[Paul Mackin]

Oops. Should have gone out under other byline.


----- Original Message -----
From: <barbara100 at jps.net>
To: <pynchon-l at waste.org>
Sent: Wednesday, November 21, 2001 3:58 PM


> A while back someone said support for the war on terrorism was at 90% It
seems that's not the case. Never really was.
>
> http://staff.stir.ac.uk/david.miller/publications/World-opinion.html
>
>
> According to Tony Blair and George Bush respectively, 'world opinion' and
the 'collective will of the world' supported the attack on Afghanistan. Yet
analysis of international opinion polls shows that with only three
exceptions majorities in all countries polled have opposed the policy of the
US and UK governments. Furthermore there have been consistent majorities
against the current action in the UK and sizeable numbers of the US
population had reservations about the bombing.
>
> World opinion
>
> The biggest poll of world opinion was carried out by Gallup International
in 37 countries in late September (Gallup International 2001). It found that
apart from the US, Israel and India a majority of people in every country
surveyed preferred extradition and trial of suspects to a US attack. Clear
and sizeable majorities were recorded in the UK (75%) and across Western
Europe from 67% in France to 87% in Switzerland. Between 64% (Czech
Republic) and 83 % (Lithuania)of Eastern Europeans concurred as did varying
majorities in Korea, Pakistan, South Africa and Zimbabwe. An even more
emphatic answer obtained in Latin America where between 80% (Panama) and 94%
(Mexico) favoured extradition. The poll also found that majorities in the US
and Israel (both 56%) did not favour attacks on civilians. Yet such polls
have been ignored by the media and by many of the polling companies. After
the bombing started opposition seems to have grown in Europe. As only the
Mirror has reported, by !
> early November 65 per cent in Germany and 69 per cent in Spain wanted the
US attacks to end (Yates, 2001). Meanwhile in Russia polls before and after
the bombing show majorities opposed to the attacks. One slogan which
reportedly commanded majority support doing the rounds in Moscow at the end
of September was 'World War III - Without Russia' (Agency WPS 2001). After
the bombing started Interfax reported a Gallup International poll showing a
majority of Moscow residents against the US military action (BBC Worldwide
Monitoring 2001)
>
> [.]
>
> Conclusion
>
> The most fundamental problem with the polls is that they assume the public
has perfect information. But, notwithstanding some dissent in the press, the
media in the UK, and even more emphatically in the US, have been distorting
what is happening in Afghanistan especially on civilian casualties and
alternatives to war. To ask about approval of what is happening assumes that
people actually know what is happening. But given that a large proportion of
the population receives little but misinformation and propaganda (especially
on TV news which is most peoples main source of information) then it is less
surprising that some should approve of what they are told is happening -
that the US and UK are doing their best to avoid civilian casualties, that
Blair exercises a moderating influence on Bush. When they are asked their
own preferences about what should happen (rather than approval questions
about what is happening) then there is much less support, even in the US. In
other word!
> s there is no world support for the attack on Afghanistan and public
opinion in the US and UK is at best dubious and at worst flatly opposed to
what is happening. If Bush and Blair were really democrats, they would never
have started the bombing.
>
>
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