NATO’s aerial bombardment of Serbian targets in Yugoslavia has invoked mixed reactions from the Iowa State community.

The air strikes, which began Wednesday and resumed Thursday, are intended to put pressure on Yugoslavian President Slobodan Milosevic because of Yugoslav treatment of ethnic Albanians in Kosovo.

Mike Meiners, senior in computer engineering, said he thinks it is necessary that NATO provide some kind of military response to Milosevic’s ethnic cleansing campaign.

“It seems that Milosevic doesn’t understand anything but violence,” Meiners said. “They have been trying for months to achieve a peaceful solution to this. It is time that we go in there and show him that we are serious and not let it get out of hand.”

However, Fred Anderson, senior in industrial technology, believes that the military action may be too drastic.

“It is good that we are going in to stop a situation that could easily escalate into an all-out war, but it seems a little overboard,” he said.

Anderson also said it seems NATO is putting “an awful lot” of American troops in the conflict.

“Some of the European countries should put more effort into it,” he said.

The United States needs to limit its military actions around the world, Anderson said.

“It seems that we always have to go and bail them out,” he said. “We can’t always bail people out; we need to teach other countries to bail themselves out and get other countries involved in it.”

The decision to make air strikes was a crucial one for NATO, said Richard Mansbach, professor of political science.

“I think NATO has gotten itself into an increasingly difficult position, and I see very little alternatives to the use of force,” he said.

At this point, NATO’s reputation is on the line, Mansbach said.

“If NATO were to step down again, its word would not be as credible,” he said.

Stacy Jankowski, junior in elementary education, agreed that air strikes are necessary, and she said she supports President Clinton’s decision to act.

“I don’t think [Clinton] would jump into a situation and say, ‘Let’s go kill somebody.’ I think he made the right decision,” she said. “That is why we elected the president — to make these decisions.”

Meiners said Clinton made a convincing case during his Wednesday night address to the nation.

“I thought he got across what he needed to, and that was that we are over there because Milosevic is attacking the people of Kosovo,” he said. “The people of Kosovo want peace; he doesn’t.”

Jankowski said she believes that ground troops eventually will be needed.

“I don’t think that air strikes are going to do the trick,” she said. “It is necessary to go in with ground troops because that is how the full impact will be felt.”

However, Mansbach disagrees with the idea of implementing ground troops.

“I don’t think that we should send in ground troops and get into a full-scale war,” he said. “I think air strikes will keep the pressure on him so that he knows that we are serious and that peace is the only choice.”