OK, it’s not quite as fabulous as the hoax chart purporting to show that states with higher average IQs voted for Kerry. But it’s still pretty good.
First, we’re proud to say that according to the Education State Rankings (which take into account 21 factors including per-pupil expenditures, public high school graduation rates, average class size, student reading and math proficiency, and pupil-teacher ratios, as well as losing points for high drop-out rates and physical violence in schools) Massachusetts has been ranked the smartest state in the country. Second, let’s have a look at how the top 10 and bottom 10 states voted for President:
1. MA – blue
2. CT – blue
3. VT – blue
4. NJ – blue
5. WI – blue
6. NY – blue
7. MN – blue
8. IA – red
9. PA – blue
10. MT – red41. TN – red
42. HI – blue
43. CA – blue
44. AL – red
45. AK – red
46. LA – red
47. MS – red
48. AZ – red
49. NV – red
50. NM – red
Now, I’m not saying there’s a pattern here … on second thought, maybe I am.
I think that your blue vs. red state rundown and conclusion is faulty for 3 reasons:1. For starters, I think the Red/Blue State thing is a very weak paradigm, considering that 40-45% of voters in Blue States tended to vote for Bush, and 40-45% of voters in Red States tended to vote for Kerry.2. I’m proud that our state has the #1 public schools. But does that really make MA the “smartest state in the country”? It might, but there are too many factors (migration, private school strength, post-HS results) that make that conclusion a stretch. (IMHO, figuring out which state is the smartest or stupidest is an exercise in futility that’s probably only used here for book promotion.)I don’t like Bush either, but he’s won. Let’s deal with it and prepare for the next federal elections, which are only 22 months away.Assuming that everyone in a Red State voted for Bush, and then calling them stupid is not my idea of an effective campaign tactic.
Found you via Volokh. Good post on Justice Thomas.I realize you were scoring lighthearted cocktail party points with this post, but a look at the measures that go into the “smartest state” rankings show that the rankings are misnamed. What’s actually measured (with the exception of 4 or 5 of the 21 factors) is which states have the cushiest public schools. Given that Dem constituencies are more likely to support higher funding and cushier conditions in public schools, it’s no surprise that they also vote blue.Not to mention the fact that you have no causation here. Marginally more interesting would be a comparison of public education quality from 10-20 years ago with current voting behavior. That’s assuming, of course, that interstate migration after high school is statistically insignificant (unlikely in NY, MA, probably CT), and that cushiness of a state’s public schools says anything meaningful about what how well students are educated.