4 ms·

Where does the "elite" factor in? As a rough approximation, almost everyone in your social circles having a college degree.

tshaddox 6y ago
A college degree sounds like a laughably low bar for being considered "elite." 27% of American adults have college degrees. In a state like Missouri which is presumably not considered a particularly liberal or Democratic or "elite" state, over 50% of adults have college degrees.
- orangecat 6y ago
  From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_U.S._states_and_territories_by_educational_attainment https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_U.S._states_and_territ... I see 31% for the US and 28% for Missouri. Regardless, the key point is "almost everyone in your social circle".
  - free_rms 6y ago
    Another key point is that 31 and 28 are well short of 51. What's the plan to get there?
  - tshaddox 6y ago
    Oops, not sure where I found that Missouri figure, but it looks like you're right. Still, one quarter to one third of the population doesn't fit what I would remotely consider to be "elite." And why is "almost everyone in your social circle" relevant? I don't think people generally use the word "elite" to refer to the ability to make friends from among a specific third of the national population.
    - orangecat 6y ago
      Still, one quarter to one third of the population doesn't fit what I would remotely consider to be "elite." And why is "almost everyone in your social circle" relevant? It's one thing if you have a college degree and half of your acquaintances don't. It's another if you rarely have meaningful interactions with anyone who doesn't; in that case you're in a subculture that has very different experiences than the average American.
      - tshaddox 6y ago
        Okay, I’m on board with “very different experiences than the average American,” but that’s not what “elite” means.
Retric 6y ago
Except that’s really not what the statistics show. Republicans gain a majority of support from high school graduates, individuals with some college experience, and college graduates. People without a high school degree or with a post graduate degree favor Democrats. An individual’s likelihood of being a Democrat decreases with every additional dollar he or she earns. Democrats have a huge advantage (63 percent) with voters earning less than $15,000 per year. This advantage carries forward for individuals earning up to $50,000 per year, and then turns in the Republicans’ favor — with just 36 percent of individuals earning more than $200,000 per year supporting Democrats. https://www.debt.org/faqs/americans-in-debt/economic-demographics-democrats/ https://www.debt.org/faqs/americans-in-debt/economic-demogra...
- jeffbee 6y ago
  None of those statements is consistent with the Pew Research data on partisan identification among the electorate. E.g. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1v58Nt6SW832ZUq7xLI6N8qdDs3qN4qWoDU-2EyEOGZg/edit#gid=2104546316 https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1v58Nt6SW832ZUq7xLI6N... for 2019 demographic breakdowns.
  - Retric 6y ago
    Partisan identification is very different from voting. That has 29% of the population Republican and 34% independent which is wildly outside how people actually vote. A large slice of voters self identify as independent, but their voting habits don’t match that self identification. It’s that classic independent streak myth so popular among Americans.
- ttesttom 6y ago
  This is inaccurate based on latest elections. There isn't full data for 2020 but in 2016 college educated voted Dem +9. "In the 2016 election, a wide gap in presidential preferences emerged between those with and without a college degree. College graduates backed Clinton by a 9-point margin (52%-43%), while those without a college degree backed Trump 52%-44%. This is by far the widest gap in support among college graduates and non-college graduates in exit polls dating back to 1980." https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2016/11/09/behind-trumps-victory-divisions-by-race-gender-education/ https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2016/11/09/behind-trum...

tshaddox 6y ago

A college degree sounds like a laughably low bar for being considered "elite." 27% of American adults have college degrees. In a state like Missouri which is presumably not considered a particularly liberal or Democratic or "elite" state, over 50% of adults have college degrees.

orangecat 6y ago
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_U.S._states_and_territories_by_educational_attainment https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_U.S._states_and_territ... I see 31% for the US and 28% for Missouri. Regardless, the key point is "almost everyone in your social circle".
- free_rms 6y ago
  Another key point is that 31 and 28 are well short of 51. What's the plan to get there?
- tshaddox 6y ago
  Oops, not sure where I found that Missouri figure, but it looks like you're right. Still, one quarter to one third of the population doesn't fit what I would remotely consider to be "elite." And why is "almost everyone in your social circle" relevant? I don't think people generally use the word "elite" to refer to the ability to make friends from among a specific third of the national population.
  - orangecat 6y ago
    Still, one quarter to one third of the population doesn't fit what I would remotely consider to be "elite." And why is "almost everyone in your social circle" relevant? It's one thing if you have a college degree and half of your acquaintances don't. It's another if you rarely have meaningful interactions with anyone who doesn't; in that case you're in a subculture that has very different experiences than the average American.
    - tshaddox 6y ago
      Okay, I’m on board with “very different experiences than the average American,” but that’s not what “elite” means.

Retric 6y ago

Except that’s really not what the statistics show. Republicans gain a majority of support from high school graduates, individuals with some college experience, and college graduates. People without a high school degree or with a post graduate degree favor Democrats. An individual’s likelihood of being a Democrat decreases with every additional dollar he or she earns. Democrats have a huge advantage (63 percent) with voters earning less than $15,000 per year. This advantage carries forward for individuals earning up to $50,000 per year, and then turns in the Republicans’ favor — with just 36 percent of individuals earning more than $200,000 per year supporting Democrats. https://www.debt.org/faqs/americans-in-debt/economic-demographics-democrats/ https://www.debt.org/faqs/americans-in-debt/economic-demogra...

jeffbee 6y ago
None of those statements is consistent with the Pew Research data on partisan identification among the electorate. E.g. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1v58Nt6SW832ZUq7xLI6N8qdDs3qN4qWoDU-2EyEOGZg/edit#gid=2104546316 https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1v58Nt6SW832ZUq7xLI6N... for 2019 demographic breakdowns.
- Retric 6y ago
  Partisan identification is very different from voting. That has 29% of the population Republican and 34% independent which is wildly outside how people actually vote. A large slice of voters self identify as independent, but their voting habits don’t match that self identification. It’s that classic independent streak myth so popular among Americans.
ttesttom 6y ago
This is inaccurate based on latest elections. There isn't full data for 2020 but in 2016 college educated voted Dem +9. "In the 2016 election, a wide gap in presidential preferences emerged between those with and without a college degree. College graduates backed Clinton by a 9-point margin (52%-43%), while those without a college degree backed Trump 52%-44%. This is by far the widest gap in support among college graduates and non-college graduates in exit polls dating back to 1980." https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2016/11/09/behind-trumps-victory-divisions-by-race-gender-education/ https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2016/11/09/behind-trum...