SATURDAY, 11 SEPTEMBER 2004 - A WACKY IRAQI
 
Today is the three year anniversary of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon.  To the best of my knowledge there was no official ceremony or events here on post so everyone remembered the day in their own way.  Every time I wrote a prescription today (and I wrote a lot of them, I worked the night shift as well) I was reminded that the date was September 11th.  When I think of 9/11, it makes me realize why we are here.  We are here as part of the War on Terrorism.  I don't want to get too political here, but Saddam was an evil dictator who used his power to advance his own interests and suppress the common people of Iraq.  This type of rogue state is a breeding ground for terrorists.  Saddam's blatant disregard for all the UN resolutions passed since 1991 showed a complete lack of respect for international law.  Saddam needed to be held accountable for over a decade of criminal actions.  The control of Iraq needs to be given to the people.  This is not about oil as so many people try to claim, this is about putting an end to terrorism, so the US can be a safer place.  So our spouses and children can get on airplanes, go to public buildings, or go about their daily routines and not have to worry about terrorist acts.  This is why I think we are here.

I don't know how to transition from that, but let's go back to talking about patients.  I do that a heck of a lot better than I talk about politics.  As I mentioned I had the night shift.  There were not a lot of patients, but there was a steady flow.  We had two patients with kidney stones.  It is amazing what an increased incidence of kidney stones we see out here.  It is strange; maybe due to the chronic mild dehydration that everyone suffers in the heat here, maybe due to the mineral content of the bottled water, maybe Gulf War 2 Syndrome (just kidding), who knows.  I also admitted an Iraqi FPS (I think that stands for Force Protection Services, but don't hold me to that.  It is an Iraqi law enforcement agency that does a lot of security coverage for public buildings - banks, schools, airfields, etc.) with a presumed appendicitis.  Part of the work-up included a CT scan with rectal contrast.  This involved inserting a small tube into his rectum and infusing about a liter and a half of fluids (A LOT!).  He told me if he knew it involved this procedure he never would have come in.  I told him sometimes in medicine the treatment is worse than the cure.  Our most interesting patient was a recent "detainee" who was high on something.  Earlier in the evening he approached one of the local FOB's front gate and started saying inappropriate things to the MP's working the gate.  Basically he was talking about how he fights with the insurgents and his god told him to turn himself in.  He had a minor abrasion on his elbow, so the local detention facility would not accept him till he was evaluated by a physician.  Just my luck.  The MP's brought him here and this guy was a bit strange.  His English was very good; when I asked him how he learned to speak English, he replied, "from my god."  He was actually trying to quote Shakespeare.  He was a bit inappropriate with some of our female medics, attempting to grab the arm of our radiology technician.  He also told this same female that she was going to hell.  He kept telling me "look into my eyes, you can see the future..."  Yeah Dude, the future don't look so great for you right now...   Turns out this guy works as a security guard for the Iraqi Public Library in Nineveh (a major historical region of Northern Iraq).  I am not sure if someone slipped him a "Mickey," or if he received some bad drugs, or he was intentionally on this high.  But he was certainly on something and it was going to cost him.  When it was time to go the MP's said, "let's go."  The Wacky Iraqi said, "15 more minutes," (like a litlle child!).  The MP's then had to use a little pressure to get him to get going out the door.

On a much lighter note, I would like to say Happy Birthday to my nephew Harrison.  His birthday actually is not until the 13th, but he celebrated his 2nd birthday today with a big party.  Here are a few pictures.

Too Cool

Mom, Dad, and the Birthday Boy

With Our Buddy Elmo