I just returned from a wonderfully relaxing ski trip this spring break. The only downside is this stuffy nose I caught on the slopes and, of course, the war.
During our trip we discussed the issue, but few people were willing to talk for long because war is such an unpleasant topic. Silence is akin to acquiescence. Let's talk.
In President Bush's speech to the nation on March 6, 2003, he interchanged the current war on Iraq and the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. Eight times reporters left those remarks unchallenged. Yet the Bush administration, while linking the two implicitly, has thus far carefully and completely avoided saying that there are direct ties between Hussein and Osama bin Laden. To say so explicitly would be a bald lie, a lie easily refuted because there is no evidence linking the two (hard as the federal government has struggled to make that connection).
Rather, Bush associates Iraqi ideology with all terrorist groups including al Qaeda. One of these \evil"" organizations has recently attacked Americans on Sept. 11, 2001. The other is guilty by association. But Hussein and bin Laden rarely associate and can be quoted as calling each other infidels.
If the attacks of Sept. 11 seem tenuous justification for this pre-emptive war, we must seek the true objectives of this administration for war.
The simplest answer is sometimes the truth. Political and economic control of one of the most frustratingly oil-rich, rogue nations in the Middle East is not a small prize. Indeed it may even be won. But let us not delude ourselves with the notion that this bloodshed will increase freedom or prevent further violence.
As personal conversations about the war become uncomfortable, our press is increasingly restricted. A letter sent this week to Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and signed by 12 Republican congressmen requested that reporters' questions be censored to prevent a decrease of troop morale. An unjust war may lower troop morale.
As the views presented to us in the media become increasingly stifled and similar I encourage you to ask probing questions about a situation that seems too foreign and too big to handle. Frank, honest discussion allows us to think critically and be a vital part of our government. Keep talking especially about the war--our freedom depends on it.
Heather Allen
UW-Madison senior
