And if someone pulled out an old poll showing wide support for the war in Iraq how would you respond? How about polls showing Clinton holding a wide lead over all her democratic rivals? Using old polls is bogus pure and simple. An accidental correspondance to current results doesn't excuse the sloppiness. Opinions can change drasticaly in a matter of days when things go from good to bad. It usually takes a while going the other direction (is this real or the eye of the storm?).

The drastic change in the situation on the ground in Iraq is recent and I'm sure will have to last a while before it impacts public opinion much in a situation that the Bush admin clearly almost fubared. The Iraqi's have paid a heavier price than us for our mistakes. They will need a lasting improvement to feel the cost was worthwhile.

If you want to demonstrate current opinion use a current poll. It's not rocket science. Don't try to promote it as anything more than a snapshot either. Promoting a March poll taken under radically differnt circumstances as current opinion is not altogether kosher either, but if it's the most recent you can find it's the best you can do.

Is there a way to tell whether an ostrich is burying it's head to avoid good news or bad? We need new symbols for the parties. Republicans see no bad news and the Democrats see no good news. Republicans saw us winning a war when we were loosing ground, and now the Democrats see us loosing when we are gaining ground.

Regards,
Mark