Zogby's military/iraq poll

* jeralyn: "I think Fitz is getting information from cooperating witnesses inside the White House, State Department and CIA that could lead to a second round of indictments....and Cheney's in Fitzgerald's line of sight."

* scott's december interview with larisa can be downloaded here

* "A new Rasmussen Reports poll finds that 36% of the respondents believe the terrorists are winning the terror war, while 39% believe we are winning.
Last month, 44% thought we were winning and only 26% believed the terrorists were winning." (link)
i wonder how many people actually believe there is a War on Terra? they should ask that question. perhaps they should also ask what it means 'to win'? polls are stupid

* speaking of stupid polls, here's the zogby poll: "The troops have drawn different conclusions about fellow citizens back home. Asked why they think some Americans favor rapid U.S. troop withdrawal from Iraq, 37% of troops serving there said those Americans are unpatriotic, while 20% believe people back home don’t believe a continued occupation will work. Another 16% said they believe those favoring a quick withdrawal do so because they oppose the use of the military in a pre-emptive war, while 15% said they do not believe those Americans understand the need for the U.S. troops in Iraq."
i wonder if that list was multiple choice. i cant see the "becuase they support the troops" option

and:

"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.”"

and:

"A majority of troops (53%) said the U.S. should double both the number of troops and bombing missions in order to control the insurgency."

yeah, not enough bombing. that's the ticket. maybe billy Kristol was correct.

and:

"The survey shows that most U.S. military personnel in-country have a clear sense of right and wrong when it comes to using banned weapons against the enemy, and in interrogation of prisoners. Four in five said they oppose the use of such internationally banned weapons as napalm and white phosphorous. And, even as more photos of prisoner abuse in Iraq surface around the world, 55% said it is not appropriate or standard military conduct to use harsh and threatening methods against insurgent prisoners in order to gain information of military value."

wtf? " a clear sense of right and wrong"? 20% want to use illegal WMD and 45% love torture. they are all supposed to be familiar with the Geneva Cnventions. thanks for the editorial Mr Zogby.

and:

" Just 30% of troops said they think the Department of Defense has failed to provide adequate troop protections, such as body armor, munitions, and armor plating for vehicles like HumVees."

'Just' one in three? or 'a full 30% think the DoD has failed'?

polls are stupid