Opinions of The 49th State

Lower 48ers were recently polled about their opinions of Alaska.

It was commissioned...

amid fears that two congressional debates last year had muddied Alaska's image: Whether federal earmarks should go to build two "bridges to nowhere" and the failed effort to open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas drilling.

So who better to commission it than the government of Alaska. Specifically the Governor. Former Senator Murkowski is a guy who knows how to spends taxpayers money.

It's not all a waste, however. We did find out out that there are some really dumb people in this country.

he first words that come to mind when asked about Alaska tend to be "cold, "snow" and "ice," according to the poll results. Five percent of Alaska is covered by glaciers, ice and snow, but 60 percent of those polled guessed that half to nearly all of the state is a frozen wasteland all year.

Alaska became a state in 1959, but 5 percent of those polled believe it is still a territory. Four percent said Alaska is a separate country, and 2 percent said it is a commonwealth. One in every hundred said they did not know what Alaska's status is.

What does that last graf tell me? 13% of Americans are idiots. At least.