USU students react to Bush’s plan for Iraq
USU students responded to Bush’s speech to the nation about sending troops back into Iraq to ensure democratic reform.
When asked about his views on the war before this address, Steve Lindsey, a junior majoring in mechanical engineering, said, “I have always been adamantly against this war. The government played off America’s fears to justify an unjust war. There was no real threat of terrorism.”
He said the government turned Iraq into a “breeding ground for extremists,” and it’s only going to lead to more and more violence.
Others thought differently about the news. Nick Hancey, a sophomore majoring in business, said, “I think it’s good that something is being done to fix the situation. Bush needed to go big or go home.”
Kate Cutler, a sophomore majoring in conservation and restoration ecology, said the government needs to “clean up what they started.” This could take a long time, she said, but the troops need to stay until the job is done correctly.
Lindsey said adding more troops won’t do anything.
“It’s the same gross error we made in Vietnam,” he said. “We’ve just created more people who hate us.”
Cutler said this war has many similarities with Vietnam, and that shines a bad light not only for President Bush, but for the country as well.
When the government talked about weapons of mass destruction, she said, there was a miscommunication with the military leaders, but they “blew it out of proportion,” sending the United States to war.
Courtney Pace, a junior majoring in accounting, said, “I don’t see why President Bush would make the effort for no reason. Obviously he thinks there is a need to send troops back in, and I trust him.”
Bush has the right intentions, he said. He’s just trying to create peace and stop the terrorism.
Lindsey said people need to understand the chaos going on in Iraq. He said there is no winning solution.
“We’re fighting flames by adding fuel, and it’s not going to work,” he said. “I feel more vulnerable now than I did four years ago.”
If the definition of terrorism is killing civilians, he said, then who is the bigger terrorist? There will be more needless deaths, he said.
Hancey said, “If they would’ve left, it would’ve been less effective. It’s OK to be on one side or the other as long as it gets resolved.”
It needs to be resolved quickly, he said, so it doesn’t continue to cause problems. Hancy said it was a bad situation and there wasn’t a perfect solution. Something needed to be done, he said.
Cutler said she thinks people will look back on this and see that Bush did what he thought was best for everyone involved and he made the right decision.
“The troops are there, and they know what they’re fighting for,” she said.
Pace said the troops went in there and started to reform the government and it went awry, so our country needs to stay until there is stable reform.
“Whether you agree or not, you need to support your government and whatever will ensure America’s freedom,” he said.
-shanmccl@cc.usu.edu