MILITARY: 4 Camp Pendleton Marines die in Afghanistan helicopter collision
Seven other Americans, three DEA agents die in separate crash
By MARK WALKER - mlwalker@nctimes.com
Posted: Monday, October 26, 2009 6:10 pm
Four Camp Pendleton Marines were killed in Afghanistan on Monday when two helicopters collided over Helmand province in southern Afghanistan, authorities said.
Seven other Americans and three members of the Drug Enforcement Agency combating that country's opium trade died in a separate crash Monday in western Afghanistan, military officials said.
The combined 14 deaths made Monday the deadliest single day for U.S. personnel in Afghanistan since 2005.
The Camp Pendleton fatalities included a pilot identified by military officials as Capt. Kyle Van De Giesen of North Attleboro, Mass.
go here for more
Camp Pendleton Marines die in Afghanistan helicopter collision
Monday, October 26, 2009
We have devolved into a nation of remote caring instead of caring about people
Sgt. Dave Matthews of the Orlando National Guard and Warrior Support told me that he often tells people to just put down the remote control. It's frustrating when he hears people talking about watching TV shows instead of really paying attention to what is going on. He's right.
We have devolved into a nation of remote caring instead of caring about people.
It's a lot easier to kick off your shoes at the end of the day facing your own problems and pick up a remote control to take you away from reality. Feeling too old perhaps for the cartoon channel, too late in the day to watch a soap, you may turn on a show like Criminal Minds. It's fascinating to watch FBI agents go after the bad guys and you don't have to pay the price for a movie ticket to add in a bit of a horror show. Yet it's doubtful you managed to read today's paper when FBI Agents saved 52 children from child sex rings. The reason is simple. The TV show is not real and you can go to bed tonight without having to be bothered by anything you saw. It's a safe bet that you are not really bothered by too much outside of your own life. It's just too painful to know what is really going on in the world. What you don't understand is that this attitude has become our biggest problem.
Maybe you found time to turn on the news and heard about this.
But the chances are you didn't know there were DEA Agents in Afghanistan in the first place. It is also a pretty safe bet you didn't hear about this at all,,,,
You may have just thought that things were suddenly fine since that is what they told us a long time ago and then didn't feel the need to do anything. Maybe you felt there wasn't a need to support a charity out there trying to take care of the veterans that are not being taken care of? Maybe the neighbor down the street you attended a welcome home party for is not doing as well as you just assumed? Maybe, just maybe you never really got the message the TV shows you like should have gotten to sink into your mind?
See the shows are not just about shocking you or entertaining you. They show what people can do when they pay attention and care enough to do something about it. It's pretty doubtful you are not cheering the bad guys. Can you see how you can be one of the good guys by paying attention and doing something about it? These are real lives with real families and yes, they are the ones we count on everyday to be there and do what is asked of them. No one can snap their fingers and return them the same way they were when they left. You cared about them when they were away but find yourself too busy to care about them when they are back home and not as safe and sound as you would expect.
While there is an Army of volunteers out there in this nation trying to make a difference, the need has outnumbered the volunteers for far too long. We not only have the Iraq and Afghanistan veterans needing help, we have their families as well. We also have the older veterans needing help along with their families from too many years of neglect. As bad as Secretary Gates makes it sound, he's not talking about all the other veterans just as needing and deserving of help as the newer veteran are.
If the rest of us decided that we would give even one hour a month to help our veterans, we would finally live up to this:
"The willingness with which our young people are likely to serve in any war, no matter how justified, shall be directly proportional to how they perceive veterans of early wars were treated and appreciated by our nation." - George Washington
This message is at the bottom of all of my emails because it touched the bottom of my heart a very long time ago. No truer words could be spoken about us deserving them.
Take time to really care instead of viewing pain and suffering with the remote control in your hands.
Give up one TV show to read Army Times.
Give up looking up the latest celebrity gossip and go to ICasualites.org to find out what happened in Iraq and Afghanistan today.
Simple little things will go a long way besides just giving money. You could change your focus enough to actually change a life.
If you find something that upsets you, then write a letter to your congressman or make a phone call. Don't stop there. Call your family and friends and let them know.
If you get an email that is a lot of nonsense that does no one any good at all, send them a link to a story that they can actually do something about and obviously should care about.
Find a charity to support and send them a few dollars and get your friends to do the same.
Say a prayer for the families of fallen service men/women.
Do something real to make someone's life better. You may find it makes your life better as well. It's for sure you won't really gain much by watching a TV show when there is a whole real world out there needing you to pay attention and care.
We have devolved into a nation of remote caring instead of caring about people.
It's a lot easier to kick off your shoes at the end of the day facing your own problems and pick up a remote control to take you away from reality. Feeling too old perhaps for the cartoon channel, too late in the day to watch a soap, you may turn on a show like Criminal Minds. It's fascinating to watch FBI agents go after the bad guys and you don't have to pay the price for a movie ticket to add in a bit of a horror show. Yet it's doubtful you managed to read today's paper when FBI Agents saved 52 children from child sex rings. The reason is simple. The TV show is not real and you can go to bed tonight without having to be bothered by anything you saw. It's a safe bet that you are not really bothered by too much outside of your own life. It's just too painful to know what is really going on in the world. What you don't understand is that this attitude has become our biggest problem.
Maybe you found time to turn on the news and heard about this.
Obama: Americans killed in Afghan crash 'doing this nation proud'
October 26, 2009 5:50 p.m. EDT
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
Helicopter crash victims "gave their lives ... to protect ours," president says
Three DEA personnel are among victims
Seven U.S. service members and three U.S. civilians killed in one crash
Four other U.S. service members killed when two copters collided Monday
But the chances are you didn't know there were DEA Agents in Afghanistan in the first place. It is also a pretty safe bet you didn't hear about this at all,,,,
Gates: Wounded troops face too much bureaucracy
By Kimberly Hefling - The Associated PressPosted :
Monday Oct 26, 2009 14:32:05 EDT
Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Monday that troops injured in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan continue to face too many bureaucratic hurdles.Paperwork alone for them can be “frustrating, adversarial, and unnecessarily complex,” Gates said.
Gates spoke at a mental health summit with Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki. By appearing publicly together, they sought to reinforce their commitment to tackling veterans’ health issues and the stigma associated with seeking mental health care.
Earlier this year, they pledged with President Barack Obama to create a system that would make it easier for the Pentagon and VA to exchange information so there is less of a wait for veterans to get disability benefits.
The VA is struggling with a backlogged disability claims system with hundreds of thousands of claims that need to be processed.Among U.S. troops who have fought in the recent wars, Gates says brain injuries and mental health ailments are “widespread, entrenched and insidious.”
He noted that a RAND Corp. study last year estimated that there could be more than 600,000 service members with traumatic brain injuries or mental health issues.
read more here
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2009/10/ap_wounded_gates_102609/
You may have just thought that things were suddenly fine since that is what they told us a long time ago and then didn't feel the need to do anything. Maybe you felt there wasn't a need to support a charity out there trying to take care of the veterans that are not being taken care of? Maybe the neighbor down the street you attended a welcome home party for is not doing as well as you just assumed? Maybe, just maybe you never really got the message the TV shows you like should have gotten to sink into your mind?
See the shows are not just about shocking you or entertaining you. They show what people can do when they pay attention and care enough to do something about it. It's pretty doubtful you are not cheering the bad guys. Can you see how you can be one of the good guys by paying attention and doing something about it? These are real lives with real families and yes, they are the ones we count on everyday to be there and do what is asked of them. No one can snap their fingers and return them the same way they were when they left. You cared about them when they were away but find yourself too busy to care about them when they are back home and not as safe and sound as you would expect.
While there is an Army of volunteers out there in this nation trying to make a difference, the need has outnumbered the volunteers for far too long. We not only have the Iraq and Afghanistan veterans needing help, we have their families as well. We also have the older veterans needing help along with their families from too many years of neglect. As bad as Secretary Gates makes it sound, he's not talking about all the other veterans just as needing and deserving of help as the newer veteran are.
If the rest of us decided that we would give even one hour a month to help our veterans, we would finally live up to this:
"The willingness with which our young people are likely to serve in any war, no matter how justified, shall be directly proportional to how they perceive veterans of early wars were treated and appreciated by our nation." - George Washington
This message is at the bottom of all of my emails because it touched the bottom of my heart a very long time ago. No truer words could be spoken about us deserving them.
Take time to really care instead of viewing pain and suffering with the remote control in your hands.
Give up one TV show to read Army Times.
Give up looking up the latest celebrity gossip and go to ICasualites.org to find out what happened in Iraq and Afghanistan today.
Simple little things will go a long way besides just giving money. You could change your focus enough to actually change a life.
If you find something that upsets you, then write a letter to your congressman or make a phone call. Don't stop there. Call your family and friends and let them know.
If you get an email that is a lot of nonsense that does no one any good at all, send them a link to a story that they can actually do something about and obviously should care about.
Find a charity to support and send them a few dollars and get your friends to do the same.
Say a prayer for the families of fallen service men/women.
Do something real to make someone's life better. You may find it makes your life better as well. It's for sure you won't really gain much by watching a TV show when there is a whole real world out there needing you to pay attention and care.
FBI saves 52 children from sex trafficking
52 children recovered, 60 alleged child pimps arrested in crackdown
October 26, 2009 2:43 p.m. EDT
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
3-day Operation Cross Country IV conducted on federal, state, local levels
FBI says more than 690 people in all were arrested on state, local charges
"Child prostitution continues to be a significant problem in our country," FBI says
Operation is part of initiative aimed at ending domestic sex trafficking of children in U.S.
(CNN) -- Law enforcement authorities have recovered 52 children and arrested 60 pimps allegedly involved in child prostitution, the FBI announced Monday.
More than 690 people in all were arrested on state and local charges, the FBI stated.
The arrests were made over the past three days as part of a nationwide law enforcement initiative conducted on the federal, state and local levels, the bureau said.
"Child prostitution continues to be a significant problem in our country, as evidenced by the number of children rescued through the continued efforts of our crimes against children task forces," Kevin Perkins, assistant director of the FBI's Criminal Investigative Division, said in a written statement.
read more here
http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/10/26/child.prostitution/index.html
October 26, 2009 2:43 p.m. EDT
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
3-day Operation Cross Country IV conducted on federal, state, local levels
FBI says more than 690 people in all were arrested on state, local charges
"Child prostitution continues to be a significant problem in our country," FBI says
Operation is part of initiative aimed at ending domestic sex trafficking of children in U.S.
(CNN) -- Law enforcement authorities have recovered 52 children and arrested 60 pimps allegedly involved in child prostitution, the FBI announced Monday.
More than 690 people in all were arrested on state and local charges, the FBI stated.
The arrests were made over the past three days as part of a nationwide law enforcement initiative conducted on the federal, state and local levels, the bureau said.
"Child prostitution continues to be a significant problem in our country, as evidenced by the number of children rescued through the continued efforts of our crimes against children task forces," Kevin Perkins, assistant director of the FBI's Criminal Investigative Division, said in a written statement.
read more here
http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/10/26/child.prostitution/index.html
Soldier killed in Black Hawk crash identified
Soldier killed in Black Hawk crash identified
The Associated Press
Posted : Monday Oct 26, 2009 13:34:06 EDT
FORT BRAGG, N.C. — Military officials have identified the soldier killed when a Black Hawk helicopter crashed on a Navy ship during training off the Virginia coast.
A statement by Fort Bragg on Sunday said 29-year-old Army Staff Sgt. James R. Stright of Libby, Mont., was killed Oct. 22.
read more here
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2009/10/ap_army_black_hawk_crash_102509/
also
• 1 dead, 8 hurt in Black Hawk crash on ship
The Associated Press
Posted : Monday Oct 26, 2009 13:34:06 EDT
FORT BRAGG, N.C. — Military officials have identified the soldier killed when a Black Hawk helicopter crashed on a Navy ship during training off the Virginia coast.
A statement by Fort Bragg on Sunday said 29-year-old Army Staff Sgt. James R. Stright of Libby, Mont., was killed Oct. 22.
read more here
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2009/10/ap_army_black_hawk_crash_102509/
also
• 1 dead, 8 hurt in Black Hawk crash on ship
Eustis cop shoots man after he steals her taser and tasers her
Eustis cop shoots man after he steals her Taser
By Martin E. Comas
Sentinel Staff Writer
2:14 p.m. EDT, October 26, 2009
EUSTIS - A police officer shot and critically wounded a man outside a busy dollar store Wednesday after he grabbed the officer's Taser and fired the weapon at her, authorities said.
The man, who police had not yet identified late Monday, was reported in critical condition after undergoing surgery at Orlando Regional Medical Center, where he was airlifted. Authorities said he was shot in the chest.
Eustis police Officer Theresa Graham was taken to a Lake County hospital, where she was being treated after being tased.
read more here
Eustis cop shoots man after he steals her Taser
By Martin E. Comas
Sentinel Staff Writer
2:14 p.m. EDT, October 26, 2009
EUSTIS - A police officer shot and critically wounded a man outside a busy dollar store Wednesday after he grabbed the officer's Taser and fired the weapon at her, authorities said.
The man, who police had not yet identified late Monday, was reported in critical condition after undergoing surgery at Orlando Regional Medical Center, where he was airlifted. Authorities said he was shot in the chest.
Eustis police Officer Theresa Graham was taken to a Lake County hospital, where she was being treated after being tased.
read more here
Eustis cop shoots man after he steals her Taser
2 soldiers struck, killed by car while arguing before deployment
2 soldiers struck, killed by car while arguing
The Associated Press
Posted : Monday Oct 26, 2009 18:43:48 EDT
FORT PIERCE, Fla. — Two soldiers going to surprise their families before deployment to Iraq were killed when they got into an argument and were hit by a car.
The Florida Highway Patrol says Joshua Thomas Baker and Jonathan Wendell Peterson, both on their way home to southwest Florida, were killed on a dark road in Fort Pierce on Saturday evening.
read more here
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2009/10/ap_soldiers_killed_car_102609/
The Associated Press
Posted : Monday Oct 26, 2009 18:43:48 EDT
FORT PIERCE, Fla. — Two soldiers going to surprise their families before deployment to Iraq were killed when they got into an argument and were hit by a car.
The Florida Highway Patrol says Joshua Thomas Baker and Jonathan Wendell Peterson, both on their way home to southwest Florida, were killed on a dark road in Fort Pierce on Saturday evening.
read more here
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2009/10/ap_soldiers_killed_car_102609/
Sec. Gates:TBI and PTSD "widespread, entrenched and insidious"
Gates: Wounded troops face too much bureaucracy
By Kimberly Hefling - The Associated Press
Posted : Monday Oct 26, 2009 14:32:05 EDT
Gates: Wounded troops face too much bureaucracy
By Kimberly Hefling - The Associated Press
Posted : Monday Oct 26, 2009 14:32:05 EDT
WASHINGTON — Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Monday that troops injured in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan continue to face too many bureaucratic hurdles.
Paperwork alone for them can be “frustrating, adversarial, and unnecessarily complex,” Gates said.
Gates spoke at a mental health summit with Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki. By appearing publicly together, they sought to reinforce their commitment to tackling veterans’ health issues and the stigma associated with seeking mental health care.
Earlier this year, they pledged with President Barack Obama to create a system that would make it easier for the Pentagon and VA to exchange information so there is less of a wait for veterans to get disability benefits. The VA is struggling with a backlogged disability claims system with hundreds of thousands of claims that need to be processed.
Among U.S. troops who have fought in the recent wars, Gates says brain injuries and mental health ailments are “widespread, entrenched and insidious.” He noted that a RAND Corp. study last year estimated that there could be more than 600,000 service members with traumatic brain injuries or mental health issues.
read more here
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2009/10/ap_wounded_gates_102609/
By Kimberly Hefling - The Associated Press
Posted : Monday Oct 26, 2009 14:32:05 EDT
Gates: Wounded troops face too much bureaucracy
By Kimberly Hefling - The Associated Press
Posted : Monday Oct 26, 2009 14:32:05 EDT
WASHINGTON — Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Monday that troops injured in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan continue to face too many bureaucratic hurdles.
Paperwork alone for them can be “frustrating, adversarial, and unnecessarily complex,” Gates said.
Gates spoke at a mental health summit with Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki. By appearing publicly together, they sought to reinforce their commitment to tackling veterans’ health issues and the stigma associated with seeking mental health care.
Earlier this year, they pledged with President Barack Obama to create a system that would make it easier for the Pentagon and VA to exchange information so there is less of a wait for veterans to get disability benefits. The VA is struggling with a backlogged disability claims system with hundreds of thousands of claims that need to be processed.
Among U.S. troops who have fought in the recent wars, Gates says brain injuries and mental health ailments are “widespread, entrenched and insidious.” He noted that a RAND Corp. study last year estimated that there could be more than 600,000 service members with traumatic brain injuries or mental health issues.
read more here
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2009/10/ap_wounded_gates_102609/
Wounded and struggling Iraq vet may lose his wife
Her crime was not her's. Her parents brought her here illegally when she was only six. How would this be justice for this combat wounded veteran to lose his wife for something she did not do? Now consider that what she is doing for this veteran is making his life with his wounds easier should be worth at least giving her citizenship for his sake alone, then add in their two children.
Struggling Iraq vet may lose his anchor
His wife, brought here illegally at age 6, is about to be deported. 'She's my everything,' her husband says.
By Teresa Watanabe
October 26, 2009
The nightmares still plague him. The terrifying mortar attacks. The loss of an Albanian soldier and ally, mutilated by shrapnel. The Iraqi children, bloodied and battered, lined up for medical care at the U.S. base at Mosul.
Two years after returning from his service in Iraq, U.S. Army Spc. Jack Barrios, 26, is fighting sleeplessness, sudden angry outbursts, aversion to emotional intimacy and other fallout from his post-traumatic stress disorder.
But as he undergoes counseling and swallows anti-depressants, the soldier is fighting an even bigger battle: to keep his family from collapsing as his wife, an undocumented immigrant from Guatemala, faces deportation.
His wife, 23-year-old Frances, was illegally brought to the United States by her mother at age 6, learned of her status in high school and discovered just last year that removal proceedings have been started. Her possible deportation has left Barrios in panic as he contemplates life without her.
The Army reservist says his wife is the family's anchor, caring for their year-old daughter and 3-year-old son and helping him battle his post-traumatic stress.
read more here
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-immig-soldier26-2009oct26,0,144983.story
Female Warriors Engage in Combat in Iraq, Afghanistan
Female Warriors Engage in Combat in Iraq, Afghanistan
Vague Language in Policies Puts in Question Legality of Roles for Women in Combat
By MARTHA RADDATZ and ELIZABETH GORMAN
Oct. 25, 2009
The image of young women in a hot, dusty combat zone toting automatic weapons is still startling to some.
But right now there are 10,000 women serving in Iraq, more than 4,000 in Aghanistan. They have been fighting and dying next to their male comrades since the wars began.
"I can't help but think most Americans think women aren't in combat," says Specialist Ashley Pullen who was awarded a Bronze Star for valor in 2005 for her heroic action in Iraq where she served with a military police unit. "We're here and we're right up with the guys."
Technically they're restricted from certain combat roles. The Department of Defense prohibits women from serving in assignments "whose primary mission is to engage in direct combat on the ground."
Nevertheless, women serving in support positions on and off the frontlines, where war is waged on street corners and in markets, are often at equal risk. There have been 103 women who have been killed in Iraq and 15 others in Afghanistan.
read more here
Female Warriors Engage in Combat in Iraq and Afghanistan
Vague Language in Policies Puts in Question Legality of Roles for Women in Combat
By MARTHA RADDATZ and ELIZABETH GORMAN
Oct. 25, 2009
The image of young women in a hot, dusty combat zone toting automatic weapons is still startling to some.
But right now there are 10,000 women serving in Iraq, more than 4,000 in Aghanistan. They have been fighting and dying next to their male comrades since the wars began.
"I can't help but think most Americans think women aren't in combat," says Specialist Ashley Pullen who was awarded a Bronze Star for valor in 2005 for her heroic action in Iraq where she served with a military police unit. "We're here and we're right up with the guys."
Technically they're restricted from certain combat roles. The Department of Defense prohibits women from serving in assignments "whose primary mission is to engage in direct combat on the ground."
Nevertheless, women serving in support positions on and off the frontlines, where war is waged on street corners and in markets, are often at equal risk. There have been 103 women who have been killed in Iraq and 15 others in Afghanistan.
read more here
Female Warriors Engage in Combat in Iraq and Afghanistan
President Obama Addresses Troops In Florida
Obama Addresses Troops In Florida
President Will Also Visit Miami, Tampa
POSTED: 7:01 am EDT October 26, 2009
ORLANDO, Fla. -- President Barack Obama visited Florida on Monday to address members of the military in Jacksonville.
Air Force One landed in Jacksonville shortly before 3 p.m. Obama began his speech by remembering 14 Americans killed Monday in helicopter crashes in Afghanistan, saying "they gave their lives to protect ours."
Obama said the dead Americans, which included three federal drug enforcement agents, were willing to risk their lives to keep Afghanistan from again becoming a safe haven for al-Qaida and extremist allies.
go here for more and video
http://www.wesh.com/news/21424541/detail.html
President Will Also Visit Miami, Tampa
POSTED: 7:01 am EDT October 26, 2009
ORLANDO, Fla. -- President Barack Obama visited Florida on Monday to address members of the military in Jacksonville.
Air Force One landed in Jacksonville shortly before 3 p.m. Obama began his speech by remembering 14 Americans killed Monday in helicopter crashes in Afghanistan, saying "they gave their lives to protect ours."
Obama said the dead Americans, which included three federal drug enforcement agents, were willing to risk their lives to keep Afghanistan from again becoming a safe haven for al-Qaida and extremist allies.
go here for more and video
http://www.wesh.com/news/21424541/detail.html
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