Absolute insanity!

I don't know if you noticed the Ariticle VI Blog link, or if you ever visited that website, but to give you an overview, it's about Article VI of the Constitution, which reads:

"No religious test shall ever be required as a qualification
to any office or public trust under the United States."

A bit more information about that blog is that it is effectively Pro-Romney, who is a Mormon and who's Mormonism has been brought up repeatedly ever since his announcement of his candidacy of the race for President. I haven't completely decided who I'm going to vote for, but I agree with Article VI blog's premise that our forefathers set the precedent and example that our government should not qualify/disqualify someone based on their religion. And from the example of our forefathers, men greater than I'll ever hope to be, we should try to rule out religion as a test for ourselves. To me, it's one of the building blocks of being American. Being able to coexist. What a novel idea. I reserve the right to allow others to have their own opinion even if they're wrong and allow others to do the same to me. How NOVEL!!

Anyhow, I was reading on that blog about the controversial "push polls" in New Hampshire and gave a link to some of the things from those phone calls they are as follows:

Here are some statements about John McCain. After hearing each, please tell me if you are more likely or less liely to vote for McCain for President. IF MORE/LESS LIKELY: Is that much more/less likely or somewhat more/less likely?


Q9: McCain is a decorated navy fighter pilot who spent six years in a Vietnamese prisoner of war camp. While a prisoner of war, McCain was tortured on a regular basis.


Q14: McCain's sons have followed his footsteps in serving our country. His oldest son was an A Six pilot in the Navy with 256 carrier landings. Another son is a midshipman at the U.S. Naval Academy and his youngest son is a Marine serving in Iraq.


Q16: McCain was the first member of the U.S. Senate to recognize our Iraq strategy was not working. In 2003, he called for an aggressive counter-insurgency campaign similar to the surge now being successfully implemented by General Petraeus. He was also one of the first to criticize Defense Secretary Rumsfeld's lack of aggressive action in Iraq. Defense experts said McCain's early call for stronger action was "the very picture of courageous political leadership." If McCain had been President we may have already won the war in Iraq.

Okay so they're pulling for uh, McCain, perhaps?

Then this crap happens:

Q20: Next, Mitt Romney is a member of the Mormon Church. Mormons believe the Book of Mormon is more correct than the Bible. Mormons claim the Book of Mormon was given to a prophet in the 1800's by the Angel Moroni. On any given day, the Mormon Church is working to baptize thousands of people who have already passed away so they can be converted to Mormonism and join in the Glory of God.


Based on this, would you agree or disagree with those who say the Mormon Church is a cult religion not in the American tradition? IF AGREE/DISAGREE: and would that be strongly or just somewhat agree/disagree?

Uh, what does that have to do with the presidency. I still don't know.


Here are some statements about Mitt Romney. After hearing each, please tell me if you are more likely or less likely to vote for Romney for President. IF MORE/LESS LIKELY: Is that much more/less likely or somewhat more/less likely?

Q30: Romney is a member of the Mormon Church. The Church did not allow African Americans to be priests before 1978.

Q32: Romney's five sons have never served in the military. During a recent campaign event, Romney was quoted as saying that working in his presidential campaign is the same as serving in the military.

Q35: Romney is a member of the Mormon Church. Mormons believe the Book of Mormon is more correct than the Bible.

I cut a few out, but I think you get the picture. But the real fun starts next. The company that did this poll calls it, you guessed it, research? From their own "defensive" statement:

American Association for Public Opinion Research (AAPOR) has good definitional information on what is push polling and what isn't push polling. "Negative or disturbing information about a candidate does not automatically make a survey a push poll,” said AAPOR President Nancy Mathiowetz. “Message testing, when campaigns test the effectiveness of possible messages about opponents and even themselves, is very different; and it is a legitimate form of surveying.”

Good thing their president is such a genius that she could make up her own authoritative definition of what a push poll is. Sounds all good and convenient to me, or bovine fecal matter. You decide.