Majority of Americans think leaving Iraq is the best way to boost economy

[bascule]

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23073316/

 

According to an AP poll, 68% of Americans feel that getting out of Iraq, a war which, for America, has been second only to World War II in total cost, would benefit the US economy, with 48% saying it would fix the country's economic problems "a great deal." This belies a recent decision by the US Congress to pump cash into the hands of low and middle income citizens as a potential band-aid for an ailing economy, however the same poll reveals the majority of Americans think this is an unwise decision.

 

Do you feel that pulling out of Iraq would benefit the US economy? Would there be a human cost to such a pullout, and if so, would the economic savings be worth it?

[Realitycheck]

I don't think oil prices are going to go back down to where they were 6 years ago. I don't think it will create more jobs by bringing everybody home. I highly doubt that it would have any effect on the housing market or on excess foreclosures. The stock market might make a bit of a gain out of it.

 

But the intangible effects might be more substantial, such as faith in the future, consumer confidence, and so forth. People tend to be more conservative when the financial outlook is questionable, even though it might not be directly related to the war. This has the effect of reigning in the stock market. I think pulling out would have a good effect on how we are viewed as a nation.

 

The people questioned in this poll are average public and are not exactly experts on the causes and effects of economic downturns. The only human cost I see in a pull-out is the same amount of people that die per year in that part of the world every year since the dawn of time. There probably are economic savings associated with that. Iraqis are tough. They can take care of themselves.

[Pangloss]

I agree with the OP and just have a general comment to add on this: Pulling out of Iraq would inarguably have a larger impact on the economy than, for example, the economic stimulous package (which we also cannot afford -- literally -- but at least there we can argue the point about deficit spending with some degree of logic).

 

That having been said, I still support remaining in Iraq until the job is done. But then I don't have a violently partisan and ideological axe to grind here, so that's easy for me to say.

[ecoli]

The original poll is interesting, considering that people aren't voting what they say their opinions are!

 

It's not just Iraq war, though that's a significant portion. We have troops stationed in 130 or so nations...

 

Yet the only candidate that wants to bring these troops home, and refuses to start a preemptive war is considered a 'fringe candidate.'

 

I know the dems are considered the 'anti-war' party, but their policies and platforms seem to suggest otherwise. (with a few exceptions)