Lemme tell you, there is no way they are accurate. People are in a hurry, pollers are frantic, young, and inexperienced and minimally trained, and it's really obvious that a lot of voters are being intentionally misleading with their answers, assuming they're willing to answer at all.

The accounts I've read of the exit polling the day of the New Hampshire primary suggest that nothing much has changed in the 27 years since I was an exit pollster.

Still, there was at least one good thing about the experience. Most of us pollsters were college students, and at the end of the very long day, we went out drinking together in a big happy, exhausted pack. Something to do with the crazy weird energy of the day and the "we're all in this together" effect meant that even though I was a super dork college freshman, I still got laid.

But my poll results were almost certainly worthless.

Because of letters sections like this, we now have an international cottage industry in narrowly parsing every word someone writes in a desperate effort to turn a likely friend into an enemy.

Short version of your typical interweb blog response: "Your use of the definite rather than the indefinite article in the clause I've isolated out of context from your latest post proves you are, in fact, Dick Cheney's racist/sexist/flutist/etc-ist handmaid."

The nationwide prayer vigil against that shameless harlot Jessica Simpson worked.

Lynx: carefully reasoned argument one may or may not agree with in detail, but which reasonable people will at least address reasonably and thoughtfully.

Typical Anti-Lynx: SHUT UP, u SUX, AD HOMINEM ATAK!!11!! I cant SPel!!! Pats rool,lyxn drool!~

Note that I don't think ALL who disagree with Lynx are of the Typical Anti-Lynx mold.

I mean, heavens, if calling people "iTard" isn't proof of your thoughtful, intelligent approach to discourse, then nothing is! It doesn't even matter what your point is, if any.

This story has nothing to do with Apple.

Calm down.

I was on your side over in King's room, but you're actually starting to sound like the crazy so many people over there said you were. If you don't like Farhad, you're not obligated to read. Just saying. Name-calling is typical of Anti-Apple Jihadists, but I thought better of you than that.

Self-deception is the foundation of the obsessive. I notice you're right here, again, despite your stated contempt for Farhad. It is to wonder...

And anyway, accusing someone of poor reading comprehension is an all too typical intraweb defense mechanism. Next you'll be invoking the ultimate Godwinism when someone calls you out.

End of story.

...even though the legal theory applies to all kinds of devices because you like the way mentioning any Apple product for any reason causes Anti-Apple Jihadists everywhere to coat their computer monitors with saliva.

I can't believe the cheek of that woman.

And I'm cheering for the kid. He showed initiative, and there's no evidence he was anything but polite in his call. Then an alleged adult got all pissy and childish and left a rude message. And it bit her on the ass.

Good for the kid.

Of course, if the woman left it for her husband in his job capacity to deal with, and he'd hauled the kid in and said, "Calling my home is inappropriate," then fine, though the smart move would have been to call the kid back, say, "I made my decision using the following method, . . . and to conclude, if I determine schools can be open, all students are expected to attend." Don't mention the home phone call. Ignore it. Don't give it power.

By reacting as she did, the woman handed all the power to the kid. Maybe she learned something, though more likely than not she didn't.

But, boy, that kid sure did.

It's no surprise to me that the tenor and language in dataguyx's and Serai's responses are essentially the same as in the woman's message to the kid.

He has legions of supporters to gleefully and condescendingly do that for him. I keep waiting to see their better natures, but maybe they're too busy hoping.