How could you possibly get any of that from what ATG said?

I appreciate ATG's response. I'm sure there's much good being done in Iraq, and more should make the news. I read a recent article in the Christian Science Monitor on one former hotspot (can't remember the name, but we've all heard of it) that has calmed down greatly in the last few months, and work is being done on the infrastructure, etc. ... Also interesting to note that there's hope (from the U.S. military) for insurgents to lay down their weapons and join the political process. Aren't they all terrorists that deserve to be anhialated? ;-) ... I'm still interested in reports from real Iraqi citizens and what they would like to see happen. They are who we went to 'save' right?

You guys obviously hate the soldiers. Jerks.



You are the one with disdain for soldiers. Jerk.

Yeah, I get it. (Speaking of emails, I was interested to see the claim that the vast majority of Iraqis want us to stay, or whatever. According to the poll of Iraqis I heard about, that's exactly wrong. I don't have a source for that at hand, though.)

Vitus you know from our own polling system here in the US that you can shape any poll to get a desired result. Are you really interested in polls?

So are you saying the claims that it's too dangerous to leave the Green Zone are all lies perpetrated by the MSM in order to continue to present biased reporting?



I am saying that there are reports from servicemembers on the ground who contradict what "some" of the MSM claims.

I dont think the MSM is claiming that no schools are being built. They just tend to report more on combat, whether US offensives or insurget attacks. Since the latter happens daily, you can get the notion that the MSM is just reporting doom and gloom... I dont think so - there were positive reports in amm MSM outlets about the elections, tactical victories achieved by the US and Iraqi military, etc...

What I take issue with is the the notion is that (paraphrasing) "if the MSM would just come out to where we are they could report on all the progress being made but they won't". They won't because to travel far outside the Green Zone would be certain death. That fact alone has to temper claims of real progress, or at least support the notion that there is still a long, long way to go before the rule of law is actually enforced throughout the country.

---

_______________________________________________

you know from our own polling system here in the US that you can shape any poll to get a desired result. Are you really interested in polls?

I'm not inordinantly interested in them, no. But I don't discount them entirely, either, especially when they're sponsored by the military, which I think the poll I'm talking about was.

Yes, polls can be manipulated. It does not mean that they always are. Frankly, I'd be at least as inclined to trust the accuracy of a poll conducted by a reputable agency as I am the impression of an individual soldier on the ground, whose viewpoint is limited, and who- shockingly- might not get a truthful response from the Iraqis he talks to.

I suspect if the military conducted a poll that showed widespread support for our presence there, you'd have no problem believing it.

---

"People think it must be fun to be a super genius, but they don't realize how hard it is to put up with all the idiots in the world."