When Polls Become Idols

American Thinker ^ | November 14, 2016 | E. Jeffrey Ludwig

[Kaslin]

Donald J. Trump's victory was described as an upset in many news outlets on November 9, 2016. It was an "upset" only because of the almost uniformly failed prognostications about the results from "scientific pollsters," from Nate Silver to Quinnipiac to CNN and numerous others.

What went wrong?

The news networks and the pollsters will try to answer this question by looking at the demographics of polling, and how there were so many unanticipated "last-minute" shifts among Jews, blacks, women, educated, uneducated, Hispanics, etc. This type of analysis tends to shift the blame from the pollsters to the "unpredictable voter." The voter is thus portrayed as behaving in a surprising, even erratic way that caused the pundits to err.

Is this model of explanation valid?

In order to answer our question, it is not necessary to review the details of polling methodology. Rather, we can answer our question by going back to the sixteenth-century savant Sir Francis Bacon. Bacon perceived that advances in knowledge were being held back by our biases. He called these biases "idols" and asserted that they distorted our perceptions of reality, and even our experimental approach in science.

[Gaffer]

Polls are slaves to those who contract them to “poll”....always been, most likely always will be unless your campaign can disconnect from the historical polling cabal that makes its living off political candidates.

The one thing that pollsters KNOW IN THEIR HEARTS is that bad news early is not well received (it’s basically kill the messenger). So their impetus is to make things sound rosy. For the pollsters it is BIG EFFING MONEY, and the connections of these people to biased networks is just more GRAVY!

Thus they have to play the deception game to the last minute and then blame the vastly different result from what they predicted on all manner of things: ignorant, uneducated redneck Americans, unproven bias against the client that paid them, the astrological position of the stars and the client’s ‘aura’ (tainted by abject hate and bile against them).....you name it.

The ONLY poll that counts is what’s lawfully and accurately counted on election day.

[rusty schucklefurd]

re: “He called these biases “idols” and asserted that they distorted our perceptions of reality, and even our experimental approach in science.”

All very true. This is why there is peer review and falsifiable experimentation in science.

[Red Badger]

We need more Bacon!..............

[Grampa Dave]

“The news networks and the pollsters will try to answer this question by looking at the demographics of polling, and how there were so many unanticipated “last-minute” shifts among Jews, blacks, women, educated, uneducated, Hispanics, etc. This type of analysis tends to shift the blame from the pollsters to the “unpredictable voter.” The voter is thus portrayed as behaving in a surprising, even erratic way that caused the pundits to err.”

“Is this model of explanation valid?”

Do we really need anything from the lying pollsters, the ABCNNBCBS, phoney news, all the left wing mediots/fish wraps, and other Never Trumpsters, listed below in our lives?:

1. Pollsters
2. Faux and ABCNNBCBS, phoney news, all left wing mediots/fish wraps.
3. GOPe radio talk show hosts posing as conservatives.
4. Overpaid NFL jerks, NFL games, pre games, post games and NFL endless prattle.
5. Ny Slimes, Compost, LA Slimes or any liberal fish wrap.
6. Vile left wing Follywood anti America jerks.
7. Grub Hub
8. Macy’s*
9. Starbucks
10. Lifeway Foods
11. George Soros
12. NPR
13. Pepsi Co**
14. Mark Cuban and Dallas Mavericks
15. PacketSled and Critical Assets//CEO Matt Harrigan who promised to Kill Trump in the White House.
16. ________________ fill in the blank.

Eliminate any contact, time, business, dealings with the above for a happier and better life.

* More Bad News from Macy’s
By Investopedia | November 14, 2016 — 10:16 AM EST

Macy’s (NYSE: M) had a lousy 3rd qtr
**Pepsi-Co. (which also includes Pepsi, Mountain Dew, Lay’s, Gatorade, Tropicana, 7 Up, Doritos, Lipton Teas, Quaker Foods, Cheetos, Mirinda, Ruffles, Aquafina, Pepsi Max, Tostitos, Mist Twist, Fritos, and Walkers. For a complete list of Pepsi Products go to the link below provided by : mountn man

http://freerepublic.com/focus/news/3493357/posts?page=153#153

Pepsico products = processed snacks/faux foods loaded with sugar, processed junk, sugar, and carbs may be a high contributing factor in this nation’s overweight and type 2 diabetic health problems.

[Red Badger]

I have a feeling that they knew way beforehand, as evidenced by the H! Campaign’s actions in the last week or two before the election.

They have ‘internal’ polls that they do not share with the real world or allow the media to quote.

The signs were there, everywhere.

They’re calling this a ‘surprise’, ‘upset’ or even ‘unexpected’ is pure hogwash. THEY KNEW......................

[needmorePaine]

The humiliation of pollsters was among the most satisfying results of this election. I’m glad I checked out early from following them.

[gr8eman]

Sir Francis Bacon is also the godfather of British Intelligence. Not a bad legacy!

[pburgh01]

We had lots on our side that had the same meme. Stephen Crowder, Andrew Clavin, Mark Levin, Hugh Hewitt, Michael Medved. All the same...”Stop deluding yourself people, all the polls can’t be wrong, they just can’t be”. I noticed Levin starting last Wednesday starting taking credit for Trump’s win...”Well folks we won by getting Trump back to conservative principles”. Huh...I heard you the week before, you were a defeatist surrender monkey. We’ll welcome you back Mark but please don’t insult our intelligence. If we had done it your way, we would have lost.

[fhayek]

Wikileaks proved that news organizations are corrupt. News organizations commission polls. Why is it so hard to believe, then, that polls are manipulated?

[tbw2]

Polls as news became polls as propaganda.
The poll when from reporting an estimated state of the nation to reporting results and trends in an effort to shape public opinion.

[Gaffer]

Our ENTIRE news access apparatus has been subsumed by liberals. That is a plain fact to me. Argue with it or not, but it is what I believe.

[Ancesthntr]

[jeannineinsd]

Great!

[MarMema]

Throw in Coca Cola. See wikileaks...they were so so tight with Hillary.

[MarMema]

You have a great list here. What we should do is make a part time job out of this..

Trump is doing his job. .Let's do ours.

We need a thread to set up good buying choices for us. Then we can release it to twitter where there is an entire army of Trump supporters.

[MarMema]

I think wikileaks had something about telling the people she was winning and the election was over...

[Grampa Dave]

Thanks.

So much of what I have listed uses simple avoidance, not using and/or not buying whatever. I use the Nancy Reagan rule to just say no to NFL, ABCNNBCBS/Faux news, NFL bs in any form, and the printed media that hates Trump and us.

So much of the Pepsi-Co list should be avoided if we want to stay healthy. I will find a different tea than Lipton fruit flavor, Greentea, Purple Acai Blueberry which I blend with other teas to make my sun tea, when my supply runs out.

I have replaced Macy’s with Nordstroms/Kohls for gifts for my wife, DIL, and grand daughter.

I will check Coke out re their political choice. My list so far is based on how they have acted negative during or after the election to Trump and his voters/us. With a real emphasis on post election bs from them.

[Grampa Dave]

Coke Cola is now on my avoid/don’t buy list. Thanks..

Do we really need anything from Grub Hub, Pepsi-Co, Hollywood, the lying pollsters, ABCNNBCBS, faux phoney news, all the left wing mediots/fish wraps, and other Never Trumpsters, listed below in our lives?:

1. Pollsters
2. Faux and ABCNNBCBS, phoney news, all left wing mediots/fish wraps.
3. GOPe radio talk show hosts posing as conservatives.
4. Overpaid NFL jerks, NFL games, pre games, post games and NFL endless prattle.
5. Ny Slimes, Compost, LA Slimes or any liberal fish wrap.
6. Vile left wing Follywood/Hollywood anti America jerks.
7. Grub Hub
8. Macy’s*
9. Starbucks
10. Lifeway Foods
11. George Soros
12. NPR
13. Pepsi Co**
14. Mark Cuban and Dallas Mavericks
15. PacketSled and Critical Assets//CEO Matt Harrigan who promised to Kill Trump in the White House.
16. Coke Cola***
17. ________________ fill in the blank.

Eliminate any contact, time, business, dealings with the above for a happier and better life.

* More Bad News from Macy’s
By Investopedia | November 14, 2016 — 10:16 AM EST

Macy’s (NYSE: M) had a lousy 3rd qtr
**Pepsi-Co. (which also includes Pepsi, Mountain Dew, Lay’s, Gatorade, Tropicana, 7 Up, Doritos, Lipton Teas, Quaker Foods, Cheetos, Mirinda, Ruffles, Aquafina, Pepsi Max, Tostitos, Mist Twist, Fritos, and Walkers. For a complete list of Pepsi Products go to the link below provided by : mountn man

http://freerepublic.com/focus/news/3493357/posts?page=153#153

Pepsico products = processed snacks/faux foods loaded with sugar, processed junk, sugar, and carbs may be a high contributing factor in this nation’s overweight and type 2 diabetic health problems.

***Coke has had a cozy relationship with the Criminal Clintons go to the link below:

https://mic.com/articles/157155/hillary-clintons-coca-cola-ties-revealed-in-alleged-leaked-email