Removing Saddam was worth the hardships

[Bandito]

Iraqi are hopeful about the future (http://washingtontimes.com/upi-breaking/20030924-080344-5035r.htm)

Quote from the article:
Nearly two-thirds of Baghdad residents say the removal of Saddam Hussein was worth the hardships they have endured, a report said Wednesday.

[Clandestine]

Tenaciously clinging to any media contrivance you can find to justify the unjustifiable eh Bandito?

Recognition of the utter illegality of this invasion, its actual intent and purpose, and the lies of a greedy and power-mad administration with no regard either for the wellbeing of the nation at home or abroad, is obviously still beyond your capacities.

Your article is a clear example of right wing spin (the WT being a ragmag on par with the NY Post)....

little over 1000 Iraqi's polled = 2/3 of Baghdad residents??? LOL get real!

No thought to question who these 1000 some odd residents were or where they were culled from? Sounds precisely like the sort of contrivance that Chalabi and his gang of irrelevant pampered Bushite puppets would organise. Just like the toppling of the Saddam statue which didnt draw throngs of cheering Iraqis but was made to look as if it had, this is just more smoke and mirrors.

The situation is a political quagmire and those who cling to Bushies coattails will sink into it along with him and his lying cronies.

Beyond the media spin to the reality of the matter (http://www.cato.org/dailys/07-19-03.html)

Tying all the disparate truths together shows premeditated support for an agressive and ill conceived agenda (http://politics.guardian.co.uk/iraq/comment/0,12956,1036687,00.html)

[Toadborg]

It was a Gallup poll and they are well respected pollsters.

Interesting that they also had more respect for Chirac than for Bush or Blair, maybe they would have preferred more of an effort for a UN solution? :rolleyes:

[opopanax]

It was a Gallup poll and they are well respected pollsters.

Hmmm

67 percent of 1,178 Iraqis

out of a city of 5 million.

I really think it would be dangerous to infer that 66% of Baghdad, feel the same as the 790 people who said this.

Also, the poll was taken over a month ago, would the same 790 say the same thing now?

[Aladdin]

I'd be interested to see what the people of, say, the area known as the Sunii Triangle would think...

Unless of course they were 'carefully selected' for the polling.

Considering that many inhabitants of Baghdad don't have telephones, I wonder how exactly those 1,178 people were chosen anyway.

[Clandestine]

Write-in responses from Chalabi's friends and family back in the States no doubt.

[Kermit]

Originally posted by Toadborg
It was a Gallup poll and they are well respected pollsters.

But always be aware that what you ask is important when it comes to this. The questions are always skewed to suit the needs of the poll's paymasters, the question wont have been "are you pleased to see Saddam gone?" it will have been "Are you disgusted by the torture propagated by the previous regime? Are you glad to see the torture and degradation gone? Are you glad that the notorious prison is demolished? Would you have Saddam back?"

Always question who is asking what, and who is paying for it. Like today I saw in the news that 86% of people who ate beans on toast for breakfast did betetr at school. All well and good, but the company who paid for the survey were Heinz :rolleyes:

[Aladdin]

81.5% of all statistics are made on the spot anyway.

















:p

[Toadborg]

The article infers that the question was:

'Do you think your lives will be better in 5 years time than it was whilst Saddam was in power?'

Over a 1000 is a good sized sample for a population of 5million, though as Al says, a sample for the whole of Iraq would be preferable.

I am sure that the sample was collected in an appropriate manner.

Do you really find it so hard to believe that people would prefer to live without Saddam?

Like I said it is interesting that the survey revelas that Baghdadis have more respect for Chirac than for Bush or Blair..........

[Clandestine]

Yes its all very interesting, but nevertheless, as in Afghanistan where supposed justifications and claims of sweeping changes to the face of Afghani society more than one year after the conquest turn out to be limited to Kabul, so too opinion of 1000 respondents in Baghdad cannot credibly be sold as reflective either of the entire Baghdad population nor (more so) the attitudes of those throughout the rest of Iraq.

Being happy to be rid of Saddam is a far cry from similarly approving of a prolonged US occupation and dictat on the form, substance, and direction of the restoration of self governance.

[Toadborg]

Like a said, over a 1000 form 5 million is a good enough size to provide a reasonable acuarrate view, provided the sample was random and the questioning unbiased, I assure you........

The Afghan govt has no monopoly on power in wider Afghanistan if the coalition were to pull out and no replacement were forthcoming I would imagine a similar situation in Iraq.......

[Clandestine]

Assure me all you wish Toad, your say so doesnt negate the valid points made by Kermit that all polls are reflective of the constituency interests of those funding the poll. Whether Gallup is a respected agency or not, its polls, like all polls, have their bias. Don't be naive enough to think they dont.

And I do not accept that 1000 respondents are indicative of the views of 500,000 let alone 5 million. Think about it, extrapolating Baghdadwide sentiment to the tune of 67% on the basis of a sample that does not even cover 1/10 of 1 percent of the population.

You do the math. :rolleyes:

[Aladdin]

Whereas I am prepared to believe that MOST Iraqis are glad that Saddam is gone, I can't believe for one second that they approve of the US illegal war and subsequent occupation.

The poll seems to imply that Iraqis are saying "Thank you America for illegally bombing and occupying Iraq- we're glad you did."

I find that extremely difficult to believe.

Much more plausible that the questions were asked in a certain way so the Iraqis' relief at seeing Saddam deposed is being portrayed as gratitude and/or approval of US actions.

I am pretty sure that if they plain question "Do you approve of the illegal bombardment and subsequent occupation of Iraq by the US and Britain" was put to the Iraqis, 99.999999999999% would say 'no'.

[Toadborg]

Originally posted by Clandestine

You do the math. :rolleyes:

If you want me to I will.

I thought you might just believe me but if you want me to get my stats book out form the university course I did concerning such matters last year then I will and I can show that the size of the sample is perfectly valid in giving an accurate portrayal.......

Al: like I said earlier the article says that the same repondants to this poll approved more of Chirac than of Bush and Blair which indicates that they did not crae for the methods employed as much as the eventual outcome..............