Well, I actually hope that this poll's sample is as badly skewed as so many opinion polls are these days. If one third of the poll respondents believe that 9/11 was an "inside job" what does that say for the mass psychosis that is breaking out on the left in this country?
More than a third of the American public suspects that federal officials assisted in the 9/11 terrorist attacks or took no action to stop them so the United States could go to war in the Middle East, according to a new Scripps Howard/Ohio University poll.
The national survey of 1,010 adults also found that anger against the federal government is at record levels, with 54 percent saying they "personally are more angry" at the government than they used to be.
Widespread resentment and alienation toward the national government appear to be fueling a growing acceptance of conspiracy theories about the 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.
Suspicions that the 9/11 attacks were "an inside job" — the common phrase used by conspiracy theorists on the Internet — quickly have become nearly as popular as decades-old conspiracy theories that the federal government was responsible for President John F. Kennedy's assassination and that it has covered up proof of space aliens.
Seventy percent of people who give credence to these theories also say they've become angrier with the federal government than they used to be.
Thirty-six percent of respondents overall said it is "very likely" or "somewhat likely" that federal officials either participated in the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon or took no action to stop them "because they wanted the United States to go to war in the Middle East."
"One out of three sounds high, but that may very well be right," said Lee Hamilton, former vice chairman of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States (also called the 9/11 Commission). His congressionally appointed investigation concluded that federal officials bungled their attempts to prevent, but did not participate in, the attacks by al-Qaida five years ago.
"A lot of people I've encountered believe the U.S. government was involved," Hamilton said.
"Many say the government planned the whole thing," he said. "Of course, we don't think the evidence leads that way at all."
This is really quite sick. That it was even a subject for a poll indicates just how badly this disease has spread. That there is a high probability that this same group is also the core of the left and is the same group that is screeching the loudest about Israel is also pretty obvious. That these theories defy logic, the laws of physics and basic engineering appears meaningless to these people.
Bush Derangement Syndrome has metastasized into something that endangers the entire world. We have trouble.
36% of all Americans are lever pulling Democrats…coinkydink?
In order for you to believe that the government was behind the 9/11 attacks, you’d have to be pretty distrustful of government. Distrusting government has traditionally been a “right-wing” attribute. Maybe the tag should be “right-wing.” Then again, who knows what right-wing means any more; it also used to mean smaller government and less spending.
I’m not surprised people are so distrustful of government these days. The President scared the people into supporting an invasion of Iraq (what % of citizens thought Iraq was involved in 9/11?), and the people were told Iraq would be a cakewalk. The President’s hubris of making light of no WMDs at the 2004 White House Correspondents dinner (“Gosh, no WMDs under here!”) really should have revolted John and Jane Doe.
I’ll stir the pot and tie this conspiracy post in with the Israel posts by asking: Do you think Israel had information about 9/11 before it happened? If so, do you think they were under any obligation to share it with us?
http://www.sundayherald.com/37707
Based merely on telephone calls to only 1,010 adults, the results of this survey can’t be taken seriously. Such powerfully sweeping conclusions are unjustified from such a quick and dirty sample. Scripps Howard/Ohio University should have gone to the next level and designed a more comprehensive way to explore their initial findings before rushing into print. Their conclusions are simply not supported by adequate research, and they know better.
They’ve merely scratched the surface, turned up an interesting avenue for further exploration, and should never have generalized from so small a sample. Going off half cocked like that would be unacceptable in any entry level graduate course on survey methods and techniques.
BTW, the article mentions other examples of conspiracy theories, and states that “The Scripps Survey Research Center at Ohio University has tracked the level of resentment people feel toward the federal government since 1995, starting shortly after Timothy McVeigh bombed the federal building in Oklahoma City.”
One is therefore entitled to ask if Scripps has polled to find out what percentage of Americans blame Bill Clinton’s administration for Oklahoma’s destroyed building, whether folks think McVeigh might have had foreign accomplices, and what percentage of Americans are resentful.
Or is Scripps/Howard only curious about conspiracy theories which smear GWB’s administration?
PS: I’d like to know what percentage of Americans resent bogus polls.
Bin Laden is laughing.