Quote:
Originally Posted by Sheriff Gonna Getcha
I think one problem with the press and the public perception of the war is that the Bush administration made unreasonably rosy projections about how smoothly the post-Saddam Iraq would run. Had the administration been prepared for the insurgency and told the public that it is going to be a long hard road in Iraq, we are going to face tough Al Qaeda types, etc. before and after we went in, I think public support for the war would be higher right now. The Administration did a great PR job in getting us to go to war, but they did a horrible PR job of preparing us for what the war would entail and how long it would last.
It's kinda sad, but the Administration's handling of the PR situation is very reminiscient of the Iraq Information Minister's handling of our invasion. Remember how he used to say, "everything is under control, the Americans will be slaughtered like pigs in the streets of Baghdad," while U.S. tanks rolled right past his position? Instead of constantly telling the public that the insurgency amounted to little more than "Saddam dead-enders" and "Mission Accomplished," they should have been bracing us for the worst and hoping for the best.
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I'd have to disagree as Bush has said all allong that it was not going to be easy. I think that we saw in the first Desert Storm and in the beging of the 2nd. we could do what we wanted as far as the war went. We then get there and things slow down and we are not use to this. I would also say that I don't think many thought that these people would flood in there to fight as they have done. I know ther are people saying that they warned of this but the only warnings I remember is of the thousands of Americans that would die in the first stages of the war. Then that didn't happen so now they are saying they warned of this. I will agree that the Mission Accomplished was not a good idea but that also tells me that our Generals did not expect this insurgancy after we took hold in Iraq. I do remember that Information Minister doing that press conference as the tanks where rolling in and the press guys telling him that we had tanks just over the hill behind him but he just keep on talking.