The gullibility of the left

I have insulted a fair number of Republicans in the last few weeks, by posting and commenting repeatedly, how such findings as the Pipa report, show they have a tenuous grip on reality at best. And how this is okay, because the Bush administration vocally rejects "reality" as a mere inconvenience, not worth bothering about.

In the interests of fairness though, I have to point out the following. I received an email from a leftist friend of mine, which contained a report that said "Stupid people are more likely to vote for Bush."

Now, it's a sentiment I agree with, for various reasons, but this email claimed to be citing a report from some thinktank in South California. Does it sound plausible? Yes, especially if you're a smug and sanctimonious lefty who likes looking down on "foolish" Bush supporters. But is it true?

Well, there we have a different story.

You can google for this alleged report, and find many references to it online. Despite the fact that it was allegedly released only a few days ago. (It certainly seems to be spreading rapidly.) But so do virii-hoaxes and chain letters.

The first clue (to me) that this report was complete crap, (aside from the natural tendency to reject the idea of a Californian think tank as an obvious oxymoron) was that the doctor cited in the report was called "Louis Friend."

Has anyone on the Left who is promulgating this missive, seen "Silence of the Lambs"?
Louis Friend is a made up name. An anagram of "iron sulfide", also known as fool's gold.

Some further research failed to find any reference to this alleged Think Tank anywhere else. Maybe the article was originally written as a joke, but I found no clear cut reference to it being a joke. (Though it reads like a really bad Onion article.)

You might think "Where's the harm?", and wonder why I get so annoyed when I see stuff like this. Especially since I kind of agree with the conclusions it claims to support.

The answer is simple. Because it's bullshit. And the choice between Democrat and Republican should not be about winning by any means. There are plenty of reasons to be against Bush, and (if you must) to mock the unthinking followers of his administration. You don't have to make shit up. And if you believe a bullshit report just because it says something you agree with, well, you're no better than those who reject "reality-based" facts.

The left needs to be more sceptical. (It's the only way we'll ever get to the truth about issues like global warming.)
posted by Manchild at 11:39 AM