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 Tuesday, October 01, 2002


News -- This was sent along from Vanessa - "Here's an interesting NY Times article about cell phones and health. Basically, there is NO evidence that cell phones pose any cancer risk...and, there are a couple quotes from one of my U-M profs, Dr. Paul Green: http://www.nytimes.com/2002/10/01/health/01BROD.html?8hpib

Comment -- I did find it interesting to read in the article about the dangers of using a cell phone while driving. It makes it much harder to concentrate on the traffic. I'm going to start pulling off the road when I have to make a call.

News - Article about the benefits of walking: http://makeashorterlink.com/?U246127F1

Comment - "Blood pressure drops within 24 to 48 hours of exercising, and will stay down with continued exercise. The risk of blood clots also drops and stays lower if you keep the walking up. Circulation improves, which makes digestion more efficient. The body becomes better at getting glucose into the muscles where it's needed, thus smoothing out blood sugar levels and helping the body process fat. The body gets better at converting fat into energy, so you lose weight more easily than with dieting alone."

The article says 30-60 minutes a day is great. That may seem like a lot, but it is cumulative and includes walking to the mailbox, walking up and down the stairs to do laundry, etc.

News - Military columnist in Washington Post says it's a "fantasy" to believe that war with Iraq is going to be very difficult: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A21598-2002Sep30.html

Comment - He blames the media and writes that "giving voice to the Iraqi fantasy betrays a massive misunderstanding of the realities of modern war." As examples, he cites the astounding accuracy of U.S. bombing and our highly trained, highly motivated and extremely lethal troops.

On the other hand, he says, the Iraqi forces are poorly trained conscripts. Plus, even the ones who are well trained and well equipped are kept under tight control by Saddam and can't possibly react quickly to fast-moving U.S. forces.

After reading a couple books on the history of the first Gulf War, I remember that one of the biggest mistakes the U.S. made was overestimating the capabilities of the Iraqi forces and having no plan in place to follow up on the disintegration of the Iraqi army. As a result, Stormin' Norman continued lumbering forward as if he were facing a tough foe, and completely missed the opportunity to bag the entire Iraqi army.

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1:25:24 PM    


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