War On Terror Update -- Majority Sees U.S. Winning War on Terror for First Time Since 2004

From Ramussen Reports:

Over half of American voters (51%) now believe the United States and its allies are winning the war on terror, the highest figure recorded in nearly four years by Rasmussen Reports in a nationwide survey.

Only 16% now think the terrorists are on top, while 27% view it as a stalemate. Prior to this week’s survey, the number who believe the terrorists are winning had never fallen below 20%.

Last July, just 36% thought the U.S. and its allies were winning. At that time, an equal number—36%--thought the terrorists were ahead.

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My Comment: Al Qaeda's defeat in Iraq has had a pronounced impact not only on radical Islamists and American allies .... it has also had a tremendous impact on the American people. After a negative narrative for the past few years, a change is now noticeable for all but the extreme skeptics. America is winning.

For myself, I am not so positive. Al Qaeda has suffered a defeat, but many of its key leaders are still alive. They still receive financial support, as well as logistical, material, and recruitment assistance. Kill 100 Al Qaeda members, the madrases in Pakistan produce 1,000. The popular support for Al Qaeda in the Muslim world is still enormous, with numbers that run in the tens of millions. Al Qaeda is still very much alive.

I can only feel comfortable that we will win when we start to use the more powerful weapons in our arsenal. These weapons include morality, ethics, religious tolerance, and the most powerful weapon of them all .... education. I do not expect to change a people's culture and core beliefs .... that is not possible. But what we can do is change a people's outlook and perception towards the world, starting with the young. Once we are perceived that we are no longer the infidel .... 90% of Al Qaeda's support will quickly fade away. The rest will fade in the next decade or two.

Al Qaeda's philosophy, as well as radical Islam is an aberration. This is the message that we must work on if we are to truly win in the end.