Final Results of the Recent President Obama/Same-Sex Marriage Poll

In the poll where I asked readers if President Obama's stance on same-sex marriage will affect him politically, nearly half of you thought it would have a negative impact. Here are the final results:

It will hurt him- 46%
It will help him/It won't matter- 26% each

Thanks to everyone who participated.

Final Results of the Recent Mitt Romney/VP Poll

In the poll where I asked readers who they felt Mitt Romney would select as his running mate in the upcoming election, 3/4 of you picked U.S. Senator Rob Portman (R-OH). Here are the final results:

Rob Portman- 75%
Bob McDonnell- 25%

Thanks to everyone who participated.

Final Results of the Recent Trayvon Martin/George Zimmerman Poll

In the recent poll in which I asked people to give their thoughts on the Trayvon Martin/George Zimmerman case, nearly half of you felt the latter would be found not guilty. Here are the final results:

Zimmerman will be found not guilty: 48%
It will never go to trial: 24%
Zimmerman will be found guilty: 20%
There will be a mistrial: 8%

Thanks to all of you who participated in and commented on this poll.

In recent developments,  Florida State Attorney Angela Corey, the special prosecutor, announced that George Zimmerman had been charged with second-degree murder. In Florida, that charge carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment and a minimum sentence of 25 years.

A bail hearing was held on April 20 and the Judge ruled that Zimmerman can be released on a $150,000 bond.  He was released on bail from jail at 12:05 a.m. April 23, 2012. He was fitted with a GPS device which can reveal his whereabouts in real time. The terms of his release require him to report his whereabouts every three days.

On April 23, 2012, Zimmerman's attorney, Mark O'Mara waived Zimmerman's right to appear at an arraignment and entered a plea of not guilty on his behalf. According to O'Mara, Zimmerman has gone into hiding and will likely remain so until the trial next year. 

Final Results of the Recent Game Change Poll

In the recent poll in which I asked people to give their thoughts on the HBO film Game Change, it was a landslide in favor of the movie. Here are the final results:

Thumbs up: 64%
Thumbs down: 0%
I plan on watching it: 7%
I have no interest in seeing it: 28%

The movie was a ratings hit as well. According to Nielsen, Game Change was watched by 2.1 million people on its debut night, which marks the highest ratings for an HBO film since 2004's Something the Lord Made (which starred Alan Rickman and Mos Def).

Thanks to all of you who participated in and commented on this poll.

Final Results of the Recent Jeremy Lin Polls

In the recent poll in which I asked people to give their primary reason behind the Jeremy Lin hype, almost half of you said it's due to the underdog factor. Here are the final results:

The "underdog" factor: 46%
His talent: 26%
His race: 20%
The fact that he plays in New York: 6%

Although I think Lin's race is the primary factor for the hype, I don't feel it's by an overwhelming margin.  If I had to break down the reasons behind Lin hype percentage-wise, I'd say it was 35% race, 30% each talent and the "underdog" factor, and 5% because he plays in NY.

I look forward to the day when seeing Asian stars in the NBA is a common occurrence. In addition to Jeremy Lin's success possibly being a gateway for more Asian players into the NBA, I think it'll also cause coaches to look a little closer at the end of their respective benches. For all they know, the next Jeremy Lin (regardless of race) could be riding the pine just waiting for a chance to shine.

Below are the results for the second poll in which I asked for your thoughts on ESPN's disciplanary actions against Anthony Federico and Max Bretos for their use of the term "chink in the armor" (on ESPN's mobile website and ESPNews, respectively):

Federico deserved to be fired:	57%
Federico should have been suspended:	0%
Bretos deserved to be suspended:	14%
Bretos should have been fired:	0%
No action should have been taken against Federico	:  28%
No action should have been taken against Bretos:	28%

I wavered on the Federico portion of this poll. Although part of me thinks he deserved to be fired, I wouldn't have been up in arms if ESPN had just suspended him. On the one hand, Federico's actions could have been intentional. However, it's also possible that this was a simple case of ignorance.

As for Bretos, I think he got caught in the crosshairs of ESPN not wanting this to spiral out of control. Since he was speaking on live TV about a legitimate question regarding Lin's play, I think ESPN should have cut him a bit more slack. Bretos only has about a week left on his suspension. Best wishes to him for when he does return to the airwaves.

Thanks to all of you who participated in and commented on these polls.

Final Results of the Recent Clint Eastwood "Halftime in America" Ad Poll

In the recent poll in which I asked people to give their opinion of the Chrysler ad featuring Clint Eastwood, an overwhelming majority of you voted "thumbs up". Here are the final results:

Thumbs up: 82%
Thumbs down: 17%

Thanks to all of you who participated in and commented on this poll. Below, "Clint Eastwood" has a few choice words for the people who misinterpreted the Chrysler ad.

Final Results of the Recent "Who do you think will be the GOP nominee for POTUS?" Poll

In the recent poll in which I asked who you thought would get the GOP nomination, over 1/2 of voters think that Mitt's the man. Here are the final results:

Mitt Romney- 58%
Newt Gingrich- 33%
Rick Santorum- 8%
Ron Paul- 0%

At the time of the post (1/22), I was leaning Newt's way. However, January 22nd seems like a loooong time ago because I now think Mitt will be the nominee. Still, I don't think Newt will go away quietly. I'm also not going to count him out either. Newt Gingrich reminds me of something Bobby Ewing said about his older brother J.R. on the series Dallas. Bobby said something along the lines that J.R. is at his most dangerous when his back is against the wall. To me, that's Newt in a nutshell.

Final Results of the Recent "Would You Vote for an Atheist" Poll

In the recent poll in which I asked whether or not you'd vote for an atheist, over 3/4 of voters said they would. Here are the final results:

Yes: 76%
No: 24%


Admittedly, this poll was a very small sampling. However, if it's an indication of how a majority of Americans feel, it could bode well for atheists who want to enter the political arena. Still, it's doubtful we'll see a noticeable increase in atheist politicians on the national stage.  I think the potential outrage by believers would make most atheist politicians reluctant to come out of the religious closet. If it was revealed there were more non-believers currently serving as elected officials, I wouldn't be surprised. Who knows, we may have already had  prior presidents of the U.S. who were atheists.