Governing by Polls #250
By Hank Silverberg
I was sitting and watching TV on Saturday when the phone rang. The lady at the other end wanted my opinion for her survey. I figured it was going to be about my spending habits as the holidays approached, or maybe they wanted to know my favorite radio station? So, I said "okay."
After some basic demographic questions like age and zip code, she goes to the first real question. And from that point on I was very annoyed.
It was a political candidate and issues survey about the 2023 race for Virginia's General Assembly.
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| (Virginia State Capitol) |
I didn't give the pollster a hard time. She's just doing her job. But if I could find who was conducting that survey, they would get a piece of my mind.
Sure, the Virgnia General Assembly goes back into session on January 8th, 2023, so a question about my position on abortion or tax cuts is probably relevant right now. I had no problem answering them, though the tax cut questions were a bit skewed toward the Republican point of view and very non-specific.
But when she started asking me about which party I would vote for next November, I got angry. Let's see what they do in the legislative session which in Virginia is now split, with a Republican governor, Republican control in the House of Delegates and Democrats in control of the State Senate.
That opens up a lot of possibilities for either compromise legislation or gridlock. How they handle issues like abortion, taxes, spending and a whole lot of other things will make up my mind for next November, and that's a long way off. If they rely on poll numbers to make their decisions, we are in trouble. Example: You won't find too many people who are against "tax cuts for the middle class," one of the poll questions, but the devil is in the detail. How much of a cut, who is considered "middle class," and what doesn't get funded because of the lost tax revenue?
Virginia' Governor Glen Younkin, in office just under a year, can't run again by law, and we won't vote for Governor again until 2025. He will be watching the polls too as he continues his travels around the country and weighing a potential run for President in 2024. Youngkin's politics? He's been called "a polite Trump". An August poll by Roanoke College gave him a 55% approval rating, but that was before all his travels around the country backing Republican candidates during the midterm campaign.
https://www.roanoke.edu/about/news/rc_poll_politics_aug_2022
Virginia politics is watched closely because it has gone back and forth between red and blue and because it's close to D.C. That's fine. But can you please hold off the pollsters on candidates for a while in Virginia? Let's see what happens in Richmond over the next few months.
Antisemitism In The Workplace
This is the most startling statistic I have seen on antisemitism in a very long time. It comes from a survey done by ResumeBuilder.com, a reputable source. They polled 1,131 hiring managers this month about antisemitism in the workplace, and 26% of them indicated they are less likely to move forward with a job offer to Jewish applicants.
Going in deeper, the poll asked "Why?" The answer there was even more startling: 38% said "Jews have too much power and control," and it was tied to another 38% assertion that "Jews claim to be the chosen people."
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| (Courtesy of Montreal Holocaust Museum) |
Not Jewish? Not worried about the survey? Another 26% make assumptions on whether or not the applicant is Jewish based on their looks and appearances.
https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/antisemitism/article-723342
Another dangerous finding in the poll: 23% said their company is trying to limit Jewish presence in the workplace, and 17% of hiring managers said they have been told not to hire Jewish people at all. That practice is not only disgusting, it is also illegal.
Two other findings: 33% said antisemitism is frequent at their workplace, and 29% said it's acceptable within the company they work for.
While the percentages mentioned above are not high, it should be noted that ignoring antisemitism or racism of any kind and not reporting it makes you as an individual an accomplice to the crime.
This issue, always present but rarely talked about, has been highlighted of late after the rampage by Kanye West and the tweet of an antisemitic documentary by New York Nets Star Kyrie Irving, both of whom have now suffered financial penalties as a result.
This week also produced a meeting between Donald Trump and Kanye West, who brought along known white supremacist and antisemite Nick Fuentes. Trump claims he didn't know anything about Fuentes' politics, which of course is hard to believe, since Fuentes has been out there promoting Trump for years. And in fact, you don't get in to see a former president who still has a Secret Service detail, without some kind of vetting beforehand.
Either way, the stone silence from many leaders in the Republican party about this meeting says something too. There were only a few condemnations from Republicans. Apparently, the rest don't care.
To The Moon!!!
In case you missed it, and it appears many people did, the United States has a spacecraft orbiting the Moon.
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| (Artemis 1 Moon closeup Courtesy of NASA) |
The mission is preparation for a return to the Moon in 2026 on Artemis 3, with a manned landing and the eventual use of the Moon as a base for a trip to Mars within the next 15 years.
https://www.space.com/artemis-1-orion-close-up-images-moon-flyby-nov-21
The spacecraft is set to return to Earth and splash down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California on December 11.
Of note, a poll taken in 2019, 50 years after Neil Armstrong became the first man to set foot on the Moon, as many as 6% of the American population believed the original landings were a hoax.
Things are getting a bit active in space right now.
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| (The ISS, Courtesy NASA) |
This week, SpaceX, under contract with NASA, also launched a mission, this one to re-supply the International Space Station. The Cargo Dragon was carrying 7,700 pounds of equipment and supplies to the seven-member international crew, including two solar arrays, GPS hardware, medical equipment and some Thanksgiving treats. It was the 26th mission to resupply the space station.
More than 240 people from 19 countries, including 52 Americans have served on the ISS since it was launched in 1998. Currently, there are 5 Americans, one Japanese and one Russian on board.
Dumbest Quote of The Week!
It's actually the dumbest HEADLINE of the week and it belongs to The Washington Times.
It's in Sunday's on-line edition. The headline reads:
"Hunter Biden's dubious business dealings raise specter of a 'compromised' president."
It's poorly done. There may be something in the Hunter Biden deal that was unethical or even illegal. We don't know yet, but I'm sure the new Republican majority in the House is going to spend months investigating and holding dozens of unproductive hearings like they did in the mythical Benghazi probe. But HUNTER Biden is NOT the President, nor did he serve in public office.
Where was this kind of headline when Donald Trump, his family and his business were being investigated while he was in office? The story itself is a rehash of old information and unproven accusations made mostly by known liar Donald Trump and his allies.
It just proves once again the Washington Times cares more about its political agenda than about the truth.
(Your comments and suggestions are welcome)
My book "The Campaign" can be purchased at the links below. Or you can buy a copy by emailing me at:
HankSilverberg@gmail.com for instructions on how to get a copy at a reduced price and with my signature.)
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B084Q7K6M5/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i0
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-campaign-hank-silverberg/1126429796
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