I am surprised this isn't getting any comments. I'd be interested in playing or at least checking out this game if I wasn't so poor these days I couldn't even afford to renew my OD sub this year - and since everything in OD this year is mostly only for XP users now anyway...[shrug]

Anyway, I am commenting mostly because this blurb mentioned polls and yesterday I finally got Called By a Political Pollster! I'd been wanting that to happen forever...even though this poll was not about the Kerry/B*sh horse race, but about a local issue, a San Francisco measure intended to warehouseum, I mean provide space for homeless people to stay out of sight um, I mean the rain. PLUS provide them with "mental health" uhm "services" - which, when asked if such "services" would be voluntary in cases not involving violent behaviour, and that counselors would be counselors and not just AA zealots with their only qualifications being all those clean-time years, symbolized by the plastic whatchamadads hanging on their keychains.

I was answered with a telephonic version of a blank stare.

At one point she said:
"Now I will read two statements to you. Please tell me which one you most agree with."

A) "Homeless people, mostly mentally ill drug abusers and alcoholics, don't need our help, since they are, for the most part, just lazy and can't get jobs since they're too incapacitated to attend to their hygeine and other self-care needs. What good comes of helping such people? Stiffen drug laws, put more police on our streets, and the moochers will shape up or leave."

Mentally ill and substance-abusing people need to be taken off the streets and put into places where they can get the help, guidance, and emotional counseling that they need. Having proven themselves irresponsible they need an observation of all their expenditures. They should be monitored for progress or lack thereof and duly handled as per the results. Unless we create such facilities we will always have a homeless problem."

The question REQUIRED me to PREFER one statement to the other! Maybe you wonder how I could take issue with ( but it would take an hour for me to list all the problems with it...and this is not the place for that.

Most folks would not say a thing about any disagreement with both statements, out of simple obedience (you must choose one or the other) or won't say anything out of fear they'll sound crazy, supportive of drug use (which although a problem where some drugs are concerned, to use ANY drugs except for aspirin and MAYBE coffee and beer is nowadays treated as if it's more evil than murder, if jail terms are any indication.)

Or maybe respondants just don't wish to sound impolite. At most they may say "Pass".

I went further. It's my nature. I cleared my throat and said:

"Not only do I disagree with BOTH these statements vehemently and thus can make no preference between them, I wish to inform you that I have been on your end of the receiver myself, back in the late eighties."

"Oh really?"

"So...", I offered, "I am not being personal here, but I sense that you are, with or without your prior knowledge and/or consent, working for Gavin Newsom's people, who wants this measure passed."

Just being honest.

Her silence allowed me continuance.

"You may recognize this, you may know it as clear as day knows night, or might be utterly surprised by it. But check this out.

"You might be collecting data but you're also creating it. You are influencing public opinion with these questions, the wording, the ordering of the question lists, and in this case, the questions which subtly leave a true choice lacking.

"Look how dehumanizing BOTH statements are, just from different angles of opinion."

She said, "Well, um, I dunno..." meaning:

"I can't say anything about this either because I am too stupid to know what you mean, or too smart to tell you that I do."

I know my sympathy for people who are homeless, some of whom are just unlucky straight types and some of whom are drug users might be offputting to some of you (yeah, yeah, and I am anti-prohibitionist.)

For now, try to forget that and imagine what a pollster could be doing to YOUR favourite issue or candidate.

I learned a whole lot from this experience. Polls are inaccurate. They also CAN be propaganda. Beware of them and help educate the pollsters and your pals.