Obama: America 'forever grateful' to vets
WASHINGTON, Nov. 11 (UPI) -- U.S. President Barack Obama placed a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknowns Wednesday, and thanked veterans and active-duty forces for their service to the country.
"In this time of war, we gather here, mindful that the generations serving today already deserves a place alongside previous generations for the courage they have shown and the sacrifices that they have made," Obama said at Arlington National Cemetery across the Potomac River from Washington. "In an era where so many acted only in pursuit of narrow self-interests, they've chosen ... to serve the cause that is greater than self, many even after they knew they'd be sent into harm's way."
Before his comments, Obama placed a wreath of red, white and blue flowers at the Tomb of the Unknowns, a gravesite for unidentified-but-not-forgotten soldiers who died in battle. Afterward, Obama placed his hand over his heart as a bugler played "Taps" under drizzly skies.
For nearly a decade, America's military "endured tour after tour in distant and difficult places; they have protected us from danger, and they have given others the opportunity for a better life," Obama said. "So to all of them, to our veterans, to the fallen and to their families, there's no tribute, no commemoration, no praise that can truly match the magnitude of your service and your sacrifice. This is a place where it is impossible not to be moved by that sacrifice."
America's obligations to its service personnel don't end just because the uniform is no longer worn, Obama said.
"Our servicemen and (servicewomen) have been doing right by America for generations," the president said. "And as long as I am commander in chief, America is going to do right by them. And that is my message to all veterans (and their loved one) today. ... America will not let you down. We will take care of our own."
He acknowledged that some returning veterans, such as those returning from Vietnam, returned home to "condemnation and neglect. That's something that will never happen again.
"To them and to all who have served, in every battle, in every war, we say that it's never too late to say thank you," Obama said. "We honor your service. We are forever grateful."
-0-
Afghan options narrowed to four
WASHINGTON, Nov. 11 (UPI) -- U.S. President Barack Obama is considering four options for an Afghanistan-Pakistan strategy in discussions with his advisers, a White House spokesman said.
Obama was to meet with his security team Wednesday in the Situation Room, the White House said.
"The president will have an opportunity to discuss four options with his national security team," Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said Tuesday.
Previous media reports indicated five options were on the table.
Although the options aren't being developed, one has become fairly fleshed out, CNN reported Wednesday.
That option calls for sending about 34,000 U.S. troops to Afghanistan, deployed mainly in the south and southeast, where much of the fighting is, a senior administration official and U.S. military official independently confirmed for CNN. The plan reportedly would include three Army brigades, a Marine brigade, a headquarters element, and support troops.
The other options, the Pentagon official said, would be "different mixes," or "different components of it."
Obama also is expected to discuss the kind of cooperation the United States could expect from Afghan President Hamid Karzai, the type of civilian support the United States would be willing to provide, and the kind of support the United States could expect from other countries, the administration official told CNN.
Gibbs said the timeline for Obama's decision remained fluid.
"Anybody that tells you that the President has made a decision or ... (referred in one report as) 'tentatively agreed to,' doesn't have, in all honesty, the slightest idea what they're talking about," Gibbs said during Tuesday's briefing. "The president has yet to make a decision.
-0-
Ohio wants to use pesticide on bedbugs
COLUMBUS, Ohio, Nov. 11 (UPI) -- An Ohio official said his state has asked the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for permission to use a pesticide to kill an invasion of bedbugs.
Matt Beal, assistant chief at the Ohio Department of Agriculture, said the severity of the bedbug infestation led to state officials wanting to use the pesticide Propoxur in residences, the Columbus (Ohio) Dispatch said Wednesday.
"We are in dire straits, and we need help," Beal said.
Ohio would need an emergency exemption from EPA officials for the residential use of the pesticide, primarily designed for use on crops and in commercial buildings. Beal said EPA officials will spend months reviewing the request to determine all potential risks in the pesticide's use.
The Dispatch said the request from Ohio officials comes as state and county officials outlined the bedbug threat facing the state at the second Central Ohio Bed Bug Summit Tuesday.
"We are rapidly becoming overwhelmed," said Paul Wenning, the Franklin County Board of Health's special projects coordinator, said
"Bedbugs are crowding out other issues for us, and it's only going to get worse," he added.
-0-
Ill. boy can bring service dog to school
TUSCOLA, Ill., Nov. 11 (UPI) -- A judge in Douglas County, Ill., said a 6-year-old boy may continue to bring his autism service dog to school with him.
Circuit Judge Chris Freese ruled the Villa Grove school district must allow Kaleb Drew to attend fall classes with his service dog, Chewey, The (Champaign, Ill.) News-Gazette said Wednesday.
Tuesday's ruling was the result of a lawsuit filed by Drew's parents, Nichelle and Bradley Drew, in an attempt to force the school district to allow the Labrador retriever to attend school with their son.
"We are very pleased the judge's ruling was constitutional with the Illinois school code's provisions regarding service dogs in school," attorney Margie Wakelin, who represents the couple, said. "Chewey fits the definition of a service animal and must be permitted in the school. Judge Freese said this wasn't a close call."
School district attorney Brandon Wright told the News-Gazette that Freese did recognize the dog could pose accommodation issues for school officials.
-0-
WWII veteran's family to receive dog tag
PITTSBURGH, Nov. 11 (UPI) -- A surviving family member of World War II veteran Addison Arthurs said he is pleased he will soon receive the late Pittsburgh resident's long-lost dog tag.
Arthurs' second cousin Addison Armstrong will receive the dog tag from a 46-year-old Frenchman who first located the troop identification tag in Normandy 30 years ago, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette said Wednesday.
Armstrong said he was surprised when French national Etienne Desquesnes tracked his family down through a series of e-mails, phone calls and Internet searches.
"I was shocked," he said. "It really brought back a lot of great memories. He was very much a second father."
Arthurs, who died in 1984 of a heart attack, helped detain 400,000 German prisoners at Normandy during World War II.
Desquesnes' friend, Bertrand Goucovitch, told the Post-Gazette the Frenchman is happy Arthurs' dog tag will finally be in the hands of the former soldier's closest relative.
"Mr. Desquesnes valued this (tag) for nearly 30 years and is happy in the idea that it will go back to its owner's next-of-kin," said Goucovitch, who helped in the search for Arthurs' family.
-0-
Episcopal diocese to bless gay unions
CINCINNATI, Nov. 11 (UPI) -- The Episcopal bishop for southern Ohio has announced the diocese will begin blessing gay relationships next year.
The Right Rev. Thomas Breidenthal told delegates to the diocesan convention Friday they should not be surprised since he had written in support of same-sex unions before he was elected bishop in 2006, The Cincinnati Enquirer reported. He said the blessings would begin after Easter in 2010.
Homosexuality has been a controversial issue in the Anglican Communion since the U.S. church began ordaining openly gay priests about 20 years ago. The rift became open in 2003 when the diocese of New Hampshire, with the approval of the national General Convention, consecrated an openly gay bishop.
Some congregations and even entire dioceses have left the U.S. church recently, seeking sponsorship from conservative provinces in South America and Africa.
The General Convention this summer approved allowing openly gay bishops and the development of a liturgy for same-sex unions.
Breidenthal's diocese has 80 churches and about 25,000 members in the Cincinnati region and elsewhere in southern Ohio.
