• Registered: 2010-02-08
  • Posts: 67
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Topic: Outraged at Government? It's the Economy, Stupid

Does people's impatience toward government seem really high lately?

Why is that, do you suppose? Due to unusual levels of incompetence? Or something else?

Here's some interesting data that suggests "something else" is the answer. And the answer is the economy.

http://www.themonkeycage.org/trusteconomy-thumb.png
Source: http://www.themonkeycage.org/2010/02/wh … e_gov.html

People trust government when times are good. They don’t trust it when times are bad.

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  • Registered: 2010-01-31
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Re: Outraged at Government? It's the Economy, Stupid

interesting...my first reaction was to quote from the Outgoing Party Playbook, but then i realized that ruining the economy to the current extent wasn't intentional...
then i thought this chart might just be a non causa, but that didn't seem adequate because there's too much truth in the graph...

now i've come to the conclusion that reactions aren't gonna cut it, and this will require some actual thought to find a flaw with a line that looks as unambiguous as the Pythagorean Theorem

Last edited by allpoints (2010-02-18 16:00:03)

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  • Registered: 2010-02-08
  • Posts: 67
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Re: Outraged at Government? It's the Economy, Stupid

Here's another interesting study. Look at the extent of political polarization in the country. Highest in over a century. Couple the worst economic conditions in our livetimes with extreme polarization, and nuts like tea baggers and Glen Beck begin to sound reasonable--to the politically unstable.

http://www.themonkeycage.org/House_and_Senate_Polar_46-109-thumb.jpg
Source: http://www.themonkeycage.org/2008/01/cl … _mind.html

The same source extends the argument that political discontent is general rather than specific, and tied chiefly to economic conditions, here: http://www.themonkeycage.org/2010/02/th … eryth.html

Last edited by jpn of Seattle (2010-02-20 09:49:45)

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  • Registered: 2010-01-31
  • Posts: 121
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Re: Outraged at Government? It's the Economy, Stupid

jpn of Seattle wrote:

Here's another interesting study. Look at the extent of political polarization in the country. Highest in over a century. Couple the worst economic conditions in our livetimes with extreme polarization, and nuts like tea baggers and Glen Beck begin to sound reasonable--to the politically unstable.

http://www.themonkeycage.org/House_and_Senate_Polar_46-109-thumb.jpg
Source: http://www.themonkeycage.org/2008/01/cl … _mind.html

The same source extends the argument that political discontent is general rather than specific, and tied chiefly to economic conditions, here: http://www.themonkeycage.org/2010/02/th … eryth.html

it's all good, i understand log plots
thank you for your efforts to show your source's work

the correlation is indeed striking no matter how you show it

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