There sure have been a lot of polls lately. The one that got everyone’s interest, of course, was the recent national poll saying that nearly 1 in 4 Americans believe that President Obama is a Muslim. Whenever I read a statistic like that, I can’t help but wonder about the context and the subtext.
The context is important. The way the question is presented can have a heavy influence on the answer. Consider the following question: “Is a potato a vegetable?” The correct answer is obviously, “yes”. But what if I were to spend a minute discussing my diet and
Fox News: Fair and Loathing
by Jason Lightner August 23rd, 2010 
General Politics, Independent Ideas
By now it's no secret that Fox News parent News Corporation had donated $1 million to the Republican Governor's Association in June. You wouldn't know it by reading the Fox wikipedia entry, however, as the blurb about it has allegedly been removed by Fox's "scrubbers."
According to Daily KOS:
According to Daily KOS:
"On the Fox News main page, someone put this inocuous little statement, heavily referenced, under the controversy section:
'In June 2010, News Corporation donated $1 million to the Republican Governors Association'
... Two FNC scrubbers were on the case and according to the history page
Primary Season 2010
by Ronald A. Rowe August 16th, 2010 General Politics
The 2010 Primaries are under way in some states and rapidly approaching in many others. There has been a lot of talk about the mid-term elections and what they mean for President Obama’s administration. But the mid-terms are still a few months off. First, each party has to select their candidates for that election. What can we learn from this mid-term primary season, half way through the first term of the Obama Administration?
• The anti-incumbency movement isn’t as mighty as once thought. There’s a huge theoretical groundswell against incumbents. There’s no doubt about it.
• The anti-incumbency movement isn’t as mighty as once thought. There’s a huge theoretical groundswell against incumbents. There’s no doubt about it.
All Better Now?
by Ronald A. Rowe August 9th, 2010 General Politics, Political Opinions
According to the Federal Government, whose official motto will soon be changed to "Trust Us, We Know Better Than You Do", the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is now just a fading memory. An astounding 75% of the gazillions of gallons of oil that leaked into the Gulf has now been "collected, dispersed, or evaporated". A full three-quarters of the messy, toxic goo has been taken care of already. That amazing turnaround is just unbelievable. And I mean that in the literal sense that I don't believe it.
Where are my skeptics? Where are the conspiracy buffs
Where are my skeptics? Where are the conspiracy buffs
WikiLeaks Gives New Meaning to the Term “Exposé”
by Jason Lightner August 2nd, 2010 Independent Ideas, World Politics
For the uninitiated, WikiLeaks is an institution that specializes in the anonymous leaking of information. From their website: "WikiLeaks is a multi-jurisdictional public service designed to protect whistleblowers, journalists and activists who have sensitive materials to communicate to the public." Having been around since 2007, WikiLeaks has been involved in numerous high-profile leaks such as a supposed Somali assassination attempt, Sara Palin's Yahoo email contents and most recently the Afghan War Diary.
Based in Sweden, WikiLeaks involves many people from varying countries, and all walks of life. Its spokesman is Julian Paul Assange, a journalist,
Based in Sweden, WikiLeaks involves many people from varying countries, and all walks of life. Its spokesman is Julian Paul Assange, a journalist,