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November 2009

Obama to detail big troop increase in Afghanistan

WASHINGTON – After months of debate, President Barack Obama will spell out a costly Afghanistan war expansion to a skeptical public Tuesday night, coupling an infusion of as many as 35,000 more troops with a vow that there will be no endless U.S. commitment. His first orders have already been made: at least one group of Marines who will be in place by Christmas.
Obama has said that he prefers "not to hand off anything to the next president" and that his strategy will "put us on a path toward ending the war." But he doesn't plan to give any more exact timetable than that Tuesday night.
The president will end his 92-day review of the war with a nationally broadcast address in which he will lay out his revamped strategy from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y. He spent part of Monday briefing foreign allies in a series of private meetings and phone calls.
Before Obama's call to Britain's Gordon Brown, the prime minister announced that 500 more U.K. troops would arrive in southern Afghanistan next month — making a British total of about 10,000 in the country. And French President Nicolas Sarkozy, whose nation has more than 3,000 in Afghanistan, said French troops would stay "as long as necessary" to stabilize the country.
Obama's war escalation includes sending 30,000 to 35,000 more American forces into Afghanistan in a graduated deployment over the next year, on top of the 71,000 already there. There also will be a fresh focus on training Afghan forces to take over the fight and allow the Americans to leave.
He also will deliver a deeper explanation of why he believes the U.S. must continue to fight more than eight years after the war was started following the Sept. 11 attacks by al-Qaida terrorists based in Afghanistan. He will emphasize that Afghan security forces need more time, more schooling and more U.S. combat backup to be up to the job on their own, and he will make tougher demands on the governments of Pakistan as well as Afghanistan.
"This is not an open-ended commitment," White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said. "We are there to partner with the Afghans, to train the Afghan national security forces, the army and the police so that they can provide security for their country and wage a battle against an unpopular insurgency."
On a few of the bigger questions most on the minds of increasingly restive members of Congress and the public, such as how much the additional $30 billion to $35 billion cost will balloon the already skyrocketed federal deficit, how long the U.S. commitment will continue and how it will wind down, Obama was expected to make references without offering specifics.
Gibbs said detailed discussions on costs would be held later with lawmakers.
Even before explaining his decision, Obama told the military to begin executing the force increases. The commander in chief gave the deployment orders Sunday night, during an Oval Office meeting in which he told key military and White House advisers of his final decision.
At least one group of Marines is expected to deploy within two or three weeks of Obama's announcement and will be in Afghanistan by Christmas, military officials said. Larger deployments will begin early next year.
The initial infusion is a recognition by the administration that something tangible needs to happen quickly, officials said. The immediate addition of Marines will provide badly needed reinforcements for those fighting against Taliban gains in the southern Helmand province, and also could lend reassurance to both Afghans and a war-weary U.S. public.
Obama's overall review was launched Aug. 31, when Army Gen. Stanley McChrystal, then the newly minted top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, delivered to Pentagon brass his assessment of the situation on the ground and what was needed to turn it around. McChrystal produced a separate resource request, first seen by Obama on Oct. 1. The president's review was anchored by 10 extensive war council meetings, starting on Sept. 13, that featured a debate between a counterinsurgency strategy focused on protecting the local population and building up the Afghanistan government or a more limited counterterrorism strategy.
The final product is neither, though it leans more toward counterinsurgency.
The length of the process drew sharp barbs. Less than two months in, Vice President Dick Cheney accused Obama of "dithering," beginning a drumbeat of criticism from Republicans. The White House shot back that the administration Cheney helped lead had given inordinate attention to Iraq while turning its back on Afghanistan.
But with U.S. casualties in Afghanistan sharply increasing and little sign of progress, the war Obama once liked to call one "of necessity," not choice, has grown less popular with the public and within his own Democratic Party. In recent days, leading Democrats have talked of setting tough conditions on deeper U.S. involvement, or even staging outright opposition.
The displeasure on both sides of the aisle is likely to be on display when congressional hearings on Obama's strategy get under way later in the week on Capitol Hill.
Obama spent much of Monday and Tuesday on the phone, outlining his plan — minus many specifics — for the leaders of France, Britain, Germany, Russia, China, India, Denmark, Poland and others. He also met in person at the White House with Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd.

A briefing for dozens of lawmakers was planned for Tuesday afternoon, just before Obama left for New York to give his speech against a military backdrop.

He also was to call Afghan President Hamid Karzai and Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari — two leaders on whom the success of the plan will depend heavily.

In Afghanistan, rampant government corruption and inefficiency have made U.S. success much harder. Obama was expected to place tough conditions on Karzai's government, along with endorsing a stepped-up training program for the Afghan armed forces in line with recommendations this fall by U.S. trainers.

That schedule would expand the Afghan army to 134,000 troops by next fall, three years earlier than once envisioned.

The president faces a tricker task in talking tough on Pakistan.

Though extremist fighters and al-Qaida leaders are believed to be based in its western region near the border with Afghanistan, public scoldings from Washington can hurt as well as help Pakistani efforts because of pervasive anti-American sentiment. The U.S. cannot send troops into Pakistan, and rarely discusses the anti-terrorist missile strikes conducted inside Pakistan from U.S. drones.

Military officials said the speech is expected to include several references to Iraq, where the United States still has more than 100,000 troops. The strain of maintaining that overseas war machine has stretched the Army and Marine Corps and limited Obama's options.

He is expected to at least implicitly pledge not to return to the worst days of the Iraq war, when the Army was resorted to 15-month tours with little time at home between deployments and when National Guard and reserve troops were subjected to lengthy tours.

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Associated Press writers Anne Gearan, Pamela Hess and Robert Burns contributed to this report.

Fort Worth Fence

Ownership of the fence varies. In some parts of the country all boundaries are shared; in other parts of the country you may own the boundary on the left-hand or right-hand side, however, only the title deeds can be depended on to tell you which side is yours. (A 'T' symbol indicates who is the owner). It used to be normal for the cladding to be on the non-owners side (enabling access to the posts for the owner when repairs need doing), but increasingly this cannot be depended on.

Where a fence or hedge has an adjacent ditch, the ditch is normally in the same ownership as the hedge or fence, with the ownership boundary being the edge of the ditch furthest from the fence or hedge. The principle of the rule is that an owner digging a boundary ditch will normally dig it up to the very edge of their land, and must then pile the spoil on their own side of the ditch to avoid trespassing on their neighbour. They may then erect a fence or hedge on the spoil, leaving the ditch on its far side. Exceptions often occur, for example where a plot of land derives from subdivision of a larger one along the centre line of a previously existing ditch or other feature.

Fort Worth Fence

New Film Showcases the Loony In Clooney (HuffingtonPost.com)

Read Jackie K. Cooper's other articles on HuffingtonPost.com

What is it with George Clooney! How can one actor star in so many box office bombs and still be Hollywood's darling? Since 2003 this "leading man" has starred in such failures as "Intolerable Cruelty," "Syriana," "The Good German," "Leatherheads" and "Burn After Reading." The only major hit he has had in his career is the "Ocean's Eleven" series, Yet Hollywood keeps putting his name at the head of the list of desirable actors.

In his latest film "The Men Who Stare At Goats" he once again puts himself front and center in a lifeless, lethargic movie. He plays Lyn Cassady, a so-called psychic or new age soldier. He allegedly can kill goats with a single stare, control his opponents with his state of mind, and do other wonderful things.

This all comes to light when Bob Wilton (Ewan McGregor), a reporter, learns of an organization within the military that is trying new ways of warfare. Cassady is supposed to be the current best of the bunch. His claim to fame is that he was mentored by the ultimate new age guru Bill Django (Jeff Bridges).

Through a series of misadventures Wilton ends up in Iraq with Cassady who is on a mission of sorts. Every situation in which they are involved causes Bob's impression of Cassady's abilities to rise or fall. At times his story seems credible and at others it sounds completely ridiculous. This is also how the movie comes off.

The film is played for comical effect but never is totally humorous. There are a few chuckles here and there but the story (which is supposedly based on true events) is so stupid it turns the audience off.

Clooney never captures the sincerity or the believability of his character. Maybe the part is just poorly written but Clooney does nothing to enhance the role. Bridges is back playing a drugged out guy stuck in the high flying sixties or seventies. It is a throwback to his role as "The Dude" in "The Big Lebowski" but not as enjoyable.

McGregor is really the star of the film but he looks totally lost in his role. He seems to be unable to figure out what is going on and so the audience doesn't comprehend it all either. It is McGregor's worst performance in years.

The film is rated R for profanity, violence and brief nudity.

There will certainly be a hard core of fans who will love this Clooney tune, but most will see it as another flop for the actor. It isn't funny; it isn't enlightening; it isn't dramatic; it is just a mess. This film highlights the loony in Clooney and the Ewww in Ewan.

I scored "The Men Who Stare At Goats" a psychic 3 out of 10.

Jackie K. Cooperwww.jackiekcooper.com

Read More:
George Clooney, New Age, Psychics, The Dude

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PROMISES, PROMISES: Six years and still no rules

WASHINGTON – Eight years after the 9/11 attacks brought a new focus on security at airplane maintenance facilities, and six years after Congress first required action, the government still hasn't tightened its vigilance.
Concerned that terrorists might use a repair station to sabotage airliners, Congress in 2003 passed a law ordering the Transportation Security Administration to come up with security requirements for repair facilities, and gave the agency eight months to do it.
In 2007, after no rule had materialized, Congress again passed a law ordering TSA to put security requirements in place within one year. That deadline expired in August 2008.
This week, faced with a congressional hearing Wednesday on the issue, TSA finally posted a proposed rule to its Web site rather than wait for publication in the Federal Register. Officials acknowledged they wanted to get it out ahead of the hearing.
It's still not a done deal.
Industry and other interested parties will have 60 days to comment on the proposal once it's published, and there is no telling when it will take effect. It's not unusual for there to be a gap of months or years between the proposal of a regulation and issuance of a final rule.
Aviation maintenance and security experts who reviewed TSA's proposal told The Associated Press that it prescribes the kind of security program common in industry and throughout government: A qualified security program chief, photo identification for employees, controlled access to airplanes and parts, a secure facility or property perimeter and background checks of employees.
"These (security) concerns are not new, they have long known been known by the government. Why it has taken so long for them to act defies logic," said John Goglia, who was the first Federal Aviation Administration-certified mechanic to serve on the National Transportation Safety Board.
TSA could have at anytime copied the generally tight security programs in place in the European Union, he said.
So far there haven't been any incidents involving U.S. airliners that have been tied to security lapses at repair stations, but safety experts said the lack of security standards remains a glaring concern.
TSA spokesman Greg Soule said it took time for the agency to craft a rule that takes into account the diversity of the 4,100 domestic and 700 foreign repair stations certified to work on U.S.-registered aircraft. The stations range from small businesses that are miles from airports and work on specialized parts like seatbelts to huge hangars and warehouses inside airport grounds.
He said the agency already provides guidance to repair stations on security "best practices," but can't inspect or certify their security programs without regulations setting standards for them to meet.
Airlines used to perform nearly all the major maintenance and repair work on their planes at their own facilities using their own mechanics, electricians and other workers. Over the last two decades, though, airlines have increasingly outsourced the work to private repair stations that use cheaper, nonunion labor. A survey released last year by Transportation Department Inspector General Calvin Scovel found that nine major airlines outsource about 70 percent of their major maintenance work, with more than a quarter of the work performed at foreign repair stations, from China to Singapore to El Salvador.
Lawmakers and labor unions complain that the non-airline repair facilities don't get as much oversight as in-house shops. They say that's especially true of foreign repair stations, where it's more difficult — and sometimes impossible — for FAA to conduct surprise inspections. In some countries, because of privacy laws or incomplete record keeping, thorough screening of mechanics and other repair station employees can be difficult. Extending that screening to subcontractors who supply parts and services can be even more daunting.
Even at U.S. repair stations, checking the backgrounds of workers native to countries that don't readily share information like Cuba and Yemen has raised concern.
The government doesn't have the kind of regulatory regime in place to track security through the international maze of contractors and subcontractors that has developed in recent years, said Ed Wytkind, president of the AFL-CIO Transportation Trades Department.
"If you don't have standards in place that set the bar at a high level of what you expect these facilities to do in the safety and security arena, you are sort of leaving it to chance that you might have bad apple, you might have shabby practices or, God forbid, you have a security breech," Wytkind said.
FAA certification of new repair stations has been frozen since last year, when TSA missed its second congressional deadline.

Industry officials say security fears are overblown. They say many repair stations, including foreign stations, are within the secure perimeters of airports. They also say there are more FAA-certified repair stations in Europe, where security standards are generally high, than in any other region outside the U.S.

"You hear that it's a wild West out there, but it really isn't," said Matt Hallett, director of government affairs at the Aeronautical Repair Station Association. "This is an industry that takes security and safety very, very seriously. It hasn't sat idly by waiting for TSA."

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On the Net:

Transportation Security Administration http://www.tsa.gov/assets/pdf/nprm(underscore)aircraftrepair.pdf

(This version CORRECTS in 13th paragraph to El Salvador.)

Army helps vets with `invisible wounds' find jobs

SAN ANTONIO – Richard Martin keeps a rearview mirror on his desk to prevent co-workers from startling him in his cubicle. The walls are papered with sticky notes to help him remember things, and he wears noise-canceling headphones to keep his easily distracted mind focused.
Martin, an Army veteran who was nearly blown up on three occasions in Iraq, once feared that post-traumatic stress disorder and a brain injury would keep him from holding down a civilian job, despite years of corporate experience and an MBA.
"Here I am with this background and I'm having problems with my memory," said Martin, a 48-year-old engineer and former National Guard major who now works for Northrop Grumman, helping to devise ways to thwart remote-detonated bombs.
The defense contractor recruited him through its hiring program for severely wounded veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan. The company consulted occupational nurses on how to help him do his job without becoming overly nervous when someone, say, drops a heavy object. Martin figured out other tricks, like the headphones, on his own.
But Martin is one of the lucky ones.
Army officials say many new veterans suffering from PTSD and brain injuries struggle to find and keep a civilian job. Advocates say many employers don't know how to accommodate veterans with these "invisible wounds" and worry that they cannot do the job and might even "go postal" someday.
"There is a stigma attached to the invisible wounds, and it's largely borne out of ignorance," said David Autry, a spokesman for Disabled American Veterans. "There's a fear that somebody will go off the deep end."
The Army's Wounded Warrior Program, which helps veterans adjust to civilian life, has been reaching out to employers to educate them and encourage them to hire former soldiers with invisible wounds.
It conducts briefings to brace potential employers for soldiers who might not be able to work regular hours or might startle too easily, suffer outbursts or require time off for counseling.
About 90 severely wounded veterans have found work with the help of the Wounded Warrior Program since it began offering job assistance last year, though the Army does not break that down by injury type.
The severely wounded soldiers now returning from the wars suffer primarily from PTSD and severe brain injuries rather than lost limbs. About a third, or 1,950, of the 5,400 soldiers and veterans in the Wounded Warrior Program have PTSD as their primary injury, while about 970 are in the program because of brain injuries. About 770 are amputees.
For the invisibly wounded, the losses can be as minor as slight memory lapses and as severe as debilitating flashbacks and a hair-trigger temper. Some have blurred vision and difficulty concentrating.
Disabled soldiers qualify for disability payments, but those are often barely enough to live on, and many want to work, if only for their self-respect. The problem is that many employers are far less prepared to take on former military personnel with mental and cognitive disabilities than those with burns or lost limbs.
"Employers find it easier to accommodate those physical disabilities. They can get special equipment," said Sue Maloney, who works with veterans in the Wounded Warrior Program in the Seattle area. But "you can't always see the wounds or the injuries."
Kyle Salisbury, 21, went to work shortly after he retired from the Army last year with a brain injury caused by two large blasts in as many days.
His employer was excited about hiring a wounded Iraq veteran, but Salisbury often could not work because of severe headaches. A second job driving a truck did not work out either because of his occasional nausea and blurred vision. He quit both jobs.
"Right now my job prospects are zero," said Salisbury, who lives with his wife and 3-year-old nephew in Bellingham, Wash. He is attending community college while he decides what to do next.
With less than $3,000 a month in disability payments, "the bills take up all the money," he said. "I definitely don't live a worry-free life."

The transition for Martin, who works in Clearfield, Utah, appears to have been easier. He said minor adjustments to his office, combined with a Blackberry, rehab and medication, have allowed him to function well. He learned about the noise-canceling headphones from a fellow passenger on an airplane.

Karen Stang, manager of Northrop Grumman's hiring program, said that adjustments had to be made for veterans with PTSD or brain injuries, but company managers are happy with the new hires.

The company consults with occupational nurses about what accommodations should be made and encourages veterans to be honest about what they need.

"Give them a chance," Stang said she tells other employers. "Really, look at what they bring as far as skills and help them manage their disability so they can succeed in their job."

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On the Net:

Army Wounded Warrior Program: http://www.aw2.army.mil

Northrop Grumman Corp.'s Operation Impact: http://operationimpact.ms.northropgrumman.com/default.htm

Reports: Army to probe alleged shooter's career

WASHINGTON – The Army will conduct an internal investigation to examine whether it missed warning signs about Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, the man accused of killing 13 people in the Nov. 5 shooting spree at Fort Hood, Texas, two newspapers reported Monday.
Citing anonymous officials, The Wall Street Journal said the probe would focus on Hasan's six years at Washington's Walter Reed Medical Center, where he worked as a psychiatrist before he was transferred to Fort Hood in July.
The Washington Post reported that Gen. George W. Casey Jr., the Army's chief of staff, is forming the investigative panel, which will look at Hasan's entire career to figure out whether warning signs were missed.
The doctors who oversaw Hasan's medical training had discussed at a meeting concerns about Hasan's overly zealous religious views and strange behavior months before the attack, a military official told The Associated Press last week. Hasan also was characterized as a mediocre student and lazy worker, but the doctors saw no evidence that he was violent or a threat. The military official spoke on condition of anonymity because the official was not authorized to speak publicly about the meeting.
The FBI learned late last year of Hasan's repeated contact with a radical Muslim cleric in Yemen who encouraged Muslims to kill U.S. troops in Iraq. President Barack Obama already has ordered a review of all intelligence related to Hasan and whether the information was properly shared and acted upon within government agencies.
The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee on Thursday will hold its first public hearing about the incident. Obama on Saturday urged Congress to hold off on any investigation, pleading for lawmakers to "resist the temptation to turn this tragic event into the political theater."
Lt. Col. Richard Spiegel, an Army spokesman, wouldn't confirm the Army probe but told the Journal: "We're going to take a hard look at ourselves and the non-criminal aspects of this case. We are still developing what that hard look is going to look like."

Cow dung to power more Dutch homes

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) –
A plant that converts cow dung into energy for homes opened in the Netherlands Friday.

Manure from cows at a nearby dairy farm will be fermented along with grass and food industry residues, and the biogas released during the process will be used as fuel for the thermal plant's gas turbines.

The heat generated will be distributed to around 1,100 homes in the area around Leeuwarden in the north of the Netherlands, the plant's operator Essent said in a statement.

Firms in Europe and elsewhere have been investing in biogas plants and this is the second of its scale running on cow manure in the Netherlands. It follows another plant that Essent opened in January.

(Reporting by Catherine Hornby; Editing by Charles Dick)

Egypt 'must act' to avoid repeat of rockslide

CAIRO (AFP) –
Egypt must take immediate action to ensure there is no repeat of a 2008 rockslide that killed more than 100 residents of a Cairo shantytown, Amnesty International warned in a report on Tuesday.

"Thousands of Egypt?s poor are trapped by poverty and neglect that could ultimately end in their deaths," said Malcolm Smart, the global rights group's Middle East and Africa director.

"The government must urgently address the risks faced by those living in areas designated as ?unsafe? and find solutions by consulting with those directly affected."

A cliff face collapsed on dozens of homes in Cairo's Manshiyet Nasser slum on September 6, 2008, killing at least around 100 residents and injuring dozens of others.

At the time, residents blamed the disaster on work that had been going on for several weeks on the Moqattam plateau overlooking the shantytown, and said the authorities had been warned of the dangers of just such a disaster.

In its report, Amnesty called on Egyptian authorities to "alleviate the threats to lives in the 26 'unsafe areas' in Greater Cairo, and to protect the residents? rights to health and adequate housing."

"Denied an effective voice and largely ignored by those in power, many residents ... continue to live in fear on precarious hillsides or under high voltage power lines because they have nowhere else to go," it said.

Amnesty called on the authorities to properly investigate the incident and ensure such a tragedy is not repeated.

"The government must develop a comprehensive programme of action to address the risks faced by those living in ?unsafe areas? and to uphold their rights to life, health and adequate housing," said Smart.

Irvine Auto Body

Irvine Auto Body

Automobile repair shops can be specialty shops like muffler shops, transmission specialists, body shop, tire shops and automobile electrification shops. Examples include MAACO and AAMCO. There are also independently-owned specialists who work only on specific makes of cars, such as European car specialists and BMW repair specialists.

In the UK, a Garage does not typically specialize in one area of the vehicle.[citation needed] Instead, they tend to repair all mechanical and servicing requirements, the only specialty being body repair and painting.

Obama vows 'positive, cooperative' ties with China

BEIJING (AFP) –
The United States and China on Tuesday agreed to cooperate on a host of issues from climate change to North Korea as US President Barack Obama pledged positive and comprehensive ties with Beijing.

Obama and Chinese President Hu Jintao also said they would work together to resolve trade frictions between the world's number one and three economies after their talks, the centrepiece of Obama's visit to the Asian giant.

In statements to the press, Obama said the two countries -- the world's top two emitters of greenhouse gases -- had "agreed to work toward a successful outcome" at crucial UN-backed climate change talks in Copenhagen next month.

"Our aim there is... not a partial accord or a political declaration, but rather an accord that covers all the issues in the negotiations and one that has immediate operational effect," the US leader said.

Hopes had dimmed for a statement on how to combat global warming, after officials said following a weekend Asia-Pacific summit in Singapore that it was unrealistic to expect leaders to reach a binding pact in the Danish capital.

But Obama seemed to suggest that a deal could still be on the table.

"As the two largest consumers and producers of energy, there can be no solution to this challenge without the efforts of both China and the United States," he said.

On trade, Hu told reporters the two sides would "continue to have consultations on an equal footing to properly resolve economic and trade frictions."

Washington has angered China in recent months by imposing tariffs on Chinese tyres and preliminary duties on some steel products. Beijing countered by launching its own probes into US car imports and chicken meat.

Trade seems likely to top the agenda following a series of tit-for-tat moves in recent months that has sparked angry accusations from Beijing that the United States is engaging in blatant protectionism.

On Monday, a Chinese commerce ministry spokesman lamented "an increasingly protective US". Hours later, US Commerce Secretary Gary Locke rejected those comments.

Obama is expected to counter by again urging China to reconsider the value of the yuan, which has been effectively pegged to the dollar since July 2008, when the global crisis hit key export markets for Chinese-made goods.

Washington has stopped short of calling China a currency manipulator, but has urged Beijing to relax its exchange rate regime, hinting that it keeps the value of the yuan artificially low to boost exports.

The two sides also announced Tuesday that Hu would pay an official visit to the United States some time next year on the invitation of Obama. The statement did not specify the timing of the visit.

On Tibet, a sensitive issue for Beijing, Obama said while the United States recognised China's sovereignty over the region, it hoped for an "early resumption" of talks between the Dalai Lama's representatives and Beijing.

Obama, criticised at home for not meeting the Dalai Lama during the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader's recent visit to Washington, has vowed to raise human rights issues with Beijing, but said he would do it without "rancour".

Their talks follow Obama's town hall-style meeting with students in Shanghai streamed live on the Internet on Monday where he acknowledged difficulties in China-US ties but said the two countries need not be adversaries.

The US president also pushed for expanded political freedoms and spoke out against censorship in that meeting -- comments that were widely ignored by the tightly-controlled Chinese state media.

Obama was later to visit the Forbidden City and meet parliamentary speaker Wu Bangguo before a lavish state dinner hosted by Hu.

The US president wraps up his visit to China on Wednesday with talks with Premier Wen Jiabao and a visit to the Great Wall. He then heads to South Korea, the last stop on his four-country tour.