The West Wing - Josh gets hysteria for foreign aid bill

[ReX342]

Almost as funny as Bill Bailey

[bornbillsmith]

68 plus 59 equals 127 percent.

Taking the 9 percent into account you would still have a figure over 100 percent.

that's not possible.

It can't add up to be more then 100 percent.

[NOWAYNOTME91]

@bornbillsmith they wouldnt have "do you think its too high" and "do you think is should be cut," as two answers to the same question.

they would have two separate questions on the same sheet, 9 people checked that it is too high but did not check that it should be cut.

we are also assuming they only polled 100 people, which is highly unlikely.

[peterstayne9]

@bornbillsmith They're two separate questions. If it was the same question, you'd be right.

[PeterFormaini]

68% think we spend too much, yet only 59% think it should be cut!!!!!! Because 9% thinks it's too high and DHOULDN;T BE CUT!!!!!!

[nonsensicalcompound]

I like that stat because it suggests that people think they're giving too much (in terms of their own country's budget) but want to continue helping anyway.

[jimbopumbapigsticks]

Josh just has to assert his comprehensive knowledge to Will when he says "...I know the end of the quote". Of course Josh is capable of holding two counter-positions in his head at once. Will still doesn't know who he's working with.

[Williamsfan]

Of course it couldn't possibly be that statistics are broken.

[megarockman]

Question - is it possible that the 9% who said foreign aid was too high but didn't say it should be cut mean that they think it's too high but they don't want it cut because of some reason they don't know about? In other words, "From what I know I think it's too high, but maybe there's some reason for it being so high that I don't know of?"

[Dylvente]

@megarockman Good question. I think, yes, it's possible.

[Namarie08]

@megarockman But that in itself is what Josh is saying. How can you even 'assess' something to be 'high' when you have no reasons to base it on. 'High' in relations to what? In other words, that 9% are made of uninformed people who joins the bandwagon chanting that there's a problem but really doesn't know why that is so.

[megarockman]

@Namarie08 Like I said, it was a suggestion for the discrepancy. Some people may realize that the world is far more complex then the average person believes it is and decide to actually trust the politicians about this one (whether or not that trust is merited is beside the point).

Maybe I'm right, maybe Josh is right, maybe the truth's something else - we don't know without additional information.

[homris]

this is a lot more funny now that the actual chief of staff is william daley.

[AvalaDemson]

Aww why couldnt they have had bill bailey?

[tussuduftid]

"Well, well-played young man, very good. Yes yes."

The way he says it nearly kills me :')

[ytorrejone]

'It fosters democracies.' Hahaha! What a joke!

[scaryplague]

@ytorrejone Yeah I've never understood the, Im guessing it's a play on words?

[Boreas14]

My pick for the cleverest moment in the West Wing :)

[laura0329]

This scene is gaining new relevance with some of the recent polling on health care reform....

[bushhater1]

Guns not butter

[oliverh]

Which episode is this?

[gutterinstitutions26]

JOSHUA LYMAN IS MY FAVORITE.

[celticlofts]

Churchill didn't say that. He said it was the worst form of Government but hasn't seen anything better.

[johnskudris]

@celticlofts Isn't that almost exactly what was said in the video?

[celticlofts]

@johnskudris:  Almost !!