Eight years ago this month I commented that “I would not be surprised to see the US government legalize marijuana within the next five years.” That conclusion came upon my consideration of the then 64 percent nationwide support for legalization among Americans who had been recently polled by Gallup, plus — for the first time — majority support among Republicans.
Tag: Gallup
The American people are grasping the bias of mass media. When Gallup first asked Americans in 1972 “how much trust and confidence do you have in the mass media,” 68 percent of polled individuals answered either a “great deal” or a “fair amount.” Over the ensuing decades this positive response has plummeted, garnering just 31 percent in the most recent polling conducted in September.
A Gallup poll conducted in July found for the first time that less than a majority of surveyed Americans think that it is “extremely important” that parents have their children vaccinated. Only 40 percent of polled individuals agreed with this assessment compared to the 64 percent high point of agreement expressed when the question was first asked in 2001.
Twice this century, a greater number of Americans, when asked a yearly Gallup survey question, said their opinion aligns more with the view that government “should do more to solve problems” than with the view that government is “trying to do too many things.” The first time was in 2001, shortly after the September 11, 2001 attacks. The second time was in 2020, in the midst of the coronavirus scare. Fear, pumped up incessantly by people in government, media, and beyond, at these two time periods helped lead to a big shift in the poll answers. Every other year, polled people’s opinions came out with a plurality or majority aligned with the view that the government does too much.
Results released this month of a new Gallup poll of marijuana legalization supporters in America indicate that 60 percent of them view legalizing marijuana being “a matter of freedom and personal choice” as a very important reason for supporting legalization, while an additional 29 percent see this as a somewhat important reason.