Support for Afghanistan war at new low, poll finds

[rug]

Published: Wednesday, May 9, 2012
Associated Press

WASHINGTON -- Support for the war in Afghanistan has reached a new low, with only 27 percent of Americans saying they back the effort and about half of those who oppose the war saying the continued presence of American troops in Afghanistan is doing more harm than good, according to an AP-GfK poll.

In results released Wednesday, 66 percent opposed the war, with 40 percent saying they were "strongly" opposed. A year ago, 37 percent favored the war, and in the spring of 2010, support was at 46 percent. Eight percent strongly supported the war in the new poll.

The poll found that far fewer people than last year think the killing of Osama bin Laden by U.S. troops increased the threat of terrorism against Americans. Overall, 27 percent say the al-Qaida leader's death resulted in an increased terror threat, 31 percent believe his death decreased the threat of terrorism and 38 percent say it has had no effect. The poll was conducted before the revelation this week of a recent al-Qaida plot to blow up a U.S.-bound airliner with an underwear bomb.

Chris Solomon, an independent from Fuquay-Varina, N.C., is among the respondents who strongly oppose the war. He said the military mission has reached the limits of its ability to help Afghans or make Americans any safer, and he would close down the war immediately if he could. While the rationale for the war is to fight al-Qaida, most of the day-to-day combat is against an entrenched Taliban insurgency that will outlast the foreign fighters, he said.

http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20120509/NEWS02/705099815

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

1. The American people are finally facing the obvious. We lost...again.

[byeya]

2. They didn't ask me but I am against it.

To me, that means bringing all American troops home and leaving none in Afghanistan.

[obxhead]

3. It's only taken a decade for common sense to prevail.

Fuck war and all the lives it destroys.

It's a shame we'll be there permanently.