UI wrong to not honor Guard with helmet logo

In a photo taken at Bagram Air Field in Afghanistan, currently home to Iowa soldiers deployed with the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 34th “Red Bulls” Infantry Division, the U.S. flag flies defiantly in the face of the enemy. Snapping in the breeze is another flag: the black-and-gold Tiger Hawk banner of the University of Iowa.

On Nov. 20, the day of the Iowa-Ohio State football game, the UI had a chance to repay this honor. Approached by the Iowa Army National Guard with the idea of honoring Iowa's troops by carrying the 34th Division flag onto the field and by wearing the Red Bull insignia on football helmets, UI officials declined, reasoning it would set a precedent for any group wanting recognition. What a cold and heartless decision.

Iowa's citizen soldiers are not just some group with a self-serving agenda. They receive no gain from recognition, no increase in dues, no spike in donations, no political clout. Their only profit lies in the knowledge they are not forgotten as they brave terror and tyranny halfway around the world.

By honoring the 34th Division, we would pay homage to those heroes who answered their country's call, a call to selfless service, devotion to duty and defense of the defenseless. That's a precedent worth setting.

On Dec. 28, Iowa plays its bowl game. Fate is handing off another chance to the UI to think with its heart rather than its head. Don't fumble it.

Kevin Keating

Iowa City