But at least for some, the temptation has been to make claims about health risks that aren’t supported by mainstream science, and to do so in a way that is very similar to the arguments of GW sceptics. Here’s an example of the kind of thing I mean.

http://todayyesterdayandtomorrow.wordpress.com/

A fair point, but the question is rather ambiguously worded; it says “America” rather than the Americas, and I’d guess that the thing most people would remember about the whole continental drift theory is the connection of South America and Africa due to the way they “fit”. It’s not a good question.

The poll does show an interesting bias amonst Republicans that’s likely to have a racial element, but I think the initial reason for Daily Kos commissioning the poll was the most interesting; the poll was an implicit critique of the way polling is done on science issues (i.e. evolution).

What did Dems think about Bush? He had been arrested for drunk driving. He’d used cocaine. He’d been AWOL from the service. Some people had more elaborate things going on. Were these huge memes? Did they really fly in the face of the plausible? Were they relevant to his presidency? I’d say they weren’t exactly parallel but was there a parallel in terms of rumors about Bush?

Yes there is a parallel.

Republicans disbelieve all bad things about themselves.

This is exactly parallel to believing all bad things about Obama.

WEST ALLIS, Wisconsin—Texas Gov. George W. Bush acknowledged Thursday that in 1976 he was arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol near his parents’ home in Kennebunkport, Maine.

http://archives.cnn.com/2000/ALLPOLITICS/stories/11/02/bush.dui/

A conversation between Bush and an old friend, author Doug Wead, touched on the subject of use of illegal drugs. In the taped recording of the conversation, Bush explained his refusal to answer questions about whether he had used marijuana at some time in his past. “I wouldn’t answer the marijuana questions,” Bush says. “You know why? Because I don’t want some little kid doing what I tried.”[16] When Wead reminded Bush of his earlier public denial of using cocaine, Bush replied, “I haven’t denied anything.”[17]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_W._Bush_substance_abuse_controversy

Whatever the case, even though his superiors knew he’d blown off his duties, they never disciplined him. (No one’s ever been shot at dawn for missing a weekend guard drill, but policy at the time was to put shirkers on active duty.) Indeed, when Bush decided to go to business school at Harvard in the fall of 1973, he requested and got an honorable discharge — eight months before his service was scheduled to end.

Bush’s enemies say all this proves he was a cowardly deserter. Nonsense. He was a pampered rich kid who took advantage. Why wasn’t he called on it in a serious way during the 2000 election? Probably because Democrats figured they’d get Clinton’s draft-dodging thing thrown back at them. Not that it matters. If history judges Bush harshly — and it probably will — it won’t be for screwing up as a young smart aleck, but for getting us into this damn fool war.

http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/2446/did-george-w-bush-go-awol-during-his-time-in-the-national-guard

Of course, this leads people to harm their own cause, because they make themselves seem like lunatics, but I, at least, can appreciate the temptation. If I was asked, on a survey, something like, “don’t you agree that allowing gay people to marry has been rather rare in much of Western history,” I’d be tempted to say “no,” when what I would really mean is “fuck you, homophobes.” I don’t think I’d do it, but I’d be tempted.

In the same vein, to all the birthers in La, La Land, it is on you to prove to all of us that your assertion is true, if there are people who were there and support your position then show us the video (everyone has a price), either put up or frankly shut-up. I heard Orly Taitz, is selling a tape (I think it’s called “Money, Lies and Video tape”). She is from Orange County, CA, now I know what the mean when they say “behind the Orange Curtain”, when they talk about Orange County, the captial of Conspiracy Theories. You know Obama has a passport, he travel abroad before he was a Senator, but I guess he fooled them too?

Somebody needs to create a diabolical (or perhaps it would be angelical?) IQ/standardized knowledge test, full of questions where movement conservatives who refuse to accept the truth will drag down the white average dramatically.

OMG STANDARDIZED TESTS HAVE BIASES WHO KNEW???

Can you go into the tribal purity marker a bit. I am really interested in the psychology of human behavior and I think this is an excellent topic for study.

Really? Judging by Buchanan’s work at amconmag, his anti-war stance wouldn’t exactly “distinguish” him “starkly.”

Anyone who felt surprised by this definitely hasn’t taught at various rural high schools. Which granted, is most everybody.

Personally, having taught at a couple rural high schools, I was extremely pleased to see this was true.

I’m not trolling, I swear! Why pleased? Because the answer shows that most Republican voting groups at least understand plate tectonics well enough to know the theory does indeed imply the Americas were once joined to Africa. To me, that’s… impressive. Or at least, not depressing.

As the explanation said, it proved that, if you pushed the right racial buttons Southern Republicans would reject mainstream science, even when it’s not controversial in any way.

I have copious anecdata about the rejection of Newtonian physics, specifically friction and gravity, together with the idea that an object would travel forever in a straight line at constant velocity unless a force was acting on it. But there’s no point in me going on about it; you can imagine anecdata-like stories for yourselves…