February 14, 2007
«"'ÏJortkmb (Observer Black History Month
Page A2
F ie r c e D e b a t e in C o n g r e s s o n I r a q W a r
Faceoff comes four years
after battle began
(A P ) -- H o u se m e m b e rs
fiercely debated Iraq war policy
Tuesday in an em otional and his­
toric floor faceoff over a conflict
that Speaker Nancy Pelosi lam ­
basted as a U.S. com m itm ent
with "no end in sight."
T he co n flu en ce o f argum ents
cam e as the w ar nears the four-
y e a r p o in t w ith o v e r 3 ,1 0 0
A m erican d eaths, b illio n s spent
and law m akers g rap p lin g w hat
position to take on P resident
B ush's d ecision to send an a d ­
d itio n a l 2 1 ,5 0 0 tro o p s in to
battle.
"The A m erican people have
lost faith in P resident B ush’s
co u rse o f action in Iraq and
they are d em anding a new d i­
rection," said Pelosi, a C a lifo r­
nia D em ocrat w ho becam e the
first fem ale H ouse speak er a f­
ter her party took control o f
both the H ouse and Senate in
the fall elections.
A r e s o lu tio n p u ttin g th e
H o u se on re c o rd as a g a in st
B u s h 's e x p a n s io n o f tro o p
stren g th w as e x p e c te d to he
approved by w eek's end. It was
n o n b in d in g , but n e v e rth e le ss
u n m istak ab le in its m essage.
"N o m ore b la n k c h e c k s fo r
President Bush on Iraq," Pelosi
declared.
Republicans, now the m inor­
ity party on the Hill for the time in
12 years, issued im passioned
w arnings o f the consequences
o f underm ining the president's Iraqis chant slogans while protesting Tuesday after British troops arrested a government power
p o lic ie s in Iraq . "W e w ill distribution engineer in Basra in southern Iraq. (AP photo)
em bolden terrorists in every cor­
D em ocrats called on several against further com m itm ents in
ner in the world. We will give B oehner, R -O hio. "A nd w ho
Iran free access to the Middle doesn't believe the terrorists will freshm en w ho served in the mili­ Iraq.
Rep. Patrick M urphy, D-Pa.,
tary to m ake th e ir arg u m en t
East," said Republican leader John just follow our troops home?"
a captain in the Army 82nd A ir­
borne, said that "three years after
I left Iraq, A m ericans are still
running convoys up and down
Am bush Alley and securing Iraqi
street corners."
Bush's decision last m onth to
d e p lo y an a d d itio n a l 2 1 ,5 0 0
troops to help stop sectarian vio­
len ce has q u ic k ly b e co m e a
flashpoint for critics o f the war
in Congress. There are currently
about 141,000 Am erican troops
in Iraq and 27,000 in A fghani­
stan.
The nonbinding measure states
sim ply that the House "will con­
tinue to support and protect"
troops serving in Iraq but that it
" d is a p p r o v e s " o f th e tro o p
buildup.
W hile such legislation can nei­
ther force Bush's hand nor bring
the war to a close, the vote could
be a politically em barrassing re­
jection o f his Iraq policy and help
Democrats reassert congressional
oversight o f the war.
Father Says Son was Tortured to Death
continued
from Front
James P. Chasse Jr. died last
September after he was arrested
following a foot chase by officers
who said they thought he was on
drugs or drunk after urinating in
public.
Chasse, 42. suffered from schizo­
phrenia. During the arrest, he suf­
fered broken ribs that caused mas­
sive internal bleeding.
"He was a gentle and a kind man
who was in good physical health...
but his life was brought to a tragic
end." Tom Steenson, the attorney
for the family, said at a Thursday
news conference.
officers or from the paramedics who
A grand jury found no criminal he lived on a Sunday afternoon, car­
were called to the scene, the family's
wrongdoing by the two Portland rying a sandwich and some comic
police officers and a Multnomah books in his backpack, when he was attorney said.
But none of the officers, the am­
confronted by the three officers.
County sheriffs deputy.
bulance
crew or deputies at the jai I
"Over the ensuing few minutes,
But Steenson accused the three
where
Chasse
was taken after his
officers - O fficer C hristopher and again without cause or provo­
arrest
provided
any medical assis­
Humphreys, Sgt. Kyle Nice and cation, James was repeatedly and
tance
-
"not
any
medical
help what­
Deputy Bret Burton - o f "a deliber­ viciously punched, struck, kicked
soever,"
Steenson
said.
and kneed in the head, the back, the
ate cover up."
Chasse died while Humphreys
After realizing there were many ribs and the chest. He was also
and
Burton were taking him to a
witnesses, the officers told them repeatedly Tasered," he said.
hospital
in a patrol car after jail
Eleven of 12 ribs in the left side
that Chasse was on drugs, had been
deputies
refused
to accept him be­
convicted on cocaine charges, was of his chest along the back were
cause
he
had
gone
into convul­
fractured,
leaving
sharp
edges
that
a transient and had no identifica­
sions
and
stopped
breathing,
ac­
caused
the
bleeding,
Steenson
said.
tion - "none of which was true,"
cording
to
the
complaint.
But
Chasse
could
have
survived
Steenson said.
William McCall is a reporter fo r
The attorney said Chasse was the injuries if he had received
Associated
Press in Portland.
prompt
medical
attention
from
the
walking in the neighborhood where
B ig N ig h tat the Grammys
Ludacris and Mary J. Blige perform the song 'Runaway Love'
at the 49th Annual Grammy Awards on Sunday in Los
Angeles. It was a big night for women, with Blige, the Dixie
Chicks and Carrie Underwood winning some o f the most
prestigious awards. (AP photo)
Frenzy over Anna
Nicole’s Death
W eb, b lo g s
ex p re ss g rie f
Fans of Anna Nicole Smith aren’t
making pilgrimages to the place
where she spent her final days.
T h e y 're not leav in g flo w ers.
They’re not gathering in crowds to
express their grief. Instead, emo­
tions are being expressed in a way
as uniquely modem as Smith's fame
— on blogs, Web pages and online
Anna Nicole Smith
message boards where true fans
battle naysayers to get their voices recuperating from breast surgery
at the time o f her death and was
heard.
“ I loved her,” fans beam. “I miss prescribed multiple painkillers for
her,” others write. “She was beau­ her recovery.
The medical examiner who per­
tiful," they say.
The 39-year-old former Playboy formed an autopsy on Smith’s body
Playmate died unexpectedly on said it could take weeks to deter­
Thursday during a stay in Holly­ mine the cause of death. No illegal
drugs were discovered in Smith’s
wood, Fla.
On Sunday. MSNBC reported room at the hotel where she col­
Smith had had at least tw o sur­ lap sed T h u rsd a y . H ow ever,
geries since giving birth to her MSNBC reported that about lOdif-
daughter five months ago, one of ferent medications were found in
w h ic h w as b re a s t s u rg e ry . Smith's hotel room closet, and open
Sources, speaking on condition prescription bottles were found on
of anonymity, said Smith had been the hotel room nightstand.
Marijuana Eases Foot Pain
HIV-related
study finds
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4
(A P) — Smoking marijuana eased
HIV-related pain in some patients
in a small study that nevertheless
represented one of the few rigor­
ous attempts to find out if the drug
has medicinal benefits.
The study, conducted at San
Francisco General Hospital from
2003 to 2005 and published Mon­
day in the journal Neurology, in­
volved 50 patients suffering from
HIV-related foot pain known as
peripheral neuropathy. There are
no drugs specifically approved to
treat that kind of pain.
Half the patients received mari­
juana, while the other 25 received
placebo cigarettes that lacked the
drug's active ingredient, tetrahy­
drocannabinol. Scientists said the
study was the first one published
that used a com parison group,
which is generally considered the
gold standard for scientific re­
search.
Many critics of smoked mari­
juana agree THC has promise as a
painkiller, but they argue the smoke
itself is harmful.