By Zech Capco

The crisis in Syria was an event that got the attention of millions of Americans and was a topic that many followed for weeks as the events unfolded.
The situation came about after Syrian President Bashar al-Assad was suspected of using chemical weapons against civilians. Because of that, the U.S. and several allies have planned to deliver a series of limited strikes against Syria, targeting specific installations instead of hitting more broad areas. After weeks of tension and fear of a possible strike on Syria, a sigh of relief was let out when the strike did not occur due to an agreement between Russia and the U.S. over the seizure of Syria’s chemical weapons.
Many opposed the strike because should it have occurred the U.S. would have been thrown into a world of problems. Senior Joshua Morrison was against the strike and found it to be unnecessary on the U.S.’ part. “I was against the strike because it’s not the U.S.’ place to intervene in another country’s affairs. Syria needs to deal with their own problems and not have another country solve them. Right now, I feel like the government should be concerned with what’s happening on American soil,” Morrison said.
“I’m really glad the strike didn’t happen because a lot of deaths have been avoided. Many Syrians and possibly Americans could have lost their lives if that strike did happen,” said senior Jordan James. “It’s hard to tell what will happen next because Russia wants to protect their interests in Syria, but Assad might go off on a tangent and do something that will cause other countries to declare war on Syria,” James said on his expectations for the future.
Even though most made their opinion on the crisis in Syria clear, there were those who chose not to take a side. Senior Tim Potter was rather indifferent to the situation, saying, “I wouldn’t have really cared if that strike happened; the U.S. [has] already [gotten] itself into so many conflicts in so many places. What’s one more going to do?”
Potter went on to say, “I know it sounds cold, but let’s be honest. The U.S. has been involved in a lot of conflicts, and you can’t deny that.”
Even though most opposed the strike, U.S. government and world history teacher Kevin Brosius was for the strike, saying, “Any violation of the Geneva Convention warrants a military strike by the United States.” 

Despite being for the strike, Brosius was very relieved that it did not happen.  “If there was a strike, the ultimate outcome would have been the loss of lives but potentially a larger conflict than the U.S. could have handled,” he said.

The media played a large role in the situation, reporting the events and making them comprehensive to viewers at home.
“I think that the news was reported pretty accurately as far as I’m concerned. There was great coverage of the events as they happened. Of course, bias was present in certain channels, but for the most part, I think that the whole situation was reported very well,” said Morrison.
For now, the situation in Syria has been settled, and all is well as the U.S. and Russia have agreed to seize Syria’s chemical weapons. Hopefully things will stay settled as Assad has stated that he will cooperate with the U.S. and Russia.