I am one of the (3000) suspected survivors, I was med vol 6778A or 6778C depending on which paperwork the Army produces at the time. I was there from June 1974 - August 22, 1974. There is one major issue that the lawsuit is not describing, that of the toxic exposures thru environmental causes, a 1978 EPA Report on Edgewood Arsenal shows 77 toxic substances in the drinking water wells and soil of the training areas. The EPA ordered the water wells capped and bottle water used until fresh water could be piped into the base from out of the area, the entire aquifer was contaminated. The medical problems linked to the toxins range from pulmonary, nuerological, cardiovascular and gastrointestinal issues.
I was told be the VA I could not prove I was exposed to any of the toxins, excuse me I had to eat, drink and bath there for 3 months, how could I or any of the other veterans avoid the water, we drank coffee made from it, kool aid, brushed our teeth in it, we swam in it and we bathed in it, how could we avoid it for the time we were there? Canada and Great Britain have both compensated their veterans used at Gagetown, Canada and Porton Downs England for being used in identical experimentsthat were duplicated at Edgewood Arsenal, if both of those nations accept responsibility for a form of abuse and their veterans are covered by national health care, then monetary compensation was for what reason? Because the programs violated accepted normal human behaviors, why won't the DOD and the VA accept the same level of responsibility?
Thursday, January 8, 2009
My comments about the CIA/DOD and Army lawsuit
