Letter: Bush not popular in informal poll

Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2004 | 9:22 a.m.

I took it upon myself to do some polling because I couldn't believe it when the media said President Bush's approval rating was 63 percent. Armed with only a notebook and a calculator, I asked people this question: On a scale from one to 100, how would you rate our president's performance?

I did this at three marketplaces -- one in an affluent area, one in a middle-class area and one in a poorer area. The answers I received from the 224 people I spoke to were not surprising to me. Only two people were in favor of Bush, with one giving him a 75 and the other the full 100. A few people gave Bush numbers between 10 and 25 and I got a lot of zeros. Many other people declined to give a number, favoring boo-hiss type criticisms instead.

In polling, I know that 224 people are not very much. But my poll is honest, while I don't give any credence to polls arranged by our administration's propaganda machine and big-money conspirators. The people did not elect George W. Bush before and they will not elect him in November.

SHEL BERLATSKY