Could Stossel be more dishonest?

[dsc]

I am currently watching his special on 20/20. For his first 10 minutes he describes putting a Salvation Army Kettle at a San Francisco location and a Fargo ND location. Now what could be dishonest about that? Maybe that he didn't mention the fact that the Salvation Army is anti gay. Might that have had something to do with the fact that San Francisco won't give to them? Shame Mr. Stossel, shame. Edit should be Sioux Falls.

[Beaverhausen]

1. That's how he did his research and came to his conclusion?

that red states give more? Could he be any more of an ass?

[dsc]

2. that was from a book

He hasn't gotten to that.

[warrens]

3. I bet they don't do well here, either

I refuse to give them money. I give it directly to the poor through a toy program run by local theaters. Buy a toy, wrap it, mark sex and age, and cut out the middleman.

[LynneSin]

4. Let's take away the concept that the salvation army is anti-gay...

...doesn't the fact that San Francisco is a much larger population than Fargo, ND play into the concept that more people will happen to passby the SF kettle vs. the Fargo one.

Then consider the cost of living. In SF, the cost of living is extremely high which means that pretty much most folks don't have alot of spare change to go dumping into kettles; whereas you could probably rent a luxury townhome in downtown Fargo for like $750/month for a family of 4 in Fargo.

Clearly this isn't an example of Apples vs. Oranges. Hell this is trying to compare Apples vs. Lug Wrenches

[FairVotes4all]

15. Wages are lower in Sioux Falls than in San Francisco too.

That isn't the problem, its using one of the examples that makes Sioux Falls look better, and ignoring the huge issues that show the downright selfish side of the town.

[dchill]

5. Conservatives "give more"...

because they HAVE more. And they only give when two conditions are met: the recipient must reflect the giver's "values", and the "gift" must be tax deductible.

I generalize, of course, but the observations are generally true. This is why the Stossels of the world can prove what they say - on paper.


*Edit to add: In answer to your question, yes, Stossel could be more dishonest, but then it would be even more obvious - to, say, the many who now may be self-congratulatory enough to agree with him.

[tridim]

6. Is Fargo really red?

Last I checked only Utah and Idaho are red.

[Skinner]

7. Agreed. He designed his "experiment" so it would get the answer he wanted.

I haven't seen the show, but I did just write something about this. Here's my attempt to address his argument:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=364&topic_id=2832375&mesg_id=2836423

[dsc]

10. You did a much better job than I

[Raine]

8. I don't know whether Stossel is so stupid

he doesn't know how lot's of people feel about the Salvation Army or he is deliberately slanting things to fit his scenario. Whichever, it is shows what an ass he is. x(

[leveymg]

9. Actually, he's very bright. But, he caters to an ignorant audience

and knowingly peddles dishonest or misleading material.

He's one of the most grating media whores because he comes across as being so smug and supercilious. I feel the same way about some others, such as Charles Krauthammer, another mix of a good brain and a total lack of ethics.

[I_Make_Mistakes]

11. I used to be an avid viewer, but after Stossel started

peddling his bs, I refuse to watch that truthiLESS hack. The final straw for me was when he was doing a hit job on our educational system , I am not affiliated with the educational system what so ever, with an apples/oranges comparison. If he is as smart as the previous poster contests, then he is just a smart liar, because his dishonesty is so offensive, I will not even watch the non-Stossel segments of his show.

If the network had any conscience they'd ditch the snake oil salesman, and, just maybe, they'd get their viewers back.

[MrCoffee]

12. no.

the word "hack" leaps to mind.

[David Zephyr]

13. Why would someone in SF give money to an organization that discriminates against gays?

The Salvation Army went to court to protect their "right" to fire gay employees.

Giving money to that organization is equivilant to giving money to the KKK or the American Nazi Party.

[KG]

14. he's a scam artist.

a scumbag that only cares about his wallet and his porn mustache.