Ciao!

Another one bites the dust

Julius Strauss, Telegraph columnist, is the latest dove-turned-hawk.

Also, Gallup's polling service reports continued support for war in Iraq (59%) over opposition (37%). A significant number (38%) support war in Iraq even w/o UN approval. What's more, a UCLA grad student's study suggests protests actually increase support for war. Here's an excerpt:

[A]ccording to a study by political science graduate student Phil Gussin, the opinions of people who conditionally supported war changed toward favoring war when shown photographs of Bush and then of anti-war demonstrators.

"If anti-war demonstrators are trying to gather support by having their pictures shown, they are having the opposite effect," Gussin said.

Subjects who were shown pictures of the president had a seven percent higher approval rating for Bush compared to those who were shown other, non-political pictures, Gussin said. Subjects shown pictures of Bush and anti-war photographs had a 15 percent higher approval rating than the control group, Gussin said.

Of course, poll numbers are (and should be) mostly irrelevant. We elected our officials to make tough decisions. We have the right to protest and attempt to dissuade them from any action. And we should exercise that right — I called my senators on Wednesday. But in the end, sheer numbers don't make a position right, they just make it more popular (or at least more able to mobilize).

Posted by Miguel at 01:31 AM

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