WP: U.S. to Gauge Iraqi Support for Operations (Bad News #2)

[grytpype]

From the Department of Screwing Up Every Little Thing More Than You Ever Thought Possible:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/09/27/AR2006092701912.html

U.S. to Gauge Iraqi Support for Operations
Military Plans to Hire a Contractor to Conduct Polls and Set Up Focus Groups

By Walter Pincus
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, September 28, 2006; A19

As violence continues in Iraq, the military is looking for ways to achieve stability through opinion polls and public relations.

The Multi-National Command in Baghdad wants to hire a private firm to conduct polling and focus groups in Iraq "to assess the effectiveness of operations as they relate to gaining and maintaining popular support," according to a notice the Department of the Army posted yesterday.

"Since the end of major combat operations in Operation Iraqi Freedom, Coalition Forces have sought to build robust and positive relations with the people of Iraq and to assist the Iraqi people in forming a new government," the notice says, posted on the government contracting Web site FBODaily.com.

Polling and focus groups are being sought as "important tools for assessing changes in the level of a population's support for various groups," according to the posting.

Polling in Iraq is so sensitive that the contract proposal states that the winner must ensure those being questioned "are not aware of the survey sponsor's identity." One member of a firm that has conducted polling for the Baghdad command said yesterday that "if someone out there believes the client is the U.S. government, the persons doing the polling could get killed." The official insisted on anonymity for fear of putting his company's employees at risk. (Well, that tells you something about the level of popular support, don't it?)

...

[truthisfreedom]

1. ridiculous.

propaganda bullsh*t.

[rodeodance]

2. must be one of those modern warfare tools to gauge Rummy's 'metrics"

[lfairban]

3. Focus Groups?

:wtf:

[Dem2theMax]

4. What the F&#K?

"As violence continues in Iraq, the military is looking for ways to achieve stability through opinion polls and public relations.

Opinion polls and public relations?

WHAT? I'm reading it and I cannot believe my eyes.

Guns and bombs don't work so now they are going to POLL them?

Hell, I can solve Iraq's problem in one easy step. OK, really two steps.

1. Remove all of our troops from Iraq.

2. Replace them with every stinking, lying, treasonous member of the * administration.

Somehow I have a feeling that suddenly EVERY person in Iraq would be in agreement on how best to take care of their country.

[xchrom]

5. well if they can't kill iraqis with bombs -- they can make them

brain dead with polls and focus groups.