Education and political affiliation
 

I thought this would be an interesting look at level of education and political affiliation. Your vote will be private of course. Give me a second to post the poll as it's going to take a minute to get all the options up.

Re: Education and political affiliation
 

Does a Player Hating Degree count?

Re: Education and political affiliation
 

I am a two time college dropout and a Repblican. $2.00 in late fees at the public library.

Re: Education and political affiliation
 

I am shocked to see there is more than one of me. (independant with a masters degree)

So who is the PHD here?

Re: Education and political affiliation
 

dems losing :P but seriously, the sample set is way too small.

Re: Education and political affiliation
 

[quote=That Guy;475221]dems losing :P but seriously, the sample set is way too small.[/quote]

What part of the sample is too small? Associates Degree missing?

I know at least one Independant that is voting for a Dem this year so the Dems aren't losing by as much as you think.

Re: Education and political affiliation
 

[quote=Angry;475223]What part of the sample is too small? Associates Degree missing?

I know at least one Independant that is voting for a Dem this year so the Dems aren't losing by as much as you think.[/quote]

I don't think you're joking. With that in mind the "sample" isn't the answer set it is the amount of people responding. Statistically a sample set of around 1000 is prefered to achieve 95% reliability.

Re: Education and political affiliation
 

[quote=FRPLG;475230]I don't think you're joking. With that in mind the "sample" isn't the answer set it is the amount of people responding. Statistically a sample set of around 1000 is prefered to achieve 95% reliability.[/quote]

Yeah the sample is too small, it's doubtful we'll get up to 1000 responses anytime soon. We'll leave it running indefinitely and see what happens.

Re: Education and political affiliation
 

[quote=jsarno;475197]I am shocked to see there is more than one of me. (independant with a masters degree)

So who is the PHD here?[/quote]

Why is that shocking?

Re: Education and political affiliation
 

[quote=FRPLG;475230]I don't think you're joking. With that in mind the "sample" isn't the answer set it is the amount of people responding. Statistically a sample set of around 1000 is prefered to achieve 95% reliability.[/quote]

I wasn't (joking), thanks for catching that. I feel like an ass now that I realize what I posted. I should have had the coffee first. Oh well, maybe we can educate more than one person today. If that's the case then I feel better already.

Re: Education and political affiliation
 

well, i was definitely kidding...

Re: Education and political affiliation
 

[quote=Mattyk72;475233]Why is that shocking?[/quote]

I really thought I was the only one here with that combo. The poll says 4.

Re: Education and political affiliation
 

[quote=Mattyk72;475232]Yeah the sample is too small, it's doubtful we'll get up to 1000 responses anytime soon. We'll leave it running indefinitely and see what happens.[/quote]

Yeah I don't care about the sample I was just explaining the concept of it.

Re: Education and political affiliation
 

If you leave it running long enough, I might get a degree!

Re: Education and political affiliation
 

[quote=jsarno;475272]I really thought I was the only one here with that combo. The poll says 4.[/quote]

With nearly 4,700 people here there's bound to be a few.

Re: Education and political affiliation
 

This might be more useful:

[URL="http://www.gallup.com/poll/107689/Early-Gallup-Road-Map-McCainObama-Matchup.aspx"]Gallup Poll: Education, Race, Income and Political Affiliation[/URL]

Pretty much split down the middle on education until you get to post-graduate where Obama has a 13 point advantage.

I think that raises an interesting "chicken or egg" question. Do those with post-grad degrees favor Obama because they're more intelligent and more intelligent people just favor Obama? Do the universities tend toward a Democrat position because they're more intelligent, or are they a product of a largely Democratic/liberal university system and the system attracts its own? Essentially are the universities predominantly Democratic and therefore the people who thrive in that environment (i.e. go on to obtain a post-grad degree) tend to be Democrats also?

Obviously each side would like to claim one position or the other. I think simply looking at the poll and concluding that "Smarter people favor Obama" is an oversimplification - it deserves some more thought.

Re: Education and political affiliation
 

[quote=mheisig;475302]This might be more useful:

[URL="http://www.gallup.com/poll/107689/Early-Gallup-Road-Map-McCainObama-Matchup.aspx"]Gallup Poll: Education, Race, Income and Political Affiliation[/URL]

Pretty much split down the middle on education until you get to post-graduate where Obama has a 13 point advantage.

I think that raises an interesting "chicken or egg" question. Do those with post-grad degrees favor Obama because they're more intelligent and more intelligent people just favor Obama? Do the universities tend toward a Democrat position because they're more intelligent, or are they a product of a largely Democratic/liberal university system and the system attracts its own? Essentially are the universities predominantly Democratic and therefore the people who thrive in that environment (i.e. go on to obtain a post-grad degree) tend to be Democrats also?

Obviously each side would like to claim one position or the other. I think simply looking at the poll and concluding that "Smarter people favor Obama" is an oversimplification - it deserves some more thought.[/quote]

universities have been known for a long time as being VERY skewed towards liberal politics. and it's not obama, it's democrats in general, though he's a liberal's liberal. It started after WWII, i's assume vietnam had a big hand in it, and now i'd tend to think that there's probably some indoctrination, at least for those that get phd's and stay in the world of academia.

as far as which party is smarter, i don't think you can prove it either way. if you poll CEOs and top level business managers, you'd probably get skewed conservative views, and i'd wager, even if they don't have as many phds (specialty knowledge), they're just as smart.

Re: Education and political affiliation
 

It will largely depend upon the discipline in which the degree was obtained.

Obama may be leading amongst all those with post-graduate degrees. But break that down by discipline; those with MBAs I can vitrually assure will favor Republicans. Those with degrees in science and math fields will favor Democrats. Those with law degrees will favor Democrats by a pretty wide margin.

And actually a lot of that can be explained by simply following the money. MBAs work for corporations for the most part, and they tend to like lower corporate tax rates for obvious reasons. Scientific researchers depend upon federal and state funding, which Democrats tend to provide more of.

Re: Education and political affiliation
 

[quote=Mattyk72;475289]With nearly 4,700 people here there's bound to be a few.[/quote]

There are 4700 active members here??????

Re: Education and political affiliation
 

[quote=jsarno;475572]There are 4700 active members here??????[/quote]

Yes, if you count EARTHQUAKE...lol

Re: Education and political affiliation
 

Well if I can just find another one of these smart doctors selling their house "for sale by owner" I can make another killing. Sorry a degree has nothing to do with life.

Re: Education and political affiliation
 

[quote=firstdown;476774]Well if I can just find another one of these smart doctors selling their house "for sale by owner" I can make another killing. Sorry a degree has nothing to do with life.[/quote]

Yes and no. The paper itself means nothing in terms of intellect (in a lot of cases, there are plenty where it does), but whether I or you like it or not, I am more likely to get a job cause of my MBA. It sets me above others. Right or wrong, that degree opens doors for me. That's the reason I got it. I grew up in a poor house...and I mean poor. I saw my father was a useless POS and didn't want to work...but yet he complained that everyone got jobs over him. I didn't want to be like him, so I made sure I wasn't. I got an education even though I had NO HELP other than financial aid that I am still paying back. I even had a full time job while I went to school full time...had to in order to pay for school and food etc.
So you are right in saying the degree has nothing to do with life, but you are also wrong cause there is an advantage in life to having a degree.

Re: Education and political affiliation
 

Interesting. There are more educated Republicans than Democrats. Who woud've guessed that? (just ribbing the Dems, this is far from an accurate poll yet)

I'm actually surprised because this site seems to lean to the left most of the time, which is not surprising considering it being a D.C. team's site.

Re: Education and political affiliation
 

Related to the poll (and funny):

[url=http://www.suitablyflip.com/suitably_flip/2008/09/how-come-i-woul.html]Suitably Flip: "How Come I Would Make the Economy Better" by Barry Obama[/url]

Re: Education and political affiliation
 

[quote=Buster;477415][B]Interesting. There are more educated Republicans than Democrats. [/B] Who woud've guessed that? (just ribbing the Dems, this is far from an accurate poll yet)

I'm actually surprised because this site seems to lean to the left most of the time, which is not surprising considering it being a D.C. team's site.[/quote]

Give me a couple more years, I'll soon be able to be under the Democratic PHD column. I'm a work in progress. ;)

Re: Education and political affiliation
 

[quote=Buster;477415]Interesting. There are more educated Republicans than Democrats. Who woud've guessed that? (just ribbing the Dems, this is far from an accurate poll yet)

I'm actually surprised because this site seems to lean to the left most of the time, which is not surprising considering it being a D.C. team's site.[/quote]

Makes me wonder if this poll where "which side do you lean, left or right, and education level" what the results would be. While I have an MBA, I certainly lean to the right. (anything else would be wrong) ;)

Re: Education and political affiliation
 

[quote=DynamiteRave;477423]Give me a couple more years, I'll soon be able to be under the Democratic PHD column. I'm a work in progress. ;)[/quote]

What are you wanting to do "when you grow up"? hehe

Re: Education and political affiliation
 

[quote=jsarno;477581]What are you wanting to do "when you grow up"? hehe[/quote]

I'm a psychology major right now. I'm done next fall with my BA if I can mash enough credits into the next 2 semesters (and if I take classes in the Summer) if not I'm done Spring of 10, then I'm reading full steam into my Masters, because I always have to hear about how there are no jobs for 4 year psych majors. And I know how I am, if I take time off, I'll never end up going back.

Can't say I'm too sure what I want to do.. Wouldn't mind working in a psych facility.. And I like listening to people's problems.. Maybe a marriage counselor? Or working with kids/teens.. Eh. Not sure yet.

Guess I still have a little more time to figure it out. :)

Re: Education and political affiliation
 

[quote=DynamiteRave;477600]I'm a psychology major right now. I'm done next fall with my BA if I can mash enough credits into the next 2 semesters (and if I take classes in the Summer) if not I'm done Spring of 10, then I'm reading full steam into my Masters, because I always have to hear about how there are no jobs for 4 year psych majors. And I know how I am, if I take time off, I'll never end up going back.

Can't say I'm too sure what I want to do.. Wouldn't mind working in a psych facility.. And I like listening to people's problems.. Maybe a marriage counselor? Or working with kids/teens.. Eh. Not sure yet.

Guess I still have a little more time to figure it out. :)[/quote]

Well good luck to you. School was one of the hardest things I ever did. I hated it. When I graduated with my bachelors, I didn't even care, I dove head first in the masters program...now when I finished that, I gave a massive sigh of relief knowing I never had to do that again.

About what field to pick, I would suggest you looking inward and seeing what you're best at. For instance, if you have never been married, or have an unsuccessful marriage, marriage counseling is probably not for you. But if you have a passion for youngsters, that could be a possible avenue. It's all about you on how you pick.

ps- I was a pysch major at one time, and ended up minoring in it.

Re: Education and political affiliation
 

[quote=DynamiteRave;477600]I'm a psychology major right now. I'm done next fall with my BA if I can mash enough credits into the next 2 semesters (and if I take classes in the Summer) if not I'm done Spring of 10, then I'm reading full steam into my Masters, because I always have to hear about how there are no jobs for 4 year psych majors. And I know how I am, if I take time off, I'll never end up going back.

Can't say I'm too sure what I want to do.. Wouldn't mind working in a psych facility.. And I like listening to people's problems.. Maybe a marriage counselor? Or working with kids/teens.. Eh. Not sure yet.

Guess I still have a little more time to figure it out. :)[/quote]

Very smart decision to move full steam ahead and get all of your education done without ever stopping.

I went that route after listening to the advice of countless people who never went back to get their masters. They all said the same thing, once you stop and the longer you're out of the classroom, the harder it is to get back into it.

I graduated college in May of '01 and started my masters 3 months later. I pushed through and was really glad I did. Because now, being 29 years old, I don't think you could pay me enough to get me back in the classroom. It's all true, the longer you're out, the more you want to leave that phase of life behind. Good luck to you.

Re: Education and political affiliation
 

Sorry--power is out here in Houston and I missed this.

I am the classic democrat PhD Obama guy. I am actually a professor of philosophy at the University of Houston, but I grew up in Garrett Park MD and lived for 20 years in NYC (went to NYU and CUNY).

Don't know about the chicken and the egg here: I've been voting democratic since I started voting. (I did vote for Bloomberg, however... he's pretty much a democrat anywhere but NYC!)

I do think smarts is important for running the country (the last 8 years have been good evidence for that!), but all smarts are not the same. Churchill was never a good student and he was a great leader. Jefferson was a great thinker, but less than a great president, IMO. My favorite is Teddy Roosevelt. Harvard educated, could read in 8 languages, was an incredibly active outdoors man and hunter, modernized the NYC police dept, modernized the US Navy, helped fight big trusts and monopolies, won the Nobel peace prize, etc. The best of both worlds.

As for the value of higher degrees, it totally depends on what you want to do. There's no way to get my job without one. But my father-in-law didn't go to college, is a VP at a paper machinery company, and lends me money from time to time! He's about as anti-Obama as you can get, for what it's worth. Allowing his daughter to marry some liberal East coast academic was a pretty big concession on his part. Thank god we have football to talk about!

(Actually, he's one of the smartest people I know and we argue politics constantly. If you want to understand your own views, find a smart person who disagrees with you. Really, there's no better way to learn, as Plato tells us.)

Re: Education and political affiliation
 

im one of the zillion attorneys in the metro area. (yeah i know, i know but when a tractor trailer slams into the back of your car with your family in it then denies all liability and changes their names and plays hard to get you will need us. i help alot of injured people out against insurance companies who think noone can get injured in a car accident under 40 mph)

i would have voted for mccann the last 2 elections if he was able to run but now that the dems have a true candidate in obama im voting for him . . . not that your vote counts in MD anyway.