DATELINE–Belgrade

Colorado Massacre May Have Played Role in NATO Strike on Serbian Television Headquarters

A report published in the Italian newspaper La Stampa suggests that the NATO strike on Serbia’s chief television transmitter was meant to prevent the broadcast of graphic footage from the Littleton, Colo., school massacre. Missiles destroyed Belgrade’s main television transmitter in the predawn hours Friday.

According to unnamed sources quoted in the Italian daily, Serbian television had been preparing to broadcast illegally obtained copies of the surveillance footage from Columbine High School, the site of the tragic shooting spree April 20. The footage purportedly captures the two teenage gunmen as they patrolled the Colorado school in search of victims. Shortly after NATO forces destroyed the Belgrade television facility, the Serbian government resumed broadcasts over the Internet. Despite various reports confirming that Radio Television Serbia is in possession of “sensitive” video connected with the American high school massacre, no such footage has been aired.

Serbia’s foreign minister, Nebojsa Vujovic, vehemently denied the allegations that Milosevic’s government plans to use the Colorado incident as part of an escalating propaganda war. Earlier this month, Serbian television broadcast the movie “Wag the Dog” for three consecutive days.

At least 10 people died and an additional 20 are missing as a result of the April 23 NATO attack on the television facility, which temporarily cut off direct transmissions to Kosovo and the troubled region’s northern provinces. The strategic bombing was sharply criticized by Western journalists and even high-ranking members of the NATO alliance. On Friday afternoon the Italian foreign minister Lamberto Dini decried the attack, saying, “It is terrible, and I disapprove of it.”

Meanwhile, NATO has begun beaming television broadcasts at Yugoslav viewers via a U.S. Air Force “Commando Solo” aircraft, a converted Hercules military transport airplane capable of transmitting radio and television signals. Commando Solo aircraft were previously used in military operations in Grenada, Panama, Haiti, and during the Gulf War. Over the course of the past week, Serbian media have provided modest coverage of the Colorado murders, although experts predict that Serbian news coverage may become increasingly hostile to the United States as the conflict intensifies. On Internet news services dedicated to Kosovo, the tragedy in Colorado has been repeatedly invoked to throw suspicion on U.S. involvement in the regional conflict.

Yet even if Serbian television were to air graphic images of the Colorado school shootings, most political analysts agree that the tactic would do little to bolster Milosevic’s campaign outside of Yugoslavia. According to James Lusbeih, a political correspondent for the Christian Science Monitor, “It might score some points among frustrated Serbs, but it will only further ostracize Milosevic from the West.”

As to the possibility of “domestic embarrassment” factoring into last week’s bombing of Serb broadcasting facilities, Pentagon spokesperson Kenneth H. Bacon angrily dismissed the question. Instead, Bacon reaffirmed the bombings as consistent with NATO’s mission in the region. “Serb TV is as much a part of Milosevic’s murder machine as his military is,” Bacon said.

Media analysts predict the chilling surveillance video may be available on the Internet before Serbian television decides whether to incorporate the American tragedy at Columbine High into a broader propaganda campaign.

DATELINE–Los Angeles

Whitney Combs, a professional dog walker, is behind bars.

Because Combs’ offense involved material damages in the neighborhood of $10,000, she will have to spend the next three weeks in a Los Angeles County jail while awaiting arraignment on felony charges. She shares her cramped 8 by 12 foot cell with a female gang member who was arrested for assault. Combs says she is having difficulty sleeping and cries for several hours each night.

Yet it is not so much her own fate which saddens Combs as that of her “fellow” animals. “I may be in a concrete jail,” she asserts, “but the animals I tried to help are in a far worse prison.”

Last week Combs and a male companion were apprehended after attempting to steal three of her charges: a two year-old Norfolk Terrier, a six year-old Rottweiler, and a 3 year-old Papillon. In a statement made to police shortly after her arrest, the dogwalker says she was forced to take custody of the animals when she detected signs of abuse.

However the abuse Combs claims to have discovered was not physical. In fact, it may not even be considered abuse under current law. According to the 26 year-old petcare worker, the animals were suffering because they were being drugged against their will. The dogs’ owners and local authorities did not agree.

But what might have ended as a bizarre contract dispute between Combs and her clients has instead become the flashpoint of a national campaign to ban the prescription of mood-altering drugs for companion animals. Earlier this week, the animal-rights organization People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals offered to foot the bill for the legal representation of Combs and her co-defendant.

PETA’s involvement in Combs’ legal defense is the latest volley in what has already become a hot debate within the animal right’s community. Some activists believe that using antidepressant or antianxiety drugs such as Prozac or Xanax as a remedy for pet-related problems is unethical. Others contend that using medical solutions to alleviate behavioral problems is in the best interest of pets as well as their owners.

Richard Taber, a 62 year-old veterinarian in Long Beach, says he has had great success prescribing Novartis AG’s Clomicalm to pets that suffer from separation anxiety. Taber also relies upon a drug called Anipryl to treat senility in dogs. “For pet owners who work away from home,” explains Taber, “there is often little else they can do to alleviate the suffering of their lonely pets.” Loneliness often leads to serious behavioral problems like increased vocalization (barking), hypersalivation, and inappropriate elimination.

Taber is not alone in his use of prescription medications to help owners deal with problem pets. Drug maker Pfizer Inc. estimates the U.S. retail market for pet pharmaceuticals reached $2.6 billion last year, up 10% from 1997. Drugs for animals diagnosed with obsessive compulsive or cognitive disorders, and even depression are all currently available.

Not all animal healthcare specialists share the enthusiasm for doggie drugs. Alice McCandless is an animal behaviorist with the Orange County Humane Society. She believes the rush to dose companion animals is a symptom of greater societal problems. “If your environment is making your pet sick,” asserts McCandless, “you should be thinking about improving your environment rather than distorting your pet’s psyche.”

PETA spokesperson Rahula Isackson takes an even stronger tack. “What’s at stake is more than proscribing Prozac for pets.” Isackson wants to make the Combs case a watershed moment in the fight against animal abuse. Says the PETA official, “We need pet companions – people – to treat animals as individuals with feelings, families, and friendships, not just as toys, possessions,or commodities.”

Rhetoric aside, old school veterinarians like Taber give little credence to the notion that pets are actually worse off when receiving medication. “We’re talking about pets, here, not wild animals,” argues Taber, “they’ve been bred to complement human society. If their owners can benefit from antidepressants why can’t they?”

Dateline–Tax Day

E-filing scams, and a candidate for Nevada State Assembly who wants elections held on tax day unsettle America’s time-honored institution.

The Internal Revenue Service reports that the number of Americans who have already filed their tax returns is down almost 25 percent from previous years. Officials speculate that rumors circulating on the Internet regarding the Y2K computer bug and the IRS may to blame. According to Adam Masuel who writes an online column on money matters, the most prevalent version of the IRS-Y2K story suggests that the federal agency will experience a significant computer failure on July 1, 1999, the first day of the fiscal year 2000. Says Masuel, “People are receiving e-mails telling them that they don’t have to file taxes because the IRS won’t know who’s paid up and who’s delinquent when its computers reach the 2000.” The IRS contends that it is nearly 80 percent Y2K-compliant and expects no data loss to occur in its central computer systems.

Authorities in Alabama, Colorado, Washington, and Illinois are investigating reports of widespread fraud associated with electronic tax filing services. In a number of cases, businesses that offer consumers instant cash returns have knowingly filed erroneous tax returns on behalf of unwitting clients. According to investigators, the use of electronic forms helps fraudulent tax-preparers to disguise their paperless trail. In one instance, a couple who should have received an $8,000 refund was instead given only $3,000 with the e-scammer pocketing the difference. Steven Schlarb, a spokesperson for H&R Block, the nation’s largest tax-preparation franchise, considers the instances of fraud to be “an insignificant aberration in the growing e-filing industry.” The number of Americans who will file electronically is expected to increase by nearly 20 percent this year.

Byron Luper, a libertarian candidate for the Nevada State Assembly, is campaigning on a radical platform that would allow state residents to vote while filing their taxes. While similar to the “motor voter” initiatives of the early 90’s, Luper’s controversial proposal has already overcome several challenges from state officials. “The people and Byron Luper see eye-to-eye on this issue” said Luper, a former boxing referee, “and we believe there is no legitimate constitutional limitation on when elections can be held.” Polls suggest that the plan is growing in popularity among Nevada residents. Anne Hutchinson, a professor of political science at the University of Nevada Las Vegas, believes Luper has hit a nerve with his new tax-vote scheme. “It’s taxation with representation,” quips Hutchinson, “while too many voters are staying away from the polls for precisely the same reasons they grumble about paying taxes, in the end they have to pay. [Luper’s] plan ties up the loose ends, however heavy-handedly.”

An immigrant rights organization in Los Angeles is urging legal aliens to withhold their state taxes this year in protest of recent legislation that barrs them from receiving tax-supported services like public health care and schooling. Sandra Lista, an attorney from the Immigrant Legal Defense Fund, claims the act of fiscal disobedence will cost the state of California nearly $1 million. Says Lista, “these are hard-working, legal residents of the U.S. who have pumped tens of millions of dollars into the state economy only to be scapegoated time and again by unscrupulous politicians.” A statement issued by the California Treasurer’s Office discouraged residents from engaging in “any politically motivated tax protest” and warned that violations of state tax code would be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.

Dateline–Worldwide

Elsewhere, Asians protest on behalf of affirmative action, and “In the Navy” takes on a whole new meaning.

San Jose, Calif. – CompuFast, Inc. has announced it will debut the world’s first disposable computer in the summer of 1999. The $99 NUtm desktop PC is comprised of “time-sensitive” materials designed to last an average of six months. Company spokesperson Stephanie Trabaggio says many consumers are wary of buying their first computer because they expect it to become instantly obsolete, a concern shared by CompuFast. Says Trabaggio, “With the NUtm, the consumer gets excellent computing power for very little expense.” The company says it will offer buyers the option of having a new model delivered to their doorstep every 6 months bundled with software updates and “in a variety of flavors.” Each NUtm computer is programmed to announce its expiraton date three weeks in advance, and CompuFast says it plans to recycle used units within the next two years.

San Francisco, Calif. – Asian Americans are rallying in support of San Francisco State University Prof. Hailin Qu after a State Court fined SFSU $2.75 million in damages in a landmark “reverse discrimination” civil lawsuit. The award, which is the largest ever won in a case against a California public institution, was granted to Howard E. McNier, an SFSU professor who claims that he was denied tenure because of his race. McNier, who is white, successfully convinced jurors that Qu was given the same tenured position at the school’s Hospitality Management school because he is Asian. SFSU says it will appeal the verdict, contending that Qu was chosen for tenure because he has a PhD in the field which McNier does not. The controversy may mark a new era in California race-relations as Asian Americans protest in favor of affirmative action.

Berlin, Germany – An article published in Sunday’s Berliner Morgenpost accuses the United States of using the conflict in Kosovo as a ruse to test Russia’s military capacity. Citing top-level discussions between U.S. and NATO officials from September of last year, the Morgenpost blasts the current conflict in Kosovo as “a new Cold War,” criticizing Western governments for “sabotaging the future of Europe.” The article includes an interview with an ex-NATO official who states that although a direct military confrontation between Russia and the West is highly unlikely at this time, the U.S. is certain to base future economic aid packages to Russia on “its threat assessment during the Kosovo campaign.” The State Department denies the allegations, insisting that Russia’s involvement in the region plays an insignificant role in U.S. policy on Kosovo.

Norfolk, Va.– A flambouyant hotelier is putting a decommissioned U.S. destroyer to an unexpected peacetime use. The former Navy vessel, rechristened yesterday as the U.S.S. Alexander Hamilton, is being billed by owner Jim Buchanan as the “largest gay cruise ship ever to sail the seven seas.” According to the ship’s brochure, vacationers sign on for one-week, two-week or month-long “tours of duty” during which they dress in Navy-style uniforms and man various battle stations. The refitted carrier boasts new facilities including expanded fitness centers and a football field-sized casino while retaining traditional Naval institutions like communal showers and bunk bed-style sleeping accommodations. A military spokesperson has stated that the Navy was unaware that Buchanan planned to convert the ship into a gay cruise vessel until after the acquisition was complete.