There is a terrible epidemic sweeping the United States today.  It is called TMRSPD (Too Many Really Stupid Polls Disorder).  Symptoms are grinding teeth, rapid jumps in blood pressure, a tendency to obscene expletives (all depending on your political leanings) and a horrible realization that the American public may actually be composed of unbelievably gullible morons.  One if the latest RSPs (Really Stupid Polls) conducted by Quinnipiac University concludes that President Obama is the “worst president” in American history.  You must be aware of this because the right wing has been treating it as the greatest revelation since the Ten Commandments.  The left has been giving it a lot of play as well.  Here’s how the University introduced the polls results: "President Barack Obama is the worst president since World War II, 33 percent of American voters say."  Now this generated an explosion of headlines, commentary and talk show vitriol lambasting Obama and the “Aha, we told you so” gloating from the right.  Jonathan Topaz of Politico pontificated, “A plurality of voters think Barack Obama is the worst president since World War II, a new poll says.”  Wait a minute.  The University says “33 percent of American voters” think he’s the worst.  Topaz says a “plurality” of voters think so.  Let’s see, there are 146,311,000 registered voters in America according to the 2012 census.  The University polled 1,446 people which is .000988 percent of American voters.  Now, 33 percent of 1,446 is 447. So, according to the sensational finding of the Quinnipiac poll, .000305 of the American electorate has determined Obama is the worst president since World War II. Now whether you are Republican or Democrat, I hope you get the point. Whether you think Obama is or is not the worst president since WW II is irrelevant.  It is your opinion.  But to conclude that this opinion is shared by a “plurality” of Americans based on 447 people is absurd. The media, both left and right, abets this absurdity by giving it sensational exposure without questioning its validity. In addition to all the other corruption, dishonesty and cheating that pervades our political system, polling has degenerated into a fine art of deception. (Or perhaps is always has been.)  Unfortunately, American voters have come to accept polls without questioning how they are being manipulated as long as the poll reinforces what they already believe.  Sophocles was right when he said, "What people believe, prevails over the truth."  If polls had existed in his day he might have said “What people are conned into believing, prevails over the truth.”