By Lorin Briand
There is a war in Iraq, we see its results on the nightly news, but there is always more going on than we see. We know people are suffering and dying.
At this point, many of you are wondering “how does this affect me?” It has nothing to do with the most pressing issues facing us here, safe in Calgary. Yet many people are beginning to realize the wider world does affect them. This feeling spawned worldwide protests against issues like the war in Iraq. This sentiment has also created a new movement: Students of Science for Peace.
Students of Science for Peace is a local group of undergraduates working towards a brighter future for all people. Through research, education and peaceful protest, we oppose the efforts of big business and individual nations seeking to benefit at the expense of others. The primary goal of this group is to provide information to the public. We wish to do so by having public talks on issues affecting our world and environmental health.
One positive example of this group in action was a presentation given Wed., Feb. 11 dealing with depleted uranium ammunition. We’ve heard of American soldiers who served in the first Gulf War afflicted by mysterious health problems. We’ve also heard of their Canadian allies suffering from a new disease–Gulf War Syndrome. This syndrome is all the more frightening due to the fact no one can really pin down a definitive cause.
One possible source of this debilitating illness is DU ammunition. Depleted uranium is a waste product left after the uranium refining process which produces the fuel for nuclear reactors and nuclear bombs. There are demonstrated negative health effects with this material. It is dangerous, and the more we know, the more people are working to have this material banned as use in ammunition.
If international issues are of concern to you, or if you want to see what can be done by individuals to alter the world we live in for the better, join Students of Science for Peace. Visit the web site of the first chapter www.sfpstudents.org or e-mail me at brennus@shaw.ca.
Remember, the future is what you make of it.
Lorin Briand is one of the founding members of the University of Calgary chapter of Students of Science for Peace.