We’ve been paying attention to this issue, as well. In September, we asked our survey respondents whether they strongly agreed, somewhat agreed, somewhat disagreed, or strongly disagreed with the statement “I fear I will not be able to provide basic needs such as food or shelter for myself or my family in the future”. Overall, 34% of our sample agreed with this statement, with 9% of our sample strongly agreeing and 25% somewhat agreeing. 25% somewhat disagreed and 38% strongly disagreed. Not surprisingly, those in the lowest income brackets were much more likely to strongly or somewhat agree that they feared they would be unable to provide basic needs for themselves or their family. For those in households earning less than $25,000/year, 22% strongly agreed and 34% somewhat agreed that they feared their ability to provide basic needs. For those in households earning between $25,000 and $35,000/year, 15% strongly agreed and 28% somewhat agreed that they feared their ability to provide basic needs. Those with only a high school education were also more likely to fear their ability to provide, with 12% strongly agreeing and 27% somewhat agreeing.

Within other demographics – gender, age group, ideology, party ID, and whether one lives in a large city, small city, suburb or rural area – the responses largely mirrored the responses of the overall group.

What do you make of the rise in hunger and food insecurity in the U.S? Do you believe the number of those in need of food or food-related assistance is likely to stay high in the next few years? Do you fear your own ability to put food on the table for yourself or your family?

New York Gov. David Paterson is planning to run for re-election in 2010, and conventional wisdom suggests he will lose. Polling shows him trailing a potential opponent from his own party by a more than 4-to-1 margin. If he gets the Democratic nomination, he could face a national Republican figure who leads him by 23 points. Even the president is telling him to not run.

Maybe it’s because I enjoy being a contrarian, but I’m not convinced Paterson can’t win. The mess that is New York State and Paterson’s potential to stand apart from the political establishment of both parties make his election no more unlikely than his shocking ascendance to the office.

Read all of John Zogby’s analysis about next year’s New York State Governor’s race at Forbes.com.

On most issues, voting for your political survival is not difficult; especially since politicians can rationalize that there will be many other issues where their decisions will better serve the public good than that of anyone who might beat them in the next election.

But some issues are of such magnitude that we would hope a politician with a conscience would sacrifice their electoral survival and “do the right thing”   as he or she sees it.

Is healthcare reform such an issue? Will any members of Congress base their vote on how the bill will impact the nation, even if that vote will be used against them and could, on its own, defeat them?  Let me be clear that such a vote could be either for or against the bill.

Some of you will post responses that will point out how good or bad the evolving healthcare bill will be, but I’m hoping you will also focus on these questions.

Do you believe there are any members of Congress who see the outcome of this bill as more important than their own re-election?  Does history show any cases where a politician did sacrifice re-election because of a vote taken based on principle?

This week’s user-submitted survey questions are below. The questions are shortened to save space on our blog post, but these are the basic ideas. Take a look through and then vote for the question you’d most like to see on a Zogby Interactive survey. As a reminder, if you’d like to submit a question to be considered for a Top Question Tuesday Zogby survey, use the “Top Question Tuesday” box on the right of the page. And if you’d like to join Zogby’s interactive panel to answer questions similar to these, click here.

1. Will you be omitting any of your traditional Thanksgiving menu items (food and drink) from your Thanksgiving dinner this year because of cost?

2. Do you approve or disapprove of the inscription “In God We Trust” on U.S. coins?

3. Do you strongly agree, somewhat agree, somewhat disagree, or strongly disagree with the critics of President Obama who say his policies are leading the country toward socialism?

When the results are broken down by ideology, we find that liberals are most likely to plan on receiving the vaccine. About 48% of liberals are either already vaccinated or plan to be vaccinated, compared to 36% of moderates and 18% of conservatives and libertarians.

Have you been vaccinated against the H1N1 swine flu? If not, do you plan to be vaccinated? What do you think accounts for the ideological differences when it comes to flu vaccination?

Poll: 100% Of Grandsons Talented

November 9, 2009 | 14.02

ATLANTA—A Zogby poll of 1,542 American grandparents published Monday found that grandsons were described as “very” to “extremely” talented by 1,542 of the respondents. “Participants in the poll were emphatic in their descriptions of the talents of grandsons in fields as diverse as advertising and sales, choral performance, baseball, talking, crawling, making their beds, video games, and instructing their elders on proper cell-phone use,” pollster Tom Waterton said. “In addition, an overwhelming percentage of grandchildren were described as outgoing, sharp, and looking just like Uncle Andy, you remember Uncle Andy, he was always up to something, too bad he passed so young, he would have loved the grandchild in question.” Sources at Zogby admitted that the survey was incomplete, as several hundred pollsters are still unable to get their assigned grandparents off the phone.

Feel free to leave your own feelings about your talented grandsons in the comments!

The complete press release can be read here. What are your feelings on these numbers? Should Obama be worried about the decline in approval among independents if his overall approval remains steady?

Today, the politics of Afghanistan are Obama’s problem, and what he said during the campaign now gives him much less room to maneuver in Afghanistan, especially politically.

A Zogby Interactive poll of nearly 2,300 likely voters conducted Nov. 4-6 reinforces the dilemma Obama now faces with Afghanistan.

Read John Zogby’s column at Forbes.com that discusses the latest public opinion on the War in Afghanistan and finds several similarities to the Vietnam War.

With these indicators that voters are discontent and the belief that America is polarized, how should pundits and other media figures interpret these numbers?  Do you think the 2010 elections will mean Democratic losses and if so, why?

This week’s user-submitted survey questions are below. The questions are shortened to save space on our blog post, but these are the basic ideas. Take a look through and then vote for the question you’d most like to see on a Zogby Interactive survey. As a reminder, if you’d like to submit a question to be considered for a Top Question Tuesday Zogby survey, use the “Top Question Tuesday” box on the right of the page. And if you’d like to join Zogby’s interactive panel to answer questions similar to these, click here.

1. The PBS children’s television show Sesame Street recently celebrated 40 years of being on the air. Which of the following muppets is your favorite Sesame Street muppet, or are you unfamiliar with the show?
Cookie Monster, Big Bird, Bert, Ernie, Oscar, Grover, Elmo, The Count, another muppet, or are you too unfamiliar with the show to choose.

2. Do you plan to go shopping the day after Thanksgiving?

3. How many working TVs are used in your household? None, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 or more