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So I watched a documentary by Vice on HBO the other night about birth defects in Iraq (which occur at Fallujah General Hospital at a rate of 10 times that of a hospital in Kuwait). They interviewed a veteran who fought in Fallujah and started the Justice for Fallujah project. A US combatant started the project after his service because he was part of the massive siege on Fallujah that killed somewhere between 800 and 6,000 civilians, forced hundreds of thousands to flee their homes, and left much of the city in ruins.
Life for the people who chose to return to their city never improved.
Worst of all, since 2004 there has been a dramatic increase in birth defects, infant mortality, mental retardation, and cancers of all sorts in Fallujah. The birth defects are truly horrifying. Babies have been born with six fingers on each hand, scaly skin, missing limbs, two heads, and there has been one case of a child born with a single eye in the center of his forehead. So far all of the research into the cause of this health crisis--which is prevelent throught Iraq, but most dramatic in Fallujah--suggests that U.S. munitions caused this health crisis by polluting the environment with uranium and other toxic metals. One study has argued that there is “genetic damage” within the population of Fallujah, and the evidence suggests ionizing radiation exposure (most likely from uranium based weapons) as the cause. This has led some to compare Fallujah to Hiroshima and Nagasaki; although the rates of cancers and birth defects are higher in Fallujah. In fact, so many children in Fallujah are now being born horribly deformed or mentally retarded that many women are afraid to try to have families.
We passed a bill that demanded a study be done to look into how much radioactivity is in munitions we use on the battlefield, and our military came back with a two page report that said "we don't know, shut up". I realize war is hell and casualties happen, but do you think that the children should suffer? Should we at the very least make the brass come up with something more than their bullshit two page report? Potentially this puts the soldiers who handle the stuff in danger as well.
Life for the people who chose to return to their city never improved.
Worst of all, since 2004 there has been a dramatic increase in birth defects, infant mortality, mental retardation, and cancers of all sorts in Fallujah. The birth defects are truly horrifying. Babies have been born with six fingers on each hand, scaly skin, missing limbs, two heads, and there has been one case of a child born with a single eye in the center of his forehead. So far all of the research into the cause of this health crisis--which is prevelent throught Iraq, but most dramatic in Fallujah--suggests that U.S. munitions caused this health crisis by polluting the environment with uranium and other toxic metals. One study has argued that there is “genetic damage” within the population of Fallujah, and the evidence suggests ionizing radiation exposure (most likely from uranium based weapons) as the cause. This has led some to compare Fallujah to Hiroshima and Nagasaki; although the rates of cancers and birth defects are higher in Fallujah. In fact, so many children in Fallujah are now being born horribly deformed or mentally retarded that many women are afraid to try to have families.
We passed a bill that demanded a study be done to look into how much radioactivity is in munitions we use on the battlefield, and our military came back with a two page report that said "we don't know, shut up". I realize war is hell and casualties happen, but do you think that the children should suffer? Should we at the very least make the brass come up with something more than their bullshit two page report? Potentially this puts the soldiers who handle the stuff in danger as well.
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