In a perfect world a story such as I am about to relate could never have happened and would never have needed to be told, but this is not a perfect world and life does not always treat us in the manner to which we feel we deserve. We have become accustomed to accepting mediocrity and bureaucratic incompetence. Indifference and ambivalence are becoming the accepted norm. We live in a democratic society where less than half the eligible members actually participate and as a result the officials we elect owe more allegiance to the special interests that fund and support them than to the constituents they purport to represent. As a result we have enabled a system to exist where the interests of business overshadow the rights of the individual—a system where we permit industry to write the regulations intended to control their activities. We live in a society where human life is measured and analyzed compared and evaluated against the cost of doing business, where litigators feed on the misery of others while doing little to prevent the carnage on which they feed and depend. While a “kinder and gentler” government stands idly by protecting the special interests that feed the political system while hiding behind “cost to benefit” studies to justify their inaction. Under current United States Coast Guard policy a “Significant Casualty” is one that may involve multiple deaths, the loss of a ship of five hundred gross tons or larger or one that if properly investigated could lead to the implementation of changes in current standards of safety. And it is only these “Significant Casualties” that by regulation merit proper investigation. The following is a story of a young man who went off to work one morning never to return. But mostly it is the story of a man who like all men should never be allowed to be remembered as only another statistic. This is the story of one such Significant Casualty. The five-year quest receives a final punctuation when the father is granted “Party in Interest” status and has his son’s case properly reviewed at a formal United States Coast Guard Investigation. An Investigation that not only looks to the fatality but at the regulatory atmosphere that allowed the conditions to exist. The story is timely as it highlights not only a father’s quest to clear his son but also the illegal and improper inspection of oil drilling facilities in the US Gulf of Mexico. According to World Oil (Feb 2010 issue) at the end of 2009 there were 2,237 oil wells in the Federal waters of the Gulf and 242 more in the state waters of Louisiana. All working under regulations written by the industry. An industry more interested in profits than safety. In April of 2010, President Barack Obama, while addressing the issues surrounding mine safely following the deaths in West Virginia, was quoted as saying, “A failure first and foremost of management, a failure of oversight and a failure of laws so riddled with loopholes that companies repeatedly can violate safety regulations without penalty.” Those same comments ring true for the oil drilling companies of this country. As horrific as the mine disaster was in West Virginia, more workers die in the underwater workplace each year then do in all the nation’s mines.

Counting Civilian Casualties aims to promote open scientific dialogue by high lighting the strengths and weaknesses of the most commonly used casualty recording and estimation techniques in an understandable format.

Americans are greatly concerned about the number of our troops killed in battle--33,000 in the Korean War; 58,000 in Vietnam; 4,500 in Iraq--and rightly so. But why are we so indifferent, often oblivious, to the far greater number of casualties suffered by those we fight and those we fight for? This is the compelling, largely unasked question John Tirman answers in The Deaths of Others. Between six and seven million people died in Korea, Vietnam, and Iraq alone, the majority of them civilians. And yet Americans devote little attention to these deaths. Other countries, however, do pay attention, and Tirman argues that if we want to understand why there is so much anti-Americanism around the world, the first place to look is how we conduct war. We understandably strive to protect our own troops, but our rules of engagement with the enemy are another matter. From atomic weapons and carpet bombing in World War II to napalm and daisy cutters in Vietnam and beyond, our weapons have killed large numbers of civilians and enemy soldiers. Americans, however, are mostly ignorant of these methods, believing that American wars are essentially just, necessary, and "good." Trenchant and passionate, The Deaths of Others forces readers to consider the tragic consequences of American military action not just for Americans, but especially for those we fight against.

Problems contacting emergency services and delayed assistance are not unusual when incidents occur in rural areas, and the consequences can be devastating, particularly with mass casualty incidents. The IOM's Forum on Medical and Public Health Preparedness for Catastrophic Events held a workshop to examine the current capabilities of emergency response systems and the future opportunities to improve mass casualty response in rural communities.

The new edition of Major Incident Medical Management and Support is a vital component in the blended learning course from Advanced Life Support Group (ALSG), which aims to provide hospital staff at all levels with essential information on the preparation, management and support elements of dealing with casualties in a major incident. Split into five sections, each focuses on the elements requisite in preparing for, and responding, to a major incident. The first section discusses the epidemiology and incidences of major incidents and the structured approach to the hospital response. The second section contains the preparation required in planning for major incidents, including equipment and training. The third section covers the management of a major incident, concentrating on the clinical, nursing and management hierarchies. The fourth includes the various stages of support in a major incident, including declaring an incident and activating the plan, the reception, triage, definitive care and recovery phases of an incident. The final section focuses on special incidents which require additional consideration, including those involving hazardous chemicals, burns and children. Written in collaboration with the National Emergency Planning, Major Incident Medical Management and Support is an invaluable reference in the emergency department and beyond for staff needing to prepare for the rare, but inevitable, hospital major incidence response.

The first biography of the man who served as the U.S. Army’s chief administrative officer from 1942 to 1946 and helped the Allies win World War II. Major General James A. Ulio helped win World War II, though his war was fought from the desk. As adjutant-general throughout the war years, many American families would have recognized his name from one of nearly 900,000 telegrams he signed—all of which began with the words: “. . . regret to inform you . . .” However, his role was far wider than overseeing these sad communications. Ulio faced the task of building an Army large enough to fight wars in Europe, North Africa and the Pacific. Through his efforts, the Army increased in size from around 200,000 soldiers to eight million—in less than five years. He advocated and navigated around lowering the draft age to eighteen. He led and oversaw training efforts that quickly and efficiently prepared soldiers. The general correctly projected that those methods would be a positive outcome of the war. His team identified the appropriate allocation for incoming troops. In order to field sufficient troops to ensure an Allied victory, Ulio had to address and challenge commonly held beliefs on race and gender. It was his order in 1944 that ended segregation on military transportation and in recreational facilities on Army posts. Through radio addresses, newspaper interviews, and public appearances, Ulio became the face of the Army during the war. He served as troop morale booster, advocate, and cheerleader for the war effort. Finally, he led demobilization planning to bring home millions of soldiers after the war, transitioning them back into civilian life. The son of an immigrant career soldier, General Ulio grew up on Army posts and had an eleventh-grade education. A West Point alternate, Ulio enlisted as a private in the U.S. Army in 1900. In 1904, he earned his commission as a lieutenant, and served in France during World War I. Without a college degree, he graduated from the Army's Command and Staff School and the Army War College and five colleges would eventually award him honorary doctorates. Ulio’s military career spanned 45 years and he served as military aide to two presidents. This biography sets Ulio’s achievements in context and explores the magnitude of his part in facilitating an Allied victory World War II. Praise for Major General James A. Ulio “Mesches’ research overwhelmingly demonstrates that the general was a transformational leader, that he significantly reinterpreted and expanded the roles and responsibilities of the Army’s Adjutant General Corps, and in many ways, was a secret weapon in the success of the Army during World War II as well as today.” —Military Review