Americans: Uninformed, Misinformed, Dumbest, Gullible People
Walter Williams wrote a column recently with the title “Gullible Americans.” He begins by talking about the income tax. A few weeks ago, I did a commentary on the history of the income tax, so some of the information should sound familiar.
He reminds us that during the legislative debate about the 16th amendment, President William Taft and congressional supporters argued that only the rich would ever have to pay federal income taxes. When the amendment was enacted in 1913, only one-half of one percent did pay taxes. They were people whose earnings exceeded $6 million in today’s dollars. They paid 7 percent. Walter Williams argues that Americans would never have been ratified the amendment if it wasn’t for the fact they have been duped into believing only the rich would pay income taxes.
It is worth noting that the founders made it impossible to have such a tax. That being said, Abraham Lincoln did impose an income tax on Americans to finance the war. It was later repealed. During the Grover Cleveland administration, Congress enacted the Income Tax Act of 1894. The next year, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled it unconstitutional. That is why the 16th amendment had to be passed in order to have an income tax.
Walter Williams also cites Medicare as another example of gullible Americans. At the beginning, in 1966, Medicare cost $3 billion. The House Ways and Means Committee, along with President Lyndon Johnson, estimated that Medicare would cost an inflation-adjusted $12 billion by 1990. They were off by almost an order of magnitude. In 1990, Medicare topped $107 billion. Today’s Medicare tab comes to $523 billion.
We as Americans have been gullible when believing that a new tax won’t affect us and we have been gullible in thinking that a new government program will stay within the estimated budget. These are lessons we should learn and apply the next time there is a debate about taxing or spending. I’m Kerby Anderson, and that’s my point of view.
The Gullibility Factor test
In this simple, anonymous test, you can assess your own Gullibility Factor (GF) score. Simply answer TRUE or FALSE to the following questions, click SUBMIT, and your score will be instantly calculated and displayed along with an explanation and the correct answers.Your GF score will tell you whether you're a free-thinking individual, or a total mind slave. Please answer all questions, or your score will be artificially low.
This test was authored by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, primary author at naturalnews.com. This test is offered for entertainment purposes only.
<form action="http://www.naturalnews.com/gullibility.asp" method="post" name="gullibility" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px; ">
| <input type="radio" name="Q01" value="0">True <input type="radio" name="Q01" value="1">False | Drinking milk helps people lose weight. |
| <input type="radio" name="Q02" value="0">True <input type="radio" name="Q02" value="1">False | Silver fillings are safe to put in your teeth. Otherwise, dentists wouldn't use them. |
| <input type="radio" name="Q03" value="1">True <input type="radio" name="Q03" value="0">False | Cattle in the U.S. beef industry are routinely fed chicken poop, animal blood, expired household pets and other undesirable food sources. |
| <input type="radio" name="Q04" value="0">True <input type="radio" name="Q04" value="1">False | People who watch television are not persuaded by television advertising. |
| <input type="radio" name="Q05" value="0">True <input type="radio" name="Q05" value="1">False | Food manufacturers offer coupons because they want to help people save money. |
| <input type="radio" name="Q06" value="0">True <input type="radio" name="Q06" value="1">False | The history taught to American children in public school is true and accurate. |
| <input type="radio" name="Q07" value="1">True <input type="radio" name="Q07" value="0">False | Many common grocery products (including yogurt, fruit drinks and candy) are colored with an ingredient called "carmine" that is actually made from insects: dead, ground up husks of female cochineal beetles. |
| <input type="radio" name="Q08" value="0">True <input type="radio" name="Q08" value="1">False | My government would never knowingly lie to me. |
| <input type="radio" name="Q09" value="0">True <input type="radio" name="Q09" value="1">False | Pharmaceuticals cost so much only because drug companies need more money to invest in finding cures for disease. |
| <input type="radio" name="Q10" value="0">True <input type="radio" name="Q10" value="1">False | The Federal Reserve is a branch of the U.S. government. |
| <input type="radio" name="Q11" value="0">True <input type="radio" name="Q11" value="1">False | Banks offer to finance home loans because they want to help people own their homes. |
| <input type="radio" name="Q12" value="0">True <input type="radio" name="Q12" value="1">False | The fluoride added to drinking water is sourced from naturally-occurring fluoride mineral deposits. |
| <input type="radio" name="Q13" value="0">True <input type="radio" name="Q13" value="1">False | Surgical procedures must be proven safe and effective before being practiced on patients. |
| <input type="radio" name="Q14" value="0">True <input type="radio" name="Q14" value="1">False | Private gambling and internet gambling has been outlawed because the government wants to protect people from the evils associated with this activity. |
| <input type="radio" name="Q15" value="0">True <input type="radio" name="Q15" value="1">False | Inflation is a natural side effect of a healthy, growing economy. |
| <input type="radio" name="Q16" value="0">True <input type="radio" name="Q16" value="1">False | Prescription drugs approved as safe by the FDA are safe to consume on a long-term basis. |
| <input type="radio" name="Q17" value="0">True <input type="radio" name="Q17" value="1">False | The U.S. is the most technologically advanced nation in the world. |
| <input type="radio" name="Q18" value="1">True <input type="radio" name="Q18" value="0">False | Processed and packaged meat products (hot dogs, bacon, sausage, etc.) are preserved with an ingredient that both the food industry and the USDA absolutely know causes cancer. |
| <input type="radio" name="Q19" value="0">True <input type="radio" name="Q19" value="1">False | Buying a home is one of the best financial investments you can make, and home prices will always continue to rise. |
| <input type="radio" name="Q20" value="0">True <input type="radio" name="Q20" value="1">False | Medical schools give doctors a solid education in nutrition, disease prevention and healthy lifestyle habits. |
| <input type="radio" name="Q21" value="0">True <input type="radio" name="Q21" value="1">False | The mainstream news outlets (cable news, national newspapers, network news) in America accurately report war events in Iraq. |
| <input type="radio" name="Q22" value="0">True <input type="radio" name="Q22" value="1">False | The United States of America is a Democracy. |
| <input type="radio" name="Q23" value="0">True <input type="radio" name="Q23" value="1">False | Anything that hasn't been scientifically proven isn't true. |
| <input type="radio" name="Q24" value="0">True <input type="radio" name="Q24" value="1">False | Vitamin E is dangerous. |
| <input type="radio" name="Q25" value="0">True <input type="radio" name="Q25" value="1">False | When you deposit money in a savings account at a bank, that bank holds your money for you until you ask for it back. |
| <input type="radio" name="Q26" value="1">True <input type="radio" name="Q26" value="0">False | All the clean hydrogen we need to power the world is already contained in crystals at the bottom of the ocean called gas hydrates. |
| <input type="radio" name="Q27" value="0">True <input type="radio" name="Q27" value="1">False | In 1945, the U.S. dropped two atomic bombs on civilian populations in Japan in order to force Japan's surrender and "save a million lives." |
| <input type="radio" name="Q28" value="1">True <input type="radio" name="Q28" value="0">False | Having a baby is a patent violation because the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office routinely grants patents on human gene sequences found in all humans. |
| <input type="radio" name="Q29" value="0">True <input type="radio" name="Q29" value="1">False | People should avoid all exposure to the sun (or use sunscreen) in order to protect their health. |
| <input type="radio" name="Q30" value="0">True <input type="radio" name="Q30" value="1">False | There is no cure for cancer. |
| <input type="radio" name="Q31" value="0">True <input type="radio" name="Q31" value="1">False | All foods and beverages are safe to consume in moderation and can be part of a balanced diet. |
| <input type="radio" name="Q32" value="0">True <input type="radio" name="Q32" value="1">False | Most common diseases (cancer, heart disease, diabetes) are caused by bad genes and bad luck. |
| <input type="radio" name="Q33" value="0">True <input type="radio" name="Q33" value="1">False | Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a genuine brain chemistry disorder that must be treated with drugs to help children. |
My GF score is 94.
What is yours?????
The Gullibility Factor test at naturalnews.com