed this survey.
But by and large, the sample size, skews the results.
After all, there are lied, big lies and statistics.
I guess the Republican strategy of dumbing down America is going according to plan. Willful ignorance is the only explanation for this turn of events. It seems that there are just too many dumb people in this country.
You and I are nearly the same age.. We entered adulthood as Reagan took office. I kept wondering when sanity would be restored. Every time some new proof of corruption Reagan got away with it. He was not impeached bc he wasn’t mentally capable of defending himself in an impeachment proceeding – not bc he was not guilty! Cons are adept at spin, lies and obfuscation. Democrats are not ruthless enough to play hardball with them. Most people don’t want to believe that anyone could be so ruthless and greedy. This is a machiavellian political movement, members believes they do “god’s work”. They don’t seem to care how far they deviate from standards of decency/justice. They sincerely believe liberals are “evil” – it’s irrelevant Cons cheat or lie to get ahead bc they’re “godly men”. I think the US is beyond the point of no return. Most of us (Americans) don’t have any idea how the rest of the world sees us. If we did, we’d demand our “leaders” change our policies.
This is depressing, really.
The largest terrorist attack in history occurs during a Republican administration. That same administration bungles a military response and then invades the wrong country. Plus their economic policies drive the country into economic ruin (policies that were just turbocharged versions of Reagan’s “voodoo economics”)…..
….And this poll says that people trust the GOP more on these issues?
I need a drink.
It is sometimes difficult not to just give up, but I will be voting and trying to get as many like-minded people to vote as I always do.
I have health issues that may limit my time I have left and I just hope to see some signs that people are catching on before I go. I see hopeful signs and then I see things like this poll.
Since the purpose of this poll may be to discourage people, I will take it with a grain of salt and pin my hopes on the one poll that truly matters, the elections in November.
GSB, I’m probably older than you are, and I do have grandchildren. Seven of them. And I’m sorry you seem not to care what happens to them. I don’t know your age, but you’re too young to lie down and let the pro-war Republicans have their way without a whimper. We may not be able to stop them, either in starting this new war or in the next two elections, but I’d be ashamed if I didn’t try. And I don’t mean by funding attack ads.
It seems logical that conservatives would be less educated… However, while there are SOME differences in educational levels between liberals vs. conservatives, the differences are statistically insignificant.
As a liberal, I seek a reason for irrational behavior in others. Since conservatives have the same educational opportunities that we do, how do we explain the willingness to embrace such obviously false and illogical ideas?
They home school their kids to prevent exposure to from the marketplace of ideas, to protect them from “socialism”. It doesn’t stop there. They use their clout to assure their fables are taught in the public schools as if equally valid as proven scientific principles.
http://www.salon.com
/2012/10/24/the_revisionaries_texas_schoolbook_battle_%E2%80%94_crazier_than_you_thought/
They fear Sharia law, but advocate replacing secular law with (Christian) “god’s law”.
There are no easy answers.
I’ve not been wired in twenty years.
Great points, ALL!
I’m attempting to reply to your other comment about not giving up but there is no button. O.o
We must be secretly related. Lol. (I was switched at birth… I’m the only liberal in generations. The only left handed person. (There are other differences).
Like you, I have serious health issues. Maybe that’s why I’m so serious about politics. As for giving up, don’t even get me started. ;) Elections are decided by those who sit home on their arses and complain.
In all honesty, I end up voting AGAINST the Republican more than I vote FOR a Democrat. As a very strong liberal, I don’t see a lot of difference between Dems and Republicans.
YET: Obama has made some changes we never ever would have seen under McCain. Obama would have done much more were it not for the Congress he was stuck with!
Insanity is defined as repeating the same stupid behavior over and over and expecting a different result…
If you haven’t already, watch “WHY WE DID IT” (Rachel Maddow) it’s on YouTube.
There is no question that the WMD thing was a smokescreen. They knew it was a LIE.
They never gave thought to what they would do with Iraq once Saddam was toppled. If they had, they NEVER would have invaded. We didn’t understand the culture or the language.
That mess was MADE BY BUSH! I don’t understand Americans who blame Obama bc he did not have a magic solution for Bush’s Iraq disaster.
Further, Bush brought us to the edge of another Great Depression. Every week there was some other REAL scandal. Example: THIRTEEN Benghazis under Bush.
How could ANYONE turn control of the US over to the same people who brought us to the brink of disaster the first time?! Put another neocon in control and I’m afraid our economy WILL collapse this time.
I’m beyond menopause and never had kids. It’s feel it my duty to invest in the future by voting for investment in the schools. We have a huge community (fundamentalist) Christian Community Center for recreation & retirement. (Tax free!!)
Whenever something came up regarding the schools – these “Christians” came to oppose it. Teacher contracts: vote no. Renovations to the school: vote no. Kindergarten for all communities? Vote no. After school programs: vote no.
They opposed ALL school funding. They supported every effort to limit safe/legal abortion, & opposed access to affordable birth control.
They supported building more prisons, though!
George Gallup was DICK cheney’s best friend NUFF SAID.
Terry, I hate to say it, but I agree. Americans are becoming dumber.
Not everyone, but it seems that our people have very short attention spans first of all. Secondly, this has become a “me” country. Very self-absorbed and uncaring for others.
Maybe because I was a 60s child, where we all worked together for the benefit of all has something to do with it. But, I see people more interested in movie stars’ daily lives than the reality we live in. Just my 2 cents.
Excellent comments.
I don’t know your age, but I’m guessing that you have been paying attention in politics long enough to know the real nitty gritty. You know what the conservative party of today is made of, and it’s nefarious history, not the “history” most people think they know. You know of the lengths they will go to in order to protect what they covet.
It truly is about money, greed, power, and of course, religious hypocrisy.
I am 64.
Don’t eff with the Church Lady if you know what’s God for ya’. ;-D
Screw that Gallup “poll”. Conducted in red states obviously. With 99.99% Republican respondents. With questions that were favorable to the Republican platform. So, I don’t want to hear of no stinkin’ Gallup Poll results. Because it tells me that America has gone mad!
I recently watched the Frontline Doc about juveniles being sentenced to Life Without Parole. I was absolutely horrified, especially by one particular tidbit: In the US, we have nearly 2300 juvenile murderers in adult prisons sentenced to life without parole. THE REST OF THE WORLD (signatories to international treaties on human rights) have FOURTEEN. That’s 14 juveniles in the rest of the world vs. 2400 in the US alone.
That’s appalling and astounding. Why is is that almost every day I discover yet another reason to be ashamed to be an American?
You are so right democratinny: We are very self-absorbed and uncaring for others!! On this anniversary of 9/11, I find thinking about how our hubris leads to the Anti-American sentiment. Too bad that innocents end up paying for the ugliness American policy has spread in the world.
Xena, your post is excellent, thank you.
Children in prisons. Big moneymaker for the greedy.
We are nothing but a means for the greedy.
With all due respect to your comments, I must say that if you “don’t see a lot of difference between Dems and Republicans”, you might have missed something. Especially when you refer to yourself as a Liberal.
The differences are startling.
The economy always does better under a Democratic administration, for one thing.
Social Programs, infrastructure, middle class, domestic programs all do better under Democratic rule.
Just today, Republicans blocked the amendment to overturn Citizens United. Doing the bidding for billionaires to buy elections.
So, in my opinion, there is a big difference between Democrats and today’s Republicans.
Sorry…I no longer believe in Gallup,or corporate news outlets. I do believe dark money is behind polls, and new “news sites”…after all, money is free speech, don’tcha know.
In what language does Gallup translate to mean “bullshit”?
You got the headline wrong.
It should read:
“Gallup: Polls Show the Average American is Dumber Than a Box of Rocks”
Well, I’m not too concerned; it’s not me squatting down with my hands nestled between some large, heavy man’s bulbous naughty parts while he hands off a pigskin brief case full of cash between his legs to a needy republican…the GOP knows that Bejebus is on their team; he always turns the other “cheek”!
for the love of god, everyone must vote on november 4th for democrats! gallup is one of the least dependable, least believable, most partisan conservative pollsters there is.
How the heck do you smash Roaches(GOP) with endless money? Send em’ to a large Roach motel and, make them watch the voting at the polls. Don’t forget to give them a ride in the Raid caddy, get them there on time. Got money?
Not surprising to me at all. I am an old school liberal and have been dumbfounded at the conservatives ability in this nation to defy reality. President Clinton explained it very well at the 2012 Democratic convention as to which side produces prosperity better. Politifact rated his claims as true. Sixty six million jobs created since the JFK presidency in America guess which side resided over two thirds of them? Apparently Americans pi refer BS over results. Just go on Yahoo Answers if you want to know the problem.
In what language? Well, ‘Murican, of course. lol.
When George Gallup died, his family sold the respected company to SRI. Since then it has turned into just another republican scam machine. Look up the lawsuit a whistleblower brought against thecompany. And the business SRI was doing with the Government. As usual, they couldn’t seem to help themselves. Why do an honest job when lies are more fun? Profitable? What? It’s in some people’s genes.
I wouldn’t believe it if Gallup said it was raining with water dripping off my nose. It would more likely be some company stealing water with their help.
Gallup…Republican Scam machine. As someone mentioned here.
Believe it. No, what I mean is don’t believe NONE of their polls. It will ALWAYS have the Republican’s way out ahead, no matter the facts. So, ignore GALLUP. It’s only a poll for Republican fools, makes them feel good and confident. HA!