Even though most Americans don't consider the Iraq War to be worth the price, only a little less than 20% of Americans want us to pull out of Iraq. The distribution of opinion for the remaining 40%, I wrote, means that a vast majority of Americans either want to win or are willing to win because they are too uncertain of the results to advocate withdrawal before winning.
So with the 20% withdraw-now people insisting they reflect public opinion for withdrawal now and damn the consequences, you'd think that with the prospects of reaching 4,000 killed in action by the fifth anniversary of the launch of Operation Iraqi Freedom that the anti-war masses would be out in force.
The anti-war side was certainly out, but they couldn't even rally enough support from their 20% base to even pretend that they are the vanguard of the people:
On previous anniversaries, tens of thousands of people marched through major U.S. cities, and more than 100,000 gathered on several occasions leading up to the invasion.
Only a few hundred mustered for one of Wednesday's largest gatherings, in Washington, the crowds' size perhaps kept in check by a late-winter storm system that stretched the length of the country.
Yes, perhaps it was the weather. That's the reason. Any other reason was beyond the comprehension of the AP story author and numerous contributors to the story.
If the anti-war side couldn't work up more than a few hundred protesters for Washington, D.C., on the fifth anniversary of the war, I think I'm secure in my judgment that we have enough of a coalition of Americans to win this war.
