http://hnn.us/blogs/entries/30289.html

Al Qaeda has desicively lost (http://www.worldpublicopinion.org/pipa/pdf/sep06/Iraq_Sep06_rpt.pdf)the Iraqi battlefield.


Overall 94 percent have an unfavorable view of al Qaeda, with 82 percent expressing a very unfavorable view. Of all organizations and individuals assessed in this poll, it received the most negative ratings. The Shias and Kurds show similarly intense levels of opposition, with 95 percent and 93 percent respectively saying they have very unfavorable views. The Sunnis are also quite negative, but with less intensity. Seventy-seven percent express an unfavorable view, but only 38 percent are very unfavorable. Twenty-three percent express a favorable view (5% very). Views of Osama bin Laden are only slightly less negative. Overall 93 percent have an unfavorable view, with 77 percent very unfavorable. Very unfavorable views are expressed by 87 percent of Kurds and 94 percent of Shias. Here again, the Sunnis are negative, but less unequivocally—71 percent have an unfavorable view (23% very), and 29 percent a favorable view (3% very).





Iraqi confidence in Iraqi forces (as opposed to militias) is increasing while its confidence in US forces is decreasing. Given US policies there can be little doubt but that US forces have lost significant Shia support and gained some Sunni support. I suspect increasing number of Shia no longer believe that American forces are capable of protecting them and with increased confidence in their government's capabilities no longer fear the consequences of an American withdrawal.

It should be noted that Ayatolla Sistani retains his overwhelming popularity amongst the Shia. 95% approve of him. PM Maliki is running a strong second with 86% but al Sadr is trailing far behind with 51%. Nor are Iraqis interested in following Iran's lead.


Asked whether Iran is having a mostly positive or negative influence on the situation in Iraq, just 45 percent of Shias say it is having a positive influence (negative 28%, neutral 27%), while Iran’s influence is viewed a mostly negative by the Kurds (79%) and the Sunnis (94%). President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad does a bit better among Shias, with 64 percent having a very (28%) or somewhat (36%) favorable view. But Kurds have a largely unfavorable view (very 43%, somewhat 34%) and the Sunnis an exceedingly unfavorable view (very 80%, somewhat 17%).





Syria is fairing even worse:


Most Shias (68%) think Syria is having a negative influence on Iraq’s situation, as do most Kurds (63%). Sunnis are only mildly positive, with 41 percent having a favorable view (17% negative, 43% neutral).

The most worrisome is the popularity of Hezbollah though luckily it is confined to the Shia.


Hezbollah elicits highly polarized views. An overwhelming 91 percent of Shias have a very (50%) or somewhat favorable (41%) view of Hezbollah, while an equally large 93 percent of Kurds have a very (64%) or somewhat (29%) unfavorable view. Sunnis are also fairly negative, with 59 percent having a very (10%) or somewhat (49%) unfavorable view.

To sum up - Iraq is coming along better than the news project. Indeed, more and more Iraqis believe that they will be soon ready to stand on their own two feet. This optimistic assessment may to a large degree reflect their disappointment in the efficacy of the American forces but, all in all it is a positive development. Do remember this when you read headlines accurately reporting (http://www.worldpublicopinion.org/pipa/articles/home_page/250.php?nid=&id=&pnt=250&lb=hmpg1)that "most Iraqis Want US Troops Out Within a Year and Say US Presence Provoking More Conflict Than it is Preventing."

The fact that a poll was taken, and that people actually gave responses, is something to be applauded...
Remember when Saddam was "Elected" by 99% of the population? LOL....

Other news out of Iraq:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060928/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060928/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq)

The bodies of 40 men who been tortured were found in the capital in a span of 24 hours, police said Thursday. Bombings and shootings killed at least 21 people in and around Baghdad, including five people who died from a car-bomb explosion near a restaurant.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060928/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraqi_opinion (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060928/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq)

About six in 10 Iraqis say they approve of attacks on U.S.-led forces, and slightly more than that want their government to ask U.S. troops to leave within a year, according to a poll in that country.

The State Department, meanwhile, has also conducted its own poll, something it does periodically, spokesman Sean McCormack said. The State Department poll found that two-thirds of Iraqis in Baghdad favor an immediate withdrawal of U.S. forces, according to The Washington Post. McCormack declined to discuss details of the department's Iraq poll.

http://www.worldpublicopinion.org/pipa/articles/home_page/165.php?nid=&id=&pnt=165&lb=hmpg2 (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060928/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq)


A new poll of the Iraqi public finds that a large majority of Iraqis think the US plans to maintain bases in Iraq permanently, even if the newly elected government asks the US to leave. A large majority favors setting a timeline for the withdrawal of US forces, though this majority divides over whether the timeline should be over a period of six months or two years. Nearly half of Iraqis approve of attacks on US-led forces—including nine out of 10 Sunnis. Most Iraqis believe that many aspects of their lives will improve once the US-led forces leave, but are nonetheless uncertain that Iraqi security forces are ready to stand on their own.

A bit disturbing if your into polls:

http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/library/news/iraq/2006/03/iraq-060301-voa02.htm (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060928/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq)

Senior U.S. officials, including Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, are fond of citing support among the troops as evidence that their policy in Iraq is a good one. But the survey by the well-known Zogby International polling company says 72 percent of the U.S. troops in Iraq believe all U.S. forces should be withdrawn within 12 months. Among them, 29 percent called for an immediate withdrawal and 22 percent said the force should leave within six months. According to the survey, only 23 percent say U.S. troops should stay in Iraq "as long as they are needed," which is President Bush's policy.

Iraqi confidence in Iraqi forces (as opposed to militias) is increasing while its confidence in US forces is decreasing.
We want the Iraqi forces to stand up so that we can stand down, but their own US built academy won't stand up. (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/09/27/AR2006092702134.html?nav=rss_world/mideast)

This review (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/09/26/AR2006092601721.html) of recent polling includes pie charts regarding Iraqi attitude toward US presence (scroll to bottom).

By large margins, though, Iraqis believed that the U.S. government would refuse the request, with 77 percent of those polled saying the United States intends keep permanent military bases in the country.

Pretty funny when the uneducated backwater towel-head Alalallalalala'ing people we had to teach about democracy via a gun have a better grounded understanding of the true political situation than the citizens of the shining city on the hill.

On the plus side, the House has passed a ban (http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/asection/la-na-bases27sep27,1,1463960.story?coll=la-news-a_section) on permanent bases as part of the Defense appropriations bill. How this will translate into the reality of our "temporary" bases, of course, remains to be seen.

This is interesting (http://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/28/world/middleeast/28sadr.html)

Maybe that should be a new Iraqi export: Hitmen....

How can anyone still cling to the idea that Iraq was a decent idea? Even the ideologues are clearing out of the ranks. Face it - Iraq is fucked.

And before you give me this philathropist crap - How about Darfur?

This seems to be the most politically charged movement these days - at least on my campus (Coincidentally, the most politically active school in the country. Not sure how much of a microcosm it is. /gag). Leave it to George Clooney to rally the masses.

4000 ex-terrorists taking a dirt nap

CAIRO, Egypt (AP) -- In a new audio message Thursday, the leader of al-Qaida in Iraq called for explosives experts and nuclear scientists to join his group's holy war against the West. "We are in dire need of you," said the man, who identified himself as Abu Hamza al-Muhajir - also known as Abu Ayyub al-Masri - the leader of al-Qaida in Iraq.
"The field of jihad (holy war) can satisfy your scientific ambitions, and the large American bases (in Iraq) are good places to test your unconventional weapons, whether biological or dirty, as they call them."

He also said that more than 4,000 foreign militants have been killed in Iraq since the U.S.-led invasion in 2003 - the first apparent acknowledgment from the insurgents about their losses.

It was unclear why al-Masri would advertise the loss of the group's foreign fighters, but martyrdom is revered among Islamic fundamentalists, and could be used as a recruiting tool. The Arabic word he used, "muhajer," indicated he was speaking about foreigners who joined the insurgency in Iraq, not coalition troops.

I wonder how many of them were terrorists/foreign fighters prior to the invasion of Iraq. Someone should take a poll.

Terrorist /= Jihadist /= Secular Milita Man.

Because we were hit on 9/11 by terrorists doesnt mean the people we are fighting in Iraq are terrorists, the administration really wants us to believe they are, but they arent. None of them are nice people, nor are they good people, but they are not terrorists by default.

Anyone ever see that 1984 movie called "Red Dawn"? It was about some Colorado high school kids who witnessed Soviet paratroopers taking over their town, and the students then decided to become insurgents and practice acts of terrorism against the invading forces.

Starred Patrick Swayze, in his early days.

Anyone ever see that 1984 movie called "Red Dawn"? It was about some Colorado high school kids who witnessed Soviet paratroopers taking over their town, and the students then decided to become insurgents and practice acts of terrorism against the invading forces.

Starred Patrick Swayze, in his early days.

LOL...I actually have that movie on DVD.

Rofl! I made the mistake of actually *paying* to see that steaming pile in the theatre... Wolverines!

Regards,
Nydia

Heh, I did the same.
"What's the capital of Texas?"
"Austin."
"Wrong! It's Houston you commie!"
"You watch too many movies."

At least one too many, in this case.

The next line will be that 1 man's terrorist is another man's "Freedom Fighter".....

The next line will be that 1 man's terrorist is another man's "Freedom Fighter".....

No, no, no, no.. Sixee.

Words are important. If we allow ourselves to equate through our language 9/11 and Iraq through the definitions provided, then we are allowing the lines to be blurred between the two without any factual information to have been provided. Everyone in the Middle East who hates us in not a terrorist.

"Terrorist" has become this decades catchphrase.