Who let the dogs out?

A small study on how misconceptions, half trues, and sometimes even outright lies can easily lead good people down a very wrong path.

Consider this article about dog restraints from January 2008. Notable quote:

"Bark BuckleUp is just like the 'Click It or Ticket' (seat belt campaign) but for pets," she told ConsumerAffairs.com. "We believe that getting the word out to the nation is the best way to save pets' lives."

 Now consider this Obama speech from that same month. Particularly:

There is something happening when people vote not just for the party they belong to but the hopes they hold in common – that whether we are rich or poor; black or white; Latino or Asian; whether we hail from Iowa or New Hampshire, Nevada or South Carolina, we are ready to take this country in a fundamentally new direction.

So time passed, things changed, but things still kinda stayed the same. Two years later, the right thinking people were still looking to save pets everywhere from painful deaths. Notable quote:

Eighty percent said they take their dogs with them on errands, going to the park, or on road trips, but only 17 percent acknowledged using any type of pet restraints.

 Obama also was having a hard time getting his thing going too.  He was having a hard time getting past the 'Bush Recession', even after throwing billions of future dollars at it. Notable quote:

"while the argument for transfers to states being stimulative is plausible, there is surprisingly little evidence on the countercyclical effects of federal transfers to states."

 Finally, we come to this year. Real scientist study the dog restraint problem and come to the startling conclusion that all the currently devised restraints are useless. Note:

"We tested them to the child safety restraint standard and we experienced a 100-percent failure rate to protect either the consumer or the dog,”

Then we have this chart on economic recovery from Instapundit (yes, it's from last year, but things have not really changed that much...)

Facts - they are such tricky things...