Deputies To Learn About Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
Law Enforcement Often First Professionals To Come In Contact With Ailing Soldiers
Last updated Sunday, September 20, 2009 11:55 PM CDT in News
By Anna Fry
THE MORNING NEWS
Benton County Sheriff's Office deputies will learn about veterans and post-traumatic stress disorder during special training scheduled for October.
"We're not going to turn them into mental health experts," said Vaughn DeCoster, team leader with the Fayetteville Veterans Center. "It's kind of sensitivity training, if you will."
DeCoster and two Veterans Affairs-affiliated nurses are providing the training. The training is mandatory for all deputies in the field, who are the sheriff's office employees most likely to deal with people with the disorder, said Capt. Mike Jones.
Deputies recently responded to a disturbance involving a recently-returned soldier with the disorder, Jones said. The man's family was complimentary of the deputies' handling of the situation but recommended training, he said.
The Sheriff's Office approached the center about the training and it's the first time it's been done, DeCoster said. The purpose is to educate deputies about soldiers returning from war and the community resources to which deputies can refer them.
The area doesn't have any big active-duty bases near, so soldiers returning from war can go unnoticed in public, he said.
"There are people out there that are suffering silently," DeCoster said.
All soldiers returning from war must decompress and adjust, he said. Just because soldiers are returning from combat and show symptoms doesn't mean they have post-traumatic stress disorder
read more here
http://www.nwaonline.net/articles/2009/09/21/news/092109bzptsd.txt
Monday, September 21, 2009
Longwood FL school under lock down over black bear
Bear At School; Campus Locked Down
Bear In Tree Near Classrooms
POSTED: Monday, September 21, 2009
UPDATED: 1:01 pm EDT September 21, 2009
LONGWOOD, Fla. -- A Seminole County school is on lock down after a black bear was found on its campus.
According to Fish and Wildlife, the bear was found on Pace-Brantley Hall school property Monday morning.
read more here
http://www.clickorlando.com/news/21039378/detail.html
linked from CNN
Bear In Tree Near Classrooms
POSTED: Monday, September 21, 2009
UPDATED: 1:01 pm EDT September 21, 2009
LONGWOOD, Fla. -- A Seminole County school is on lock down after a black bear was found on its campus.
According to Fish and Wildlife, the bear was found on Pace-Brantley Hall school property Monday morning.
read more here
http://www.clickorlando.com/news/21039378/detail.html
linked from CNN
Sgt. Rafael Peralta should have honor earned
The excuse of a friendly fire bullet limiting his capacity to act when a grenade came, is blown away by the military procedures they already have. PTSD medicated troops sent back into combat, but no one questions their mental capacity if they act heroically. TBI troops still kept on duty, but no one questions their mental capacity either. Here they have someone with a bullet wound but still put others first and pulled the grenade to himself. This act, was worthy of one medal but not the Medal of Honor because he was already wounded? Dah! How stupid does this get?
Marine could still get medal
By William Cole
President Obama on Thursday posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor, the nation's highest military recognition, to a Massachusetts soldier who died in Afghanistan trying to save a wounded comrade.
Staff Sgt. Jared C. Monti, a team leader with the 3rd Brigade Combat Team of the 10th Mountain Division, died in Nuristan province on June 21, 2006.
It was a reminder of a Medal of Honor not received in the case of a Hawai'i Marine, Sgt. Rafael Peralta. It is a cause that fellow Marines refuse to give up on.
At least four Marines with Peralta on Nov. 15, 2004, in Fallujah, Iraq, have stated in written reports that they saw the short and stocky Marine nicknamed "Rafa" pull a grenade to his body after it had bounced into a room, saving the lives of others in the process.
The 25-year-old was with the 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment out of Kane'ohe Bay.
A Medal of Honor recommendation for Peralta made it through examinations by the Marine Corps, U.S. Central Command and the Department of the Navy before being rejected by five individuals appointed in an unusual move by U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates to review the nomination.
read more here
Marine could still get medal
Marine ride to provide holiday cheer
Marine ride to provide holiday cheer
Toys for Tots campaign kicks off
Updated: Sunday, 20 Sep 2009, 7:53 PM EDT
Published : Sunday, 20 Sep 2009, 11:46 AM EDT
Anthony DiLorenzo
FEEDING HILLS, Mass. (WWLP) - Local bikers wound their way through the Pioneer Valley, Sunday morning with the Marine Corps League of Westfield, raising money for an important cause.
Their efforts will help needy children this holiday season as well as wounded warriors.
Hundreds of bikers are all revved up for the holiday season. Even Santa Claus himself, and bikers from throughout New England spread Christmas cheer with the kickoff of the Toys for Tots campaign with a benefit ride through the Pioneer Valley.
Around 200 bikers are not only helping the needy children but also the wounded warriors that have come back from battle with deep scars.
"Toys are coming in one at a time as a donation, and then a donation will go toward the 'Marine Helping Marine' program," explained Commandant Fran Curnow, of the Westfield River Valley Marine Corps League.
It's a program Lou Johnson champions in his fallen son's name, "participating in something like this makes me feel we're extending his example of doing for others."
Nineteen-year-old Marine Lance Corporal Phil Johnson of Enfield, CT, was killed three years ago in Iraq.
The Johnson family now makes it their mission, to help other military families with similar struggles.
go here for more
Marine ride to provide holiday cheer
Toys for Tots campaign kicks off
Updated: Sunday, 20 Sep 2009, 7:53 PM EDT
Published : Sunday, 20 Sep 2009, 11:46 AM EDT
Anthony DiLorenzo
FEEDING HILLS, Mass. (WWLP) - Local bikers wound their way through the Pioneer Valley, Sunday morning with the Marine Corps League of Westfield, raising money for an important cause.
Their efforts will help needy children this holiday season as well as wounded warriors.
Hundreds of bikers are all revved up for the holiday season. Even Santa Claus himself, and bikers from throughout New England spread Christmas cheer with the kickoff of the Toys for Tots campaign with a benefit ride through the Pioneer Valley.
Around 200 bikers are not only helping the needy children but also the wounded warriors that have come back from battle with deep scars.
"Toys are coming in one at a time as a donation, and then a donation will go toward the 'Marine Helping Marine' program," explained Commandant Fran Curnow, of the Westfield River Valley Marine Corps League.
It's a program Lou Johnson champions in his fallen son's name, "participating in something like this makes me feel we're extending his example of doing for others."
Nineteen-year-old Marine Lance Corporal Phil Johnson of Enfield, CT, was killed three years ago in Iraq.
The Johnson family now makes it their mission, to help other military families with similar struggles.
go here for more
Marine ride to provide holiday cheer
Marine reservist killed after stopping to help accident victims
Marine reservist dies after being hit by car in Arlington
11:54 PM CDT on Sunday, September 20, 2009
By RICHARD ABSHIRE / The Dallas Morning News
rabshire@dallasnews.com
Arlington's 27th traffic fatality of 2009 was a Marine reservist who stopped to help victims of a traffic accident on Interstate 20 between Collins Street and Matlock Road shortly after 6 a.m. Sunday.
According to police, the original accident involved three vehicles in the westbound lanes of I-20. Two people were sent to hospitals with non-life-threatening injuries.
The reservist and another man stopped to divert traffic and help the victims of the accident get out of their cars.
read more here
Marine reservist dies after being hit by car in Arlington
11:54 PM CDT on Sunday, September 20, 2009
By RICHARD ABSHIRE / The Dallas Morning News
rabshire@dallasnews.com
Arlington's 27th traffic fatality of 2009 was a Marine reservist who stopped to help victims of a traffic accident on Interstate 20 between Collins Street and Matlock Road shortly after 6 a.m. Sunday.
According to police, the original accident involved three vehicles in the westbound lanes of I-20. Two people were sent to hospitals with non-life-threatening injuries.
The reservist and another man stopped to divert traffic and help the victims of the accident get out of their cars.
read more here
Marine reservist dies after being hit by car in Arlington
North Wales man tells of post traumatic stress from warzone
North Wales man tells of post traumatic stress from warzone
Sep 21 2009 by Eryl Crump, Daily Post
THE horrors of war are a recurring nightmare for Thomas Rowlands
The 37-year-old from Anglesey saw active service in Northern Ireland and Bosnia during his seven-year spell with the First battalion Royal Welch Fusiliers.
Medically discharged from the Army he says he is suffering from post traumatic stress syndrome (PTSD) and has had no help at all to cope with the condition. But now he is one of the first to receive support he needs from a new Gwynedd-based organisation called Pathways.
He told the Daily Post: “It was Bosnia which ended my Army days. I saw children blown up while I looked on helpless to do anything.
“Youngsters of three and four years old begging me and my mates for food from our ration packs.
“Then we return from the war zone and the Army says there is nothing wrong with me.”
He says since returning to Wales he has had difficulty coping with normal, everyday life.
“I can’t sleep and can’t hold a job down. I’ve had more than 25 jobs in all.
read more here
North Wales man tells of post traumatic stress from warzone
Sep 21 2009 by Eryl Crump, Daily Post
THE horrors of war are a recurring nightmare for Thomas Rowlands
The 37-year-old from Anglesey saw active service in Northern Ireland and Bosnia during his seven-year spell with the First battalion Royal Welch Fusiliers.
Medically discharged from the Army he says he is suffering from post traumatic stress syndrome (PTSD) and has had no help at all to cope with the condition. But now he is one of the first to receive support he needs from a new Gwynedd-based organisation called Pathways.
He told the Daily Post: “It was Bosnia which ended my Army days. I saw children blown up while I looked on helpless to do anything.
“Youngsters of three and four years old begging me and my mates for food from our ration packs.
“Then we return from the war zone and the Army says there is nothing wrong with me.”
He says since returning to Wales he has had difficulty coping with normal, everyday life.
“I can’t sleep and can’t hold a job down. I’ve had more than 25 jobs in all.
read more here
North Wales man tells of post traumatic stress from warzone
Marine charged with faking war wounds and combat medals
Sgt. David W. Budwah is not just a jerk deciding to play dress-up hero, telling tall tales to impress strangers. He isn't your average veteran faking wounds to collect funds he didn't earn. He is worse because he is still in the Marines! This is a betrayal against every real wounded veteran, every real combat medal wearing hero and every man serving today in the military.
Marine charged with faking war wounds for gain
By DAVID DISHNEAU (AP) – 3 hours ago
SABILLASVILLE, Md. — On a sultry day in July 2008, Marine Sgt. David W. Budwah strode in his battle fatigues to the front of a picnic pavilion to tell three dozen young boys what he did during the war.
With his clear gaze, rigid posture and muscled, tattooed arms, Budwah looked every inch the hero he claimed to be. He said he was on his second tour of duty in Afghanistan when a homemade grenade exploded, wounding his face and arm when he dove to shield a buddy from the blast.
He urged the boys, ages 9-12, to take pride in themselves, their country and its warriors.
"We're here to make sure of the freedom you have every day," Budwah told his audience at Camp West Mar, a wooded American Legion compound about 60 miles northwest of Washington.
Spencer Shoemaker, then 10, was so impressed he had his picture taken with Budwah and kept a treasured newspaper clipping about the visit.
"What he said made me feel like I wanted to join the Marines," Spencer said.
But the Marines say Budwah is a liar, a fraud and a thief. They are court-martialing the 34-year-old Springhill, La., native, alleging he was never in Afghanistan, wasn't wounded and didn't earn the combat medals he wore — or the many privileges he enjoyed.
Budwah joined the Marines in October 1999 and spent nearly all of the next six years with a radio communications unit in Okinawa, Japan, according to the Marine Corps Base in Quantico, Va., where Budwah has been stationed since February 2006.
read more here
Marine charged with faking war wounds for gain
500 Mile March for PTSD Will Happen in Spring
500 Mile March for PTSD Will Happen in Spring
Tim King Salem-News.com
The March from Oregon to California will take place after winter thaws.
U.S. soldiers on patrol in Kabul, Afghanistan
Salem-News.com photo by Tim King
(SALEM, Ore.) - The date for our planned 500-Mile March for PTSD has been moved to Spring. We had originally intended to conduct the march in September, but the extension will allow us to be fully prepared and not operating in haste.
The march will raise funds for our hour-ling television documentary on Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, commonly known as PTSD. We completed a production trip just weeks ago in Oregon, California and Arizona, gaining significant material for the program.
Our next immediate plan is to travel to Washington state to record interviews and footage of an art display dedicated to helping sufferers of PTSD, and then back to Sacramento to interview several key people who we were not able to connect with on the last trip.
The documentary will feature interviews with soldiers and Marines with their boots on the ground in Iraq and Afghanistan, who talk about PTSD and what they are doing to avoid having it as an aspect of their lives.
The point of it is to educate people who have PTSD and family members of combat veterans afflicted with this disorder, to give them ideas that they can put to use. There are many approaches and many degrees of PTSD, and there is no single answer to offer as a remedy. Instead we are showing the programs and therapies that can actually make a difference.
We also are aware of the fact that combat is only one reason why people suffer from PTSD. This documentary will be a useful tool for all Americans who have Post Traumatic Stress.
read more here
http://www.salem-news.com/articles/september202009/ptsd_march_9-20-09.php
Tim King Salem-News.com
The March from Oregon to California will take place after winter thaws.
U.S. soldiers on patrol in Kabul, Afghanistan
Salem-News.com photo by Tim King
(SALEM, Ore.) - The date for our planned 500-Mile March for PTSD has been moved to Spring. We had originally intended to conduct the march in September, but the extension will allow us to be fully prepared and not operating in haste.
The march will raise funds for our hour-ling television documentary on Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, commonly known as PTSD. We completed a production trip just weeks ago in Oregon, California and Arizona, gaining significant material for the program.
Our next immediate plan is to travel to Washington state to record interviews and footage of an art display dedicated to helping sufferers of PTSD, and then back to Sacramento to interview several key people who we were not able to connect with on the last trip.
The documentary will feature interviews with soldiers and Marines with their boots on the ground in Iraq and Afghanistan, who talk about PTSD and what they are doing to avoid having it as an aspect of their lives.
The point of it is to educate people who have PTSD and family members of combat veterans afflicted with this disorder, to give them ideas that they can put to use. There are many approaches and many degrees of PTSD, and there is no single answer to offer as a remedy. Instead we are showing the programs and therapies that can actually make a difference.
We also are aware of the fact that combat is only one reason why people suffer from PTSD. This documentary will be a useful tool for all Americans who have Post Traumatic Stress.
read more here
http://www.salem-news.com/articles/september202009/ptsd_march_9-20-09.php
Sunday, September 20, 2009
Woman dies after catching fire during surgery
Woman dies after catching fire during surgery
By JIM SUHR Associated Press Writer ST. LOUIS (AP) - A southern Illinois woman died after being severely burned in a flash fire while undergoing surgery, a rare but vexing dilemma in operating rooms.
Janice McCall, 65, of Energy, Ill., died Sept. 8 at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tenn., six days after being burned on the operating table at Heartland Regional Medical Center in Marion, Ill., her family's attorney said.
Attorney Robert Howerton said he had requested medical records from the Marion hospital and that he had few details about what happened. He declined to say why McCall was having surgery.
The Tennessee state medical examiner's office said McCall died from complications of thermal burns and classified her death as accidental.
read more here
http://www.komonews.com/news/national/59731387.html
By JIM SUHR Associated Press Writer ST. LOUIS (AP) - A southern Illinois woman died after being severely burned in a flash fire while undergoing surgery, a rare but vexing dilemma in operating rooms.
Janice McCall, 65, of Energy, Ill., died Sept. 8 at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tenn., six days after being burned on the operating table at Heartland Regional Medical Center in Marion, Ill., her family's attorney said.
Attorney Robert Howerton said he had requested medical records from the Marion hospital and that he had few details about what happened. He declined to say why McCall was having surgery.
The Tennessee state medical examiner's office said McCall died from complications of thermal burns and classified her death as accidental.
read more here
http://www.komonews.com/news/national/59731387.html
Phillip Paul captured came three days after he escaped
Washington state killer captured after field-trip escape
Story Highlights
Legally insane killer escaped Thursday during hospital field trip to fair
Escape in Spokane County, Washington, prompted manhunt
Phillip Paul killed community activist in 1987, believing she was a witch
(CNN) -- A legally insane killer who escaped in Washington state during a field trip was recaptured Sunday, the Yakima County Sheriff's Department told CNN.
Authorities combed Washington state for Phillip Paul, a killer who escaped Thursday during a field trip.
Phillip Paul's capture came three days after he escaped in Spokane County, Washington. After escaping, he was the subject of a massive manhunt.
Details of the capture weren't immediately available.
Though Paul had been confined in a mental institution because of a murder confession, he was allowed to be part of Thursday's trip to a county fair.
read more here
http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/09/20/washington.escaped.killer/index.html
Story Highlights
Legally insane killer escaped Thursday during hospital field trip to fair
Escape in Spokane County, Washington, prompted manhunt
Phillip Paul killed community activist in 1987, believing she was a witch
(CNN) -- A legally insane killer who escaped in Washington state during a field trip was recaptured Sunday, the Yakima County Sheriff's Department told CNN.
Authorities combed Washington state for Phillip Paul, a killer who escaped Thursday during a field trip.
Phillip Paul's capture came three days after he escaped in Spokane County, Washington. After escaping, he was the subject of a massive manhunt.
Details of the capture weren't immediately available.
Though Paul had been confined in a mental institution because of a murder confession, he was allowed to be part of Thursday's trip to a county fair.
read more here
http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/09/20/washington.escaped.killer/index.html
Flag flies in memory of POWs, MIAs
Raising awareness
Flag flies in memory of POWs, MIAs
By Gus Thomson, Journal Staff Writer
The black and white flag for America’s missing in action joined the red, white and blue on one of Auburn’s most prominent flagpoles Friday.
And as the flag snapped in a stiff breeze above Veterans Memorial Park and below Old Glory, heads turned proudly upward, a school choir sang the National Anthem and veterans’ thoughts drifted to those left behind in the fields of Normandy or in the jungles of Southeast Asia.
Vietnam veteran R.C. Bynog had made it a goal to have the flag fly this year on national POW-MIA Remembrance Day. The Auburn ironworker sold commemorative hats to raise funds for the flag and helped convince county authorities that the flag deserved a place on a pole it had never graced before.
Friday’s ceremony took Bynog back to a time when he was barely 20 and driving convoy vehicles east of Saigon. He turns 60 later this year.
“It’s important,” Bynog said. “So we don’t forget the people who paid the ultimate sacrifice.”
read more here
Raising awareness
Flag flies in memory of POWs, MIAs
By Gus Thomson, Journal Staff Writer
The black and white flag for America’s missing in action joined the red, white and blue on one of Auburn’s most prominent flagpoles Friday.
And as the flag snapped in a stiff breeze above Veterans Memorial Park and below Old Glory, heads turned proudly upward, a school choir sang the National Anthem and veterans’ thoughts drifted to those left behind in the fields of Normandy or in the jungles of Southeast Asia.
Vietnam veteran R.C. Bynog had made it a goal to have the flag fly this year on national POW-MIA Remembrance Day. The Auburn ironworker sold commemorative hats to raise funds for the flag and helped convince county authorities that the flag deserved a place on a pole it had never graced before.
Friday’s ceremony took Bynog back to a time when he was barely 20 and driving convoy vehicles east of Saigon. He turns 60 later this year.
“It’s important,” Bynog said. “So we don’t forget the people who paid the ultimate sacrifice.”
read more here
Raising awareness
Vietnam Veteran Appreciation Gathering
Vietnam veterans gather to talk about their experiences
Vietnam veterans gathered Saturday to talk about their experiences and to help one another heal. The fourth annual Vietnam Veteran Appreciation Gathering in Altoona and brings us the story.Posted: 10:40 PM Sep 19, 2009
Reporter: Chris Baylor Email Address: mailto:chris.baylor@weau.com%20?subject=Vietnam
Vietnam veterans gather to talk about their experiences
Vietnam veterans gathered Saturday to talk about their experiences and to help one another heal. The fourth annual Vietnam Veteran Appreciation Gathering in Altoona and brings us the story.
"My responsibilities as a young 19 year old was to be a patch man,” says David Backstrom.
"I was a teenage medic in what they call navel support activity," says Backstrom.
David Backstrom says up until recently Vietnam Veterans didn't get a lot of credit for serving during a dangerous time.
"I think what happened is they understand with another war going on they're thinking wow what the heck, well stronger language, but what an awful thing to have happen to solders," says Backstrom.
Backstrom was one of the vets who took to the open mic Saturday to talk about his experiences in Vietnam.
Thuy Smith and her group, The Thuy Smith International Outreach, put on the fourth annual gathering.
The group helps children in Vietnam and works with veterans here in the states.
"These guys are now seeing that it's a positive thing to come together like this. Vietnam was a long time ago but it will always be a part of them but we can come together and make it a positive thing today," says Thuy Smith.
read more here
http://www.weau.com/news/headlines/59904657.html
Vietnam veterans gathered Saturday to talk about their experiences and to help one another heal. The fourth annual Vietnam Veteran Appreciation Gathering in Altoona and brings us the story.Posted: 10:40 PM Sep 19, 2009
Reporter: Chris Baylor Email Address: mailto:chris.baylor@weau.com%20?subject=Vietnam
Vietnam veterans gather to talk about their experiences
Vietnam veterans gathered Saturday to talk about their experiences and to help one another heal. The fourth annual Vietnam Veteran Appreciation Gathering in Altoona and brings us the story.
"My responsibilities as a young 19 year old was to be a patch man,” says David Backstrom.
"I was a teenage medic in what they call navel support activity," says Backstrom.
David Backstrom says up until recently Vietnam Veterans didn't get a lot of credit for serving during a dangerous time.
"I think what happened is they understand with another war going on they're thinking wow what the heck, well stronger language, but what an awful thing to have happen to solders," says Backstrom.
Backstrom was one of the vets who took to the open mic Saturday to talk about his experiences in Vietnam.
Thuy Smith and her group, The Thuy Smith International Outreach, put on the fourth annual gathering.
The group helps children in Vietnam and works with veterans here in the states.
"These guys are now seeing that it's a positive thing to come together like this. Vietnam was a long time ago but it will always be a part of them but we can come together and make it a positive thing today," says Thuy Smith.
read more here
http://www.weau.com/news/headlines/59904657.html
Great Dane escapes death to help heal Vietnam Vet
Great Dane escapes death, rescuer, runs to an open heart
By SUE NOWICKI
The Modesto Bee
MODESTO -- Henry was on death row, days from getting the needle, when he was saved and taken to a safe house. But three days later, he jumped the 6-foot-high fence in the back yard and went on the lam.
That's when Ron Dorville of Modesto happened along and took the Great Dane home with him. The sight of his 4-foot-10-inch wife, Sue, walking the big dog made a neighbor grin and call The Modesto Bee. The call brought the caper to light.
The Dorvilles took Henry -- Ron named him after King Henry VIII of England because the dog "has a regal air" -- to a veterinarian.
By SUE NOWICKI
The Modesto Bee
MODESTO -- Henry was on death row, days from getting the needle, when he was saved and taken to a safe house. But three days later, he jumped the 6-foot-high fence in the back yard and went on the lam.
That's when Ron Dorville of Modesto happened along and took the Great Dane home with him. The sight of his 4-foot-10-inch wife, Sue, walking the big dog made a neighbor grin and call The Modesto Bee. The call brought the caper to light.
The Dorvilles took Henry -- Ron named him after King Henry VIII of England because the dog "has a regal air" -- to a veterinarian.
Henry has been good medicine for Ron, a retired Army colonel who served in Vietnam, has post-traumatic stress disorder and is recovering from prostate cancer surgery earlier this summer.
read more here
Naples family of six found dead
Update
Man sought whose wife, 5 children killed
Florida authorities were searching Sunday for a 33-year-old man after his wife and five children were found dead in their Naples, Florida, home. "I can tell you that in no uncertain terms this is the most horrific and violent event this community has ever experienced," Collier County Sheriff Kevin Rambosk said. full story
Man sought whose wife, 5 children killed
Florida authorities were searching Sunday for a 33-year-old man after his wife and five children were found dead in their Naples, Florida, home. "I can tell you that in no uncertain terms this is the most horrific and violent event this community has ever experienced," Collier County Sheriff Kevin Rambosk said. full story
Naples family of six found dead
Posted: Sep 20, 2009 12:55 AM EDT
Updated: Sep 20, 2009 9:25 AM EDT
Mesac Damas
A neighbor provided this photo of one of Damas' children, which was posted on his Facebook page.
The crime happened in the Stratford Place community
A man wanted for questioning in the slaying of his wife and five children in North Naples has fled to Haiti, according to his father.
In an interview with the Naples Daily News, the man's father said Mesac Damas called his brother from Haiti, though he did not say when.
Detectives found the bodies of Mesac Damas' family at 864 Hampton Circle around 6:30 p.m. while conducting a welfare check.
Jim Williams, chief investigator with the Collier County Sheriff's Office, talked to the Naples Daily News at the scene.
He told them Damas' sister-in-law contacted authorities after she hadn't heard from her sister.
"When the officer walked in the house to do a check, he found a deceased person," Williams told the Naples Daily News. "As he walked through the house to see if anyone else was inside, he found other persons deceased."
The bodies were still in the home as of early Sunday morning.
Williams also told the Naples Daily News that reports that the family members were shot were erroneous, but he wouldn't elaborate on a cause of death.
Investigators continue to walk in and out of the home in white scrubs or "clean suits." They removed several brown bags of evidence around 4:15 a.m.
read more here
http://www.abc-7.com/global/story.asp?s=11163098
linked from CNN
Iraq and Afghanistan veterans live good life?
Sally Satel has never been a friend of the troops, veterans or the truth. The problem is, she's not the only one. While the following is true, and few paid attention to the reports coming out over the last 8 years, even fewer are thinking about the veterans it was done to. That's the problem with false claims being allowed to just be out there. They don't go away and people actually believe the lies. When it came to our veterans, it cost them their lives.
But people like Satel were believed for far too long. This was also in the email pile this morning.
Notice how this article said "rocket attack" and "mortar shell" but did not mention IED or roadside bomb or sniper? Mortar shells were used by military in Vietnam and so were rockets but hardly ever used in Iraq or Afghanistan. For those two campaigns, the hidden bombs, do a lot more damage to life and mind, including traumatic brain injury and PTSD. This article also seems to dismiss the suicide bombers blowing themselves up in crowds. Air conditioning? Are they serious with this? The problem is, articles like this are believed instead of slammed.
These are from ICasualties.org
Afghanistan
Iraq
But with most of the troops now pulled back, the bombs still blow up in cars, on roads and on bodies. The difference is, most people didn't pay attention when the lives of the 4,345 US troops were put into their coffins.
Considering how many lives were lost during Vietnam, it requires a fool to just assume Iraq and Afghanistan are nothing much. The difference is, the amount of troops in Iraq and Afghanistan vs Vietnam. We also don't seem to consider that there were not many contractors in Vietnam but in Iraq and Afghanistan, they actually outnumbered the troops. Keeping track of their lives and their wounds is not being done, so it is easy to hide the true cost of war.
The problem with articles like the above is that they get enough exposure to do a lot of harm, when they could have been doing some good all along. The agenda is not to help or honor the men and women serving this country. The agenda is to attack them because they just cost too much money. They dared to come home wounded instead of dying where they were sent. That is the real attitude here. This attitude comes from the minority but is dangerous because it is allowed to go unchallenged.
Ignoring these reports allows them to continue. It's how we ended up with the image of the "crazy Nam vet" instead of wounded combat veteran into our brains. We know a lot better now but some people just don't care.
Army Gives Bad Discharges to Thousands of PTSD Vets
Gordon Duff Salem-News.com
Benefit denial scams raise suicide rates.
(CINNCINATTI, Ohio) - It all began as a Bush era program, promoted by Dr. Sally Satel, the famed "PTSD denialist" putting thousands of soldiers at risk and pushing hundreds to suicide.
Thousands of veterans lost all benefits, GI Bill, medical care and more through Army discharge scam, part of Neo-con "cost saving program"
How did it work? Simple. A very large percentage of combat vets with PTSD are problem drinkers, self medicating in the only way they can and, in the process, getting worse and worse. Redeployments of soldiers needing treatment only adds to the problem.
When vets with severe PTSD demonstrate severe symptoms, including alcohol abuse, they are put in short and unproven "quit" programs with an extremely high failure rate. This is all part of a game, one invented to trap soldiers and cut costs.
Step 2 in the game, the Army "orders" the soldier not to drink, knowing the order itself is absurd. Real treatment for PTSD is denied. When the soldier drinks, and they always do, the soldier is arrested, jailed and charged, now get this, with disobeying a direct order, Article 34 and disrespect to an officer or non-com.
Sometimes even more charges are piled on. In the end, the deal is the same. Leave the army with nothing but years of honorable service now labeled as "dishonorable" or "bad conduct" and face civilian life crushed and abandoned by the country you risked your life to serve.
The Army learned the game from the VA. The VA denied PTSD diagnoses to Vietnam veterans used alcohol, claiming they couldn't be diagnosed. Problem is, almost all PTSD vets use alcohol or drugs as self medication. End result, tens of thousands of Vietnam vets were denied diagnosis, treatment and compensation for decades with thousand dying as a result.
The basis of the Army policy is the Dr. Sally Satel "theory" that PTSD does not exist and all vets are fakers. Her beliefs, fringe "neo-con medicine" comes from a theory that soldiers and veterans are part of a non-productive social class that taxes a nations economic health as soon as they leave a combat zone. The end analysis supports the supposition that a disabled veteran and an illegal alien on welfare contribute exactly the same to the overall welfare of society.
read more hereBad Discharges to Thousands of PTSD Vets
But people like Satel were believed for far too long. This was also in the email pile this morning.
Seeking Stressed Soldiers
September 19, 2009: PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) is becoming a big issue. The problem is, in most cases it's unclear who has it. But as the war goes on, more troops are coming back who might have it. For example, since September 11, 2001, nearly 5,000 troops have been evacuated (as medical cases) from Iraq and Afghanistan for mental disorders. Only 16 percent of those were confirmed PTSD cases, the rest were for more familiar things like severe depression. Moreover, most of the troops in Iraq and Afghanistan are not involved in combat. Yes, they are living in a combat zone, but aside from an occasional mortar shell or rocket (which usually causes no injuries), most troops tend to have air conditioned sleeping quarters, gyms, Internet access, video games, good food and excellent medical care. It's unclear how many troops actually have PTSD, although many who are in combat, definitely are stressed out and in need of help.read more of this here
http://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htatrit/articles/20090919.aspx
Notice how this article said "rocket attack" and "mortar shell" but did not mention IED or roadside bomb or sniper? Mortar shells were used by military in Vietnam and so were rockets but hardly ever used in Iraq or Afghanistan. For those two campaigns, the hidden bombs, do a lot more damage to life and mind, including traumatic brain injury and PTSD. This article also seems to dismiss the suicide bombers blowing themselves up in crowds. Air conditioning? Are they serious with this? The problem is, articles like this are believed instead of slammed.
These are from ICasualties.org
Afghanistan
09/20/09 nydailynews: Soldiers'' brain injuries from blasts in Afghanistan take a toll
It''s estimated that 20% of soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan have been diagnosed with traumatic brain injury, or TBI, caused by the impact of improvised explosive devices.
09/19/09 AP: Suicide car bomb kills 7, wounds nearly 100 in Kabu
A suicide car bomber struck near the front gate of NATO headquarters today in Kabul, killing seven people and wounding nearly 100 in a brazen daylight attack less than a week before Afghanistan''s landmark presidential election.
09/19/09 : DoD Identifies Army Casualty
Pfc. Jeremiah J. Monroe, 31, of Niskayuna, N.Y., died Sept. 17 in Kandahar, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when enemy forces attacked his vehicle with an improvised explosive device. He was assigned to the 7th Engineer Battalion, 10th Sustainment Brigade, 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry), Fort Drum, N.Y.
Iraq
09/20/09 MNF: Service member killed in downed aircraft incident, 12 wounded
One U.S. service member was killed and 12 others were injured when a UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter went down inside of Joint Base Balad at approximately 8 p.m. Saturday. The name of the deceased is being withheld pending notification of next of kin and release by the Department of Defense.
But with most of the troops now pulled back, the bombs still blow up in cars, on roads and on bodies. The difference is, most people didn't pay attention when the lives of the 4,345 US troops were put into their coffins.
Considering how many lives were lost during Vietnam, it requires a fool to just assume Iraq and Afghanistan are nothing much. The difference is, the amount of troops in Iraq and Afghanistan vs Vietnam. We also don't seem to consider that there were not many contractors in Vietnam but in Iraq and Afghanistan, they actually outnumbered the troops. Keeping track of their lives and their wounds is not being done, so it is easy to hide the true cost of war.
The problem with articles like the above is that they get enough exposure to do a lot of harm, when they could have been doing some good all along. The agenda is not to help or honor the men and women serving this country. The agenda is to attack them because they just cost too much money. They dared to come home wounded instead of dying where they were sent. That is the real attitude here. This attitude comes from the minority but is dangerous because it is allowed to go unchallenged.
Ignoring these reports allows them to continue. It's how we ended up with the image of the "crazy Nam vet" instead of wounded combat veteran into our brains. We know a lot better now but some people just don't care.
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