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Recent US American News History Archive:

20080421

Don Young

Connie Mack

Money

Politics

Real Estate

Transportation

Construction

Florida

Alaska

History

Federal

Law

Investigation

"Q&A: Don Young and the Coconut Road controversy: EARMARK: $10 million put in 2005 highway spending bill is coming back to haunt him." ... "Last week, the U.S. [United States] Senate voted to ask the Justice Department to look into what happened in 2005 when Alaska's sole congressman earmarked $10 million in unasked-for money to study a highway interchange in southwest Florida." ... "The 64 to 28 vote was an unprecedented request on the part of the Senate for a federal inquiry into the actions of a member of the House of Representatives." ... "At the center of it all: Alaska [Republican Representative] Rep. Don Young, who acknowledged responsibility last week for the 2005 earmark, which shifted $10 million pledged to help widen Interstate 75 to the interchange study. If built, the interchange promised to benefit one of Young's campaign donors, a family friend whose real estate company owned property nearby. The earmark was one of thousands overseen by Young when he was responsible for pushing a multiyear highway spending bill through Congress." ... "Young has maintained that there was nothing wrong with what he did, and that the earmark was requested by the community." ... "But Young is already the subject of a federal investigation, and many questions remain about how the earmark showed up in the spending bill -- after the House and Senate had already voted on an alternative proposal." ... "The obscure Coconut Road earmark first came to the attention of transportation planners in Lee County, Fla. [Florida], in 2006, when they tried to figure out why they had received $10 million in federal money for a study of an intersection that wasn't on their list of transportation priorities." ... "The transportation board thought it was getting a $10 million earmark to go toward widening of Interstate 75. Instead, the money was earmarked to the study of an interchange that improves freeway access to land owned by real estate developer Daniel Aronoff." ... "In 2005, the Alaska Republican oversaw the multiyear transportation bill, a $286.4 billion spending plan for some of the biggest infrastructure projects across the U.S. (The bill also included $452 million for the Gravina Island and Knik Arm spans that came to be known as the bridges-to-nowhere.)" ... "Local newspapers, including the Naples Daily News, picked up on the controversy, and posed the question to Young, at the time the chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. In 2005, the Alaska Republican oversaw the multiyear transportation bill, a $286.4 billion spending plan for some of the biggest infrastructure projects across the U.S. (The bill also included $452 million for the Gravina Island and Knik Arm spans that came to be known as the bridges-to-nowhere.)" ... "Young refused to address the issue. The story failed to draw national attention until The New York Times wrote about it last spring. The article elaborated on the connections between the developers seeking the earmark and a 2005 campaign fundraiser Young attended in Bonita Springs, Fla., at the invitation of a local congressman, [Florida Republican Representative] Rep. Connie Mack, R-Fla[Republican-Florida]. (The article also reported that when a Times reporter approached Young to speak to him about it, the congressman "responded with an obscene gesture.")" ... "Those donating money -- about $40,000 total -- to Young included Aronoff, whose family has long been friendly with Young. The earmark for the interchange study showed up not long after the fundraiser." -By Erika Bolstad

-McClatchy via -ADN.com

Corporate -

Hackers -

Manufacture -

Electronics -

Technology -

California -

Texas -

US -

Global -

TV -

Telecom -

Media -

Copyright -

Enforcement -

German -

Canada -

UK -

Israeli -

Intelligence -

Spying

"Rupert Murdoch Firm Goes on Trial for Alleged Tech Sabotage." ... "Did a Rupert Murdoch company go too far and hire hackers to sabotage rivals and gain the top spot in the global pay-TV war?" ... "This is the question a jury will be facing in a spectacular five-year-old civil lawsuit that is finally being tried this month in California but which has, oddly, received little notice from U.S. [United States] media." ... "The case involves a colorful cast of characters that includes former intelligence agents, Canadian TV pirates, Bulgarian and German hackers, stolen e-mails and the mysterious suicide of a Berlin [Germany's capital] hacker who had been courted by the Murdoch company not long before his death." ... "On the hot spot is NDS Group, a UK-Israeli firm that makes smartcards for pay-TV systems like DirecTV. The company is a majority-owned subsidiary of Murdoch's News Corporation. The charges stem from 1997 when NDS is accused of cracking the encryption of rival NagraStar, which makes access cards and systems for EchoStar's Dish Network and other pay-TV services. Further, it’s alleged NDS then hired hackers to manufacture and distribute counterfeit NagraStar cards to pirates to steal Dish Network's programming for free." ... "NagraStar and one of its parent companies, EchoStar, are seeking about $101 million for damages for piracy, copyright infringement, misconduct and unfair competition. The list of witnesses in the case includes EchoStar's founder and CEO Charlie Ergen; several hackers and pirates; and Reuven Hazak, an Israeli who heads security for NDS and is a former deputy head of Shabak, or Shin Bet, Israel's domestic security agency (the equivalent of Britain's MI5)." ... "According to court documents, the scheme began to unravel in 2000 when law-enforcement agents in Texas seized suspicious packages containing CD and DVD players stuffed with more than $40,000 in cash. Parcels similar to this were being sent almost daily from Canada, via Texas, to a hacker in California named Christopher Tarnovsky, who was working for NDS as an engineer. The money was allegedly part of the conspiracy between Tarnovsky and NDS Group to sabotage NagraStar's cards." -By Kim Zetter

-Wired

Global -

Planet -

Oil -

Food -

Agriculture -

Car -

Economy -

China

"Running Out of Planet to Exploit." ... "Last week, oil hit $117." ... "Food prices have also soared, as have the prices of basic metals. And the global surge in commodity prices is reviving a question we haven’t heard much since the 1970s: Will limited supplies of natural resources pose an obstacle to future world economic growth?" ... "How you answer this question depends largely on what you believe is driving the rise in resource prices. Broadly speaking, there are three competing views." ... "The first is that it’s mainly speculation — that investors, looking for high returns at a time of low interest rates, have piled into commodity futures, driving up prices." ... "The second view is that soaring resource prices do, in fact, have a basis in fundamentals — especially rapidly growing demand from newly meat-eating, car-driving Chinese — but that given time we’ll drill more wells, plant more acres, and increased supply will push prices right back down again." ... "The third view is that the era of cheap resources is over for good — that we’re running out of oil, running out of land to expand food production and generally running out of planet to exploit." ... "I find myself somewhere between the second and third views." ... "There are some very smart people — not least, George Soros — who believe that we’re in a commodities bubble (although Mr. Soros says that the bubble is still in its “growth phase”)." -By Paul Krugman

-NYTimes

Elizabeth Edwards -

John McCain -

Government -

Health Care -

Politics -

Drugs -

Market -

Occupations -

Firefighting -

Telecom -

Arizona -

2008 Election

"Elizabeth Edwards On Health Care: ‘This Is Not A Cheap Shot; It Is Potentially Life And Death’." ... [By Elizabeth Edwards:] "[2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate] John McCain accused me of taking a “cheap shot” on “This Week with George Stephanopoulos” yesterday for noting that people with preexisting conditions, such as he and I have, would not be able to get health care under his plan –- and that he perhaps was not as sensitive to this problem as he should be since he has been in government health care his whole life." ... "[Arizona Senator] Sen. McCain noted that he was not receiving government health care for the six years he was in captivity. That is true. But it has nothing to do with my point — which is that the problem with Sen. McCain’s health care plan is not how it affects us –- but how it affects the tens of millions of Americans with preexisting conditions who, unlike Sen. McCain and myself, do not have the resources to pay for quality health care." ... "That is not a cheap shot, it is a potentially life and death question for tens of million of Americans. And it is a question Sen. McCain must address." ... "McCain’s health care plan is centered around the idea that we’d be better off if more Americans bought health coverage on their own, rather than receiving it through a job or government program. But maybe since he has never purchased insurance in the individual market, he does not know the challenge it presents for Americans with preexisting conditions." ... "A recent study showed that nearly nine out of every ten people seeking individual coverage on the private insurance market never got it. Insurers will disqualify you for just taking certain medicines because of the possibility of future costs, including common drugs as Lipitor, Zocor, Nexium, and Advair. People who have had cancer are denied coverage and those who get cancer run the risk of simply being dropped by their insurer for any excuse that can be found. And insurers make it a practice to deny coverage to individuals in high risk occupations, such as firefighting, lumber work, telecom installation, and pretty much anything more risky than working in an office." -By Elizabeth Edwards

-ThinkProgress.org /Wonk Room

20080420

Don Young

Abramoff

Bob Schaffer

Money

Politics

Mariana Islands

Chinese

Garment

Factory

Industry

Labor

Women

Abortion

Human Rights

Investigations

Government

Immigration

Law

History

Colorado

Alaska

"Records expose Young-Abramoff ties: MARIANA ISLANDS." ... "[Alaska Republican Represenative] Rep. Don Young has said he never allowed convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff to be an influential force over him in Congress." ... "But now a trove of old billing records from two of Abramoff's firms show that his team of lobbyists had more than 120 contacts with Young's personal and committee staffs over 25 months, including at least 10 with Young himself." ... "The available records cover a single Abramoff client, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, a U.S. [United States] territory in the Pacific that Young oversaw when he chaired the House Resources Committee from 1995 to 2001." ... "The records show that one of the looming concerns of Abramoff and his fellow lobbyists at the time was a bill introduced by Young's fellow Alaskan, [Republican Senator] Sen. Frank Murkowski, to reform labor and immigration practices feeding the island's notorious Chinese-owned sweatshops. In 2000, Murkowski's bill passed the Senate unanimously, but Young stopped it cold in his committee, refusing to hold even a hearing." ... "Investigations by the government, media and human rights groups uncovered widespread abuses in the garment industry and among sex workers there starting in the mid-1990s, but Young asserted those investigations were bogus." ... "As a member of Young's Resources Committee, [Colorado Republican Representative and 2008 Election Colorado Senator Candidate Bob] Schaffer took a free trip to the Mariana Islands arranged by Abramoff's law firm, then played a central role in a 1989 committee hearing investigating Interior department officials in the [Democratic President Bill] Clinton administration who were trying to rein in the Saipan government [Saipan is the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands' capital]." ... "A growing number of reports spoke of near slave-labor conditions, with workers kept in sealed compounds, required to work seven days a week without overtime, and sometimes getting no paycheck at all. There were widespread reports of women coerced into getting abortions to keep their jobs. Some women hired abroad found themselves working not in garment factories at all, but sex clubs." -By Richard Mauer

-ADN.com

Corporate -

Government -

Psychological -

Military -

Intelligence -

Television -

Radio -

Media -

Politics -

Classified -

US -

History -

Guantánamo -

Prison -

Cuba -

Human Rights -

Justice -

Iraq -

Terrorism -

Cheney -

Gonzales

"Behind TV Analysts, Pentagon’s Hidden Hand." ... "In the summer of 2005, the [Republican President] Bush administration confronted a fresh wave of criticism over Guantánamo Bay [US military prison in Cuba]. The detention center had just been branded “the gulag of our times” by Amnesty International, there were new allegations of abuse from United Nations human rights experts and calls were mounting for its closure." ... "The administration’s communications experts responded swiftly. Early one Friday morning, they put a group of retired military officers on one of the jets normally used by [Republican] Vice President Dick Cheney and flew them to Cuba for a carefully orchestrated tour of Guantánamo." ... "To the public, these men are members of a familiar fraternity, presented tens of thousands of times on television and radio as “military analysts” whose long service has equipped them to give authoritative and unfettered judgments about the most pressing issues of the post-[September]Sept. 11 world." ... "Hidden behind that appearance of objectivity, though, is a Pentagon information apparatus that has used those analysts in a campaign to generate favorable news coverage of the administration’s wartime performance, an examination by The New York Times has found." ... "The effort, which began with the buildup to the Iraq war and continues to this day, has sought to exploit ideological and military allegiances, and also a powerful financial dynamic: Most of the analysts have ties to military contractors vested in the very war policies they are asked to assess on air." ... "Those business relationships are hardly ever disclosed to the viewers, and sometimes not even to the networks themselves. But collectively, the men on the plane and several dozen other military analysts represent more than 150 military contractors either as lobbyists, senior executives, board members or consultants. The companies include defense heavyweights, but also scores of smaller companies, all part of a vast assemblage of contractors scrambling for hundreds of billions in military business generated by the administration’s war on terror. It is a furious competition, one in which inside information and easy access to senior officials are highly prized." ... "Records and interviews show how the Bush administration has used its control over access and information in an effort to transform the analysts into a kind of media Trojan horse — an instrument intended to shape terrorism coverage from inside the major TV and radio networks." ... "Analysts have been wooed in hundreds of private briefings with senior military leaders, including officials with significant influence over contracting and budget matters, records show. They have been taken on tours of Iraq and given access to classified intelligence. They have been briefed by officials from the White House, State Department and Justice Department, including Mr. Cheney, Alberto R. Gonzales and Stephen J. Hadley." ... "In turn, members of this group have echoed administration talking points, sometimes even when they suspected the information was false or inflated. Some analysts acknowledge they suppressed doubts because they feared jeopardizing their access." ... "A few expressed regret for participating in what they regarded as an effort to dupe the American public with propaganda dressed as independent military analysis." ... "Many also shared with Mr. Bush’s national security team a belief that pessimistic war coverage broke the nation’s will to win in Vietnam, and there was a mutual resolve not to let that happen with this war." ... "This was a major theme, for example, with Paul E. Vallely, a Fox News analyst from 2001 to 2007. A retired Army general who had specialized in psychological warfare, Mr. Vallely co-authored a paper in 1980 that accused American news organizations of failing to defend the nation from “enemy” propaganda during Vietnam." ... "“We lost the war — not because we were outfought, but because we were out Psyoped,” he wrote. He urged a radically new approach to psychological operations in future wars — taking aim at not just foreign adversaries but domestic audiences, too. He called his approach “MindWar” — using network TV and radio to “strengthen our national will to victory.”" (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, DOCUMENTS) -By David Barstow

-NYTimes

WATCH

"How the Pentagon Spread Its Message." ... "David Barstow, an investigative reporter for The Times, examines primary source documents detailing the Pentagon’s response to criticism of then-Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld by a group of prominent retired generals." -By David Barstow

-NYTimes

John McCain -

Psychology -

Politician -

History -

US -

International -

2008 Election -

Rick Renzi -

New Hampshire -

Virginia -

Texas -

Arizona

"McCain: A Question of Temperament." ... "Since the beginning of [2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate John] McCain's public life, the many witnesses to his temper have had strikingly different reactions to it. Some depict McCain, now the presumptive Republican nominee for president, as an erratic hothead incapable of staying cool in the face of what he views as either disloyalty to him or irrational opposition to his ideas. Others praise a firebrand who is resolute against the forces of greed and gutlessness." ... "Former senator Bob Smith, a New Hampshire Republican, expresses worries about McCain: "His temper would place this country at risk in international affairs, and the world perhaps in danger. In my mind, it should disqualify him."" ... "He [McCain] recalls in his writings how, as a toddler, he sometimes held his breath and fainted during moments of fury." ... "The nicknames hung on him at Episcopal [private High School in Alexandria, Virginia] mocked his hair-trigger feistiness: "Punk" and "McNasty."" ... "In 2007, during a heated closed-door discussion with Senate colleagues about the contentious immigration issue, he angrily shouted a profanity at a fellow Republican [Senator], John Cornyn of Texas, an incident that quickly found its way into headlines." ... "Reports recently surfaced of [Representative] Rep. Rick Renzi, an Arizona Republican, taking offense when McCain called him "boy" once too often during a 2006 meeting, a story that McCain aides confirm while playing down its importance." ... "[Former New Hampshire Republican Bob Smith] "I've witnessed a lot of his temper and outbursts," Smith said. "For me, some of this stuff is relevant. It raises questions about stability. . . . It's more than just temper. It's this need of his to show you that he's above you -- a sneering, condescending attitude. It's hurt his relationships in Congress. . . . I've seen it up-close."" (1, 2, 3, 4, 5) -By Michael Leahy

-WashingtonPost

20080419

Barack Obama

2008 Election

Politics

Illinois

Pennsylvania

Military

Economy

Global

Planet

"Obama Draws Record Crowd in Philadelphia." ... "[2008 Election Democratic Presidential Candidate and Illinois] Senator Barack Obama drew what may be his biggest crowd yet here [in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania] Friday. His campaign, quoting Frank Friel, director of security at the Independence Visitor Center, pegged the number at 35,000." ... "And Mr. Obama took the opportunity to declare his “independence” from the politics of the past — and from “the say-anything, do-anything politics that’s all about how to win and not about why we should.”" ... "Here are some excerpts from his speech, as prepared for delivery:"

"This is a defining moment in our history. Our nation is at war. Our planet is in peril. Our economy is in recession…. [M]ost of all, we’ve lost faith that our leaders can or will do anything about this; we don’t believe that anyone in Washington is listening to us, or standing up for us, or fighting for us." ... "That’s why this election is our chance to declare our independence from the broken politics of Washington, the cynical politics that puts spin ahead of solutions and the special interests ahead of our interests; the politics that’s all about tearing each other down when what we need is to lift this country up."

" -By Katharine Q. Seelye

-NYTimes

20080418

John McCain

Money

Accounting

Politics

Arizona

Illinois

New York

Obama

Clinton

2008 Election

"CNN chart purporting to compare candidates' "wealth" omitted Cindy McCain, who is reportedly worth $100 million." ... "Summary: On [TIME WARNER/CNN TV show] The Situation Room, an on-screen chart showed [2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate and Arizona Senator] Sen. John McCain's income to be significantly lower than that of [2008 Election Democratic Presidential Candidates and Senators from Illinois and New York] Sens. Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton when combined with the income of their spouses. However, the chart did not include any income earned by McCain's wife, Cindy. As Dana Bash reported moments earlier of Cindy McCain, "Some estimates actually put her worth at about $100 million."" ... "Earlier in the program, Bash compared the portion of McCain's income that he gave to charity with the portion given by the Clintons and Obamas -- without noting that McCain presumably benefits from his wife's wealth and from her income from her separate property, a figure that she has not released."

-MediaMatters.org

John McCain

Media

Accounting

Politics

Arizona

Massachusetts

2004 Election

2008 Election

"Several media outlets advanced comparison between Cindy McCain's and Teresa Heinz Kerry's release of tax info, ignoring key distinction." ... "Summary: Several media outlets have reported that [2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate and Arizona Senator] Sen. John McCain's campaign justified refusing to release Cindy McCain's tax returns by citing [2004 Election Democratic Presidential Candidate and Massachusetts Senator] Sen. John Kerry and his wife, Teresa Heinz Kerry, as "precedent." But they did not report that, in contrast with Cindy McCain, Heinz Kerry did release a part of her 2003 income tax return that showed "total income," which enabled The New York Times to analyze how she benefited from the [Republican President] Bush tax cuts. Such an analysis of how the McCains have benefited from the tax cuts -- which Sen. McCain supports extending permanently -- is not possible, based on the information his campaign has released on Cindy McCain's income." ... "These media reports, therefore, have advanced the McCain campaign's comparison between Cindy McCain's limited release of financial information and Heinz Kerry's, and in doing so, ignored a key distinction in the information they released: Unlike Heinz Kerry, Cindy McCain did not release sufficient information for the public to determine the extent to which she benefited from the tax cuts her husband supports extending."

-MediaMatters.org

Barack Obama -

United States -

Social Security -

Health Care -

Housing -

Markets -

Public Schools -

Poverty -

Race -

Global -

Climate -

Law -

Politics -

2008 Election

"[Robert Reich:] Obama for President." ... "I believe that Barack Obama should be elected President of the United States." ... "Although Hillary Clinton has offered solid and sensible policy proposals, Obama's strike me as even more so. His plans for reforming Social Security and health care have a better chance of succeeding. His approaches to the housing crisis and the failures of our financial markets are sounder than hers. His ideas for improving our public schools and confronting the problems of poverty and inequality are more coherent and compelling. He has put forward the more enlightened foreign policy and the more thoughtful plan for controlling global warming." ... "He also presents the best chance of creating a new politics in which citizens become active participants rather than cynical spectators. He has energized many who had given up on politics. He has engaged young people to an extent not seen in decades. He has spoken about the most difficult problems our society faces, such as race, without spinning or simplifying. He has rightly identified the armies of lawyers and lobbyists that have commandeered our democracy, and pointed the way toward taking it back." ... "Finally, he offers the best hope of transcending the boundaries of class, race, and nationality that have divided us. His life history exemplifies this, as do his writings and his record of public service. For these same reasons, he offers the best possibility of restoring America's moral authority in the world." -By Robert Reich

John McCain -

DEBT -

Accounting -

Politics -

Government -

Military -

US -

Iraq -

Afghanistan -

2008 Election

"McCain's $3.3 Trillion Tax Cut, Budget Pledge at Odds (Update3)." ... "[2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate] John McCain's plan to cut taxes and balance the budget wins praise from fellow Republicans. Economists and nonpartisan analysts say his numbers don't add up." ... "McCain's proposal, outlined April 15, would extend [Republican] President George W. Bush's tax cuts, reduce the top corporate rate, repeal the alternative minimum tax and double exemptions for dependents. Price: $3.3 trillion by the end of a President McCain's second term in 2017, according to figures from his campaign and the Treasury." ... "Robert Bixby, executive director of the Washington-based Concord Coalition, a nonpartisan group that advocates budget restraint, said ``the huge imbalance'' in McCain's plan ``is that the tax cuts are specific and large and the spending cuts are small and vague.''" ... "Once, McCain was a deficit hawk, Bixby said, but ``strange things happen when people run for president.''" ... "McCain's spending cuts, combined with increased revenue from economic growth, total $1.5 trillion over eight years, leaving a $1.8 trillion net increase to the national debt." ... "Two Washington research groups said McCain's plan would cost more. The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities estimated his tax cuts would total $5 trillion over a two-term presidency. The Tax Policy Center , run jointly by the Brookings Institution and Urban Institute, said they would cost at least $5.7 trillion." ... "McCain's plan doesn't address the cost of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, which now total more than $12 billion a month. [$144 billion per year over eight years is potentially $1.152 trillion of additional US debt.]" -By Ryan J. Donmoyer and Indira Lakshmanan

-Bloomberg

[TaxPolicyCenter.org "Scoring McCain’s Tax Proposals." ... "Even with the loophole closers, these proposals [made by 2008 Election Republican Presidential Candidate] would reduce federal revenues by about $5.7 trillion over ten years if they could be enacted immediately." ... "Adding the cost of the corporate tax cuts, the total comes to $8 trillion over 10 years ($7.6 trillion starting in FY10). That scenario would reduce federal tax revenues by $780 billion in FY2012—$140 billion more than the entire defense budget in that year." ... "Cuts the size of those he [McCain] proposes will require slashing discretionary spending and entitlements, and probably even reining in defense spending. Small wonder he has backed away from his earlier pledge to balance the budget—meaning that these tax cuts, like the ones signed by President Bush, will be paid for by our children." [Accounting calculations detailed in:] "Elements of Senator John McCain's Proposed Tax Plans, Impact on Tax Revenue, 2009-18." (.XLS File) -By Len Burman and Greg Leiserson -TaxPolicyCenter.org]

20080417

Mental

Health

PTSD

Iraq

Afghanistan

Military

"Nearly 1 In 5 Vets Reports Mental Problems: Study: 300,000 U.S. Troops Suffering From Depression, PTSD; 320,000 Have Brain Injuries." ... "The Department of Veterans Affairs said this month that its records show about 120,000 who served in the two wars [Iraq and Afghanistan] and are no longer in the military have been diagnosed with mental health problems. Of those, approximately 60,000 are suffering from PTSD, the VA said." ... "In December, CBS News correspondent Kimberly Dozier reported that veterans' advocates say symptoms of PTSD - from substance-abuse to rage to suicidal depression - are misdiagnosed or blamed on the troops themselves." ... "Veterans Affairs is responsible for care of service members after they have left the service, while the Defense Department covers active duty and reservist needs."

-AP via -CBSNews

Brain

Health

PTSD

Science

Money

Opinion - US

Iraq

Afghanistan

Military

"One In Five Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans Suffer from PTSD or Major Depression." ... "Nearly 20 percent of military service members who have returned from Iraq and Afghanistan — 300,000 in all — report symptoms of post traumatic stress disorder or major depression, yet only slightly more than half have sought treatment, according to a new RAND Corporation study." ... "In addition, researchers found about 19 percent of returning service members report that they experienced a possible traumatic brain injury while deployed, with 7 percent reporting both a probable brain injury and current PTSD or major depression." ... "Many service members said they do not seek treatment for psychological illnesses because they fear it will harm their careers. But even among those who do seek help for PTSD or major depression, only about half receive treatment that researchers consider "minimally adequate" for their illnesses." ... "In the first analysis of its kind, researchers estimate that PTSD and depression among returning service members will cost the nation as much as $6.2 billion in the two years following deployment — an amount that includes both direct medical care and costs for lost productivity and suicide. Investing in more high-quality treatment could save close to $2 billion within two years by substantially reducing those indirect costs, the 500-page study concludes." ... ""There is a major health crisis facing those men and women who have served our nation in Iraq and Afghanistan," said Terri Tanielian, the project's co-leader and a researcher at RAND, a nonprofit research organization. "Unless they receive appropriate and effective care for these mental health conditions, there will be long-term consequences for them and for the nation. Unfortunately, we found there are many barriers preventing them from getting the high-quality treatment they need."" ... "The findings are from the first large-scale, nongovernmental assessment of the psychological and cognitive needs of military service members who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan over the past six years. The RAND study is the first to comprehensively assess the current needs of returned service members from all branches of the military." ... "Researchers concluded that a major national effort is needed to expand and improve the capacity of the mental health system to provide effective care to service members and veterans. The effort must include the military, veteran and civilian health care systems, and should focus on training more providers to use high-quality, evidence-based treatment methods and encouraging service members and veterans to seek needed care." ... "Rates of PTSD and major depression were highest among Army soldiers and Marines, and among service members who were no longer on active duty (people in the reserves and those who had been discharged or retired from the military). Women, Hispanics and enlisted personnel all were more likely to report symptoms of PTSD and major depressions, but the single best predictor of PTSD and depression was exposure to combat trauma while deployed." ... "Researchers found many treatment gaps exist for those with PTSD and depression. Just 53 percent of service members with PTSD or depression sought help from a provider over the past year, and of those who sought care, roughly half got minimally adequate treatment." ... ""If PTSD and depression go untreated or are under treated, there is a cascading set of consequences," Jaycox said. "Drug use, suicide, marital problems and unemployment are some of the consequences. There will be a bigger societal impact if these service members go untreated. The consequences are not good for the individuals or society in general."" ... "Service members report many reasons for not seeking treatment. Many are worried about the side effects of medication or believe that family and friends can provide more help than a mental health professional. Even more reported that they worried seeking care might damage their career or cause their peers to lose confidence in their abilities." ... "The RAND report recommends the military create a system that would allow service members to receive mental health services confidentially in order to ease concerns about negative career repercussions." ... ""We need to remove the institutional cultural barriers that discourage soldiers from seeking care," Tanielian said. "Just because someone is getting mental health care does not mean that they are not able to do their job. Seeking mental health treatment should be seen as a sign of strength and interest in getting better, not a weakness. People need to get help as early as possible, not only once their symptoms become severe and disabling."" ... "Researchers also found an urgent need to train more mental health providers throughout the U.S. health care system on delivering evidence-based treatments to service members and veterans. While many opportunities for treatment exist for active-duty personnel, there is no system in place to monitor the quality of those services to ensure they are getting the latest science-based forms of treatment."

-Rand.org

Psychological

Health

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

Science

Monograph

Iraq

Afghanistan

Military

"Invisible Wounds of War: Psychological and Cognitive Injuries, Their Consequences, and Services to Assist Recovery." ... " Since October 2001, approximately 1.64 million U.S. troops have been deployed for Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom (OEF/OIF) in Afghanistan and Iraq. Early evidence suggests that the psychological toll of these deployments — many involving prolonged exposure to combat-related stress over multiple rotations — may be disproportionately high compared with the physical injuries of combat. In the face of mounting public concern over post-deployment health care issues confronting OEF/OIF veterans, several task forces, independent review groups, and a Presidential Commission have been convened to examine the care of the war wounded and make recommendations. Concerns have been most recently centered on two combat-related injuries in particular: post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury. With the increasing incidence of suicide and suicide attempts among returning veterans, concern about depression is also on the rise." ... " The study discussed in this monograph focuses on post-traumatic stress disorder, major depression, and traumatic brain injury, not only because of current high-level policy interest but also because, unlike the physical wounds of war, these conditions are often invisible to the eye, remaining invisible to other servicemembers, family members, and society in general. All three conditions affect mood, thoughts, and behavior; yet these wounds often go unrecognized and unacknowledged. The effect of traumatic brain injury is still poorly understood, leaving a large gap in knowledge related to how extensive the problem is or how to address it." ... [full 499 page monograph available at Rand] "Not only is a higher proportion of the armed forces being deployed,but deployments have been longer,redeployment to combat has been common,and breaks between deployments have been infrequent (Hosek,Kavanagh,and Miller,2006). At the same time,episodes of intense combat notwithstanding,these operations have employed smaller forces and have produced casualty rates of killed or wounded that are historically lower than in earlier prolonged wars,such as Vietnam and Korea.Advances in both medical technology and body armor mean that more servicemembers are surviving experiences that would have led to death in prior wars (Regan,2004;Warden,2006). However,casualties of a different kind are beginning to emerge —invisible wounds,such as mental health conditions and cognitive impairments resulting from deployment experiences.These deployment experiences may include multiple deployments per individual service member and exposure to di ?cult threats,such as improvised explosive devices (IEDs)." ... "As with safeguarding physical health,safeguarding mental health is an integral component of the United States ’ national responsibilities to recruit,,prepare,and sustain a military force and to address Service-connected injuries and disabilities.But safeguarding mental health is also critical for compensating and honoring those who have served our nation." -Edited by Terri Tanielian and Lisa H. Jaycox

-Rand.org

References

Hosek,J.,J.Kavanagh,and L.Miller.How Deployments Affect Service Members .Santa Monica, Calif.:RAND Corporation,MG-432-RC,2006.As of March 13,2008: http://www.rand.org/pubs/monographs/MG432/

Regan,T.Report:High survival rate for US troops wounded in Iraq.Christian Science Monitor, November 29,2004.

Warden,D.Military TBI during the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation ,Vol.21,No.5,2006,pp.398 –402.

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Politics

"Pentagon institute calls Iraq war 'a major debacle' with outcome 'in doubt'." ... "The war in Iraq has become "a major debacle" and the outcome "is in doubt" despite improvements in security from the buildup in U.S. [United States] forces, according to a highly critical study published Thursday by the Pentagon's premier military educational institute." ... "The report released by the National Defense University raises fresh doubts about [Republican] President Bush's projections of a U.S. victory in Iraq just a week after Bush announced that he was suspending U.S. troop reductions." ... "The report carries considerable weight because it was written by Joseph Collins, a former senior Pentagon official, and was based in part on interviews with other former senior defense and intelligence officials who played roles in prewar preparations." ... "It was published by the university's National Institute for Strategic Studies, a Defense Department research center." ... ""Measured in blood and treasure, the war in Iraq has achieved the status of a major war and a major debacle," says the report's opening line." ... "The report said that the United States has suffered serious political costs, with its standing in the world seriously diminished. Moreover, operations in Iraq have diverted "manpower, materiel and the attention of decision-makers" from "all other efforts in the war on terror" and severely strained the U.S. armed forces." ... ""Compounding all of these problems, our efforts there (in Iraq) were designed to enhance U.S. national security, but they have become, at least temporarily, an incubator for terrorism and have emboldened Iran to expand its influence throughout the Middle East," the report continued." -By Jonathan S. Landay and John Walcott

-McClatchyDC.com

[PDF REPORT] "Choosing War: The Decision to Invade Iraq and Its Aftermath." ... "Errors in Decisionmaking and Execution: Problems in planning on the ground and in Washington contributed to serious shortcomings in U.S. performance in Operation Iraqi Freedom. With 4½ years of hindsight, it is clear that these shortcomings included:"

"underestimation of the problems of occupying a fractious Muslim country the size of California"
"ineffective civil and military plans for stability operations and reconstruction"
"inadequate on-scene manpower and poor military reaction to rioting and looting in the immediate postconflict environment, which further encouraged lawlessness and insurgency"
"provision of inadequate forces to occupy and secure Iraq, which encouraged the initiation and continuation of an insurgency"
"slow civil and military reaction to the growing insurgency
"problematic funding and contracting mechanisms that slowed services and basic reconstruction, both of which were a partial antidote to insurgency"
"failure to make effective use of former Iraqi military forces, which, when coupled with de-Ba ’athification, alienated the Sunni minority"
"slow and often ineffective development of new Iraqi security forces"
"continuing inability to provide enough trained civilian officials, diplomats, and aid workers to conduct effective stabilization and reconstruction activities"
"slow creation of an interim Iraqi authority that could have minimized the perception of occupation and enhanced the perception of liberation."

"Of all of these mistakes, a series of faulty assumptions was one of the most significant factors in our postwar policy. These initial assumptions were a thread that ran through many missteps, and thus it is important to ask where assumptions come from. In every case, assumptions are affected by wishful thinking, stress, predispositions of the key actors, uncertainty, and the process used to arrive at decisions. For example, the policy preference of key players for no or very short postwar occupations or peace operations is just the sort of predisposition that can affect planning priorities. In complex national security operations, intelligence estimates also play a vital role. In the case of Iraq, intelligence was faulty on WMD, the state of Iraqi infrastructure, and the usefulness of Iraqi police and military. This incorrect or dated intelligence contributed in large measure to the “rosy scenario” assumptions that infected Iraq planning." [p.16, 17] "Choosing War: The Decision to Invade Iraq and Its Aftermath." -By Joseph J. Collins -Institute for National Strategic Studies -National Defense University

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"In Pa. Debate, The Clear Loser Is ABC." ... "When [2008 Election Democratic Presidential Candidates] Barack Obama met Hillary Clinton for another televised Democratic candidates' debate last night, it was more than a step forward in the 2008 presidential election. It was another step downward for network news -- in particular ABC News, which hosted the debate from Philadelphia [Pennsylvania] and whose usually dependable anchors, Charlie Gibson and George Stephanopoulos, turned in shoddy, despicable performances." ... "For the first 52 minutes of the two-hour, commercial-crammed show, Gibson and Stephanopoulos dwelled entirely on specious and gossipy trivia that already has been hashed and rehashed, in the hope of getting the candidates to claw at one another over disputes that are no longer news. Some were barely news to begin with." ... "Obama was right on the money when he complained about the campaign being bogged down in media-driven inanities and obsessiveness over any misstatement a candidate might make along the way, whether in a speech or while being eavesdropped upon by the opposition. The tactic has been to "take one statement and beat it to death," he said." ... "At the end, Gibson pompously thanked the candidates -- or was he really patting himself on the back? -- for "what I think has been a fascinating debate." He's entitled to his opinion, but the most fascinating aspect was waiting to see how low he and Stephanopoulos would go, and then being appalled at the answer." -By Tom Shales

-WashingtonPost

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