# Fox News is bad at math **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [March 11, 2009, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-is-bad-at-math/489069 "2009-03-11T13:38:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Equipoise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/equipoise/32/151_2.png) [@Equipoise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Equipoise)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2009, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-is-bad-at-math/489069/21 "2009-03-11T16:44:28Z")
> [@Harmonious\_Discord](#): > > This morning they announced the family dog was picked, What? Who announced? Do you remember any details? I ask because I’ve been to all the news sites (those likely to report Obama/Obama family news) and don’t see a thing. I’m curious about this not because I care about the dog angle, but about the reporting of it angle. Did they really report something that’s a brand new announcement, or did you hear something that others of us have known since before the Inauguration? Only what we heard wasn’t that it was a done deal. Michelle said in an interview that they were _considering_ a Portuguese Water Dog, recommended to them by Edward Kennedy. Also that whatever dog they chose wouldn’t join the family until at least mid-April. This was in early January. The main bitching I heard was from Portuguese Water dog owners who were afraid the breed would become puppy mill fodder. It’s a real concern that I understand. But even back then, the reporting pissed me off, because _the decision hadn’t been made_. Michelle just said that they were _considering_ the dog and all of a sudden all these critics come out of the woodwork. > [@Harmonious\_Discord](#): > > They always have to add a something negative, even on a simple announcement the kids have a pet now. Exactly. It doesn’t matter what it is, people are going to bitch about it. On the CNN site that reported that the Obama’s installed a swingset for the girls, the Comments section was absolutely appalling. Hateful people, with very black hearts. And even just dealing with what President Obama’s up to, no matter what he does, the MSM has to go dig up a Republican to give some sort of counter opinion. Doesn’t matter if it’s someone disgusting like Tom Delay or Karl Rove. Who would take those people seriously? But yet there they are, pontificating as if they’re relevant. Liberal media my ass. But in a way it makes me happy. It would seem that the GOP has shot their wad and a goodly portion of the American people are tired of their “boy who cried wolf” act. According to [this poll](http://www.pop.ly/eou), 69% of Americans thing President Obama is doing a Yes job so far! 😃 No, really, the latest [Gallup poll](http://www.fivethirtyeight.com/2009/03/hows-he-doing.html) shows that 62% of Americans approve of the job President Obama is doing, and that’s with the Republicans on every channel screaming their heads off every day 24/7 criticizing every little thing he does. People have tuned out the Republicans. Well, not the 22% base, but they don’t need to be convinced that Obama is a horrorshow, they’d believe it no matter what. Suck it Republicans. People aren’t listening. Ha! ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2009, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-is-bad-at-math/489069/22 "2009-03-11T16:49:18Z")
[The First Puppy has been chosen.](http://www.examiner.com/x-2291-Boston-Dogs-Examiner~y2009m3d10-Obama-dog--Portugese-water-spaniel) Photos coming soon, certainly. ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Knig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/cdc98d/32.png) [@Typo\_Knig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Knig)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2009, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-is-bad-at-math/489069/23 "2009-03-11T17:00:42Z")
> [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > [The First Puppy has been chosen.](http://www.examiner.com/x-2291-Boston-Dogs-Examiner~y2009m3d10-Obama-dog--Portugese-water-spaniel) Photos coming soon, certainly. We have not even had confirmation hearings yet, so the formal title at this point is “First Dog Designate”. Has s/he been vetted? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2009, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-is-bad-at-math/489069/24 "2009-03-11T17:13:28Z")
The television clip was about 20 seconds long. They showed a Portuguese water spaniel saying the animals was the new pet and added a one line expert’s complaint. It was done in a flash. ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2009, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-is-bad-at-math/489069/25 "2009-03-11T17:21:10Z")
I hear he’s a son of a bitch. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2009, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-is-bad-at-math/489069/26 "2009-03-11T17:22:30Z")
The Examiner repeateadly blew the name of the thing. It’s Portuguese Water _Dog_, not Spaniel. These dogs are much larger than most spaniels. ---
**Author:** ![Enderw24](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ba9def/32.png) [@Enderw24](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enderw24)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2009, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-is-bad-at-math/489069/27 "2009-03-11T17:43:31Z")
> [@ShibbOleth](#): > > I don’t much care what Fox News is reporting about Obama, but did want to say congrats on making it to the second week and keep on trucking! Thanks! It actually started out a tad harder than last week, but by the end of the session, I was ready to keep going. We’re going to sign up for an actual 5K in May. I doubt we’ll be quite ready to run it the entire way, but we’ll try! > [@Bricker](#): > > I disagree with the OP’s methodology. > > The OP assumes that there should be a linear progression of success, and that all promises are ultimately “makeable.” There can, have been, and will be, several threads on the decisions Obama’s made, the ones he’s promised to make, and the ones he’s planning to make. My goal in this thread wasn’t to discuss that. My assumption (and granted you at least allowed for this fact in a later post) is that if Fox is going to analyze based upon pure mathematics, then I think a critique on that very point is apropos. Fox claims Obama’s only met 3.32% of his promises during the first 3.35% of his presidency. I claim they can now shut the hell up. ---
**Author:** ![Equipoise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/equipoise/32/151_2.png) [@Equipoise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Equipoise)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2009, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-is-bad-at-math/489069/28 "2009-03-11T17:46:14Z")
> [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > [The First Puppy has been chosen.](http://www.examiner.com/x-2291-Boston-Dogs-Examiner~y2009m3d10-Obama-dog--Portugese-water-spaniel) Photos coming soon, certainly. Thank you for that, but I’m skeptical, mainly because of this: > [@](#): > > Scheduled to arrive at the White House the end of this month or the beginning of April, the Obama girls are preparing for the arrival. That’s not right. The Obamas are going on a vacation in early April and they’re not going to get a dog before then. From [this article](http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20261257,00.html), > [@](#): > > … > So, when? In April, Mrs. Obama says – after she and the President take daughters Malia, 10, and Sasha, 7, on a vacation for spring break. > > Here’s a sample of a typical family conversation on the matter: “So Sasha says, ‘April 1st.’ I said, ‘April.’ She says, ‘April 1st.’ It’s, like, April!,” Mrs. Obama recalls. **“Got to do it after spring break. You can’t get a new dog and then go away for a week.”** > > And what kind of dog will soon be frolicking on the South Lawn? **Mrs. Obama says she _thinks_ she is going to look for** a rescue Portuguese Water dog who is “old enough” and a “match” for the family dynamic. > > “Temperamentally they’re supposed to be pretty good,” she says of the breed that Sen. Ted Kennedy has also lobbied for (he has two Water dogs of his own). “From the size perspective, they’re sort of middle of the road – it’s not small, but it’s not a huge dog. And the folks that we know who own them have raved about them. So that’s _ **where we’re leaning** _.” > … After this appeared, it was “reported” elsewhere that the Obamas were going to get a Poruguese Water Dog, without the maybe or the timing info attached. I just wonder if the Examiner had some space to fill up and went with this old story, though probably not using this original source. **Harmonious Discord** , I wonder if what you saw was just a filler piece that was picked up from the above Examiner story. Not that it matters, I don’t care about the dog (well, except thinking that that’s a damned ugly dog), but it (seemingly) is another example of lazy reporting, even about something so trivial. I will retract if a more official word comes out today or tomorrow. Maybe the Examiner writer did have an inside scoop. Edit to add, sorry for the woof hijack **Enderw24**. ---
**Author:** ![Projammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/projammer/32/559_2.png) [@Projammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Projammer)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2009, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-is-bad-at-math/489069/29 "2009-03-11T17:51:32Z")
> [@Merijeek](#): > > So, am I to take it that Fox “News” will be thrilled when Obama accomplishes all 517 campaign promises? Will they then be satisfied, or will those 517 mark the beginning of the CCCPUSA? > > -Joe Psst! New memo. It will be the USSA. ---
**Author:** ![Enderw24](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ba9def/32.png) [@Enderw24](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enderw24)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2009, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-is-bad-at-math/489069/30 "2009-03-11T18:19:08Z")
> [@Equipoise](#): > > Edit to add, sorry for the woof hijack **Enderw24**. Meh, I’m fairly laid back. I don’t mind if you spend time in this thread barking up the wrong tree. ---
**Author:** ![Duke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e8c25b/32.png) [@Duke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duke)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2009, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-is-bad-at-math/489069/31 "2009-03-11T18:27:14Z")
> [@Typo\_Knig](#): > > We have not even had confirmation hearings yet, so the formal title at this point is “First Dog Designate”. Has s/he been vetted? 😃 Has the First Dog Designate paid his or her taxes? I hear the top rate is close to 250% in dog money. ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2009, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-is-bad-at-math/489069/32 "2009-03-11T18:31:24Z")
> [@Equipoise](#): > > Not that it matters, I don’t care about the dog (well, except thinking that that’s a **damned ugly dog** )… [Really?](http://www.i-love-dogs.com/dog-breeds/images/Portuguese-Water-Dog.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Snarky\_Kong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Snarky\_Kong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snarky_Kong)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2009, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-is-bad-at-math/489069/33 "2009-03-11T18:40:48Z")
> [@gaffa](#): > > [Really?](http://www.i-love-dogs.com/dog-breeds/images/Portuguese-Water-Dog.jpg) _That’s_ the picture you’re going to use to prove it’s not an ugly breed? ---
**Author:** ![Merijeek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f05b48/32.png) [@Merijeek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merijeek)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2009, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-is-bad-at-math/489069/34 "2009-03-11T18:52:31Z")
> [@Projammer](#): > > Psst! New memo. It will be the USSA. God damn you for outshining me, sir! -Joe ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2009, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-is-bad-at-math/489069/35 "2009-03-11T18:58:04Z")
> [@Snarky\_Kong](#): > > _That’s_ the picture you’re going to use to prove it’s not an ugly breed? Actually, no. I just found that picture and keep giggling at just how bizarre the dog looks, and how his head is cocked to one side, quizzically…as if he’s saying “really?” Most jokes don’t survive vivisection. There are plenty of other pictures of this particular breed looking quite handsome. Though I could do without the “shave their ass end” poodle styling imposed on most of them. ---
**Author:** ![Ichini\_Sanshigo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/d9b06d/32.png) [@Ichini\_Sanshigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ichini_Sanshigo)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2009, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-is-bad-at-math/489069/36 "2009-03-11T18:59:23Z")
> [@Snarky\_Kong](#): > > _That’s_ the picture you’re going to use to prove it’s not an ugly breed? What? That picture is in-your-face cuteness! ---
**Author:** ![Leaper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4bbf92/32.png) [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2009, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-is-bad-at-math/489069/37 "2009-03-11T19:20:54Z")
While not about Fox News, this thread reminded me of something mildly amusing: A conservative blogger posted about the dismal results of [this MSNBC.com poll](http://pajamasmedia.com/instapundit/72745/), forgetting that _he posted a link to said poll_, which, given his readership, MIGHT have an effect on the results. ---
**Author:** ![descamisado](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e480ec/32.png) [@descamisado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/descamisado)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2009, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-is-bad-at-math/489069/38 "2009-03-11T19:58:06Z")
> [@Smeghead](#): > > I hear he’s a son of a bitch. Oh, silly, Rahm was in the White House starting January 20. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2009, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-is-bad-at-math/489069/39 "2009-03-11T20:05:59Z")
> [@Frank](#): > > While that’s true, Politifact’s methodology is not better. It seems that they somehow expected Obama to keep all 513 (513! What a nice, precise number.) promises in less than two months, and that he hasn’t is a fault. > > I think that this factoid falls directly in the “Who gives a shit?” category. I don’t think that’s correct. Most of the promises fall into the “no action” category; which I take to mean no action _yet_. Presumably any or all of them could move into another category based on what is still to come. I’m curious about what the difference is between “stalled” and “in progress”? Both probably mean they’re sitting on a desk somewhere, the only difference being the likelihood of moving soon. ---
**Author:** ![Equipoise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/equipoise/32/151_2.png) [@Equipoise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Equipoise)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2009, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-is-bad-at-math/489069/40 "2009-03-11T21:09:43Z")
> [@gaffa](#): > > There are plenty of other pictures of this particular breed looking quite handsome. Ok, the picture I saw made the dog look ugly. Your picture didn’t help matters, though that head cock was cute. However, I just went looking and found some pictures that changed my mind a bit. [These are adorable.](http://www.provide.net/~mechar/pwd4.html) > [@gaffa](#): > > Though I could do without the “shave their ass end” poodle styling imposed on most of them. GAH! Yeah, no kidding. Yuck. Why would someone _do_ that to a dog? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-is-bad-at-math/489069.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fox-news-is-bad-at-math/489069.md?page=3)