Poll: Republicans happier than Democrats

[CatWoman]

WASHINGTON — The good news for Republicans: You are happier than Democrats. You always have been, and you probably always will be.

Never mind that your presidential candidate is sinking in the polls while your president plumbs historic depths of popular scorn and your free market squeals for intervention while your Wall Street investments evaporate. You are not just happier than the other guys, but more of you are very happy, according to new survey results published Thursday by the Pew Research Center.

The pollsters were in the field asking about happiness this month, when economic news was gloomy for everybody and presidential campaign news seemed especially baleful for Republicans. Yet they found 37 percent of Republicans are "very happy," compared with 25 percent of Democrats; 51 percent of Republicans and 52 percent of Democrats are "pretty happy"; and 9 percent of Republicans are "not too happy," compared with 20 percent of Democrats.

The partisan happiness gap — unbroken for nearly 40 years — is impervious to electoral ups and downs. It has something to do with worldview.

"I'm very happy," said Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform, and a Republican. "When I was 12, I realized the world was not organized around my desires and wishes. The problem with guys on the left is they never figured that out at age 12. And they're just irritated the world is not organized around their vision. This makes them grumpy."

Chris Lehane doesn't sound grumpy. The Democratic consultant is on the phone from San Francisco: "My guess is if checked the cross tabs out in California, we're all pretty happy out here. The wine is still good, the food is fresh, the people are beautiful."

But seriously, Lehane said, if Republicans are more happy, it's because they care less.

"The typical Republican is happy coming home to a 62-inch television, pulling out a fine bottle of cognac or scotch, putting his feet on the table and enjoying the fruits of his labor, but not caring what's going on in the world outside their living room ... and their gated community."

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2008309258_camphappy250.html

[MannyGoldstein]

1. Ignorance is.. uh... uh... uh...

oh yeah,it's bliss.

[ladywnch]

15. you beat me to it !!! when you don't have a clue what's going on around you

it's easy to be happy....kinda like Soma gas. If they had even a vague clue what was going on or an ability to comprehend it, they would be suicidal! maybe the rest of us should go get frontal lobotomies and we could all be happy too!

[Earth_First]

2. Earth_First happiness level: All smiles! n/t

[Ezlivin]

3. And the comatose don't have a worry in the world!

Soon we'll care as much about Republican happiness as we now care about the Whigs.

[Bicoastal]

4. Of course Democrats are less happy...we've had 8 years of this shit,.

At least the GOP has JAYSUS.

[WarbirdForObama]

5. Blissful

Fucking Idiots

[hisownpetard]

6. Really? Easy test: compare the crowd at any McCain rally to the crowd at any Obama rally.

Look at their faces.
Then you tell me - who's happier?

I rest my case.

[JeffR]

7. Well, it's like this:

Republicans express their happiness by scowling and pouting, yelling "Terrorist!" or "Socialist!" and mocking anyone who disagrees with them.

Democrats express their unhappiness by smiling, cheering their candidate and chanting "Yes we can!"

It's weird, but that seems to be how it works.

[hisownpetard]

12. Oh! Why didn't you say so in the first place? Now I get it!!

:woohoo:

[Posteritatis]

11. Righteous outrage is addictive

Seriously.

There's a rush in being pissed off, wronged (or at least feeling wronged) and Knowing You're Right. People do keep coming back to it, regardless of whether they're actually wronged, regardless of whether it's helping anything, because there's something powerful, compelling and attractive about that feeling. I've had it from time to time, probably more than is healthy; I'm sure you have too; I'm sure most people have.

I've seen it a lot on DU for a lot of the last several years, and now we're seeing it coming from the right because a whole lot of people on both sides are finally getting what's theirs, for good or ill.

The folks in those rallies are high on their own indignation. They're flying. They're coming away from them with a thrill and a rush, knowing They Done Did Right Against The Evil Evil Enemy. I can understand how that would be the sort of feeling someone would enjoy.

And, of course, some of them just like being the underdog.

I think it's a pale imitation of happiness, but I also think it's there.

[NRaleighLiberal]

8. Republican happiness - 10% I've got it, you don't ha ha - 90% ignorance.

[CatWoman]

21. what was that Obama said about them taking pride in their ignorance?

[Zero Division]

9. Just a guess, but I'd say empathy has something to do with it.

If others are suffering around me, then I'm suffering, too. I'm sure there are exceptions on both sides, but I'd like to see further studies on this.

[undeterred]

10. Are people who lie more happier than people who don't?

Maybe they lied when answering the poll too.

[dhpgetsit]

13. Um... They tend to HAVE more of what they want???

Duh!

[Fuzz]

14. Quite simple really. It's reality vs fantasy.

[GOPBasher]

16. Why would they be upset? They're ignorant to every problem in the world. n/t

[TahitiNut]

17. Conservative: "Satisfied with the status quo." Liberal: "Aspire to greater justice."

Grover Norquist doesn't want the world to change from what he figured out when he was 12. After all, if it changed then he'd have to figure it out all over again.

[CatWoman]

22. isn't the the "drown the govt. in the bathtub" guy?

:hi:

:loveya:

[TahitiNut]

23. Yup. It's "kill the forces of change."

There are people in the world who see how to take personal advantage of injustice ... and don't want to see that advantage go away. Since the sole legitimacy of government lies in a "system of justice" they oppose that government being very good at that ... and only wish to exploit the power, not the goal. (imho)

:hi: :hug:

[AlCzervik]

18. i guess they didn't poll the people at McCain Palin rallies cause those people look

pretty angry and unhappy.

[midnight]

19. It is all about them and the size of their things....

[Norrin Radd]

20. Joe Cognac?

The typical repuke isn't well to do.

[LiberalFighter]

24. Happier that McCain/Palin won't get elected? They won't be embarrassed like Bush has done to them?