<http://www.galluppoll.com/content/default.aspx?ci=27847>
June 11, 2007 Majority of Republicans Doubt Theory of Evolution More Americans accept theory of creationism than evolution
The data in this analysis were measured in the context of questions about the origin and development of human beings. It is apparent that many Americans simply do not like the idea that humans evolved from lower forms of life. This appears to be substantially based on a belief in the story of creation as outlined in the Bible -- that God created humans in a process that, taking the Bible literally, occurred about 10,000 years ago.
Americans who say they do not believe in the theory of evolution are highly likely to justify this belief by reference to religion, Jesus Christ, or the Bible. Furthermore, there is a strong correlation between high levels of personal religiosity and doubts about evolution.
[WS:] What I find really baffling is your and (others on this list) willingness to discard this fundamental irrationality of the "plain folks of the land" (to quote HL Mencken) when it comes to jury duty or elections. What makes you think that the half of the population that earnestly believes in this kind of irrational superstition suddenly starts thinking in the matter-of-fact terms when it comes to evaluating facts pertaining to criminal behavior or public policy?
Wojtek