VA failing Iraq war vets
VETERANS RETURNING FROM WARS FIND VA UNDER
STRESS -- "Within the next three to five years, the flood of
vets seeking help is probably going to overwhelm the VA."
Iraq War veteran Christopher M. Kreiger — at home since Thursday with wife, Melissa, and sons C.J., 6, left, and Cole, 4 — suffers from seizures and hallucinations and has been in and out of VA hospital seven times. (photo: Bill Wippert / Buffalo News)
For a previous story about Christopher Kreiger, click here...
http://www.vawatchdog.org/07/nf07/nfDEC07/nf121707-8.htm
Story here... http://www.buffalonews.com/home/story/290243.html
Story below:
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‘Flood’ coming as soldiers return home needing care
Veterans returning from wars find VA under strain
By Lou Michel NEWS STAFF REPORTER
Another surge is putting pressure on the nation’s military.
It is the surge of veterans from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan returning home with physical and psychological wounds, and the question is: Are the nation’s veterans hospitals equipped and staffed to handle it?
“The flood is coming,” said Patrick W. Welch, director of veterans services for Erie County. “Within the next three to five years, the flood of vets seeking help is probably going to overwhelm the VA.”
It started with a trickle. Just 61 of these newest war veterans sought help at the local VA hospital in 2003.
But in the years after, nearly 1,800 vets returning from Iraq and Afghanistan went to the Buffalo VA and its seven community clinics.
Local VA officials acknowledge the growing demand, and they say they are keeping up with it and will hire 150 more people to continue what, they insist, is success in providing prompt and comprehensive health care.
The VA’s optimism is not shared by everyone.
Jeremy Lepsch, a Marine who served with an anti-terrorist unit in east Africa, says his most recent admission to the Veterans Affairs Medical Center’s psychiatric unit exposed him to staff shortages and overworked psychiatrists.
Dana Cushing, who served twice in Iraq and once in east Africa, says she has to make a 300-mile round-trip drive to the Syracuse VA because she can’t get timely appointments here with a women’s doctor.
And then there’s Iraq War veteran Christopher M. Kreiger.
He has several physical and psychological problems and has been in and out of the Buffalo VA Medical Center seven times. In the last six months, his condition has worsened as he suffered from mysterious seizures and hallucinations and has been unable to sleep. Kreiger was released Thursday from the hospital and says he still does not know what is ruining his health.
Despite repeated promises by VA doctors to send the Town of Tonawanda father to a facility better equipped to diagnose and possibly cure him, Kreiger remains here.
Even in the face of these criticisms, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs officials say they provide top-notch care, and veterans, in satisfaction surveys, give the local VA Medical Center an approval rating of 75 percent or better, which is consistent with national ratings.
But in the same breath, the local VA officials say they are looking to hire 150 more staff members this year, from clerical support to medical personnel. That would raise the overall hospital staff here to 2,025.
Over the last five years — since the Iraq War began in 2003 — the hospital has added 86 employees.
The 1,800 new patients who arrived during that same time make up only a fraction of the overall number of veterans receiving VA medical treatment in Western New York. The VA estimates that it assists more than 40,000 local veterans annually.
Michael S. Finegan, the top VA health care administrator in Western New York, says the system is on solid footing with staff and resources. Its 2008 budget, he said, is $200 million, which is $70 million more than the $130 million allocated in 2003.
“If we don’t have the service in the building, we buy it in the community,” Finegan said. “Every two weeks, I get a report on who’s waiting more than 30 days for an appointment. Job number one is to get vets in within 30 days.”
Because of patient confidentiality, Finegan says, he cannot identify veterans who have had successful recoveries at the VA.
But he says they are many, including veterans who have been helped through anger issues and now work full time, as well as vets who have learned how to handle panic attacks and other psychological issues. He also cited a vet who regained his speech after recovering from a traumatic brain injury.
Some veterans, nevertheless,
tell a different story of waiting months for care when it comes to appointments with specialists and getting diagnostic tests.
Funding falls short
When Kreiger began having seizures, doctors ordered an MRI on his brain, but because the machine was broken, he said he waited about a month before a portable machine was brought in to do the scan.
Even with the results, doctors were unable to diagnose his problem, Kreiger said, and they took him off most of his medications and sent him home with a supply of morphine.
At 8 p.m. last Monday , he was rushed to the VA Medical Center on Bailey Avenue suffering from hallucinations, double vision, slurred speech, and severe head and neck pains.
A doctor thought blood vessels in his brain had burst, and Kreiger was admitted to the cardiology ward — a move that Kreiger’s relatives said they found baffling.
“Why would he be placed in the cardio ward if he had a brain injury?” asked Melissa Kreiger, his wife. “We later found out he was overmedicated and it was poisoning his liver. Every time he goes there, they either give him medicine or increase it.”
She said that on Tuesday, she met with Finegan to inform him that his doctors continued to break their promise of sending her husband to a VA hospital better equipped to deal with brain injuries.
She says she’s still waiting to hear back from Finegan.
During his time in Iraq, Kreiger was wounded four times. And he had a close call when a 15-year-old Iraqi boy shot at him and two other soldiers. Kreiger, a medic, shot the boy and then saved his life with first aid.
A big part of the problem for Kreiger and other veterans who say they are not receiving adequate medical treatment is insufficient national funding of the VA, according to Welch, the local veterans services director and a Vietnam War veteran.
“Congress will not fund the VA properly to do the job,” Welch said, in predicting that the VA will be overwhelmed by returning combat veterans. “One of the things we advocate is that Congress has to look at the VA as part of the cost of war.”
At last count, 31,000 members of the armed forces were listed as wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan.
But Finegan says the federal government is aware of the situation and is budgeting for it. Returning troops, he added, have many problems, and that presents greater challenges for the VA.
Welch acknowledges that VA funding has increased nationally but “not at the level that the nine major veterans services organizations feel is appropriate.”
Finegan and his staff cite steps they have taken to meet current and future needs, particularly in the area of hiring mental health workers: three additional psychiatrists, bringing the total to 13; five more psychologists, increasing those ranks to 15; and doubling the number of psychiatric social workers to 32. Also, two care coordinators have been hired to help returning veterans.
Still, some veterans with persistent health problems, including combat-related mental illness, say they feel ignored and betrayed.
Delays breed disgust
Lepsch, the Marine who served with an anti-terrorist unit in east Africa and passed through Iraq, said he suffers from multiple psychological and physical ailments.
When recently admitted to the VA’s psychiatric ward, Lepsch said that he spent most of his time watching television and that after two days, he left in disgust.
“I felt I was doing more harm than good to myself,” said Lepsch, who is currently on “medical hold” awaiting retirement. “They pretty much are treating everybody up there like they are a drug addict or an alcoholic. In my case, I have 300 sheets of paper in my medical records explaining about my [post-traumatic stress disorder] and my back and other ailments.”
Short staffing while he was at the ward, he said, resulted in psychiatric patients not being taken outside to a courtyard for fresh air each day.
“Psychiatrists just basically give you a medication and you see the doctor once a day. The doctor asks if your medication is working and that’s it,” said Lepsch, 24, of North Tonawanda.
Cushing, a former Marine, described her efforts to get comprehensive treatment from the VA as a major challenge, since she received a medical retirement two years ago.
“They’re supposed to have four women’s doctors at the VA hospital here, but my VA social worker told me two quit because of the big workload and a third got tired of working here and one doctor is left,” Cushing said of why she now travels to the Syracuse VA for care.
VA officials offered a clarification, explaining that while there might have been more than one women’s doctor, they were part time and equaled one full-time position only. As for the long trips to Syracuse, Dr. Thomas Mahl, a 17-year VA employee and administrator, acknowledged that this some- times happens but noted that 90 percent of veterans receive medical care locally.
“The big problem with the VA is they don’t have the doctors. They keep giving you to physician assistants, and that’s even if you can get an appointment,” Cushing said.
The VA says veterans do have the option of seeing a medical doctor. The ratio between primary-care physicians and local VA patients is 1 doctor to every 1,200 patients, according to the VA. That number is close to the statewide ratio of primary-care physicians to patients.
Sharon M. McGrath, a longtime veterans’ advocate, said that other veterans do have “good experiences,” though she believes that the VA has lost ground since she worked for it in the mid-1980s.
And newer combat veterans such as Cushing and Kreiger by no means have the market cornered when it comes to concerns over VA health care.
A psychiatric nurse who left the VA in 1985 to open C.O.P.I.N. House in Niagara Falls for troubled Vietnam veterans, McGrath says she has to take an aggressive stand every time she sends a veteran to the VA.
Staff ‘being mobbed’
“I know it’s staffing, and I know they’re being mobbed,” McGrath said. “They’ll placate me because I have a big mouth, and I’m not afraid to pick up the phone, but I feel for the staff. I see the staff is working itself to death.”
VA staff members, in fact, told The Buffalo News that they often work beyond their normal workday to assist veterans and do not seek extra compensation.
That, however, does not lessen McGrath’s frustration with how veterans are sometimes released before receiving proper care.
“We just had one of our vets picked up the other day from the VA hospital; he had not shaved,” McGrath said. “When questioned, he said he wasn’t even offered a razor. He wasn’t suicidal. He was in because he’s an alcoholic.”
Finegan said that there are plans to expand the Buffalo VA Medical Center’s psychiatric ward and noted that the VA’s overall national budget for mental health spending increased by $300 million last year.
Dr. Sudha Krishnaswamy, the local VA’s chief of psychiatry, said other steps are being taken to make psychiatric care more accessible.
“We have telepsychiatry, where the patient and psychiatrist are hooked up live [on closed-circuit television] at our community clinics,” she said.
That same type of technology is used to conduct dermatologic and diabetic eye exams at the clinics, making it more convenient for patients, according to Finegan and his staff.
But McGrath says there are shortcomings in talking with a mental health expert over closed-circuit TV.
“How would you like to talk to a psychiatrist by television? This is more convenient for the staff,” said McGrath, who has worked with vets who have complained about having to see a psychiatrist by way of TV.
And while the VA defends its practices, noting that capital improvements are modernizing its facilities, including a state-of- art dental clinic, other veterans advocates are less enthusiastic and say problems here mirror those in other VA regions across the country.
“After monitoring the VA for 30-plus years, it seems they treat the symptom, not the root problem. They will push as much medication as they can on you and then tell you get in line and wait for an appointment,” said Russell K. Terry, cofounder and chief executive officer of the California-based Ira q War Veterans Organization.
Terry, who served two tours of duty in Vietnam, says he is disturbed by what he hears from veterans and those who know of their plight.
“I have talked to many many coroners who have gone into the homes of veterans after their death, either from natural causes or by suicide, and they were absolutely stunned at how much medication the veteran had in his or her bathroom.”
He is quick to say that the VA often succeeds at its job.
“But when it fails,” he said, “it can cost a human life.”
lmichel@buffnews.com
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posted by Larry Scott
Founder and Editor
VA Watchdog dot Org
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
VETERANS RETURNING FROM WARS FIND VA UNDER
Monday, March 3, 2008
MSG Woodrow Wilson Keeble awarded Medal of Honor 1st Sioux ever awarded MOH
President Bush Attends Medal of Honor Ceremony for Woodrow Wilson Keeble
East Room
2:35 P.M. EST
THE PRESIDENT: Welcome. Thanks for coming. Mr. Vice President, Mr. Secretary, members of the Dakotan Congressional Delegations, Senator from Alaska, other members of Congress, Members of my Cabinet, members of the administration, members of the United States Armed Forces, distinguished guests: Welcome to the White House.
The Medal of Honor is the highest award for valor a President can bestow, and I'm honored recipients of the Medal of Honor have joined us. Thank you for coming. During my time in office, I've had the privilege of performing this duty on nine separate occasions. Every ceremony has been inspiring. Many have been joyful. Some have been poignant. But I'm not sure I can remember many ceremonies quite like this one.
It's taken nearly 60 years for Master Sergeant Woodrow Wilson Keeble to be awarded the medal he earned on the battlefield in Korea. His nominating paperwork was lost, and then it was resubmitted, and then it was lost again. Then the deadline passed, and Woody and his family were told it was too late. Some blamed the bureaucracy for a shameful blunder. Others suspected racism: Woody was a full-blooded Sioux Indian. Whatever the reason, the first Sioux to ever receive the Medal of Honor died without knowing it was his. A terrible injustice was done to a good man, to his family, and to history. And today we're going to try to set things right.
Few people worked harder for this day than Woody's family. I thank the members who are with us, including his son, Russell, who is accepting this award on their behalf, along with his cousin -- a cousin.
AUDIENCE MEMBER: Nephew.
THE PRESIDENT: Along with his nephew. I want to welcome you here. Thank you for supporting Woody. Thank you for your understanding, your patience and, most of all, your persistence.
I also offer special thanks to the determined delegations of North and South Dakota, including the Governor of North Dakota and the former Governor of South Dakota. Woody had ties to both Dakotas. Each state claims him as its own. (Laughter.) I think I'm going to stay out of the argument. I want to thank you for carrying Woody's banner to the Pentagon, and to the halls of Congress. You did the right thing.
It's easy to understand why so many people argued so passionately for the Medal once you hear the story of what Woody Keeble did. This story unfolded at an important time in our history. The year was 1951. The world was divided by a Cold War. America was under threat and -- some believed -- overmatched and out of heart. The great evil of communism was said to be the future of the world. It was on the advance in Europe, and in China, and on the Asian peninsula of Korea.
On that peninsula, a battle raged between communist forces in the North and the forces of freedom in the South. And Woody Keeble, a decorated veteran of Guadalcanal, raised his hand to serve his country once again. Woody said he volunteered for Korea because, "somebody has to teach those kids how to fight." And that's exactly what he did. In George Company, he quickly became a mentor, a teacher, and a legend. He was so strong that he could lift the back of a jeep and spin it around.
Some people knew he had been scouted by the Chicago White Sox. He had a heck of an arm, and he threw grenades like a baseball. One soldier remembered the time Woody walked through a mine field, leaving tracks for his men to follow. Another recalled the time Woody was shot twice in the arm and he kept fighting, without seeming to notice.
That fall, Woody's courage was on full display during a major offensive called Operation No Man [sic]. His company was ordered to take a series of hills protecting a major enemy supply line. High up in those hills and manning machine guns were Chinese communist forces. After days of fighting, the officers in Woody's company had fallen. Woody assumed command of one platoon, then a second, and then a third, until one of the hills was taken, and the enemy fled in wild retreat.
That first advance nearly killed him. By the end of the day, Woody had more than 83 grenade fragments in his body. He had bleeding wounds in his arms, chest, and thighs. And yet he still wanted to fight. So after a day with the medics, he defied the doctor's orders and returned to the battlefield. And that is where, on October 20, 1951, Master Sergeant Woodrow Wilson Keeble made history.
Communist forces still held a crucial hill that was the "pearl" of their defenses. They had pinned down U.S. forces with a furious assault. One soldier said the enemy lobbed so many grenades on American troops that they looked like a flock of blackbirds in the sky. Allied forces had tried heavy artillery to dislodge the enemy, and nothing seemed to be working. The offensive was failing, and American boys were dying. But our forces had one advantage: Woody was back, and Woody was some kind of mad.
He grabbed grenades and his weapon and climbed that crucial hill alone. Woody climbed hundreds of yards through dirt and rock, with his wounds aching, bullets flying, and grenades falling all around him. As Woody first started off, someone saw him and remarked: "Either he's the bravest soldier I have ever met, or he's crazy." Soldiers watched in awe as Woody single-handedly took out one machine gun nest, and then another. When Woody was through, all 16 enemy soldiers were dead, the hill was taken, and the Allies won the day.
Woody Keeble's act of heroism saved many American lives, and earned him a permanent place in his fellow soldiers' hearts. Years later, some of those tough soldiers' eyes would fill with tears when they saw Woody again. One said: "He was the most respected person I ever knew in my life." Another said: "I would have followed him anywhere." A third said: "He was awesome." Those brave boys battled tyranny, held the line against a communist menace, and kept a nation free. And some of them are with us today. We are honored to host you at the White House. We thank you for your courage. We thank you for honoring your comrade in arms. And we thank you for your service to the United States.
As the war ended, Woody went back to North Dakota. In some ways, his return was a sad one. Within a few years, his first wife died. He would suffer from numerous affects of the war. A series of strokes paralyzed his right side and robbed him of his ability to speak. And the wounds he sustained in service to his country would haunt him for the rest of his life.
Yet Woody was not a bitter man. As a member of his family put it: "Woody loved his country, loved his tribe, and loved God." Woody even found love again with a woman named Blossom. Woody may not have been able to speak, but he could still get a message across. He wrote a note asking Blossom to marry him. She told him she needed some time to think about it. So while she was deliberating, Woody put their engagement announcement in the newspaper. (Laughter.) This is a man who was relentless in love as well as war. (Laughter.)
In his community he was an everyday hero. Even in poor health, he would mow lawns for seniors in the summers and help cars out of the snow banks in the winters. He once picked up a hitchhiker who was down on his luck and looking for work. Woody wasn't a rich man, but he gave the man $50. Those who knew Woody can tell countless stories like this -- one of a great soldier who became a Good Samaritan.
To his last days, he was a devoted veteran. He proudly wore his uniform at local events and parades. Sometimes folks who loved him would see that uniform and ask him about his missing medal. They felt he was cheated, yet Woddy never complained. See, he believed America was the greatest nation on Earth, even when it made mistakes. And there was never a single day he wasn't proud to have served our country.
Woody suffered his eighth -- and final -- stroke in 1982. His son, Russell, took him to the hospital and prayed it wasn't the end. But Woody knew, and he wasn't afraid. Woodrow Wilson Keeble died in graceful anonymity, unknown except to the fortunate souls who loved him, and those who learned from him. Russell put it this way: "Woody met death with a smile. He taught me how to live, and he taught me how to die."
I am pleased that this good and honorable man is finally getting the recognition he deserves. But on behalf of our grateful nation, I deeply regret that this tribute comes decades too late. Woody will never hold this Medal in his hands or wear it on his uniform. He will never hear a President thank him for his heroism. He will never stand here to see the pride of his friends and loved ones, as I see in their eyes now.
But there are some things we can still do for him. We can tell his story. We can honor his memory. And we can follow his lead -- by showing all those who have followed him on the battlefield the same love and generosity of spirit that Woody showed his country everyday.
At the request of the Keeble family and in accordance with the Sioux tradition, two empty chairs have been placed on this stage to represent Woody and Blossom and to acknowledge their passing into the spiritual world. The Sioux have a saying: "The life of a man is a circle." Well, today, we complete Woody Keeble's circle -- from an example to his men to an example for the ages. And if we honor his life and take lessons from his good and noble service, then Master Sergeant Woody Keeble will serve his country once again.
I want to thank you all for coming. May I ask for God's blessings on you and Woody Keeble and the Keeble family. May God continue to bless our country. And now I ask Mr. Hawkins and Mr. Bluedog to join me. Commander Thompson will read the citation.
COMMANDER THOMPSON: The President of the United States of America, in the name of Congress, takes pride in presenting the Medal of Honor to Master Sergeant Woodrow W. Keeble, United States Army, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity, at the risk of his life, above and beyond the call of duty:
In action with an armed enemy near Sangsan-ni, Korea, on 20 October, 1951. On that day, Master Sergeant Keeble was an acting platoon leader for the support platoon in Company G, 19th Infantry, in the attack on Hill 765, a steep and rugged position that was well defended by the enemy. Leading the support platoon, Master Sergeant Keeble saw that the attacking elements had become pinned down on the slope by heavy enemy fire from three well-fortified and strategically placed enemy positions. With complete disregard for his personal safety, Master Sergeant Keeble dashed forward and joined the pinned-down platoon. Then, hugging the ground, Master Sergeant Keeble crawled forward alone until he was in close proximity to one of the hostile machine-gun emplacements. Ignoring the heavy fire that the crew trained on him, Master Sergeant Keeble activated a grenade and threw it with great accuracy, successfully destroying the position. Continuing his one-man assault, he moved to the second enemy position and destroyed it with another grenade. Despite the fact that the enemy troops were now directing their firepower against him and unleashing a shower of grenades in a frantic attempt to stop his advance, he moved forward against the third hostile emplacement, and skillfully neutralized the remaining enemy position. As his comrades moved forward to join him, Master Sergeant Keeble continued to direct accurate fire against nearby trenches, inflicting heavy casualties on the enemy. Inspired by his courage, Company G successfully moved forward and seized its important objective. The extraordinary courage, selfless service, and devotion to duty displayed that day by Master Sergeant Keeble was an inspiration to all around him and reflected great credit upon himself, his unit, and the United States Army.
(The Medal is presented.) (Applause.)
Veteran Bears Scars of Stateside Agent Orange
Fort Gordon Veteran exposed to Agent Orange
When it comes to deadly poisons, few are better known. The military's use of Agent Orange is one of the dark chapters of the Vietnam War.
But NewsChannel 5 investigative reporter Ben Hall has found the military used Agent Orange here in the United States -- and one veteran says he has the health problems to prove it.
Agent Orange was a toxic herbicide used by the military to thin out the jungles of Vietnam. Soldiers sprayed millions of gallons, unaware how poisonous it was.
"There was a problem and the evidence is on my back and my chest and 40 years of my life," says James Cripps, a Vietnam era veteran.
He says he was poisoned by Agent Orange, but he never served in Vietnam.
"When I got wounded I didn't know it I had no reason to suspect there would have been no way to have proved it," Cripps says.
Cripps had what seemed like a dream job as game warden at Fort Gordon in Georgia.
"This is me in 1971 when I got out of the Army you can see all the marks on my face," he says, pointing to photos of himself.
Cripps says when he left the military he had already been exposed. He believes he sprayed Agent Orange in the lakes around Fort Gordon to kill weeds.
"I was ordered to spray that herbicide," Cripps says. And pictures show signs warning people about fishing in the lakes Cripps once cared for. "I know what's in those lakes, I put it there," adds Cripps.
NewsChannel 5 Investigates has uncovered defense department documents that prove the military sprayed Agent Orange at Fort Gordon during the time Cripps was there.
Documents detail more than 30 locations in the United States where Agent Orange was tested.
The documents show helicopters sprayed at least 95 gallons of Agent Orange at Fort Gordon in 1967. Cripps says that alone should prove he was exposed.
"A lot of them cause scars sometimes they go so sore he can't wear his shirt," his wife, Sandra Cripps, says.
But he and his wife say his body offers the greatest proof. The blackheads on his back contain the poisonous residue from Agent Orange which causes acne called ‘chloracne.'
"In some persons the skin legions persist," says Dr. Dewey Dunn, an Agent Orange expert.
He says chloracne is a tell-tale sign of Agent Orange exposure. "It's just sort of a marker so its on the list and probably at the top of the list."
Dr. Dunn examined James Cripps but could not talk specifically about his case. Medical records show Dr. Dunn diagnosed Cripps with Chloracne and type-two diabetes, another sign of exposure.
Despite all the evidence, the VA will not approve James Cripps disability claim. "I'm being denied my medical care to this very day," says Cripps.
"From what I see it strictly gets down to money," says Donald Stephens, who is with the Disabled American Veterans. He's helped hundreds of veterans prepare their VA medical claims.
Ben Hall asks, "How strong is Mr. Cripps claim?"
"A ten," Stephens answers. "I would give it a ten."
He says there's plenty of help for veterans exposed in Vietnam, but he believes Cripps claim would open the floodgates for veterans exposed in the United States.
Meanwhile, James Cripps is on multiple medications and he's struggling to pay his medical bills. And now the VA is actually garnishing his Social Security checks.
"We have discussed of late, even yesterday, the thought of suicide," he confides.
After years of service, Cripps and his wife feel broken and betrayed.
"I can see why some veterans would give up," Sandra Cripps says. "It's not fair."
Back to NewsChannel 5 Investigates
Invisible injuries
Mental Health of veterans in Canada
Invisible injuries
The Ottawa Citizen
Published: Friday, February 22, 2008
The country mourns and reflects when a Canadian soldier is killed or wounded on duty in Afghanistan - at least if the injuries are visible.
But when soldiers return from combat with invisible injuries - including mental disorders such as post traumatic stress or problems such as alcoholism - they sometimes slide back into society with little help or attention. Until things begin to go wrong.
Until recently, the military was not particularly sensitive to issues of mental illness. Soldiers are supposed to be "tough," and the resulting stigma around mental illness reduced the likelihood of soldiers getting treatment. Thanks to the efforts of a few brave soldiers, chief among them Lt.-Gen. Roméo Dallaire, attitudes have begun to change, but not quickly enough.
A recent survey suggests the Canadian military has plenty to do if it is serious about erasing the shame and ensuring that personnel whose wounds are psychological rather than physical receive proper treatment.
The survey of 8,441 soldiers - the first to look at the use of mental health services in the Canadian Forces - found an astonishing four out of six soldiers in need of psychological help did not get it, even though it was available. Some said they distrusted military management or the military health system. It was unclear if they feared the impact it would have on their careers.
The survey was conducted at the start of Canada's deployment in Afghanistan, at the request of the Department of National Defence.
Since that time, the Department of National Defence has made changes aimed at soldiers suffering what are sometimes called stress injuries. Those include the creation of the Operational Stress Support System, a program of peer support for afflicted soldiers. The military has also begun what it calls "third location decompression" in which soldiers are sent to a peacetime location outside Canada before they come home from combat.
There is more to do, however. Just think: Even in civilian society, despite vigorous public education campaigns, and despite research suggesting that mental illness afflicts virtually every family and workplace, the stigma remains. The challenge is all the greater in a military environment.
In 2002, then military ombudsman André Marin wrote a scathing report about the treatment of soldiers who were diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder. Six years later, little or no action has been taken on more than half of the report's 31 recommendations - including creation of a post traumatic stress disorder co-ordinator for the military and the development of databases to track suicides and soldiers with post traumatic stress disorder.
The American experience is sobering. A U.S. study identified more than 120 homicides committed by veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. The numbers are disputed by the Pentagon, but it's hard to dispute that they point to a significant problem of untreated mental illness among veterans.
Canadians make a lot of noise about supporting our troops who are doing a difficult mission in one of the most dangerous parts of the world. They deserve real support, both on the battlefield and when they return home.
Saturday, March 1, 2008
RICIN
Owing to the developing news today out of Las Vegas, Nevada, regarding
ricin, the CBR Weapons and WMD Terrorism News presents here a special
compilation of topical information on the toxin.
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RICIN: THE TOXIN
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Ricin, a toxin created from the waste of processed castor beans, can be
weaponized as a powder, mist, or pellet. The toxin can also be dissolved
in weak acid or water. Only 500 micrograms may be needed to kill an adult.
Methods of exposure include ingestion, inhalation, or injection. Ricin
works by counteracting the protein-making function of cells in the body,
causing the cells to die, and potentially resulting in death or the
organism. Symptoms after inhalation appear within 8 hours of exposure, and
those for ingestion appear in less than 6 hours. Symptoms of ingestion
include vomiting and diarrhea, and possibly hallucinations and seizures.
Those of inhalation include difficulty breathing, fever, cough, and
nausea. This, and further information, is available at the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website at
http://www.bt.cdc.gov/agent/ricin/facts.asp.
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PREVIOUS INCIDENTS INVOLVING THE USE/POSSESSION OF RICIN
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On May 24, 2007, a British lab confirmed that traces of ricin had been
found in an Irish prison cell. The ricin was smuggled into Ireland from
the US in a contact lens case, to be used in an assassination plot. The
man was arrested before the ricin could be used. The amount of ricin in
the contact lens case was very small, and according to authorities did not
pose a significant hazard.
On October 3, 2006, Denys Ray Hughes of Phoenix, Arizona, was sentenced to
seven years in prison for the attempted manufacture of ricin. According to
authorities, Hughes was a survivalist with no known ties to any terrorist
organizations or extremist groups.
On January 14, 2005, Steven Michael Ekberg, of Ocala, Florida, was
arrested by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) for possession of a
biological weapon after agents found ricin in the home he shares with his
mother. Ekberg had castor beans and other products in his possession.
Ekberg later pleaded guilty in federal court to possession of a biological
weapon.
On February 3, 2004, ricin was found on an automatic mail sorter in the
mailroom of the Dirksen Senate Office building in Washington, D.C. A
specialized Marine unit trained to handle chemical and biological
incidents responded to the event, and 16 employees went through
decontamination procedures. The mailroom handled mail addressed to Senate
Majority Leader Bill Frist. According to Frist, no one became sick.
In October 2003, a metallic container was discovered at a Greenville,
South Carolina, postal facility with ricin in it. The small container was
in an envelope along with a threatening note. Authorities did not believe
this was a terrorism related incident. The note expressed anger against
regulations overseeing the trucking industry.
On March 3, 2003, FBI agents arrested Bertier Ray Riddle in Omaha,
Arkansas, on suspicion that he sent an envelope to the FBI field office in
Little Rock that claimed to contain ricin. The front of the envelope sent
on 19 February, reportedly stated that the letter was from a "Lee
Alexander Hughes." The return address on the letter was Riddle's, but was
signed "Sincerely not Bertie Ray Riddle." The front of the envelope also
contained the phrase "If you make me have to claim to be my kidnapper's
son, while depriving me of my correct identity you are going to hell!" The
back of the envelope reportedly stated "Caution: contents contain ricin."
A plastic bag containing a powder and dark flakes was discovered inside of
the envelope. Test on the substance revealed that it was not ricin. On
March 12, 2003, Riddle was indicted on two charges, one of mailing a
threatening communication and the other of insulting a federal law
enforcement officer and threatening to use a weapon of mass destruction.
On January 5, 2003, six Algerians were arrested at their apartment in
London, United Kingdom on charges of "being in the possession of objects
which give rise to reasonable suspicions of the intention of carrying out
preparing, or instigating an act of terrorism" and for trying to "develop
or produce a chemical weapon." Following the arrests, authorities
discovered traces of ricin in the apartment located in Wood Green, located
in northern London. They also discovered castor oil beans and equipment
for crushing the beans. Those arrested are believed to be part of a
terrorist cell known as the "Chechen network" which may have ties to the
Algerian group behind the millennium bomb plots in the United States.
Members of the cell are Algerians who received training in Chechnya and
the former Soviet republic of Georgia. Five of the six arrested were
identified as Mustapha Taleb, Mouloud Feddag, Sidali Feddag, Samir Feddag,
and Nasreddine Fekhadji. Authorities arrested the suspects following a tip
by French intelligence agencies, which had been following two of the men.
Authorities stated that they believe the ricin discovered was only part of
a larger batch that they believe was removed from the apartment before the
arrests. Police stated that they were continuing to search for the missing
ricin.
In August 2002, reports emerged that Ansar al-Islam, a Sunni militant
group, has been involved in testing poisons and chemicals including ricin.
According to one report the group tested ricin powder as an aerosol on
animals such as donkeys and chickens and perhaps even an unwitting human
subject. No more specific details have been released.
On June 19, 2002, Kenneth R. Olsen, 48, was arrested for possession of the
biological agent ricin in his Spokane Valley office cubicle. Co-workers at
Agilent, a high-tech company, tipped FBI officials about the software
engineer after discovering documents on "how to kill," undetectable
poisons, and bomb-making Olsen had printed out from his computer. Olsen
insisted that his research was for a Boy Scout project, but did not say
more. Further investigation of his office produced test tubes, castor
beans, glass jars, and approximately 1 gram of ricin.
In August 2001, the FSB (Russian Federal Security Service) told the
Itar-Tass news service it had intercepted a recorded conversation between
two Chechen field commanders in which they discussed using homemade
poisons against Russian troops. According to Itar-Tass, Chechen Brigadier
General Rizvan Chitigov asked Chechen field commander Hizir Alhazurov, who
is now living in the United Arab Emirates, for instructions on the
"homemade production of poison" for use against Russian soldiers. Russian
authorities reportedly raided Chitigov's home and seized materials,
including instructions on how to use toxic agents to contaminate consumer
goods, a small chemical laboratory, three homemade explosives, two land
mines, and 30 grenades. The confiscated papers reportedly also contained
instructions on how to produce ricin from castor beans.
In November 1999, press reports indicated that FBI agents had apprehended
a man in Tampa, Florida, for threatening to kill court officials and "wage
biological warfare" in Jefferson County, Colorado. James Kenneth Gluck,
53, a former Colorado resident, sent a 10-page letter to Jefferson County
judges threatening to kill them with a biological agent. He specifically
identified one judge by name. FBI agents arrested Gluck on 5 November 1999
as he left a public library near his home in Tampa. Police, fire, and
hazardous materials (HazMat) crews responded to the scene along with the
FBI and blocked off Gluck's street. Upon searching his residence the next
day, agents discovered that Gluck had the necessary ingredients to make
ricin, though no refined ricin was actually found. They also found test
tubes and beakers, as well as the "anarchist's cookbook" and books on
biological toxicology, in a makeshift laboratory in his home.
On August 25, 1998, Dwayne Lee Kuehl, 38, was arrested in Escanaba,
Michigan, for producing ricin with intent to use it against an Escanaba
city official. Keuhl was under investigation in connection with a 1
February 1988 fire that destroyed a business that he owned. While carrying
out a search warrant at Kuehl's home and his rental property, police
interviewed him. During the interview, Kuehl indicated that he had
obtained the recipe and ingredients for the manufacture of ricin and made
the poison in 1993. He also admitted that he made the ricin in order to
kill James O'Toole, an Escanaba housing inspector. Police later found the
ingredients for ricin manufacture, along with other toxic substances, at
two separate residences owned by Keuhl.
In March 1998, three members of a splinter group of the North American
Militia in Michigan were arrested on weapons and conspiracy charges. The
April 1998 indictment was the result of an investigation involving an
Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF) agent who infiltrated the group in
March 1997. When federal law enforcement raided the homes of these men,
they discovered an arsenal of weapons and a videotape. Produced in a
cooking-show format, the tape gave instructions on how to manufacture
bombs and other assorted militia-type weaponry, including a feature
segment on how to extract ricin from castor beans. During the court
proceedings, prosecutors drew attention to the ricin segment, stating that
the men were "collecting information on the manufacture and use of ricin."
However, other than the videotape, no materials associated with ricin
production were found in any of the raids.
On April 1, 1997, Internal Revenue Service (IRS) investigators searched
the home of James Dalton Bell, a 39-year-old electronics engineer, and
discovered a cache of chemicals, which included sodium cyanide (500
grams), diisopropyl flourophosphate, and a range of corrosive acids.
Subsequent analysis of computer files confiscated from the residence
revealed that Bell engaged in e-mail communications with a friend, Robert
East, a 46-year-old merchant marine radio operator, that expressed a
desire to obtain castor beans to see if they could extract ricin. Bell had
already acquired the home addresses of nearly 100 federal employees from
the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), IRS, and Bureau of Alcohol,
Tobacco and Firearms; and computer files from voter registration. Bell was
in the process of producing and acquiring chemical and biological agents.
On January 17, 1997, authorities discovered various toxic substances in
the house of Thomas Leahy in Janesville, Wisconsin. They discovered the
substances after they had been called to Leahy's home after he had shot
his son in the face, following a night of drinking. Among the chemicals
discovered were 0.67 grams of ricin and nicotine mixed with a solvent that
allowed it to penetrate the skin and have lethal effects. Authorities also
found books relating to the production of chemical and biological agents.
Chemicals were also found in a storage shed that Leahy kept in Harvard,
Illinois. He reportedly told his sister that he was going to use the
poison to coat razor blades and mail them to his enemies in hopes that
they would cut themselves and become infected. Leahy pleaded guilty to
possession of the ricin and was sentenced to eight years for the shooting
and six-and-one-half years for possessing dangerous materials.
On December 20, 1995, Thomas Lewis Lavy was arrested in Onia, Arkansas,
for possession of ricin. In April 1993, Lavy was caught while trying to
smuggle 130 grams of ricin from Alaska into Canada. Lavy stated that he
purchased the ricin to poison coyotes on his farm in Arkansas and keep
them away from his chickens. Lavy was stopped at the Beaver Creek border
crossing by Canadian custom agents who found, along with the 130 grams of
ricin, $89,000, a knife, four guns, and 20,000 rounds of ammunition. Lavy
was charged with possession of a toxic substance with intent to use it as
a weapon. At the time of Lavy's arrest, FBI agents found castor beans and
copies of one book describing how to extract ricin from castor beans, and
another discussing ways to poison people with toxic compounds. Lavy was
ordered to be held until a January court date in Alaska, but committed
suicide in his prison cell before the trial.
On August 22, 1995, Dr. Ray W. Mettetal, Jr., a 44-year-old neurologist at
Rockingham Memorial Hospital in Harrisonburg, Virginia, was apprehended at
Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tennessee, carrying a
six-inch veterinarian's syringe with a four-inch needle filled with boric
acid and salt water (contact lens solution), which could prove lethal if
injected into the heart. He allegedly planned to use the syringe to murder
Dr. George S. Allen, his former supervisor when he was a neurology
resident at Vanderbilt in the 1980s. After the arrest, police searched a
storage unit rented by Mettetal in Harrisonburg, Virginia, in which they
found toxic chemicals and several books on assassination and producing
chemical and biological agents. Also among the items was a small glass jar
containing the toxin ricin, notes documenting Allen's whereabouts, maps of
the campus where Allen worked, and photographs of his house. These
notebooks alleged that Mettetal planned to soak pages of a book with a
ricin-solvent mixture that could promote the movement of the toxin through
the skin once introduced. After the ricin was discovered in his
possession, a federal case was brought against Mettetal. He was also
charged with the federal offense of providing false information (e.g., the
false identity of Steven Ray Maupin) to the U.S. Postal Service.
On August 7, 1995, Michael Farrar, a 40-year-old cardiologist, was
hospitalized with a mysterious illness. On two additional occasions,
Farrar was hospitalized for exhibiting similar unexplained symptoms. At
first, doctors believed his problems were connected to his recent trip to
South America, and it was not until 25 September 1995 that ricin was
considered the cause. On that day, Farrar called police during a domestic
dispute with his estranged wife, Debora Green, a 44-year-old
non-practicing oncologist. The police report stated that due to her
bizarre behavior, Green was taken to a psychiatric clinic that night.
Finding castor beans in his wife's purse, Farrar turned the beans and
sales receipt over to police. Green had purchased the castor beans through
special order from a garden center in Kansas City, Missouri, and placed
them in Farrar's food. It is unclear if she extracted the ricin or merely
added the beans to the food. Later, Farrar had to undergo multiple heart
and brain surgeries related to the poisoning.
In 1994 and 1995, four Minnesota men were the first to be tried and
convicted under the 1989 Biological Weapons Anti-Terrorism Act, for the
possession of ricin. Douglas Baker, Leroy Wheeler, Dennis Henderson, and
Richard Oelrich acquired this deadly substance in an alleged plot to kill
local deputy sheriffs, U.S. Marshals, and IRS agents. The four men were
members of a radical tax-protesting militia organization called the
Minnesota Patriots Council. The Minnesota Patriots Council was founded by
Colonel (Retired) Frank Nelson of the United States Air Force in 1970. The
right-wing organization opposed the notion of a federal government and
refused to recognize any authority above the local county. Its members
protested U.S. taxation policies and met periodically in small groups, or
cells. Some militant adherents of the group even met to discuss violent
methods (such as blowing up buildings) to combat what they perceived as
tyrannical, illegitimate federal authorities. In 1991, Oelrich, Henderson,
and Wheeler came across a classified notice in a right-wing publication
advertising a mail order ricin kit. The three ordered the ricin kit in
April 1991 and intended to mix the ricin with chemicals in order to create
an effective delivery system. In early 1992, Henderson took the mixture
containing ricin to his friend Douglas Baker's house, where it was stored
in a coffee can along with a cautionary note. Following a marital dispute,
Baker's wife, Colette, took the coffee can along with several other
weapons to the local sheriff's office, which in turn contacted the FBI. It
was determined that the coffee can contained 0.7 grams of ricin that was
reportedly capable of killing hundreds of people. Baker and Wheeler were
arrested on August 4, 1994, and stood trial for the possession of a deadly
biological substance at the Federal District Court in St. Paul, Minnesota.
The two received two-year-and-nine-months prison terms followed by
three-year probationary periods. Henderson and Oelrich were arrested in
July and August of 1995, respectively. The two had fled and gone
underground upon the news of their co-conspirators' arrests. They stood
trial in October and were also convicted of producing and possessing the
poisonous substance. In January 1996, Henderson was sentenced to 48 months
in prison followed by three years of probation, and Oelrich received a
37-month prison term and three years of probation.
In 1983, Montgomery Todd Meeks, 19, was tried for attempting to murder his
father with ricin. He claimed that the act was motivated by his father's
abuse. He conducted research on poisons, decided on ricin, and then
purchased the material from Aardvark Enterprises in Louisville, Kentucky,
for $200. A classmate went to Kentucky to pick up the purchase, but
emptied the vial of ricin into a toilet when he returned to Orlando
International Airport. It was alleged that Meeks continued with the murder
plan and ceased only when a friend went to the police.
In 1983, two brothers were arrested by the FBI for producing an ounce of
pure ricin, which they stored in a 35-mm canister. Officials were directed
to the brothers after receiving a tip from an informant. The FBI took the
material to the U.S. Army laboratories at Ft. Detrick where it was
destroyed.
In 1982 Texas attorney William A. Chanslor, 50, was sentenced to jail for
three years and fined $5,000 for plotting to kill his 39-year-old wife
with ricin. He claims that he wanted the ricin to assist his wife in
committing suicide. She was paralyzed after having a stroke in 1979. She
begged the jury not to convict Chanslor. He put ads in two paramilitary
magazines, Soldier of Fortune and Gung Ho. His ads said, "Wanted: experts
in poisons and chemical agents with access to same." He also read at least
one book that included information on the toxin. When Chanslor contacted
the author of a book on toxins, regarding the acquisition of ricin, the
author contacted Canadian law enforcement officials. Police then recorded
a meeting between the two where Chanslor purchased a tablet supposedly
containing ricin for $2,500. On August 4, 1982, facing a penalty of 20
years in prison, Chanslor was sentenced to three years in prison and fined
$5,000.
In 1978, Bulgarian dissident Georgii Markov was assassinated with ricin
toxin by an operative of the Bulgarian secret service.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
JAMES MARTIN CENTER FOR NONPROLIFERATION STUDIES EXPERTS ON BIOLOGICAL AND
TOXIN WEAPONS
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Dr. Raymond Zilinskas
Director of the Chemical and Biological Weapons Nonproliferation Program
(CBWNP)
rzilinskas@miis.edu
Dr. Jonathan B. Tucker
Senior Researcher, Washington, D.C. Office
jtucker@miis.edu
Dr. Burke Zimmerman
Senior Fellow, CBWNP
burke.zimmerman@miis.edu
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Friday, February 29, 2008
IAVA update on new G.I. Bill
Dear Mike,
Great news from the Capitol about the GI Bill. After the 12,234 letters you sent to Congress, the 76 meetings IAVA Member Veterans held on Capitol Hill and dozens of letters-to-the-editors printed in newspapers nationwide, an updated version of the bill, which now includes equal benefits for those who served in the Reserves and National Guard, was introduced on the Senate floor yesterday afternoon.
Just two weeks ago, we joined a bi-partisan press conference with Senators Jim Webb (D-VA), Chuck Hagel (R-NE) and Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ), calling for a new GI Bill. Yesterday, they spoke to the US Senate about the need to provide educational benefits to our newest generation of veterans. And this time they were joined by the new lead co-sponsor, Senator John Warner (R-VA) - a World War II and Korean War veteran and a beneficiary of the original GI bill.
Senator Hagel said, "This [bill] is reinvesting in our society. It is assuring that those who have given so much to our country have an opportunity to develop skill sets in education to compete in the most competitive world history has ever known, to go beyond expectations, go beyond what is possible. This is not just a payback or reward."
To keep this momentum going, we're going to need your help in the next few weeks. To ensure the bill is passed, we'll need to build the list of co-sponsors by getting the word out state by state. Check here to see if your representatives in Congress have signed on to support the GI Bill.
We'll keep you updated on the progress of this important legislation. It wouldn't have gotten this far, this fast, without your strong support.
Thank you.
Sincerely,
Paul Rieckhoff
Iraq Veteran
Executive Director
Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America
Northrop and EADS Win Tanker Deal
Air Force Tanker deal goes to EADS/Northrup Gruman
In a surprising reversal for the Boeing Company, the Pentagon on Friday awarded a multibillion-dollar contract for refueling tankers to a partnership between Northrop Grumman and EADS, the European parent of Airbus.
The deal, which puts a critical United States military contract into the hands of foreigners, at least in part, calls for spending up to $40 billion on the first phase of a multidecade program to replace the nation’s aging aerial tanker fleet, which dates back to the Kennedy and Eisenhower era. The fleet, which now numbers about 535 refitted Boeing 707’s and DC-10’s is one of the largest but oldest fleets of jets in the world. Yet the tanker planes are essential to keeping Air Force and allied fighter jets, bombers, cargo planes and other military aircraft in the air when on critical missions far from airports where they can land to refuel.
And replacing these tankers — essentially flying gas stations that offload their fuel in mid-air — has been the Air Force’s top priority since 1996, when the government first proposed acquiring new planes. Eventually, the contract is expected to be valued at $100 billion, as the Air Force spends the next several decades acquiring new tankers at a rate of about 15 a year. It is expected that nearly 400 new refueling planes will be needed.
Yet for more than a decade the Air Force’s effort to modernize the fleet has been thwarted by global politics, Washington scandals and an aggressive attack by Senator John McCain, now the presumptive Republican nominee for president.
In the end, the scandal lead to the departure of Phil Condit, the chief executive of Boeing, the resignation of James G. Roche, the secretary of the Air Force, and the imprisonment of two Boeing executives, one of whom was the former Pentagon acquisition official that had worked on the program. Another Air Force acquisition officer who was working on the program later committed suicide.
The Air Force, short on cash and wanting to acquire the planes as fast as possible, proposed an arrangement to Congress in late 2001 under which the Pentagon would lease the Boeing 767s in a multiyear sole-source contract that would keep Boeing’s aging 767 production line alive.
But just as the Air Force was about to sign that deal, it came under sharp attack from Senator McCain, a former pilot and a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee. Mr. McCain denounced the deal as a sweetheart arrangement between Boeing and the Air Force that would shortchange the taxpayer and that was arranged with insufficient scrutiny and oversight.
In the ensuring firestorm, embarrassing e-mail messages were made public in which the Air Force secretary, Mr. Roche, said “Go Boeing!” and called opponents of the deal “animals.” Soon afterward, it was reported that the Air Force’s No. 2 weapons buyer, Darleen A. Druyun, had been promised jobs for herself, her daughter and son-in-law in return for steering the tanker contract and billions of dollars of other Air Force business to Boeing. Soon after joining Boeing at a $250,000-a-year post, Ms. Druyun and Michael Sears, Boeing’s former chief financial officer, pleaded guilty in the scandal and received prison terms.
The weight of the scandal caused the Boeing deal to collapse in 2004 and opened the door to competition from the arch-rival European Aeronautic Defense and Space Company, which teamed up with Northrop to promote use of Airbus planes as Air Force tankers.
The Northrop-EADS bid was a bold one that mixed business and Washington lobbying with trans-Atlantic politics. EADS lined up a politically powerful group of senators from Alabama and Mississippi with promises that much of the tanker would be built in their states.
In Paris, at the annual air shows, Airbus officials and Southern politicians proudly displayed the proposed European tanker offering and made the argument that if the United States wants to sell its weapons to European countries, it should also open its doors to foreign suppliers. Politicking reached the highest levels — even Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany brought up the tanker bid in a White House meeting with President Bush.
Each side spent millions of dollars to sharpen its proposal, hire lobbyists and former generals to argue their case and wage extensive advertising efforts in Washington and at military gatherings in advance the announcement.
//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
I expect there will be loud screams in Chicago this afternoon at Boeing Headquarters at this news, I am sure they thought they had this deal sewn up. Bottom line is this is the best deal for the Air Force thus the American taxpayers. The planes will be assembled in Mobile, Alabama and many American companies will be providing parts, engines etc. We live in a global economy Boeing has no room to complain the new Dream Liners are being built in China shipped to South Carolina then on to Washington State for final assembly same concept they just werem;t the low bidder on this deal, but we as a nation win.
