Project Wonderful Banner

Monday, March 01, 2010

That damned Math

What's Mallard raving about today?

Polls, People.

This may well be the single most amazing Mallard Fillmore ever.

As the question was asked/answered, 35% said they voted for Obama, 30% for McCain, 24% didn't vote, 5% wouldn't say, 5% voted for someone else, and 2% didn't know.

If we assume that half of the "won't say" people voted for Obama, that puts his total at roughly 50% of the people who voted, which is not a significant deviation.

I think Mallard has a basis for all his griping about the Education system, if this is the level of mathematical capability he emerged from school with.

23 comments:

Tog said...

...And naturally, the limited sampling of a field poll (the purpose of which I am uncertain) is guaranteed to reflect the percentages of an official US Presidential election precisely.

Cute use of the word "admitted" there, Tinsley. Not quite as bitchy as if you'd used "confessed," but hey.

Who will YOU "admit" to voting for, Bruce? You made it clear you hated McCain as much as any Democrat. Do you even bother voting? Or is it too much work?

Tyler said...

He was legally elected. Get the hell over it, Bruce.

(Same goes to the Tea Party movement.)

Randy said...

Tog beat me to it, but let me second the "appreciation" for the use of "admitted" there. Haven't read the NYT link yet, but somehow, I rather suspect the term doesn't appear in the questions or answers in that context.

Paul Smecker said...

I might just be wantin' a doughnut with my no cafe double mocca latte.

Iron Dragon said...

Our boondock saints man seems to be undergoing memetic mutation.

But on the main topic, I can do a poll that says that 100% of people voted for Obama. This could be a way of claiming that Obama is simply so unliked now that people are running from him. Hell, if he had been smarter with this he could have done a great argument on how useless polls can be sans context, it would have been useful as a political club and it could have even been funny..or at least intelligible.

exanonymous said...

BWAH?

What is this, magic math day with Mallard Fillmore?

I have some too! Just under 1% of people voted for Obama.

Lagomorph Man said...

I've not taken a class on statistics (though considering I'm in differential equations, it shouldn't be too hard for me) but I can tell you that if a statistics professor saw this, they'd attempt to punch Mallard's whiskey soaked beak in.

There's three kinds of lies. Lies, damn lies, and surveys as recited by Mallard Fillmore.

Kip W said...

This just in: Tin admits that Obama was elected!

Baby steps.

NickE said...

There are only two possibilities here: either Tinz knows this reasoning is pure crap (but uses it anyway; maybe he's hoping to create a talking point for math illiterates), or he DOESN'T know that this reasoning is crap.

Either possibility does not reflect well on him.

dlauthor said...

The important thing is, looking at that poll, Obama still beats McCain, and by roughly the same margin, even today.

Maybe even in Indiana, Brucie!

I hate chuck asay said...

"Duh, me no know how maths work. 35+99.6=53, right?" (Bruce Tinsley)

I am glad the Republicans are condemning each other. They are digging their party's grave, as the newer generations, having grown up with modern technology, social services and awareness of minority rights have no interest in the Republicans' ancient hateful ways. Remember the post where someone mentioned a poll showing 5-11% of 18-24-year-olds supported the Republicans? One day, the very old Republican politicians will be dead, true Democrats will be in power, and Obama will be considered an extremist for his questionable attitude towards gays, and support of censorship. We will no longer Puritanically censor video games, television shows or movies, just as the puritanical censorship of books, music, comics, and telephones, mostly, died out when the generations who feared those technologies did the same. I cannot wait for that day.

Word Verification: Porgond, an anagram of G.N. Droop, or Gastro-Neural Droop, a crippling condition caused by Tinsley's wood-grain alcohol binges.

Unknown said...

I can't tell if the Tinhead is trying to say that Americans are (and should be) ashamed of voting for Obama, or that he didn't really win the popular vote (and the popular vote matters when the Republican loses).

I hate chuck asay said...

I should amend the previous post to show that the censorship of comics is, unfortunately not, entirely, dead: (http://everything2.com/title/the+Keith%2527s+Comics+censorship+case, http://www.cbldf.org/pr/archives/000415.shtml) One day, the majority will realize that video games, even the very violent ones, are just as safe for children as comic books, despite what an angry retarded minority, as seen above, will believe.

Rootbeer said...

DERP

Even with the millions of first-time voters that Barack Obama brought to the ballot box, less than 2/3 of the voting-age population participated in the 2008 presidential election.

35% of a full-population survey is practically a political mandate.

Anonymous said...

Why in the world is Tinsley complaining about Obama? What's he done that Bushie didn't do? Patriot Act? Extended. Gitmo? Still open. War in Iraq and Afganistan? Continued and escalated. Banksters put in almost every high post? Yup. Why isn't Tinsley ecstatic? (Because he's stupid? Check.)

Michael Foley said...

Apparently Mallard is only good at math when it involves subtracting from 750mL.

Does the freaky Obama remind anyone else of the ending of Gerald's Game?

Paul Smecker said...

I might just wantin' a bagel with my coffee.

rewinn said...

As has been noted, comparing 53% of the popular vote to 35% of the entire voting-age population is a lie.

When you comment on reality, the truth is enough.

For everydrunk else, there's lieing!

Bill the Splut said...

I remember Brewski's series of strips pointing out how the 2004 election's exit polls matched exactly how people voted--except in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Florida, where they had Diebold machines. Thousands of people there voted for Kerry, then apparently lied about it. And how did Bush get over 100% of the vote in a few Ohio towns, anyway?

Nothing to see here, folks! Move along, move along! Must be the same amazing math Tinny used today!

Kaitlyn said...

So as for the never lying is he referring to the election or the poll?

I want to see sample size, please. They didn't poll me and I voted for Obama.

What the fuck is the point?

Now a year or so ago, if Moose Barbie and McCain were in power, people would have lied to *exit pollers* about voting for Obama because we want to look like we're not racist. Or something.

But that didn't happen.

You think he'll do a comic about the Olympics?

Hibryd said...

Why do I get the feeling I'm going to be seeing this exact same comic in another year for the next Golden Ellipses?

Hibryd said...

So... if people dislike something *he* dislikes, that means he's right! But if people *like* something he dislikes (Disney Channel shows, malls, cell phones) that means people are stupid.

Kip W said...

It's exactly as Rootbeer says. Multiply the percentage of the population that voted by Obama's majority, and it comes out to about 35% of the population. There's nothing suprising about this poll, or Tin's tired attempt to spin it for the gullible.