Lies, damned lies, and statistics

I usually ignore polls, for several reasons, not the least of which is that I conducted research in my college studies, and I know that any set of data can be interpreted favorably if you apply the right statistical method to it.

James Zogby refutes Dick Cheney's interpretation of the Zogby/AIE poll conducted in Iraq and tells why ignoring the reality which the poll actually uncovers is a dangerous path for the administration to follow.

In fact, Zogby International (ZI) in Iraq had conducted the poll, and the American Enterprise Institute (AEI) did publish their interpretation of the findings. But the AEI’s “spin” and the vice president’s use of their “spin” created a faulty impression of the poll’s results and, therefore, of the attitudes of the Iraqi people.

Read the rest of the article here. It shows that most of the positive spin on the poll is actually a manipulation of the figures that turns the real results on their head.

....but hey, do what you want....you will anyway.