MBN, Monte Bubbles Network

DOD Identifies Army Casualties

The Department of Defense announced today the death of four soldiers who were supporting Operation Enduring Freedom. They died north of Deh Rawod, Afghanistan, on Feb. 13, when an improvised explosive device detonated near their HMMWV during combat operations.

Killed were: Sgt. 1st Class Chad A. Gonsalves, 31, of Turlock, Calif. Gonsalves was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 7th Special Forces Group, Fort Bragg, N.C.

Staff Sgt. Edwin H. Dazachacon, 38, of Belleville, Ill. Dazachacon was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 7th Special Forces Group, Fort Bragg, N.C.

Staff Sgt. Clinton T. Newman, 26, of San Antonio, Texas. Newman was assigned to the 321st Civil Affairs Brigade, San Antonio, Texas

Sgt. Alberto D. Montrond, 27, of Suffolk, Mass. Montrond was assigned to the Group Support Battalion, 7th Special Forces Group, Fort Bragg, N.C.

Navy to help out in Philippines 

A U.S. Navy ship already in the area for an exercise is steaming for Leyte Island in the Philippines to provide disaster relief assistance. The ship has been dispatched from Subic Bay, less than 1,000 kilometers from Leyte Island, where it was participating in Exercise Balikatan '06. Officials did not provide the name or type of the ship. The United States has received a request from the Philippine Red Cross for helicopter support to assist with rescue and relief operations in the area, State Department officials said. "We will continue to coordinate with Philippine authorities, including the National Disaster Coordinating Council, regarding needs, and will assist to the best of our abilities," an official with the U.S. Embassy in Manila said in a statement today. Leyte Island has endured heavy rains in recent days, according to news reports. Those rains caused a mudslide that swept through Guinsaugon, a farming village in the municipality of St. Bernard, covering all but four of the more than 300 homes in the area, and reportedly an elementary school in session, with mud. A representative of the Philippine Red Cross has indicated that at least 200 residents were killed, but warned that the death toll could be much higher, as there are 1,500 to 2,000 people still missing, according to news reports. The United States has authorized the Philippine Red Cross to use about $50,000 of emergency relief funds already granted to the Red Cross from an earlier disaster. The Philippine National Red Cross also plans to distribute protective masks for rescue workers, plastic sheeting, and body bags donated by the U.S. government in response to previous disasters tomorrow morning. Rescue efforts have ended for today because of continuing rain and darkness, news sources said. Balikatan is an annual military exercise aimed at improving Philippine-U.S. combined planning, combat readiness, and interoperability. It also enhances security relations and demonstrates U.S. resolve to support the Republic of the Philippines against external aggression.

Russian biathlon star Olga Pyleva maybe in more trouble

Russian biathlon star Olga Pyleva, already tossed from the Turin Games and stripped of her silver medal for a positive drug test, was banned for two years Friday Her problems do not end there though. She will be investigated under Italy’s criminal anti-doping law.

The IBU has turned over documents to Italian magistrates in accordance with Italian law.

Doping carries a maximum two-year term under Italian law.

The IOC, which favors only sports sanctions, accepted the law and in return was given full control of the testing program

She is allowed to go back to her country because the criminal process against her hasn't begun yet.

Russian officials at the Olympics continue to explain that a doctor treating Pyleva for an ankle injury in the Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk gave her an over-the-counter medication in January that did not list the banned substance.

Under the IOC's rules, athletes testing positive at the Olympics are considered guilty if a banned substance is found, regardless of the circumstances

The IBU also banned Pyleva's personal physician, Dr. Nina Vinogradova, for two years. She is considering suing the manufacturer of the medication in question, the ITAR-Tass news agency reported.

Pyleva is one of the biggest stars in biathlon, which typically draws more than 30,000 spectators to World Cup events and is Europe's most popular televised winter sport. She also won gold and bronze medals at the 2002 Salt Lake City Games in the event that combines cross country skiing and rifle target shooting.

The IOC has conducted 380 tests since the athletes' village opened Jan. 31; Pyleva is the first to be caught by the most rigorous doping-control program ever at a Winter Olympics. A total of 1,200 samples are being tested -- a 72 percent increase over the number in Salt Lake City, where there were seven doping cases.

Died recently in Afghanistan and Iraq

The Defense Department has announced the identities of 13 U.S. servicemembers who died recently in Afghanistan and Iraq. - Marine Lance Cpl. Matthew R. Barnes, 20, of West Monroe, La., and Marine Cpl. Rusty L. Washam, 21, of Huntsville, Tenn., died Feb. 14 when a suicide car bomber attacked their vehicle near Qaim, Iraq. They were assigned to 3rd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune, N.C. - Marine Lance Cpl. Michael S. Probst, 26, of Irvine, Calif., died Feb. 14 of injuries suffered in a roadside bomb explosion near Abu Ghraib, Iraq. He was assigned to 1st Tank Battalion, 1st Marine Division, 1st Marine Expeditionary Force, Twentynine Palms, Calif. During Operation Iraqi Freedom, his unit was attached to 2nd Marine Division, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward). Four soldiers supporting Operation Enduring Freedom were killed Feb. 13 when a roadside bomb detonated near their Humvee during north of Deh Rawod, Afghanistan: - Sgt. 1st Class Chad A. Gonsalves, 31, of Turlock, Calif. He was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 7th Special Forces Group, Fort Bragg, N.C. - Staff Sgt. Edwin H. Dazachacon, 38, of Belleville, Ill. He was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 7th Special Forces Group, Fort Bragg. - Staff Sgt. Clinton T. Newman, 26, of San Antonio. He was assigned to the 321st Civil Affairs Brigade, San Antonio. - Sgt. Alberto D. Montrond, 27, of Suffolk, Mass. He was assigned to the Group Support Battalion, 7th Special Forces Group, Fort Bragg. - Army Spc. Felipe J. Garcia Villareal, 26, of Burke, Va., died at Washington Hospital Center in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 12 of injuries suffered in Ramadi, Iraq, on Feb. 9 when his tent caught fire. He was assigned to the 54th Engineer Battalion, 130th Engineer Brigade, Warner Barracks, Bamberg, Germany. - Army Cpl. Andrew J. Kemple, 23, of Cambridge, Minn., died in Tikrit, Iraq, on Feb. 12 when his Humvee came under small-arms fire. He was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 187th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division, Fort Campbell, Ky. - Navy Petty Officer 3rd Class Nicholas Wilson, 25, of Newark Valley, N.Y., died Feb. 12 as a result of a roadside bomb explosion in Anbar province, Iraq. He was assigned to Explosive Ordnance Disposal Mobile Unit 3, based in San Diego. - Marine Pfc. Matthew L. Bertolino, 20, of Hampstead, N.H., died Feb. 9 when the vehicle he was traveling in rolled over during a combat patrol near Jalalabad, Afghanistan. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, 3rd Marine Division, 3rd Marine Expeditionary Force, Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii. - Marine Cpl. Ross A. Smith, 21, of Wyoming, Mich., and Pfc. Javier Chavez Jr., 19, of Cutler, Calif., died Feb. 9 of wounds suffered in a roadside bomb blast near Fallujah, Iraq. They were assigned to 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, 1st Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Pendleton, Calif. During OIF their unit is attached to 2nd Marine Division, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward). (Compiled from Defense Department news releases.)

Norway One Gold Six Silver Six Bronze

Germany Five Gold Four Silver Two Bronze

Russia Five Gold Two Silver Four Bronze

Canada Two Gold Four Silver Five Bronze

United States Six Gold Three Silver One Bronze

Austria Three Gold Two Silver One Bronze

Switzerland One Gold Two Silver Two Bronze

China One Gold Two Silver Three Bronze

Italy Two Gold Three Bronze

Finland Two Silver Three Bronze

Sweden Two Gold One Silver One Bronze

France Two Gold Two Bronze

Netherlands One Gold Two Silver

Estonia One Gold

South Korea One Gold One Silver One Silver

Czech Republic One Silver

Australia One Gold

Slovakia One Silver

Croatia One Silver

United Kingdom One Silver

Bulgaria One Silver

Ukraine One Bronze

Latvia One Bronze

Two U.S. H-53 military helicopters crashed

Two crewmembers have been rescued and the search continues for 10 others after two U.S. H-53 military helicopters crashed in waters off Djibouti in the Horn of Africa, a Defense Department spokeswoman reported today. Though some initial reports say both were U.S. Marine Corps helicopters, the spokeswoman could confirm only that they were U.S. helicopters and that they were part of Combined Joint Task Force Horn of Africa. The helicopters were on a night training mission over the Gulf of Aden when the crash occurred, the spokeswoman said, adding that an investigation will be conducted to determine why the helicopters went down.

NBC tanking with this games.

It has become routine for the Olympics to be beaten by regularly scheduled programming on Fox and ABC.

The 17.9 million average total viewers NBC averaged during primetime Wednesday may have been the single worst night in Winter Olympics history.

Wednesday’s average 11.3 household rating also marked the lowest Winter Olympics night on record according to Nielsen, and the fifth-lowest rated night of any Olympics behind several nights at the Sydney Summer Games of 2000.

The Sydney Games averaged a record-low 21.5 million total viewers over 16 nights. The Torino Games are averaging 21.1 million total viewers per night.

NBC is at risk of not making its ratings guarantees. Its six-day household average has now fallen to a 12.5, which is closer to the lower end of the 12 to 14 average it promised advertisers.

Unless NBC makes major changes in its presentation, reflecting the fact that results are available online many hours before the events air on NBC. I put the medal count up hours before NBC lets the viewers know what has happened.

Nobody is going to stick around and wait till 11 p.m. to find out if Bode Miller won a medal, and very few over age 35 are going to do it.”

Indeed, NBC has drawn its broadcasts out well past 11 p.m. for results that were available on the internet hours earlier.

Critics say the network needs to do two things to revive viewer interest in the Olympics, and one is to show the big results throughout the night, rather than waiting until the end of the broadcast.

The other is to build interest in foreign competitors by giving them the sort of coverage and feature play it now gives only to U.S. athletes. The Games are truly an international competition, they say, and NBC has been short-sighted in treating them as American events. This one of course is not likely to ever