As the possibility of war in Iraq looms over the United States, an ISU Marine said he is growing increasingly unsure about his future.

Jeremy Jacobsen, sophomore in political science and an Iowa Marine, said although he has not been given specific details about a possible deployment, he knows it exists. And he knows it could be soon.

“I’ve been told not to go on any vacation or leave town without giving my section chief a way to contact me,” he said.

Col. Robert King, public affairs officer for the Iowa National Guard, said 100 additional Iowa Army National Guardsmen have been called to active duty as of Wednesday. There are more than 600 Iowa reserve soldiers on active duty.

Jacobsen said this call affected National Guard, but Marines might be next.

“I think they’re [calling] the National Guard right now to be homeland security and that they’ll call us, the Marines, next when we actually go to war,” he said.

King agreed the call would encompass Iowa students as well.

“There could be some students that are affected by this because the unit has some young soldiers,” he said.

King said the fully trained soldiers will enter active duty on Feb. 15.

“The duty of mission [for the troops] is to distribute supplies and materials to other units in the theater of operations,” he said.

Jacobsen said he has not been alerted to what his duties will be.

“We don’t know if we’ll be deployed overseas or be a guard unit at an embassy or any other possible terrorist location,” he said.

King said the call to duty was made because the military did not have enough troops to sustain itself. He said it is important to realize Iowa is part of America’s defense.

“Americans need to understand that America’s over 450,000 National Guard soldiers and airmen perform very important functions for America’s Army and Air Force,” he said.

Jacobsen said he feels as if he is in a waiting period right now.

“Every time [the National Guard] calls, I’m like ‘Uh-oh, this is it’ — but not yet,” he said.

Jacobsen said he believes he will get called to duty soon.

“I heard a rumor that I might have to go in February,” he said. “We’re just waiting for Bush to declare war.”

Jacobsen said the waiting period makes it hard for him to focus on his role as a student at Iowa State.

“I don’t like waiting because I don’t know if I’m wasting my time as a student right now,” he said.

Although he said he feels anxious, Jacobsen said he is willing to serve America should the need arise.

“Everybody is out there doing their part and I want to play my role,” he said.