Newsweek Poll: The amazing reality of disinformation

[impik]

Check out question 5 and beyond. It's so frustrating what people think they know and what they don't know.

http://www.newsweek.com/media/84/1001_ftop_v2.pdf

[ChimpersMcSmirkers]

1. What really made me sad was this.

Preventing insurance companies from dropping coverage when people are sick

Favor Oppose DK
59 38 3 =100

So 38% of people think that it's ok for insurance companies to drop coverage when you get sick. Brilliant.

[brand404]

5. What's even sader is the idea of having Insurance Companies all together

It seems very medieval to have insurance companies who decide who lives and dies...And although it is nice to force them from preventing them from dropping people who are sick it doesnt however prevent them from just hiking up prices so high that those that are deemed high-risk will just drop it because they cant afford it....so this idea of not being allowed to drop anyone doesnt solve anything.

Until REAL reform happens which it is clear wont happen for another 15-20+ years i think Americans are best served to marry up to pretyt much any other nationality that is not their own since all other 1st world countries have adopted single-payer and living longer and happier than America.

[Captain Hilts]

6. The president has yet to explain the "important role" insurance companies play. Military medicine -

and Canadian medicine does not use them.

[Go2Peace]

16. Yep, makes you want to throw up you hands. What do you do when 40% are sociopathic?

[MrModerate]

2. On the whole, that's not such a disappointing poll . . .

Naysayers always have the advantage because all you have to do to get people to doubt is to muddy the water; ayesayers have to present complicated ideas in very crisp and unambiguous terms -- even when the issues are muzzy and highly ambiguous.

That having been said -- and the Dems performance on health care and messaging generally having been a tad weak -- the level of support shown in the poll is not only encouraging, but workable.

[damonm]

3. The swing on the independents was astonishing.

Once they know what is ACTUALLY IN THE PLAN...

[upi402]

4. I think the media is to blame

The spin and disinformation is a refreshing change from ignoring huge issues. Glen Beck. O'Reily, and Rush fans make up the 38% of respondents that think sick people just piss off and die if they don't have cash.

[Mudoria]

8. It's too easy to blame the media.

The media puts the information out there but most people don't take the time or effort to educate themselves.

[damonm]

13. THIS.

[Berry Cool]

10. But for the overall percentage of favor/oppose, the swing is statistically insigificant

given the poll's margin of error.

That REALLY depresses me--that even when they know what it contains, people are so-so as to whether they like the plan or not.

[otohara]

11. Independents Are Not INDEPENDENT

I'll say it again and again, when calling so-called "independents" - I've never encountered such ill informed, apathetic, whiners. They are easily manipulated by the media and the party out of power.

If they gave a shit about politics, they'd pick a party and work, but they stay away, let others do the work and then they complain, complain, complain.

They are unaffiliated - not Independent.

[damonm]

12. whatever.

does it really make a difference? I think not.

[Clio the Leo]

7. The admin. put themselves between a rock and a hard place...

... if you dont get specific on a health care proposal and Congress passes it, then you dont have to worry about Congress NOT passing YOUR specific bill (which was what happened in the Clinton admin and the reason, I believe, the Obama admin was never more specific than it was.)

The downside is without being able to espouse one specific set of proposals, you cant go out and sell something specific. If Chuck Grassley says "they're trying to kill grandma" well, of course you can deny that but then you have to turn around and say exactly what you're doing ... well, if one of the plans is still sitting in committee (as the Senate bill was at the time) then you cant give a specific answer because the final product isn't done.

The WH's approach is partly to blame for the confusion, but I'm not sure the upside is much better. This way, he's "struggling to get a health care bill passed." If he'd gone to Congress with a specific plan and you couldn't get all 60 dems on board to pass it then the storyline is "Obama's health care plan fails!"

This notion that if he'd only championed one plan then the Democratic caucus would have suddenly come to understand the concept of unity and fallen in line ... all of them .... even the guy who was sitting next to John McCain on election night is foolishness. It fails to understand the complexity of the competing personalities and interests that are involved.

[quantass]

9. Q: Preventing Insurance Companies from Dropping Coverage When Sick => 38% Oppose, 3% DK ?! Go USA!

[Go2Peace]

14. 38% oppose "preventing insurance co's from dropping people who get sick.". amazing

What do we do about such people? Anyone who thinks it's ok to for the insurance companies to drop sick people are sick puppies themselves. How do you deal with it when close to 40% of the population are sociopaths?

[Clintonista2]

15. The exact same thing happened during Clinton's HCR attempt

Polls consistently showed that when people were asked "do you support Clinton's healthcare reform" most people said no... but when those same people were read each of the actual proposals in the plan, without calling it the Clinton plan, the majority supported it.

It's been almost 20 years and the Dems still can't get their message out.

[TexasObserver]

17. By clinging to a few bad ideas, the president hurt his chances.

Mandating health insurance and providing penalties for it will not sell. Even many of those who have coverage can remember when they didn't, and fear that can always recur.

[Atticus]

18. K & R. This type of info needs to get OUT. Mention this "interesting poll"

to your independent or semi-sensible "Republican" friends.

[andym]

19. Did you see the final breakdown of conservative to liberal:

In general, would you describe your OWN political views as...

Total                   RVs
8     Very conservative 8
31    Conservative      33
36    Moderate          37
15    Liberal, OR       14
5     Very liberal?      4
5     Don’t know/Refused 4

100                     100

41% Conservatives  vs 18% Liberals among registered voters.

Very Liberal (which DU mostly represents) is only 4%.  
We need to do something to change these numbers.

[depakid]

20. Self identification via labelling is bogus- as any researcher will tell you