OK, that’s a bit misleading, if technically correct: Americans do agree on (some) politics.

If you missed Tuesday’s column, “What can we agree on?” is an experimental, intermittent series suggested by reader Barb Neal. The idea is that despite perceptions to the contrary and oversharing of the negative stuff, Americans still (a) care about one another, and (b) have more to unite than divide us.

So why not don our flak jackets and jump right into the void: Politics.

Reassuring, surprising, and suggestive of a stiff drink, there is actual evidence that even on highly divisive subjects, such as gun control, we do share points of agreement across party and social lines.

Yes to (limited) background checks. Americans of both parties overwhelmingly support so-called ‘red flag’ laws — expanded background checks for gun buyers. A Washington Post-ABC News poll reported on Sept. 9 found 86 percent of Americans support legal provisions allowing guns to be taken from people who are judged to be a danger to themselves or others. Slightly more — 89 percent — support expanding federal background checks to cover private sales and gun shows.

No to shutdowns. Across party lines, Americans disapprove of government shutdowns as a strong-arm tactic. According to a CNN 2019 poll, more than 70 percent of Americans said that shutting down the federal government in order to force agreement on government policy is a bad strategy.

Whatever caused it, most agree climate change is real. A record number of Americans — 73 percent — agree that climate change is real and, according to Yale University research, are increasingly worried about its effects. Fewer — 58 percent — believe it’s human-caused, although that number has increased in the last decade. Two-thirds of those surveyed in 2018 said they believe the nation needs to take action, up 15 percentage points from 1999. In November 2016, nearly 70 percent of (1,114 surveyed) registered voters also believed the U.S. should participate in the Paris Climate Agreement, an international accord to reduce it where we can.

We still hold democratic principles dear (even if we disagree on how to accomplish them). 2018 studies by Pew Research indicated six in 10 Americans (58 percent) say democracy is working well in the U.S., although most support systemic changes: 61 percent say “significant changes” are needed in the fundamental “design and structure” of the U.S. government to make it work in current times.

We believe in balanced government. Pew Research found large majorities of Americans (70 percent of Republicans and 83 percent of Democrats) believe it would be “too risky” to give presidents more power to deal directly with the nation’s problems. Seventy-nine percent reject the idea of increasing presidential authority, compared with that of Congress and the courts.

Our everyday lives aren’t focused on who the president is, but our moods might be. Pew Research found only a third of Americans believe who the president is significantly impacts their personal lives, but more than half believe it has a big impact in areas such as national security and U.S. standing in the world, and 63 percent say it makes a big difference in the country’s mood.

We want lawmakers to follow our will, not their donors’. Three-quarters of Americans say a governor, in a hypothetical Pew Research question, should sign a bill with the support of most constituents, even if his or her own supporters oppose it.

We all think things aren’t going our way. More than two-thirds of adults surveyed in 2018 Pew Research said “(their) side loses more than it wins in politics.” Clearly a matter of perception, because all sides can’t be losing the same game unless we’ve got our eyes on different balls.

We have higher opinions of local leaders. In the same political poll, 67 percent showed a favorable opinion of their local governments, compared with 35 percent favorable marks for the federal government. Nearly three-quarters (73 percent) say the quality of candidates running for local office is generally good; with 41 percent saying the same about the quality of presidential candidates.

Then again, as fun as these polls are to bandy about, we also agree on one more thing:

We’re semi-skeptical of public opinion. According to The Hill-HarrisX poll reported last December, 52 percent of Americans doubt the accuracy of surveys. Twenty-nine percent of respondents said they don’t believe most polls but do trust a few, while 19 percent said they “almost never” believe polls are accurate. Thirty-three percent said they believed most polls but not all of them.

Younger people were the most trusting with a majority (55 percent) of voters between the ages of 18 and 34 saying they believe most or almost all polls. Elderly voters were the most skeptical; only 41 percent of voters 65 and older said they believed most or all surveys.

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Today’s weird word: Borborygmus (bor-buh-RIG-mus) — a rumbling sound made by the movement of gas in the intestine.

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Sholeh Patrick is a columnist for the Hagadone News Network who finds surveys worthy of both skepticism and interest. Contact her at Sholeh@cdapress.com.