Some Pretty Good Iraq News

Coming up with a valid opinion poll in Iraq must be quite a trick, so I always look at the results with plenty of questions in mind. That said, it's hard to deny that there's a positive trend in poll results over the last year or so.

The latest poll, reported today by BBC and co-sponsored by BBC, ABC, Japan's NHK and others, includes some good news.

The viability of the Iraqi government keeps on improving, as now just under 50% of Iraqis have confidence in the Baghdad government -- Is that more than in the US? Hmmmm -- up from just 39% at this time last year.

Both Shi'a and Sunni want the government to hold together, says the poll, but only about 10 percent of Kurds want a united Iraq.

The Iraqis' sense of security has improved dramatically:

Still, it is incorrect to call the American presence "popular," but there is a positive trend. The amount of people wanting the US to leave immediately is at 38 percent, compared to 35 percent who want them to stay until order is restored. By comparison, in 2006 70 percent of Iraqis wanted the Americans out within a year, according to a World Public Opinion poll.

An increased sense of security is evident in the poll, along with increased faith in the Iraqi army and police and greater frustration with the militia. All in all, that adds up to less fear of what will happen when the American's leave, so one shouldn't necessarily consider the fact that about 40% of Iraqis want us out now as bad news.