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St. Cloud State University
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ROTC staff shares thoughts on war
By Joe Palmersheim
Published:
Thursday, March 20, 2003
Media Credit: Joe Palmersheim
Master Sgt. Jeff Vos watches TV coverage of the events leading up to the war with Iraq in the SCSU ROTC office in the basement of Stewart Hall.
With the events unfolding in the Persian Gulf region, one would expect the SCSU ROTC office to be bustling with activity and movement.
However, the opposite is true, the office remains quiet and calm.
Maj. David Getz, a 15-year Army veteran, is in charge of the ROTC office on the SCSU campus. When asked for his opinions on what is going on in the world, he was careful to stress that the views he put forth were his own opinions and not those of the ROTC.
"We have a democratically elected president," Getz said, "and the military is controlled by civilians, which most people don't know. If I had access to the information that President Bush did, I could probably give you a better answer."
Although the ROTC will probably not be affected by the upcoming war, active duty members of the armed forces will be. Getz, an active duty Army Ranger from Roseau, Minn., used to teach desert warfare techniques.
"We're going to conflict with Iraq at this point and I will support [President Bush] 100 percent," he said.
Another soldier who works in the ROTC office had similar views to those of Major Getz. Master Sgt. Jeff Vos has been in the U.S. Army for 24 years and has been involved with the ROTC for three years.
"Things have been pretty straightforward down here [in the ROTC office]," Vos said. "We know what can happen. You always know when you sign on the dotted line what the possibilities are. Nobody wants to go to war, but at the same time, with what we do, that's a chance we take."
When asked what they thought of the protests that had taken place in St. Cloud and around the world, both men voiced their support.
"That's part of the reason we're in the Army -- to protect the Constitution," Vos said. "They have a right to protest however they want to. Peaceful demonstrations, peaceful protests, that's part of the Constitution and that's why we're in the Army. Whether we take the same opinion they do doesn't really matter, but their basic right to do that is part of what we do and it's why we do it."
Getz also spoke approvingly of the right to protest.
"It's great, because that's what our country is famous for," he said. "It's democracy, it's freedom of speech and people can say whatever they want and do whatever they want. Soldiers give their lives for that."
When asked if he was worried about being called up, Master Sgt. Vos probably said it best.
"I wouldn't say I'm worried," he said. "If you are in the military it can always happen, so it's always a possibility. You kind of just accept it, and if you can't, you are in the wrong business."
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