Losing the faith.

The results of a poll asking if Afghan citizens still had faith in the government was reported on 9 Feb. 09. A mere 40 percent believed that the government was going in the right direction. This is a huge decrease from 77 percent in 2005. The poll also asked if the citizens had faith in the United States. The optimism dropped from 88 percent in 2005 to 47 percent today. (http://abcnews.go.com/WN/International/story?id=6822139&page=1)

The increased fighting has to be a major reason for the drop in confidence but I do not see how it can be blamed on the U.S. Washington is completely behind the struggle militarily and financially. Defeating the Taliban will bring confidence back to the people of Afghanistan. President Obama's 7,000 soldier increase should help. (http://www.voanews.com/english/2009-02-05-voa75.cfm)