Polls

War – Necessity, Warfare and Responsibility - March, 2007

Key Observations

Religion Matters

82% of our respondents agree with the statement “I agree with a Supreme Being.”
- 87% of women agreed with this statement, as did 75% of men.
- Respondents ages 36 and above were more likely to agree with this statement (84%) than those between the ages of 18-35 (72%).
- Participants with an annual household income of $50,000 and above agreed more with this statement (87%) than those with a household income of less than $50,000 annually (79%).
Those with no college experience are more likely to believe in absolute standards (80%) than those who have completed college coursework (72%).
- Participants with an annual household income of less than $50,000 were more likely to believe in absolute standards (80%) than those with a household income of greater than $50,000 annually (73%).
The majority of our participants (64%) said the Bible is their source for standards of right and wrong
- 70% of women agreed with this statement compared with 55% of men.
- Respondents over the age of 35 agreed more with this statement (71%) than those under the age of 35 (59%).
- Those who had not attended college were more likely to agree with this statement (85%) than those who did (63%).

Weekly Worship

Five years ago, 60% of our respondents attended church or a place of worship about once a week
- 63% of women attended church, compared with 56% of men
- Participants ages 36 and above were more likely to attend church (62%) than those between the ages of 18-35 (50%)
- Those who had no college experience were more likely to worship weekly (71%) than those who had completed college coursework (56%).
Currently, 53% of those polled attend church or a place of worship about once a week
- More women (57%) are likely to attend a weekly church or worship service than men (48%).
- Participants over the age of 35 agreed with this statement more (55%) than those under the age of 35 (44%).
However, 64% of participants are more interested in religious matters than they were five years ago.
- 68% of women agreed with this statement opposed to 60% of men.
- Those who had no college experience were more likely to agree with this statement (72%) than those who had completed college coursework (61%).
- Respondents with an annual household income of less than $50,000 were more likely to agree with the statement (72%) than those with an annual household income of greater than $50,000 (60%).

Ethics, Morals and Our Country

66% of those polled believe the moral and ethical standards of our country are lower than five years ago
- Women agreed more with this statement (69%) than men (62%).
- Participants over the age of 36 agree more with this statement (64%) than those between the ages of 18-35 (53%)
- Those who have no college experience were more likely to believe the standards of our leaders are lower (70%) than those who have completed college coursework (59%).

A Discussion on War
Necessity, warfare and responsibility

Is War Necessary?

The majority of our participants think so as 73% agreed with the statement “At times, war is necessary.”
- Men agreed more with the statement (78%) than women (70%).
- 75% of respondents over the age of 35 agreed with this statement, compared to 65% of those ages 18-35.
- Those with an annual household income greater than $50,000 were more likely to agree (79%) than those with a household income of less than $50,000 annually (66%).
67% of respondents agreed “It is better to take war overseas than let it happen here.”
- More men (71%) agreed with the statement than women (64%).
- 76% of those with no college experience agreed with the statement, compared with 64% of those who had completed college coursework.

How should war be conducted?

54% of participants agreed with the statement “War must be fought to win”
- 28% of participants disagreed with the statement.
- Men were more likely to agree (66%) than women (45%).
- Respondents over the age of 35 agreed more with the statement (58%) than those ages 18-35 (39%).
- Those who had no college experience agreed more with the statement (64%) than those who had completed college coursework (51%).
51% of participants agreed with the statement “It is best to strike with as much force as possible, so that the war can be ended quickly.”
- 27% of participants disagreed with the statement.
- Men were more likely to agree (62%) than women (42%).
- Respondents over the age of 35 agreed more with the statement (56%) than those ages 18-35 (32%).
68% of participants agreed “A war should involve minimal loss of lives of enemy combatants.”
- The majority of men (69%) and women (67%) agreed with the statement.

The Politics of War

74% of those polled agreed with the statement “War should not be waged without the support of the people of the country.”
- Men (74%) and women (74%) had identical responses to the statement.
In response to the statement “Political leaders are obligated to wage war when they feel it is necessary, whether it is popular or nor,” 44% of participants agreed, 39% disagreed and 17% had a neutral response.
- More men (48%) than women (41%) agreed with the statement.
- Those with college experience agreed more with the statement (47%) than those who had not attended college (37%).
- Participants with an annual household income greater than $50,000 were more likely to agree (50%) than those with a household income of less than $50,000 annually (37%).

56% of respondents agreed “Elected officials should be supportive of their commander-in-chief during times of conflict.”
- Slightly more men (58%) than women (54%) agreed with the statement.

Who is responsible?

56% of participants agreed “Political leaders bear personal responsibility for lives lost in the war.
- 29% of the respondents disagreed with the statement while 15% remained neutral.
- Slightly more women (57%) than men (54%) agreed.
- Those participants ages 18-35 were more likely to agree with the statement (65%) than those over the age of 35 (54%).
- 62% of respondents with an annual household income of less than $50,000 agree with the statement compared with 52% of those with a household income greater than $50,000.

Torture

Only 25% of participants agreed “Torture is an effective way to obtain information.”
- 57% of participants disagreed with this statement while 18% remained neutral.
- 37% of men and 17% of women agreed with this statement while 45% of men and 67% of women disagreed.
91% of those polled agreed “Captured enemy combatants should be given the same treatment as we would want for our own soldiers.”
- Women were more likely to agree (94%) than men (87%).
The statement “Torture of enemy combatants is justified if it might reduce the overall loss of life” divided our participants.
- 32% of participants agreed with this statement, 47% disagreed and 21% remained neutral.
- More men (38%) than women (27%) agreed while 54% of women and 39% of men disagreed.

Should we stay or should we go?

In response to the statement “The lives already lost in Iraq will be in vain if we do not continue to fight for victory,” 39% of those polled agreed, 45% disagreed and 15% were neutral in their response.
- 47% of men agreed with this statement, compared with 32% of women.
- Those respondents over the age of 35 agreed more with this statement (42%) than those ages 35 and under (27%).
In response to the statement “It is immoral to increase the number of troops in Iraq after we have already lost so many lives,” 40% of those polled agreed, 41% disagreed and 19% were neutral in their response.
- Women agreed more with the statement (46%) than men (32%).
- Participants with no college experience were more likely to agree with the statement (47%) than those who had completed college coursework (37%).
- Respondents with an annual household income of less than $50,000 agreed more with the statement (50%) than those with a household income of greater than $50,000 annually (31%).