Criminal @ MindSay 
justice
By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service
July 23, 2008 - The U.S. military depends heavily on the support contractors provide in Iraq and Afghanistan and is stepping up efforts to ensure dollars dedicated to their activities are spent appropriately, Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England told Congress today.
England joined Army Gen. Benjamin S. Griffin, commander of U.S. Army Materiel Command; acting Defense Department Inspector General Gordon S. Heddell; and Shay Assad, DoD's director for defense procurement and acquisition policy, during a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing on contractor accountability.
The Defense Department takes its contract accountability and oversight responsibilities "very seriously," England told the lawmakers. He noted that multiple department agencies have conducted "literally thousands of aggressive reviews, audits and oversight."
In doing so, "they have indeed uncovered incidences of fraud and abuse," he said.
The Defense Department takes meaningful corrective actions and makes structural organizational changes where appropriate, England said. Meanwhile, it holds people accountable for their actions.
Heddell, who became acting DoD inspector general last week, noted that the department is completing or conducting audit oversight efforts that cover about $158.9 billion related to Defense Department efforts in Iraq alone.
As of June 30, the Defense criminal Investigative Service had 124 ongoing investigations related to Southwest Asia that involve 286 subjects, he told the committee. Thirty-two of these investigations have been adjudicated, resulting in 22 federal criminal indictments and 32 felony convictions, he reported. It also resulted in 32 federal "criminal informations" -- essentially, cases where defendants agreed that evidence against them was so strong that they agreed to forego trial proceedings and accept sentencing, Heddell said.
The adjudications have resulted in 54 years of confinement, 44 years of probation, debarment of 10 people and four companies, and suspension of 28 people, Heddell said.
In addition, the U.S. government accepted three settlement agreements, received $13.5 million in restitution, levied more than $374,000 in fines and penalties, received $1.76 million in forfeitures and seized another $2.65 million in assets, he reported.
With $71 billion obligated to 98,000 contracting activities since January 2003, the department has struggled to provide full oversight for this huge volume of contracts, England conceded. Complicating the process, he said, is the fact that 98,000 expeditionary contract actions have occurred since 2003, with much of the work performed in a dangerous and difficult environment.
The department "will continue to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of our contracting across the entire enterprise," but recognizes that it will take time, England said. He noted that the defense contracting force was cut dramatically during the 1990s, and that bringing replacements up to speed won't happen overnight. "It will likely take a few more years before all of these critical skills are fully replenished," he said.
Meanwhile, England pointed to yesterday's swearing-in of retired Marine Corps Maj. Gen. Arnie Fields as special inspector general for Afghanistan reconstruction as a positive step forward.
"I'm confident Arnie Fields will help to do in Afghanistan for the departments of Defense and State what [special inspector general for Iraq reconstruction] Stu Bowen has been able to accomplish over the past several years in Iraq as part of his special investigative status," England said.
Griffin told the senators the military knows it has improvements to make in its contracting systems and oversight.
"I will state up front that we are not where we want to be today in terms of contracting," he said. "But we have made significant progress. We are committed to improve our ability and capability, to provide not only first-class expeditionary contracting, but also to implement improvements across the entire contracting system."
While vowing to improve oversight of contractor activities, England told the lawmakers the military depends on contractors who work as partners with servicemembers in harm's way. "I ... want to thank the people who deployed and who are deployed today who do this contracting work for America," he said.
The Scottsdale Police Department in Arizona will host an Advanced Criminal Investigative Analysis Course from August 18th thru 22nd. The course will be presented by Phoebe L. Kelsoe, Ph.D. of the Alpha Group Center for Crime and Intelligence Analysis Training, and may also fulfill your state's peace officer commission (POST, TCLOSE, etc.) requirements for continuing education or training hours.
Designed primarily for investigators and crime analysts who are responsible for investigating or assisting in the investigation of homicide, in-class projects also deal with the crime of rape. Other relevant issues are examined as well. For example, you will learn how to identify the personality and behavioral characteristics of the victim and the offender in child abductions, how to identify the physical, behavioral, and personality characteristics of offenders who attack and kill elderly women, and how to analyze information contained in police reports to actually develop a profile that describes the type of offender who most likely committed the crime.
Each participant will receive a copy of the "Advanced Criminal Investigative Analysis Study Guide and Workbook." This manual provides numerous pages of class notes and supplemental reading material that will be used extensively throughout the course, and a copy of "Case Management for Missing Children Homicide Investigation." This booklet provides a wealth of information about offenders who commit child homicides, their victims, crime scene patterns, violent acts, and their motivations for committing such violent crimes. Tuition for the course is $525 and includes the week of instruction, the text, and all related course materials.
To obtain a course brochure or to register for the course, please contact Det. Jennifer Paxson at the Scottsdale Police Department, 10225 E. Via Linda, Scottsdale, AZ 85258; by phone at (480) 312-6318, by fax at (480) 312-9018, or by e-mail at jpaxson@scottsdaleaz.gov. Additional information about the content of the course can also be found on the Alpha Group website at www.alphagroupcenter.com.
here it is.
Che Guevera
Matthew Gray Gubler(from Criminal Minds)
Frodo (lotr, NOT Elijah Wood, he has short hair= not the same)
Daniel Radcliffe (from Harry Potter)
the long haired light blonde from The Convenant
Severus Snape (not the actor)
Alex O'Loughlin (From Moonlight)
Johnny Depp (in POTC and Edward Scissorhands)
There's my list. >.<
Avalanche Photodiodes Target Bioterrorism Agents
“Researchers have shown that a new class of ultraviolet photodiode could help meet the U.S. military's pressing requirement for compact, reliable and cost-effective sensors to detect anthrax and other bioterrorism agents in the air.” (Medical News Today; 27June08) http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/112926.php
Viruses rewritten
“A gene by any other name is not quite the same, and scientists could exploit that fact to develop new vaccines for viral diseases, research suggests. By ‘misspelling’ the genetic code of the virus that causes polio so that the virus still reproduced but did so a thousand times slower than normal, researchers created a weakened version of the virus that trained mice’s immune systems to fight off the real one.” (Science News; 26June08; Patrick Barry) http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/33671/title/Viruses_rewritten
CDC faces challenge of aging work force
“More than a quarter of workers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta — and more than a third of its medical officers — will be eligible to retire in the next five years. Replacing them will be difficult because of a national shortage of public health professionals, according to a new report by the Government Accountability Office.” (Atlanta Journal-Constitution; 27June08; Alison Young) http://www.ajc.com/news/content/news/stories/2008/06/27/cdc_workers.html
NEOUCOM [Northeastern Ohio Universities Colleges of Medicine and Pharmacy], KSU [Kent State University] get bioterrorism grant
“Northeastern Ohio Universities Colleges of Medicine and Pharmacy and Kent State University have been awarded $6.7 million for the continued development and commercialization of a real-time pathogen detection instrument.” (Vindy; 27June08) http://www.vindy.com/news/2008/jun/27/colleges-receive-grant-for-bioterror-detection/
Smiths Detection Launches Smart Trigger For Biological Agent Detection
“Smiths Detection, part of the global technology business Smiths Group, announced the launch of SmartBio™ Sensor (SBS), a real-time detector for biological agents or airborne toxins. SBS provides a visual or audio alarm when a bio-threat is detected and classifies the agent by threat category.” (Medical News Today; 27June08) http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/112951.php
Arthur Galston, botanist, died on June 15th, aged 88
“If you had asked him, on one of his visits to Vietnam in those years, whether Agent Orange was directly responsible for the sarcomas, lesions and deformities, he would have replied, like the careful scientist he was, that it was hard to make a connection solid enough to stand up in a court of law. But three things he was sure of. First, Agent Orange had caused ‘an ecological disaster’ that might take decades to repair. Second, its use contravened the Geneva protocols against chemical and biological warfare. And third, he had a responsibility to speak, because this agent of horror was partly his child.” (The Economist; 26June08)
http://www.economist.com/obituary/displaystory.cfm?story_id=11613789
Iran: US should disarm chemical weapons
"‘The Islamic Republic of Iran is a main victim of chemical warfare as Iraq attacked the country for eight years using weapons of mass destruction. Iran expects the international community to bring war criminal to justice and force major powers, including the US and the occupying regime of al-Quds [Jerusalem], to take practical steps in fulfilling their international obligations, particularly concerning chemical disarmament,’ reads a statement released Friday by Iran's Foreign Ministry.” (Press TV; 27June08)
http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=61673§ionid=351020101
Hanford Nuclear Services, Inc. (HNS) to sell US Patent 6805815, Unique ‘Dirty Bomb’ Cleanup Polymer
“Hanford Nuclear Services, Inc. (HNS), a leading research and advisory firm for the nuclear and environmental industries, announces the sale of US Patent 6805815, ‘Composition For Shielding Radioactivity’ through a website that offers access to patent, test data, an applications presentation, and portable deployment system information (http://hns.adventdes.com).” (STL Today; 25June08)
http://www.stltoday.com/pr/business/PR06250807471293
N. Korea declares nuclear program, but what's next?
“The Bush administration hailed North Korea's declaration of its nuclear program as a success for the multilateral diplomacy it engaged in through the Six Party Talks with South Korea, China, Japan and Russia. […] But as important as what the document says is what it doesn't say. There is no mention of how many weapons North Korea has or where they are hidden. Nor did North Korea admit to a suspected uranium enrichment program or what nuclear secrets it may have shared with Syria. Both issues are reduced in the declaration to ‘concerns’ which Pyongyang promises to address down the road.” (CNN; 27June08; Elise Labott) http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/06/26/nkorea.nuclear.negotiating/
Ensuring public safety
“Interpol is the world's largest international police organization, with 186 member countries. Created in 1923, it facilitates cross-border police co-operation, and supports and assists all organizations, authorities and services whose mission is to prevent or combat international crime. Terrorism poses a grave threat to individuals' lives and national security around the world. Interpol has therefore made available various resources to support member countries in their efforts to protect their citizens from terrorism, including bio-terrorism; firearms and explosives; attacks against civil aviation; maritime piracy; and weapons of mass destruction.”
(The New Nation; 27June08)
http://nation.ittefaq.com/issues/2008/06/27/news0679.htm
CNS ChemBio-WMD Terrorism News is prepared by the Chemical and Biological Weapons Nonproliferation Program of the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies at the Monterey Institute of International Studies in order to bring timely and focused information to researchers and policymakers interested in the fields of chemical, biological, and radiological weapons nonproliferation and WMD terrorism.
By Gerry J. Gilmore
American Forces Press Service
June 26, 2008 - Iraqi soldiers and police, assisted by U.S. and coalition troops, are making good progress in pacifying the city of Amarah and surrounding areas in Iraq's Maysan province, a senior U.S. military officer posted in Iraq said today. The Iraqi-military planned and led operation is part of Baghdad's efforts to help citizens "regain control of their towns, cities and villages" from illegal militias or other extremists, Army Col. Charles Flynn, commander of the 82nd Airborne Division's 1st Brigade Combat Team, told reporters during a satellite-carried news conference at the Pentagon.
"We stand in full support of the Iraqi forces and the government of Iraq," Flynn said, "and we also understand that secure and stable environments afford the economy of Iraq to grow, bringing with it jobs and opportunities for people to prosper."
Flynn and his unit arrived in Iraq in July. Since then, the U.S. paratroopers have assisted Iraqi forces operating in the southern part of the country. Amarah is the capital of Maysan province in southeastern Iraq.
Since June 19, the 1st BCT's paratroopers have supported Iraqi soldiers and police conducting Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's crackdown on illegal militias operating in Amarah and its environs.
Operation Bashaer as-Salaam is an Iraqi-led, planned and executed security operation conducted in Amarah to enforce the rule of law, reduce criminal safe havens and disrupt weapons-smuggling operations.
Amarah's citizens have cheerfully welcomed the Iraqi troops, Flynn said. City residents have pointed out members of criminal groups to Iraqi and coalition forces, he noted, and also have identified or turned in large numbers of weapons caches. Maysan province borders on Iran, and coalition officials often have expressed concern that weapons destined for insurgents' use are being smuggled into Iraq from Iran.
Iraqi and coalition security forces have collected 3,000 mortar rounds, 300 rockets, 800 artillery rounds, nearly 300 improvised explosive devices and 27 armor-piercing explosively formed projectiles during the Amarah operation, Flynn said.
"We're happy that people came forward and turned those [weapons] over to us," the colonel said. "We're going to do what we can to make sure that we reward the people that are providing the information related to cache finds."
Flynn also noted what he called the "positive trend" of Iraqi police and soldiers working in unison.
Improved security has seen a corresponding increase in reconstruction activity in and around Amarah, Flynn noted, as illegal militia members flee the area. A mix of U.S. and Iraqi-government provided funds, he said, are fueling myriad water, medical, electricity, transportation and other needed infrastructure projects.
Members of Flynn's unit partner with provincial reconstruction teams and local chambers of commerce to help Iraqis "better spend their money on infrastructure-type items," he explained.
After more than a year in Iraq, Flynn and his soldiers are nearing the time to redeploy back to their home base at Fort Bragg, N.C.
"The paratroopers over here in 1st Brigade have been doing a great job for 13 months," Flynn said. "I really want to extend my appreciation to the spouses and families back at Fort Bragg, and really across the country, for their support that they've rendered to us while we've been away.
"We should be home fairly soon, and we look forward to a peaceful and joyous reunion with our families," he added.
Flynn offered his condolences to the spouses, families and other loved ones of fallen or severely wounded troopers.
"You're in our thoughts; you're in our prayers. My heart goes out to all of you," he said.
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