The Good Plus 9.12.05

Go vote today. I mean, Democrats. If I have a republican reader, let me know. I'll even partisan up the conversations. Really.

Check out this poll/ ranking of presidents from the Wall Street Journal. You’ll want to check out the methodology. It’s interesting at best, interestingly weighted. It’s got 5-6 more days as an active link so read this joint.

My favorite bit is that Bill Clinton—a man who brought us a surplus and happy people—ranks lower than BOTH Bushes. Riiiiiiight.

From the article:

Most such scholarly polls have a strong liberal bias, reflecting academia's far-left tilt. But this survey -- conducted by James Lindgren of Northwestern University Law School for the Federalist Society and The Wall Street Journal -- aimed at ideological balance. The scholars were chosen with an eye toward balancing liberals and conservatives, and Mr. Lindgren asked each participant about his political orientation, then adjusted the average to give Democratic- and Republican-leaning scholars equal weight.

Mr. Bush's rating thus reflects the same sharp partisan divide that gave him a shade under 51% of the popular vote last year. GOP-leaning scholars rated Mr. Bush the 6th-best president of all time, while Democratic ones rated him No. 35, or 6th-worst. Even Bill Clinton -- 13th among Democrats, 34th among Republicans -- isn't as controversial.

** thanks to neverecho for the link