Why prefer REST over SOAP?

Question

If I need a web service to pass back and forth a complex object, is there a reason I should prefer SOAP over REST? Here is an example of the possible SOAP message:

Answer 1

Your first requirement of "passing back and forth a complex object" constrains your architecture to eliminate many of the benefits of REST. SOAP is designed for accessing remote objects, REST is not. REST supports passing media-types as simple as text/plain, which is far more primitive than dealing with an object.

If you haven't seen it already, this question and its answers cover most of the REST vs SOAP issues.