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Metal of Dishonor: How Depleted Uranium Penetrates Steel, Radiates People and Contaminates the Environment
The drastic health and environmental consequences of a new generation of radioactive weapons, Depleted Uranium (DU), currently being used in U.S.-waged wars are discussed in these essays. This "new kind of nuclear war" is examined alongside the effects on Vietnam and Gulf war veterans and the indigenous people on whose land these weapons are being tested. Among the issues covered are the collaborative military and media cover-up of DU, the government's denial of DU's toxic effects, uranium development on Native American land, nuclear testing on the Marshall Islands, and radioactive residue in the Middle East. Contributors include Ramsey Clark, Pat Broudy, and Helen Caldicott. Official government documents on DU and its effects and charts illustrating where DU is tested and stored in the United States are included for further examination.
238 pages, Paperback
First published September 1, 2004
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March 26, 2022
Appalling, barbaric and amoral! This was a little book, but big on information. It had twenty eight chilling chapters divided up evenly into: How Depleted Uranium (DU) effected Gulf War veterans; The politics of war and how the Pentagon covered it up; Indigenous people of America victimized by military radiation and the environmental costs and legal issues with it. This person found the chapters by Carol H. Picou (living with DU in the body), Manuel Pino (Indian Land), Glen Callay, (the Marshall Islands) Dr. Helen Caldicott (A new kind of nuclear war) and Dr. Rosalie Bertell (nine legged frogs) were particularly heart wrenching.
DU was used by the US military because of its’ incredible dense property and was even able to penetrate armored vehicles. Indeed, it was used as armour-piercing bullets and was even described as a ‘silver bullet’ that would change warfare forever. Unfortunately for anyone in a war zone, DU has some quite devastating health consequences. DU burns upon impact and releases tiny microns (aerosolized particles) into the air which which then can be inhaled into the lungs or even ingested into the gut. Some of these tiny particles can be radioactive (but not all of them) and can be carcinogenic.
These particles are not surprisingly, carried by the wind and in the dusty sand storms of Iraq these can travel upon to 25 miles or so. Not surprisingly, uranium can be quite detrimental to the body ~ it can cause cancers to the body, the body can get leukemia, it can cause genetic mutations and death. If these particles are inhaled, the uranium can stay in the lungs for many years; It can concentrate in the kidneys too (causing cancers there as well renal failure) and inhaled or ingested uranium can also be transported around the body in the blood stream exposing other organs to its' carcinogenic effects. A truly evil and vile agent to be used in war. It should be banned around the world and should not have been ever used.
In the Iraqi War, DU wasn’t used on a small number of shells or sparingly used, but instead it was used on almost a million shells. There were 940,000 small DU shells fired from US planes while 14,000 large DU shells were shot from tanks. Also, it was estimated that over three hundred tonnes of DU was left behind by the US military as well. On top of all that, it is estimated that five hundred thousand tonnes of DU has been stockpiled by the US. But what was most repulsive of all, was to read that the US has even made business out of trading DU military technology to other countries such as Greece, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Korea, Bahrain and Israel to name a few.
In Vietnam, the US used Agent Orange which poisoned the landscape and killed soldiers on both sides. Now the US has gone one step further and used DU to do the same again. This time, however, DU has a half life of at least 250,000 years for all the world to see and eventually they will see it. But for the short-term, they have gotten away with it again because the US have all the Western mainstream media calling them the “good guys” while Saddam Hussein and the Iraqi army the “bad guys”. The US army are good at covering up all their mistakes as well. But, 250,000 years is a long long time and the world will eventually get smart about they failure to come clean on the brutal effects that DU has had on men, women, children and soldiers on both sides of the war. The US didn’t even need to use DU because the Iraqi army were completely outgunned by the US from the get go. They weren’t ever able to destroy, for example, a US bomber plane, an air craft carrier or even a tank in the field. Yet, the US went along with using almost a million DU shells to do their dirty work and it most certainly was dirty! Appallingly so!
All in all a very sombre read that left this reader angry, sad, pensive which has rightly stirred anti-war, anti-nuclear and anti-US feelings. Imagine how the Iraqi people must feel about the US these days. 5 Stars.
DU was used by the US military because of its’ incredible dense property and was even able to penetrate armored vehicles. Indeed, it was used as armour-piercing bullets and was even described as a ‘silver bullet’ that would change warfare forever. Unfortunately for anyone in a war zone, DU has some quite devastating health consequences. DU burns upon impact and releases tiny microns (aerosolized particles) into the air which which then can be inhaled into the lungs or even ingested into the gut. Some of these tiny particles can be radioactive (but not all of them) and can be carcinogenic.
These particles are not surprisingly, carried by the wind and in the dusty sand storms of Iraq these can travel upon to 25 miles or so. Not surprisingly, uranium can be quite detrimental to the body ~ it can cause cancers to the body, the body can get leukemia, it can cause genetic mutations and death. If these particles are inhaled, the uranium can stay in the lungs for many years; It can concentrate in the kidneys too (causing cancers there as well renal failure) and inhaled or ingested uranium can also be transported around the body in the blood stream exposing other organs to its' carcinogenic effects. A truly evil and vile agent to be used in war. It should be banned around the world and should not have been ever used.
In the Iraqi War, DU wasn’t used on a small number of shells or sparingly used, but instead it was used on almost a million shells. There were 940,000 small DU shells fired from US planes while 14,000 large DU shells were shot from tanks. Also, it was estimated that over three hundred tonnes of DU was left behind by the US military as well. On top of all that, it is estimated that five hundred thousand tonnes of DU has been stockpiled by the US. But what was most repulsive of all, was to read that the US has even made business out of trading DU military technology to other countries such as Greece, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Korea, Bahrain and Israel to name a few.
In Vietnam, the US used Agent Orange which poisoned the landscape and killed soldiers on both sides. Now the US has gone one step further and used DU to do the same again. This time, however, DU has a half life of at least 250,000 years for all the world to see and eventually they will see it. But for the short-term, they have gotten away with it again because the US have all the Western mainstream media calling them the “good guys” while Saddam Hussein and the Iraqi army the “bad guys”. The US army are good at covering up all their mistakes as well. But, 250,000 years is a long long time and the world will eventually get smart about they failure to come clean on the brutal effects that DU has had on men, women, children and soldiers on both sides of the war. The US didn’t even need to use DU because the Iraqi army were completely outgunned by the US from the get go. They weren’t ever able to destroy, for example, a US bomber plane, an air craft carrier or even a tank in the field. Yet, the US went along with using almost a million DU shells to do their dirty work and it most certainly was dirty! Appallingly so!
All in all a very sombre read that left this reader angry, sad, pensive which has rightly stirred anti-war, anti-nuclear and anti-US feelings. Imagine how the Iraqi people must feel about the US these days. 5 Stars.
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