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| Lauren Phillips is a political science major and writes 'Phill in the Blank' for the Daily News. Her views do not necessarily agree with those of the newspaper. |
I don't remember the Gulf War very well.
I don't remember the news reports or how much of an impact the war had on Iraqi or American life.
The only justification I could muster up for this lack of understanding is that in 1991, I was 9 years old. I was too busy playing freeze tag to realize that, thousands of miles away, children my age could have been running for their lives.
I suppose I could have heavily researched these past conflicts the second I heard of current U.S. troubles with Iraq. I did not.
Now attacks have begun and I have no excuse to run away from the war. This time, it affects me in a completely different way.
People my age are in Iraq, Afghanistan and Kuwait defending the United States. While I remain focused on studying and working, fellow American college students stationed in the Middle East have to fight for their survival. They fight alongside sisters, brothers, mothers, fathers and friends of people I know.
I owe it to these people to care about the war.
Sometimes, people are too young to comprehend world events. I remind myself of this as I remember my mother folding towels in the living room during the Gulf War, trying to explain to me why I couldn't watch Nickelodeon. My parents wanted to watch the news. I did not understand that need until now.
Though 24-hour news broadcasts may get repetitive, I will keep watching.
At this point, I have not developed a stance on the war. I thought by the time the United States began striking Iraq, I would have a wave of emotions of either satisfaction or total disgust.
When I heard the first explosions while I watched the news Wednesday night, I still had no clue how I felt about the attacks.
I came to the understanding that I don't have to be for or against the war, but I can still remain concerned about the events that unfold.
My generation should be the most hungry for information because we have the most access to it. We can keep up-to-date on information through Internet, television, radio and print media.
Then again, there is nothing forcing us.
It is each person's choice as to how informed he or she wants to become during the course of the conflict. It is each person's choice where to turn to find the information.
Some will advocate the war; others will protest. Some will draw conclusions as to why we are going in, and whether those reasons are right or wrong.
These people should go with their instincts.
Instead of peace protesting or pro-war rallying, I choose to sit back and watch.
It may seem reactive or counteractive to some, but to me, it is the only way I know how to adapt to the conflict.
Maybe one day I'll be folding towels in the living room, arguing with my child over what to watch on television. No matter how much I try to explain to him or her why I want to watch the news, my child may not understand.
Children won't understand until it happens to them.
Even then, I still may not have decided what to think about the events of today.
But I'll be watching them as they happen.
Write to Lauren at lmphillips@bsu.edu
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