Could public opposition end the war in Iraq?

[ivolsky]

Bush talking about the Iraqi police force and security: "I would call the results mixed...the Iraqi force is not ready to fight."

It seems that post election, the President is recognizing some of the reality on the ground and the instability of the situation could eventually convince the public that the war is not worth fighting. Last January, 60% of the public approved of the way the U.S. was handling the situation in Iraq. That number is down to 39%. Nearly 60% now disapprove of U.S. Iraq policy. 51% believe that it was a mistake to go to war. Likewise, in April 2003, just after Saddam Hussein was overthrown, Rumsfeld got a 71% vote of approval. By October, it was down to 58. In May of this year, 46 percent. And now, just 41% approve of Rumsfeld.

Could public opposition to the war eventually stop it? Is that not what happened in Vietnam?

more: www.politicalthought.net

**all poll numbers taken from http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0412/20/ip.01.html">CNN's JUDY WOODRUFF'S INSIDE POLITICS

[BrklynLiberal]

1. Yes. It is what happened to the war in Viet Nam. Not sure the press

was so much in the pocket of the administration at the time....but with enough of a public outcry, it could happen!

[proud2BlibKansan]

4. I agree

public outcry was responsible for ending that war.

And talk about the press being different back then. This just occurred to me - who pushed the Watergate scandal on us back in the early 70s? There really wasn't much public outcry over Watergate, was there? But thanks to the press, we DID find out about Watergate and its effects. And the Wash Post's dogged determination to tell that story resulted in a president resigning. How far our press has come since then - and certainly not in a good direction!

[Sal Minella]

5. If reporters like Woodward & Bernstein tried to investigate

anything in this administration, they would both tragically but quickly die in a plane crash. And the world now seems remarkably short on Bill Bradleys and Katherine Grahams also, come to think of it......

Yes, public outcry stopped the Viet Nam war. LIFE magazine ran an issue with mugshots of dead soldiers, page after page after page, and I think public sentiment began to swing over when the faceless heroes became dead kids-next-door.

I truly believe public outcry is the only thing that will stop this one. They can only shoot so many of us.

Something else -- I think the "flag burning" episodes of the 'sixties were initiated by agents provocateur from the CIA/FBI, because flag-burning made good camera fodder for the "Hate-the-Hippies" crowd and because those protesters in their fury wouldn't even have
thought of something like that on their own. Just my opinion, but I've believed that for forty-odd years. (off topic, sorry)

[movonne]

2. If it didn't happen in Vietnam, is sure is not going to happen with

this administration...

[China_cat]

3. In the Vietnam years we had a poster

that said "What if they gave a war and nobody came?"

Look at the recruitment and desertion figures. People are not only not showing up, they're leaving early.

[EVDebs]

6. No...unfortunately you have to CUT OFF THE FUNDING !!!!!!

During the Vietnam war it wasn't until we had bled out 58,000 troops that we ended it but Nixon's treason (see http://www.tompaine.com/feature2.cfm/ID/3621 ) and his origination of the "October Surprise" ensured more tragedy. During his term, we drew down the funding enough to make it understood that a FULL cutoff of war monies was coming :

""Led by Senator J. William Fulbright, the U.S. Congress passed, in June 1973, a bill to cutoff funds for combat activities in South east Asia. It set August 15, 1973 as the date for termination of U.S. bombing in Cambodia, and required Congressional approval for funding of U.S. military action in any part of Indochina. This action by Congress had such an impact on President Nixon at the time that he wrote to House Speaker Carl Albert and U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mike Mansfield to voice his grave concern about the serious consequences that would result."" from
http://www.ehistory.com/vietnam/essays/theend/0007.cfm

The empire only understands it when the money is cutoff.....

[proudbluestater]

7. I doubt it would work this time, but there is no harm in trying.

Times were different then with the media. They didn't have the "agenda" they have at this point in time.

Further, we did not have SUCH an arrogant administration running things then as we do now.

In February 2003 30 MILLION people worldwide marched to PREVENT this illegal war and the regime did not bat an eye. A group of less than 50 neocons thumbed their collective nose at the world, gave it a big "f" you and went ahead with their crusade to rule the world.