Staff Reports
Another indication that dissatisfaction is on the rise in the United States? According to the findings of a recent survey conducted by the Institute of Politics at the University of Chicago, the vast majority of American citizens believe that their government is corrupt and biased against them.
73% of "strong Republican" poll respondents agreed that the government is "corrupt and rigged against everyday people like me." However, Republicans are by no means the only ones who hold this opinion. 51% of voters who identified themselves as "very liberal" agreed with the aforementioned statement.
Overall, respondents to the study indicated that they believe that the government is corrupt at a rate of 56%. 66% of Republicans, 63% of independents, and 46% of Democrats agreed.
According to the results of the study that included one thousand persons who are registered to vote, a sizeable percentage of people believe that it may be necessary to take drastic steps in order to protect against excessive government intervention. The statement that "it may be necessary at some point soon for citizens to take up arms against the government." was supported by the opinions of 28 percent of those who participated in the survey. A total of 36 percent of Republican voters, 35 percent of independent voters, and 20 percent of Democratic voters shared this opinion.
Although this has been interpreted by some as a sign of growing polarization or extremism, in my opinion, the poll question in issue is of the type that yields dramatic results but doesn't actually tell us all that much about the population as a whole. If you agree that an armed revolution "may" (or may not!) be necessary at some point in the future, it does not necessarily follow that you believe it to be extremely likely that it will be necessary.
One conclusion that stood out as particularly fascinating was the consensus among respondents that political opponents might share their views if they were provided with additional information. When asked about "people who you disagree with on political issues," fifty percent of respondents stated that "the root of the problem" is that these individuals "are misinformed because of where they get their information." This was the opinion of 51% of Republican voters, 52% of Democratic voters, and 37% of independent voters.
