...we should just admit that we depend too heavily on rattlesnakes to remove the most egregious idiots:
Survey: Nearly half of Americans subscribe to creationist view of human origins
By Dan Merica, CNN
(CNN) – Forty-six percent of Americans believe that God created humans in their present form at one point within the past 10,000 years, according to a survey released by Gallup on Friday.
That number has remained unchanged for the past 30 years, since 1982, when Gallup first asked the question on creationism versus evolution. Thirty years ago, 44% of the people who responded said they believed that God created humans as we know them today - only a 2-point difference from 2012.
"Despite the many changes that have taken place in American society and culture over the past 30 years, including new discoveries in biological and social science, there has been virtually no sustained change in Americans' views of the origin of the human species since 1982," wrote Gallup's Frank Newport. "All in all, there is no evidence in this trend of a substantial movement toward a secular viewpoint on human origins."
The second most common view is that humans evolved with God's guidance - a view held by 32% of respondents. The view that humans evolved with no guidance from God was held by 15% of respondents.
Survey: U.S. Protestant pastors reject evolution, split on Earth's age
Not surprisingly, more religious Americans are more likely to be creationists.
Nearly 70% of respondents who attend church every week said that God created humans in their present form, compared with 25% of people who seldom or never attend church.
Among the seldom church-goers, 38% believe that humans evolved with no guidance from God.
The numbers also showed a tendency to follow party lines, with nearly 60% of Republicans identifying as creationists, while 41% of Democrats hold the same beliefs.
Republicans also seem to be more black-and-white about their beliefs, with only 5% responding that humans evolved with some help from God. That number is much lower than the 19% of both independents and Democrats.
According to Newport, a belief in creationism is bucking the majority opinion in the scientific community - that humans evolved over millions of years.
"It would be hard to dispute that most scientists who study humans agree that the species evolved over millions of years, and that relatively few scientists believe that humans began in their current form only 10,000 years ago without the benefit of evolution," writes Newport. "Thus, almost half of Americans today hold a belief ... that is at odds with the preponderance of the scientific literature."
The USA Today/Gallup telephone poll was conducted May 10-13 with a random sample of 1,012 American adults. The sampling error is plus or minus 4 percentage points.
Only 46%? I thought it was closer to 75% and I'm being kind.
Quote Originally Posted by tomcat
View Post (http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/international-news/67335-46-of-americans-are-morons.html#post1677592)
The second most common view is that humans evolved with God's guidance - a view held by 32% of respondents
...actually, you're right, if you add the sub-group of near-morons to the main body of voodoo enthusiasts...
Quote Originally Posted by tomcat
View Post (http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/international-news/67335-46-of-americans-are-morons.html#post1677592)
Forty-six percent of Americans believe that God created humans in their present form at one point within the past 10,000 years, according to a survey released by Gallup on Friday.
Quote Originally Posted by tomcat
View Post (http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/international-news/67335-46-of-americans-are-morons.html#post1677592)
The second most common view is that humans evolved with God's guidance - a view held by 32% of respondents.
46+32= 78%...
Quote Originally Posted by THX 1133
View Post (http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/international-news/67335-46-of-americans-are-morons.html#post1677597)
Only 46%? I thought it was closer to 75% and I'm being kind.
I'd say you nailed it...[image: http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/images/smilies/grin.gif]
Quote Originally Posted by THX 1133
View Post (http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/international-news/67335-46-of-americans-are-morons.html#post1677597)
closer to 75% and I'm being kind.
That figure applies to Americans living in Thailand! [image: http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/images/smilies/tounge.gif]
simply incredible how much power tradition wields over logic.
Quote Originally Posted by samsara
View Post (http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/international-news/67335-46-of-americans-are-morons.html#post1677604)
simply incredible how much power tradition wields over logic.
Yes logic is the enemy of anyone seeking to lead others...
The worst possible situation for any would be leader is to have a logical, critical thinking group of followers...that's just too much like hard work...having to be more logical and think more critically than ones followers if one is to hold on to the reigns of power...
so much easier to keep the followers dumbed down and ignorant...what better measuring device of ignorance than religion?...
That 46% is what there is of the GOP. Same shit innit?
If we let all the red states secede from the Union, we'd cut that 46% down. Way down.
[image: http://www.vaughns-1-pagers.com/politics/election-outcome.jpg]
Quote Originally Posted by Thaitanium
View Post (http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/international-news/67335-46-of-americans-are-morons.html#post1677608)
so much easier to keep the followers dumbed down and ignorant...what better measuring device of ignorance than religion?
Yes, they're even helpful in their willful ignorance...
...News From the 46ers:
Video - Breaking News Videos from CNN.com (http://us.cnn.com/video/?hpt=hp_bn1#/video/us/2012/05/31/tx-dnt-jesus-mold.ktrk)
Yeah, Jesus emerges from yet another shit stain
Quote Originally Posted by Bird71
View Post (http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/international-news/67335-46-of-americans-are-morons.html#post1677601)
That figure applies to Americans living in Thailand!
No, no; that'd be 91%... [image: http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/images/smilies/tounge.gif]
Yeah and they call it the Greatest country in the world, What a Joke!
Quote Originally Posted by purplesmoker
View Post (http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/international-news/67335-46-of-americans-are-morons.html#post1677654)
Yeah and they call it the Greatest country in the world, What a Joke!
Man, you'd better be careful or they'll fly a drone up your ass... [image: http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/images/smilies/tounge.gif]
Obama is the Drone Master ...[image: http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/images/smilies/tounge.gif]
Quote Originally Posted by tomcat
View Post (http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/international-news/67335-46-of-americans-are-morons-post1677592.html#post1677592)
...we should just admit that we depend too heavily on rattlesnakes to remove the most egregious idiots:
I'd love to hear suggestions for other methods.
I actually question those stats a little, because I got into an argument about this a couple years back and a different study (I think the one they are referencing??) asked the question a bit ambiguously. Look at this statement:
"Forty-six percent of Americans believe that God created humans in their present form at one point within the past 10,000 years, according to a survey released by Gallup on Friday."
So, does that mean they don't believe in evolution? Does it mean they don't believe in a 4+ billion year old earth? Many of them may believe in evolution and an old earth. I'm not on the idiot side here, believe me, just think that question could be asked better. I really don't think there are that many idiots in the US, I think there are a lot, but not that many. I think if you asked "Do you believe evolution has shaped life on earth today" or something like that, about 2 out of 3 would say yes. I could be way off of course. Anyway, that is what I think, but I don't hang out in Louisiana bayous when i'm in the states either. So, yes, still very bad, but not at or near 50% full blown idiots in my opinion.
In the question are the answers; the 10,000 year qualifier pretty well covers it, no?
Thing is... the percentage is probably higher in most other countries except for those in Western Europe.
I've always compared Americans to soap bubbles: take a miniscule amount of liquid soap, blow it up with the maximum of air and you have a shiny, colorful, quite impressive object.
Poke it with a finger to find out what it is and it's gone!
I had a great time living there, though.
---Update---
Quote Originally Posted by Hollow
View Post (http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/international-news/67335-46-of-americans-are-morons-2.html#post1677727)
Thing is... the percentage is probably higher in most other countries except for those in Western Europe.
Right, what about Latin America? 99%?
Quote Originally Posted by THX 1133
View Post (http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/international-news/67335-46-of-americans-are-morons-2.html#post1677725)
In the question are the answers; the 10,000 year qualifier pretty well covers it, no?
It doesn't. I want to really pin people down on how much religion has left us in the dark ages. The main points to be made are evolution and age of the earth beliefs. On both those fronts, if you really look at that question, there is wiggle room for these people to rationalize the numbers. The arguments usually start like this: not that many people believe that the earth is less than 10k years old, look at what the question is asking. Or, not not that many people don't believe in evolution, the question doesn't ask that. Yet if they asked point blank...
Do you believe evolution is responsible for the diversity of life on earth as we see it today?
Do you believe the earth is ~4.6 billion years old, or ~3000 years old?
Those could be worded better, but that would really pin these people down. It is all moot, because any reasonable person knows they are morons, but to really expose religion for that it us, we need those questions to change I feel. I'm not sure why exactly they ask those particular questions that way.
The New York Times > Science > Image > Chart: Belief in Evolution, by Country (http://www.nytimes.com/imagepages/2006/08/14/science/sciencespecial2/20050815_EVO_GRAPHIC.html)
Of the 34 countries appearing on this chart only Turkey is more moronic than the US
It is published in a US paper so it may be biased [image: http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/images/smilies/grin.gif]
^That is a good one, I had never seen that. Iceland takes the cake.
I'm sure they could have gotten different results if they had picked different countries. Turkey and Japan were the only non-European countries other than the US.
Yeah it makes you wonder what the agenda was for publishing that graph...
Imagine the results if you factor in countries of Latin America, The Philippines, the Middle East...
Religion is a part of human history. Science and evolution would be impossible without it. Stop being so pretentious.
Quote Originally Posted by Thaitanium
View Post (http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/international-news/67335-46-of-americans-are-morons-2.html#post1677791)
Yeah it makes you wonder what the agenda was for publishing that graph...
To show Europeans are smarter [image: http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/images/smilies/tounge.gif]
I've met a few moronic Americans. [image: http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/images/smilies/grin.gif]
Most of them aren't very worldly either. As if all Canadians still live in igloos.
Maybe we make that awful mistake of judging you by your English usage and of which century coincides with your vernaculars.
Americans, what a bunch or morons!
After all, what but stupidity can explain the fact America has the world’s largest economy and with only 4% of the world’s population produces 50% of the world’s scientific patents?
Nothing but a nation of imbeciles that none of the Brit (and pseudo Brit) posters on Ajarn could ever feel the remotest twinge of jealousy about.
Quote Originally Posted by Albert Ainsteiner
View Post (http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/international-news/67335-46-of-americans-are-morons-3.html#post1679340)
After all, what but stupidity can explain the fact America has the world’s largest economy and with only 4% of the world’s population produces 50% of the world’s scientific patents?
If you had bothered to pose the question you would have answered it yourself. [image: http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/images/smilies/grin.gif]
American, land of idiots, so true. But why do so many non-Americans obsess over America’s politics and social environment?
American is nothing, it has no importance, so why the need for non-yanks to know as much about the country and its culture as possible and constantly comment on them?
Why not spend one's time following the politics and social affairs of really important places in the world, like Mongolia or New Zealand?
^you are far more amusing than the Kiwis or Mongolians.
---Update---
It's also far harder to wind up the Kiwis, unless of course you take the piss out of Richie McCaw.
Quote Originally Posted by Albert Ainsteiner
View Post (http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/international-news/67335-46-of-americans-are-morons-3.html#post1679348)
American, land of idiots, so true. But why do so many non-Americans obsess over America’s politics and social environment?
American is nothing, it has no importance, so why the need for non-yanks to know as much about the country and its culture as possible and constantly comment on them?
Why not spend one's time following the politics and social affairs of really important places in the world, like Mongolia or New Zealand?
Please bend over, insert probe, and prepare to explode. [image: http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/images/082502bye_prv.gif]
Quote Originally Posted by Albert Ainsteiner
View Post (http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/international-news/67335-46-of-americans-are-morons-3.html#post1679340)
Nothing but a nation of imbeciles that none of the Brit (and pseudo Brit) posters on Ajarn could ever feel the remotest twinge of jealousy about.
pseudo Brits, Russ?
We don't end sentences with prepositions. Are you Canadian?
You guys can bash America all you want, but it is still a strong and wonderful country. Thai people are the only people in the world that I have met that match the hospitality of my home. We have beliefs that you think are silly, but I am proud to be an American. Less than 300 years in existence, and we have loads of accomplishments to be proud of.
[image: http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/images/smilies/smilie_yellow_icon_rolleyes.gif]
---Update---
We were having a nice chat about the amount of religious loonies in the States until Al came along, no acrimony at all.
Quote Originally Posted by Warhammer820
View Post (http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/international-news/67335-46-of-americans-are-morons-3.html#post1679384)
You guys can bash America all you want, but it is still a strong and wonderful country. Thai people are the only people in the world that I have met that match the hospitality of my home. We have beliefs that you think are silly, but I am proud to be an American. Less than 300 years in existence, and we have loads of accomplishments to be proud of.
Cyrill....Cyrille...Cyyyryyyyille!!!...Never around when you need him.....Guess I'll have to do the honours....."Oh dear"....
Americans are so special, they even have a special font.
Quote Originally Posted by jonny danger
View Post (http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/international-news/67335-46-of-americans-are-morons-3.html#post1679379)
We don't end sentences with prepositions
Who are "we"?
I remember reading about some editor told some joker named Hemingway the same thing. Hemingway told the editor to fuck off. I ain’t no Hemingway, but I think I will follow his example this time.
What I like best are things that go boom at the exact point they were sent to go boom. I also like muscle cars that use a lot of gas. Our political system is way cool as well.
Anything great about America ended when W was elected. When he was reelected the place started to stink. Since this new Supreme Court was formed the nation now smells like not-so-fresh roadkill complete with maggots. BTW, isn't it grand California laid of thousands of teachers and increased class sizes from 25 to 40? And so compassionate Cali was to sacrifice early education for finding free housing for junkies and coke whores.
---Update---
Quote Originally Posted by Albert Ainsteiner
View Post (http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/international-news/67335-46-of-americans-are-morons-3.html#post1679393)
Who are "we"?
Me and your mom.
Nearly every country has something to be proud of. I'm sure you guys wouldn't be too keen to someone creating a thread about your country calling half of the citizens morons.
Check out the "Why are Australians so stupid" thread. Most of the people criticising Aus are Australians.
Pretty shocking they would be ok with that.
Not at all, try and get a Briton to say something nice about the UK, it's almost impossible.
Quote Originally Posted by Jimmy Mulga
View Post (http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/international-news/67335-46-of-americans-are-morons-4.html#post1679410)
try and get a Briton to say something intelligent, it's almost impossible.
I have to agree with you on that.
Quote Originally Posted by Jimmy Mulga
View Post (http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/international-news/67335-46-of-americans-are-morons-4.html#post1679410)
try and get a Briton to say something nice about the UK
I like Yorkshire pudding....
Quote Originally Posted by Warhammer820
View Post (http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/international-news/67335-46-of-americans-are-morons-post1679384.html#post1679384)
You guys can bash America all you want, but it is still a strong and wonderful country. Thai people are the only people in the world that I have met that match the hospitality of my home. We have beliefs that you think are silly, but I am proud to be an American. Less than 300 years in existence, and we have loads of accomplishments to be proud of.
Good God man! You sound like an Englishman before the Yanks bent them over and made them their bitches! They had a longer existence, though...
[image: http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/images/drama.gif]
Relevant article posted in another thread.
A petition to remove references to evolution from high-school textbooks claimed victory last month after the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MEST) revealed that many of the publishers would produce revised editions that exclude examples of the evolution of the horse or of avian ancestor Archaeopteryx. The move has alarmed biologists, who say that they were not consulted. “The ministry just sent the petition out to the publishing companies and let them judge,” says Dayk Jang, an evolutionary scientist at Seoul National University.
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=south-korea-surrenders-creationist-demands (http://http//www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=south-korea-surrenders-creationist-demands)
Stupid fucking Koreans.
Quote Originally Posted by buddahas
View Post (http://www.ajarnforum.net/vb/international-news/67335-46-of-americans-are-morons-post1677797.html#post1677797)
Religion is a part of human history. Science and evolution would be impossible without it.
This is the dumbest statement I've read in quite a while.