Posted on 06/09/2008 2:47:04 AM PDT by Daffynition
You can learn a lot about people from the way they 'brand' their pets. The names of furred and feathered family members reveal a lot about the way Americans think — and vote.
In a recent national study, Strategic Name Development of Minneapolis queried 1,059 consumers about their pets' names and political preferences. The results show some significant correlations between the way we name our pets and the presidential candidates we choose.
Both Hillary Clinton and John McCain supporters have significantly more pets with derogatory names than do Barack Obama supporters, suggesting that Clinton has more in common with McCain than with Obama.
One in three consumers in the study name their pets after people. (Names like this are called "Eponyms".) This tendency is significantly higher for McCain voters compared to Hillary and Obama supporters.
Those who support McCain for president use many notable presidential names for their pets including Jackson, Franklin, Garfield, Ike and, of course, McCain. One McCain supporter even has a dog named Barney, just like the current First Dog.
Those who would vote for Clinton choose political names like Truman and Tancredo. But her fans have also branded their pets with multiple Chelseas and Ariannas (as in Huffington, of course).
Obama supporters have chosen the most eclectic mix of eponyms for their pets: George Washington, Hemmingway, Cher and Mr. T.
SND's own Siberian Huskies, Chomsky and Pushkin, fall into this category. (You are free to draw your own conclusions about what that will mean at the polls in November.)
More than 15% of consumers in the study use coined (or created) names for their pets. In this category, Obama's supporters have significantly more coined pet names than do McCain's.
In Obama's camp are the owners of Bam-Bam, Gordo, Jinxie, D'og, Kitty Dawg and Puhduhduhduh, while McCainites offer both fewer and more moderate coinages like Boo Boo, Cry-Cry and Oh No.
More than a fourth of the pet names in the study are suggestive — alluding to a feature or benefit that describes the pet's personality. This naming technique is significantly more prevalent for Hillary Clinton supporters than for her male counterparts.
Among Hillary fans, suggestive pet names like Dreamer and Cupcake are commonplace. McCain supporters, on the other hand, favor the likes of Rebel and Patriot, while those who endorse Obama can claim the likes of Turbo and Streak.
Although the letter J is the most popular first letter for people names in the Western world (11% of all first names), this is not the case for pets. J initializes fewer than 4% of the pet names in our study. S is clearly the most popular initial for pets with 16% of owners choosing S to introduce their pet's name.
Hillary Clinton supporters lean toward energetic S names like Spunkie, Sassy, Sparky and Smarty. Those owners that support Barack Obama are much less likely (13% vs. 18%) to choose names that start with S (Smiley and Spirit notwithstanding).
Ironically, Hillary's supporters also have the edge when it comes to Barack's favorite S word, Sweetie, with nearly 11% of their pet's S names built around Sweets, Sweetie or Sweet Pea. By contrast, Barack supporters have no "Sweet" names, but they do have a source of sweetness in "Honey Bear."
People name their pets based on their own values.
The correlation between the names people give their pets and their political preferences reveals the "personal brand" of each candidate.
John McCain has clearly established himself as a candidate in the tradition of Andrew Jackson and Dwight Eisenhower, and also as the strongest when it comes to defense and homeland security.
Barack Obama appeals to those who seek out originality and a new approach to politics (just what he set out to do).
Despite her hard fighting in the Democratic primary, Hillary Clinton continues to appeal to those who value a feminine perspective.
Although the most popular initial letter for pets is S,
chihuahua mix. Found at the pound after putting stitches in the officer's arms and hands when they tried to pull him out from under an abandoned house with his three female love slaves. Officers called because he was impregnating pedgree poodles nearby, dumping trash cans and biting tasty children with his gigantic incisors. Feral for three years. 2.5 pounds. Red. Hairy ears. Hates everyone except family. One tooth sticks out of his mouth at all times. We call him Wiz for short. Not because he can do magic.....but because of some remarkable new patterns on the carpet. I have yet to see the perfect candidate to model off this.
Have we seen his pic on the 'net B4?
My black and white Boston Terrier is named Oreo.
Here A-hole...come here boy...I see you over there across the aisle...come here ole boy.
Lets see:
1) Love slaves
2) Wild sex with pedigreed females
3) Making a mess for others to clean up
4) Going after the innocent
5) Significant time running wild
6) Unable to maintain a committed relationship
There is one name and only one that comes to Mind
William Jefferson Clinton
In my family there’s a cat named Vomit whose owner is certainly a conservative who will vote for McCain.
And if you were a liberal in a University setting, you would receive funding - here, we know it's a joke.
Boo Boo and Bam-Bam aren’t “coined” names. How ignorant is the writer?
I have two cats, named Audacity and Hope, and a Basenji-mix named Maverick. I live a confused existence.
Thats not a dog it's a Klingon targ!
Qapla!
Che
Marx
Hugo
Fido-Fidel (libs love hyphenated names)
Mao Mao (good for cats only)
My name is Duchess, but they call me Madam
Do you want to make something of it??
My house is maintained strictly for my comfort.
Is that yours? I have an American Bulldog too, Samson. He’s five months old now, and pushing 45 lbs. We expect him to get to about 90 lbs.
Great dogs, those American Bullies!
I CAN HAS CHEBURGER?
Chat Guevara?
I’ve nic-named my neighbor’s dog “Lindsey”. He keeps his brown nose buried up other male dogs butts, doesn’t have a single male trait and crawls under the fence at any opportunity.
Great name!!!
As long as a liberal conclussion is reached before the study is commenced, the funding will be there.
Ditto:
But there's a 93% chance he was going to be voting Dem.
One of my cats a male is called Tigerstar after the childrens novels “Warriors” of a clan of cats, he is a black tiger striped mix.
I was supposed to take him to the vet saturday for his rabies booster shot but he has not been seen since thursday, I strongly suspect foul play, either a wolf , eagle or an owl took off with him.
I am not making this up, I live in Alaska and I have been losing on average one or two cats a year.
She’s actually an Olde English - 70lbs so she’s smaller than the American.
Great personality!! Total cream puff, but scary enough that someone who didn’t know her will stay away! (Since I’m home alone a lot of days, I don’t mind at all)
Bulldogs, of any kind, rule!! Good luck with your baby.
“D’og”?
Snort
My dog’s name is Rex. Didn’t see that one in the article, nor spot, fluffy, fido or any of the other common dog names.
He's definitely going to be bigger than Duchie. Her nose is a bit more pushed in than his, but they have the same coloring. And pink skin with black spots :-)
I love this picture - eyes that can see your soul.
I think it’s safe to say that we don’t have Democrat type dogs!
Duchess was actually president of the Connecticut chapter of Bulldogs for Bush in 2004
:-)
PING
My cat is named Merlin.
Close. Hairer ears and a female nearby....
LOL I didn’t read the whole thing, it was a rhetorical question.
I amaze myself with how much garbage I read at FR (mixed in with the worthwhile stuff) lol
Nina, Shadow, Bonnie, Teak, Sam, Basil, Cassie and Pippin would agree.
Conclusion: This study was a waste of time and money.
Pets:
Alexis(Alex), Gracie and Cinnamon
My cat is named Claymore and I’m a Duncan Hunter supporter.
Posting here after trying to get some sleep during a late spring heat wave, and drinking my first cup of coffee, my cats Pumpkin, Jasper, Muffin, and Cookie, who are trying to stay cool themselves second in agreement with your cats. =^..^=
All four of my cats have had “people names,” but I’m only responsible for one: Crystal. The others came with their names. I also had a dog, Aaron, that I named at age six. Go figure!
Our senior cat (15) is named Squeeky, for “Squeeky” Frome; because both of them have a personality like a bent trashcan. Squeeky’s mother was a lot meaner, and we called her Sadie Mae, as in Sadie Mae Glutz, another one of Manson’s girls...
Does that make me a McCain man??
what do herschel and midnight say about you? ; )
They usually say, “Feed me, bald guy!”
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