Vieques: Paradise Lost. Dean's column about his trip to Puerto Rico.

[madfloridian]

http://www.laprensa-sandiego.org/current/vieques.htm

SNIP.."I went to Vieques two months ago. The protesters from around the world were gone and so were the TV cameras. Severe environmental contamination and a significant amount of unexploded ordnance and the predictable residue of more than 60 years of bombing still remain. I listened to the family stories of people like Felicita Garcia, a cancer survivor whose husband also has cancer. Ms. Garcia has seen death up close all around her. Her brother died at 14 of leukemia and her sister and her mother also died of cancers."

SNIP..."* Tests by civilian, government and military scientists have proven the migration of toxic substances from the bombing range into the civilian areas and the offshore environment.

* A comprehensive study of death certificates by a medical doctor and an epidemiologist demonstrated gross disparities in cancer, hypertension, heart disease and diabetes rates between people who live on Vieques and those who live on the island of Puerto Rico. Both the University of Puerto Rico scientists and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service have reported the presence of toxic metals in the crabs of Vieques.

* Hair tests showed toxic levels of aluminum, arsenic, cadmium, lead and mercury in the bodies of island residents.

* A recent peer- reviewed study of mercury risk assessment corroborated higher levels of mercury in Vieques residents as compared to the residents of eastern Puerto Rico and the U.S. Atlantic Coast......"

[Cha]

1. So Sad to be subjected to radiation from bomb

testing and, of course, the results are going to be cancerous.

[madfloridian]

2. And they have moved this operation in part to Avon Park, FL.

To the bombing range there. A couple of hours from us. How do we know what is going on there?

[DavidFL]

3. Kick...and thank you Gov. Dean...

for keeping attention focused on this.

Where can I find more info on this operation being moved, in part, to Avon Park?

[madfloridian]

4. I have some research on it, but will have to do a search.

It is the work of Congressman Adam Putnam, Opie, my least favorite congressman of all time.