After gathering more than 480 signatures last week, North Quad Senator Daniel Mauer '06 has completed a petition to put to a vote whether or not the Brandeis student body officially supports a war against Iraq."We intend to continue gathering signatures, so that the final number will have more of a dramatic impact," Mauer said. According to the Union Constitution, a simple majority (one more than 50 percent of the student body) vote is needed to determine the official stance of the student body.

"The timeline hasn't been set, but (the vote) will most probably occur following spring break," Union Secretary Yoselin Bugallo '03 said.

"The vote is going to take place later than originally expected, because we have decided that there was not enough time to do enough get-out-the-vote efforts before the time when we'd expected to hold the vote," Mauer said. "So, it's likely that the vote will happen around mid-March."

"The petition presenters generally write the pro. The con is often written by any interested student," Bugallo said.

"Most likely, I will write the pro statement with Jocelyn Berger. I'm not sure who will write the con statement, but I would guess that it would be someone from the Republicans or ZaHaV," Mauer said. "The opinions obviously have not been written as yet. Once the vote takes place, what will happen depends on the outcome. If we are successful, we will do as much publicity as possible."

Mauer spoke about the possibility of the student body's rejection of the petition as a publicity boon for the other side. "If 'No' wins, my guess is that the other side will also do publicity efforts. The publicity that we would try to do would be within the national anti-war movement as well as in the mainstream media," he said.

Mira Meyerovich '03, one of the organizers of the new Brandeis club, United We Stand, a pro-United States club, said she disapproves of the resolution. "United We Stand is absolutely opposed to the proposed resolution," Meyerovich said. "Our biggest issue with the resolution is that it states that 'the undergraduate student body opposes an American attack on Iraq.' The resolution presumes to speak for all undergraduates; however, even if it passes with a majority vote, the resolution does not express the view of every undergraduate, it does not speak for us."

Meyerovich said her club was not simply pro-war, but in favor of this specific war. "Though we believe that war is evil, in the case of Iraq, it is a necessary evil that would save the lives of many more innocent people than would be harmed by it," she said.

"United We Stand also does not like the vague wording of the resolution," she continued. "The referendum should explain why the anti-war activists oppose the war. Vague references to compromising Brandeis' principles of 'justice' for only 'short-term gain' are not enough. What are the principles of justice that the activists believe war in Iraq will compromise?"

Another member of United We Stand, Dahlia Metchis '03, said she wants more explanation of how the war is unjust. "Another problem I have with the referendum is that it simply states that they oppose the war with Iraq 'for various reasons,'" she said.

"I think it's important, in my view, that we took a stand," Mauer said. "Obviously this is a position I support ... A number of schools have done student senate-type deals, passing resolutions, but I thought it would be beneficial to have a student body referendum."

Mauer cited as a cautionary tale last year's petition to ban the sale of Philip Morris products, including Kraft foods on campus. The Union Senate passed the resolution, but many students were angered that it was not put to a vote by the student body. When the Kraft referendum was presented to students, it failed to gain a majority by a slim margin. This, he said, inspired him to invite the entire student body to vote on the possible war against Iraq.

The goal behind establishing an official student body stance on the war is to attract media attention and create solidarity among anti-war activists, Mauer said. "For the most part, it's a symbolic gesture," he added. "It is unlikely Bush will say, 'Brandeis opposes war, so we won't go to war.'"

Mauer stated that it would be of special interest to the media if the Brandeis student body passes such a resolution, because the University has a predominantly Jewish student body. According to Mauer, Most Jews are assumed to support war because of Iraq's potential threat to Israel.

Glenn Prives '06 said, "I'm in favor of the vote because it will be a good way to gauge student opinion."

"I love the idea of the referendum and not just because I don't support the war," Dave Firestein '04 said. "This is about giving the Brandeis community an opportunity to voice their opinion. That's what this referendum is really about."

"More than anything else, I want to encourage dialogue and get people thinking about the issues," Firestein continued, "because I truly believe that when they do ignore the rhetoric, they'll see why this war is unjust."

Metchis said she is skeptical. "More explanation of exactly how the war is unjust would make this more a legitimate referendum opposing the war instead of another excuse to bash Bush and show what an 'activist' campus we are," she said.