# Poll: 22% of Americans hoping Bush fails in Iraq **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [January 23, 2007, 5:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-22-of-americans-hoping-bush-fails-in-iraq/389054 "2007-01-23T05:01:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![RTA](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b4bc9f/32.png) [@RTA](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTA)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2007, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-22-of-americans-hoping-bush-fails-in-iraq/389054/41 "2007-01-24T14:04:29Z")
Bush deserves the scorn of history that awaits him, no matter which way I or anyone feels about it. ---
**Author:** ![Wildfire\_MM](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f08c70/32.png) [@Wildfire\_MM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wildfire_MM)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2007, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-22-of-americans-hoping-bush-fails-in-iraq/389054/42 "2007-01-24T14:55:39Z")
[QUOTE=Der Trihs] Success for Bush would be an Iraqi puppet state and a springboard to further conquest. [/QUOTE] I have had the same thoughts the last few years ---
**Author:** ![Bear\_Nenno](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bear_nenno/32/3358_2.png) [@Bear\_Nenno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bear_Nenno)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2007, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-22-of-americans-hoping-bush-fails-in-iraq/389054/43 "2007-01-24T15:37:02Z")
[QUOTE=Der Trihs] I feel no sympathy for any German soldier, as they were members of an army engaged in aggression and conquest. If I was around at the time, and I had a magic button that would kill every last German soldier, I’d push it without hesitation or regret. [/QUOTE] Would you push that button on American soldiers today? I’m curious. Would you agree or disagree with this statement: _I feel no sympathy for any American soldier, as they are volunteer members of an army engaged in aggression and conquest. If I had a magic button that would kill every last American soldier, I would push it without hesitation or regret_. ---
**Author:** ![Kyrie\_Eleison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kyrie_eleison/32/7682_2.png) [@Kyrie\_Eleison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyrie_Eleison)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2007, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-22-of-americans-hoping-bush-fails-in-iraq/389054/44 "2007-01-24T15:55:54Z")
Even if you ignore the ambiguous definition of success here, and credit it to mean some nebulous form of “succeed in Iraq,” rather than “succeed in getting implemented,” I’d still say no. I don’t want the President’s plan to be implemented at all. Consequently, I don’t want it to succeed or to fail; I want it to cease to exist, and to be replaced with a better plan. If the question were, “If the plan President Bush announced last week were to be implemented, would you personally want it to succeed?” I could say yes, knowing that even if success isn’t really well defined, it’s at least suggestive of something good happening. That might have been a better wording, assuming that the question was meant to interpreted in the way that the OP took it, and that the ambiguity wasn’t intentional. ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2007, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-22-of-americans-hoping-bush-fails-in-iraq/389054/45 "2007-01-24T18:22:00Z")
[QUOTE=Bear\_Nenno] Would you push that button on American soldiers today? I’m curious. Would you agree or disagree with this statement: _I feel no sympathy for any American soldier, as they are volunteer members of an army engaged in aggression and conquest. If I had a magic button that would kill every last American soldier, I would push it without hesitation or regret_. [/QUOTE] Of course I’d agree; I’ve said so before. ---
**Author:** ![Bear\_Nenno](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bear_nenno/32/3358_2.png) [@Bear\_Nenno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bear_Nenno)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2007, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-22-of-americans-hoping-bush-fails-in-iraq/389054/46 "2007-01-24T19:31:45Z")
I’m assuming the reason you haven’t killed any soldiers is either you lack ambition or you are afraid of the consequences. Let’s forget _every American Soldier_ for a second and talk about a half dozen. If, due to coincidence and random luck, you happened to be put in a situation where you could quickly and easily kill a half dozen American Soldiers–maybe you were the only 7 people at the Museum of Ancient weapons one day–and there was absolutely no risk of you getting caught or being harmed, would you kill them? Would you feel morally justified? Would you feel proud of yourself? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-22-of-americans-hoping-bush-fails-in-iraq/389054.md?page=2)