Teach-in sparks war discussions, debates global impact of US war

Nearly 60 students and faculty members gathered in the Oak Room of the Indiana Memorial Union Wednesday afternoon to participate in a teach-in sponsored by the History Department, "History, Peace, and War." The teach-in sparked discussions about the impact of the U.S.-led war with Iraq on the rest of the world.\nTo represent different parts of the world, the eight panelists ranged from professors of Latin American history to East Asian history. The professors gave brief introductions about their expertise and concerns before the audience was allowed the floor for questions.\nA few topics discussed covered endangered civil liberties in the United States, post-war Iraq and current anti-Americanism felt throughout the world. \nOne international student asked the professors how they teach their students about anti-Americanism in the classroom. U.S. history professor David Thelen said he learned at a conference that European teachers believe it's nearly impossible to teach American history today in other parts of the world because of the intensity of anti-Americanism -- something they had never experienced before. Thelen said there are two questions that don't need to be answered: the ability of the U.S. military to defeat the Iraqis and the popularity of Saddam Hussein.\n"These are not the things we should be talking about, though it's all the media is covering," he said. "I think it's important to think about what we're seeing and what we're not seeing on television."\nThelen said we should be talking about the vision of the future and the question that needs to be asked is how 30 or 40 elitists dragged the entire world into a war.\n"I've resisted conspiracy theories most of my life," he said, "but it's hard to escape one in this case."\nAnother student asked professor Larry Friedman about what the war on Iraq and the war on terrorism signify for civil liberties at home. Friedman said all Americans need to be familiar with Patriot Acts 1 and 2, the legislation passed in response to the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, and students should be aware of international students on campus, phone taps and detention of naturalized citizens.\n"The Patriot Act was passed with minimal debate and not a single congressperson could admit to reading through all the provisions," he said. "One question we have to ask is not only the nature of these laws, but what they're doing to the democratic process if even the representatives, much less the public, does not know the provisions of it."\nFriedman said it is difficult to undo something like the Patriot Act. \n"Only one of the axis of evil has been dealt with so far," he said, "and whether this war on terror goes on or not, it's hard to undo this process."\nProfessor of East Asian history Jeff Wasserstrom said the public will likely pay more attention to North Korea after military action in Iraq dies down.\n"In some ways it's comforting that there haven't been pushes towards war there immediately," Wasserstrom said. "On the other hand, it's worrisome that there just isn't attention being paid there because of the distraction. I think it is someplace where there needs to be intended direct involvement of the U.S. in conversation with Japan, China and South Korea to try to diffuse that."\nJunior Rebecca Cushman said she attended the teach-in to learn about issues regarding the war. One of Cushman's professors was a panelist.\n"I figured the best way to learn about the issues regarding the war would be from professors," she said. "I felt like it would be a good source of information."\nCushman said the teach-in raised almost as many questions as answers and that is a part of the questioning process. \n"Any form of discussion like this one in an academic atmosphere is important because everyone has a different understanding of what's going on," she said.