FOCUS
With the recent Iraqi invasion of
Kuwait, and the subsequent United
States reaction, the idea of American
involvement in foreign crises is
again brought to light.
Students at campuses nationwide
have spoken out both in favor of and
against this country's involvement
in such affairs. Is sending American
troops to protect foreign lands a
good idea? Read on.
Yet another
generation of
wasted youth
By Robwrt Anglen
• uvmw Moram
ONonaCoNago
The windaar^hitinning to hiow
frffi tuning tJt bhm* to
th> mart fHMratkn tffrapKihi
(tiiilhiiwwrt vatu,
lb protect “our" aaoote in tha
'SNUB unUpv* nA^IHHaBOUr J^USO UfuSUKv"
adaaafcsafdirKtivwapuiiatlraq
AlUancoe «m uadi. Hbotafao
novo taken, fc—^ oonctioni
^PBSPB WMrtltutold* PpQDMUpKOdft BFBB
mated. Diplomacy fiailad. Shots
were find. And the military raaarve
was activated**" apintMtaaQi
(Iba last tims the reserve waa com*
minrinniri wee 1968 in an inrigntf
icant country called Vietnam.)
Domestically, the attitude if
nothing abort of congratulatory far
Buihb quick actions toward dtp
ping the “mad dog" Saddam
Huamin, Imqh leader.
Natkmaliam haa been aold to a
tainted majority, taught to hate
throughout Meta* Now, flag-wav
ing pride can be directed et Iraq,
mootly becauae we don't undar
atand them and it ia more conve
nient to hate than to kern.
The fact ia, the aaaeta "we" are
protecting in Kuwait are two
things only—oil and oil refineries.
Tb use this as an excuse for military
intervention ia ludicrous. A very
■mail percentage of our oil comae
man Auwau io oegin wiUL uopoo*
pie really naad to die fiar big oil prof
it*? Already we pay far the privi
lege of having oil. Oaa pricee in
America averaged $1 JO a gallon
ngni inar ua cnai tapn
Nobody owea anything to an oil
If oil companiea want to
fight a war, they should hire their
own army — not buy the United
Stataa armed farcea.
And ifhy chance the winds of war
blow past us it would do good not
to praiaa Buah far hk handling of
the situation but to question bow
we allowed him to push us so dose
to the brink in the first place.
PRO
ARIZONA
Will POWERS STATE PR£SS ARIZONA STATE U
Caring enough to send the very biggest... Arizona Stale U student Rick Miller signs a giant
greeting card, which was sent to American troops in Saudi Arabia. The card was designed by
two ASU dorm residents, who wanted to show support tor the U S. military in the Middle East.
Please, Mr. Postman . . . Students at the
U of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, wishing to
write to U.S. military serving in the
Persian Gulf can do so with stationery and
envelopes provided by a campus organi
zation. The Kaydettes, a group that serves
to support Army KOTC cadets, purchased
the stationery in the hopes that students
would be more willing to write soldiers
overseas. “Many of the letters will be given
to those who aren’t receiving mail from
home,’ said Sgt. Maj Carol Cochran, a for
mer public relations chair for the
Kaydettes ‘Mail call is the most impor
tant time of day to a soldier overseas," said
Lt. Col. Donald Crabtree. The letters
from university students will demon
strate to them that someone cares.’ ■
Melissa Tucker, The Crimson White, U. of
Alabama, Tuscaloosa
Indiana
Bag it . . . Students at Indiana U.,
Bloomington, are collecting Ziploc plas
tic storage bags to send to troops over
seas. Military personnel need the bags
to protect their personal hygiene items
from desert insects, said Barry Porter,
of the Red Cross “This is our chance to
help them find an item that they are
specifically requesting,” said Porter.
“Plastic storage bags are in demand." If
the university gathers 42 square feet of
boxes of the plastic bags, the Red Cross
agreed to send the packages overseas.
“Were not involved with the politics,"
said IU sophomore Melissa Halaschak,
organizer of the baggie drive. ‘We’re just
trying to make the lives of the men and
women who are forced to be there a little
easier.’* Rebecca Velten, Indiana Daily
Student, Indiana U., Bloomington
CON
IOWA
200 points Ol tight. . . Close to 200 U. of
Iowa students, faculty and community
members of all ages gathered for a silent
vigil in September to protest United
States military involvement in the
Middle East. The vigil began with a
short speech from Dennis Gilbert of the
Wesley Foundation, a Methodist stu
dent organization. “As a group . we
were divided on many aspects of the sit
uation in the Middle East, though we
were united in thinking military solu
tions to conflict are no longer viable,"
Gilbert said. “What concerns us most of
all is the implication that the military
involvement has popular support — we
have heard very little humanitarian
concern,' he added. ■ Jennifer Glynn,
The Daily Iowan, U. of Iowa
KENTUCKY
Beers lor bull’s-eyes ... In the desert -
hke heat. Western Kentucky U. junior
John Morgan took aim at one of the
most infamous figures in recent his
tory As Morgan fired his projectile, he
narrowed his eyes and breathed out
beer-tinged breath. His dart hit the
mark — Saddam Hussein was dead.
For his heroic efforts Morgan was
given not a medal of honor, but a beer
from the Fajita Factory. About 30 stu
dents gathered at the Bowling Green,
Ky., restaurant to "kill” Saddam
Hussein. Participants paid 25 cents to
throw two darts at a picture of the
Iraqi leader, in hopes of winning a
beer “I think the board represents peo
ple's views about things," said sopho
more Chad Chilton. ■ Paul Baldwin,
College Heights Herald, Western
Kentucky U.
‘American’ oil
is worth the
price of war
By Kay Gervais
■ The Nichols Worth
Nfcftolls State U.
WeVe heard a lot of complaints
that the United States’ main objec
tive in the Middle East crisis is not
to re establish the sovereign state
of Kuwait or to protect our ally,
Saudi Arabia, but to protect
American oil interests.
Our main objective, after protect
ing American lives in the Middle
East, thould be our oil interests.
We import anywhere from 20 to
40 percent of our oQ supply. What
would happen if Saddam Hussein
gained control ofmost of the world’s
oil?
now wouia we iuei our cm* r now
would we warn our homee? How
would we transport food, dothas—
or anything for that matter? How
would aociety survive without envi
ronmentally dangerous non
biodegradable petroleum-based
products?
This crisis should be solved
quickly. If diplomatic measures
aren't effective, then any means
svaflahls to put attend toHusssmb
reign of terror should be used.
If military force ie neoaesary to
stop the insane plans of a man who
used the wealth of his country to
fight an eight-year territorial war
with Iran, then so be it
Some American people seem cau
tiously supportive of President
Bush's decisions pertaining to this
crisis. And with good reason whan
comparing tire Iraqi "crisis* with
the Vietnam 'conflict”
And there are those who, without
question, will support any military
action America takes repudless of
circumstance or consequence.
Seeing whafs at stake, Americans
cant afford to turn their hades on
this one.
•Aneella Champagne of The
Nichofis Worth contributed to thie
column.
CALIFORNIA
wutm mm. daily bruin u of California, los angeles
Oil and war don't mix. .. More than 300 activists, many of them students, protested near the U
ot California. Los Angeles, against U S. involvement in the Middle East. Claiming that the main
purpose was to protect oil interests, one protester remarked. "A better solution would be for us
to change our lifestyles so we don't need the oil."