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Title: U.S. Reports Five Soldiers Killed In Iraq
Source:
United Press International
URL Source: http://www.postchronicle.com/news/b ... ingnews/article_21268681.shtml
Published: Mar 12, 2007
Author: UPI
Post Date: 2007-03-12 13:26:55 by Brian S
Keywords: None
Views: 1409
Comments: 96
Mar 12, 2007 The U.S. military said Monday five of its soldiers were killed and two others were injured in separate incidents in Iraq on Sunday. Three of the deaths were not combat-related, Kuwait's KUNA news agency reported. In Baghdad, gunmen opened fire on the motorcade of Iraq's minister of agriculture, killing one of his bodyguards and injuring another, CNN reported. Security officials said 21 bodies had been found scattered around the city on Sunday, most of which showed signs of torture. Sectarian fighting between Shiite and Sunni Muslims has plagued the Iraqi government's attempts at reconstruction for more than 14 months. About 60 miles from Baghdad in Muqdadiya, a New York Times correspondent said sectarian fighting turned to arson during the weekend. As many as 100 homes and other buildings were torched, the report said. Victims from both sects blamed Sunni extremists who have taken over several towns in the area and are demanding protection money, the report said. (c) UPI
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#1. To: Brian S (#0)
Sectarian violence has kept the number of attacks on US troops down as insurgents have to allocate resources, time, and manpower to fighting each other. So, in other words, the US occupation benefits from this violence and is more than likely responsible for many of these "Car bombs".
This would be expected if the service ranks were filled with octegenarians. The deaths of young servicemen "serving" in an occupation zone should be presumed to be combat-related, in the absence of any specific details about their deaths or their classification. Were their deaths classiffied as non- combat because they were aviation accidents, or motor vehicle accidents? Were their deaths classified as non-combat because, for instance, they were victims of medical malpractice, which itself followed minor combat wounds? Were they victims of arson by an undetermined perpetrator? Our government classifies these deaths as non-combat to hide the fact that the combat death total tells only half the story, and that twice as many young people as reported are dying from the disease known as Iraqobellogenic Disease.
Sectarian fighting between Shiite and Sunni Muslims has plagued the Iraqi government's attempts at reconstruction for more than 14 months. Sectarian violence has kept the number of attacks on US troops down as insurgents have to allocate resources, time, and manpower to fighting each other. So, in other words, the US occupation benefits from this violence and is more than likely responsible for many of these "Car bombs". BAC was busy defending the use of white phosphorus and DU, so he asked me to handle his response to you. So typical of you, Burqaman, to resort to innuendo and slander against our troops when you have no evidence of wrongdoing. You have no evidence that Negroponte ordered Shia death squads to operate against Sunni. It was just a coincidence that Blackbridge went to Iraq and Iraq went to hell. And the rumors about the "Salvador option" are baseless slanders that have unjustly and tragically kept Negroponte from enjoying vacations in Central America for years. While you hide behind your keyboard and smugly ask "cui bono?", our brave troops are fighting and dying and playing video games in the holy ground of American sacrifice. Why do you hate America? How's that, BAC? This time, I don't want to hear about a pipeline or a backlog; I want that check in my mailbox tomorrow.
good questions
Victory means exit strategy, and it’s important for the President to explain to us what the exit strategy is. ~George W. Bush "ROFLOL! Command Center" may be giving you a call asking for your services.
Victory means exit strategy, and it’s important for the President to explain to us what the exit strategy is. ~George W. Bush Ping.
ROTFLMAO!
Has he really tried to defend this?
Victory means exit strategy, and it’s important for the President to explain to us what the exit strategy is. ~George W. Bush Has he really tried to defend this? I'm sure I've seen him deny their use, which amounts to a sort of defense. Give me a little poetic license.
okay, that is almost as bad.
Victory means exit strategy, and it’s important for the President to explain to us what the exit strategy is. ~George W. Bush ... when its use will save the life of our soldiers.
I think you are mis-remembering. Although I have disputed their use at the WTC and the Pentagon. And that DU is responsible for most of the illness in Iraq and amongst our soldiers.
How sad that robin is being led to incorrect conclusions and will remain misinformed thanks to having bozo'd herself rather than read my posts. (snicker)
GW is that you? :P
That means you accept it's use on our soldiers if it's use will save the lives of the enemy. Or else you fall into the absurd position of "I can hit you but you can't hit me".
I assure you, Tom, that our enemies will use it on our soldiers if they believe it advantageous and have the ability. But unlike us, they won't have ANY concern about collateral damage.
leveller - BAC was busy defending the use of white phosphorus and DU Has he really tried to defend this? ... when its use will save the life of our soldiers. It was worse than I had remembered!
You are soooo supportive of America's soldiers.
It was worse than I had remembered! DU is killing our soldiers. White phosphorus has underlined our new reputation as war criminals, so Israel isn't the only war criminals anymore.
Victory means exit strategy, and it’s important for the President to explain to us what the exit strategy is. ~George W. Bush Amen.
robin: DU is killing our soldiers. White phosphorus has underlined our new reputation as war criminals, so Israel isn't the only war criminals anymore. Well, robin, that's the point isn't it - we're all Israelis now. An international pariah loves company...otherwise it's rather lonely.
The best way to support "our" soldiers is to bring them home, before they get killed or commit more war crimes. Parenthetically, to "support" our mercenaries is not a categorical imperative. They chose to sign up at a time when the US military was busy criminally invading other nations on the flimsiest of false pretexts. They chose to "serve" at a time when the US military functions as a gangster mercenary force imposing the will of a corrupt government in Washington. They are not fighting for my freedom. The only "freedom" for which they fight is the "freedom" of the unaccaountable MIC to violently dominate the rest of the world. Why do they deserve my support?
Your proof for this? Because health physicists ... who are the experts in such matters ... say it isn't. In fact, I couldn't find one who says it does.
I'm so glad our *snorkle* fearless lyin leader has all under control.....when do we expect 'SURGE 2'? They could sure save a lot of time and money, not to mention scandals at army medical centers if they'd just dump the wounded off the litters and tell them to get up and get their gear and 'move on out'. Lots of airplane fuel saved, lots of medical hours saved.....I bet we could even send some walkers and crutches over there to save a little more turn around time. Hell, toss in a couple of sofas, a pool table or two, and they don't even need to leave the desert for a little R&R....set up Club Oasis.
But unlike us, they won't have ANY concern about collateral damage. People defending their homes and families tend to do that. When an Afghan blows up a Soviet tank with a US made landmine they are freedom fighters. When an Afghan blows up a US tank with a IED he's a "terrorist." Let me guess, in "Red Dawn" you rooted for the Russian Troops.
"The more I see of life, the less I fear death" - Me.
Oh, those on the War Crime missions - those soldiers? Considering the Geneva Conventions, is it okay for our soldiers to be attacked with these same weapons - including cluster-bombs? Well ......?
Give this a listen: Father grieves the death of his soldier-son from toxic DU poisoning
Check out my blog, America, the Bushieful.
Give this a read: *************** THe collective wisdom of the Health Physics Society: http://hps.org/documents/dufactsheet.pdf Are there any health effects associated with exposure to DU? DU behavior in the body is identical to that of natural uranium. Uranium and DU are considered internal hazards. Therefore, inhalation and/or ingestion of these materials should be minimized. In general, natural U and DU are considered chemical health hazards, rather than radiation hazards. The exception is the case where DU is inhaled in the form of tiny insoluble particles, which lodge in the lungs and remain there for very long times. DU is less of a radiation hazard than natural U because it is less radioactive than natural U. Direct (external) radiation from DU is very low and only of concern to workers who melt and cast U metal. DU used in commercial civilian applications does not present a significant health hazard because it is usually in solid form and not available for inhalation or ingestion. Military operations with DU, however, may contaminate soil, groundwater, and breathing air. When used as a weapon, small particles of DU may be produced. These particles have high density and most fall to the ground very close to where they are produced. Studies have been made of workers and other persons who have ingested or inhaled uranium. There is no known association between low-level DU exposure and adverse health effects, including birth defects. In large quantities, DU exposure can cause skin or lung irritation, but only soldiers in the immediate vicinity of an attack that involves DU are potentially exposed to these levels of contamination. People who live or work in areas affected by DU activities may inhale or consume contaminated air, food, or water. Soldiers with wounds containing fragments of DU shrapnel may develop effects at the wound sites. However, the risks to these sites decrease quickly once the DU is removed. Persons exposed to very large inhalation doses of uranium have shown minor, transitory kidney effects, which typically disappear within days to a few weeks after exposure. Persons inhaling insoluble particulates that lodge in the lung may be at elevated risk of developing lung cancer many years later, particularly if they are smokers. But lung cancer has yet to be demonstrated in uranium workers or others exposed acutely or chronically to uranium. A group of Gulf War veterans who have small DU fragments still in their bodies continue to be followed by government scientists to determine whether there will be long-term health effects. As of early 2005, only subtle but clinically insignificant changes in measures of kidney function have been observed. One common observation is a persistent elevation in the amount of uranium measured in the urine more than 10 years after exposure. This reflects the continued presence of DU in wound sites and its ongoing low-level mobilization and absorption to blood. In summary, some minor health problems have been observed following exposure to DU, but ONLY with high levels of exposure. Exposures to airborne DU or to contaminated soil following military use are not known to cause any observable health or reproductive effects. *************
DU links http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=04/04/05/1356248 Victory means exit strategy, and it’s important for the President to explain to us what the exit strategy is. ~George W. Bush What kind of wierd government front is HPS? They appear to be oblivious to radiation dangers generally. For example, their advice to pregnant mothers is to nuke their developing babies with x-rays. Nothing to worry about, according to HPS: I am not pregnant now, but will an x ray or radionuclide medical test cause my child to have birth defects in the future? There is no evidence that your child will be at a greater risk for birth defects from x rays or radionuclide medical tests. This conclusion is based on extensive studies of women exposed at Hiroshima and Nagasaki and women given x rays, radionuclide medical tests, and other radiation procedures. Unreal.
Check out my blog, America, the Bushieful.
Do you even know what a health physicist is, Arator? Here's a challenge. Try to find one that agrees with you and robin. Your efforts will be like trying to find a structural engineer or a demolition expert who agrees with the notion that explosives/DU/missiles/energybeams/nukes brought down the WTC towers.
**************** http://www.hps.org/publicinformation/ate/q1101.html Q: What is your opinion, as a professional health physicist, about the use of depleted uranium (DU) ammunition in war operations? A: Human health risks from exposure to DU can be broadly categorized in terms of radiological or chemical toxicity. Because of DU's low radioactivity or specific activity, a very high exposure is required to increase the radiological risk. For example, an acute inhalation of gram quantities of respirable DU aerosol would be needed. This would only be possible for soldiers present in armored vehicles struck by DU penetrators. Exposure of the general public to environmentally dispersed DU may pose a risk of chemical toxicity depending on the level of exposure, primarily from ingestion. At a recent experts' workshop on DU in the Balkans (Bad Honnef Germany; see the Health Physics Society's Newsletter, September 2001 for details), United Nations scientists studying the environmental behavior of DU showed that DU dissolving from penetrators embedded in soil did not migrate more than 20 cm from the source and that a very small fraction of the DU had dissolved. They did not find any DU contamination in milk, well water, houses, or vehicles in areas where DU munitions were used, nor was any DU measured in urine samples taken from soldiers who were deployed in regions where DU was used. Because evidence indicates that human exposures to DU will be very small, and that these levels will be small fractions of the public's routine exposure to natural uranium, predicted health effects appear to be inconceivable. Raymond A. Guilmette, PhD ****************
How about this document from our health conscious Canadian friends? ************ http://www.forces.gc.ca/health/information/med_vaccs/engraph/DU_Backgrounder_e.asp "... snip ... A souvenir hunter who picked up a piece of depleted uranium penetrator rod (the core of large DU munitions) and carried it in his pocket for a few days would receive a relatively high dose of short-range beta radiation to the skin adjacent to the souvenir. But it would not be enough to cause a burn - much less a significantly elevated risk of skin cancer" "In the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists the authors tried to estimate the possible external gamma-radiation levels on the battlefield by assuming that 100 tons of depleted uranium had been distributed uniformly over a one-kilometer-wide strip along 100 kilometers of the "Highway of Death" between Kuwait City and Basra, a city in southern Iraq. The average dose for someone who lived in the area for a year would be about one mrem - or about 10 percent of the dose from uranium and its decay products already naturally occurring in the soil. The dose rate immediately around a destroyed vehicle could be about 30 times higher. But even that figure would only add about 10 percent to the natural background radiation." "The authors of the article in the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists also note "For perspective, the driver of a tank equipped with DU munitions would get dose rates of up to 5 times natural background, corresponding to a doubling of the background dose if the driver spent 40 hours per week in the tank all year." Depending upon the nature of the impact, a significant fraction of a DU penetrator can burn, oxidizing into an inhalable aerosol. If we assume that 20 percent of the depleted uranium burns, a reasonable estimate based on army tests, the impact of a heavy DU penetrator might generate a kilogram of uranium oxide aerosol For soldiers outside struck vehicles, the aerosol inhaled in the minutes immediately after a vehicle struck by DU munitions would be greatly reduced by the fact that the kinetic energy was turned into heat by the impact. For a heavy penetrator, the released energy would be equivalent to the explosion of up to a kilogram of TNT, lifting the DU aerosol upward on a column of hot air. Because of this vertical dilution, the amount of depleted uranium inhaled by a person nearby would probably not exceed 0.1 milligrams. The dose to a person a mile away directly downwind would be about ten times less. The main cancer risk from inhaled depleted uranium would be from tiny insoluble particles lodged deep in the lungs. According to the inhalation-retention model constructed by the International Commission on Radiation Protection (ICRP), 15 percent of an insoluble inhaled uranium oxide aerosol could be retained in the lungs for more than a year. However, because of the low radioactivity of depleted uranium, the radiation dose would be quite low. For someone close to the battle who inhaled one milligram of depleted uranium - an unlikely scenario - the equivalent whole-body dose would be up to 0.1 rem. That is roughly half the annual dose from inhaled radon and its decay products in a typical single family home in the United States. The estimated added risk of cancer death for such a dose would be about one in 20,000. (To put things in perspective, we in the United States have a one-in five risk of dying of cancer)." Depleted uranium ammunition is shielded, which further reduces its radiological hazard. The Defence Radiological Protection Service in the UK has stated "The external radiation hazard would arise from personnel being in close proximity to DU and is concerned mainly with beta, gamma and x-ray radiation. The alpha radiation poses no external hazard to intact skin. AWE and DRPS have conducted measurements of external radiation levels inside tanks to establish the external radiation exposure. These demonstrate that personnel would need to be in a fully DU loaded tank for 1500 hours before they would reach the annual whole body dose limit (50 mSv). There is no significant external hazard to personnel working with and exposed to DU ammunition in armament depots or stores. Over 5000 hours of exposure to DU would be required before the current dose limit for exposure of the whole body (50 mSv) would be exceeded. The main external radiation hazard from DU is from contact with bare skin. The current dose limit to the skin will only be exceeded if the skin remains in contact continuously with DU for more than 250 hours per year. Naomi H. Harley is an authority on radiation physics. She earned her Ph.D. in radiological physics at the New York University where she is currently a research professor at the University's School of Medicine, Department of Environmental Medicine. She has authored or co-authored more than 100 peer-reviewed journal articles on radiation exposure, with emphasis on natural background radiation. She has written six chapters in books dealing with radiation or toxicology and holds three patents for radiation measurement devices. She is a council member on the National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements, an advisor to the United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation, and an editor of the journal Environment International. In commenting on reports of some doctors finding traces of depleted uranium in the urines of service members years after any possible exposure, Dr. Harley notes this would only be possible if the military members had depleted uranium fragments embedded in their bodies. She comments on the issue of some veterans being convinced that fragments could be inhaled particles lodged in their lungs by stating "It's hard to imagine that anybody could have inhaled enough material so that it could still be there eight or nine years later, enough so that you could see the amount being dissolved and then getting into the urine." Harley says she's heard people project that the use of depleted uranium will cause tens of thousands of new cancers in Gulf War veterans and Iraqi citizens, but says such projections frighten veterans unnecessarily because there is no scientific support for such claims. "There is no way you can get enough uranium into the body to cause even one cancer. You can't inhale it, you can't ingest it. You would choke to death before you could inhale that much material." *******************
Do you think we should start putting DU in our drinking water and in our toothpaste, boozer? It sounds like a tonic of sorts. Do you wash with DU water in Tel Aviv everyday?
The DU tends to travel around and will affect a lot of people in the end.
BAC is saying now that DU is harmless so I guess we don't have to worry about DU anymore.
Army Major Doug Rokke has been shot at, run off the road, threatened, harassed, black- balled, intimidated, called a liar and treated like a “hated enemy” not by opposition forces in Iraq, but by ‘secret ops’ in the U.S. government, obviously acting on orders from top military brass. And in May 2000 he was subjected to the biggest scare of his life when bullets rang through his son’s bedroom window while living in Jacksonville, Alabama, in what he calls “another near miss” by government hit men bound and determined to remove his presence from the planet. Maj. Rokke, living in Rantoul, Illinois, and still active in the Army Reserves, has been a government target ever since going public in a May 1997 article in the Nation Magazine, criticizing the military for failing to clean-up depleted uranium used in Iraq during the first Gulf War. Although Maj. Rokke’s accusations have been echoed by many others what makes his statements so electrifying – so damaging to the military - is that he was one of the Pentagon’s ‘top boys.’ In fact, he was not only one of the Pentagon’s elite, he was “the man” so to speak when it came to determining the causes and effects of depleted uranium (DU) used in the battle field. Being so well-respected by the Pentagon brass, Maj. Rokke was the military expert assigned as director of the 1994 U.S. Army Depleted Uranium Project in response to congressional inquiries and direct Department of Defense (DOD) orders. The study was commissioned after it was found the military lacked adequate preparation to deal with the adverse health and environmental effects regarding the use of DU in the battle field. This highly efficient ‘killing tool,’ which amounts to nothing less than a radioactive nuclear assault, has been extensively used in U.S. weaponry in the first Gulf War as well as the present Iraqi conflict, even though it is a direct violation of the Geneva Convention and United Nation regulations. In simple terms, Maj. Rokke was asked to evaluate the extent of DU used and asked to advise the military how to adequately comply with its own existing regulations of training, clean-up and medical care involving soldiers and civilians contaminated. In his final report, Maj. Rokke, however, didn’t beat around the bush or provide a technical escape for evading regulations. He simply laid it on the table plain and simple, saying if the military intended to keep using DU, it needed to address the above problems, as regulations mandated, or simply cease and desist from its use. And. in hindsight, it was probably the words “cease and desist” or Maj. Rokke’s simple ultimatum of “clean-up or don’t use” that initially ticked-off military brass, since behind the scenes the ‘big boys” never really intended to open up a can of worms caused by Maj. Rokke’s report. But when the implacable army officer went public about the extent of the DU problems in 1997, letting the cat out of the bag about the military’s outright refusal to comply with existing regulations, the ‘big boys’ put their boxing gloves on and are still trying to punch Maj. Rokke into submission today. “They have been after me ever since I went public,” said Maj. Rokke in a telephone conversation this week from his country home in the heartland of Illinois. “I’ve been shot at, run off the road several times, harassed, threatened and whatever else they could think of doing to discredit me for what I was doing. “They even shot bullets through my son’s bedroom window. These guys don’t play around and the first thing I was told when I went public was to keep my 45 loaded at all times.” Even though Maj. Rokke’s obviously right and the military wrong, the cold and hard truth is that the big brass tried to crucify him for simply telling the truth. The cold hard truth is that even though the military admits using DU, it never has admitted to the legal causal connection between its use and its adverse effects on human and environmental health. And critics contend that such outright contempt for its own regulations and the military’s failure to provide adequate medical care for those exposed to DU has left hundreds of thousands of military personnel and civilians sick or dying, including Maj. Rokke. “It’s really very simple,” added Maj. Rokke. “I was asked to report on what they needed to do about the DU problem. Our team of experts then reported and provided our recommendations, plain and simple. “But when I realized in 1997 we were being ignored and thousands of people, including myself, were sick and possibly slowly dying from DU exposure, I had to go public and blow the whistle.” And Maj. Rokke said his warnings as well as warnings from many other experts were not only dismissed by the military, but also by every other bigwig on Capital Hill, including President Clinton, Senator John Kerry and every other member of Congress, all very much aware of his position since he even addressed the 2000 Fall Congressional Coalition Leadership at its quarterly breakfast in Washington D.C. Adding that the DU problem is even worse today, Maj. Rokke pointed out the military continues to bombard the Iraq and Afghanistan with “increased levels’ of nuclear weaponry, leaving in its wake even higher levels of nuclear fallout then were present in Gulf War I. And like President Clinton, his predecessor, President Bush has failed to address or even recognize the problem, leaving behind ‘hot zones’ in the Middle East while, at the same time, failing to care for radiation illnesses in returning troops. “President Bush and Prime Minister Tony Blair must acknowledge and must accept responsibility for the willful use of illegal uranium munitions, their own ‘dirty bombs,’ resulting in adverse health and environmental effects,” wrote Maj. Rokke in recent open letter, criticizing the two major leaders of the Iraq occupation. And being crystal clear about his demands in compliance with existing military regulations, he added: “President Bush and Prime Minister Blair need to immediately order medical care for all DU casualties, order thorough environmental remediation, issue immediate orders for the cessation and retaliation against all of us who demand compliance with medical care and ban the further use of depleted radiation munitions. “They arrogantly refuse to comply with their own regulations, orders, and directives that require United States Department of Defense officials to provide prompt and effective medical care "all" exposed individuals [Medical Management of Unusual Depleted Uranium Casualties, DOD, Pentagon, 10/14/93, Medical Management of Army personnel Exposed to Depleted Uranium (DU) Headquarters. “U.S. Army Medical Command 29 April 2004), and section 2-5 of AR 70-48. They also refuse to clean up dispersed radioactive contamination as required by Army Regulation- AR 700-48: "Management of Equipment Contaminated With Depleted Uranium or Radioactive Commodities" (Headquarters, Department Of The Army, Washington, D.C., September 2002) and U.S. Army Technical Bulletin- TB 9-1300-278: "Guidelines For Safe Response To Handling, Storage, And Transportation Accidents Involving Army Tank Munitions Or Armor Which Contain Depleted Uranium" (Headquarters, Department Of The Army, Washington, D.C., JULY 1996). To further bolster Maj. Rokke’s accusations, all the following regulations are being violated, specifically section 2-4 of United States Army Regulation-AR 700-48 dated Sept.16, 2002, requiring: (1) "Military personnel "identify, segregate, isolate, secure, and label all RCE" (radiological contaminated equipment). (2) "Procedures to minimize the spread of radioactivity will be implemented as soon as possible." (3) "Radioactive material and waste will not be locally disposed of through burial, submersion, incineration, destruction in place, or abandonment" and; (4) "All equipment, to include captured or combat RCE, will be surveyed, packaged, retrograded, decontaminated and released IAW Technical Bulletin 9-1300-278, DA PAM 700-48.” With the military’s blatant violations placed in the public eye due to Mj. Rokke’s courage to buck the system, other experts and scientists quickly came to Maj. Rokke’s side, offering startling information and detailed statistics showing the seriousness of the DU problem and the government’s failure to take responsibility even though it obviously caused the problem. Radiation experts Leuren Moret and Marion Fulk, along with others like Dennis Kyne, Bob Jones and Mark Zeller, have provided documentation for an explosive video just released, written and produced by Joyce Riley and William Lewis, called “Beyond Treason,” providing an in depth look at DU used in the Gulf Wars and its likelihood of causing numerous civilian and military illnesses. “It has been determined that the equivalent of more than 400,000 Nagasaki bombs has been released in the middle east since 1991,” said Moret, citing a report and subsequent speech at a 2000 depleted uranium conference given by Professor Yagasaki, a physicist and well-respected nuclear radiation expert. Moret, who has spent a life time working in the nuclear field, first as a staff scientist at the Livermore Nuclear Weapons Laboratory in California, is now a member of The Radiation and Public Health Project (RPHP), a privately funded group studying the devastating effects of depleted uranium especially in Iraq and Afghanistan. And the writers of Beyond Treason added more ammunition to Rokke’s accusations regarding the government’s failure to recognize the DU problem 15 years after it was first exposed: “The ailing Gulf War heroes from all 27 coalition countries slowly die from of “unknown causes,” they wait for answers from their respective governments, but no satisfying or even credible answers have come forth from the military establishment. Records that span over a decade point to negligence and even culpability on the part of the U.S. Department of Defense and their ‘disposable army” mentality. “The VA has determined that 250,000 troops are now permanently disabled, 15,000 troops are dead and over 425,000 are ill and slowly dying from what the Department of Defense still calls a mystery disease. How many more will have to die before action is taken?” Although Maj. Rokke has been fighting to save the lives of thousands of afflicted veterans, he is also trying to save his own life as he was originally exposed to DU in 1990 and 1991 while deployed in Iraq and looking into the hazards of DU. “First, I remember experiencing breathing problems, then a rash and then bleeding sores that never go away,” said Rokke, 56, adding DU exposure is slowly, day by day, turning him into an invalid. “The sad thing is that only several hundred military personnel have even been tested for DU exposure since the beginning when there are literally hundreds of thousands afflicted. “In fact, it took the military more than two years to even tell me that I was ‘hot,’ withholding my urine tests and hiding the truth. One of the reasons I went public is because so many soldiers are dying from the same symptoms I have and the military simply still refuses to take medical responsibility and care for them.” Recently, to keep the DU issue alive, Maj. Rokke published an article in the Nov. 27, 2004 edition of the popular Vanity Fair magazine, where he updated his concerns with new information about Gulf War II. After the article appeared, he said the Pentagon and others in military circles immediately unleashed another attack on his character, accusing him of lying and even saying he never headed up the Pentagon’s DU program in the first place. “I guess if I played their game, I would sitting somewhere with a cushy $100,000 a year job,” said Mj. Rokke. “But I decided to do what’s right no matter what the consequences. But, don’t get me wrong, I’m not a peace-nick. I am a military officer and a warrior. I would not hesitate to use nuclear weapons only, however, if it was a last. But I also feel the military should live up to its responsibilities and follow regulations, which is not the case now and why I am speaking out.” DU links http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=04/04/05/1356248 Victory means exit strategy, and it’s important for the President to explain to us what the exit strategy is. ~George W. Bush No Diana, that is not what I said. I posted what HEALTH PHYSICISTS believe. They are the experts in such matters. Just like structural engineers are the experts in building collapses. If you choose to ignore their experience, education and wisdom, it is no skin off my back. But I sure wish you wouldn't post falsehoods like the above to folks (like robin) who have bozo'd themselves from my side of the conversation because then they will be further misinformed.
"The Doctor, the Depleted Uranium and the Dying Children" Doctor's Gulf War Studies Link Cancer to Depleted Uranium Dr. Durakovic said that, unlike many other institutions involved in testing for uranium, he uses mass spectometry tests that measure the relative abundance of each isotope in the body. He said he found depleted uranium, including uranium 236, in 62 percent of the sick gulf war veterans he examined. He believes that particles lodged in their bodies and may be a cause of their illnesses. Victory means exit strategy, and it’s important for the President to explain to us what the exit strategy is. ~George W. Bush This is a good example of how misinformed robin is, Diana. She posts something quoting Doug Rokke as if he is an expert on DU. Let's examine that claim and some other claims others (and Rokke himself) have made about Rokke. For example, this source, http://apfn.net/apfn/DU.htm , says Doug Rokke was the former Army Officer in charge of the Pentagon's Depleted Uranium Project ... indeed, it claims he was the Director of that project. It claims he has a PhD in health physics and was originally trained as a forensic scientist. It claims he's a former professor of environmental science at Jacksonville University. It claims he's a Vietnam Veteran. It claims he has a doctorate in technology from the University of Illinois. It claims he was an Army Lieutenant in charge of clean up and disposal of Iraqi and American tanks. It claims he was a US army colonel who was tasked with the post-first Gulf war depleted uranium clean-up. It claims he was an "Army health physicist". It claims that of the 100 people on Rokke's decontamination team, 30 have already "dropped dead." Now the question ... is any of that true? The answer? Very, very little. First, Doug Rokke is NOT a "health physicist". He LIED about that. Rokke has a Ph.D. in "Physics and Technology Education". His PhD is in EDUCATION. He's not a member of any physics organizations or societies. He is, in fact, a member of the National Association of Industrial Technical Teacher Educators, the "Council of Technology Teacher Educators" as well as a member of the "American Vocational Association, Technology Education Division". Plus he did presentations at various Technology Education symposiums. And not one Physics symposium or physics organization or physics paper is mentioned in that rather lengthy resume at Traprock (http://web.archive.org/web/20030210052102/traprockpeace.org/RokkeVitae.html). He was an assistant professor of environmental science at Jacksonville State University and he never gained tenure. As to the claim about him being trained as a forensic scientist, his resume might suggest he was also trained as a process engineer ... because he made some fasteners at one point in his life. Here are some more sources that question Rokke's claims and expertise: ************** http://www.ntanet.net/traprock.html 30 Dead or Zero Dead? Military Spokesman Contradicts Fatalities Claim by Doug Rokke I recently received an email (indirectly) from a military source having the following email address: (special.assistant@deploymenthealth.osd.mil) The gist of the email is that Doug Rokke's claims about the health effects in members of his gulf war clean up team are not accurate. I decided to see what I could find on the Internet about those claims before posting this government response. The most common claim, attributed to Doug Rokke, is that 30 members of his "100 member team" have died, with the implication being that the death was from depleted uranium. Here is a typical quote where the information seems to come from Doug Rokke. This article is by Larry Johnson in the Seattle Post - Intelligencer but it is certainly not the only one as there appear to be dozens of similar texts on the Internet: "Rokke and his primary team of about 100 performed their cleanup task without any specialized training or protective gear. Today, Rokke said, at least 30 members of the team are dead, and most of the others -- including Rokke -- have serious health problems". ... snip ... ......................................................... The following information from the military "Special Assistant on Deployment Health" paints a quite different picture. Unless Rokke can come up with the names of most of the 30 who he alleges have died, I will have to believe the government information, rather than Rokke's claim. Rokke seems to have exaggerated both his role and the number of people who have died since the cleanup. Here is the email from the official government source: End of quote. My comments: It seems that as of 1998, not a single member of the team had died of exposure to uranium, contrary to Rokke's claim. Before posting the above text, I contacted Doug Rokke and asked him to comment on this material. He refused to say anything in support of his earlier claim that 30 people had died from his organization and instead showed an intense desire to change the subject. ***************** http://www.ntanet.net/traprock.html Comments by Dr. Otto Raabe, Health Physicist, in regard to Doug Rokke The following text was published on the Radsafe list. It is from Dr. Otto Raabe, former President of the Health Physics Society. Dr. Raabe has far more education and experience in Health Physics than Doug Rokke. November 26, 2002 Davis, CA Last night I went to hear Doug Rokke's performance at the Davis Community Church concerning the "poisoning of whole nations by the use of DU munitions by the U.S. military". In his talk Rokke made numerous technical errors concerning uranium toxicology and health physics including saying that a beta dose to the skin of 300 mrem exceeded the standard for whole body exposure. I strongly objected to his misrepresentation of the DU toxicology facts during the comment period. I think my objections fell on closed minds, however, since this was a cultist group of "peace activists" who think disarmament of our nation will lead to peace. Rokke's stated purpose is to get the U.S. to stop using some of our best field weapons that employ DU projectiles. Rokke's performance was clever and polished. I think he has had professional drama coaching. Not since Helen Caldicott have I heard such masterful manipulation of the audience. He credited himself at every turn with being highly principled while always casting the U.S. military as nefarious and cold-blooded. He claimed he was fired by the government because of his dedication to health and safety. Much of his talk involved references to toxic chemicals released by our military action in the Gulf War, contaminated food provided by the Saudis, and claimed poisoning of people by DU dust. He said he was a "health physicist" (BAC - which proves Rokke is the ultimate source of the lies identified in this post) and implied that he had a Ph.D. in physics by reference to being in his "physics lab" while working on his doctorate. Actually, his doctorate is in "Education Methodology", which I got him to admit during the questioning. He is certainly not a qualified health physicist. According to reliable sources, he is currently a substitute teacher in a middle school in Urbana, Illinois, and a director of a children's camp in the summers (BAC - this pro-Rokke source, http://www.mindfully.org/Nucs/2003/Rokke-Depleted-Uranium-DU21apr03.htm, confirms that). Rokke said that in the Gulf War he was the "Director of the Army Depleted Uranium Project," and that virtually everyone who worked on the project was sick from exposure to DU. The diseases and ailments that he claimed for DU conflict with 50 years of research on DU toxicology and with the findings of the Department Defence who are carefully evaluating military personnel who were exposed to high levels of airborne DU aerosols. See http://www.gulflink.osd.mil/du_ii Unfortunately, the audience of about 100 people were enthralled with Rokke and angry with me for objecting to his erroneous statements and misrepresentation, but I think it was important to cast some doubt on this charlatans's proclamations. Otto Prof. Otto G. Raabe, Ph.D. CHP ***************** From this Australian government document: House:Legislative Council Statement Date Wednesday, 13 August 2003 ... snip Lancelin Defence Training Area HON FRANK HOUGH (Agricultural) [5.39 pm]: In early July I was made aware of a brochure that was being circulated in Lancelin by the Greens (WA), which was titled “Depleted Uranium: The Silent Killer”. I listened to the Liam Bartlett show on the radio and heard people say that their property values had halved because the Americans were using bombs with uranium tips in Lancelin, which would contaminate the water. I obtained a copy of the brochure issued by Hon Dee Margetts. It states that Dr Doug Rokke, a United States expert on depleted uranium, visited Lancelin on 6 July 2003. It also states, in part - "Dr Rokke was a major in the US Army and former head of the Pentagon’s Depleted Uranium Project, responsible for training US personnel in preparation for Gulf War I in terms of their exposure to environmental hazards including radiation. Dr Rokke holds a PhD in Philosophy and a Master of Science." I was rather annoyed when I read that. It was obviously based on information the member received and not from either Senator Robert Hill or the United States Consul General in Perth, Oscar De Soto. I took the time to write to Oscar De Soto and Senator Robert Hill. My letter to the Consul General states, in part - "I am writing to seek the Consulates assurance that the United States of America has not used and will not use Depleted Uranium (DU) munitions at the Lancelin Defence Training Area (LTDA) in Western Australia." I received a reply from the Consul General this morning. It states - QUOTE: "Thank you for your letter dated July 17 regarding Depleted Uranium . . . Firstly, let me make clear that the United States, as a matter of policy and practicality, does not use DU munitions at the Australian Lancelin Defence Forces range. DU munitions are seldom used in training anywhere because they are too costly to expend for training. Furthermore, the U.S. military uses the Lancelin Range only infrequently, and only by invitation of the Australian Government. When U.S. forces use the range, it is always jointly with Australia and in compliance with all Australian laws and environmental rules. The U.S. military utilizes Australian environmentalist planners on each and every use. Secondly, Dr. Doug Rokke has made exaggerated and untrue claims during his visit to Australia. Dr. Rokke has exaggerated his background. He is not, and has never been “the foremost U.S. military expert on DU,” as he was described in the June 18th Canberra Times. He is not a medical doctor. His Ph.D is in education. He earned a Ph.D in Science/Technology Education from the University of Illinois, Urbana in 1992." If he was finishing his PhD in 1992 he was certainly not, as Hon Dee Margetts claims, running the Gulf War as a major in 1991. He was still at university. The letter continues - QUOTE: "Dr. Rokke did not join the U.S. as a medical officer in 1967, as reported in the Canberra Times. He joined as an airman, an avionics technician. According to the Department of Defense, Dr. Rokke was not “in charge of cleaning up radioactive waste” after the 1991 Gulf War, as was described in a June 18th ABC broadcast. As a First Lieutenant, Dr. Rokke was assigned to the 12th Preventative Medical Detachment of the 330th Medical Brigade prior to and during the war. There were 66 people assigned to the unit; he was the most junior of 14 officers." He was one level from being a gopher! He was a junior lieutenant. That is a long way from being a major. They have different pips. He may not have been able to distinguish them! The letter continues - QUOTE: "Initially, he was responsible for conducting nuclear, biological and chemical training." Hon Peter Foss: He sounds like a fraud. Hon FRANK HOUGH: He does. Others sell snake oil. They get carried away. What is worse is that they get mixed up with the Greens (WA) and try to pull the wool over our eyes. I know I could go to America and become Surgeon General and an honorary brigadier and take people for a ride. The people in Lancelin should not be subject to charlatans who tell them their water is full of depleted uranium. The letter from the Consul General concludes - QUOTE: "In closing, let me reiterate that the U.S. military does not use DU munitions in Lancelin. I urge you to share this information with your constituents and other Members of Parliament. . . . Yours sincerely, Oscar De Soto, Consul General of the United States of America" I spoke to the consulate office this morning and I was guaranteed the information is very accurate. The consulate probably has a system linked with the Central Intelligence Agency to pull the records. The details of the letter were not made up overnight. The Consul General took three and a half weeks to research the situation. He was quite clear in determining the facts. Another part of the letter states - QUOTE: "While Dr. Rokke presents himself as an expert, this does not make it so. His role in the 1991 Gulf War, at the US Army Chemical School, and his educational background do not qualify him as an expert on the purported health effects of depleted uranium. . . . It is important to make a clear-cut distinction between Dr. Rokke’s technical qualifications and those of certified medical health physicists who are qualified to assess the medical implications of radiation exposures." The member should apologise to the people of Lancelin. She has been badly misinformed and badly misinformed them. She should write to the Consul General and apologise sincerely for having a go at the US Navy. We have enough problems with trying to establish relationships with other countries without having to deal with this type of rubbish. If she is not prepared to do that, she should enjoy life as something other than a parliamentarian. She is abdicating her responsibilities by putting out this type of rubbish and putting fear in the hearts of people who live in the broader community. This is one of the ploys that people work through. Another part of the letter states - QUOTE: "Regarding allegations in the pamphlet that the U.S. Navy plans to establish a permanent base at Cockburn Sound in Western Australia as part of the Sea Swap program, I can confirm the United States has no plans to establish a base in Western Australia or anywhere else in Australia. The Australian Marine Complex at Cockburn Sound is a Western Australian public-private commercial project. If the U.S. Navy uses the Complex for maintenance, it will be on the same terms as any other customer. That Dr. Rokke’s baseless claims regarding DU are associated with the U.S. Navy’s activities in Western Australia appear aimed at provoking anxiety and perpetuating disinformation in the community." I am extremely annoyed. I think I have contained myself very well. I have been rather humble and subtle in this because this type of rubbish has got to cease. People must not go to the broader community rumour mongering and making up stories for the betterment of their own. I often see the fairy-floss dancers on the sand hills at Lancelin at night dropping petals. I have people ringing me saying their house at Lancelin has halved in value. These are the people they appeal to. I hope my house at Lancelin has not halved in value, because I know who I will be chasing for the other half of the value. I believe the member might be getting a pay rise! **************** http://www.vanderbilt.edu/radsafe/0311/msg00401.html Dear Editor: I thought that you might want to correct some errors and false implications in your article, "Nuclear physicist to give presentation on weapons at Franklin College." Doug Rokke is a retired U.S. Army Reserve major. He did not retire from the Regular Army. He is not old enough to collect his Army Reserve retirement pay. He is not a nuclear physicist and he is not a health physicist. He is occasionally employed as a substitute teacher. It appears his primary function is to travel around the world getting paid for speaking against depleted uranium. He was not a director of the U.S. Army depleted-uranium project. No such project with that name ever existed. In addition, he was not a director of anything else as far as I know. He is a Gulf War veteran, not a Gulf War combat veteran. He was never involved in combat. As background information, I am a nuclear physicist and a health physicist, have been a director, am retired from the Regular Army, and was in combat in Vietnam. I do not consider Rokke my peer in any of those areas. I realize that you were passing on information given to you to publicize the event. Hopefully, my corrections will indicate that the speaker has an agenda that tends to ignore the facts. Robert Cherry, Ph.D Certified Health Physicist Colonel, U.S. Army (retired) *************** Let's investigate Rokke's PhD thesis: ************** http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/ejournals/JTE/supplements/FosterBibliography.html A Partial Bibliography of Recent Graduate Research in Technology Education and Related Fields ... snip ... This bibliography is a compilation of recent masters theses and doctoral dissertations completed in Technology Education, and related fields such as Industrial Arts, Industrial Technology, Industrial Vocational Education, and Trade & Industrial Education at institutions listed in the NAITTE/CTTE Directory. The initial bibliography was compiled for a research project (See Foster, 1992) funded by the Graduate Studies Committee of the Council on Technology Teacher Education (CTTE) from 1990 to 1992. ... snip ... Rokke, D. L. (1992). "Perceived physics concepts needed to teach secondary technology education as general education." Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. (BAC - health physics? No.) ******************** And what about that military career? In addition to his *illustrious* Army career, Rokke's Traprock resume lists him as being in the Air Force from 1967 to 1973, claims to have been on B52's. His Taprock resume listed "McClennan Air Force Base, California, Restoration Advisory Board. And the site for that says "Born in Illinois 1949, professor Doug Rokke joined the US Air Force in 1967, took part in the Vietnam War from 1969 to 1971 as a B52 pilot." Of course it also says he "obtained his PhD in nuclear physics." But that perhaps is only what Rokke told them. But he clearly is a man of some accomplishment. (sarcasm) Now let's look at some more of what Dr. Rokke himself says about his time in Iraq ... ************ From http://www.mindfully.org/Nucs/2003/Rokke-Depleted-Uranium-DU21apr03.htm "What we did in December of 1990 [was that] we made a conscious decision at the command headquarters to deliberately and willfully blow up chemical stockpiles, along with the biological stockpiles, along with the nuclear reactors that Iraq possessed. We knew where they were. We knew what he had." Now I wonder what the impact of all those chemicals and biologicals was on the Iraqi populace and our troops? Funny thing ... the good Doctor doesn't say. But it can't have been nil. Right? Yet he seems to want to blame all illnesses and deformaties on DU. Does that make ANY sense? "Well, we blew up the reactors" Gee. Again, I wonder what the impact of that was on the populace and our troops ... as opposed to DU whose affects has been repeated examined by lots of responsible organizations (including REAL health physicists) and found to be relatively benign? "Any time you move a city or an army, or you blow up and infrastructure, you release toxic industrial chemicals from everything that you can think of in a city, a community and in an industry. Unbelievable releases. People are sick all over the place." Again ... something other than DU in the Iraqi environment ... on top of what Saddam himself had released during the decades he processed, tested, produced, maintained and finally disposed of WMD in all its vile forms. Yet you folks seem to think most Iraqi health problems and most of our soldier's health problems are due to American DU. Don't be ridiculous. That's not scientific at all. That's just anti-American hysteria. "PESTICIDES" Those the Iraqi's had ... as the Doctor alluded to ... were not under "EPA guidelines, under CFR 40*". As he said "We have NO idea what we sprayed on everybody" and the Iraqis had been spraying that stuff on their land and dumping it into their water FOR DECADES. But its ALL due to DU. Right? No, that's just plain illogical. "OIL WELL FIRES Unbelievable complex organic, inorganic, particulates, and heavy-metal exposures. ... snip ... The people were so sick right off the bat that at the command headquarters, we issued a medical directive that nobody should be anywhere near the oil fires without full respiratory and skin protection." And guess who started those fires? S. A. D. D. A. M. Yet Rokke wants to blame us and our DU for any illness. Now how K**KY can one be? "During Gulf War I, we fired approximately 380 tons of solid uranium." Do you want to guess how many tons of radioactive waste the Iraqi's produced and disposed of without any real concern for their populace over 30 years? How many tons of WMD related chemicals and banned pesticides they just DUMPED in the earth or water ... or pumped into the air? How many tons of biological agents they just released into the environment? And our troops were exposed to that. And so were the Iraqi populace. Yet Rokke want to claim most medical problems are due to DU. One can only laugh at such K**KINESS. Do you know there are Gulf War soldiers who were struck by friendly fire and still have DU particles in their bodies and who have no observable effects on their health? How can that be for something as toxic as you folks want us to believe? Do you know that without DU many American soldiers lives would have been lost in combat? DU was a factor in our military forces totally dominating the battlefield in Iraq. It appears you want to exchange more military casualties for raw hysteria about the POSSIBLE long term affects of DU. Without the science to back up that hysteria. Do you know that Dr Rokke is in essense claiming that thousands of people who are devoting their lives to protecting our soldiers’ health are acting irresponsibly. This isn't far from the K**KY claims that thousands of structural engineers and other professionals are ignoring the bombs in the WTC towers ... another conspiracy theory promulgated by many of same folks chanting about DU. ************** Finally, note what other kookiness Rokke promotes. http://www.rense.com/general67/radfdf.htm "Regarding the missile theory, it is also backed up by retired Army Maj. Doug Rokke, a PhD educational physics and former top military expert banished from the Pentagon after the military failed to follow regulations regarding the use, clean up and medical treatment regarding the use of depleted uranium. “When you look at the whole thing, especially the crash site void of airplane parts, the size of the hole left in the building and the fact the projectile's impact penetrated numerous concrete walls, it looks like the work of a missile,” said Maj. Rokke from his Rantoul, IL home this week. “And when you look at the damage, it was obviously a missile. Also, if you look at the WTC and the disturbing flash hitting the tower right before the impact of the airplane, it also looks like a missile was used.” So this DU *expert* is also an *expert* in structural engineering, impact, steel, concrete, and video image interpretation. Simply amazing. Maybe you can do robin a favor, Diana. Post the above information to robin so she's no longer in the dark about Doug Rokke.
Comments (41 - 96) not displayed.
Top • Page Up • Full Thread • Page Down • Bottom/LatestSectarian fighting between Shiite and Sunni Muslims has plagued the Iraqi government's attempts at reconstruction for more than 14 months.
#2. To: Brian S (#0)
Three of the deaths were not combat-related,
#3. To: Burkeman1 (#1)
#4. To: leveller (#2)
(About the quote: Speaking on the war in Kosovo.)
#5. To: leveller (#3)
(About the quote: Speaking on the war in Kosovo.)
#6. To: All, BeAChooser (#3)
#7. To: robin (#5)
ROFLOL!
#8. To: leveller (#3)
BAC was busy defending the use of white phosphorus and DU
(About the quote: Speaking on the war in Kosovo.)
#9. To: robin (#8)
BAC was busy defending the use of white phosphorus and DU
#10. To: leveller (#9)
(About the quote: Speaking on the war in Kosovo.)
#11. To: robin, leveller, ALL (#8)
leveller - BAC was busy defending the use of white phosphorus and DU
Has he really tried to defend this?
#12. To: leveller, robin, ALL (#9)
BAC was busy defending the use of white phosphorus and DU
I'm sure I've seen him deny their use,
#13. To: robin, leveller, ALL (#10)
okay, that is almost as bad
#14. To: BeAChooser (#12)
mis-remembering
#15. To: BeAChooser (#11)
(Edited)
... when its use will save the life of our soldiers.
#16. To: tom007, ALL (#15)
That means you accept it's use on our soldiers if it's use will save the lives of the enemy.
#17. To: BeAChooser, Robin (#11)
#18. To: leveller, ALL (#17)
".. when its use will save the life of our soldiers."
It was worse than I had remembered!
#19. To: leveller (#17)
... when its use will save the life of our soldiers.
(About the quote: Speaking on the war in Kosovo.)
#20. To: robin (#19)
White phosphorus has underlined our new reputation as war criminals, so Israel isn't the only war criminals anymore.
#21. To: robin, BeAChooser (#19)
BeAChooser: ... when its use will save the life of our soldiers.
#22. To: BeAChooser (#18)
You are soooo supportive of America's soldiers.
#23. To: robin, ALL (#19)
DU is killing our soldiers.
#24. To: Brian S (#0)
#25. To: BeAChooser (#16)
I assure you, Tom, that our enemies will use it on our soldiers if they believe it advantageous and have the ability.
#26. To: beachooser, Christine, Brian S, Honway, Robin, Aristeides, Red Jones, Diana, Kamala, All (#11)
... when its use will save the life of our soldiers.
#27. To: BeAChooser (#23)
Your proof for this?
#28. To: Arator, ALL (#27)
Give this a listen:
#29. To: All (#26)
(About the quote: Speaking on the war in Kosovo.)
#30. To: BeAChooser (#28)
#31. To: Arator, robin, ALL (#30)
What kind of wierd government front is HPS
#32. To: Arator, robin, ALL (#30)
#33. To: Arator, robin, ALL (#30)
#34. To: BeAChooser (#33)
#35. To: BeAChooser (#18)
#36. To: SKYDRIFTER, BeAChooser, robin (#26)
#37. To: All (#34)
(Edited)
After Maj. Doug Rokke went public in 1997 exposing the military's flawed DU program, his life has been threatened but he still continues to search for solutions in order to save the lives of those afflicted.
(About the quote: Speaking on the war in Kosovo.)
#38. To: Diana, robin, ALL (#36)
BAC is saying now that DU is harmless
#39. To: All (#37)
(About the quote: Speaking on the war in Kosovo.)
#40. To: Diana, robin, ALL (#37)
We can offer some accurate information to correct the record. Rokke is a private citizen and does not represent the Department of Defense. Following the ground war, Rokke was attached for duty to assist technical experts in the recovery and decontamination of radioactive material and equipment. The team of approximately 10 people was led, not by Rokke, but by a civilian from the Army Munitions and Chemical Command (AMCCOM). Rokke's primary role was to facilitate the recovery operations by ensuring the team had the proper support. Over the past years, Doug Rokke has reported varying numbers of ill or dead members of "his team." These claims have been researched and are unsubstantiated.
In 1998, our office compiled a list of 29 names of people Rokke reported to be on "his team." Staff members were able to interview 22 of them. Approximately 15 of the 29 people Doug Rokke had identified as being on "his team" actually worked on DU-contaminated vehicles. Two of the 29 had died, however, in interviews with the others, neither of these two veterans was named as having worked with depleted uranium. While we respect Rokke's right to express his opinions, the fact that he presents himself as an expert, does not make it so. His role in the Gulf War and at the Chemical School, as well as the specifics of his educational background, do not qualify him as a depleted uranium expert. These areas fall well outside of his area of expertise and responsibility.
Center for Health and the Environment
University of California, Davis, CA 95616
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