When we had the Taliban on the run in Afghanistan and were bombing the crap out of Tora Bora, CNN ran a poll asking people if they thought Osama bin Laden were still alive. It wasn't an open ended question -- you were stuck with either 'yes' or 'no.' Missing was the most obvious response, "How the hell should I know?" Public opinion would have no effect on whether or not bin Laden was dead.Sometimes polls are taken for no reason other than to report the findings. "Who do you like for president in '08?" falls into that category, at this point -- although that's becoming less and less true as time goes on.
An AP-AOL poll taken recently sort of falls into both categories. Polling people about how respondents feel about the new year, it has plenty of "How the hell should I know?" questions and some responses that are actually useful. In the former category, we learn that "35 percent are optimistic a cure for cancer will be found." In the latter, we learn that the Bush administration is losing the war on science and "74 percent believe global warming will get worse."
Here's what gets me, though. "25 percent believe it is at least somewhat likely that Jesus Christ will return to Earth in 2007." Is there a bigger "How the hell should I know?" for believers?...
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Tags: news | politics | poll | media | religion | christian | religious right | Associated Press
