Prisoner Abuse of the Waistline

Talk or Diet

I was absolutely dumbfounded when I read this story in the Chicago Tribune. Simply put, prisoners being held at Guantanamo Bay are getting fat. Due to the abundance of food available to prisoners at Gitmo and of course the high calorie count, these prisoners who before being captured were eating scraps that our homeless wouldn't even eat are now gorging themselves to the point that one detainee has nearly doubled his weight and is currently tipping the scales at 410 pounds. That's one big potential suicide bomber.

Only the United States would provide prisoners with enough food that they would actually gain weight. Human rights groups have claimed that released prisoners complained they were often allowed to exercise fewer than 3 times a week...poor baby, do some jumping jacks or push ups and shut your fat face.


I wonder if Daniel Pearl was given 3 large square meals a day before his head was sliced off. Did those Fox News reporters put on weight when they were being held hostage? The world only condemns the treatment of prisoners we hold, who incidentally never had it so good, but remains silent when it's revealed how brutal prisoners of Islamic extremists are treated.

As Americans we are held by a much higher standard than the rest of the world. However, no matter what we do or how humane we treat people, the world or at least the American press want to only dwell on the negatives. No better example is the Abu Graib incident. The events that occurred were perpetuated by a few idiotic soldiers and they were undoubtedly shameful. However, the entire U.S. military was found guilty, while the torture and beheading of Daniel Pearl is still viewed by the world as the behavior of a few extremists. Another reminder that in the court of public opinion we can never win.

I'll never forget a statement made by a very good friend of mine during the Abu Graib incident. He made the comment that an Islamic male being raped is worse than an American female being sexually assaulted. He claimed that it had to do with their society and culture. So what those few soldiers did to those few prisoners was even worse than a women being dragged into an alley, beaten and raped by a psycho. It's that type of thinking that downplays the horrors committed by terrorists and claims playing loud music and sleep deprivation are forms of torture. Meanwhile the prisoners at gitmo are getting fat off the bountiful food supplied by John Q Taxpayer and Uncle Sam.

Breast Cancer Awareness

When I was first diagnosed with Cancer in 1985 about 1 in 3.5 people could expect to be diagnosed with some form of the disease in their lifetime. At the same time about 1 in 9 woman would learn they had breast cancer. Today the statistics are about 1 in 2.5 will get Cancer, while 1 in 7 woman will develop Breast Cancer. Believe it or not these numbers are not necessarily negative.

The fact is that Americans are more aware of their risk for cancer, so they are seeing the doctor more regularly, woman are doing self-examinations and getting mammograms, so more cases are being diagnosed. The good news is that more and more people are beating the disease due to early detection and advancements in treatment.

October is Breast Cancer awareness month, so please take this opportunity to educate yourself on your risks, schedule a Mammogram and do a self-diagnosis or better yet schedule a breast exam with your doctor. Hey guys you aren't off the hook either. If your over forty get your Prostate checked out and if you smoke get a chest X-Ray. I won't harp on you to quit, you already know you should.

Paulie