PDA

View Full Version : From a west coast high school paper



wrbones
12-16-02, 12:36 AM
From a high school newspaper.

I deleted the names......


Posted Monday, December 2
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Junior ______ _______ walks into the girls' bathroom expecting to find the usual "call so-and-so for a good time" notes scrawled on the stall doors. Instead, she encounters a shocking proclamation: "Fighting for peace is like f—king for virginity."

Although this message is only a small activist reaction to a possible war against Iraq, it reminds students that the effects of war are felt not only overseas, but in the United States, as well.

Earlier this year, the Bush administration announced plans to expand its "War on Terror," stating that Iraq holds weapons of mass destruction and that Iraqi president Saddam Hussein poses a serious threat to national security. Furthermore, President Bush claimed that Hussein is linked to the terrorist group believed to be responsible for the Sept. 11 attacks.

However, some Washington outsiders claim that the war against Iraq is really a fight for control of the country's vast oil reserves, and still others call the impending conflict a diversionary tactic to draw attention away from the nation's flailing economy.

"No mother raises her children to be killed."
— social studies teacher


Although the reasons for invading Iraq may be cloudy, the repercussions of war are crystal clear.

"War is a costly enterprise," <another> social studies teacher said. "There may be a lack of resources for educational and social programs (if we go to war), and if students and their families depend on those programs, war could have a major effect on their lives."

A student organizer of the International Action Center, agreed with -----. "The huge war cost would take away from education and health care," ----- said. "It would definitely affect students."

Recent involvement in international wars has proven very costly. In today's dollars, World War II cost $4.71 trillion and the Vietnam War cost $572 billion, according to a Sept. 26, 2001 article on the Star Tribune Web site (www.startribune.com).

Economics teacher --- ------ said a war against Iraq might cost the United States even more than previous wars in the long run.

"Even though total man commitment was so much larger for Vietnam, the expenditures for a war on Iraq may exceed the expense for a year's war in Vietnam because of the increased cost of technology," he said.

<the teacher> estimated the total cost of one year of fighting to be between $12 and $15 billion. While the initial estimate may not seem pricey, it is only the tip of the iceberg. As was the case with the Vietnam War, the United States could be paying for this war for many years to come.

War with Iraq would have more immediate effects on students, as well.

"For some families, there is a fear that any day their son or husband could be gone," a junior student said. "When (soldiers) leave, their families don't know when and if they'll ever come back. That makes the reality of death come sooner than the day that family member actually dies."



Social studies teacher <a third teacher> she said she worries that her two sons may be drafted.

"I will be a nervous wreck (if the United States goes to war) because I have sons of military age," she said. "No mother raises her children to be killed."

The risks of war are much higher for some students than others.

"I have family that lives in Baghdad," another junior student said. "I may never get a chance to see them."

Economics teacher ----- -------- said people often forget that many innocent Iraqis would be killed if the United States began intense bombing raids.

"We have to keep in mind that there are many Iraqi civilians who don't support Saddam," a student said. "We shouldn't assume that every Iraqi is the same." the student added that war generally results in long-term problems.

"Many innocent people from the Persian Gulf War died from post-war poor sanitary conditions," he said. "War has a legacy."

War would also take a lasting emotional toll on students, according to social studies teacher < A fourth teacher>.

"Students are pretty keen to some of the hypocrisies in the government," she said. "Some students will probably lose faith in the government. Students might feel like their voices aren't being heard."

<another teacher> added that people should be aware of the government's attempt to guilt trip Americans into supporting the president and his decisions.

"Bush is hyping up the people for a 'War on Terrorism,'" he said. "He's enlisting the belief that if you don't agree with him, you are anti-American."

This attempt to label war dissenters as unpatriotic has already removed many obstacles from the president's path to war. Last month, Congress approved a bill giving Bush authority to invade Iraq under certain conditions. Any power Democratics once had has dissipated following the Nov. 5 elections, when Republicans gained control of both the House of Representatives and the Senate.

With a Republican majority in Congress, international opposition became Bush's final impediment; however, when the Security Council of the United Nations unanimously approved a plan to search for weapons sites in Iraq on Nov. 8, that opposition melted.

As an attack on Iraq looms closer, some students are turning to activism to make their voices heard.

On Oct. 26, simultaneous peace marches took place in San Francisco and Washington, D.C. that attracted crowds of 40,000 and 100,000, respectively, according to the Nov. 6 issue of SF Weekly. Sophomore ---- ----, who attended the San Francisco rally, said she was pleased to see a large number of student activists.

"I thought it was really important that these different groups that fight for different causes came together," she said. "And while their causes were represented, they became a peace movement."

The last time the United States saw an overwhelming opposition to war was during the Vietnam era, according to one teacher. In the 1960s, students reacted by burning draft cards and participating in protests and rallies.

Though the general protest actions taken by students against the Vietnam War are similar to actions students are taking today, she said she believes there is a key different between the two eras.

"As a human being, not having a voice is a deathe sentence to your spirit."
— social studies teacher


"Most people today aren't always thinking about political issues but mostly about economic survival, thus making (their actions) less radical," <one teacher> said.

But she added that a lack of radicalism doesn't mean a lack of activism. "There's a greater reaction to the war on Iraq," she said. "There's a greater sense that this is coming out of nowhere and the students disagree with it."

----- said students can get involved to express their opinions on war in many ways. "Students can volunteer with organizations, coordinate teach-ins and organize walkouts on the day the U.S. starts bombing," ----- said.

---, also a member of Lowell's Amnesty International, has thought of an idea to help students get their voices heard. "For Amnesty International we're trying to start a high school referendum," --- said. "It's to show that Congress didn't represent (students) when they voted to attack Iraq."

----- agreed that it is very important for students to express their opinions. "Despite the futility we feel, public opinion has a huge impact on government," ------ said. "A display of your opinion is a powerful way to express your feelings."

----- stressed the importance of students voicing their opinions in response to Bush's planned war of Iraq.

"We live in a democratic republic in which people have rights," ---- said. "It is important that young people make their voices heard when the world faces a potential crisis like this."

----- added that students should express their feelings towards the war, no matter how they feel.

"As a human being, not having a voice is a death sentence to your spirit," she said.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

wrbones
12-16-02, 12:43 AM
I was tryin' to be nice. This was the first draft.

An opinion.

I was doing a search on another topic and ran across your school's website.I noticed your article, "When War Hits Home." I have only one problem with the story as posted. It lacks balance. There is only one point of view presented. When one point of view predominates a news story, it would seem to me, that it is no longer news, but propoganda. Opinions are valid, but they are not news. Objectivity would seem to be more appropriate.
There is no presentation of other facts in this case. The Iraqi government has consistently violated the sanctions passed down by a world wide court of law since it's defeat in the Gulf War. They have consistently fired missles and tracked NATO aircraft in order to fire missles at those aircraft who were assigned to their positions by NATO and the United Nations. Iraqi has been proven time and again to be supporters of, and offering refuge to, those who planned and backed Al Queda terrorists in the attacks on the World Trade Center , the Pentagon and other sucessful attempts to kill American citizens on our own soil.

Protest. It is your right. Tell of organisations against war. It is your right. It is your right to present the news as you see it. That does not make any person's or organisation's actions morally or ethically correct.

Your freedoms are what I served for. I have personally known men who died to protect your freedoms. I have been disabled protecting your freedoms...and doing my duty as a Marine..obeying orders... as have many others.

My opinion. It is only that. If you protest anything or attempt to change anything without concern for those affected by your protest, you have attempted to escape responsibilty for your actions in excercising your freedoms by not supporting those affected by your protests.

The morale of the men and women in the Armed Services of this Nation are affected by your protests. This causes them to make mistakes and to be thinking of something else when they need their thoughts most about them.

Execise your freedoms. Do not forget your responsibilities.

Present any story you wish. But attempt to present a balanced view.

signed

BADAMS
12-16-02, 09:09 AM
Most high schoolers these days are very individually oriented. They only acknowledge those things that could result in them losing their freedoms. (phone, computer, car, seeing their boyfriends/girlfriends) Very seldom do they take in the big picture of what may happen in the future if we do not take a stand now. It is up to the educators not only in the school system, but also in the churches, sport teams, and relatives to inform children of the sacrifices men like you and my grandfather have made to the great nation where they have a right to print this.
My son, 14, and I have had many discussions on wars, rights, and freedoms and although he still thinks the world revolves around him he appreciates and is grateful for what our ancestors have done in the past. This last spring he told me he has decided to join the Army. I told him that was fine if that is what he wanted. After a summer and fall on discussions about Iwo Jima, Tarrawa, and Inchon he has decided to be one of the few and the proud. Or the best as he put it.
Opinions can change. Its up to those of us that understand it to present it to the younger generation.

firstsgtmike
12-16-02, 10:55 AM
I guess I have two comments.

One is that the social studies teacher quoted must be an Iraqi becuse she is worried about her two sons being drafted. There has not been a draft in the US for more than 30 years.

Two. By definition, a student is there to learn, not to lead.

eddief
12-17-02, 12:41 PM
As Americans we need to defend the right to free speech
for all Americans. I applaud these students for getting away
from the sheep mentality that has overcome this nation
since 9-11-01. President Bush and his cabinet have been playing the propaganda game as well.

wrbones
12-17-02, 12:53 PM
Propaganda is a integral part of warfare and politics. This article was presented as news.

Just my opinion, but I thought it was rather one sided.

Although students, and high school reporters in particularare notorious for their idealism, I thought the piece was a bit farther to the left than was meet for objectivity of any kind.