A speck of optimism

[Undertoad]

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/new...cle1530762.ece

Optimism:

MOST Iraqis believe life is better for them now than it was under Saddam Hussein, according to a British opinion poll published today.


The survey of more than 5,000 Iraqis found the majority optimistic despite their suffering in sectarian violence since the American-led invasion four years ago this week.

Things still suck, but are better now than under Saddam:

One in four Iraqis has had a family member murdered, says the poll by Opinion Research Business. In Baghdad, the capital, one in four has had a relative kidnapped and one in three said members of their family had fled abroad. But when asked whether they preferred life under Saddam, the dictator who was executed last December, or under Nouri al-Maliki, the prime minister, most replied that things were better for them today.

We forgot to tell the Iraqis they are in civil war:

Only 27% think there is a civil war in Iraq, compared with 61% who do not, according to the survey carried out last month.

Surge will succeed, and then things will improve once foreign troops go:

By a majority of two to one, Iraqis believe military operations now under way will disarm all militias. More than half say security will improve after a withdrawal of multinational forces.

Surge is succeeding, and in the complicated picture, the media only reports the bad stuff and so we are amazed by this poll:

Margaret Beckett, the foreign secretary, said the findings pointed to progress. “There is no widespread violence in the four southern provinces and the fact that the picture is more complex than the stereotype usually portrayed is reflected in today’s poll,” she said.