By Dr. Lee M. Miringoff Ever wonder why a landslide election result might be referred to as “no contest” but you’d never hear “nolo contendere” used to describe a sporting event when one team runs up a lopsided score? The answer is simple. Political terminology doesn’t export well outside the Beltway crowd. In contrast, a […]
5/4: On the Edge of History
May 4, 2011
By Dr. Lee M. Miringoff Pollsters, in some ways, are like journalists. We chronicle events, sometimes personal often historic but always with numbers not just words. We crowd the sidelines forecasting the future and unraveling the past. On the morning of September 11th, 2001 I found myself in a mid-town hotel preparing to dissect and […]
5/3: What Do Lee Miringoff and Babe Ruth Have in Common?
May 3, 2011
By Dr. Lee M. Miringoff The latest joke circulating The Marist Poll these days (courtesy of JS and MG) goes something like this: “What do Lee Miringoff and Babe Ruth have in common?” Answer: They both hit 60. For Ruth, it obviously refers to his prodigious 1927 season when he shattered all records for homers. […]
3/31: Third Term: A Bridge by Any Other Name
March 31, 2011
By Dr. Lee M. Miringoff Now that Ed Koch has had the Queensboro Bridge named after him, maybe the “How Am I Doing?” former mayor might be able to teach the current occupant of City Hall a thing or two about how hard it is to bridge the gap between a second and third term. […]
3/16: An Overdue Visit to “the Garden”
March 16, 2011
By Dr. Lee M. Miringoff This week I found myself at Madison Square Garden checking out Ranger Blue. They didn’t disappoint with a 6 to 3 win over the expansion team (I guess I’m a little too much of a traditionalist) New York Islanders. “Gooooaaallll… Hey, Hey, Hey!” Rangers fans know what this means. I […]
3/9: Now, Why Didn’t I Think of That
By Dr. Lee M. Miringoff I caught a piece in Sunday’s (3/6/11) New York Times about the Gallup Poll’s statistical profile of the happiest person in America. Gallup has been collecting daily data on President Obama’s approval rating and much more, too. (I doubt Obama is the happiest man in America, but being President is […]
3/2: Does Senator Thune’s Announcement Really Shake up the GOP Field?
March 2, 2011
By Dr. Lee M. Miringoff Last week, South Dakota’s junior senator, John Thune, announced he would not seek the GOP nod for president in 2012. For someone who is barely an asterisk in the extremely early pre-election polls, this “news” created more than just a ripple. No one was really expecting Thune to take this […]