General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsMajority of Americans wrongly believe US is in recession - and most blame Biden
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/may/22/poll-economy-recession-bidenNo paywall link
https://archive.li/1Jc0c
Nearly three in five Americans wrongly believe the US is in an economic recession, and the majority blame the Biden administration, according to a Harris poll conducted exclusively for the Guardian. The survey found persistent pessimism about the economy as election day draws closer.
The poll highlighted many misconceptions people have about the economy, including:
* 55% believe the economy is shrinking, and 56% think the US is experiencing a recession, though the broadest measure of the economy, gross domestic product (GDP), has been growing.
* 49% believe the S&P 500 stock market index is down for the year, though the index went up about 24% in 2023 and is up more than 12% this year.
* 49% believe that unemployment is at a 50-year high, though the unemployment rate has been under 4%, a near 50-year low.
Many Americans put the blame on Biden for the state of the economy, with 58% of those polled saying the economy is worsening due to mismanagement from the presidential administration.
The poll underscored peoples complicated emotions around inflation. The vast majority of respondents, 72%, indicated they think inflation is increasing. In reality, the rate of inflation has fallen sharply from its post-Covid peak of 9.1% and has been fluctuating between 3% and 4% a year.
*snip*
John Shaft
(648 posts)Social media is the garden in which these monstrosities, lies, propaganda, and misinformation flower.
triron
(22,240 posts)Igel
(35,893 posts)we're still working on finally having a "functioning democracy." We apparently don't have one.
I was told a couple of days ago that you can't have a democracy without "bodily autonomy"--abortion rights and gender reassignment surgery. JFK and FDR did not serve as presidents in a democracy. Not a democracy, it's some sort of autocracy. The tyrants.
I've been told that "democracy" isn't about the system of elections and representation, it's really about the "values." Odd, I was taught we had a "liberal, representative constitutional democracy"--"liberal" were the values (freedom of worship, speech, association; due process; etc., etc.) and "representative" meant not direct majoritarian democracy (which can be very oppressive), "constitutional" meant we had fixed, written rules that could be changed but which were difficult to change because they were fundamental and required a lot of buy-in to alter since they *were* so basic and fundamental; while "democracy" meant that ultimately power rested with the people through a system of elections or polling.
But what do I know? I've just taught government to HS seniors a couple of years (when not doing my primary gig these days, being in the science classroom--but I'm certified for both and got the same score of 92/100 on the hours long certification tests on both).
Some people have confused form with content, process with outcome, goals with intent. Category errors like that are far worse than simple factual errors. Black-and-white thinking is a crime against thought. A democracy can be an imperfect democracy without being an absolute tyranny--FDR wasn't over a "democracy"? Hey, neither was Hitler or Stalin or Mao. The distinction? Three of the four openly hated capitalism--and FDR wasn't one of them. Still, American African-Americans were still freer than most under the other three. But if you turn up the contrast high enough, biased in the right way, FDR is indistinguishable from the actual tyrants.
Initech
(101,122 posts)Fuck 'em all.
PSPS
(14,026 posts)Wednesdays
(19,335 posts)And AM talk radio.
tableturner
(1,739 posts)They let Republicans turn an almost nothing, or an actual nothing, into something big, while our surrogates turn something that is actually big into a nothing...because of messaging (or a lack thereof)...which is why we often lose the argument even when the facts are on our side.
Another example: Dick Durban saying there is no point to holding hearings about Alito because he says there is nothing to be gained from that. There IS something to be gained from that! If we did what the GOP does so often to make an issue much bigger (and OUR issue in this case is legitimately a BIG issue), that would not only put pressure on the Court, but would also serve at least to some extent to inform low information voters about this, in lieu of their picking it up on their own, which many of them will not do. And THAT would add more pressure. We not only should push hearings, but Democratic surrogates should also be flooding the airwaves slamming Alito and the Court with the same zeal and alacrity as the GOP always does with their PHONY issues!
And the constant, false, frenzied messaging by Republicans about the economy, combined with our surrogates less than intense messaging about the economy, is why much of the public thinks we are in a recession and that it is Biden's fault. That is the only way they win those arguments they should lose, and we let them do it!
ScratchCat
(2,286 posts)Which is, what percentage of people who think these things were getting "Covid assistance" in 2020 through summer 2023? Because outside of the folks who live in a right wing radio echo chamber, this the main reason I am getting from people.
Only someone without any investments and who does not follow financial news one iota could believe this.
Johonny
(21,613 posts)Or their intended result?
uponit7771
(91,151 posts)... doubt amplification campaign in that message when dems get into office.
Dena first need to amplify their own measage via the same channels MAGA does
North Shore Chicago
(3,830 posts)What in the hell is the matter with those folks?!
crud
(757 posts)no matter what the Dem messaging is...so that's a big part of the polls. I think the Dem voters are more honest.
videohead5
(2,370 posts)Needs to roll out ads about the economy.
Mosby
(17,022 posts)I'm not sure they could even explain inflation.
People are repeating what they are hearing, or what they believe is true.
Ask the same group whether GDP is down over last year and use that as a confidence measure.