SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Officials say soldier who shot a fellow service member at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio has surrendered and is in military custody.

A base spokesman said the gunman gave up to San Antonio police Monday afternoon. The victim is in stable condition.

Spokesman Brent Boller said the shooting took place at the Army Medical Department Center and School on the post. He did not know the nature of the incident or the motive of the shooter.

Authorities locked down the base, but reopened it two hours later.

Boller said the female victim was transported to San Antonio Military Medical Center, which is also on the post.

Fort Sam Houston is one of the oldest U.S. military bases still in operation.

By Murray Montgomery

Saturday morning, in Port O’Connor, people who say they support the troops will have the opportunity to put their words into action and actually meet some of these brave warriors. Visitors will have the unique opportunity to thank these courageous individuals who have been wounded in combat.

This seventh version of the event known as Warrior’s Weekend promises to be as gratifying as the previous ones. Wounded warriors from Brooke Army Medical Center (BAMC) in San Antonio will arrive aboard chartered buses in Port O’Connor at approximately 9:00 a.m. – the troops will be greeted by a welcoming rally and people in the crowd will have the opportunity to meet these wounded heroes.

Visitors should plan to be at the Port O’Connor Community Center prior to 9 a.m. where they can catch a shuttle bus to the docks and greet the troops. Being there when the buses arrive is, without a doubt, the high point of the day and people are encouraged to come early. The air-conditioned shuttle buses run continuously from the community center to the docks so visitors don’t have to wait long to be transported back to the main parking lot after the welcoming rally is complete.

Following their arrival and greeting by the crowd, wounded military personnel, some with family and caregivers, will immediately go from the buses to boats and begin their day of fun, fishing, and relaxation.

After the fishing, there will be a friendly competition with an official weigh-in and awards presented at a dinner to be held around 5:30 p.m. The dinner will be accompanied by music and addresses by military dignitaries and from the heroes themselves.

Click here for more information

Click here to watch my video from the 2012 Warrior’s Weekend

By Murray Montgomery

Saturday, May 18, people who say they support the troops will have the opportunity to put their words into action and actually meet some of these brave warriors and personally thank them for their service to our country.

This worthy event began in 2007 and it has grown every year since. It is a time of mixed emotions – sadness and pride. The sad part is seeing our brave heroes who’ve been badly burned; others missing limbs and some who are suffering from severe brain damage. The pride comes in knowing that we have these extraordinary individuals protecting our freedom.

Warrior’s Weekend is a time for those wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan to be treated to a day of fun, fishing, and relaxation. It’s a day when other Americans have the opportunity to shake the hand and give a hug to people who’ve made terrible sacrifices so the rest of us can remain free.

This seventh version of Warrior’s Weekend promises to be as gratifying as the previous ones. Soldiers from Brooke Army Medical Center (BAMC) in San Antonio will arrive aboard chartered buses in Port O’Connor at approximately 9:30 a.m. – the soldiers will be greeted by a welcoming rally and people in the crowd will have the opportunity to meet these wounded heroes.

Soldiers arriving from BAMC will join other wounded military personnel from all across the country who arrived earlier in the week.

Visitors should plan to be at the Port O’Connor Community Center prior to 9 a.m. where they can catch a shuttle bus to the docks and greet the troops.

The wounded soldiers, some with family and caregivers, will immediately go from the buses to boats and begin their day of fishing. The boats are manned and furnished by volunteers.

After the fishing, there will be a friendly competition with an official weigh-in and awards presented at a dinner to be held around 5:30 p.m. The dinner will be accompanied by music and addresses by military dignitaries and from the heroes themselves.

For those who would like to get an earlier start on the event, artist Gloria Fric will donate her time and talents as she will begin building a sand sculpture, Thursday, in honor of the wounded soldiers. Work on the sculpture will be in progress around the clock at the Port O’Connor Community Center until Saturday where it will be on display all day.

Medical Research

Afghan War veterans in danger of mysterious degenerative brain disease

(AFP Photo / Jose Cabezas)

 Doctors have discovered an incurable brain disease evident in a large number of soldiers returning from war, and estimate that as many as 250,000 US troops are at risk of being ravaged by the disorder next.

Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy cannot be diagnosed or adequately treated yet, Col. Dallas Hack of the Army’s Combat Casualty Care Research Program tells the Huffington Post, and scientists say that they think brain injuries developed during battle might bring up the likelihood of CTE occurring, which is characterized by bursts of anger and depression, and is believed to be able to impact motor skills and memory. And with 2.5 million Americans being able to call themselves veterans of the United States’ wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, an increasingly large proportion of them are showing symptoms of CTE.

“We don’t fully understand the incidence of CTE with the occurrence of traumatic brain injury,” Air Force Lt. Col. Randall McCafferty, chief of neurosurgery at the San Antonio Military Medical Center, adds to HuffPo. “But we may be able to learn that early treatment of the initial acute [brain] injury may avoid this cascade from brain injury to CTE.”

In some cases, military researchers add, they believe CTE is linked to instances of suicide.

So far research has suggested that those suffering from traumatic brain injuries are at a greater risk of CTE than others, which makes both soldiers and professional athletes alike more inclined to come up with a case of the disorder. More than 20 football players with the NFL have been diagnosed with CTE in the last few years, and at least two — former Chicago Bears star Dave Duerson and Hall of Famer Junior Seau — are believed to have suffered from CTE before committing suicide.

“It’s tragic that Dave Duerson took his own life, but it’s very meaningful that he recognized the symptoms of the disorder — it validates this condition,” Dr. Ann McKee, a neuropathologist, told the New York Times last year. According to the doctor, Mr. Duerson’s brain showed “no evidence of any other disorder.”

Speaking to NPR, author Chris Nowinski said that research conducted in only the last few years have allowed doctors to link CTE with athletes and others who are documented to have taken “too many blows to the head” during their professional career.

“So, you know, suicide is a very, very complex act; however, we do have a number of athletes with the disease who did commit suicide or multiple suicide attempts,” Nowinski tells NPR, “And suicide is linked to brain injury. So we need to investigate that further.”

But with CTE only being identified in recent years, the correlation between cases in the Armed Forces and suicide attempts have not been fully analyzed yet. Meanwhile, though, statistics released earlier this summer from the US Department of Defense reveal that the suicide rate for active duty servicemen in 2010 is around one-per-day.

“Four years ago we really did not understand this injury at all,” Dr. McKee tells reporters this week of the latest developments in the science community’s research into CTE. “Now we know it exists. We know it’s a problem.”

Related articles

• Afghan War veterans in danger of mysterious degenerative brain disease (EndtheLie.com)
• Degenerative Brain Disease Threatens Afghan War Vets (fromthetrenchesworldreport.com)
• What’s Happening to Our War and Sports Heroes? Emerging Research in Head Injuries (sacbee.com)
• George F. Will: Death by football, or the deadly effects of concussions on athletes (fullcomment.nationalpost.com)
• Family donates NFL player’s brain tissue to Boston University study (cleveland.legalexaminer.com)
• Did the NFL Kill Junior Seau? (blogs.lawyers.com)
• Family donates Murdock’s brain to injury study (tbo.com)
• Heading Into Brain Injury – Should We Be Concerned? (brainblogger.com)
• Family donates Murdock’s brain to study at Boston University (tbo.com)