Reuters: Young Americans are so dissatisfied with the options in the US presidential election that nearly one in four would rather have a giant meteor destroy the Earth than see Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton in the White House.
The tongue-in-cheek question was intended to gauge young Americans’ level of unhappiness about their choices in the 8 November election, said Joshua Dyck, co-director of UMass Lowell’s Center for Public Opinion which conducted the poll alongside Odyssey Millennials.
The choice alluded to the Twitter hashtag “#GiantMeteor2016”, a reference to an imaginary presidential candidate.
Some 53% of the 1,247 people aged 18 to 35 said they would prefer to see a meteor destroy the world than have Republican Trump in the Oval Office, with some 34% preferring planetary annihilation to seeing the Democratic former secretary of state win.
Some 39% said they would prefer that Barack Obama declare himself president for life than hand over power to Clinton or Trump, with 26% saying the nation would do better to select its next leader in a random lottery.
Some 23%, nearly one in four, preferred the giant meteor outcome to either Trump or Clinton.
The Giant Meteor 2016 movement, also known as Sweet Meteor O' Death or #SMOD16, began as a joke by those unhappy with their presidential choices.
The Twitter account now boasts more than 20,000 followers. You can even get a bumper sticker.
In other News:
- The Guardian (Dave Schilling) 10.02.2016:
Junk the system: why young Americans won’t do as they’re told this election
- The Intercept (Glenn Greenwald) 06.25.2016:
Brexit Is Only the Latest Proof of the Insularity and Failure of Western Establishment Institutions
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