SEMO students react to Iraq war

Southeast Missouri State University students couldn't ignore the war, even on spring break.

Marcus Birk, 21, spent last week partying in Cancun, Mexico. But he still found time to watch the war with Iraq unfolding on CNN.

Birk, a senior who lives in the Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity house, said he and his friends eagerly sought out news of the war once the United States began bombing Baghdad. "The day after we started bombing, we had the TV on CNN all the time," he said. "We were checking up on it."

Birk and other students returned to classes at Southeast on Monday with the televised images of the war half a world away still on their minds.

Like the nation, students are divided about the war. Some favor it, some oppose it and others just wish it would go away.

On Monday, Southeast looked as peaceful as ever with students walking calmly across the campus intent on class work, not combat. Students staged no demonstrations for or against the war as occurred last week at a number of college campuses.

But they still eagerly expressed their opinions. Matt Imgrund, a 21-year-old junior and a fraternity brother of Birk, said the United States had to go to war.

Saddam Hussein is a danger to the United States and other nations with his arsenal of weapons, he said. "It needs to be done. There is no other way," he said.

He isn't alone. The American public's support for the war remains strong, but early optimism that the war will end quickly has started to wane, polls suggest.

An ABC-Washington Post poll shows that seven in 10 people support the war. But 53 percent of those polled on Sunday said they believe the war against Iraq could take months.

The war's all too personal for Sally Henry, 20, a sophomore in the Alpha Xi Delta sorority house on campus.

"It's scary," said Henry as she ate lunch at the University Center. Henry's uncle serves in the Army's Special Forces and was involved in the "Black Hawk Down" incident in Somalia that was later the subject of a movie.

Henry doesn't know if her uncle is in harm's way in this war, but she wonders what will be accomplished by all the fighting.

"What are we going to prove by doing this?" she asked.

"I really don't like war," said her friend, Jamie Nadler, 20, a junior in the same sorority house. Nadler said she hopes for a quick end to the conflict.

But even when the fighting stops, Nadler figures American troops will remain in Iraq for some time.

'Can't just stand there'

Matthew Long, 19, a freshman from Cape Girardeau, supports the war. "We can't just stand there," said Long, who spent part of spring break on a theater trip to New York City.

Long said the United States had to act because of Hussein's arsenal of deadly weapons, including biological weapons, and his willingness to use them.

But the war has its detractors too.

Carla Terry, 23, a senior from Bloomfield, Mo., said Bush was wrong to go to war.

"I feel that Saddam Hussein could have been dealt with peacefully through the United Nations, but President Bush has failed to respect the opinion of the U.N., along with almost every European nation and many, many U.S. citizens," she said.

"I don't want war," said Yuma Wakimoto, 20, a freshman from Japan. He worries the war will mean increased visa restrictions for international students in the United States.

Yuki Ono, 19, another freshman from Japan, also doesn't support the war. "I don't support President Bush, but I like the United States," he said as he lunched at the University Center.

Other students have sought to avoid any talk of the war.

"When I see it on TV, I actually turn the channel," said Rebecca Clark, 20, a sophomore who lives in Towers South residence hall.

Russell Crawford, 20, a sophomore living in the new residence hall, has little enthusiasm for the war and wishes the United States had secured more international backing before sending in the troops.

"I really don't think too many Americans wanted to go into war," he said.

mbliss@semissourian.com

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