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| Iraq | |
| Poll: Baghdad Residents Glad Saddam Gone | |
| 2003-09-24 | |
| Rantburg knew this but CNN apparently doesn’t. Most residents of Baghdad say that ousting Saddam Hussein was worth the hardships they’ve endured since then, says a Gallup poll that shows they are divided on whether the country is worse off or better off than before the U.S. invasion. Two-thirds, 67 percent, say they think that Iraq will be in better condition five years from now than it was before the U.S.-led invasion. Only 8 percent say they think it will be worse off. Buncha optimists!
Fair enough, lots of stuff is broken right now. The Gallup poll of 1,178 adults was conducted face to face in the respondents’ household from Aug. 28 through Sept. 4 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points. Gallup plans to poll extensively in the coming months and years in Iraq and has established a center in Baghdad to coordinate the polling effort. The survey found that 62 percent think ousting Saddam was worth the hardships they have endured since the invasion. The other 38 percent were Ba’ath party functionaries and hangers-on. Six in 10 said they have a favorable view of the new Iraqi Governing Council, but most see its priorities as set by coalition authorities. Half said the coalition authorities are doing a better job now than two months ago, while 14 percent said they were doing a worse job. Richard Burkholder, head of the Gallup team in Baghdad, said residents of the city of more than 6 million were eager to talk with his researchers and most who were contacted agreed to be interviewed in their own homes. Gallup drew its sample from different neighborhoods throughout the capital. This is very good news even as it represents just one data point. People in Iraq have figured out what the media can’t grasp. | |
| Posted by:Steve White |
| #8 People in Iraq have figured out what the media can’t grasp. I think they privately grasp it. They just don't report it. Why? Well, do you see any Baathists bombing their hotels? Nope. Why? Because the journos don't say anything that might upset them. Just like they never said anything that would upset them when Saddam was in office. (Refer back to Eason Jordan's admission of suppressing news negative toward the Saddamites.) As for those who think the country is worse off than before the war, I'm imagining most of those were on Saddam's gravy train. |
| Posted by: eLarson 2003-9-24 3:26:45 PM |
| #7 Saw a CNN interview this morning. The only part of the survey the interviewer mentioned was that Iraqis think the country is worse off now than before the war. Conveniently left out the fact that the Iraqis are optimistic that the country will soon be better off than it was before the war. |
| Posted by: Sludj 2003-9-24 2:06:35 PM |
| #6 This morning on the radio, I heard an interview with the pollsters. They reported that they selected over 1,000 homes randomly using aerial photographs of Baghdad, and that once they (well, the translators) started asking questions, the Iraqis wanted to talk for hours. The Iraqis kept saying..."Do you have any more questions we can answer? We have much to say". Overall, a very positive interaction, IMO. |
| Posted by: Seafarious 2003-9-24 1:44:20 PM |
| #5 JFM makes some good points. In the summer of 02, electricity generated outside Bagdad was sent to Bagdad leaving the rest of the country in rolling brown outs and black outs. In the summer of 03, the electricity was balanced so Bagdad received a smaller percentage of the production. |
| Posted by: mhw 2003-9-24 7:58:43 AM |
| #4 Notice that this is in Baghdad: any dictator worth his salt knows it is a good idea to keep the capital more or less happy. It is also the place where are the high ranking govermentr employees, the Except for Tikrit you can bet Baghdad is the area where you can find the higher density of people who benefitted from the former regime. |
| Posted by: JFM 2003-9-24 6:19:32 AM |
| #3 Anyone notice that you can't hardly tell the difference between the rantings of a Saddam tape played on al-jazzera and a Howard Dean press conference? |
| Posted by: Frank Martin 2003-9-24 3:26:15 AM |
| #2 Instant heartburn! You know this is just making a hash out of the Al Guardian (BBC, et al) Editorial Agendas... Those Waqi Iwaqis™! |
| Posted by: .com 2003-9-24 2:37:03 AM |
| #1 Six in 10 said they have a favorable view of the new Iraqi Governing Council, but most see its priorities as set by coalition authorities. It has to be set by coalition authorities. The Iraqi population has been living for the last thirty years under totalitarian rule! How in heaven's name are they going to run their own show if they have no prior experience doing so? |
| Posted by: Bomb-a-rama 2003-9-24 2:27:05 AM |