POLL-In US poll, 60 percent back Libya military action

[Freddie Stubbs]

Source: Reuters

WASHINGTON, March 24 (Reuters) - Sixty percent of Americans support the U.S. and allied military action in Libya to impose a no-fly zone to protect civilians from forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi, a Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Thursday found.

Of those polled, 48 percent described President Barack Obama's military leadership as U.S. commander in chief as "cautious and consultative," 36 percent as "indecisive and dithering," and 17 percent as "strong and decisive" in a question that offered only those three choices.

The poll was taken three days after the U.S.-led bombing campaign against Libya was launched last Saturday.

Seventy-nine percent of those surveyed said the United States and its allies should try to remove Libyan leader Gaddafi, who has ruled the oil-exporting North African country for more than four decades.

Read more: http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFN2330243920110324

[MannyGoldstein]

1. Almost as many as supported invading Iraq nt

[bluestateguy]

2. The Great American Majority speaks again

and once again we at DU are not a part of it.

[bigworld]

4. I think there's a diversity of opinion here, too

There's certainly more justification for immediate Libya intervention than there was for Iraq, as well as more international approval.

[CBGLuthier]

3. Oh well, then the libyans are fucked cause america said so.

[Freddie Stubbs]

6. Do you believe that the Libyan people are worse off due to our military action?

[Historic NY]

9. No but from twits & interviews...they seem to know they go to get it together..

soon. They have been asking for military advisors. They have the ball.

[Bragi]

5. Americans always "like" new wars

New wars give Americans a chance to seem patriotic. It's only after a war starts getting complicated, and lacking in entertainment value, that people turn against them.

[center rising]

7. Well, since most of the media is attacking the president

For his mission in Libya, it's good to see the American people backing Obama.

[JaneQPublic]

8. Prediction: Support will drop like a rock if...

...this action isn't passed off to other countries as soon as Pres. Obama and Sec. Clinton originally spelled out (i.e., "days, not weeks.")

I figure a lot of folks (like me) will give this thing about 2 weeks. If U.S. jets and missiles are still flying over Libia and other coalition countries are still sitting on the sidelines, that support will evaporate.

If that happens, then it's time to start the Olbermann daily tally of how many days since the president said this war would be over.

[WatsonT]

10. Not that impressive

A weak majority at the outset of an easy war.

It will only go down from there.

I imagine the first casualty will shave off a couple of percentage points.

And then just wait until we start hearing about atrocities committed by the rebels (yes, it will almost certainly happen, it always does).