The polls undoubtedly help to decide what people think, but their most important long-term influence may be on how people think. The interrogative process is very distinctly weighted against the asking of an intelligent question or the recording of a thoughtful answer.

Summary

This quote suggests that while polls play a role in shaping public opinion, their significant impact lies in shaping the way people think. The quote argues that the way polls are conducted, with limited and often simplistic questions, discourages deeper thinking and intelligent questioning. This implies that polls may not accurately capture the complexity of people's opinions or provide a nuanced understanding of major issues. Instead, they may perpetuate a more shallow and surface-level understanding of societal matters. Thus, the long-term influence of polls could be in influencing how people think and approach critical topics.

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