At about the time our original 13 states adopted their new constitution, in the year 1787, Alexander Tyler (a Scottish history professor at The University of Edinborough) had this to say about "The Fall of The Athenian Republic" some 2,000 years prior. "A democracy is always temporary in nature; it simply cannot exist as a permanent form of government. A democracy will continue to exist up until the time that voters discover that they can vote themselves generous gifts from the public treasury. From that moment on, the majority always votes for the candidates who promise the most benefits from the public treasury, with the result that every democracy will finally collapse due to loose fiscal policy, (which is) always followed by a dictatorship." "The average age of the worlds greatest civilizations from the beginning of history, has been about 200 years.

During those 200 years, these nations always progressed through the following sequence:

From Bondage to spiritual faith;

From spiritual faith to great courage;

From courage to liberty;

From liberty to abundance;

From abundance to complacency;

From complacency to apathy;

From apathy to dependence;

From dependence back into bondage."

Professor Joseph Olson of Hamline University School of Law, St.Paul, Minnesota, points out some interesting facts concerning the most recent Presidential election:

Population of counties won by:

Gore=127 million

Bush=143 million

Square miles of land won by:

Gore=580,000

Bush=2,427,000

States won by:

Gore=19

Bush=29

Murder rate per 100,000 residents in counties won by:

Gore=13.2

Bush=2.1

Professor Olson adds: "In aggregate, the map of the territory Bush won was mostly the land owned by the taxpaying citizens of this great country. Gore's territory encompassed those citizens living in government-owned tenements and living off government welfare..." Olson believes the U.S. is now somewhere between the "apathy" and "complacency" phase of Professor Tyler's definition of democracy; with some 40 percent of the nation's population already having reached the "governmental dependency" phase.

I do find it interesting, and do not disagree. Good find.

All big cities are primarily liberal and free from the "idiocy of the country." Therefore, Gore carried areas that are very densly populated, such as Washington D.C. (which 91% of the vote went to Gore). I am not so sure that the election has anything to do with people being dependant on the government. For all of modern history (1500 - present) , cities have been primarily liberal while the country site has been primarily conservative.
[quote]
Population of counties won by:

Gore=127 million

Bush=143 million
[/quote]
I am not sure what that means, but Gore won the popular vote by about 500,000 votes.

I love the Electoral college.

[quote author=DaRk-FeAnOr link=board=6;threadid=6022;start=0#msg52080 date=1080417153]
All big cities are primarily liberal and free from the "idiocy of the country." Therefore, Gore carried areas that are very densly populated, such as Washington D.C. (which 91% of the vote went to Gore). I am not so sure that the election has anything to do with people being dependant on the government. For all of modern history (1500 - present) , cities have been primarily liberal while the country site has been primarily conservative.
[quote]
Population of counties won by:

Gore=127 million

Bush=143 million
[/quote]
I am not sure what that means, but Gore won the popular vote by about 500,000 votes.
[/quote]

That means that, if everyone in the counties voted exactly (percentage-wise) as the few people who did vote in those counties, that Bush would have had 143m votes, and Gore would have only had 127m.

I thought it meant that if everyone in the counties Bush won had voted for Bush and everyone in the counties Gore won had voted for Gore, then they'd have gotten those numbers? I.e. 100% for one candidate, 0% for the other?

Oh, I understand.

[quote author=Myndfyre link=board=6;threadid=6022;start=0#msg52091 date=1080422844]
That means that, if everyone in the counties voted exactly (percentage-wise) as the few people who did vote in those counties, that Bush would have had 143m votes, and Gore would have only had 127m.
[/quote]

Does this mean Bush voters are more apathetic than Democratic voters?

[quote author=Grok link=board=6;threadid=6022;start=0#msg52101 date=1080425624]
[quote author=Myndfyre link=board=6;threadid=6022;start=0#msg52091 date=1080422844]
That means that, if everyone in the counties voted exactly (percentage-wise) as the few people who did vote in those counties, that Bush would have had 143m votes, and Gore would have only had 127m.
[/quote]

Does this mean Bush voters are more apathetic than Democratic voters?
[/quote]

That wouldn't suprise me, but then you also have to consider other factors -- for example, perhaps the voters in Bush's corner couldn't get to the polling place because they had work and/or school. I know that my parents -- particularly my dad -- aren't apathetic to the political situation, but he doesn't make any special effort to get to the polling place.

[edit]
So I suppose Bush voters are just more lazy, not apathetic. :)
[/edit]

One problem I see with those numbers is "population" is not the same as "population of voting age and status".

So noncitizens, everyone under 18, as well as all people in jail, on parole or probation, should be subtracted to find out the actual numbers.

Another possibility is that Gore carried counties by a greater percentage than Bush did. Like Gore won his counties by an average of 65% while Bush won his counties by an average of 55% or whatever.

[quote author=DaRk-FeAnOr link=board=6;threadid=6022;start=0#msg52108 date=1080427756]
Another possibility is that Gore carried counties by a greater percentage than Bush did. Like Gore won his counties by an average of 65% while Bush won his counties by an average of 55% or whatever.
[/quote]

That is inconsequential in counties that have smaller populations.

[quote]
Murder rate per 100,000 residents in counties won by:

Gore=13.2

Bush=2.1
[/quote]

That is the best part in the whole thing!

You dug up a thread that has been dead for a month and didn't add anything constructive. You broke the second cardinal rule you bafoon.

[quote author=Hazard link=board=6;threadid=6022;start=0#msg57325 date=1083184667]
You dug up a thread that has been dead for a month and didn't add anything constructive. You broke the second cardinal rule you bafoon.
[/quote]

Hey hey -- first of all, it's "bufoon." Get it right.

Second -- well, you were right about the rest of it. ;)

Actually it's buffoon.

[quote author=DarkMinion link=board=6;threadid=6022;start=15#msg58947 date=1083957267]
Actually it's buffoon.
[/quote]

Yeah, it didn't look right after I posted it, but I was too lazy to look it up. I actually used it in a paper today, and Word auto-corrected me. I saw DM's statement in Op [vL] about me getting owned in Grok's forum, and I knew immediately what he meant :P

You can use statistics to prove anything. For example, someone sent me this the other day:

Source: http://www-unix.oit.umass.edu/~gcharter/iq.txt
[code]
AVG IQ AVG Income '00 Electoral
(1) Connecticut..................113 $26,979 Gore
(2) Massachusetts................111 $24,059 Gore
(3) New Jersey...................111 $26,457 Gore
(4) New York.....................109 $23,534 Gore
(5) Rhode Island.................107 $20,299 Gore
(6) Hawaii.......................106 $21,218 Gore
(7) Maryland.....................105 $22,974 Gore
(8) New Hampshire................105 $22,934 Bush
(9) Illinois.....................104 $21,608 Gore
(10) Delaware....................103 $21,451 Gore
(11) Minnesota...................102 $20,049 Gore
(12) Vermont.....................102 $18,834 Gore
(13) Washington..................102 $20,398 Gore
(14) California..................101 $21,278 Gore
(15) Pennsylvania................101 $20,253 Gore
(16) Maine.......................100 $18,226 Gore
(17) Virginia....................100 $20,629 Bush
(18) Wisconsin...................100 $18,727 Gore
(19) Colorado.....................99 $20,124 Bush
(20) Iowa.........................99 $18,287 Gore
(21) Michigan.....................99 $19,508 Gore
(22) Nevada.......................99 $20,266 Bush
(23) Ohio.........................99 $18,624 Bush
(24) Oregon.......................99 $18,202 Gore
(25) Alaska.......................98 $21,603 Bush
(26) Florida......................98 $19,397 Bush
(27) Missouri.....................98 $18,835 Bush
(28) Kansas.......................96 $19,376 Bush
(29) Nebraska.....................95 $19,084 Bush
(30) Arizona......................94 $17,119 Bush
(31) Indiana......................94 $18,043 Bush
(32) Tennessee....................94 $17,341 Bush
(33) North Carolina...............93 $17,667 Bush
(34) West Virginia................93 $15,065 Bush
(35) Arkansas.....................92 $15,439 Bush
(36) Georgia......................92 $18,130 Bush
(37) Kentucky.....................92 $16,534 Bush
(38) New Mexico...................92 $15,353 Gore
(39) North Dakota.................92 $16,854 Bush
(40) Texas........................92 $17,892 Bush
(41) Alabama......................90 $16,220 Bush
(42) Louisiana....................90 $15,712 Bush
(43) Montana......................90 $16,062 Bush
(44) Oklahoma.....................90 $16,198 Bush
(45) South Dakota.................90 $16,558 Bush
(46) South Carolina...............89 $15,989 Bush
(47) Wyoming......................89 $17,423 Bush
(48) Idaho........................87 $16,067 Bush
(49) Utah.........................87 $15,325 Bush
(50) Mississippi..................85 $14,088 Bush

[Host: The income-IQ correlation was inspired by the book "IQ and the Wealth of Nations," by Richard Lynn and Tatu Vanhanen. The income statistics are now perhaps a decade old, but were apparently the only numbers available to the original compiler when the results of the '00 election became available (and this chart was made).
[/code]

So do Rich people vote Democrat? Or do people of less-than-average intelligence vote Republican?

[quote author=K link=board=6;threadid=6022;start=15#msg59989 date=1084475651]
You can use statistics to prove anything. For example, someone sent me this the other day:

Source: http://www-unix.oit.umass.edu/~gcharter/iq.txt
[code]
AVG IQ AVG Income '00 Electoral
(1) Connecticut..................113 $26,979 Gore
(2) Massachusetts................111 $24,059 Gore
(3) New Jersey...................111 $26,457 Gore
(4) New York.....................109 $23,534 Gore
(5) Rhode Island.................107 $20,299 Gore
(6) Hawaii.......................106 $21,218 Gore
(7) Maryland.....................105 $22,974 Gore
(8) New Hampshire................105 $22,934 Bush
(9) Illinois.....................104 $21,608 Gore
(10) Delaware....................103 $21,451 Gore
(11) Minnesota...................102 $20,049 Gore
(12) Vermont.....................102 $18,834 Gore
(13) Washington..................102 $20,398 Gore
(14) California..................101 $21,278 Gore
(15) Pennsylvania................101 $20,253 Gore
(16) Maine.......................100 $18,226 Gore
(17) Virginia....................100 $20,629 Bush
(18) Wisconsin...................100 $18,727 Gore
(19) Colorado.....................99 $20,124 Bush
(20) Iowa.........................99 $18,287 Gore
(21) Michigan.....................99 $19,508 Gore
(22) Nevada.......................99 $20,266 Bush
(23) Ohio.........................99 $18,624 Bush
(24) Oregon.......................99 $18,202 Gore
(25) Alaska.......................98 $21,603 Bush
(26) Florida......................98 $19,397 Bush
(27) Missouri.....................98 $18,835 Bush
(28) Kansas.......................96 $19,376 Bush
(29) Nebraska.....................95 $19,084 Bush
(30) Arizona......................94 $17,119 Bush
(31) Indiana......................94 $18,043 Bush
(32) Tennessee....................94 $17,341 Bush
(33) North Carolina...............93 $17,667 Bush
(34) West Virginia................93 $15,065 Bush
(35) Arkansas.....................92 $15,439 Bush
(36) Georgia......................92 $18,130 Bush
(37) Kentucky.....................92 $16,534 Bush
(38) New Mexico...................92 $15,353 Gore
(39) North Dakota.................92 $16,854 Bush
(40) Texas........................92 $17,892 Bush
(41) Alabama......................90 $16,220 Bush
(42) Louisiana....................90 $15,712 Bush
(43) Montana......................90 $16,062 Bush
(44) Oklahoma.....................90 $16,198 Bush
(45) South Dakota.................90 $16,558 Bush
(46) South Carolina...............89 $15,989 Bush
(47) Wyoming......................89 $17,423 Bush
(48) Idaho........................87 $16,067 Bush
(49) Utah.........................87 $15,325 Bush
(50) Mississippi..................85 $14,088 Bush

[Host: The income-IQ correlation was inspired by the book "IQ and the Wealth of Nations," by Richard Lynn and Tatu Vanhanen. The income statistics are now perhaps a decade old, but were apparently the only numbers available to the original compiler when the results of the '00 election became available (and this chart was made).
[/code]

So do Rich people vote Democrat? Or do people of less-than-average intelligence vote Republican?
[/quote]

I think the stats don't really do it justice.

Is the average income and IQ based on the state, or based on a sample of the voting population?
Isn't it reasonable to assume that low-income people tend to vote republican because they want to keep more of their money?
As numerous statistics have shown, the trend tends to show an increase in general (modern) liberalism as income and education increase, up to a certain point, at which people will become more moderate or conservative. However, this part of the population is only representative of about 1% of the overall population.

Just some things to think about before you just sit tabular data down. It can lie, as I believe you were trying to point out. ;)

I highly doubt the average IQ in any normal population is likely to deviate so highly from 100. (113, 85??)

And what's this about average income being almost perfectly directly proportional to average IQ?!