Poll Finds Americans Lack Confidence In Government's Ability To Protect Them
Source: Associated Press
By By JILL COLVIN and JENNIFER AGIESTA
Posted: 10/05/2014 8:20 am EDT Updated: 3 hours ago
WASHINGTON (AP) Americans lack confidence in the government's ability to protect their personal safety and economic security, a sign that their widespread unease about the state of the nation extends far beyond politics, according to the latest Associated Press-GfK poll.
With Election Day about a month away, more than half those in the survey said Washington can do little to effectively lessen threats such as climate change, mass shootings, racial tensions, economic uncertainty and an unstable job market.
"I think what we've got going on here in America is the perfect storm of not good things," said Joe Teasdale, 59, who lives in southwest Wisconsin and works as an assistant engineer at a casino.
For many of those questioned in the poll, conducted before doctors in Texas diagnosed a Liberian man with the Ebola virus, the concern starts with the economy.
Read more: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/10/05/poll-government-safety_n_5934306.html
The Velveteen Ocelot
(115,070 posts)A government that's been drowned in the bathtub like they want, can't protect you. You're on your own. Take personal responsibility for your situation. The nanny state isn't there to protect you, you slacker loser 47-percenter.
If the government isn't protecting us it's because the GOPers and Libertarians and Objectivists and the like wanted it that way.
yurbud
(39,405 posts)so they don't accidentally joint the 47 percent who have to work for a living instead of running multi-billion dollar three card monte schemes.
logosoco
(3,208 posts)"run of the mill crazy people". But I do expect them to protect me from people who want to pollute the water supply for me or any of my fellow citizens. That I think they are perfectly capable of, except for the influence of money in congress.
yurbud
(39,405 posts)trying to stir up a new Cold War with Russia and possibly China, solely so our bankers and oil companies can have uncontested control of the world's economy puts us in unnecessary danger of a nuclear war.
Likewise, while terrorists will never take over the US, the chance of some kind of attack increase every time we bomb innocent people to overturn a government not sufficiently compliant to our business interests.
ronnie624
(5,764 posts)Your comments are on the mark.
sakabatou
(42,070 posts)cheapdate
(3,811 posts)AlbertCat
(17,505 posts)The DoD....y'know...defense.... aren't they, along with intelligence agencies, supposed to protect us from terrorist types of threats?
What? Do they not have enough money? Enough employees?
I wonder if people think about how bucking up the home front is a great way to get protected. Y'know, good roads and bridges and levees and dams and a super fast and reliable communications and power grid. The government can surly do something about that, if only some bills would get passed. I wonder how such projects would impact jobs and the economy. Couldn't some DoD contractors still making stuff to fight the USSR be reassigned to do some infrastructure instead? Or something....?
It's not that government CAN'T do anything, it's that there is much obstruction coming from...somewhere...I wonder....
Don't people get that yet?
moondust
(19,896 posts)Any entity repeatedly sabotaged, obstructed, and crippled by its members is likely to run into problems doing its job.
blkmusclmachine
(16,149 posts)kiss."
DEMS to America: "We're ready to compromise with the GOP. But they won't return our phone calls!!!"
America, you're between a rock and a hard place...
Aerows
(39,961 posts)department of "Duh".