Dear Editor,

"To announce that there must be no criticism of the president, or that we are to stand by the president, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public."   -Theodore Roosevelt 1918

            For the past week or so, I have been watching with rapt attention the events unfolding both in the world and on our small campus. I have seen chalk on sidewalks, read the message board discussions, and listened to conversations in the lunch room about this war. When the war began, I felt hopeless. The war that I did not want to happen has happened, even after so many people protested against it. Then the backlash began. People began saying that if you were anti-war, you were anti-patriot and anti-troop. I will explain to you why this line of logic is wrong and explain my grievances about this war.

            I have lived my entire life in a military family. I could spend lots of time and space telling you all which relatives of mine fought and died in which wars, but for brevity, I will say that my mother, father, and my step-father were active military duty for almost my entire life. I also know many people who are in the military, and are within the borders of Iraq as we speak. I support the troops in their job, what they have to do, because of orders from above. I support the troops as peacekeepers as well, as they have been around the world.  Just because you have a military doesn't mean you have to bash people about with it. I also support the troops when the war is just.

            I believe that this war is not just. When I see reports of the US government allocating oil contracts to Halliburton, a huge republican contributor and its former CEO being VP Dick Cheney, I question the government's line of "this war is not for oil." We are definitely taking down his regime, but in doing so giving more people the reason to hate and plan attacks on the United States. That is the last thing I want, more people with more fanatical anti-American sentiment because we are proving people like Osama Bin-Laden correct.

            Another issue is people accusing anti-war protesters as being unpatriotic. It is our right as Americans to petition the government, as stated in the first amendment. I do not have to follow the government's line of crap no more than you have to follow mine. With this in mind, I will say that I will not blindly support a war that I do not agree with just because the government says I should. I will also support our troops today, tomorrow, and after they come home. I find it humorous that so many people who are pro-war and "support our troops" forget  them so quickly once the troops come home and have to face the psychological effects of war or when the government screws them out of money owed to them. I am as patriotic as the person next to me, not because I regurgitate the governments mantra, but because I speak freely, and with conviction. The blood of countless people have been shed so that I can say these words… but countless people's blood have been shed for unjust actions as well, not every war is patriotic.

Aaron Cluka ‘03