Like A Mofo Posted October 14, 2004 Share Posted October 14, 2004 Ive been thinking this for years. Why do we REALLY need to see these political polls??? Why not just let people watch the conventions, debates, learn the issues and see what happens come November 2nd? I believe this would help voter turnout. For example, if you are gonna vote Kerry in certian states? Why bother voting for Bush in some states either? If nobody knew what could happen, wouldnt that help get more people to go vote? Any thoughts? I just cannot think of a good reason why the public needs to know, maybe Im overlooking something. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paco Posted October 14, 2004 Share Posted October 14, 2004 Good question, and it comes with a very simple answer. As a country, we're lazy-ass morons and we need the media to tell most of us how to think or we'd do nothing all day but watch TV and figure creative ways to avoid personal accountability. If we are left to think for ourselves, the country would advance too quickly for the media...and the media would end up having to account for itself. It's our fault, though. We let it happen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alaska Darin Posted October 14, 2004 Share Posted October 14, 2004 Ive been thinking this for years. Why do we REALLY need to see these political polls??? Why not just let people watch the conventions, debates, learn the issues and see what happens come November 2nd? I believe this would help voter turnout. For example, if you are gonna vote Kerry in certian states? Why bother voting for Bush in some states either? If nobody knew what could happen, wouldnt that help get more people to go vote? Any thoughts? I just cannot think of a good reason why the public needs to know, maybe Im overlooking something. 69652[/snapback] Apparently so Mickey has something to do on a Wednesday night. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nobody Posted October 14, 2004 Share Posted October 14, 2004 Purely so the media has something to talk about. The media is just as bad as politicians these days. Just as all politicians try to do is find the one-liners to drill into the publics head against the other side the media only reports on stories that will get the highest rating. I hate to use the word "news" when it comes to the media since it's all opinionated soundbites and glimmer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UConn James Posted October 14, 2004 Share Posted October 14, 2004 Ive been thinking this for years. Why do we REALLY need to see these political polls??? Why not just let people watch the conventions, debates, learn the issues and see what happens come November 2nd? I believe this would help voter turnout. For example, if you are gonna vote Kerry in certian states? Why bother voting for Bush in some states either? If nobody knew what could happen, wouldnt that help get more people to go vote? Any thoughts? I just cannot think of a good reason why the public needs to know, maybe Im overlooking something. 69652[/snapback] I don't think polling has much to do with people not voting. If they're that callous about their civic duty, and don't realize that one vote can make a difference (as evidenced in the 2nd CT Congressional District in... I want to say '94. The guy won by 1 vote.) it's not b/c of overexposure to polls, which in and of themselves tell us very little about how an election will go in a particular state. I can think of a lot other reasons, namely laziness and an overall laissez-faire attitude, combined with a resignation to what AD talks about a lot -- that either way it's not going to appreciably change govt functioning. Then there are other realists who believe most everything happens in small steps. It's yet another piece of information in our daily lives. We still have to sift it through to see where it fits in the overall puzzle and how/if it matters. Do you propose censoring polls? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kelly the Dog Posted October 14, 2004 Share Posted October 14, 2004 I think it is because we are, by far, the most competitive society and culture in the world and we are totally and unabashedly obsessed with winning and losing, and polls are the only way that we can quantify things like debates, and the prelude to elections. This competitiveness is not a bad thing, in fact, it is what makes us great. We are obsessed with sports, with finishing first, with top ten lists, with saying our doctor is "the best in the country", or our college is in the top four party schools, etc. It also has its downsides, like relying on polls, but overall this competitiveness has been a tremendous advantage for us over the decades. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UConn James Posted October 14, 2004 Share Posted October 14, 2004 I think it is because we are, by far, the most competitive society and culture in the world and we are totally and unabashedly obsessed with winning and losing, and polls are the only way that we can quantify things like debates, and the prelude to elections. This competitiveness is not a bad thing, in fact, it is what makes us great. We are obsessed with sports, with finishing first, with top ten lists, with saying our doctor is "the best in the country", or our college is in the top four party schools, etc. It also has its downsides, like relying on polls, but overall this competitiveness has been a tremendous advantage for us over the decades. 69744[/snapback] Well put. And the media touts them b/c it's quick, quantifiable information b/c the market research says that people are busy and spend less and less time reading the news. Which leads to soundbites, b/c the media believes it needs to cater to people with severe listening/reading deficiencies. But, for those of you not in the know, newspapers are the better source of news. BTW -- UConn was ranked as the #8 party school by Playboy.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alaska Darin Posted October 14, 2004 Share Posted October 14, 2004 One of the proudest moments of my life was when Geneseo State took top honors in that very category during the '80s. Of course, the government raised the drinking age not long after and ruined an entire town. :I starred in Brokeback Mountain: government! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UConn James Posted October 15, 2004 Share Posted October 15, 2004 One of the proudest moments of my life was when Geneseo State took top honors in that very category during the '80s. Of course, the government raised the drinking age not long after and ruined an entire town. :I starred in Brokeback Mountain: government! 70489[/snapback] Bastards! B) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erynthered Posted October 15, 2004 Share Posted October 15, 2004 Ive been thinking this for years. Why do we REALLY need to see these political polls??? Why not just let people watch the conventions, debates, learn the issues and see what happens come November 2nd? I believe this would help voter turnout. For example, if you are gonna vote Kerry in certian states? Why bother voting for Bush in some states either? If nobody knew what could happen, wouldnt that help get more people to go vote? Any thoughts? I just cannot think of a good reason why the public needs to know, maybe Im overlooking something. 69652[/snapback] To apease the mindless. Some are swayed by polls, rather than thinking for themselves. Course, then there's Blzrul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swede316 Posted October 15, 2004 Share Posted October 15, 2004 Apparently so Mickey has something to do on a Wednesday night. You mean there's a drool poll? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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