As a candidate for this office, I pledged to end this war responsibly. And, as President, that is what I am doing.

Since I became Commander-in-Chief, we’ve brought home nearly 100,000 U.S. troops. We’ve closed or turned over to Iraq hundreds of our bases.

As Operation Iraqi Freedom ends, our commitment to a sovereign, stable, and self-reliant Iraq continues. Under Operation New Dawn, a transitional force of U.S. troops will remain to advise and assist Iraqi forces, protect our civilians on the ground, and pursue targeted counterterrorism efforts.

By the end of next year, consistent with our agreement with the Iraqi government, these men and women, too, will come home.

Ending this war is not only in Iraq’s interest — it is in our own. Our nation has paid a huge price to put Iraq’s future in the hands of its people. We have sent our men and women in uniform to make enormous sacrifices. We have spent vast resources abroad in the face of several years of recession at home.

We have met our responsibility through the courage and resolve of our women and men in uniform.

In seven years, they confronted a mission as challenging and as complex as any our military has ever been asked to face.

Nearly 1.5 million Americans put their lives on the line. Many returned for multiple tours of duty, far from their loved ones who bore a heroic burden of their own. And most painfully, more than 4,400 Americans have given their lives, fighting for people they never knew, for values that have defined our people for more than two centuries.

What their country asked of them was not small. And what they sacrificed was not easy.

For that, each and every American owes them our heartfelt thanks.

Our promise to them — to each woman or man who has donned our colors — is that our country will serve them as faithfully as they have served us. We have already made the largest increase in funding for veterans in decades. So long as I am President, I will do whatever it takes to fulfill that sacred trust.

Tonight, we mark a milestone in our nation’s history. Even at a time of great uncertainty for so many Americans, this day and our brave troops remind us that our future is in our own hands and that our best days lie ahead.

Thank you,

President Barack Obama

Peter what’s your take on the Calvos’ trying to move this case to California?
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GUAM – Right here on Guam and nowhere else.
Local Attorney David Lujan and his wife have filed an opposition aiming to block the Calvo and Clark law firm from moving a specific case to California.

That’s where ‘Champ’ Calvo of Calvo and Clark wants to take it. The case against Calvo and Clark is about the law firm’s alleged unjust enrichment, breach of contract and fraud when Lujan and his wife were their clients.

According to today’s filing, there is no reason to litigate this case anywhere but on Guam.

All parties to the case are Guam residents, both Calvo and Lujan’s law practices are on Guam, the contract for Calvo’s representation was negotiated and signed on Guam. And all of the legal bills generated by Calvo and Clark included Guam’s gross receipts tax and were billed in accordance with Guam law.

Lujan feels the case should be scrutinzed by the Guam courts.
Guam News Watch will bring you more as this story develops.
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Inez

To assure good health, Dr. Crinnion advises also committing yourself to reducing your exposure to toxins.

Some of these are strategies that you’re familiar with, but they’re definitely worth a reminder… while others will almost certainly surprise you…

REDUCE YOUR CHEMICAL EXPOSURES

Don’t wear your outside shoes indoors. Along with the dirt and dust from outdoors comes residue from diesel auto exhaust, lead, pesticides and other toxins.

For floors, choose wood, tile and stone, which are less likely to harbor and generate toxins than carpets.

Keep your house clean, minimizing dust-collecting knickknacks so environmental toxins don’t have the chance to accumulate.

Filter, filter, filter. Filters should be changed every six weeks in homes with a central forced-air heating/cooling system. If you have a different type, consider installing a portable air-filter system. Filter your tap water, too.

Minimize use of products that contain harmful chemicals. Buy unscented, eco-friendly cleaners and laundry detergents.

Drink and serve food from glass containers — many plastic ones are made with toxic chemicals that can leach into your food.

DON’T EAT TOXINS

Organic fruits, vegetables and meats contain the fewest toxins. It’s especially important to buy organic apples, bell peppers, blueberries, celery, cherries, imported grapes, kale, collard greens, nectarines, peaches, potatoes, spinach and strawberries, as these in nonorganic form are most likely to be drenched in pesticides.

Generally less toxic produce (meaning it’s not as important to buy organic) includes asparagus, avocado, cabbage, cantaloupe, eggplant, grapefruit, honeydew melon, kiwi, mango, onions, pineapple, sweet corn, peas, sweet potato and watermelon.

Be picky about fish. Farmed fish can contain significant levels of toxic PCBs, chemicals that can wreak havoc with your health, so eat only wild salmon and other varieties.

(This rules out most of what’s sold in restaurants and supermarkets.) Avoid fish with a high mercury content, including swordfish, shark, tuna and orange roughy — check http://www.ewg.org/safefishlist to see what’s safe to eat and what’s not.

Buy organic butter. Nonorganic butter can be high in PCBs!
By minimizing exposure to toxins and supporting your body’s innate healing processes, you can gradually take control of toxins and restore your health.

In just weeks, expect increased energy, less brain fog and fewer allergy symptoms such as congestion. Over time, if you keep up the good work, it will only get better.

Source(s):

Walter J. Crinnion, ND, professor of naturopathic medicine and chair of the environmental medicine department, Southwest College of Naturopathic Medicine & Health Sciences, Scottsdale, Arizona. Dr. Crinnion has been in practice since 1982 with a special focus on treating chronic diseases that are caused by environmental toxins. He is author of Clean, Green & Lean (Wiley). More information is available at http://www.CrinnionMedical.com.

Appalling as it has been to see the grand-scale toxic contamination resulting from the BP oil spill, in some ways it’s even more horrifying to consider that the sad truth of modern life is that we’re all soaking up dangerous chemicals all the time.

Studies show that the vast majority of us harbor traces or metabolites of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), dioxins, bisphenol A, heavy metals and other hazardous substances in our bodies.

This toxic load contributes to a wide range of maladies ranging from “mere” confusion and fatigue to diabetes, lupus and cancer.

It’s easy to feel overwhelmed and powerless in the face of information like this — but don’t. Most people can achieve real health benefits by incorporating detoxification into their health routines, said Walter J. Crinnion, ND, chair of the environmental medicine department at the Southwest College of Naturopathic Medicine & Health Sciences in Scottsdale, Arizona, and author of the just-published Clean, Green & Lean, a book about getting healthy and slim by cleaning up your diet.

Dr. Crinnion’s suggestions for how to clean up your system aren’t extreme — you’ll barely notice you’re making an effort, but I bet you will take note of how much better you feel!

CONTAMINATED AT BIRTH

Toxic exposure begins in the womb and worsens over time as chemicals accumulate in your body.

A recent study detected 232 chemicals foreign to the human body in the umbilical cord blood of 10 newborn babies from the US! The Environmental Protection Agency and World Health Organization report that about 85,000 different chemicals are currently registered for use in manufacturing and 800 new ones are introduced each year, many of which have little or no data on toxicity.

According to Dr. Crinnion, toxic chemicals can attack three primary body systems:

Your immune system. By weakening your body’s defenses, toxic chemicals contribute to allergies, asthma, autoimmune diseases such as lupus and rheumatoid arthritis, chronic viral or fungal infections, chemical sensitivity, cancers, etc.

Your nervous system. Chemicals can affect mental function, leading to fatigue, confusion, poor concentration, memory disturbances, mood swings, anxiety, depression, headaches, nerve pain, balance problems, tremors, muscle weakness and more — even, potentially, Parkinson’s disease.

Your endocrine system. Damage to the hormonal system can potentially cause early puberty and reproductive difficulties, ongoing hormonal problems, diabetes, obesity and cancers, such as liver cancer and leukemia.

PURGE YOUR BODY OF TOXINS

To stimulate excretion of toxins, Dr. Crinnion recommends…

Drink three cups of unsweetened organic green tea daily — it’s rich in antioxidant polyphenols, which help flush the toxins from your body.

Eat organic brown rice several times a week — its fiber helps move toxins out in your stool. If you don’t like brown rice, take a rice bran fiber supplement.

Include more chlorophyll in your diet. Known as “nature’s cleanser,” chlorophyll neutralizes destructive chemical pollutants and prevents the build-up of toxins.

Good food sources include green, leafy vegetables… seaweed… and green drinks such as wheat grass juice “shots” available at health-food stores. Another option: Blue green algae supplements such as spirulina and chlorella, also available at health-food stores.

The less sugar you eat, the better. It suppresses your immune system and your liver’s ability to purge toxins.

Sweat it out. With your doctor’s okay, take a sauna (about 135°F) several times a week to release toxins in your sweat. Enhance your ability to detoxify by using a loofah to remove dead skin cells and unclog pores.

DO YOU NEED A DETOX EXPERT?

Dr. Crinnion suggests everyone should follow the above strategies — but if, after giving this detox lifestyle a try for two months, you still find that you are experiencing problems such as allergies, brain fog or fatigue, consult a physician who is knowledgeable about environmental toxins.

You can find a list of physicians who have studied with Dr. Crinnion at his Web site, http://www.CrinnionMedical.com/referral.php. A trained and experienced doctor will help you identify and eliminate toxic exposures and cleanse harmful chemicals from your body with a personalized program that may include diet, supplements (e.g., magnesium, vitamin B-6, selenium and glutathione), hydrotherapy and other strategies.