Polls’ accuracy turns on turnout

Public opinion polls have dominated the 1996 election cycle. One reason: There are simply more polls. Example: According to the Roper Center for Public Opinion Research, there were 10 presidential “trial heats” between September 1 and election day in 1968. This year that number will exceed 125. Even worse, the horse race aspect of the…

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Candidates ignore world to the south

The future of this hemisphere depends on decisions which governments are making today, and which governments — including the U.S. government — will be making in the next five years. Yet there is a virtual blackout in the current presidential contest on foreign and national security policy issues — and, unfortunately, no one seems to…

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Permissiveness starts at the top

“The children of today are out of control. They talk back to their parents, slobber their food, and annoy their teachers.” Does this sound familiar, like your local school principal or a disgruntled grandmother? Actually, it is a quote from Socrates, the Greek philosopher, uttered sometime around 425 B.C. In fact, each generation of kids…

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