Saturday, December 19, 2015

We're bombing who now?

Pictured: Stupid idiots. 
So they're not calling people stupid, but this poll does kind of indicate that people are pretty stupid. Public Policy Polling conducted a survey that found Donald Trump expanding his lead over over GOP candidates which, ok, not surprising. But what is both surprising and oh what's the phrase? Oh-my-god-what-the-fuck? That's it. What's oh-my-god-what-the-fuck is that 54% of his supporters said they support his proposed Muslim ban and 45% say we should shut down mosques.

Oh, and 41% would like to bomb Agrabah. No really, 41% of Trump fans pressed the 'strongly support' button for bombing the fictional city of Agrabah from goddamn Disney's Aladdin. Oh and don't look so smug people who aren't self-identified Trump supporters, because PPP found the 'bomb Agrabah' crowd included 30% among Republicans in general and at 19% among Democrats. So like, yikes, right?
What? Their broad racial caricatures and evil wizards
present a clear and present danger to American interests.
Congress: slightly better than mob rule.
Why was that even a question on the poll? Because it's fun to troll idiots and polling organizations like to point out that maybe straight-up democracy isn't necessarily the best idea we've ever had. I'm not saying we need to pick a king or something, it's just that every time someone complains about our representative form of government, it's important to remind them of shit like this poll and how it could be worse.

That percentage comes down a bit if you limit
the poll to victims of Japanese internment.
(source: obviousness) 
People like to feel like their opinions are important. I mean, they're not, but we like to feel that way. So when confronted with a poll, everyone turns into a goddamn geopolitical genius it doesn't matter that we don't know what we're talking about. Bomb Agrabah? Sure, Agrabah sounds Muslim-y, so fuck those Agrabanians! I probably shouldn't suggest that a lot of the people polled are racists, but 28% of those surveyed thought that Japanese internment camps during World War II were a good idea so it's a safe bet that a lot of the people polled are racists.

Yeah, that was on the survey too. Japanese internment, which the government's own official investigative panel called a 'grave injustice' based on 'racial prejudice, war hysteria and failure of political leadership' but which a quarter of people taking some phone survey seven decades later are totally cool with. I don't know what any of this proves other than Americans are surprisingly hostile towards imaginary sultanates and that it's a good thing we don't conduct public policy by a show of hands.
"I do very well among racists and fans of grave injustice. They love me."
-Trump

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