85% of US Soldiers Think They're Fighting Because of Saddam's Role in 9/11

[Chemical Ollie]

Brainwashing

[OneFootInTheGrave]

well that is better than if you think it's a push poll.. perhaps the real situation is not as bad

as for 72% - why would that be suprising, I would think that majority of soldiers would rather go home than stay in Iraq.

[Imran Siddiqui]

Originally posted by Oerdin
That poll result simply does not reflect any of the experience which I personally had serving in the military. This sounds an aweful lot like a push poll to me.

And when did you stop serving in Iraq?

[Agathon]

They're Americans... one would hardly expect them to be informed about world events since the US doesn't really have a free press.

[Geronimo]

Originally posted by Agathon
They're Americans... one would hardly expect them to be informed about world events since the US doesn't really have a free press.

what kind of constraints do you see on the press in the US?

I'd say it's more likely that troops don't enjoy unfettered access to a free press.

[BlackCat]

Just 24% said that "establishing a democracy that can be a model for the Arab World" was the main or a major reason for the war. Only small percentages see the mission there as securing oil supplies (11%) or to provide long-term bases for US troops in the region (6%).

This is scary - does us soldiers really not know why they are in Iraq ?

Several posters here at poly has proven that the only reason they are there are because of oil and bases.

[Apocalypse]

85% say that as a reason. Most likely heavy push polling.

The wide-ranging poll also shows that 58% of those serving in country say the U.S. mission in Iraq is clear in their minds, while 42% said it is either somewhat or very unclear to them, that they have no understanding of it at all, or are unsure. While 85% said the U.S. mission is mainly “to retaliate for Saddam’s role in the 9-11 attacks,” 77% said they also believe the main or a major reason for the war was “to stop Saddam from protecting al Qaeda in Iraq.”

“Ninety-three percent said that removing weapons of mass destruction is not a reason for U.S. troops being there,” said Pollster John Zogby, President and CEO of Zogby International. “Instead, that initial rationale went by the wayside and, in the minds of 68% of the troops, the real mission became to remove Saddam Hussein.”

How many main reasons are there exactly?

From those I've spoken to who have served in Iraq, this doesn't exactly seem to fit.

[Pekka]

BC, do you know why US is in Iraq? You have your opinion, but is that a fact?

[Zkribbler]

The poll, conducted in conjunction with Le Moyne College's Center for Peace and Global Studies,

I dunno. Sounds like they might have an agenda.

But I do find the numbers in the survey to be troubling enough to want to see a poll by mainstream media or by some other neutral, reputable polling organization.

[Agathon]

Originally posted by Geronimo

what kind of constraints do you see on the press in the US?

The same ones as exist in every other country: an unwillingness by the media to adequately report the misdeeds of one's own country.

Sure, the media will report on occasional bad things, especially if they are domestic, but it is rare to find a major media outlet come out against its own country on major matters of foreign policy. Britain is one of the few countries where this actually happens. I guess Watergate is another example. Otherwise the bad stuff only comes out years later when it no longer matters.

It's not a conspiracy. Most people don't like being told their country is an evil sack of crap, and governments can make things very difficult for those who rock the boat. There will always be small media that won't play ball, but they don't really matter as most people don't even know they exist.

Witness how the major news outlets in the US rolled over for the Bush administration's lies about Iraq. It would be unthinkable for CNN to come out and say: "the adminstration's case is a pack of lies", which unfortunately was the truth and was obvious to any thinking person from the start.

[Fake Boris]

Enrolling the populace against itself by indoctrinating it in the military is a common tactic. Send the potential troublemakers (young working class men) abroad.

[Zkribbler]

On the other hand, the comment heard around the Johnson White House was: "We've lost the war--Cronkite has turned against us."

Walter Cronkite

[MrFun]

Originally posted by Arrian


Yeah, well, roughly the same number believe in the pink unicorn too.

-Arrian

We believe in the GREEN unicorn, dumbass.

[Imran Siddiqui]

Originally posted by Zkribbler
On the other hand, the comment heard around the Johnson White House was: "We've lost the war--Cronkite has turned against us."

Walter Cronkite

Nowadays, they'd find a sex scandel behind Cronkite and discredit him.

[Rufus T. Firefly]

And just today, the local press jokingly suggesting that "MARINE" stands for "Muscles Are Necessary, Intelligence Not Essential." Hmmm....