911 - Polls 2011

Polls

(09/07/11) -

Americans Expect New Attack Similar to 9/11 in Their Lifetimes

Most respondents agree with the 9/11 Commission and reject the notion that a controlled demolition took place in the World Trade Center.

A majority of Americans believe that a terrorist attack similar in scope and magnitude to 9/11 will take place again in U.S. soil, a new Angus Reid Public Opinion poll has found.

The online survey of a representative sample of 1,787 American adults also shows that respondents are divided in the effectiveness of the military intervention in Afghanistan that was launched by the United States government after the events of 9/11.

9/11

Two thirds of respondents (66%) believe that the commission that investigated the events of Sept. 11, 2001 was right in its conclusion that an attack was carried out by 19 hijackers who were members of the al-Qaeda terrorist organization, led by Osama bin Laden.

Only 12 per cent of respondents openly disagree with the conclusion of the 9/11 Commission, and 22 per cent are undecided.

A small proportion of Americans find several assertions that have been made about 9/11 as credible, including the notion that United Airlines Flight 93, which crashed in Pennsylvania, was shot down (16%), that the collapse of the World Trade Center was the result of a controlled demolition (14%), and that no airplane actually crashed at the Pentagon on Sept. 11 (11%).

Even fewer respondents believe that Osama bin Laden is alive (9%) and that no airplanes crashed on the World Trade Center on 9/11 (5%).

Terrorism

More than half of Americans (58%) think that an attack similar in scope and magnitude to 9/11 will take place in the United States again in their lifetimes. Republicans (66%) are more likely than Independents (59%) and Democrats (52%) to feel this way.

More than a third of Americans (36%) are “very concerned” or “moderately concerned” about becoming the victim of a terrorist attack, while three-in-five (60%) are” not too concerned” or “not concerned at all.” Democrats (43%) are more worried about this possibility than Republicans (36%) or Independents (33%).

Americans are divided in their assessment of the military intervention that was launched in Afghanistan as a result of 9/11, with 44 per cent considering a success and 36 per cent deeming it a failure. Republicans are more likely to see the military campaign as a success (48%) than Democrats and Independents (both at 33%).

Analysis

There has been little change in the views of Americans on the 9/11 attacks since the survey conducted by Angus Reid Public Opinion in March 2010 after Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad claimed that the 9/11 attacks were a “fabrication”. The core group of Americans who question certain elements of the official story—including the conclusions of the 9/11 commission and the notion that “many people” in the U.S government had prior knowledge of the plot—does not reach one-in-six respondents.

As the military intervention in Afghanistan draws to a close, the public is clearly divided. Republicans are more likely to say that the war was a success, while almost half of Democrats and Independents claim it was a failure.
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(03/21/10) -

Most Americans Reject 9/11 Conspiracy Theories

(Angus Reid Global Monitor) – Few people in the United States agree with some of the allegations that have been made in relation to the events of 9/11, according to a poll by Angus Reid Public Opinion. Only 15 per cent of respondents think claims that the collapse of the World Trade Center was the result of a controlled demolition are credible.

(Angus Reid Global Monitor) – Few people in the United States agree with some of the allegations that have been made in relation to the events of 9/11, according to a poll by Angus Reid Public Opinion. Only 15 per cent of respondents think claims that the collapse of the World Trade Center was the result of a controlled demolition are credible.

In addition, 15 per cent think United Airlines Flight 93 was shot down, 13 per cent believe no airplane actually crashed at the Pentagon, and six per cent agree with the claim that no airplanes crashed into the World Trade Center and that the images seen on television were altered.

Al-Qaeda operatives hijacked and crashed four airplanes in the U.S. on Sept. 11, 2001, killing nearly 3,000 people. In July 2004, the federal commission that investigated the events of 9/11 concluded that "none of the measures adopted by the U.S. government from 1998 to 2001 disturbed or even delayed the progress of the al-Qaeda plot" and pointed out government failures of "imagination, policy, capabilities, and management."

In October 2001, U.S. president George W. Bush ordered the invasion of Afghanistan, claiming that there would be "no distinction between the terrorists who committed these acts and those who harbour them." The conflict began in October 2001, after the Taliban regime refused to hand over al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden without evidence of his participation in the 9/11 terrorist attacks in New York and Washington.

Earlier this month, U.S. attorney general Eric Holder discussed the fate of bin Laden, saying, "The possibility of capturing him alive is infinitesimal. He will be killed by us, or he will be killed by his own people so that he is not captured by us. We know that. (…) The possibility [of capture] simply does not exist."

Polling Data

Many things have been said and written about the events of 9/11. For each of the following statements, please say whether you deem them credible or not credible.

	Credible	Not credible	Not sure
The collapse of the World Trade Center was the result of a controlled demolition	15%	74%	11%
United Airlines Flight 93, which crashed in Pennsylvania, was shot down	15%	62%	22%
No airplane actually crashed at the Pentagon on Sept. 11	13%	76%	11%
No airplanes crashed into the World Trade Center—the images seen on television were altered	6%	87%	7%

Source: Angus Reid Public Opinion 
Methodology: Online interviews with 1,007 American adults, conducted on Mar. 9 and Mar. 10, 2010. Margin of error is 3.1 per cent.

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