Iraq's Silent Killer

[Nbadan]

Mushrooming depleted uranium (DU) scandal blamed
by Bob Nichols
Project Censored Award Winner


"Preventive Psychiatry E-Newsletter charged Monday that the reason Veterans Affairs Secretary Anthony Principi stepped down earlier this month was the growing scandal surrounding the use of uranium munitions in the Iraq War.

Writing in Preventive Psychiatry E-Newsletter No. 169, Arthur N. Bernklau, executive director of Veterans for Constitutional Law in New York, stated, “The real reason for Mr. Principi’s departure was really never given, however a special report published by eminent scientist Leuren Moret naming depleted uranium as the definitive cause of the ‘Gulf War Syndrome’ has fed a growing scandal about the continued use of uranium munitions by the US Military.”"

~snip~

"He added, “Out of the 580,400 soldiers who served in GW1 (the first Gulf War), of them, 11,000 are now dead! By the year 2000, there were 325,000 on Permanent Medical Disability. This astounding number of ‘Disabled Vets’ means that a decade later, 56% of those soldiers who served have some form of permanent medical problems!”"

SF Bay View (http://www.sfbayview.com/012605/headsroll012605.shtml)

How was the truth about Depleted Uranium hidden from military personnel serving in successive wars? Before his tragic death, Sen. Paul Wellstone informed Joyce Riley, R.N., B.S.N., executive director of the American Gulf War Veterans Association, that 95 percent of Gulf War veterans had been recycled out of the military by 1995. Any of those continuing in military service were isolated from each other, preventing critical information being transferred to new troops. The "next Depleted Uranium war" had already been planned, and those planning it wanted "no skunk at the garden party."

[Sec24Row7]

ROFL.... 584,000 Soldiers served in a war 15 years ago and now 11,000 or 1.8% of them are dead.

Umm, sorry but that doesn't sound anywhere close to being a problem to me.

That just looks like normal Mortality rate.

[Clandestino]

DAN, you're the worlds biggest idiot.. will you ever get tired of people calling you that???

[exstatic]

By the year 2000, there were 325,000 on Permanent Medical Disability.
You forgot something.

[Clandestino]

You forgot something.

i find that hard to believe. especially the bullshit part of, "95 percent of Gulf War veterans had been recycled out of the military by 1995. Any of those continuing in military service were isolated from each other, preventing critical information being transferred to new troops."

sounds some fucking dumb science fiction movie...

[exstatic]

i find that hard to believe.

So, of course that makes it so. At least Dan cites some web source, not the ADRS.

[MannyIsGod]

There has been quite a bit of contreversy surrounding depleted uranium recently. I don't know the specifics, but I'm now interested enough to look into it.

However, it was my understanding that GWS wasn't even known to be an actual condition?

[Clandestino]

So, of course that makes it so. At least Dan cites some web source, not the ADRS.

most sources dan cites are bullshit...and you know that... just because something is on the internet doesn't mean it is true...

[Clandestino]

There has been quite a bit of contreversy surrounding depleted uranium recently. I don't know the specifics, but I'm now interested enough to look into it.

However, it was my understanding that GWS wasn't even known to be an actual condition?

i think they finally said there is a GWS a few years ago, but they haven't found one single factor that causes... i think one of the main reasons is saddams wmds being blown up and being carried by the winds...

who knows... many were affected by the war..but also many weren't.

i find the "remaing service members were separated" claim to be bullshit though....

[xrayzebra]

There has been quite a bit of contreversy surrounding depleted uranium recently. I don't know the specifics, but I'm now interested enough to look into it.

However, it was my understanding that GWS wasn't even known to be an actual condition?

Oh-My, I am now shaking in my boots. Manny is going to look into it.
I am also just waiting on his decision if it is true.
:smokin :drunk

[MannyIsGod]

Oh-My, I am now shaking in my boots. Manny is going to look into it.
I am also just waiting on his decision if it is true.
:smokin :drunk

I think that boot shaking is due to your parkinson's disease there buddy.

"I am also just waiting on his decision if it is true"

Heh, translation?

But, the point stands that before I say anything about it I like to be informed. Too bad that isn't a standard.

[exstatic]

So, what are YOUR sources, Klandestino, other than "I don't think so."? Bring your game and debunk his stand, or STFU. Half of your conservative brethren cite fucking blogs here like they're the bible.

[Clandestino]

So, what are YOUR sources, Klandestino, other than "I don't think so."? Bring your game and debunk his stand, or STFU. Half of your conservative brethren cite fucking blogs here like they're the bible.

were you ever in the fucking military? i doubt it... because many of the jobs are smaller than you think and many people know each other... so, soo, sooo many times when i met someone new, we had many mutual friends... it is highly unlikely that the military could separate everyone... that is pure sci-fi...

[exstatic]

Yes, I was, for 14 years. Dan didn't say they separated everyone, the late Senator Wellstone said that they turned over 95% of Gulf War Veterans, people who actually went there, or did you even look hard enough to see that?

[Guru of Nothing]

At least Dan cites some web source

Just to keep things fair, The Onion is one of the more credible web sources Dan has quoted.

[exstatic]

Yes, but Dan, at least, isn't all about "I think" or "I don't think" like some...

[Guru of Nothing]

Yes, but Dan, at least, isn't all about "I think" or "I don't think" like some...

Actually, I have this post-conceived notion that Dan is mostly about misinformation, which I find far more detestable than the canned attitudes you detest.

When called upon to speak freely, Dan's mind shrinks like a George Costanza penis dipped in the January coastal waters of Kennebunkport.

[MannyIsGod]

:lmao @ shrinkage. nice.

[Nbadan]

When called upon to speak freely, Dan's mind shrinks like a George Costanza penis dipped in the January coastal waters of Kennebunkport.

:rolleyes

Well, at least GON gave us a unique opinion for once. OK, so technically, he still plagerized the hell out of Seinfeld, but for him it's a start.

[Nbadan]

Just to keep things fair, The Onion is one of the more credible web sources Dan has quoted.

The Onion post (which was clearly a joke) really got to ya, huh GON. Expect more.

:lol

[Clandestino]

Yes, I was, for 14 years. Dan didn't say they separated everyone, the late Senator Wellstone said that they turned over 95% of Gulf War Veterans, people who actually went there, or did you even look hard enough to see that?

no, i read that... and i know what a gulf war vet means you dumbass... but i still find it HIGHLY unlikely that the military could do this easily. besides, they can't keep former members of units from calling each other.

my best friends now are former army buddies and we alll live in different states. we still find time to make phone calls, send e-mails, etc... a little separation doesn't stop people from talking. also, if any of us had some sort of syndrome, we'd be damn sure to be calling the other members of our previous units and seeing if they were afflicted to..

it is suprising you would even attempt to stand up for dan's bullshit sources... you must be one of those that believes everything you read on the internet...

[Useruser666]

Depleted Uranium is safe enough to eat. There are many other factors to consider when talking about disabilities in war vets. The stats that were given do not differentiate between mental dissabilities and physical ones. I would like a clarification on that.

[1369]

It's not like the use of DU in live rounds was all that common, so I don't see how it could have had that wide spread of an effect. As far as I know (from my limited experience), the only weapons that use DU are in the munitions that are fired from the A-10 and possibly in some of the tank rounds.

[MannyIsGod]

It's not like the use of DU in live rounds was all that common, so I don't see how it could have had that wide spread of an effect. As far as I know (from my limited experience), the only weapons that use DU are in the munitions that are fired from the A-10 and possibly in some of the tank rounds.


Ehhh, I think you're wrong there. It's my understanding that any Armor penetrating weapons are now DU. They used to use Tungsten but DU is cheaper and better from my understanding. I could be wrong.

[MannyIsGod]

Depleted Uranium is safe enough to eat. There are many other factors to consider when talking about disabilities in war vets. The stats that were given do not differentiate between mental dissabilities and physical ones. I would like a clarification on that.


DU is probably safe to handle, but the moment it gets in your body it's pretty bad. This comes in the form of dust and residue left over after a shell explodes or shrapnel from shells coming into the body.

The US military has admitted that it didn't train the troop property on post DU use safe guards.

I don't think DU has caused GWS (the pollution from the oil fires still would rank much higher on my list) but I think it's anything but safe enough to eat.

I can see why they use it, but they need to protect the troops with some better training.

[Clandestino]

i believe it is the large armor piercing shells...

and hell no, would i eat it..

[Useruser666]

Depleted Uranium has a VERY LOW radioactive state. It's particle size is also very large and not easily absorbed by the skin. I would put the dangers of it less than tha of a gas station attendent. I know college professors who use chunks of the stuff as door stops.

[Nbadan]

This, of course, has been reported by the foreign press before and largely ignored by the American M.S.M...


The Sunday Times (Times of London)

September 3 2000 WORLD
Tests show Gulf war victims have uranium poisoning
Jonathon Carr-Brown and Martin Meissonnier

NEW evidence that Gulf war syndrome exists and was caused by radiation poisoning will be revealed today by a former American army colonel who was at the centre of his government's attempts to diagnose the illness. Dr Asaf Durakovic will tell a conference of eminent nuclear scientists in Paris that "tens of thousands" of British and American soldiers are dying from radiation from depleted uranium (DU) shells fired during the Gulf war. The findings will undermine the British and American governments' claims that Gulf war syndrome does not exist and intensify pressure from veterans on both sides of the Atlantic for
compensation.

<snip>

Durakovic, who left America because he was told his life was in danger if he continued his research, has concluded that troops inhaled the tiny uranium particles after American and British
forces fired more than 700,000 DU shells during the conflict.

The finding begins to explain for the first time why medical orderlies and mechanics are the principal victims of Gulf war syndrome. British Army engineers who removed tanks hit by DU shells from the battlefield and medical personnel who cut off the clothes of Iraqi casualties in field hospitals have been disproportionately affected. Once inside the body, DU causes a slow death from cancers, irreversible kidney damage or wastage from immune deficiency disorders.

In the UK, where more than 400 veterans are estimated to have died from "Gulf war syndrome", at least 50 of those victims came from Reme (Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers) units. Others, such as Ray Bristow, 42, of Hull, who was a theatre technician for 32 Field Hospital, are now wheelchair-bound. Tests carried out by Durakovic on Bristow showed that, nine years after leaving the Gulf, he had more than 100 times the safe limit of DU in his body. Durakovic said: "I doubt whether the MoD or Pentagon will have the audacity to challenge these results. I can't say this is the solitary cause of Gulf war syndrome, but we now have clear evidence that it is a leading factor in the majority of victims.

"I hope the US and UK governments finally realise that, by continuing to use this ammunition, they are effectively poisoning their own soldiers." An MoD spokesman said it would study any new evidence: "Our aim is to get the best care for British veterans and our views are based on the best evidence around."

Health Boards (http://www.healthboards.com/gulf-war-syndrome/658.html)

Anyone who is interested in the "real" science behind DU can go to the national library of medicine's information clearing house - in this case "pub med", and look it up, here:

NCBI (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi ?)

Search for the term "depleted uranium". That search yields over one hundred and seventy abstracts. Don't be lead - review the literature, and decide for yourself.

It's pretty clear (to me at least) that this is a highly toxic substance.

[Nbadan]

Notice that I said highly toxic and not radioactive...


Uranium is pyrophoric and ignites when a DU round hits the target. That releases aerosol, fine solid particles (not really a vapor). Obviously it is radioactive and chemically toxic and chemical toxicty is actually more significant than radioactivity because DU has such a low specific radioactivity. Note that tungsten, which is also a very dense material, is often used as a DU alternative. However it has been linked to cancer as well.

Link (http://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/press/011505.html)

Hey, the military isn't the EPA, but I do think we need to look at the long term effects of the combination of the heavy metal toxicity with the low level radiation in these types of weapons.

[MannyIsGod]

Depleted Uranium has a VERY LOW radioactive state. It's particle size is also very large and not easily absorbed by the skin. I would put the dangers of it less than tha of a gas station attendent. I know college professors who use chunks of the stuff as door stops.

It's not all about it's radioactivity. The element is safe because your skin blocks most of the particles it emits, as does your clothing. Gama ray radiation from DU is minimal.

However, it's a heavy metal, and ALL heavy metals are highly toxic when they enter your body.

[Useruser666]

Except for the heavy metals your body needs to survive. Although this is very small doses. The risks from DU exposure in military personel are less than those for firefighters with smoke.