I know this is anecdotal evidence but I have heard the same complaint over and over.

How can the polls be so close when everyone I speak with is voting for Obama or 3rd party candidates???

I have repeatedly heard that people are voting for Obame. I have not talked with a single individual that said they are voting for McCain not one person!! Why are the polls so close???

I learned in November of 2000 not to put a lot of weight in polls. Polls aren't meant to reflect public opinion. Polls are meant to create and guide public opinion.

Polls are all manipulated before they are started. They seek a certain demographic and run like time of day, location, party affilliation, age, gender, race, metro, urban, rural etc. These factors are usually undisclosed or hidden at the time the poll results are given to give a false sense of what the poll means.
If you polled at 5 am by phone, independants and undecideds will hang up or tell the pollster where to shove their poll while party fanatics will take the time to do the poll. Now you have a controlled variable. Carefull selection of precincts is all you need to get the poll to say what you want it to. Every precinct in america is known how many dems or repubs are registered. Simple isn't it.