the zeitgeist report

This WSJ/NBC poll is interesting to me. It records peoples impressions and feelings about things without any basis in reality or the pesky world of facts. Was there something that, at one point, made the war right and now that people are dying, something which usually happens in a war, were the reasons for going to war wrong.

President Bush and fellow Republicans approach the fall midterm elections facing one political problem above all others: responding to rising public anxiety about Iraq.

The new Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll charts the toll that Iraq has taken on the Bush presidency. The survey shows the president's approval rating falling to 37%, a low for Mr. Bush, with disapproval highest for his handling of the war. His party's advantage on handling Iraq has narrowed amid public pessimism about the conflict, helping Democrats open a double-digit edge in voter preferences for controlling Congress.

An aggressive assault on Iraq is occuring as I write. Will a success in this offensive make the war right again? Polls both record and shape public opinion.