Emily Hulsey | On 22, Jan 2014
Have you ever used Google’s auto-complete feature, which displays a drop-down list of the most popular phrases that include the words you’ve already typed? It is supposed to list the most commonly searched phrase first, and sometimes the results can be wildly amusing.
Well, the folks at Mashable conducted an experiment to see what people in each state want the most according to Google auto-complete. For example, when they searched “West Virginia wants,” the first phrase to appear was “West Virginia wants to know.” They composed a map of the results:
A couple of notes:
- If a state is blank, that means that Google did not provide any auto-complete options for that phrase.
- The winning phrase for Georgia is misprinted; it is actually “Tennessee water,” which refers to adispute between the two states over custody of a portion of the Tennessee River.
While some of the results are just plain bizarre (“Bama?” “To be the mitten state?”), the majority of results are tinging with signs that the American people are majorly frustrated with the federal government. According to Google, sixteen (if you count “independence” and “to join with Canada”) of the fifty states want to secede from the U.S. more than anything!
It’s not that surprising, considering the President’s and Congress’s pathetic approval ratings these days, but it should be taken seriously nonetheless. This should serve as a wake-up call to those who dismiss the extreme right as a tiny, insignificant faction that doesn’t deserve to be taken seriously.
Of course, the most amusing answer has to be Alabama’s, which I only make fun of because I’m from there. Are you surprised at what your state wants the most? And what do you think this map says about our nation?
Note: This article was edited after publication.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Warning: Your comments are not screened and will not ever be deleted by Political American. One Rule and that's Wil Wheatons law....don't be a dick.