Women in uniform are noticeably less supportive of the war in Iraq and more pessimistic about its outcome than their male colleagues, according to the Military Times Poll.In the poll, 63 percent of the men said they believe the United States should have gone to war in Iraq, but only 42 percent of the women believe that.
Among men, 65 percent approve of the way President Bush is handling the war; only 48 percent of women do. And only 13 percent of the men polled think success in Iraq is unlikely, while 22 percent of women hold that pessimistic view.
Support for the Iraq war among women in the military more closely mirrors the attitudes of the general population, where support now falls below 50 percent in most recent polls.
On issues of job satisfaction and morale, women appear to be little different than their male counterparts and nearly as likely to say they would re-enlist if given a chance today.
But one issue on which there is a clear difference is sexual harassment.
Forty-four percent of the women responding to the Military Times Poll said that they had been sexually harassed while in service, compared to only 4 percent of the men.
Comparisons to the civilian world are difficult because a wide range of studies has produced a wide range of results. But the military figures for women appear to be on the low end of the commonly quoted civilian ranges.
Further, the Military Times Poll results are lower than previous studies done by the military. A 1988 Defense Department survey found that 64 percent of women had been harassed. By 1995, that figure had fallen to 55 percent.
In the Military Times Poll, 13 percent of female respondents said they had been sexually assaulted while in the military.
There are no comparable figures for the entire civilian work force, but commonly quoted figures for sexual assaults on college campuses, for example, run in the range of 20 percent to 25 percent.
The media have covered the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq with an intensity and intimacy not seen since Vietnam.But this newfound attention has left service members with decidedly mixed views of the media and their role.
Less than half — 47 percent — of respondents to the Military Times Poll said that in wartime, the media should publish or broadcast news stories that suggest the war is not going well.
And when asked who should determine whether such stories are published or broadcast, nearly half said that decision should be left to government or military leaders, not the media itself. Only 35 percent said the media should decide.
Official government policy forbids taking photographs of flag-draped coffins as they arrive at places such as Dover Air Force Base, Del. But 64 percent of the Military Times sample thought such photographs should be allowed.
“People need to realize there are dead soldiers coming home,” said Army Sgt. Johanna Matlock, a lab technician at Fort Sam Houston, Texas. “The general public doesn’t totally understand the cost.”
But some troops have misgivings. “Who knows what the photos will be used for in the future?” said Army Sgt. Kirk H. Ericson of Schofield Barracks, Hawaii.
Two-thirds of respondents believed it is acceptable to publish recognizable images of wounded troops if the families had been notified or if the wounded gave permission, which is what current rules allow.
But a slim majority — 51 percent — balked at ever publishing photos of recognizable dead troops, while 39 percent said such photos are OK after families have been notified.
While people in uniform have a mixed view of the media, they believe the media view of the military is generally favorable. Only one-quarter believe the media have a poor or very poor opinion of the armed forces.
-- Robert Hodierne
