There has been something going on for quite a few years that just flat bothers me. Some news media and many other organizations report survey after survey as if it were fact rather than information that may or may not be true.
We see it reported all the time as fact when, in fact, it isn’t. Let me explain.
Survey after survey has reported, and it’s pretty much set in stone these days, that people in the South are fat. We are the fattest people in the country, they say, and I see it reported that way all the time. It’s all based on a yearly survey. Yes, I said survey, which is not necessarily factual. It could be, but only real science could determine whether or not it was true.
Thankfully, a university in Alabama decided to do a scientific study to determine the truth of this yearly survey from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. What they found out was not only telling on this subject but a good reminder that surveys are not scientific and are subject to whether people will tell the truth about their weight and height over the phone. Hint: They may or may not.
The Alabama researchers found out two things. The people in the South are not so fat after all, and people in the South are much more likely to tell the truth about their height and weight, especially their height, which is a determining factor on whether one is obese or not. After going to the different regions in the country and actually weighing people, the researchers discovered that people in the South are still overweight but rank third in the seven geographic regions in the country. So there you have it.
My point is that all these surveys are just that — surveys — and have no basis in scientific fact. They could be right but they are 100 percent dependent on whether the respondents tell the truth, mostly over a phone or the internet. My confidence isn’t high these days on people telling the truth, especially since we see more and more folks who think lying is a means to an end rather than inherently bad and harmful.
Wasn’t it John Adams who said, “Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other”? What he meant by this statement is that many things in the republic are dependent on people telling the truth and being honest, and that there is an assumption that people are honest when in fact they may or may not be. I really liked the Ronald Reagan method of “trust but verify.” That would sort out the majority of the liars and cheaters these days.
Back to the surveys. It seems there’s one for just about everything now. Whether it’s the elections, retail products, television watching, or what music you listen to, someone or some entity wants to survey you. Which leaves me wondering. Since a survey is not necessarily accurate, what’s the point? I know there has to be one, but I don’t take no surveys. So save some money, telemarketers, and take me off your call and survey lists.