U.S. Military Strike on Syria is a Must

Military action in Syria is on hold, pending possible disarmament of chemical weapons. / Danny Ewing / MCT Campus

By: Valeria Bautista and Yesenia Varela

Opinion: The country should not tolerate chemical warfare.

There are two types of evil—those who perform evil acts, and those who stand by and watch it happen. Depending on America’s actions, it could fall into the second category.

“What kind of world will we live in if the United States of America sees a dictator brazenly violate international law with poison gas and we choose to look the other way,” President Obama said in an address to the nation.

At least 1,430 innocent Syrians have been gassed to death by their own government in the midst of the civil war.

Threats of impending military strikes were made by the U.S. until a diplomatic resolution of disarmament was proposed Sept. 10.

The same day, Obama urged Congress to hold off on voting for a military strike.

Syria’s chemical weapons program will be opened for inspection, placed under international control and ultimately dismantled, according to the proposal.

But the U.S. should strike regardless.

Americans watched videos of innocent Syrian children convulsing on the ground and others bleeding to death.

These types of heinous acts cannot be tolerated by anyone.

Chemical and biological weaponry have been officially off limits since 1993 when the international community banned them as part of the Chemical Weapons Convention. They have been frowned upon even longer.

Some war-weary Americans are hesitant to engage in another Middle Eastern military conflict, claiming that those aren’t our battles to fight. They are quick to forget history. Adolf Hitler committed genocide and gassed millions of Jews to death. America was lauded for its intervention in this conflict, albeit towards the latter half of the war. This situation is no different.

Genocide is not excusable in any situation, especially when children and chemical gases are involved. America claims to be benevolent, but hesitates to help the helpless.

A military strike is necessary to set a precedent for the future. Dictators considering the use of chemical weapons need to learn to think twice.

Unlike wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, military action in Syria would be limited in scope and scale, and no ground troops would be sent into the country.

“Even a limited strike will send a message to [Syrian President Bashar] Assad that no other nation can deliver,” Obama said.

A dangerous world sometimes calls for war. Americans flew into Afghanistan to look for terrorists after 9/11, and into Iraq at the inkling that it had weapons of mass destruction. If any situation calls for swift military action, it is the massacre of innocent people at the hands of a dictator armed with chemical weapons.

[frame_left src=”http://www.eldonnews.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Lopez-Collins-VIEWS.jpg” href=”http://www.eldonnews.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Lopez-Collins-VIEWS.jpg”][/frame_left] Jason Lopez
I say no. I mean, I feel like we already got into one of the country’s issues before and that it ended
up badly. We ended up with U.S. lives being lost, and a recession and a bunch of other stuff.

[frame_left src=”http://www.eldonnews.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Reyes-Collins-VIEWS.jpg” href=”http://www.eldonnews.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Reyes-Collins-VIEWS.jpg”][/frame_left]Adriana Reyes
We have a lot of problems in our own country that we have to take care of. I understand that it’s nice to care for other people, but it’s very important to take care of your own people, as well.

[frame_left src=”http://www.eldonnews.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Cory-Anderson.jpg” href=”http://www.eldonnews.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Cory-Anderson.jpg”][/frame_left] Cory Anderson
The whole thing feels reminiscent of World War II, and people are urging us to get involved. People want to remain out of it, but something is probably going to pull us in at one point or another.

[frame_left src=”http://www.eldonnews.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Erick-Ibarra-VIEWS.jpg” href=”http://www.eldonnews.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Erick-Ibarra-VIEWS.jpg”][/frame_left] Erick Ibarra
I feel like the U.S. should stay out of Syria’s troubles because it will cause more troubles for us. But then again, Syria is in need of help, so pretty much in between right now, but I feel like we shouldn’t.

[frame_left src=”http://www.eldonnews.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Ramon-Campos-VIEWS-PIC-POLL.jpg” href=”http://www.eldonnews.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Ramon-Campos-VIEWS-PIC-POLL.jpg”][/frame_left] Ramon Campos
It’s been a really long time since the Iraq war, which everybody didn’t want, and it happened anyway. We just ended that, and now we’re about to start another war which we have nothing to do with.

[frame_left src=”http://www.eldonnews.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Nyna-Views-.jpg” href=”http://www.eldonnews.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Nyna-Views-.jpg”][/frame_left] Nyna Neung
We shouldn’t go to war because society is already messed up as it is. So why go to war and start more drama? It’s none of our business. We already spent so much money on other wars it’s too much money wasted.

[frame_left src=”http://www.eldonnews.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Jose-Gonzalez-VIEWS-PIC-POLL.jpg” href=”http://www.eldonnews.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Jose-Gonzalez-VIEWS-PIC-POLL.jpg”][/frame_left] Jose Gonzalez
We’ve got bigger problems here. Like homeless people living out here, ObamaCare, immigration reform and Social Security—that’s bound to run out soon. We’ve got to resolve the issues domestically first.