Friday footnotes

Nothing big and urgent that I can see today, so here are a few quickies.

First off, the House Veteran’s Affairs Committee held a hearing on the use of psychedelics like MDMA or psilocybin in treating trauma like PTS(D).

Researchers for the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies, or MAPS, have studied the safety and effectiveness of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for post-traumatic stress disorder since 2004. The protocol calls for patients taking MDMA in the presence of a therapist, who then leads them through counseling. The treatment involves three eight-hour sessions.

In September, scientists published results of a recent clinical trial of MDMA-assisted therapy that showed 87% of patients had significant improvement in PTSD symptoms four months after treatment, and by the study’s end, 71% no longer met the diagnostic criteria for post-traumatic stress disorder. Military.com

I can hear it at VA now…”Next patient: Dave?”  “Dave’s not here, man”

And from JeffLPH  – seems the Army is going to add counter-drone training to Basic Training.

The shift is a result of the growing air threat from hypersonic and cruise missiles down to hobby quadcopters, which has placed a premium on air defense platforms and soldiers.

As the Army shifts its focus to large-scale combat, air defense battalions will integrate into the division, Gainey said. Each division will have a counter-drone battery manned by air defense soldiers. The Army plans to also issue handheld gear for smaller drones down to the squad level. Army Times

Guess we will see enlistment bonuses to skeet and trap shooters soon?

Eugene Vindman (brother to the colonel who helped to create the impeachment of Trump for talking to Ukraine President Zelensky – wonder if nowadays we could try Joe Biden similarly) is running for Congress as a Democrat to replace D – Virginia rep Abigail Spanberger. Military Times II

I’m sure this is unrelated, but one should read the aptly-named analysis of the government by P.J. O’Rourke entitled “A Parliament of Whores.”

 

 

In San Francisco, anti-Israeli protesters shut down all westbound lanes of the Bay Bridge yesterday morning.

All westbound lanes across the full span of the Bay Bridge have reopened after protesters shut down Interstate 80 traffic heading to San Francisco during the Thursday morning commute. The protesters stopped their cars on the bridge, east of Treasure Island, and threw their keys into the Bay before chaining themselves together and to the bridge, according to California Highway Patrol. KRON4

Apparently 30ish vehicles had to be towed, and over 250 officers had to be called out. Not exactly “one riot, one Ranger”…but I sure hope they check the ownership of all those vehicles before releasing anyone. I doubt even hardened protesters would say “sure, take my Subaru, it’s in a good cause” if they had alternatives like a stolen Hyundai available.

In Poland’s Carpathian Mountain area, an activist decided to prove – prove! – that logging in the area had driven the native bears out, and visited an ‘unoccupied’ bear den to demonstrate it. Seems the den was occupied, and the bear resented being disturbed:

The German was airlifted to hospital following the attack and was said to be in a serious but stable condition.

He had travelled (sic) to the bear’s den alongside another activist from the Wild Carpathians Initiative to check if the area had been affected by logging.

The pair had expected the lair to be empty but the animal pursued them through the woods. The activist stumbled and fell before being mauled.

Footage of the bear emerging to attack was captured by a camera set up to monitor the lair. It was shared online by Micha? Gzowski, a spokesman for the Polish forestry service, who described the incident as an “irony of fate”.

“Pseudo-ecologists were attacking foresters, mountain rescue and policemen, and now these people are saving their lives,” he said.  MSN

Violated one of the basic rules of bears: be sure you can run faster than the fella you’re with.  Wonder if we can talk the Poles into lending San Francisco any bears?

Category: Antiwar crowd, Army, Schadenfreude, Veterans in the news, Veterans' Affairs Department