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Sept. 5, 2008

Rabbi Abraham J. Twerski: What does 'doing the right thing' entail?

Caroline B. Glick: The master strategist

Sept. 4, 2008

Ron Kampeas: Biden, Palin take lead in clash on Mideast issues

Bruce Dancis: With humor as their weapon, the Three Stooges took on Hitler

Sept. 3, 2008

Rabbi S. Binyomin Ginsberg: Productive school years don't just happen

The Kosher Gourmet by Linda Gassenheimer: Quick lamb stew serves up flavors of India

Sept. 2, 2008

The Jewish Ethicist by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir: Costly Advice

Caroline B. Glick: Calling Israel's bluff

JWisdom: Wandering in Wonder by Rabbi Mordechai Becher

August 29, 2008

Rabbi Berel Wein: 20/20 sightlessness

Caroline B. Glick: When history is not repeated

JWisdom: Blessed or Cursed: It's Really Up to You by Rabbi Sroy Levitansky

August 28, 2008

Steve Lipman: A Comeback for the 'Jewish Jordan'

Jeffrey Weiss: Researcher reports 'intriguing' diabetes breakthrough

August 27, 2008

Rabbi Zecharya Greenwald: Removing the perfectionist's mask

The Kosher Gourmet by Emily Nunn: Summer harvest linguine

JWisdom:: The Missing Link in Spiritual Life by Rabbi David Aaron

August 26, 2008

Yaffa Ganz: Grandma gets lessons in staying cool

Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: The Dems' 'soft' jihadist

JWisdom:: Today: Holocaust in the Perspective of Faith by Rabbi Nosson Scherman: Plague of indifference

August 25, 2008

The Jewish Ethicist by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir: Q: A friend is bearing a silly grudge from a supposed wrong. What recourse do I have?

Daniel Pipes: Barack Obama through Muslim Eyes

JWisdom:: The knowledge you need to overcome your insecurities by Malka Schulman

August 22, 2008

Rabbi Berel Wein: Life's essential ingredient

Caroline B. Glick: Dominos anyone?

JWisdom:: Actually, Do Sweat the Small Stuff! by Rabbi Sroy Levitansky

August 21, 2008

Today in Biblical History by Rabbi Yonason Goldson: Popularization of Kabbalah: 20 Menachem-Av 1558 CE

Jonathan Rosenblum: Lessons from the Beyond

JWisdom: : The Olympian within is rooting for you -- yes, you! –- to go for the gold

August 20, 2008

Jonathan Tobin: Misleading Platform Platitudes

The Kosher Gourmet by Linda Gassenheimer: Chicken Salad with Asian Dressing

JWisdom: The Holocaust in the Perspective of Faith: America's Defense of the Jews --- Until WWII by Rabbi Nosson Scherman

August 19, 2008

Dennis Prager: If the Almighty doesn't exist

Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: Obama's Islamist problem has nothing to do with his upbringing

JWisdom: Think your life is messed up? by Rabbi David Aaron

August 18, 2008

The Jewish Ethicist by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir: Business with Friends

Diana West: Roars About Russia, Bare Whispers About Islam

JWisdom: Relationship agony: The real cause by Malka Schulman

August 15, 2008

Rabbi Abraham J. Twerski: To love the Divine

Caroline B. Glick: Georgia, Israel, and the nature of man

JWisdom: The Truly Righteous Don't Demand Entitlements by Rabbi Sroy Levitansky

August 14, 2008

Rabbi Yonason Goldson: Confessions of broken spirit

Libby Lazewnik: The Numbers Game

JWisdom: Six Questions You'll Be Asked in Heaven? - Uh - Let's Just Take One for Now! by Gavriel Aryeh Sanders

August 13, 2008

Jonathan Tobin: Georgia should be on their minds

The Kosher Gourmet by Linda Gassenheimer: Go Greek: Pair flavorful lamb kebabs with a hearty salad

JWisdom: Human hybrids aren't science fiction by Rabbi David Aaron

August 12, 2008

Rabbi Avi Shafran: Bless us

Daniel Pipes: The West's Islamist Infiltrators

JWisdom: From Sadness to Gladness: The Route from Tisha b'Av to Rosh Hashana by Rabbi Mordechai Becher

August 11, 2008

The Jewish Ethicist by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir: A Jewish view on fair pricing

Caroline B. Glick: Ignoring failure in Gaza

JWisdom: 'Communication' Is Not The Answer! by Malka Schulman

August 7, 2008

Rabbi David Gutterman: A Continuing Story With a Sustaining Goal

Rabbi Berel Wein: Mourning and morning

JWisdom: Yes, we are still in exile by Rabbi Sroy Levitansky

August 6, 2008

David Ashenfelter: Government made military engineer's life a living hell because of his faith, Defense Department report documents

Jonathan Tobin: Speak the Truth; Defeat the Lies

JWisdom: Jewish Spirituality: Fusion or Confusion? by Rabbi David Aaron

August 5, 2008

Chris Leppek: Church/state wall beginning to crumble?

Paul Greenberg: Exit Olmert (no encore, please)

JWisdom: Serenity: Make the commitment by Rabbi Zelig Pliskin (Read by Gavriel Sanders)

August 4, 2008

The Jewish Ethicist by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir: Am I taking advantage of another's psychological quirk?

Andrew Silow-Carroll: A black and a Jew walk into the White House…

JWisdom: The Holocaust in the Perspective of Faith: Edward R. Morrow visits the ‘living dead’ by Rabbi Nosson Scherman

March 22, 2007

J-Rhythms with Avraham Rosenblum: JWR's cutting-edge music program showcasing performers -- singers, song writers, musicians, and bands -- who learn and live the Torah lifestyle (OUR NEWEST IGODCAST !)

Oct. 29, 2003
Mortimer B. Zuckerman: Graffiti On History's Walls (MUST-READ!)

Jewish World Review Oct. 10, 2007 / 28 Tishrei 5768

How to read the GOP polls

By Dick Morris & Eileen Mc Gann


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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com | The polls for the primary and caucuses coming up at the very beginning of 2008 are all over the place. In the national sampling for the Republican nomination, for example, Scott Rasmussen shows Fred Thompson leading the pack with 25 percent of the vote, with Rudy Giuliani in second place at 23 percent. He has Romney in third at 13 percent and McCain in fourth at 10 percent. His sampling dates are Sept. 27-30.


But Gallup disagrees. They have Rudy in the lead at 30 percent with Thompson a distant second at 22 percent. They show McCain still in contention in third place with 18 percent of the vote. Gallup has Mitt Romney trailing badly with only 7 percent. Gallup's field dates were Sept. 14-16. Did the world change dramatically in the weeks between them? No way. The polls just disagree.


The difference is the screening process. It is very, very difficult to predict who will vote in Republican primaries such as those in New Hampshire and Michigan. It is even harder to tell who will participate in caucuses in Iowa. Yet the ability to predict who will vote and who won't is pivotal to an accurate reading of the likely outcome.


We won't know who is right and who is wrong until the votes are actually cast. And then it will be too late.


Rasmussen has a tighter screen than Gallup for Republican primary voters. When I asked Scott Rasmussen about the differences between his polls and those of Gallup, he answered, "I screen for likely primary voters." Gallup's screen is looser and lets in more voters.


So who is right? Neither or both, depending on how you look at it. Gallup is betting that voters have not yet focused on the primaries and have not decided whether they will vote or stay home. Rasmussen is hoping that they have decided already whether or not to vote and can accurately predict their behavior in January even though it is only October.


To make things more complicated, both Iowa and New Hampshire permit independents to vote in either party primary, making the process three-dimensional. Voters in the Republican primary not only have to decide whether to back Rudy or Thompson or McCain or Romney (or, in Iowa, Huckabee) but must also figure out if they would rather vote for one of the Republicans or go into the Democratic primary to vote against Hillary. Tough choice! Tougher prediction!


The conventional wisdom is with Gallup. Five months before a caucus, one's voter screen should be loose, since who is paying attention this early? By prematurely screening out voters who don't yet know who is running, the argument goes, one is blinding oneself to the real results, which will only be apparent once the poorly educated voters decide to participate.


But my money's on Rasmussen. Why?


Iowa is a caucus state, so a really tight screen is appropriate. If you are going to sit for three hours in a meeting in January to vote, you probably know in September that you are going to do it.


The race started nine months ago. This unusually early starting gate suggests that voters probably know a lot about the race very early on. With one-third of Americans getting their news from cable TV, all the likely voters are already players in the process and should know if they are going to vote or not.


With Hillary running, voters probably have a pretty good idea of what they are going to do. With Hillary polarizing voters as sharply as she does, voters probably already know in which primary they are planning to participate.


But anyone is entitled to his or her own opinion. And the truth is probably somewhere in between.

Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.


JWR contributor Dick Morris is author, most recently, of "Outrage: How Illegal Immigration, the United Nations, Congressional Ripoffs, Student Loan Overcharges, Tobacco Companies, Trade Protection, and Drug Companies Are Ripping Us Off . . . And". (Click HERE to purchase. Sales help fund JWR.) Comment by clicking here.



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