WASHINGTON — The Air Force has decided to relieve at least five of its officers of command and is considering filing criminal charges in connection with the Aug. 29 “Bent Spear” incident in which nuclear-armed cruise missiles were mistakenly flown from North Dakota to Louisiana, two senior Air Force officials said Wednesday. The sources said that at least one colonel is expected to lose his position and that several enlisted personnel also will be punished as part of disciplinary actions that could be among the toughest meted out by the Air Force in years. The measures are expected to be formally announced Friday.
Supreme Court blocks execution
The Supreme Court stopped the execution of Virginia death row inmate Christopher Emmett on Wednesday, a move that legal experts said might signal a nationwide halt on lethal injections until the justices decide next year whether the procedure amounts to cruel and unusual punishment. The court granted the stay of execution just four hours before Emmett was to be put to death. It is the second time the justices have stopped an execution since agreeing to decide whether lethal injections carry the potential for pain that would violate constitutional standards.
Chicken farms off terror list
Chicken farms aren’t terror targets after all. The Homeland Security Department is close to releasing a list of chemicals to be included in new reporting regulations intended to keep dangerous materials out of the hands of terrorists. Under the revised list, poultry growers won’t have to file complex risk assessments for the propane they use to heat their chicken houses, two sources familiar with the regulations said. The farms had fallen under the umbrella of any business with more than 7,500 pounds of propane.
Minn.: Psychiatrist to step down
A Minnesota psychiatrist who received more than $350,000 in speaking and consulting fees from pharmaceutical companies will quit a panel that advises the state on drugs for low-income Medicaid patients. Dr. John Simon said on Wednesday that he will resign because the organization that originally asked him to serve, the Minnesota Psychiatric Society, was “a little uncomfortable with the appearance of conflict of interest” posed by his panel membership.
California: New smoking limits
Smoking in ATM lines, parks, bus stops and municipal golf courses will no longer be legal in Oakland, under an ordinance adopted by the City Council, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. The new law, which takes effect in one week, seeks to protect nonsmokers from problems associated with second-hand smoke. Oakland’s council unanimously approved the new law Tuesday. The council voted to permit smoking outside bars as long as the smoke does not enter properties where smoking is prohibited.
Archbishop issues an apology
San Francisco’s top-ranking Catholic clergyman apologized for serving Communion to two men dressed as nuns during a service in the city’s gay community. Archbishop George Niederauer said when he offered Communion to the two members of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence at the Oct. 7 Mass, he didn’t recognize either as wearing “mock religious garb.” He apologized for giving them the sacrament, calling it “a mistake.” Members of the group dress in heavy makeup and elaborate headdresses to satirize the church.
Turkey: Parliament OKs invasion
Parliament authorized the government Wednesday to carry out a cross-border attack on Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq, approving an offensive that would put Turkey at odds with the United States. There was no sign of an imminent invasion. Washington and Baghdad have pressured Ankara to show restraint. Turkish leaders signaled that they would not immediately give the order to send in troops an armor into a region that has largely escaped the chaos of the Iraq war.
Britain: Residents getting fatter
Most British citizens could be obese by 2050, a new government report warns, and the nation’s health secretary called Wednesday for a fundamental shift in the way the nation tackles obesity. He didn’t blame British eating habits, calling obesity “a consequence of abundance, convenience and underlying biology.” The number of overweight and obese people has tripled in the last 25 years. One in four adults are now obese, according to the most recent Health Study for England.
Germany: Warm spot for Nazis
A quarter of Germans believe there were some positive aspects to Nazi rule, according to a poll published Wednesday. Pollsters for the Forsa agency asked whether National Socialism also had some “good sides (such as) the construction of the highway system, the elimination of unemployment, the low criminality rate (and) the encouragement of the family.” Forsa said 25 percent responded “yes” — but 70 percent said “no.” The poll showed that people 60 or older had the highest regard for aspects of the era, with 37 percent answering “yes.”
From Herald news services
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