American Public: Invasion of Afghanistan a Mistake, Speed up Withdrawal

http://www.juancole.com/2013/12/american-afghanistan-withdrawal.html

American Public: Invasion of Afghanistan a Mistake, Speed up Withdrawal
By Juan Cole | Dec. 20, 2013
(By Sarah Lazare)

More than twelve years after the initial invasion, U.S. public opinion of the so-called Good War in Afghanistan appears to be souring.

A clear majority of people in the U.S. say the 2001 decision to attack Afghanistan as a response to the events of September 11th was a mistake and that the current withdrawal of U.S. troops is not moving fast enough, according to an Associated Press-Gesellschaft für Konsumforschung poll (pdf) released Wednesday.

"I'm glad to know the majority of Americans now acknowledge what we've been saying all along," said Suraia Sahar of Afghans United for Justice in an interview with Common Dreams. "This war continues to have disastrous consequences. I can only hope this time a lesson has been learned."

The poll finds that 57 percent say the United States did the "wrong thing" by "going to war in Afghanistan."

Based on results from 1,367 adults with a reported margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points, the poll finds that 57 percent say the United States did the "wrong thing" by "going to war in Afghanistan." By contrast, 40 percent said the U.S. did the "right thing."