Republicans hold second rally
Yellow ribbons and U.S. flags were handed to passers-by and attendees of a pro-war rally Wednesday at the Taggart Student Center.
George Landrith, Virginia resident and president of the nonprofit organization Frontiers of Freedom, was the keynote speaker.
“I’m a believer that freedom is worth fighting for, and I want to do my small part to support those who believe in freedom,” he said.
Landrith covered the history of the Nazi occupation and compared it to the Iraqi war. He explained the job of the weapon inspectors, saying the only reason they were in Iraq is Saddam didn’t want the Marines there instead.
Landrith addressed 10 points in response to those who are opposed to the war – lies of the left, he called them.
Saddam wasn’t planning on disarming, he said, adding that Iraq and Saddam do pose a threat to the Middle East.
The United States isn’t involved in the war for any economic reasons, while the “idiot French prime minister” opposes war because of economic interests, he said. Twelve years ago the United States defeated Iraq but didn’t gain any oil, Landrith explained.
Another point he brought up was colonization. Landrith explained that colonization is “a grotesque lie.” The people who bring this up are “anti-American liars,” he said. The United States doesn’t have any colonies in Europe or Vietnam from past wars. Similarly, colonization is not the purpose of the Iraq war, he said. All America wants is enough land to bury its dead, he explained.
The authority of the United Nations isn’t important to the United States, Landrith said.
“The U.S. has a right to protect itself and quite frankly doesn’t give a damn what the U.N. says,” he said.
Many people think the war is President George W. Bush’s fault. All the world’s problems, such as poverty, are America’s fault, he said sarcastically. No one can find fault with Saddam.
Although the College Republicans rallied to support U.S. troops, member Guy Serbin carried the Israeli flag alongside that of the United States.
“America and Israel have a long relationship of mutual defense and support,” said Gabriel White, chairman of the College Republicans.
Wednesday’s rally was the second one hosted by the organization.
“A lot of people wanted us to do [the rally] again,” White said.
Tonya Brown, a USU sophomore, was present at the rally.
“I think that having supportive rallies are good, because it gives you the information you need to know what is going on, and it helps the troops know there are people who support them,” she said.
During the gathering, attendees could buy T-shirts featuring the words “Bomb Saddam” or a picture of the Iraqi leader with comments displaying the war in a comical sense.
-jannahz2002@yahoo.com