Public Opinion in U.S. Turns Against the War
Is it really surprising ????
Washington Post
A majority of Americans now see the war in Afghanistan as not worth fighting, and just a quarter say more U.S. troops should be sent to the country, according to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll.
Most have confidence in the ability of the United States to meet its primary goals of defeating the Taliban, facilitating economic development, and molding an honest and effective Afghan government, but few say Thursday's elections there are likely to produce such a government.
The new poll comes amid widespread speculation that Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal, the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, will request more troops for his stepped-up effort to remove the Taliban from Afghan towns and villages. That position gets the backing of 24 percent of those polled, while nearly twice as many, 45 percent, want to decrease the number of military forces there. (Most of the remainder want to keep the level about the same.)
In January, before President Obama authorized sending an additional 17,000 troops to the country, public sentiment tilted more strongly toward a troop increase.
Among all adults, 51 percent now say the war is not worth fighting, up six percentage points since last month and 10 since March. Less than half, 47 percent, say the war is worth its costs. Those strongly opposed (41 percent) outweigh strong proponents (31 percent).
Opposition to the Iraq war reached similar levels in the summer of 2004 and grew further through the 2006 midterm elections, becoming issue No. 1 in many congressional races that year.
Washington Post
The sad thing is that people were "conned" into accepting the deployment with ISAF. Our governments play these games and once deployed, the public MUST support the troops who are laying their lives on the line.
I doubt whether they will be able to pull out in 2011, but let's hope so.
I am doing something else in the meanwhile :)
we went over there only after the Canadian press started showing pictures of starving people and very abused women and children,,,subjucated by these terrible, uneduacted and unhealthy men,,,Canadians mobilized with medicine and education material drives etc....we did not go over there because of anything associated with Empire,,,,you know that we never went to Iraq, and it was for that reason...
However, we have lost 200 or so soldiers, and Karzi just passed that legislation where the men can rape their wives, and Canada is now going ballistic about it,,,,and we still see those god-awful people still in charge.
We are committed until 2011, and then we will pull out.
We can't stomach helping people who are stuck in the stone age, extremely violent, and won't help themselves,,,
Its a trash heap not worth young canadian lives...
You are right.. At present we are working hard to prop up a puppet president who has no real support outside Kabul.
The warlords who control outlying areas are easily bought and change allegiances at will.
Every war waged by any nation with sensible people will be criticised internally. Same happened during Iraq War.
Source:
- A study Conducted by FriedUnicorn - Vol I (September,1999)
The wars, especially in Afghanistan, will be a strategic loss regardless of the outcome.
The US could come to the conclusion that their presence in the country is motivating, rather than detering, the Taliban. So if they leave and try to let democracy take over, the Taliban will claim this as both a moral and military victory, and use this to take control of the country.
Or the US could fight long and hard to defeat the Taliban militarily, but when the time comes for withdrawl, a power vacuum will be inevitable and anti-western forces will use the lingering hatred of the US to try to take control.
All in all, a massive waste of time, resources, and human life, in my opinion.
The UK is not too happy about the War either. Time to get out.
How is Canada different in its thoughts ?
although our reasons are quite different in several respects...