Numerous polls show that the economy is one of the most important “problems” facing the country, and that Americans perceive the economy to be in the doldrums. Yet objective economic indicators have rarely been better, with low inflation, low unemployment, and the stock market posting record highs on a regular basis.
How could that be? A national survey our firm conducted offers a few clues. We asked voters to rate the American economy on various indicators. On only one did a majority give the economy a positive (excellent + good) rating. Here are the results:
Being innovative with new technology: 62 percent positive
Creating good jobs: 43 percent positive
Cutting down on pollution: 33 percent positive
Competing with Asian countries: 32 percent positive
Developing non-fossil fuel energy sources: 23 percent positive
Cutting down on wasteful uses of energy: 18 percent positive
Becoming less dependent on foreign oil: 10 percent positive
Beyond technological innovation, Americans think the country is lagging on all the other indicators, especially those dealing with energy. Voters sense how vulnerable our economy is on energy, and turmoil in the Middle East only exacerbates those fears. Addressing our energy vulnerabilities appears to be a key to improving perceptions of the health of the U.S. economy.
This entry was posted on Tuesday, November 28th, 2006 at 12:31 pm and is filed under Alternative Energy Technology, Climate Change, International Environmental News, Oil and Gas, Politics/Government . You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
