The "surge" will work only until the insurgents learn how to fight it effectively. Chlorine gas car bombs may be the beginning of that new response. I suspect the "surge" wil be "Shock and Awe II" (perhaps the shock and awe strategy should have been named the "awe shucks" strategy in retrospect). The best reason for the U.S. to get out of Iraq is what the Iraqis themselves say: we are the cause of most of the problem. In any case, we will have to get out regardless at some point. As President Eisenhower said of the Korean War "Where is the end?"

Declan Murphy, Charlottesville, VA

That the locals in Iraq see a brighter future these days is only surprising to those fed on mainstream liberal media whose mission it is to discredit the president. Spewing hate for George Bush is fashionable; giving him any credit would be unconscionable. But as the truth emerges from Iraq, the mainstream media will begin to resemble Baghdad Bob; loudly proclaiming that which is obviously false. And while public opinion polls, mercurial and driven by media bias, disfavor our president today, history will give him high honor for doing the right thing in the face of self serving political cowardice.

Brian W. Loss, West Chicago, Illinois U.S.A.

It all sounds very hopeful - too good to be true, one might say. It certainly contradicts the judgements of many who have some basis of knowledge, and the perhaps 2 million refugees who have found like in Iraq intolerable. The poll data and sampling methods need to be made public if these findings are going to become credible.

Jim Hess, Irvine, CA, USA

Why then, if things are working out and Iraqis optimistic as the poll suggests, have over two million of the professional classes left the country? That is around ten percent of the prewar total population. Why is this exodus continuing with around ten thousand leaving every month? It would seem unlikely that these were monitored in this poll. Voting with your feet and leaving everything behind seems more indicative of Iraqi sentiment on the subject of optimism or pessimism than a poll such as this one.

John, Seattle , USA

It is unspeakable that the west should ravage a country so far from our shores, that we should cause chaos and anarchy in a once ordered and stable society. The principal sufferings of Iraqis prior to the invasion were a consequence of the economic sanctions imposed by the USA. Tragically, the suffering caused by the sanctions afflicted the weak; the poor and the elderly. The systematic annhilation of civilisation in Iraq can only lead to greater dangers within the country and further overspills abroad. How we condone and support our governments despite these atrocities is senseless. What does it take for us to realise that the guilt of terrorism and destruction has been instigated by the west. So much clarity is lost in the media. What is clear in Iraq is that the country has been raised to the ground, the people thrown into chaos and fear, and the future promises the threat of far worse. This is not Vietnam, but the USA have ruined the lives of at least two generations in IRQ

Ghazi Attia, England, UK

Sounds great, let's also see the raw data, please...so this doesn't get buried.

Gregory Contreras, Baltimore, USA