Thursday, October 18, 2012

Facts. Do We Need Them?


Read the following articles: Facts do Matter in Politics and Do Debate Fact-Checkers Matter? Not So Much

What do you think?  Do facts matter in politics?

23 comments:

  1. I would say yes and no. Yes by the voter's point of view. When I make my decision, I want to know all the facts. I want to know causes, results, and any other significant facts that hold importance. No by the actual politician point of view. They can look at the facts and see what they probably need to do in response. However, that doesn't always mean they have to go by them or actually do something about it. In that case they probably won't be re-elected either. So it is in their best interest to use the facts or otherwise not use them at all instead of twisting them around. In my opinion, facts are evidence of someone's capibilty of what they did, or foreshadow what they are going to do. I do believe that facts should matter important in politics.

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  2. I think facts do matter in politics and I think that people should care about the facts, but the problem is that a lot of people don't care about the facts. I think that facts have a place in opinions regarding certain issues, especially politics. I don't understand how someone can just blindly follow one of the candidates without at least getting all or at least some of the facts. The problem is, there seems to be so many almost-contradictory facts and truthful statements that everybody becomes confused and/or sticks with what they already know; simply because they believe that they're right.

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  3. Personally I believe that facts do matter in politics. I don't see why there would even be a question as to if facts matter, I mean I guess it depends on the voter but personally I think that the most important things to know are the facts. Some people may think differently but I think that facts do matter in politics because without the facts how can the voters actually know what is going to be in store for them in the next four years after the election?

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  4. I believe that facts do matter a great deal when it comes to politics. If it were not for facts, there would be no logical reason to even have presidential debates. The facts keep the debates well-rounded and help clarify what is truth and what is not when it comes to the presidents claims and arguments. Personally, I do not like the presidential debates because I am not very informed with politics, so I would not know what was true and what was not, but the factual websites about researched topics help sort out what is true and what is not and why it is important.

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  5. I haven't watched one of the debates so I don't really know what is being said or where either of the candidates stand, but I do think that facts matter. No one really wants to be lied to and get mislead by a candidate that is not able to do what he says he can. If we do not know facts, we could end up voting in a person who is not fit to do what is right for this country.

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  6. It seems that facts are not the main point in politics, especially debates. Nowadays,we hear so many promises that will never be fulfilled. People have forgotten or or just stopped caring about whether or not they are hearing the facts. I thought it was funny that Obama was a little caught off guard my Romney's comment about the $5 trillion. It was a stright forward fact, but it seems that these are never stated often enough, which caused Obama's surprise. I think facts are a focus in politics because some candidates know that people are not going to do enough research into topics to find out the facts on everything. I think facts should matter in politics but they don't seem to. I think that the candidates say so many empty promises or lies about the other that they cannot keep up with what they have told who and about what. eventually, it becomes a game of one-upping and not factual information.

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  7. I believe that facts matter in politics. Even though politicians might not tell the truth all of the time. I believe that a good percentage of their debate is comming off of facts. I believe that the majority of voters watching the debate know a good part of the facts the candidates are discussing. If the voters know the facts, then they will be able to tell when the candidates are lying and when they are not.

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  8. I would say that facts do matter in politics. I want to know the whole truth about what they say, not only half of it or none at all. From the voters point of view I'm sure they would too considering they are helping decide who is going to lead the country. Also if they are known for not using actual facts or lying, they may not get reelected. It would make them look bad and make the people question whether they should trust him or not.

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  9. I believe that fact chekcers are important. Without fact checks a presidential candiate could say anything that he wanted to if it sounded resonable to the audience. The candiates would being to twist each others words and make things up and there would be no way to prove that it was incorrect. This would be very missleading to the voters because they would have no idea that what they were being told was false. They would believe a certain person even if the information was wrong. Facts are very important. Without them the whole debate would be full of lies and it would be in now way beneficial for the voters or the candiadtes themselves. It is very hard to make sure that all of the lies that are told are corrected. However, we should eb able to correct the candiates lies because of how important it is to the outcome of the election. The country should have a president that is honest and wants to make sure citizens know the facts. What is the point of campaigning if everything that is being told to the voters are lies?

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  10. It almost seems like the dream of having absolute truth and politics will never be achieved. There are so many differnt number, opinions, and statistics that it is practically imposibble to desipher what is truthful. I do however think that we should as a country start making this dream a reality. It alsmost seems like both canidates are unfavorable due to their untruthfullness. Maybe if they were more truthful and more upfrount people could see an honest future, even if it is not the most exciting news. In the end people's lives are at stake. If a canidate is talkning about troops being sent home, outlawing abortion, or the counless other topics that deal with life, and they lie about their true plan? People will die. Althought the lies about tax cuts are not as extreme as death,the public still deserves to know the truth. Facts mater in politics, even if it seems like right now no true facts are being revealed other than the fact that each party stretches the "truth" to gain favor in the public eye.

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  11. It is usually extremely hard to differenciate the lies from the truth in politics. During the debates the candidates share the information that they claim they will make happen during their term, but no one really knows if they can follow through with their claims. During the debates, facts are extremely necessary to make the election process run smoothly. Without the stated facts, the citizens of the United States could not make a proper decision during election day. However, it is up to the people if they want to believe everything they hear. It is always smart to look up the facts that the candidates say to make sure they are valid. The candidates stretch the truth because most people are too ignorant to realize what is happening. I found the second article to be very interesting because it brought up that all of the facts the candidates use are extremely murky and lack depth. It almost seems as though they avoid in depth answers because it is difficult to tell the truth.

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  12. I think it's interesting reading the fact check sites and articles about them because our political candidates are most of the time blatantly wrong, yet their supporters couldn't care less. Honestly I think it is important to have the real facts in politics, but honestly the facts don't really matter these days. It's too hard for the average citizen to discern from truth and lies in politics and the great majority just don't care. I'm not sure if it's strong will or just pure laziness, but oftentimes people are set in their beliefs and not even a fact-checker can prove to them something is wrong if they believe the opposite.

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  13. Facts are necessary to help differentiate opinions between people. The article states "an occasional look at political claims that take shortcuts with the facts or don't tell the full story." People often only see things from their perspectives. If one is closed minded, it will be much more difficult for them to see the reality of the situation. Facts speak the truth, while opinions are only as justified as someone's word. It is important for voters to check the facts before making a decision that could forever impact their nation.

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  14. I found both of these articles to be very interesting. I like to learn about the real facts that politicians have put their own "spin" on. Personally, I think whether or not facts matter depends on who you ask. There are so many people that know so little about either of what the poiliticans say,and will just vote for whom ever they thought spoke the best or wore the best tie. To me, facts matter a lot. Facts reveal what will happen to our country and facts should be the reason we vote. However, too many people do not care about the facts. They will listen to whomever is running for their party or whomever attracts their attention the most. I think this is one of the main reasons politicians don't bother to get the facts straight in the first place. Because in the end, most voters don't care.

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  15. Facts only matter to the undecided voters who pay close attention to everything. I personaly think that is 5 percent of the voting public. Everyone else is either a rebublican or democrat who already knows who they are going to vote for. The facts can change the elections in the sence that they are normally very close and that 5 percent can matter. However if both canadites lie to much than they might stay home and not vote maying the facts completly illrevant.

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  16. Yes, I believe facts play a very important role politically. Without out solid facts, debates are basically just two adults talking just to talk. Without facts, how are we ever to know what the truth is and what somebody truly means when they tell us something? Candidates can feed us lie after lie, but if we know the facts from the hearsays, we will be able to spot out the candidate's "spin" and not fall for it. I believe it is in our best interests personally and as a country to understand and know the facts. Being able to stand up in front of a crowd and speak well is one thing, but having facts to back up what you are saying is a completely different ball game. Facts matter.

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  17. I think facts are important because they are the truth of what candidates have done or are planning on doing. Whether or not they matter in politics is another question entirely. If voters are easily swayed, strongly biased, or too lazy to check stated "facts" for themselves, facts do not matter much in politics. However, facts matter a great deal to those who are more stubborn. If a voter is unbiased, needs proven facts to believe something, and is able and willing to discover the legitimacy of the candidates' accusation, facts matter a great deal. Overall, facts are always important, but only matter if one is willing to check for proof backing up those facts. If that makes any sense at all....

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  18. I do believe that facts in politics matter because they will always be the point of reference to look back upon. Even though it is not favored by most capaigners in an election, the lies told could possibly be based up real facts. I do believe voters should trust their instinct when voting and listening to campaigns, and much of this instinct is very good at pointing out what is the truth and what is a lie. If voters would be a little skeptical and would look up the real facts about the candidates, voters would have a better chance at picking at president who is right for our country. Even though most voters do not research real facts about politics and about candidates, some voters do. These voters are then able to spread the word of the truth about each candidate. All in all, cold hard facts will always be the better option, instead of good lies.

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  19. I think that facts matter, but I also think that everyone is going to lie, and most everybody expects that. If you want the whole truth, then you're probably out of luck. EVen these wesites lie for the sake of the debates. Certain websites could certainly sway you one way or the other, but in the end we're all going to have to decide who to vote on. Maybe you'll vote on the one who tells the least amount of lies, I don't know, but what I do know is that no matter what politicians are goin to lie. If they want to catch your attention, they're going to say something outregous that's almost too good to be true. I think this is where people who really pay attention have a hard time deciding who to vote for. For instance, a person may realize they're both lying, but they're also arguing and not really answering the questions being asked of them. This can turn a voter away completely. Why vote, if you know they're both lying and not telling their audience specifically what they're going to do for our country? I think that the lies do matter.

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  20. I think that facts should matter in politics. Maybe not all the time, but at least a little. I think it is important for there to be facts about what ever the issue is. Some people might not think that, but I do. I am the person that would like to have all the facts, especially if I am someone that is having an impact on the topic and what goes on. I feel that maybe the politicians might not think that the facts matter as much, but I think they should. Facts can back them up on what they are saying and they are good to have. Facts should have more of an importance in politics in my opinion.

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  21. Facts should definitely matter when it comes to politics. The people involved in politics, to me, are supposed to be some of the greatest leaders that the country has to offer. They have to be some of the greatest leaders in the country, since they are the people that are running the country. However, if they have to lie to the public in order to be elected to these positions of power, are they really worthy of the position in the first place? To me, campaigns are even worth following any more. Campaigns have evolved into nothing more than a fight between the candidates over who can distort the facts to the greatest extent to make themselves look good while making their opponent look bad. If the candidates actually told the truth, then it would be much easier for the people of America to make a decision come voting time, because they would have seen the real side of the candidate that they like.

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  22. I believe that facts are important in politics. Without them everyone would believe the wrong thing and this could lead to a president being elected that does not have our best interests in mind. Most people are too lazy to look up the facts that the candidate's are saying to see if they are true or some people just don't know where to go that will tell the truth. People need to be responsible voters and investigate the candidate's and the facts and accusations they are throwing at each other.

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  23. I think that lying is wrong for poth candidates to do. The more they lie about thing like these the more people are going to stop trusting political figures. If everyone starts to think that all politician lie no matter what then there will be no trust in the government. Facts do matter because if we only know lies as facts then our countrie will be behind all other countries.

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