Following up on my last post regarding the mainstream media’s spin on Iraq and troop withdrawal, I came across this article from the Financial Times. While it does not mention time horizons it purports to describe how Iraqis are “divided” over the idea of a US military withdrawal from their country. Writing from Baghdad – likely not far from the Green Zone if even outside – the author claims “[m]ost Iraqis appear wary of setting any specific timetables for the withdrawal of US troops,” fearing doing so would destabilize the country and lead to civil war.

Yet the article offers but one quote from an Iraqi that is clearly against withdrawal. Of the remaining four quotes, only two are concerned with the issue of a troop pullout, one wants a drawdown in the number of US personnel, the other argues for a gradual withdrawal, no timetables mentioned. The remaining two Iraqis quoted are statements of support for Barack Obama, who has stated his intention of setting a timetable (what form that will actually take if he becomes president we have to wait and see).

This kind of anecdotal evidence abounds in media reports, while actual polling data is rarely mentioned. One such poll taken in early 2006 when the security situation was far more dire than today showed that 67% of Iraqis felt a six month withdrawal from that time would increase security, 70% wanted a timeline of either six months or two years, and 80% approved the Iraqi government calling for such a timeline.

A more recent poll [PDF] shows opinions have changed little since, demonstrating that as of March 2008 61% of Iraqis felt the US presence was making the security situation there worse and 69% claimed a complete withdrawal would either improve security or not change things at all. The numbers supporting the occupation are even worse, yet we are constantly led to believe through media reports such as this one in the Financial Times that Iraqis are torn between wanting to keep American troops in their country and having them leave.

If more news outlets would report the clear position of the people of Iraq – ironically from polling data often commissioned by the very news agencies that rarely use it – rather than confusing things with anectodal evidence, maybe taking a position demanding a full and timely withdrawal wouldn’t seem such a radical idea.

According to Wikipedia a time horizon is a term used in economics describing “a fixed point of time in the future at which point certain processes will be evaluated or assumed to end.” Well as Johndroe makes clear we can’t assume that the US military presence or even current troop levels will end when we reach the time horizon. No, that would obviously be a fiction. Or even better, a science fiction because doesn’t it all sound like some bad sci-fi novel or film? Just think about it: The Time Horizon, where language itself breaks the laws of physics, forming out of nothing from the mouths of PR saavy politicians and repeated unquestioningly by their media robots to have any meaning intended. Wow! That would be scary.