Starting today, Defense Dept. officials speaking anonymously wil begin to trumpet the results of a new telephone poll carried out in Iraq. The American Forces Press Service has it straight from the (background) source.
An overwhelming number of Iraqis say there is no justification for attacks on Iraqi civilians, Iraqi security forces or Iraqi public service infrastructure. A total of 94 percent of Iraqis say there is no excuse for attacks on Iraqi security forces, 97 percent say there is no justification for attacking civilians, and 97 percent are against attacks on infrastructure.
The percentages slip when it comes to disapproval of violence against Iraqis working with the coalition and attacks against coalition personnel. A total of 81 percent of those polled are against attacks against Iraqis working with the coalition, with 12 percent saying there is justification for the attacks and 7 percent with no opinion. Half of those polled said there was no excuse for attacks against coalition personnel, while 40 percent said there is a justification and 10 percent saying they don't know...
And the Iraqis "get it," officials said. Iraqis are proud of their security forces - a sea change from the way most regarded the forces under Saddam Hussein. The poll shows 75 percent of Iraqis say their security forces are winning the fight against anti-government forces. Iraqis regard the security forces as representing the nation and not just one group (77 percent), and 73 percent of those polled believe the Iraqi police and military work within the law and respect the rights of the people.
Almost 80 percent of those surveyed said the sooner that Iraqi forces maintain security, the sooner coalition forces can leave.
Now what you can expect to miss from the coming reports will be the line that says "The poll - done as part of the Tips Hotline number campaign - was conducted in Baghdad, Basrah, Salah Ad-Din, Najaf, Diyala and Irbil. More than 1,200 Iraqis answered the questions."
The Tips Hotline is the anonymous phone line for giving information on suspected insurgents and terrorists. It was set up by the Coalition but was recently handed over to Iraqi security forces. An un-named Iraqi company conducted the poll.
So...we have a situation where a poll is inextricably linked to a system of informing on anti-government elements yet four out of ten of respondents still think it is ok to attack US troops and one in ten think attacking "collaborating" Iraqis is ok too - this is meant to be good news?
Can I suggest that the polled Iraqis were highly unlikely to have been supporters of the insurgency - or even Sunni? And further suggest that if over a quarter of those friendly to the government don't "believe the Iraqi police and military work within the law and respect the rights of the people" then there may be a wee bit of a problem brewing? That 34% of those polled think the security situation in Iraq is getting worse is just icing on the cake.
What this means, officials said, is that Iraqis see foreign troops - and there are 138,000 Americans in the country - as occupation forces, and that the coalition policy of training Iraqis to take the lead in the security arena is the right policy.
Ummm...okaaay....but does it justify pulling out of Iraq even if the security forces are up to the larger task of oppressing the Sunni minority and dissident Shia? That way lies true civil war.
Oh, and the other little gem buried in the article -
The poll showed some Iraqi misperceptions, officials said. A total of 64 percent of those surveyed said anti-government forces come mostly from other countries. Coalition officials said most anti-government terrorists are Iraqis.
100% of wingnut bloggers believe most Iraqi terrorists are foreign too. Can we finally kill the "flypaper" meme off now, my rightwing friends? You've heard it from the official source and you always trust the administration to tell the truth about Iraq, don't you?
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