Your news media is at it again. Despite evidence showing the economy is in really bad shape, and possibly getting worse, they are reporting that things have never been hap-hap-happier. Recent stories make it very clear that Obama is polling well in critical electoral swing states, even though 7 in 10 voters believe the country is headed in the wrong direction. You won’t see much on that last statistic, because even J-school dropouts know that an incumbent president cannot be re-elected with numbers like that. So let’s simply ignore them.

Gallup, generally no friend to conservatives, has released a most interesting graphic based on some recent polling. The questions related to belief in American institutions. Take a look.

This chart, if anyone would care to look at carefully enough, should give Axelrod and the Dem Gang sleepless nights. See a pattern? Generally right-wing institutions are up, or have declined very little. Largely left-wing areas suffered tremendous decline.

Some interesting tidbits can be easily explained. Why has faith in the SCOTUS dropped? No, not because of the review of Obamacare—faith in the SCOTUS has fallen because of recent appointments in the present administration. Note that small business is incorrectly colored as a massive decline; in reality, it has never been polled (the notes clarify this explicitly). Of course, there is small confidence in small business simply because the economic outlook for them is particularly grim.

A most curious climb in confidence, you may see, goes to the HMOs. However, Gallup clarifies that although this is a steep climb in confidence, the actual amount of confidence Americans have for HMOs is still pretty low. It is, however, improving.

Anyway, take a look at that chart: none of this is good news for liberals.

The Czar of Muscovy

Божію Поспѣшествующею Милостію Мы, Дима Грозный Императоръ и Самодержецъ Всероссiйскiй, цѣсарь Московскiй. The Czar was born in the steppes of Russia in 1267, and was cheated out of total control of all Russia upon the death of Boris Mikhailovich, who replaced Alexander Yaroslav Nevsky in 1263. However, in 1283, our Czar was passed over due to a clerical error and the rule of all Russia went to his second cousin Daniil (Даниил Александрович), whom Czar still resents. As a half-hearted apology, the Czar was awarded control over Muscovy, inconveniently located 5,000 miles away just outside Chicago. He now spends his time seething about this and writing about other stuff that bothers him.