Americans feel angry and poor. The French feel ripped off by a stingy government and are stark raving mad. Across the European continent, electorates in countries heading shortly to the polls feel that the center has collapsed, while here at home, Republicans feel the approach of the bluest of waves, not just in swing states but potentially in historically safe GOP strongholds like South Carolina and Kansas.

But what if the vibes are all wrong? What if the riots and the radicalism currently threatening to consume the West are fueled not just by misunderstandings of the data but by willful obfuscations and manipulations of it?