U.S. troops in Iraq are heavy smokers
2:27 PM, October 28, 2008
American sailors and Marines stationed in Iraq are more than twice as likely to use tobacco products as the average American, according to a study presented today at the annual meeting of the American College of Chest Physicians.
In a survey of 408 Marines and sailors, Dr. Michael A. Wilson found 64% used some form of tobacco: 52% smoked cigarettes, 36% used smokeless tobacco and 24% used both. In contrast, the national average for tobacco use is 29.6%. Wilson found the rate of tobacco use is higher now among U.S. troops in Iraq than was found in a 2004 survey of troops returning from the war.
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Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Doctors work to rescue patients in Iraq's mental health system
Doctors work to rescue patients in Iraq's mental health system
Story Highlights
Patients crowd filthy rooms at Iraq's sole facility for treating severe mental disorders
Doctor says the mentally ill men and women have nowhere else to go
But health workers hope change for the better will come
By Phil Black
CNN
BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- The man sits gently rocking on the bed, one hand clutching a cloth, the other hiding his face from view.
He doesn't look up and he doesn't want to talk. His body language screams despair.
Across the tiled room, other men are sitting on thin, filthy mattresses atop metal bed frames.
"Our life is miserable. It is dirty. The food is bad. Life is very bad here," says one of them, Abu Ismaeil. "I'm always hungry. I do not want to lie. Shame on me if I lie."
Yet, in Iraq, these are some of the luckier ones, and even Abu Ismaeil agrees. Without the hospital. "I would commit suicide," he said.
Their clothes and surroundings may be drab, but these mentally ill people are fortunate to be in Al Rashad Hospital, Iraq's only treatment facility for severe psychiatric disorders.
click post title for more
linked from ICasualties.org
Story Highlights
Patients crowd filthy rooms at Iraq's sole facility for treating severe mental disorders
Doctor says the mentally ill men and women have nowhere else to go
But health workers hope change for the better will come
By Phil Black
CNN
BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- The man sits gently rocking on the bed, one hand clutching a cloth, the other hiding his face from view.
He doesn't look up and he doesn't want to talk. His body language screams despair.
Across the tiled room, other men are sitting on thin, filthy mattresses atop metal bed frames.
"Our life is miserable. It is dirty. The food is bad. Life is very bad here," says one of them, Abu Ismaeil. "I'm always hungry. I do not want to lie. Shame on me if I lie."
Yet, in Iraq, these are some of the luckier ones, and even Abu Ismaeil agrees. Without the hospital. "I would commit suicide," he said.
Their clothes and surroundings may be drab, but these mentally ill people are fortunate to be in Al Rashad Hospital, Iraq's only treatment facility for severe psychiatric disorders.
click post title for more
linked from ICasualties.org
Shocking, CNN has a typo "Arizona senator trails McCain"
Meanwhile, a new poll of polls in Florida shows a similar story. The Arizona senator trails McCain by 4 points there, 49 percent to 45 percent. That gap is 3 points higher than it was earlier today and is largely due to a newly released survey from LA Times/Bloomberg showing McCain down 7 points in the state. The Florida poll of polls also includes surveys from Suffolk University and Reuters/Zogby.
Polls show McCain not making up ground in Ohio
Posted: 09:00 PM ET
From CNN Ticker Producer Alexander Mooney
McCain is still trailing in Ohio.
(CNN) — John McCain does not appear to be making up ground in Ohio, the key battleground state that is crucial to keeping his White House hopes alive.
According to CNN's latest poll of polls of the state, the Arizona senator now trails Obama by 6 points there, 50 percent to 44 percent. That gap is two points wider than it was Monday and double what it was one week ago.
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Glad to see that I'm not the only one who does this. I do it all the time but hardly ever catch CNN doing it.
Mother charged with beating 11 year old daughter to death
11-Year-Old Brooklyn Girl, Beaten to Death, Was All but Invisible Until She Died
By LESLIE KAUFMAN and KAREN ZRAICK
Alejandra Vasquez came to Brooklyn from Mexico about a month ago but was hidden — never enrolled in school, and unseen by child-welfare officials who visited.
Alejandra was unknown to the authorities until her body was discovered on Sunday morning, but her story in some ways echoes that of her older sister, Imelda, 14, who has been in foster care since January.
Imelda also came from Mexico after years away from her mother and did not regularly attend school here, records show; she told child-welfare officials that her mother frequently beat her with toys and a belt, and, in May, asked never to see her again.
The medical examiner ruled Alejandra’s death a homicide by blunt force trauma, and found evidence in an autopsy of ongoing beatings. “There were recent blunt-impact injuries to the head, torso and extremities” that were “in various stages of healing,” said a spokeswoman, Ellen Borakove.
On Monday night, Alejandra’s mother, 36-year-old Florencia Vasquez, was charged with second-degree murder, manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide in her daughter’s death. Her longtime companion, identified by the police as Andres Pavon — with whom Ms. Vasquez has children aged 3 and 1 — has been charged with second-degree manslaughter.
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Teen shot over vandalized McCain sign? What's next?
Teen shot over vandalized McCain sign, police say
Story Highlights
Man pleads not guilty to charges of felonious assault
Police: Youths admitted defacing McCain sign several times
It is the only McCain sign on a street full of Obama signs, police say
Teenagers probably will not be charged; one was shot in arm
(CNN) -- A Warren Township, Ohio, man faces charges of felonious assault after authorities say he fired his rifle at two teens who were attempting to deface his McCain presidential campaign yard sign.
Police say the man's sign is the only McCain sign on a street full of Obama signs.
Kenneth Rowles, 50, pleaded not guilty to the charge Monday, according to CNN affiliate WBNS.
Bail was set at $10,000.
go here for more
http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/10/28/yard.sign.shooting/index.html
Story Highlights
Man pleads not guilty to charges of felonious assault
Police: Youths admitted defacing McCain sign several times
It is the only McCain sign on a street full of Obama signs, police say
Teenagers probably will not be charged; one was shot in arm
(CNN) -- A Warren Township, Ohio, man faces charges of felonious assault after authorities say he fired his rifle at two teens who were attempting to deface his McCain presidential campaign yard sign.
Police say the man's sign is the only McCain sign on a street full of Obama signs.
Kenneth Rowles, 50, pleaded not guilty to the charge Monday, according to CNN affiliate WBNS.
Bail was set at $10,000.
go here for more
http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/10/28/yard.sign.shooting/index.html
Shepard Smith, FOX News, bravo on truth finally
Fox host berates 'Joe the Plumber' after McCain surrogate says Obama vote means 'death to Israel'
David Edwards and Nick Juliano
Published: Tuesday October 28, 2008
The all-out effort from John McCain's presidential campaign to scare voters into backing the Republican candidate continued apace on Tuesday as McCain surrogate Joe the Plumber agreed that a Barack Obama presidency would mean the "death of Israel" and end democracy in America.
The Ohio plumber, who has no license and is actually named Samuel Wurzelbacher, spoke at a McCain campaign event in Columbus Monday. A McCain supporter asked if "a vote for Obama is a vote for the death of Israel." JTP hardly batted an eye.
"I'll go ahead and agree with you on that," Wurzelbacher said.
The push-back against Wurzelbacher's comments began, somewhat unexpectedly, at Fox News.
The network noted that the McCain campaign seemed hesitant to distance itself from Wurzelbacher. Correspondent Carl Cameron said that the McCain campaign was going to put out an ad today criticizing Obama policies on Israel.
Shepard Smith was one of the few people I used to watch on FOX, before they went nuts for the GOP and forgot about truth. I just want to say bravo for trying to get the truth out on what Samuel "Joe the plumber" Wurzelbacher, (who isn't a plumber, doesn't make over $250,000 and is not buying the business he works for according to the man who owns it) had to say this time. People like to repeat what makes sense to them, just like accusing Obama of supporting terrorists.
They also fail to understand one fact after another. When McCain says that Obama is the most liberal member, the facts don't back that up, but they say that every single time they are running against a Democrat. When McCain says "tax and spend" it is not true when it comes to people making less that $250,000, but even if it was true, it would be better than just spending and paying for nothing and increasing the debt our kids will have to pay. When they talk about socialists, do they think about what Palin is doing in Alaska spreading the oil wealth? There is so much people just repeat instead of knowing if it is true or not, Smith is right, it does get really frightening out there.
David Edwards and Nick Juliano
Published: Tuesday October 28, 2008
The all-out effort from John McCain's presidential campaign to scare voters into backing the Republican candidate continued apace on Tuesday as McCain surrogate Joe the Plumber agreed that a Barack Obama presidency would mean the "death of Israel" and end democracy in America.
The Ohio plumber, who has no license and is actually named Samuel Wurzelbacher, spoke at a McCain campaign event in Columbus Monday. A McCain supporter asked if "a vote for Obama is a vote for the death of Israel." JTP hardly batted an eye.
"I'll go ahead and agree with you on that," Wurzelbacher said.
The push-back against Wurzelbacher's comments began, somewhat unexpectedly, at Fox News.
The network noted that the McCain campaign seemed hesitant to distance itself from Wurzelbacher. Correspondent Carl Cameron said that the McCain campaign was going to put out an ad today criticizing Obama policies on Israel.
"I just want to make this 100 percent perfectly clear, Barack Obama has said repeatedly and demonstrated repeatedly that Israel will always be a friend of the United States, no matter what happens once he becomes President of the United States, his words," Smith said after the interview ended. "The rest of it, man, it just gets frightening sometimes."
click post title for more
Shepard Smith was one of the few people I used to watch on FOX, before they went nuts for the GOP and forgot about truth. I just want to say bravo for trying to get the truth out on what Samuel "Joe the plumber" Wurzelbacher, (who isn't a plumber, doesn't make over $250,000 and is not buying the business he works for according to the man who owns it) had to say this time. People like to repeat what makes sense to them, just like accusing Obama of supporting terrorists.
They also fail to understand one fact after another. When McCain says that Obama is the most liberal member, the facts don't back that up, but they say that every single time they are running against a Democrat. When McCain says "tax and spend" it is not true when it comes to people making less that $250,000, but even if it was true, it would be better than just spending and paying for nothing and increasing the debt our kids will have to pay. When they talk about socialists, do they think about what Palin is doing in Alaska spreading the oil wealth? There is so much people just repeat instead of knowing if it is true or not, Smith is right, it does get really frightening out there.
Military sexual trauma:76 percent were diagnosed with a mental condition
Among women who reported experiencing sexual trauma, 76 percent were diagnosed with a mental condition, compared to 47 percent of other female veterans. The rates were similar in men.
Sexual Trauma Haunts Many Female Vets
Study found 1 in 7 from Iraq, Afghanistan who sought medical care were victims
Posted October 28, 2008
By Randy Dotinga
HealthDay Reporter
TUESDAY, Oct. 28 (HealthDay News) -- Shedding light on the challenges facing women in the military, a new study shows that more than one in seven female Iraq and Afghanistan veterans seeking VA medical care reported experiencing sexual trauma during their service.
Veterans who reported sexual trauma, such as rape and threatening sexual harassment, were three times more likely to be diagnosed with a mental illness such as depression or post-traumatic stress disorder.
"These mental health conditions are getting recognized, diagnosed and treated," said study co-author Joanne Pavao, a researcher with the VA Palo Alto Health Care System's National Center for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, in California.
Pavao and her colleagues analyzed the records of 89,960 Iraq and Afghanistan veterans who sought medical care in the VA health-care system between Oct. 1, 2001, and Oct. 1, 2006. They were expected to present their findings Tuesday in San Diego at the American Public Health Association's annual meeting.
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Why did WFTV have health reporter do political interview?
The real question here is, why is a health reporter doing a political interview?
So why didn't they use any of these, who, according to their web site, are political reporters?
So why would WFTV have their health reporter interview Biden? Have they allowed her to do other political interviews besides the one she did with McCain? Is there a history of them having their health reporter cover politics? She sure is getting a lot of fame out of this.
Barbara West - WFTV News Story - WFTV Orlando
Barbara West. For the past 16 years, I have served as health reporter and anchor for WFTV's news at noon and 5:30.
So why didn't they use any of these, who, according to their web site, are political reporters?
Laura Dorey
major: Political Science and Communications Studies
Anchor, Reporter, Executive Producer
Michael Rafi
major: Political Science and Communications Studies
Reporter, Political Correspondent.
Joanna Childers
major: Political Science and Communication Studies
Anchor and Reporter
http://www.furman.edu/orgs/fu2tv/wftv/staff.htm
So why would WFTV have their health reporter interview Biden? Have they allowed her to do other political interviews besides the one she did with McCain? Is there a history of them having their health reporter cover politics? She sure is getting a lot of fame out of this.
Journalism or partisanship: Did Barbara West interview with Joe Biden cross the line?
Hal Boedeker Sentinel Staff Writer
6:54 PM EDT, October 27, 2008
Nothing Barbara West has done in her 22 years at WFTV-Channel 9 has generated the attention of her interview last week with Sen. Joe Biden, Barack Obama's running mate. The contentious chat has become an Internet sensation -- 1.2 million hits on YouTube over the weekend and more than 500,000 on WFTV.com -- and generated controversy about how journalists question their subjects.
"The thing that stuns me is that this has become about me," said anchor West, 60. She appeared Monday night on The O'Reilly Factor on Fox News Channel and Larry King Live on CNN and plans to be on three more national shows today.
"It's not a good thing. I am not trying to seek the limelight in any way," she said. "I did not do the interview to make headlines, but to get answers that people in the street want to know. When I'm doing fund-raisers, I see vast numbers of people. My questions were reflective of what they're asking about."
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Iraqi sentenced to death for soldier killings
Iraqi sentenced to death for soldier killings
By Sameer N. Yacoub - The Associated Press
Posted : Tuesday Oct 28, 2008 7:50:24 EDT
BAGHDAD — An Iraqi court on Tuesday sentenced a suspected al-Qaida in Iraq militant to death by hanging for the grisly 2006 killing of three U.S. soldiers south of Baghdad.
Ibrahim al-Qaraghuli was one of three suspected militants who have gone to trial for the killings.
By Sameer N. Yacoub - The Associated Press
Posted : Tuesday Oct 28, 2008 7:50:24 EDT
BAGHDAD — An Iraqi court on Tuesday sentenced a suspected al-Qaida in Iraq militant to death by hanging for the grisly 2006 killing of three U.S. soldiers south of Baghdad.
Ibrahim al-Qaraghuli was one of three suspected militants who have gone to trial for the killings.
David J. Babineau, 25, of Springfield, Mass., was found dead at the site of the checkpoint. Two other 101st soldiers were kidnapped, sparking a massive search effort by the military.
The mutilated bodies of Pfc. Kristian Menchaca, 23, of Houston and Pfc. Thomas Tucker, 25, of Madras, Ore., were found three days later near a power station, not far from the checkpoint.
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http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/10/ap_iraqisentence_102808/
One Iraq War Veteran Shares Her Thoughts On ‘Concert For The BRAVE’
One Iraq War Veteran Shares Her Thoughts On ‘Concert For The BRAVE’
MTV.com - USA
Published by MTV News on Monday, October 27, 2008 at 11:57 am.
Shameeka Gray, one of the Iraq war vets featured in “Choose or Lose & Kanye West Present: Homecoming” this summer, also had a chance to attend “A Night for Vets: An MTV Concert for the BRAVE” last week. Here’s what she thought about the event.
I would first like to say on behalf of myself and all veterans, thank you to MTV and all the participants for making this event very touching and memorable. The performances and messages from the artists and entertainers were great. I would also like to thank the individuals and organizations out there that have implemented and developed ways to help our veterans.
There were many issues that were brought to the world’s attention, such as homelessness, veteran benefits, unemployment and health care, which are all rising challenges among veterans in America. The veterans that shared their stories brought awareness to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and traumatic brain injuries (TBI), disabilities many veterans encounter that take a toll on their daily lives.
click link for more and for video
MTV.com - USA
Published by MTV News on Monday, October 27, 2008 at 11:57 am.
Shameeka Gray, one of the Iraq war vets featured in “Choose or Lose & Kanye West Present: Homecoming” this summer, also had a chance to attend “A Night for Vets: An MTV Concert for the BRAVE” last week. Here’s what she thought about the event.
I would first like to say on behalf of myself and all veterans, thank you to MTV and all the participants for making this event very touching and memorable. The performances and messages from the artists and entertainers were great. I would also like to thank the individuals and organizations out there that have implemented and developed ways to help our veterans.
There were many issues that were brought to the world’s attention, such as homelessness, veteran benefits, unemployment and health care, which are all rising challenges among veterans in America. The veterans that shared their stories brought awareness to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and traumatic brain injuries (TBI), disabilities many veterans encounter that take a toll on their daily lives.
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Sexual trauma afflicts 15 percent of U.S. veterans seeking mental health care
Sexual trauma afflicts 15 percent of U.S. veterans: study
Tue Oct 28, 2008
By Maggie Fox, Health and Science Editor
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Nearly 15 percent of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans seeking medical care from the U.S. Veterans Affairs Department have suffered sexual trauma, from harassment to rape, researchers reported on Tuesday.
And these veterans were 1.5 times as likely as other veterans to need mental health services, the report from the VA found.
"We are, in fact, detecting men and women who seem to have a significant need for mental health services," said Rachel Kimerling of the National Center for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder at the VA Palo Alto Health Care System in California.
The study, presented at a meeting of the American Public Health Association in San Diego, raises many questions.
Kimerling said in a telephone interview the term "military sexual trauma" covers a range of events from coerced sex to outright rape or threatening and unwelcome sexual advances.
go here for more
http://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSTRE49R0O020081028
Tue Oct 28, 2008
By Maggie Fox, Health and Science Editor
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Nearly 15 percent of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans seeking medical care from the U.S. Veterans Affairs Department have suffered sexual trauma, from harassment to rape, researchers reported on Tuesday.
And these veterans were 1.5 times as likely as other veterans to need mental health services, the report from the VA found.
"We are, in fact, detecting men and women who seem to have a significant need for mental health services," said Rachel Kimerling of the National Center for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder at the VA Palo Alto Health Care System in California.
The study, presented at a meeting of the American Public Health Association in San Diego, raises many questions.
Kimerling said in a telephone interview the term "military sexual trauma" covers a range of events from coerced sex to outright rape or threatening and unwelcome sexual advances.
A spokeswoman for the VA said about 40 percent of all discharged veterans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan have sought medical care of some sort from the VA, which has a universal screening program for military sexual trauma.
go here for more
http://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSTRE49R0O020081028
Marine dead, wife critically hurt in apparent domestic dispute
Marine dead, wife critically hurt in apparent murder-suicide
San Diego Union Tribune - United States
By Angela Lau
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
7:46 p.m. October 27, 2008
FALLBROOK – A young Marine sergeant is dead and his wife critically hurt in what may be the outgrowth of a marital argument, sheriff's deputies said.
According to sheriff's homicide Lt. Dennis Brugos, two sergeants from nearby Camp Pendleton had gone to the sergeant's house on Elbrook Drive near Fallbrook Street after he had failed to report to work Monday morning.
They saw cars parked at the house, but got no response when they knocked on the door. At that point, they called the Sheriff's Department, Brugos said.
A deputy forced his way inside and found the sergeant's body in the garage. He then found the sergeant's wife in a bedroom with serious head injuries, Brugos said.
San Diego Union Tribune - United States
By Angela Lau
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
7:46 p.m. October 27, 2008
FALLBROOK – A young Marine sergeant is dead and his wife critically hurt in what may be the outgrowth of a marital argument, sheriff's deputies said.
According to sheriff's homicide Lt. Dennis Brugos, two sergeants from nearby Camp Pendleton had gone to the sergeant's house on Elbrook Drive near Fallbrook Street after he had failed to report to work Monday morning.
They saw cars parked at the house, but got no response when they knocked on the door. At that point, they called the Sheriff's Department, Brugos said.
A deputy forced his way inside and found the sergeant's body in the garage. He then found the sergeant's wife in a bedroom with serious head injuries, Brugos said.
The couple's two small boys were found about an hour later at the home of the couple's child care provider.
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Monday, October 27, 2008
Briton David Giles, killed in Afghanistan was about to be married
Murdered DHL dad about to re-marry
Gulf Daily News - Manama,Bahrain
By GEOFFREY BEW
MANAMA
A BAHRAIN resident, gunned down with his best friend in the Afghan capital, Kabul, was planning to get married for the second time, it emerged yesterday.
Briton David Giles, 42, who had worked for logistics giant DHL for three years, had just returned from a holiday in the US, where he visited his girlfriend Beverly and decided to tie the knot.
The divorced Afghanistan operations manager and South African DHL Express station manager Jason Bresler were shot dead in a car outside the company's Kabul office on Saturday.
Two other people, including an Afghan policeman, were injured in the attack.
International news agencies said the men were killed by a DHL security guard, who opened fire on them and then killed himself.
click link for more
Gulf Daily News - Manama,Bahrain
By GEOFFREY BEW
MANAMA
A BAHRAIN resident, gunned down with his best friend in the Afghan capital, Kabul, was planning to get married for the second time, it emerged yesterday.
Briton David Giles, 42, who had worked for logistics giant DHL for three years, had just returned from a holiday in the US, where he visited his girlfriend Beverly and decided to tie the knot.
The divorced Afghanistan operations manager and South African DHL Express station manager Jason Bresler were shot dead in a car outside the company's Kabul office on Saturday.
Two other people, including an Afghan policeman, were injured in the attack.
International news agencies said the men were killed by a DHL security guard, who opened fire on them and then killed himself.
click link for more
Maj. J. Scott Sanford falls to cancer at age 37
Former Misawa Security Forces chief falls to cancer at age 37
Stars and Stripes
Pacific edition, Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Former 35th Security Forces Squadron commander Maj. J. Scott Sanford died Friday at Tripler Army Medical Center in Hawaii while battling cancer.
He was 37.
Misawa Air Base will hold a memorial service at 10 a.m. Wednesday in the Mokuteki Community Center ballroom, base officials said Monday.
Sanford led Misawa security forces from June 2007 until August.
"The men and women of the 35th Security Forces Squadron wish to extend their deepest sympathy to Major Sanford’s friends and family," stated Capt. Jeffery Day, 35th Security Forces commander, who worked for Sanford at Misawa. "We were fortunate to have him as our commander for a year and value everything he has done for our defenders, Misawa, the Air Force and our great country."
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http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=58449
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