Friday, July 13, 2018

Poll split on the State of the State

Chism Strategies and Millsaps College issued the following statement.
Mississippians support several potential policy changes to help improve the state's electoral process, including the expansion of early voting and automatically registering eligible voters upon turning 18 years of age. According to the newly released July 2018 Millsaps College-Chism Strategies State of the State Survey, voters strongly favor the state's existing Voter ID law and are evenly split on whether state and municipal elections should be moved to weekends instead of Tuesdays. Meanwhile, the survey finds that voters are skeptical of treating Election Day as a holiday for Mississippi workers, using a vote-by-mail system, and allowing for online voter registration.

Voters ranked repairing the state's roads and bridges as their top policy priority, making this the fourth consecutive quarter in which the electorate indicates that they want Mississippi's leaders to address this problem above all else. According to the survey, 35% of respondents believe that the state is on the right track as opposed to 29% who sense that it is on the wrong track. The survey also includes approval ratings of numerous elected officials and finds that Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann remains among the most popular elected leaders in the Magnolia State. Nearly 50% of Mississippi voters approve of the job being done by Hosemann as opposed to just 14% who disapprove of his work.

"Mississippi is entering a three-year period of perhaps the most important consecutive election cycles that the state has seen in decades," said Dr. Nathan Shrader, assistant professor of political science and director of American Studies at Millsaps College. "The 2018, 2019, and 2020 elections will be vitally important to the state and her citizens, yet voter participation in the 2018 primary and primary runoff elections was distressingly low. Our objective with this survey was to explore the extent to which Mississippians are open to modernizing or adjusting our current electoral system to perhaps improve our weak voter participation rates. Among our most consequential findings is that Mississippi voters have identified fixing roads and bridges and increasing funding for public schools as their top policy priorities for the fourth consecutive quarter. This demonstrates stability among the public's policy preferences in these areas."

Other key survey findings from the Millsaps College-Chism Strategies State of the State Survey:

Election Laws

  • 57% favor allowing for early voting while just 25% are opposed.
  • 49% support and 37% oppose automatically registering eligible Mississippians to vote when they turn 18 years of age.
  • 39% oppose moving all Mississippi elections to weekends while 38% support the move.
  • 49% oppose making Election Day a holiday for workers in Mississippi and 42% are in favor.
  • 56% support continuing with in-person voting while only 6% back using mail-in-voting. Another 37% favor utilizing a mixture of in-person and vote-by-mail elections.
  • 81% favor maintaining Mississippi's Voter ID law.
  • 47% oppose online voter registration while 38% support such a change.
Elected Official Ratings

  • 48% approve of Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann's job performance while 15% disapprove.
  • 37% approve of State Treasurer Lynn Fitch's job performance while 17% disapprove.
  • Insurance Commissioner Mike Chaney has a job approval rating of 31% and a disapproval rating of 14%.
  • 29% of Mississippi voters approve of Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce Andy Gipson's work while 11% disapprove.
  • Public Service Commissioner Brandon Presley has a job approval rating of 29% and a disapproval rating of 13%.
  • State Representative Mark Baker (a declared candidate for Attorney General in 2019) has an overall approval rating of 14% and a disapproval rating also of 14%.
  • Only 22% approve of the work being done by the State Legislature with 35% disapproving. The difference between those who approve and disapprove of the legislature's performance is consistent with the previous two State of the State Surveys.
Policy Priorities
  • 25% of respondents say that fixing roads and bridges is their most important priority. This is the fourth consecutive quarter where it has topped the list of concerns expressed by the voters.
  • More funding for public schools (22%) and making healthcare more affordable and accessible (18%) were the second and third highest ranking policy priorities.
"Chism Strategies is pleased to team with Millsaps College to measure public sentiment on different ways to make voting easier in our state," said company president Brad Chism. "We look forward to the legislature's consideration of all the options for increasing voter participation in Mississippi and this data should make for an informed debate."

The survey was conducted June 28-29. The sample size of 623 with 67% of interviews conducted via landline and 34% via cell phone. The survey has a Margin of Error of +/-4.0 %. Results were weighted to reflect likely 2018 general election turnout for age, race, gender, and partisanship.



29 comments:

Anonymous said...

I wish they woulda called me

Anonymous said...

If you showed _every_ Mississippi resident a "line-up" of Hosemann, Finch, Chaney, Gipson, Presley and Baker and told them they would receive $10,000.00 if they could ID each and give their current office as well as give a 200-word or less _accurate_ synopsis of the duties and responsibilities of each office, you'd give $0.00 away. Yes, "_every_" includes asking Hosemann, Finch, Chaney, Gipson, Presley and Baker, as well as Phil, the Tater Tot and every member of the state and US Legislatures, as well as your humble writer. I wouldn't know Presley or Baker if I tripped over them and apparently, the only correct answer for Sec of State is "none whatsoever," which I would have gotten totally wrong.

And I'd bet $10,000.00 that if you asked _every_ Mississippi resident what they thought of "Saban's rumored new assistant, Mike Chaney" (or Presley or Baker), 40% would say Saban is a sorry SOB, 59% would ask who "Saban" is, .9% would ask if you had any meth you could turn loose of and .01% would shoot you. A coupla-hundred or so folks (I'm not doing the math) would know immediately who Chaney (or etc.) actually is. I can say that I would be in that last group as I know who he is...which is why I wish he were actually becoming Nick's new assistant.

Anonymous said...

It's FiTch, not Finch, unless we have reincarnated him and his lunchbox.

Anonymous said...

LOL, July 13 at 9:42, I actually know it's "Fitch," her office and its duties, yet, obviously, not well enough to immediately catch my own error (for example, I'm certain I'd have caught "Phil Brian" or "Tater Twa..." er, nevermind...). That's sorta my point: the only people who MIGHT know who even 20% of who elected officials are, what office they hold and the duties and responsibilities of that office are people with a personal monetary interest in knowing it. Even then, there probably aren't 100 people in the entire state that have such a monetary interest in knowing who more than about 40-60% of them are, what office they hold and what that office entails.

I'd also bet $10,000.00 that if you asked every person in Mississippi who was not a current or former elected official (or living off the spoils of one) what they thought of "elected officials," it would sure as hell cut down on those high "Unsure" numbers. And I'd bet at least $100.00 that the approval number would be negative because I have faith in Mississippi voters and I know at least some of them would vote "F'em all!" at least twice.

Telling on myself here, but I was traveling earlier in the week and someone asked me what I thought of Cindy Hyde-Smith. I admit that my immediate first thought was "who in the hell is that?" and racking my brain for a second. In my defense, Cochran had been in since the Siege of Vicksburg, so it is still muscle memory for folks to say/think "Thad Cochran," but that won't matter much to Cindy Lou-Who come election day.

Clearly, most voters statewide and in white districts vote "incumbent Republican" (white being presumed - are there any black Republicans in MS?), most in the Delta vote "black Democrat," etc. What we need to do is find about 5-6 white Alex Jones types named something like "Lamont Dontelle Washington" to run in the Delta and some black Bernie Sanders-meets-Jesse-Jackson types named "Parker Claiborne Pewtersmith, IV" or similar to fill up the statewide elections, just to see what happens next.

Anonymous said...

Vote Democrat for your Children's Children.

Vote Republican for your Bosses Boss.

Simple! Don't be an American Hating GOP Traitor!

Anonymous said...

Please tell me where I can meet you to take your rorschach test with these images, and bring your checkbook. And I have not financial interest in being able to answer the quiz. However, I totally agree with your premise and that "polls" such as these are not worth the internet paper they are written on - much less the cost that someone might have paid Brad to run his demogagory. Anyone who thinks this is representative of any unbiased results obviously hasn't followed Chism Strategy's history or worth.

Only thing that this poll shows is that Hosemann still has a higher name ID than many others due to his use of our state tax dollars to keep his mug constantly in front of our faces and in our ears as he pontificates on anything - and everything - while he smirks at the poor plebes he is so much smarter than.

Pose the answer you want to receive and I'll structure the question for you; early voting, new holiday, something for free of cost and effort - doesn't matter.

But, what the hell. Let the games begin and we'll get real results soon.

Anonymous said...

They didn't include any soybean farmers in their survey. They are a silent coalition, Epsy will prevail in November because of this.Folks usually vote with their own paycheck in mind.

Anonymous said...

To be clear, when I've referenced "elected officials," I do not mean just the few "biggies" such as Guv, Lt. Guv., S-o-S, Treasurer, Atty General, etc., I mean every elected state official, from judges and legislators on up to Guv. Counting just judges and legislators, the number is already around 300.

And I'll stand by my statement that the number of people who can recognize on sight, give the office held and a reasonably objective description of that office's duties and responsibilities of even 40-60% of the latter group is closer to 100 people than 1000 people, with the vast majority of that small cohort having some direct personal financial interest in being able to do so, i.e., lobbyists, reporters, etc. Add state-level appointees and I'd wager there isn't a single person who could reach even 20% recognition, office held and office description. Further add anyone who can personally effect an expenditure of $50,000 or more and I'd wager no one could reach even 5% recognition, etc., rate.

My point is that "government" (state and federal) has become a vastly over-staffed Byzantine bureaucracy with so many moving parts that no one has even a functional working knowledge of the entirety of "state government." Certainly, lots of people have knowledge and understanding of this or that small portion, and have some level of passing familiarity with related bits and pieces, but an "encompassing knowledge" would be extremely difficult and time-consuming, with no rational and objective incentive for anyone to attempt to acquire it.

Hence, you get things like a $2 million dollar driveway from the Taterhood to a shopping center, "not me" to blame for it and no one has the knowledge required to call anyone out on all of it.

Anonymous said...

"Add state-level appointees and I'd wager there isn't a single person who could reach even 20% recognition, office held and office description."

Well, I'll still take the wager. Not bragging, and agree that the number is very small, but there are some that are involved with the process that are not personally benefiting from it as you state (lobbyists, reporters, etc.) I don't really know how you define those that 'can affect' an expenditure of $50k or more - that probably includes some 5,000 of the total 30,000 state employees - although most of those cannot make the expenditure happen.

But your theory is wrong in the end - that's not how MDOT goes about deciding to build a frontage road. That is how many decide to try to demean one or more of those officials by spreading a false narrative with innuendo but not facts. Hell, even Pender and McGrath didn't produce the first document or statement tying Reeves into this project - but still Pender determines on his "guilty until proven innocent, I buy ink by the drum" mucksheet that Reeves "obviously" was the cause of this expenditure and it has no value or purpose other than for him.

The real problem is that many folks choose to vote based on nothing but the latest thing they have read on social media, and have little or no knowledge of either candidate, the issues, or their positions on the issues. For example - assume Hood is going to run for Governor; after three elections for a lower ticket office what policy positions has he been questioned on by the so-called media in this state? What is his position on the important (taxes, spending) issues or the unimportant (flag, abortion) issues. I say unimportant tounge in cheek recognizing that probably over half the state votes on those two issues vs really important issues that affect each of us every day.

Anonymous said...

As to Taterhood Parkway, I'm not accusing, much less blaming, the Totster of anything. I readily admit I don't know who is responsible and I doubt anyone really knows the entire story, especially members of the Jackson press. Hell, even if Tater did have a hand in it, I doubt even he knows the whole story. I would guess there is more than one someone responsible and there was more to it than Tater and/or the Taterhood wanting it, but that is a guess. It is based on what is public combined with past experience and knowledge of similar situations, but it is still a _guess_, albeit an educated one.

As to how MDOT (or any other state agency) goes about doing things, there is absolutely no evidence of which I am aware that indicates MDOT has a standard method of "how it goes about deciding" anything. Certainly no standard for short "frontage roads" connecting Taterhoods and Taterheads to tacos, cheap clothes and skimpy underthangs. I will note that from a satellite view, it appears that there is a back entrance on Cooper Road which then gives numerous options for ingress/egress to the Taterhood for all the Taterheads. If this is accurate, why is the "frontage road" needed at all?

Now, as to the rest, I've stated my position and I stand by it. I am also fully aware that others may, and at least one person does, disagree with it. That is their right. I will say that some explanation as to the point(s) of disagreement would be helpful, but that would be up to anyone who chooses to voice their disagreement.

Anonymous said...

Oh, and PS 2:43/5:45 - you've already lost. I'm not an idiot - before I posted, I asked a few folks and it didn't take long to find a person who made the bet as worded impossible to lose (or impossible to win, depending on perspective). It wouldn't take anyone long to replicate my results. With tongue firmly in cheek, where would you like to meet with YOUR checkbook?

NB: I admit the Saban thing was a kind of a ringer. We've got a lady from Korea (who is technically a Mississippi resident, albeit temporary) doing some project work who didn't know what a "Saban" was. And truth be told, I knew "F'em all!" wouldn't take more than 2 or 3 shorenuf real Mississippi residents. As long as we are being honest, the $100.00 wager is technically still a toss-up because I didn't bother to ask enough folks to see if at least one would try to vote twice, but now that I think about it, it is Mississippi - are you really sure you want to just piss away $100.00 on a sucker bet like that?

Anonymous said...

Speaking of Millsaps (or is it Milsaps)...I heard on the radio news (Supertalk) this afternoon of a study/poll done by the college. They were trying to get at why so few Mississippians vote. And in order to arrive at the answer they wanted to arrive at, they polled something like 160 people. The results were that most of those polled favored 'early voting' which means not having to show up at the polls. And most favored automatic voter registration which means not have to show up to register to vote. No word on how many polled were college students, unemployed folk or staff on various private campi.

So (and Democrats will love this), the end result and conclusion of the Millsaps professional study is that we should have voters who have no identity who didn't actually have to register to vote and whose votes can be tabulated without them having to show up at any polling place on any certain day or produce I.D.

Anonymous said...

I was one of those polled.
The questions were not slanted in phrasing and had clarity.
The voice was as close to monotone as I've ever heard.
Looking at the results, there's nothing wrong with the sample selection.
I have designed or participated in the design of statistical research for decades and I agree that many " polls" these days are poorly constructed and the results are "bought". That is sadly even true of medical research.
Such is not the case in this poll.
Many of you do not like Chism , either because he was a Rhodes Scholar or because his first job was with State government when a Democrat happened to hold the governorship. You assume bias when his job was to provide accurate, factual information on issues.
I think you should be glad one of our brightest kids came back home and stayed despite the immediate trashing he got from insecure good old boys who never even met him. He must love Mississippi because he could have made a helluva lot more money elsewhere.

This is a snapshot in time. Events and new information can change the results at a future point in time. When that happens, it does not mean the past polling was bad. Also, even the best polling has an error rate built in.

I wish statistics were required in every discipline for graduation and advanced statistics for every advanced degree. I suspect the dishonorable would still sell their ability to do good research, but at least more people could recognize valid research from biased garbage.



Margineous Erroneous said...

So, 8:40....just to be clear: You've participated in the designing of statistical research for years, consider yourself an expert on content validity and believe a poll of less than 200 people (many of whom were probably unregistered milineals) in a metro area of half a million is legitimate sampling? Gotcha.

I wonder how many of those polled could answer these questions:

1) Is voter I.D. required in Mississippi today?

2) Which political party appoints the governor in our state?

3) How many senators does our state send to Washington?

4) How many years can one person be a mayor in our state?

5) How old does one have to be to vote in Mississippi?

Anonymous said...

The pomp and circumstance in this thread notwithstanding, and having a degree in actuarial science, anyone who purports to draw conclusions based on statistics is neither knowledgeable about statistics nor are they employing any sense of objective reasoning.

Modern gambling is based on actuarial science and, more succinctly, statistics. Assumptions are guesses, not predictions.

And any statistics based in human interaction is inherently biased, regardless of sample size. Statistics, as taught, assumes ignorance and some times a complete vacuum of information. Employ the notion of garbage in/ garbage out philosophy and then you can utilize statistics in the manner best suited for them, gambling.

As far as the previous poster from Chism, or Chism himself, there is no humanly possible way to phrase questions about politics without slant. You can't control the experience, beliefs or biases of the people polled, so a slant to you might not be a slant to another. There is always something wrong with a sample selection and size and your attempts to qualify the polling with vague appeal to authority belies your obvious bias and association with the pollster.

People, just take things as they are. Life is so colorful that one does not need to add or infer any other color UNLESS your bias is a vain attempt to change someone else, which is a fool's errand.

Anonymous said...

@2:03,
My children will all vote republican happily! Also, my grandchildren, My nieces, my nephews, my in-laws, my brother, my sister, and all of my cousins all will vote republican. Sorry to burst your bag of lies!

Anonymous said...

Just some observations and NOT accusations, but note the last 2 pages of the first doc, in which those polled indicated their race and their education level.

Respondents who IDed as African-American was 33% (a bit low as an accurate reflection of the MS population, which is about 38% A-A), but what appears much more out-of-whack is those who IDed as having "less than a high school education" - 5.2%.

Only about 80ish% of the overall population of MS has a high school diploma. So, either 1) some semantic acrobatics are needed (i.e., "less than a high school education really means those who had NO high school at all...") or 2) it required some extrapolation to account for the sampling mis-correlation to the population (which introduces assumptions and error) or 3) the polling sample simply does not accurately reflect the population (in which case, at its core, this poll is little more than a poll of those who happened to be willing to take the poll).

Also refer to "Findings" such as:

"Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann enjoys an approval rating of +33%, remarkably steady when compared to the +34% rating he received in the Millsaps College-Chism Strategies Survey conducted in January 2018. Voters across the partisan divide largely approve of Hosemann:..."

It is troubling that _certain_ "Findings," such as the above, contain phrases such as "...Hosemann _enjoys_..._remarkably steady_ ..." (as well as "...voters across the partisan divide largely approve..."), but almost exclusively when purporting to impartially make findings on Hosemann. Apparently, Fitch is indifferent about her "previous +19% approval rating from our January survey also remains steady at +20% this month." Why would Fitch not "enjoy" her similar steadiness? Why is her similar steadiness also not "remarkable?" She allegedly does "enjoy" her "sturdy" support among certain voters. In a similar vein, the accompanying release as posted on JJ singles out Hosemann and makes (only) positive statements about (only) him/his performance/approval.

Moreover, I could not find any direct statement of who paid for this poll or where the money came from. Yes, it is styled as the "Millsaps College-Chism Strategies State of the State Survey," but that doesn't mean either or both weren't being paid by some person or entity.

All of the above (and other issues) blows any "impartial science" right out of the water. It would accurate to say that 100% of Hosemann's supporters are "remarkably steady" over a 6-month period, just as 100% of his opponents are "remarkably steady" over the same period. Does anyone really require a poll to affirm those "findings?"

Anonymous said...

In response to the comments made by 9:16am, 7-14-2018:

Bob Delasalle is a marginally competent writer of technical manuals, but he is certainly not what any reasonable person would call a gifted novelist.

John Grisham is a very commercially successful writer, but few would call him a literary genius and certainly no equal to writers like Faulkner.

Bill Fredericks is a marginally competent sign painter, but no one would call him a great artist.

Adolph Hitler was a moderately talented painter although most people don't know that.

Very few readers, if any at all, had any feelings about Delasalle or Fredericks, probably because I pulled the names out of thin air and as such, no one had any preconceived notions about either of them or their talents. On the other hand, the deprecation of Grisham and the praise of a small aspect of Hitler did cause feelings because of preconceived notions about each. Similarly, the mere mention of a name known the person hearing it, be it "Delbert Hosemann," "Donald Trump," "Barack Obama," etc. - causes a response and introduces a bias, even if it is subconscious, in the person merely hearing the name because of their preconceived notion(s) about that person. For a real-world example, look no further than Donald Trump, who pollsters pretty much universally said stood no chance whatsoever against, well, anyone, beginning in earnest about a month before he formally declared...and continued to do so right up until he was elected.

And by the way, the Grisham comment was pretty much a quote from Grisham himself and art scholars who have studied Hitler's paintings pretty much agree that while he was certainly not a great artist, he did have above-average talent as a painter.

Anonymous said...

@2:03

Now just why would I want my grandchildren to have to endure socialism ? Better yet, why do you want YOUR grandchildren to endure socialism ? Do you care no more than that about them or do you feel yours will be on the government teet anyway ?

Anonymous said...

Face it! The poll, its design and purported results are all a bag of shit. But, it kept some people on the payroll over at Millsaps.

Anonymous said...

75% of America buys products on line, Ebay..Amazon..ETC.... Probably 65% of American pays bills on line.... Why can't we VOTE ONLINE? It is time to progress with the times... I Think I smell the MS LOTTERY COMING....
MS lets get off the bottom!!!!

Anonymous said...

Garbage in, garbage out.

Vote Here - Get Chicken said...

For July 14 @ 4:59 "Why can't we vote online?"....Picture This:

Mr. Brand (pulling a name out of thin air) sets up a card table at Patel's Quick Mart and Chicken Shack over in Clinton on election day (or during early voting). There's a laptop on the card table.

Mr. Brand has a line of about six people on average at his table all day long and the line is moving along at the rate of about 150 per day during each day Delbert allows early voting.

Mr. Brand hands each person in line five dollars and a box of Chester's Chicken in exchange for the temporary use of their I.D. card. He is pulling up a form on his computer and typing in the information from each I.D. card and selecting the same candidate's name on the form, over and over and over all day long. Mr. Brand is certifying that he is the person represented on each I.D.card.

Mr. Brand's candidate is elected. Mr. Brand is happy. His candidate is happy. Everybody who got a box of chicken is happy. YOU are happy since we now have online voting. Mr. Patel takes his cut - $200.00.

Anonymous said...

459 - your statement is b/s. 75% of Americans don't purchase online. But that has absolutely no relationship to voting online. Not the time or place to try to even begin explaining why your concept of the two activities is a non-sequiter, because it is a much deeper and complicated issue to be resolved on a social media blogsite.

But one good simple reason that can be suggested is by your concept - idiots that think as you do (or don't think might be the better description) don't need to be encouraged to vote ar all.

Anonymous said...

9:05am Since you're so smart, how large do you think a sample has to be to reflect the universal population? A political poll sample reflects the percentages of age, gender, and race among those who are eligible to vote, but it usually is lifted from and reflective of recent registered voter lists and includes a reflective percentage of new eligible voters who are to vote.

Indeed, so much information has been shared on our citizens individually that for decades there has been a list of people identified as " influencers" whose buying patterns and choices predict future trends with remarkable accuracy.

I expect about the same percentage of those who vote couldn't answer the questions you pose. It is also the reason " I don't know" was a choice in this poll unlike bogus polls. Which actually, in a poorly educated universal sample is somewhat better than " no opinion".

It's pretty clear that many don't understand what a poll is or isn't.

A political poll, if well done, is based on well tested mathematical formulas and research procedures which have proven to be better than guessing or relying on the anecdotal opinions of folks like you or the local fortune teller. It is not a prediction of the future, but simply a probable reflection of current attitudes on issues. And, think of the error rate like you think of the percentage of a chance of rain in a weather report done by area code.

A bad poll, like many polling calls I've received, asks questions like " Candidate X believes we should raise taxes on those making more than $20000 a year, Press 1 if you strongly agree..." (candidate X being the opponent). I hang up on those pollsters.

But, there is a way to predict with 99% accuracy how you will vote thanks to neuroscience but you'd have to be willing to have a brain scan that shows which parts of your brain reacts to photos you are shown.

Here's what you'll really hate. It doesn't matter how many facts you have on any issue. The right side of your brain will prioritize what facts you'll accept.

There are some very good books on the science of politics and on why propaganda works. Why don't you read them and get back to me.







Anonymous said...

SOOOO....our outcome of our elected officials is based on CHICKEN????
Now that is true Mississippi!!!!

Anonymous said...

July 15 at 9:19am wrote:

"A political poll, if well done, is based on well tested mathematical formulas and research procedures which have proven to be better than guessing or relying on the anecdotal opinions of folks like you or the local fortune teller."

"It is not a prediction of the future, but simply a probable reflection of current attitudes on issues. And, think of the error rate like you think of the percentage of a chance of rain in a weather report done by area code."

As to the first sentence quoted, yes, in theory. However, in practice, getting sufficient data to apply any of the formulas and procedures is a prohibitively expensive undertaking because of the difficultly in reaching a truly reflective cross-section of whatever very large group one is attempting to poll. So basically no pollsters gather such accurately reflective data/polling. There is plenty of good and accurate info on the web as to why it is so difficult, but as one general example, many people have no landline, but random polls cannot auto-dial cell phones. So pollsters must either hand-dial hundreds of numbers to get a single usable response (lots of people hang up and of those few that take the poll, they may or may not wind up being a usable responder, etc.). Moreover, as has been pointed out, once you a human being hears a name or term they are familiar with, it triggers a conscious and subconscious bias (note that "bias" in the use simply means an interference with a purely objective response). Basically and from a practical standpoint, polls simply are rough guesses at best and biased nonsense at worst.

As to the second sentence quoted, generally folks would be better off viewing polls as "snapshots" while realizing that the picture relies heavily on the photographer, the camera and the subject matter. As an example, think of two typical summer days. On one, you can look east and see dark clouds and rain moving in but you can look west and see the cloudless blue skies. If the "snapshot" is of the east, it shows a rainy day and if west, a beautiful day, neither of which really reflect the conditions at the time in that locations. Now, take a completely overcast or completely cloudless sunny day - no matter what part of the sky one snaps, it will be an accurate picture of that location and at that time.

I'll again refer folks to the 2016 POTUS race - the pollsters were sure Trump would lose the primary and then, the general, right up until he won it all.

Anonymous said...

And if you ask ten people in Fondren if they're happy with Jackson life, 8 of them will exclaim, "YES!"

What follows is: "BREAKING! 80% of Metro Area residents are satisfied and pleased living in Jackson."

Meanwhile; There was a poll/report out the other week claiming that Jackson was the best place in Mississippi to start a new business.

Anonymous said...

Not to defend Geoff Pender outright, but I believe the point of his story was to point out the perception of a conflict of interest......which any rational person would be able to see that there was. After further investigation of course, evidence illuminated that there was more than likely direct/indirect influence in the decision making of the project favoring Reeve's friends and neighbors. It's Reeves' and the executive branch agency head's fault for thinking that know one would notice or care.

Until Mississippians decide they are going to raise a serious ruckus whenever there is even a possible PERCEPTION of conflict, then the citizenry will remain in the dark, and taken advantage of as they have for the last 100 years. Transparency should be the rule. Proper conduct fears no exposure, yet the legislature has written laws that they cannot be investigated, so all they have to worry about is getting re-elected without showing any actual results.



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Trollfest '07 was such a success that Jackson Jambalaya will once again host Trollfest '09. Catch this great event which will leave NE Jackson & Fondren in flames. Othor Cain and his band, The Black Power Structure headline the night while Sonjay Poontang returns for an encore performance. Former Frank Melton bodyguard Marcus Wright makes his premier appearance at Trollfest singing "I'm a Sweet Transvestite" from "The Rocky Horror Picture Show." Kamikaze will sing his new hit, “How I sold out to da Man.” Robbie Bell again performs: “Mamas, don't let your babies grow up to be Bells” and “Any friend of Ed Peters is a friend of mine”. After the show, Ms. Bell will autograph copies of her mug shot photos. In a salute to “Dancing with the Stars”, Ms. Bell and Hinds County District Attorney Robert Smith will dance the Wango Tango.

Wrestling returns, except this time it will be a Battle Royal with Othor Cain, Ben Allen, Kim Wade, Haley Fisackerly, Alan Lange, and “Big Cat” Donna Ladd all in the ring at the same time. The Battle Royal will be in a steel cage, no time limit, no referee, and the losers must leave town. Marshand Crisler will be the honorary referee (as it gives him a title without actually having to do anything).


Meet KIM Waaaaaade at the Entergy Tent. For five pesos, Kim will sell you a chance to win a deed to a crack house on Ridgeway Street stuffed in the Howard Industries pinata. Don't worry if the pinata is beaten to shreds, as Mr. Wade has Jose, Emmanuel, and Carlos, all illegal immigrants, available as replacements for the it. Upon leaving the Entergy tent, fig leaves will be available in case Entergy literally takes everything you have as part of its Trollfest ticket price adjustment charge.

Donna Ladd of The Jackson Free Press will give several classes on learning how to write. Smearing, writing without factchecking, and reporting only one side of a story will be covered. A donation to pay their taxes will be accepted and she will be signing copies of their former federal tax liens. Ms. Ladd will give a dramatic reading of her two award-winning essays (They received The Jackson Free Press "Best Of" awards.) "Why everything is always about me" and "Why I cover murders better than anyone else in Jackson".

In the spirit of helping those who are less fortunate, Trollfest '09 adopts a cause for which a portion of the proceeds and donations will be donated: Keeping Frank Melton in his home. The “Keep Frank Melton From Being Homeless” booth will sell chances for five dollars to pin the tail on the jackass. John Reeves has graciously volunteered to be the jackass for this honorable excursion into saving Frank's ass. What's an ass between two friends after all? If Mr. Reeves is unable to um, perform, Speaker Billy McCoy has also volunteered as when the word “jackass” was mentioned he immediately ran as fast as he could to sign up.


In order to help clean up the legal profession, Adam Kilgore of the Mississippi Bar will be giving away free, round-trip plane tickets to the North Pole where they keep their bar complaint forms (which are NOT available online). If you don't want to go to the North Pole, you can enjoy Brant Brantley's (of the Mississippi Commission on Judicial Performance) free guided tours of the quicksand field over by High Street where all complaints against judges disappear. If for some reason you are unable to control yourself, never fear; Judge Houston Patton will operate his jail where no lawyers are needed or allowed as you just sit there for minutes... hours.... months...years until he decides he is tired of you sitting in his jail. Do not think Judge Patton is a bad judge however as he plans to serve free Mad Dog 20/20 to all inmates.

Trollfest '09 is a pet-friendly event as well. Feel free to bring your dog with you and do not worry if your pet gets hungry, as employees of the Jackson Zoo will be on hand to provide some of their animals as food when it gets to be feeding time for your little loved one.

Relax at the Fox News Tent. Since there are only three blonde reporters in Jackson (being blonde is a requirement for working at Fox News), Megan and Kathryn from WAPT and Wendy from WLBT will be on loan to Fox. To gain admittance to the VIP section, bring either your Republican Party ID card or a Rebel Flag. Bringing both and a torn-up Obama yard sign will entitle you to free drinks served by Megan, Wendy, and Kathryn. Get your tickets now. Since this is an event for trolls, no ID is required. Just bring the hate. Bring the family, Trollfest '09 is for EVERYONE!!!

This is definitely a Beaver production.


Note: Security provided by INS.

Trollfest '07

Jackson Jambalaya is the home of Trollfest '07. Catch this great event which promises to leave NE Jackson & Fondren in flames. Sonjay Poontang and his band headline the night with a special steel cage, no time limit "loser must leave town" bout between Alan Lange and "Big Cat"Donna Ladd following afterwards. Kamikaze will perform his new song F*** Bush, he's still a _____. Did I mention there was no referee? Dr. Heddy Matthias and Lori Gregory will face off in the undercard dueling with dangling participles and other um, devices. Robbie Bell will perform Her two latest songs: My Best Friends are in the Media and Mama's, Don't Let Your Babies Grow up to be George Bell. Sid Salter of The Clarion-Ledger will host "Pin the Tail on the Trial Lawyer", sponsored by State Farm.

There will be a hugging booth where in exchange for your young son, Frank Melton will give you a loooong hug. Trollfest will have a dunking booth where Muhammed the terrorist will curse you to Allah as you try to hit a target that will drop him into a vat of pig grease. However, in the true spirit of Separate But Equal, Don Imus and someone from NE Jackson will also sit in the dunking booth for an equal amount of time. Tom Head will give a reading for two hours on why he can't figure out who the hell he is. Cliff Cargill will give lessons with his .80 caliber desert eagle, using Frank Melton photos as targets. Tackleberry will be on hand for an autograph session. KIM Waaaaaade will be passing out free titles and deeds to crackhouses formerly owned by The Wood Street Players.

If you get tired come relax at the Fox News Tent. To gain admittance to the VIP section, bring either your Republican Party ID card or a Rebel Flag. Bringing both will entitle you to free drinks.Get your tickets now. Since this is an event for trolls, no ID is required, just bring the hate. Bring the family, Trollfest '07 is for EVERYONE!!!

This is definitely a Beaver production.

Note: Security provided by INS
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