Republican comforting alternative visions of reality

"Todd Akin did not implode as a Senate candidate because of his stern opposition to abortion even
in cases of rape or incest: many Republicans in Congress share those views. His downfall came because
in trying to deny that his principles involved a trade-off with compassion for rape victims he came
up with the unscientific myth that the bodies of women subjected to rape can shut down a pregnancy."

"It was a telling moment of denial, much like the comforting myth that there is no such thing as
climate change or, if there is, that humans are not involved. Ensconced in a parallel world of
conservative news sources and conservative arguments, all manner of comforting alternative
visions of reality surfaced during the 2012 election. Many, like Mr Akin's outburst, involved
avoiding having to think about unwelcome things (often basic science or economics). It became
a nostrum among rank-and-file Republicans that mainstream opinion polls are biased and should
be ignored, for instance, and that voter fraud is rampant and explains much of the Democrats'
inner-city support. Both conspiracies sounded a lot like ways of wishing the other side away."

The Economist
http://www.economist.com/news/.....te-house?fsrc=scn/ob