Last month I wrote about the "Aggregators of Ignorance":

There are three groups of people who consistently have a detrimental affect on American politics: Republicans, Democrats, and pollsters. Of this trio, the most nefarious are the pollsters. While politicians have the ability to shape public policy, pollsters have the power to shape public opinion.

Today, I found another exhibit to add in defense of my thesis. In what is likely to be the dumbest poll taken this year, CNN found:

Nearly six out of ten Americans believe another economic depression is likely, according to a poll released Monday.

The CNN/Opinion Research Corp. poll, which surveyed more than 1,000 Americans over the weekend, cited common measures of the economic pain of the 1930s:

• 25% unemployment rate
• Widespread bank failures
• Millions of Americans homeless and unable to feed their families

I realize that the American people are not economically astute, but can they really believe this nonsense to be true?

Perhaps since most people think the term "recession" is a synonym for "the economy is bad", it shouldn’t be surprising that they think a "depression" means "the economy is really, really bad."

But as the CNN story notes, the worst case scenario predicted by the economists they surveyed—none of whom think we are close to a depression—is that we’ll see as drop in GDP of 2% to 4% and an unemployment rate of 7%. If the bailout is a total flop then unemployment could rise as high as 10-12%.

While this is bad, it’s not Grapes of Wrath bad–more like Reagan-era bad. During the 1981-1982 recession, unemployment rose to 10.8% and GDP declined by 2.9%. We’re unlikely to have a downturn as severe as, say, the recession of the ’70s, much less a devastating economic event similar to the ’30s. (Check out this interactive graph on recessions put together by the Harvard Business Review for more.)

So why are Americans so freaked out? Mainly because we tend to be gullible, pessimistic, and woefully underinformed. Since we don’t understand how the economy works we form our opinions on it based on bits of news and emotion rather than on understandable data and reason. We simply don’t know enough about economics to know that when a CNN pollster asks "Are we headed for a depression?" the proper response is shake one’s head and tell them to stop asking such stupid questions.

 
Tonight on CNN, Bill Bennett hosted a new show called "Beyond the Politics." 

I’ve known Bill for more than 15 years. He is Chairman of this company and is one of the best men i know. 

Sometimes when I mention Bill’s name, people - particularly those on the left side of the aisle - ask me what I like about him. I explain that the Bennett I know is self-deprecating and funny, a cogitator and an agitator in the best of ways, a critic of the left and the right, intellectually honest, tough and kind.

I also explain that when my book that was critical of Christians in politics and the Bush Administration came out in 2006, he was one of my defenders. That is not to say he always agreed with me. He didn’t. But in public and in private he defended me in a highly charged political atmosphere. I should add that he is also loyal. 

Do watch his show, it is a worthwhile hour because you won’t just get to see who Bennett is, you’ll learn a lot too. You won’t always agree with him. But that’s the point, he doesn’t require it. How refreshing.