Brian Rogers Rogers Rabbits www.sunlive.co.nz

We are confident. It's official. Tauranga MP Simon Bridges has checked, and we are definitely confident. For sure.

Eighty per cent of people surveyed are either the same or feeling better than a year ago, says Simon, who says the survey results back up the feedback he's getting from the community.

It must be the season for surveys, because we've got 55 per cent more results from polls available this week than the same time last month. Why we have so many surveys happening at the moment is a mystery. Perhaps it's because we're feeling confident enough to ask? Yes, it is. We are confident and therefore know.

It is not clear whether we have a Ring of Confidence. We did in the 1960s when it was Colgate's slogan. These days, however, Colgate is accused of being one of the many companies testing on animals, according to a message from the Beagle Freedom Project.

Cosmetic testing

In another survey, 88.6 per cent of people support a ban on cosmetics animal testing, according to SAFE and the Humane Society. It has prompted the Labour Party to promise it would ban cosmetic testing on animals and the sale and import of animal-tested products, should it win the election in September.

Which in itself raises another survey result: Labour is unlikely to win.

Stuff reported this week: 'Labour is struggling to make any dent in National's huge lead, with today's political poll showing it is still trailing National by a staggering 30 percentage points”.

'Even with allies, the Greens included, the core Centre-Left bloc trails National by more than 17 points with just over two months to close the gap before polling day.”

Now mentioning that survey result could be construed as being right-wing propaganda from Rogers, which according to our own Sun survey, (results page 20) found three per cent of you believe Rogers Rabbits is too right wing.

That is pretty confusing, because slightly more (3.4 per cent) commented RR is too left wing. Our conclusion to that, is RR is probably flying somewhere straight up the centre. And that you'll never please all the people all the time.

We'd like to delve further into this right-wing/left-wing perception of the column, but you can't go probing the wings of Rabbits, because:

1: They don't have wings.
2: Remember, most of you are against animal testing.

Being left or right wing has nothing to do with being left or right handed, another survey has found.

As many as nine out of 10 people are right-handed, and the word for that side, ‘right', is derived from a variety of sources, all of which suggest strength.

Left, on the other hand, comes from the Old English, ‘lyft', for useless or weak.
They may be carrying a bag, because another survey finds one-quarter of all people who take a briefcase, or something similar to work with them, have got something in it for self-defence. We assume those people are also among the 20 per cent who are not very confident.

Hey, let's face it, the election could go any way. Because the poll also shows 15 per cent of you are undecided about which way to vote. If all those not-so-confident people suddenly decided to swing one way or another, the poll predictions could be completely thrown askew.

The stuff survey also reported that: 'booming confidence in the economy appears to be buoying National's support, with 64 per cent of those surveyed believing the country was on the right track, the highest in our survey since 2012”.

Well that sounds assured, but not as confident as the good folk in Tauranga, who are way over that, at 80 per cent, right?

Killing critters

A US survey found the brand Tide has 70 per cent of the market share for detergent. According to the Beagle Freedom organisation, Tide is tested on animals.

They also claim that Raid is tested on animals. Now here is a dilemma: How can fly spray be tested, without killing flies? I'm confident you cannot make fly spray without wasting a few of the pesky blighters along the way.

I'd be very surprised if insecticide could be developed and manufactured, without at some stage, being tested on the critters it is meant to kill.

I think all of you would agree, at least 99 per cent, that it's okay to test stuff on flies and bugs and cockroaches, but certainly not beagles.

One thing is guaranteed. We have not seen the last of the surveys. More than 97.6 per cent of you believe there will be more.

Of that, we are confident.

brian@thesun.co.nz