The Poke-A In Boca will be all about foreign policy….the battle between Obama and Romney will vie for the hearts and minds of the American voter…..we will hear all about Israel, Iran, Arab Spring, etc etc etc…
But the American people, will they be interested? Here are a few things about foreign policy and the American voter….
- 41 percent of Americans believe China is the world’s leading economic power, according to a 2012 Pew poll (the correct answer is the United States, which 40 percent of respondents in the Pew poll selected)
- 73 percent of Americans could not identify communism as America’s main concern during the Cold War, according to Newsweek, which administered an official citizenship test in 2011 (admittedly, it’s not entirely clear what if any alternative answers — the Soviet Union? Nuclear weapons? — the magazine accepted)
- 9 percent of Americans frequently worry about becoming a victim of terrorism, according to a 2011 AP-GfK poll (Reason magazine has calculated that the chances of being killed by a terrorist are roughly one in 20 million, and that “in the last five years you were four times more likely to be struck by lightning than killed by a terrorist”)
- Nearly 25 percent of Americans don’t know that the United States declared its independence from Great Britain, according to a 2011 Marist poll
- 71 percent of Americans believe Iran already has nuclear weapons, according to a 2010 CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll (Israel, the United States, and the International Atomic Energy Agency would beg to differ)
- The average American thinks that the United States spends 27 percent of the federal budget on foreign aid, according to a 2010 World Public Opinion poll (the figure is more like 1 percent)
- 33 percent of Americans believed Saddam Hussein was personally involved in 9/11 as late as 2007, according to a CBS News/New York Times poll (it’s worth noting that the number was down from 53 percent in 2003, and that more recent polls suggest the percentage has continued to decline since 2007)
- 88 percent of young Americans couldn’t find Afghanistan on a map, 75 percent couldn’t locate Iran or Israel, and 63 percent couldn’t identify Iraq, according to a 2006 Roper Public Affairs/National Geographic Society poll
As the survey shows, Americans are not that knowledgeable on foreign policy…. I do not look for the debate to break any records for viewership….we as a nation are not that interested in foreign policy……we do like winners and people will watch so that they can say they saw the winner work his magic…….who will win? YOUR guy! Whoever that may be.
God! Will this torment ever end?
Lobotero,
People are stupid. What other explanation do you want?
If all my campaigning this year has taught me anything, it’s that most people are dumb, self-involved blowhards, Few people had any sort of intelligent response. One guy tried blaming Obama’s woes on Bill Clinton, saying Clinton left him a terrible economy. I didn’t even know what to say to something so face-palmingly stupid.
One dude said he wasn’t “voting for no nigger.” One woman said she “ain’t voting for a Mormon.” And still another lady said, “We be hatin’ Mitts Romneys. We’s Obama’s suppORT-ers.”
I know it’s not a popular idea among liberals, but I firmly believe one should have to pass a civics exam before being allowed to vote. And you may disagree, but for crying out loud, those polling results you listed only amplify my argument. A quarter of this nation doesn’t know that we declared our independence from Great Britain on July 4, 1776?
When did the United States declare independence?” July 4th, 1776 is an acceptable answer. (Technically, it was declared July 2, 1776 via a resolution from Congress. But that sort of specificity is not required for the type of exam I’m talking about. July 4th would be acceptable.)
You say Americans aren’t knowledgable on foreign policy? Pssh. You could have said Americans aren’t knowledgeable – period.
Frankly, I don’t understand why an entire debate is focused on foreign policy? “It’s the economy, stupid.”
Morning Terrance, I wish I could disagree with you at some point, but everything I have witnessed while talking with people is that they have the attention span of a garden slug…..as far as the exam goes…..with the total baboons in Washington, they should have to pass a civics exam and the citizenship exam……I think that one or both mass-sebaters will tie the foreign policy to the economy at some point and then it will come back to s…..someone sucks!
So far in these debates I have learned nothing about how either candidate will improve our lives….there is my problem with both these people…..I know how much the other sucks….but I have NOTHING that would lead me to think either of them is the answer….
I’ll be one of those stupid people watching tonight.
I will too…that is unless a gorgeous red head has a better idea….LOL