Tag: military

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Stories In Focus

Leading and Learning: ROTC Program Trains Houghton Students for Military Careers

When planning course loads each semester, not many of us anticipate learning land navigation or combat skills as possible syllabus expectations. However, for the Houghton students participating in the Army Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC), that’s exactly the type of schedule they can expect.

Photo courtesy of houghton.edu
Photo courtesy of houghton.edu

ROTC is a program designed for people interested in attaining a four year degree and serving in the U.S. Armed Forces. Cadet Elizabeth Groff ‘19 said of her choice to participate in ROTC, “I thought it was really cool that while you’re learning your [academic], you can also earn your military degree.” Groff went on to discuss the important skills students develop, such as leadership training and self-discipline, while simultaneously building their resumes and looking forward to the possibility of a scholarship. Speaking of the physical portion of the program, she also commented, “I’m learning the limits I can push myself to.”

There is no need to be a contracted military member; the classes are open to students of any discipline and there is no long-term commitment, although a military career is one possible outcome. For those continuing on with the military, they will graduate college and enter either the reserves or active duty as a second lieutenant.

Cadet Victoria Krisher ‘19, a contracted cadet who is interested in becoming an Army dentist, said her interest in ROTC began with her family history of military service. She said of her family heritage, “They always told me how their experiences [in the military] have shaped their lives, and a lot of their experiences were sort of instilled in how I was raised.” She continued, “I didn’t want a normal job. I wanted to make a difference, make an impact.”

According to Houghton’s website, Houghton is part of the Seneca Battalion, which is hosted by St. Bonaventure University. Cadets travel to Bonaventure once a week for the lab component of their coursework, in which they do everything from battle drills to eight-mile rucks. Both Krisher and Groff described labs as an extremely valuable and portion of the program. Krisher stated that “in labs, we get to apply everything that we’ve learned.”

For anyone interested in joining ROTC, Groff assured that it is not too late and encourages students to talk to any of the cadets or to ROTC faculty advisor and psychology professor, John Van Wicklin. She said, “There’s really no applying [to ROTC]. I think what a lot of people don’t realize is that it’s an actual class… just tell your advisor you’d like to add it to your schedule.” It is possible to begin taking courses as late as junior year, so the timeframe for adding ROTC courses is quite broad. Groff  also emphasized that there is no pressure to continue on with a ROTC or a military career if it is not a good fit for the individual. Personal growth and the development of leadership skills, however, are lifelong benefits of participating in ROTC.

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International News

Mass Death Sentence in Egypt

An Egyptian court on Monday, February 1st 2015, sentenced 183 Muslim Brotherhood supporters to death. The court proceedings were held over the killing of 11 police officers in the violence that had engulfed Egypt after the 2013 dismissal of the former Islamist president, President Mohammed Morsi.

The attack took place after Egyptian military forces cracked down on Islamist supporters of Morsi in July 2013. Egyptian security forces descended onto two pro-Morsi camps in July and August 2013, killing hundreds.

JoePoyfairAt the end of July and beginning of August 2013, hundreds of demonstrators were killed by Egyptian security forces. The Human Rights Watch said that this mass killing of protesters “probably amounts to crimes against humanity,” thus creating an international outcry that was quickly quieted by the Egyptian government.

The United Nations has called the trials “unprecedented.” Amnesty International’s Deputy Middle East and North Africa Program Director, Hassiba Hadj Sahraoui, said in a statement in response to Monday’s verdict.  “The death sentences are yet another example of the bias of the Egyptian criminal justice system.”

Sahraoui further stated that “issuing mass death sentences whenever the case involves the killing of police officers now appears to be near-routine policy, regardless of facts and with no attempt to establish individual responsibility.”

The original trial saw 377 people sentenced to life in prison in absentia, while not present at the event being referred to.  Hassiba Hadj Sahraoui said it would be wrong to impose the capital punishment “when there are serious doubts hanging over the fairness of the trial which disregarded international law.”

The Egyptian court did not put 183 individuals to death lightly. The Egyptian government has been attempting to fight against terrorism in Egypt. Muslim extremism has seen an increase in central Egypt in the past decade, and President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi has been fighting against these extremists.

Egypt’s current government, led by President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, has called for a ‘religious revolution’ and asked Muslim leaders to help in the fight against extremism. President el-Sisi has launched a war against terrorism, focusing particularly on the countries Sinai region, where an extremist group recently pledged allegiance to ISIS.

In an act of counter extremism, Egyptian authorities cracked down in 2013 on former supporters of Morsi, a longtime member of the Muslim Brotherhood, which the Egyptian government had officially declared a terrorist organization in December 2013

In a speech on New Year’s Day, President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi called for a “religious revolution” in Islam that would displace violent jihad from the center of Muslim discourse. “Is it possible that 1.6 billion people should want to kill the rest of the world’s population, [which] is 7 billion people, so that they themselves may live?” President el-Sisi asked.

“We have to think hard about what we are facing,” President el-Sisi said. “It’s inconceivable that the thinking that we hold most sacred should cause the entire Islamic world to be a source of anxiety, danger, killing, and destruction for the rest of the world. Impossible.”

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International News

Boko Haram Attacks in Nigeria

The Boko Hararm, a militant terrorist group in Nigeria, attacked and took control of Monguno,Nigeria on Sunday. The town hosts a large military barracks and is home to 100,000 people. The group also launched an attack on the Borno State capital city of Maiduguri, 85 miles from Monguno, but did not take control. All this after the Baga Massacre earlier this year, in which over 2,000 people were killed.

Survivors of the recent attacks reported the rebels came through villages, slitting throats, looting and burning homes, and abducting women and children. Officials said these attack were a significant advance in a campaign to encircle Maiduguri that started last summer, as reported by The New York Times. More than 200 combatants died in the fighting, mainly insurgents, according to The Guardian.

DESERT SHIELDThe town of Monguno, with its military barracks, previously acted as an important protection for Maiduguri. Now, with the fall of Monguno, the Boko Haram are in a better position to advance on Maiduguri.

The two cities are in a strategic position in the northeast, near the neighboring countries of Cameroon, Chad, and Niger. Boko Haram leader, Abubakar Shekau, has expressed intentions of expanding the attacks to nearby Niger and Cameroon. According to The Wall Street Journal, Chad is presently spared from threats because of the French anti-Islamist military group, Operation Barkhane. Headquartered in Chad’s capital, Operation Barkhane has 3,000 French forces.

The Boko Haram killed an estimated 11,245 people in 2014, according to the Council on Foreign Relations. The Wall Street Journal reported these recent ruthless events by the Boko Haram, including the Baga Massacre, are due to a shift from insurgency tactics to governance. Following similar tactics of Islamic State of Iraq and Syrica (ISIS), Boko Haram is employing a warlord model for governance in the areas that take control.

These recent attacks come before Nigeria’s upcoming elections on Feb. 14. John Kerry, the U.S. secretary of state, visited Lagos, the nation’s commercial capital, at the same time of these attacks. He was there to encourage peaceful elections next month.

The New York Times reported, “Mr. Kerry said the United States was prepared to do more to help the faltering Nigerian Military.” However, “He warned that the level of American support would be influenced by the determination of Nigeria’s politicians to carry out a fair and peaceful election.”.

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News

World // ISIS Crisis Continues

The violent acts being committed by the Sunni-Islam extremist group ISIS (Islamic State in Iraq and Syria) has prompted the United States and other nations take military action. ISIS, which has its base in Raqqa, Syria, has taken over large areas of Syria and Iraq. The group has declared this area to be the “Islamic State,” according to a CNN article. Its oppressive rule and interpretation of Islamic law has been ravaging civilians, including ethnic and Christian minorities. Video of public executions has been released on the internet as ISIS continues to tighten its grip in the Middle East.

MaryCroninAccording to CNN, the beheadings of two American journalists was an impetus to the United States’ military intervention. The offensive has mostly included missile strikes by sea followed by air raids by bombers and fighter jets. According to the US military, training compounds, headquarters, storage facilities, supply trucks, and armed vehicles were hit in the initial strike on Tuesday September 23. The Pentagon also stated that some ISIS operatives were hit, but the number was not specified.

Other nations have joined the United States, including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Bahrain, and Qatar. As stated by a Washington Post article, France has also lent its support to the offensive.

According to Army Gen. Ray Odierno, who was quoted in the Washington Post, there is a possibility that civilians may be at risk as ISIS moves from more open areas with visible targets to urban areas. “We’ll have to determine that, as we go forward, if we can sustain the level of preciseness that is necessary to limit civilian casualties,” he cautioned.

Another complication threatening progress in the fight against ISIS may arise. Though there has been much cooperation in the Arab world with the West on this matter, the fact that ISIS is technically a Sunni Muslim group may be problematic for some governments. As stated in a CNN article, some governments may face dissent from their people, and they disagree with Sunnis fighting against other Sunnis.

Furthermore, Syria has cited disregard of its sovereignty, according to the New York Times. The nation has complained that American military actions on its soil without its cooperation is a violation of sovereign rights. President Obama and other US officials, on the other hand, insist this is not the case. Civil war in Syria helped extremist movements like ISIS to take root and spread, and Obama contends that by striking only ISIS and not “Mr. Assad”, the United States is helping Syria, thus the nation’s sovereignty is still intact.

Recent action involved the US-led air strikes targeting ISIS positions in northeastern Syria while the Syrian government aimed at other insurgents near its capital, Damascus this past Saturday. Meanwhile, ISIS attacked a Kurdish village near the Turkish border, according to the New York Times. At roughly the same time, two car bombs were detonated in the Syrian city of Homs, killing at least 45 people, including 41 children. The group has not taken official responsibility for this, though it is likely that it is responsible because of their recently increased presence in Homs. This, among other issues, has caused even more civilians to flee to Turkey, joining more than 150,000 refugees already there, the New York Times reported.

Military officials, including General Odierno, have dismally predicted that this conflict could endure much longer than previously anticipated.

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Stories In Focus

Differing Perspectives on the Military Spark Discussions of Conviction and Support

Courtesy of houghton.edu

Bowing his head over the chapel pulpit on Monday, November 11, Michael Jordan gave thanks for the sacrifices of those in the military, confessed the mistakes of this and every country, and asked earnestly for peace. His prayer observed Veteran’s Day and the Canadian Remembrance Day. Also, whether intentionally or not, it honored those at Houghton involved in the military while showing respect for those here with pacifist convictions. This is a necessity for a college that strives to offer support to individuals with ties to the military but also to recognize those who have other perspectives on Christian involvement in the military.

“The Christian tradition as a whole has within it two long standing traditions regarding the use of violence and the military—pacifism and just war theory,” explained Shirley Mullen, president of the college.  “As a Christian college, I believe we have a responsibility to familiarize students with both of those traditions.”

One way the college does this, while providing for the needs of students in or aspiring to join the military, is through the Reserve Officer Training Corp (ROTC) program. The ROTC program on campus began in the late 70s, following years in which Houghton students participated in ROTC through St. Bonaventure University.

“The benefits [of ROTC] are too great in number to achieve an accurate count,” said Alyssa Kiser, a senior cadet in the Houghton ROTC program. Formerly part of a high school JROTC unit, Kiser said “[JROTC] taught me to be honest, be courageous, and how to be proud of not only my achievements, but the achievement of the team working together to reach a goal.” Kiser said the benefits of her college ROTC involvement include “a four-year scholarship awarded right out of high school (for contracted cadets), a monthly stipend (for contracted cadets), relationships with people from all over the United States and abroad, a guaranteed job after graduation, and skills that will last a lifetime.”

Others at Houghton do not share this enthusiasm about ROTC. “There have been some in our community and some in our alumni constituency who believe that we should not have ROTC on campus,” Mullen commented. “My own position on this is the following:  If we were a college of one of the Peace Denominations, then we would not have ROTC…But the Wesleyan Methodist denomination has historically had within itself both pacifist and just war advocates. So our denomination does not dictate our position on this issue…In supporting ROTC, I have always encouraged our ROTC group to be proactive in creating a forum where these issues can be discussed. So that the presence of ROTC is, itself, an educational opportunity for students at a Christian liberal arts college.”

Connie Finney, professor of education, is among those who question the role of ROTC at a liberal arts college. Finney described herself as “not personally against the military, but…against some of the ways it functions.” While making it clear that she respects and cares about the individuals involved in the ROTC program, Finney commented “The ROTC program being housed at a Christian liberal arts college is a bit puzzling to me in the sense that my understanding of the military is that you are not encouraged to be an independent thinker – you are encouraged to follow orders.  It would be difficult to have a well-functioning military otherwise. This does not, in my mind, seem consistent with liberal arts thinking.”

Whatever their views on Christians in the military, Houghton students, faculty and staff are generally supportive of individual members of the college community who are involved with the military. The support takes various forms. It may be prayers in chapel and elsewhere. It may be, as Kiser described, “excusal from classes in understanding of training events for the military, attendance at military functions, silence when performing in color guards (the parading of the National flag), and not disgracing the personnel in uniform.” It may be the respect which John Van Wicklin, faculty advisor for ROTC, said “starts from the President of the College and works its way down.” It may be former ROTC advisor Robert Danner’s challenge to Houghton cadets: “that they be good leaders in the Army, and good witnesses for Christ…”