The poll finds that only 12% opt for a troop increase using the traditional four-alternatives question, little changed from past polling. But the poll included a separate question that summarized a possible "surge" announcement, and found that 36% support the idea of such an increase, while 61% oppose it. Full Story »
Posted by Leo Romero
Waste of time. This is not straight reporting. It uses a current as a starting point then using slight of hand & poor questionaire design "seems" to arrive at a conclusion. Bottom line: Don't bother reading it.
First, the raw material is excellent, in that there was a large sample of more than 1,000 people randomly selected. But what the author does with this great material is itself debatable, as the graphics totally undercut the spin of the story. The chart shows that only 18 percent of people interviewed with this question strongly support a surge in troops--meaning that as much as 82 percent are actually against the surge, with a swing of persuadables of only 18 percent. The key weasel word in the question is "temporary," which is undefined, but thanks to leaks over the weekend, we now know that the new generals in charge think that the "surge" will last as long as two years--invalidating both the term temporary and surge. None of ... More »
As well as reporting how Americans feel about a troop increase, shows how poll results vary greatly, depending on how the question is asked. Free access expires 1/9/7.
This is a well written report from the polling organization itself. It is well written and complete in its presentation of the poll.
Somehow I knew this already without a new poll. The President will ignore this poll as well as the last election which said the same thing.
The fact is that all polls are based on written questions by a person or persons with a goal in mind for the answers they want. To do so they are carefully written to guide the answers to their predetermined conclusions. These people are smart and are often paid by those with a desire for the right conclusions. As such most polls are trash and the answers are used to form a particular goal - political, business, personal, etc. To use one poll or a dozen polls may be popular with the public, but far more important to the people paying for them. There should be a disclaimer regarding political matters identifying the organizations buying them and the political agenda of the writers, i.e, registered Demorat or Repluicrat, etc.
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