Watercooler Stories

U.S.: Terrorism rising, not declining

WASHINGTON, June 10 (UPI) -- The U.S. State Department said Thursday it made a mistake when it reported a global decline in terror attacks last year.

The State Department's annual counter-terrorism report for 2003 said only 190 acts of terrorism were recorded last year, less than in any year since 1969.

The Bush administration used the April report to claim it was winning the war against terrorism.

But Secretary of State Colin Powell acknowledged Thursday that global terror attacks were on the rise and his department made "an honest mistake" when it projected otherwise.

State Department spokesman Richard Boucher told a briefing in Washington the report was now being revised and "the figures for the number of attacks and casualties will be up sharply from what was published."

Powell, however, dismissed the suggestion the report might have been manipulated to back the administration's claim that its campaign against terror was a success.

"I can assure it had nothing to do with putting out anything but the most honest, accurate information we can," he said.

Boucher said his department received a letter from Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., pointing out the mistakes in the report.

Philip Morris to appeal $79M Oregon award

PORTLAND, Ore., June 10 (UPI) -- Philip Morris USA said it planned to take its appeal of a $79.5 million punitive-damage award in a smoking case to the Oregon Supreme Court.

The company said Thursday it still maintained the award was too high regardless of a state appeals court's determination the 1999 award to the family of late smoker Jesse Williams was appropriate.

The Portland Oregonian said the Oregon Court of Appeals determined on review its original award was correct based on what it saw as outrageous conduct by the tobacco giant.

Philip Morris, however, insisted that a 2003 U.S. Supreme Court decision limited punitive damages to a ratio of 9:1 to the compensatory award; the Oregon decision leaves intact what amounts to a 152:1 ratio.

A company official said the award would be appealed to the state high court where Philip Morris would seek a new trial.

Tongue studs carry serious health risks

CHICAGO, June 10 (UPI) -- Tongue piercings put people at risk for serious, potentially fatal infections, such as Ludwig's angina or endocarditis, U.S. researchers said.

Many people know that oral piercings can cause chipped teeth, recessed gums and nerve damage, but tongue piercings can cause greater risks because they are open wounds, said researchers at the Academy of General Dentistry.

The piercing hole allows bacteria to travel through the bloodstream, which can lead to Ludwig's angina, an infection of the floor of the mouth that causes swelling and can close off the airway.

People with a history of heart defects also are at risk for endocarditis, which occurs when bacteria infect the heart through the bloodstream.

Because most body piercers are not medical professionals, people do not usually receive antibiotics or postoperative care needed to keep infections from becoming fatal, and people may not know when swelling is abnormal, researchers said.

Ludwig's angina can be treated with an incision and drainage, and endocarditis with antibiotics.

Newborns get dead dad's Social Security

SAN FRANCISCO, June 10 (UPI) -- A federal appeals court in San Francisco says twins conceived from the frozen sperm of a dead man can collect his Social Security benefits.

The Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Wednesday ruled 3-0 that 7-year-old twins in Tucson who were conceived 10 months after their father died of cancer must be paid benefits, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. It is the first ruling by an appeals court on the issue.

Robert Netting was diagnosed with cancer in December 1994 but made a deposit at a sperm bank before beginning chemotherapy. His wife, Rhonda Gillett-Netting, had two miscarriages before her husband's diagnosis.

When Gillett-Netting gave birth to twins in August 1996 and applied for benefits based on her husband's earnings, Social Security officials ruled the newborns were not Netting's dependents at the time of his death, and a federal judge agreed.

"Developing reproductive technology has outpaced federal and state laws, which currently do not address directly the legal issues created by posthumous conception," said Judge Betty Fletcher in reversing the federal judge's ruling.