New Poll Finds 86 Percent Of Americans Don't Want To Have A Country Anymore

[heyholetsgogrant]

New Poll Finds 86 Percent Of Americans Don't Want To Have A Country Anymore

March 13, 2006 | Issue 42•11

WASHINGTON, DC—A Gallup/Harris Interactive poll released Monday indicates that nearly nine out of 10 Americans are "tired of having a country."
Enlarge ImageAmericans

Chicago commuters, 87 percent of whom just don't care anymore.

Among the 86 percent of poll respondents who were in favor of discontinuing the nation, the most frequently cited reasons were a lack of significant results from the current democratic process (36 percent), dissatisfaction with customer service (28 percent), and exhaustion (22 percent).

"I don't want to get bogged down in the country anymore," Wilmington, DE accountant Karie Ashworth said. "I'm not up in arms or anything, I'm just saying it'd be a lot easier for everyone if we just gave it up."

Of those who were against maintaining an American nation, 77 percent said they believe that having a country is "counter to the best interests of Americans." Twelve percent said "the time and effort citizens spend on the country could be better spent elsewhere," and 8 percent said they just didn't care.

Roughly 3 percent said we ceased to have a country years ago, and explained that they had been stockpiling weapons to protect their independent compounds.

According to study organizer David Griffith, poll respondents were surprisingly uniform in their opinion that the nation is too much of a hassle.

"I already belong to a health club, a church, and the Kiwanis Club," Tammy Golden of Los Angeles wrote. "I'm a member of the Von's Grocery Super Savers, which gets me a discount on certain groceries. These are all well-managed organizations with real benefits. None of them send me a confusing bill once a year and make me work it out myself, then throw me in jail if I get it wrong."

Olympia, WA student Helen Berg expressed frustration with the country's voting process.

"I was gonna vote, but it rained," Berg wrote. "It wasn't for the president anyway, so what difference does it make? The president is the only one that matters, and you don't even get to vote for him."

Most citizens said they did not wish to abandon such American traditions as parades, fireworks, and national holidays.

"I'm for saluting flags and pledging allegiance to them, but nothing beyond that," Tampa, FL mechanic and former Marine Doug Pauls said. "I like singing the anthem before the game, but I can't keep up with the news every day. I have three kids."

Pauls added: "I love America, but what's that got to do with having a country?"

Some critics, including the leadership of both parties, have attacked the methodology of the poll, saying that questions like "Do you want a country anymore?" are poorly worded. Casey Mark, a fellow at the Brookings Institute, characterized the question as leading.

Said Mark: "What you must consider is that respondents often don't have the time or energy to devote to answering five questions about their country, which they consider themselves to be remotely involved with, at best."

Griffith pointed to Cheyenne, WY banker Jeff Wheldon's response.

"I think we've come far enough as a nation that we don't need to have one anymore," Wheldon wrote. "It's not like we're Somalia, where the warlords run everything, or Russia, where it's all organized crime. We've had over 200 years of being Americans. I don't think we still need the United States of America to show us how to do it."

http://www.theonion.com/content/node/46227

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

[Prosperity]

Too good to be true

[zoony]

Too good to be true

What do you mean by that? Do tell.

[28rdsknsfn28]

So what...... each state becomes a country, by geography, NO WAIT Red Country and Blue Country.

[jrockster21]

What do you mean by that? Do tell.

I think he means its the Onion, meaning its a fake article.

[tapstaks2000]

So what...... each state becomes a country, by geography, NO WAIT Red Country and Blue Country.

Then the red country would be poor because the blue country holds most of the wealth .

[rincewind]

Then the red country would be poor because the blue country holds most of the wealth .

And here we go again.....





http://www.extremeskins.com/forums/s...ht=letter+blue

[Darth Tater]

Agreed Liberty, if by country you are thinking of a political unit.

[Gichin13]

gotta love the onion

[Mass_SkinsFan]

"I'm for saluting flags and pledging allegiance to them, but nothing beyond that," Tampa, FL mechanic and former Marine Doug Pauls said. "I like singing the anthem before the game, but I can't keep up with the news every day. I have three kids."

Yes, I know it's from The Onion and a satyrical piece, but there's some serious truth to the paragraph above. Truth that disgusts me nearly to the point of nauseau. Truth that truly makes me believe more and more that Citizenship should be a PRIVLEDGE, not a RIGHT here in the United States.

[skinfan13]

Yes, I know it's from The Onion and a satyrical piece, but there's some serious truth to the paragraph above. Truth that disgusts me nearly to the point of nauseau. Truth that truly makes me believe more and more that Citizenship should be a PRIVLEDGE, not a RIGHT here in the United States.

i also realize this is satire but, citizenship is a right, and it can be taken away, but it should never have to be earned if you are born here. that said it can and should be stripped from some individuals. if people like that fictional guy want to be ignorant fools thats their perogative and right.

[Ancalagon the Black]

Reminds me of Neal Stephenson's Snow Crash, in which private franchises controlled the vast majority of land, and the United States was restricted to weird federal compounds where bureaucrats sat there doing work for a purpose no one knew about.

[CoachingWinsChampionships]

Yes, I know it's from The Onion and a satyrical piece, but there's some serious truth to the paragraph above. Truth that disgusts me nearly to the point of nauseau. Truth that truly makes me believe more and more that Citizenship should be a PRIVLEDGE, not a RIGHT here in the United States.

Not entirely sure how serious you are here- maybe you're just venting frustration- but hypothetically, exactly whom would get to decide which of us has earned the privilege of citizenship?

[rincewind]

Not entirely sure how serious you are here- maybe you're just venting frustration- but hypothetically, exactly whom would get to decide which of us has earned the privilege of citizenship?

Mass_Skinsfan would of course.



Really though - dude is for executing anybody that voted for Kerry, so careful what political ground you walk on with this one.



p.s. Mass - glad to see you lost the avatar (though you said you liked it).

[Teller]

Yes, but does Von's Grocery Super Savers have a seat on the UN Security Council?