Our modern-day Bolsheviks ...

One meaning of the word Bolshevik in Russian is “one of the majority.”

The party chose it to imply that Bolsheviks represented the majority of Russians, when in fact they were a tiny minority of the Russian population. It was clever way to make them appear far more important than they really were. 

I’ve thought of this little historical tidbit many times in recent years. 

It’s made me skeptical any time someone claims the “majority” agree with them.  Or that a “majority” hold one belief or another.  Is it really a true mathematical majority of the whole or a majority of a carefully constrained subset? In essence, is it really a majority? 

Or is it, like the Bolsheviks, falsely claiming a majority that’s not real? 

Democrats and progressives on the left want everyone to believe they represent the majority of Americans.  They cite the popular vote won by Hillary and taking back the House in the recent midterms, plus their growing followings on social media as signs America’s on their side. 

Of course, these don’t really prove anything.  It’s an empty claim. 

But that doesn’t stop them. They are our modern Bolsheviks. 

You see this kind of false “majority” claim all the time. 

We’re told the majority of Hispanics here oppose cracking down on illegal immigration.  And that Hispanics in general think our immigration laws are racist.  

That’s what politicians and the media want us to believe.  It’s what scares the hell out of establishment Republicans: they’re afraid that pushing for a border wall and stricter immigration enforcement will drive Hispanic voters into the arms of Democrats now and in the future.

Is there any basis for that?  Probably not.

I’ll bet Hispanics who are American citizens here don’t want illegal immigration any more than non-Hispanic citizens. If anything, Hispanics who are American citizens, especially those who went through the lengthy and expensive legal process to become citizens, may be even more opposed to illegal immigration than non-Hispanic citizens. 

Recent surveys of legal Hispanic US citizens bear that out. 

I suspect illegal Hispanic immigrants have one opinion; legal Hispanic citizens quite another. It’s like polling people in prison on whether our penal code’s too strict.  What do you expect? 

To me, it’s just another case of a false majority claim.  There are too many. 

I can’t believe the majority of Americans think building a wall on our southern border is racist, or somehow immoral. I can’t believe the majority of Americans think sanctuary cities are a good idea. Or that illegal immigrants are entitled to the same government benefits as US citizens. 

Much less that the majority of Americans want to get rid of the Electoral College.  It may be the prevailing opinion among frustrated Democrats still smarting over the 2016 election, but they are nowhere near a majority of Americans by any measure – at best, Democrats are only 20-25% of the population.   

I don’t buy that the majority of Americans favor blanket forgiveness of student-loan debt.  Maybe the people who don’t want to pay back their loans support blanket forgiveness but most of us don’t. Nor do I accept that a majority believe all public colleges and universities should be tuition free, once someone explains what that would cost everybody in taxes.  

I don’t care what the cherry-picked polls report. For good reason. 

Surveys and polls are always tricky and can be easily manipulated to get the result you want; this is something everyone in the survey and polling industry knows. It all depends on who and how many you ask.  How the sample was drawn.  Who did the polling. 

And most importantly, how any specific question is framed. 

So if you ask: would you be in favor of cancelling the Trump tax cuts for the rich and use the increased revenue to help struggling students pay off their college loans, you’ll get one result.  If you ask: are you willing to pay higher taxes so others with outstanding student loans don’t have to pay them back, you’d get quite a different result. 

These are essentially the same questions, framed differently. That’s how the game is played.  

It’s like questions about the border wall. Ask if we should increase border security by adding barriers and more agents to keep out illegal immigrants, drug smugglers and human traffickers and you get one answer.  Ask if Trump should be allowed to spend billions on a border wall experts say won’t work just to fulfill his campaign promise and you get a different answer. 

Again, both are fundamentally accurate, but will intentionally skew the results.    

Do you support Federal funding for women’s health services provided by Planned Parenthood?  But this time ask it in different way: do you support Federal funding of Planned Parenthood – the largest provider of abortions in the country?  Both are true statements about Planned Parenthood, but both are intentionally misleading to elicit a specific response.   

Do you believe that healthcare is a right for everyone in America?  Or do you believe you should pay higher taxes and give up your employer-provided insurance so the government can give free, but limited, healthcare to everyone in America, whether they are citizens or not? 

The results depend on the wording of the question you ask.  And who you ask. 

They always do. 

So always be suspicious of anyone who claims they represent a “majority.” Like the surging progressive wing of the Democrats.  And particularly when the media bolsters those claims without proof beside some polling they did.

If their survey conclusions don’t pass your personal sniff test, dig deeper; look at the actual questions and see who and how many they polled. 

They’re counting on you not doing that. The same way the Bolsheviks counted on people not analyzing whether they were in fact a majority.     

Claiming a “majority” is not the same as having one.

Always remember the Bolsheviks.