Salem-News.com Iraq articles Page 58

Somber Homecoming for NW Soldier Killed in Afghanistan (VIDEO)

Sgt. Elijah J Rao was killed by an improvised explosive device, or roadside bomb, in Afghanistan.

(HILLSBORO, Ore.) - A somber and reverent group was on hand for the arrival of a local soldier December 12, 2009, who was killed fighting in Afghanistan. The family of Elijah J Rao says he will be sorely missed.

We first reported on this loss the day after it happened when the family released word of Elijah's death. They said at the time it is the last knock a family ever wants to hear at their door.

Afghanistan: Photo Journal is a Flashback to Circa 1970

I have been showing these to people for years and thought I should just publish them so everyone can have an idea what Afghanistan looked like before three decades of war.

(KABUL/SALEM) - When I was in Afghanistan covering the war during the winter of 2006/2007, I heard about a set of photographs showing Kabul and other parts of this war torn country in a more peaceful time, probably around 1970.

When these photos were taken, Afghanistan was a Communist country and religion was suppressed.

`I Was Raped Twice in Iraq` US Veteran Speaks Out

US Army Reserve Staff Sgt. Sandra Lee, who was raped twice while serving in Iraq, shared her story in an interview with Russian Television.

(MOSCOW, Russian Federation RT) - According to a new study by the US Department of Defense, one in three women in the military is raped. Veterans for Peace add to those statistics, claiming 75% of raped women in the military fail to report it.

Sandra Lee has decided to break the silence five years after she was assaulted by a fellow soldier. She had been rebuilding schools in the middle of a war zone in Iraq when the incident occurred.

Could Terror War be a Response by GOP and Israel Against Threats to Their Global Plans?

Don't miss this developing story...

(CINCINNATI, Ohio) - When nothing adds up, it's time we starting looking at what we know. Our recent terrorist, now dubbed "the crotch bomber" is another dupe. He could have been working for anyone, drugged, brainwashed or simply influenced, maybe by crazy Arabs, maybe by the Mossad, maybe by the CIA. We only know the game is falling apart.

Military Suicides: Soldiers Driven to Desperation Deaths

They are the highest in history.

(MOLALLA, Ore.) - I am appalled beyond repugnance to even read my own title. It seems that the Army, Marines, Navy and Air Force all have the same problem but the Infantry really gets it in the rear echelon.

They won’t accept one into the service with ANY vestige of MENTAL DISORDER. Then they drive him crazy enough to kill himself, then they call it ADJUSTMENT DISORDER and a pre-service condition and it is all the suicide soldier or Marine's weakness.

God`s Nature

Knowledge of the Universal God can be perceived only by common sense, science & logic; audacious deceivers and beguiled disciples would return America to the Middle Age if permitted.

(PASO ROBLES, Calif.) - The confusion surrounding the nature of God is due to the difference between the Universal concept of an unknowable God vs. the nature of man’s “Institutional God.”

Judaism speaks for Jehovah suggesting that Jews are God’s chosen people but lacks an objective symbol, such as Jesus or Mohammad of Christianity and Islam fame.

Xe, Formerly Blackwater, Poses Biggest Threat to Pakistan`s Nukes

Is America out to hurt her trusted ally?

(LONDON) - Lawyers from the local bar associations protested outside the 'secret base' of US mercenaries (Xe/Blackwater) inside the ‘Sehala’ Police Training College, a few miles from the Kahuta Nuclear Plant. Why did Pakistani media ignore the story?

As the propaganda that Pakistani nukes are likely to fall into the hands of the Taliban continues in the American press, one wonders what might be the U.S. intent. Seen in the light that American mercenaries have become overt operationally, it appears that the intent is to use them to ‘lift’ the Pak Nukes using the threat from the Taliban as an excuse.

Are Gulf War Vets Getting Better VA Treatment Than the Vietnam Generation?

If you compare Vietnam vets and their ability to get through the disability process, with Gulf War vets, Vietnam vets lose by astounding figures.

(CINCINNATI, Ohio) - One war lasted around ten years, and the other, just 4 days. One war had 47,000 combat deaths, the other had 147. However, there are 1.1 million Vietnam veterans on disability pensions and, according to the DVA, nearly 900,000 Gulf War I vets on pension.

In the gulf war, for every combat death there were over 6,000 disabled veterans. In Vietnam, for every combat KIA, there are 21 disabled veterans.

Wyden to Holbrooke: Cutting Taliban Funding is Essential to Success in Afghanistan

Letter Calls for Expanded Efforts to Stop Saudi Arabian Funding of Terrorist Organizations.

(WASHINGTON D.C.) - As the U.S. prepares to ramp up troop levels in Afghanistan and bring that war to a close, Senator Ron Wyden calls for turning attention to the illicit funding streams that are propping up the Taliban’s ability to remain a threat to U.S. troops and the Afghan people.

In a letter dated December 21, Wyden asked for greater investigation into private donors and charities in Saudi Arabia and other Persian Gulf countries that have long been a funding source for the Taliban rivaling even the illicit drug trade.

PTSD Therapy: Talk it Out: Blatherskite
Grey`s Anatomy Shrink Bombs Again

Don’t the script writers know that PTSD is the biggest, worst psychological problem of returning PTSD vets, whether they were carrying a musket or a scalpel?

(MOLALLA, Ore.) - I have the greatest respect for the TV show Grey's Anatomy. The blood and guts of training to become a surgeon is realistic and the overall attrition rate is far greater than the general public can conceive.

The general reader will know what I am talking about. Some doctors believe they can effectively walk on water and on underlings, and the term Primadonna is too close to the truth.