People are Stupid, Part II
Here’s some disturbing polling data from Program on International Policy Attitudes:
Among those who approved of the decision to go to war and were not just supporting the president (53% of the sample), a majority of 52% said the US has found weapons of mass destruction (48%) or did not know (4%).
Among Republicans who said they follow international affairs very closely — and thus may also be more exposed to headlines reporting promising leads — an even larger percentage — 55% –said weapons have been found, with just 45% saying they have not.
Another widespread misperception is that Iraq actually used chemical or biological weapons in the war. Twenty-two percent held this misperception, with 9% being unsure, while 69% correctly said that Iraq had not used such weapons. However, unlike the question of whether weapons have been found, there is no greater tendency to hold this belief among those who support the war, or are Republicans who follow international affairs closely, than there is in the general population.
The above, combined with this, leads one to believe there are a lot people just not paying attention.
