Students should learn everything they can about the Persian Gulf war and question everything they hear -- especially news reports, an anti-war activist said last night.

"The media is giving you a Fred Flintstone idea of what is going on over there," said Sahu Barron, a national organizer of the Coalition to Stop U.S. Intervention in the Mid East.

The news media is not reliable because the military edits news from the gulf, Barron said.

"You could not fill the actual news in a thimble," she said.

About 100 people attended the speech, said Monica Somocurcio, president of Students and Youth Against Racism.

Throughout her speech, Barron, the keynote speaker at yesterday's teach-in sponsored by various student groups, tried to dispel what she considers myths about the war.

The war is not a "popular war" as many believe, she said, citing the millions of people who demonstrated around the world last weekend.

Because the war could grow to include other Middle East countries, it will not be short as many people believe, she said.

"It's not going to be that easy," Barron said. "And I think (commander of allied forces) General (H. Norman) Schwarzkopf is getting hip to that."

Another myth, Barron claimed, is that sanctions hurt only the Iraqi military.

"They're not only stopping military items from going (into Iraq) . . . but (also) vital medical supplies and food," she said.

Barron expressed disbelief that the allies' round-the-clock bombings have not hurt any civilians.

"That technology is so sophisticated that they can tell civilians from other targets?" she asked.

She also believes that the bombings are in violation of the Geneva Convention.

In addition to being educated about the Middle East, Barron said other things must be done, such as removing ROTC units from college campuses.

"The ROTC are nothing but . . . vampires that suck the blood out of you," she said. "Get it the hell off campus, they don't have any place here."