Annus Horribilis (depleted uranium exposure, compliments of the U.S. Gov't)

[babylonsister]

Annus Horribilis
by Paul William Roberts



(ED: Paul William Roberts is Senior Writer at Atlantic Free Press.)

To those few generous souls who have noticed my silence and absence from any medium over the past year, I have for some time now felt I owed an explanation. The reason I am thus dictating the following one is that, since last November, I have lost the sight in both my eyes.

I am blind.

Holes began appearing in the retina of my right eye in May, 2007, which several operations failed to repair. Six months later, the left eye followed a similar path. Causation in retinal disintegration is not clearly understood – stress? Poor diet? 14-hour days too close to a computer monitor? Syphilis? Diabetes? Bad luck? Voodoo or malevolent discarnate entities?

None of these is discounted, but two specialists – the two unaccountably free from a conviction that their patients have no need nor right to question them on issues too arcane for any but retinal experts to comprehend – agreed that my own suggestion the eye problem might be another side effect of the prolonged exposure to depleted uranium I was treated to by the Pentagon while in Iraq during 2003 and which has been causing various bodily ailments since 2004, debilitating flues, nausea, and chronic fatigue being previous highlights.

Since only the Pentagon has detailed data on D.U. exposure, which of course are unavailable to civilians and even most soldiers for reasons of national security – usually meaning it would shock and appall the American public who unwillingly fund such military barbarisms – it is impossible to learn much about its consequences, let alone find any form of treatment. I did, however, watch an enlightening video produced by the U.S. military for troops in the field. If you suspect you have been exposed to D.U., it said, try not to be, have a shower, and cover any surfaces that might be contaminated with duct tape or virtually anything else available. Then fill out a detailed report using the template available from unit medics. It must be comforting to discover the tender concern CENCOM has for your welfare and safety. On the same DVD was a US Navy recruiting ad showing what a hectically exciting life awaits those bold enough to sign up. It concluded with what I assume to be the new US motto: “Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of all who stand in their way”. Great copy, as they say on Madison Avenue.

This blindness was not the only fly in 2007’s swamp of ointment. Never before in my life have I, on December 31st at the stroke of midnight,, told an entire year to fuck off and shove auld lang syne into Robbie Burns’ sporran. The twelve-month bayou was malarial with the plip-plopping of a billion tiny wings floundering in or sucked under its Vaseline lake.

more...

http://atlanticfreepress.com/content/view/3593/81/

[sce56]

1. In another thread it was suggested that DU use is not harmful to our troops

I had to call them on it and just posted this thread in response to that one thanks for sharing. And to all who care see more about the threat from Depleted Uranium use go

[babylonsister]

2. Not harmful? Ugh. How can it not, and how many people have been

touched by this? We don't know because no one's talking. That tells me a lot.

[caraher]

4. I think you're referring to me...

... and I repeat, I never suggested it was not harmful! I just pointed out that it's incredibly unlikely that DU exposure would result in acute effects of radiation sickness. That is not at all the same as saying it is "safe." After all, it's equally true that breathing in chlorine gas is not going to cause radiation exposure, but that's not to say doing so is safe! I'm just pointing out that the repeated emphasis on radioactivity gives short shrift to the likelier health effects.

Your insistence on misconstruing what I did say reinforces my worry that overemphasis on the less plausible mechanisms for biological damage hurts the credibility of people urging an end to the use of DU. If you misinterpret my remark this badly, and persist in asserting my comments imply DU is "safe," I have little faith in the rest of what you may have to say - and I am sympathetic to your cause. I can only imagine how much less receptive to your position people more inclined to trust the military would be!

[sce56]

5. The fact is that a lot of soldiers have been exposed. In it's hard form DU is maybe ok

But when it is fired as a weapon it becomes dust and is spread over a wide area contaminating everything! It has been used repeatedly in Iraq, Afghanistan and the former country of Yugoslavia. The 30MM rounds that are fired by Apache Gunships and A10 Warthog attack fighters are made of it and the Sabot rounds the M1 Main Battle tank fire use it as well. Those rounds burned upon entry to the tanks they hit and spread that dust around. The bunker busters dropped by the Air Force use it also to become the penetrator. How would you like to live in an area that was contaminated by these weapons not to mention the soldiers we have deployed there who breath the air which is contaminated with that dust.

April 05, 2004 http://www.democracynow.org/2004/4/5/broadcast_exclusive_u_s_soldiers_contaminated
Dusoldiers
Broadcast Exclusive: U.S. Soldiers Contaminated With Depleted Uranium Speak Out

A special investigation by Democracy Now! co-host Juan Gonzalez of the New York Daily News has found four of nine soldiers of the 442nd Military Police Company of the New York Army National Guard returning from Iraq tested positive for depleted uranium contamination. They are the first confirmed cases of inhaled depleted uranium exposure from the current Iraq conflict.

After repeatedly being denied testing for depleted uranium from Army doctors, the soldiers contacted The News who paid to have them tested as part of their investigation.

Testing for uranium isotopes in 24 hours’ worth of urine samples can cost as much as $1,000 each.

In a Democracy Now! broadcast exclusive, three of the contaminated soldiers speak out.

Army officials at Fort Dix and Walter Reed Army Medical Center are now rushing to test all returning members of the 442nd. More than a dozen members are back in the U.S. but the rest of the company, mostly comprised of New York City cops, firefighters and correction officers, is not due to return from Iraq until later this month.

After learning of The News’ investigation, Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) blasted Pentagon officials yesterday for not properly screening soldiers returning from Iraq.

Clinton, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said she will write to Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld demanding answers and soon will introduce legislation to require health screenings for all returning troops.
Depleted Uranium is considered to be the most effective anti-tank weapon ever devised. It is made from nuclear waste left over from the making nuclear weapons and fuel. The public first became aware the US military was using DU weapons during the Persian Gulf War in 1991. But it had been used as far back as the 1973 Yom Kippur war in Israel.

Amid growing controversy in Europe and Japan, the European Parliament called last year for a moratorium on its use.

* Sgt. Herbert Reed, assistant deputy warden at Rikers Island with 442nd military police company of New York Army National Guard. He did not test positive for depleted uranium, but has uranium 236, a uranium isotope not found in nature.
* Sgt. Agustin Matos, was deployed in Iraq with the 442nd Military Police. He is among the first confirmed cases of inhaled depleted uranium exposure from the current Iraq conflict.
* Sgt. Hector Vega, among the first confirmed cases of inhaled depleted uranium exposure from the current Iraq conflict.
* Dr. Asaf Durakovic, colonel in army reserves who served in first Gulf War. He is one of the first doctors to discover unusual radiation levels in Gulf War veterans. He has since become a leading critic of the use of depleted uranium in warfare. He tested the nine men at the request of the Daily News.
* Leonard Dietz, retired physicist from Knolls Atomic Laboratory in upstate New York. Pioneered the technology to isolate uranium isotopes.

Read Juan Gonzalez’ Exclusive Reports in the New York Daily News: Links on the original DN page

* Poisoned? Shocking report on troops

* Inside filthy camp where trouble began

* Soldiers demand to know health risks

* Army to test N.Y. Guard unit

Related Democracy Now! Coverage:

* Is Depleted Uranium Creating a New Nuclear Danger in Iraq?__

* Radiation is 1,000 Times the Normal Levels Where US Troops Used Depleted Uranium Shells in Baghdad__

* U.S. Reportedly Fires DU Shells in Basra: Despite Evidence of Health and Environmental Effects, Pentagon Denies DU Is Dangerous__

* Part 2 of Our Discussion On Depleted Uranium, with the Scientific Secretary with the European Committee On Radiation Risk, and a U.N. Human Rights Lawyer__

* Dr. Asaf Durakovic Gives a Rare Interview About Depleted Uranium in Iraq: He Was the First Military Doctor to Test Gulf War Veterans for Radiation Exposure and Was Terminated for His Work__



There are many reports of DU poisoning in our soldiers returning from battle it is a big concern to me as my son did two tours of duty there! So far he has been ok but he was not in a front line combat unit or heavy maintenance unit that had to deal with he damaged tanks ours and the Russian made ones we defeated! Use of DU should be banned by the UN.

[Kaotac]

3. On the topic of depleted uranium..

I saw a docu on Discovery a week ago on the stripping down of an old 747 for recycling, and they had to take a lot of care with the tail because they used depleted uranium as a counterweight. Makes you wonder how many plane crashes have been radioactive.