6 - Tuesday, December 9, 2014

The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom


American and NATO troops
end command in Afghanistan

Flag lowering
ceremony marks
emission's formal end
KABUL, Afghanistan (AP)
- American and NATO troops
closed their operational com-
mand in Afghanistan on Mon-
day, lowering flags ina ceremony
to mark the formal end of their
combat mission in a country still
mired in war 13 years after the
U.S.-led invasion toppled the
Taliban regime for harboring
those responsible for 9/1.
The closing of the command,
which oversaw the day-to-day
operations of coalition combat
forces, is one of the final steps
in a transition to a support and
training role that begins Jan.
1. But with President Barack
Obama's recent move authoriz-
ing U.S. forces in Afghanistan
to carry out military operations
against Taliban and al-Qaida
targets, America's longest war
will in fact continue for at least
another two yeays.
Obama's decision to give
American forces a more active
role than previously envisioned
suggests the U.S. is still con-
cerned about the Afghan gov-
ernment's ability to fight. And
agreements signed by Afghan
President Ashraf Ghani to allow
U.S. and NATO troops to remain
in the country are seen as a red
line by the Taliban, further nar-
rowing any hope of peace talks.
Not only are the Taliban a
resilient insurgency, a new gen-
eration of extremists inspired
by Osama bin Laden threatens
the entire region. American
forces are now also involved in
a burgeoning military campaign
against Islamic State group mil-
itants in Syria and Iraq, where
Obama had hoped to end combat
operations three years ago.
As NATO's International
Security Assistance Force's Joint
Command lowered its flag in the
capital, the Taliban carried out
yet another bloody attack, this
time killing a olice officer and
four civilians at a police station
in southern Afghanistan.
Taliban spokesman Zabihul-
lah Mujahid told The Associated
Press that the group would con-

tinue to fight "until all foreign
troops have left Afghanistan."
"The Americans want to
extend their mission in Afghani-
stan, the motive being to keep
the war going for as long as pos-
sible," Mujahid said. "And for as
long as they do, the Taliban will
continue their fight against the
foreign and (Afghan) govern-
ment forces."
From Jan. 1, the coalition
will maintain a force of 13,000
troops in Afghanistan, down
from a peak of about 140,000
in 2011. As of Dec. 1, there were
some 13,300 NATO troops in the
country.
Up to 10,800 U.S. troops
will remain in Afghanistan for
the first three months of next
year, 1,000 more than previ-
ously planned, said a NATO
official who spoke on condition
of anonymity to discuss troop
deployments. By the end of 2015,
however, American officials say
the U.S. troop total will shrink
to 5,500, and to near zero by the
end of 2016.
Obama's recent decision
broadened what had long been
billed as an "advise and assist"
mission set to begin next year,
allowing American forces to
launch operations against the
militants as well as to provide
combat and air support. Afghan
officials have also said that
Ghani is considering a resump-
tion of night raids that could
involve Americans.
Nevertheless, U.S. Gen. John
F. Campbell, commander of
NATO and U.S. forces, said for-
eign troops will now focus on
training and supporting Afghan
soldiers and police, who have
led the fight against the Taliban
insurgents since mid-2013.
"The Afghan security forces
are capable," Campbell said.
"They have to make some
changes in the leadership, which
they're doing, and they have to
hold people accountable."
Ghani, who replaced Presi-
dent Hamid Karzai, is overhaul-
ing Afghanistan's military and
the security apparatus. He has
begun replacing provincial gov-
ernors in volatile areas and his
office said military leaders will
also be replaced. His National
SenrtyConcil kworkng on a

manual that will establish rules
of engagement and battlefield
practices for Afghan security
forces.
As Afghan troops have
stepped up, they have been killed
in record numbers. Afghan secu-
rity casualties spiked 6.5 per-
cent this year, with 4,634 killed
in action. By comparison, some
3,500 foreign forces, including
at least 2,210 American soldiers,
have been killed since the war
began in 2001.
Afghan officials, speaking on
condition of anonymity to dis-
cuss their intelligence analysis,
say they believe Taliban attacks
will only increase in Decem-
ber and January as the mili-
tants react to Ghani's embrace
of a continued foreign military
presence. They also blamed
Pakistan's intelligence agencies
- which they have long accused
of quietly supporting the mili-
tants - for the surge in violence,
even though relations between
the two countries have thawed
in recent months since Ghani's
election.
"I don't think the war will
slow or stop during the winter,
as attacks on cities are not con-
tingent on the weather," Afghan
political analyst Wahid Muzh-
dah said. "I believe attacks in
the cities will increase."
In recent weeks, the Tali-
ban have hit foreign targets,
including military, diplomatic
and civilian installations. Four
foreigners, including a British
Embassy security guard and a
South African charity worker
and his two teenage children,
have been killed in Kabul.
Five attackers died in Mon-
day's attack on the police sta-
tion, including one who blew
himself up, said Samim Akh-
plwak, the spokesman for the
Kandahar provincial governor.
The attack also wounded seven
people.
In the restive eastern prov-
ince of Nangahar, three headless
bodies were found, according
to the governor's spokesman,
Ahmad Zia Abdulzai. He said
four people had been kidnapped
"a couple of days ago." One intact
body was found on Sunday but it
was unclear if the bodies were
those of the kidnapped.

4
I

CHARLES KoWALEC/Daily
Neurologist Jeffrey S. Kutcher, Associate Professor of Neurology and the Director of the NeuroSport program, discusses
head injuries, concussions, and post-concussion syndrome during the Myths and Realities of Youth Sport Head injuries
lecture held at Hatcher Graduate Library Monday.

INJURIES
From Page 1
USA at the Winter Olympics in
Sochi, Russia, and he has worked
at various times with the NHL
and NBA in developing concus-
sion policies.
While a large portion of
Kutcher's presentation was dedi-
cated to explaining the science
behind concussion diagnosis
and treatment, he also argued
against false reports inthe media
that can misrepresent current
research or inaccurately corre-
late concussions with a variety of
short-term and long-term symp-
toms.
"This is where medicine is in
the conversation," Kutcher said.
"We're off to the side and pushed
to the back."
One point that Kutcher
stressed was the distinction
between a concussion, post-con-
cussionsyndrome andthe chron-
ic effects of playingsports. While
media reports often address the
three interchangeably or col-
lectively as "concussions," each
has its distinct causes, symptoms
and treatment.
Kutcher denied the belief that
concussions cause depression
and suicide, an idea that has been
perpetuated for many years,
most recently brought to the
forefront following the death of
Ohio State lineman Kosta Kara-
george, whose bodywas found in
a dumpster near his apartment
on Nov. 30, the day after Michi-
gan traveled to Columbusfor its
annual rivalry game against the
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Authorities believe that the
22-year-old, who had been
reported missing since earlier
that week, took his own life with
a single gunshot wound to the
head..The Wednesday before his
body was found, he sent a text
message to his mother that read,
"Sorry ifI am an embarrassment,
but these concussions have my
head all fucked up."
In an interview with Sports
Illustrated, Franklin County
coroner Anahi Ortiz said Kara-
george's autopsy will include
brain examinations "because
of his history being involved in
high-impact sports, because of
his history of concussions."
In contrast, Kutcher said
reported instances of depression,
dementia and suicide among
athletes are tied to the "chronic
effects of playing sports on the
brain," and should not be viewed
as an outcome of a single concus-
sion.
"(These chronic effects) have
nothing to do with concussions
really at all, it's a separate entity
altogether," he said.
Kutcher blamed media cover-
age for a slew ofhigh-profile play-
er suicides at the professional,
collegiate and high school level,
citing guidelines published by
the Centers for Disease Control
in 2008 that called on such orga-
nizations to realize the potential
for improper or inappropriate
reporting of one suicide to trig-
ger other suicides in the same
community - a phenomenon he
believes may be occurring among
football players.
Kutcher discussed the mis-
guided understanding of the
effects of concussions on long-
term brain damage, another
major issue currently facing pro-
fessional athletics.
A recent study of 5,000 retired
NFL players reported higher
rates of severe brain damage in
retired players than in the gen-
eral population, The New York
Times reported in September.
Additionally, the report found
that symptoms of brain damage
generally manifested at younger
ages amongthis group.
In response to the study, the
NFL, which has faced criticism
for previously denying such
claims, agreed to pay out almost
$1 billion to former players suf-
fering from Alzheimers, demen-
tia, Parkinson's disease and a
variety of other neurodegenera-
tive disorders.
"That's clearly not founded in
any kind of science at all," Kutch-
er said. "It's really an economi-
cally driven, actuarial-driven

(public relations) move and not a
scientific one."
The NFL has also faced criti-
cism based on reports of an
increased prevalence of chronic
traumatic encephalopathy in
retired professional football
players, among other conditions.
CTE, which is presumed to be the
result of repeated impacts to the
head, results in higher observed
levels of the naturally occurring
protein Tau in the brain.
While studies have shown
higher levels of Tau in the brains
of former NFL players, Kutcher
said the clinical symptoms are so
differentbetween patients that it
calls into question the role of the
protein in the brain.
Event attendee Philip Veliz, an
assistant professor at the Univer-
sity's Institute for Research on
Women and Gender, was inter-
ested in learning about the prop-
er age to get children involved in
contact sports such as wrestling.
He said he realizes that many
sports require children to start
learning at a young age, but wor-
ries that doing so could put them
at risk developmentally.
Additionally, Veliz said he
appreciated Kutcher's expertise
in concussion research, but dis-
agreed with his assessment of
violence in sport. While Kutcher
said contact sports are valuable
in providing violence-prone indi-
viduals a physical outlet to vent
their anger, Veliz said he feels
thisputs such individualsat risk
of not being able to cope with vio-
lence after they leave the sport.
Similarly to Veliz, Ann Arbor
resident Bethany Williston was
interested in gathering informa-
tion about head injuries in youth
sports. She said she sometimes
worries about her three children,
who all play soccer.
"Each season there's eight
games, and each season in at least
one of the games I see something
where I ask, 'Is that kid OK?' "
Williston said.
She said the talk allowed her
to gain a better understanding
of how to spot a suspected con-
cussion and ensure that players
remain safe.
Monday's presentation was
the final installment in a series
hosted through the Univer-
sity's Theme Semester, "Sport
and the University." Prior to
Kutcher's address, English Prof.
Anne Curzan, a co-organizer. of
the Theme Semester, discussed
the importance of sport to the
University and the many ways
in which it interacts with the
school's various departments
and disciplines.

9

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LEGISLATION
From Page 1
the city will choose not to allow
extended hours if the bill passes,
due to safetyconcerns.
"If bars let out at 4 a.m. there
would be issues until 5 a.m. at least,
and police would have to be out in
larger numbers for two more hours
as well," Root wrote in ane-mail.
The bill stipulates that 85 per-
cent ofthe funds from the extended
hours permit fee would go to local
police departments, which could
potentially alleviate some safety
concerns.
Safetyissues aside, Rootalsosaid
he doesn't think that the two extra
hours of service would necessarily
be good business. He wrote thathe
feels sales would just be stretched
out across those two hours and not
lead to increased revenue, but the
extended hours would certainly
increase operatingcosts.
While Root was skeptical about
the bill's potential benefits for Ann
Arbor businesses, others feel it
could be beneficial in other parts
of the state, especially downtown

Detroit.
"I think in some places in
Detroit (the bill) would probably
help their business big time,"said
David Starzyk, general manager
of Arbor Brewing Company, who
has had extensive past experience
working in Detroit bars. Starzyk
did, however, share Root's con-
cerns about safety issues.
Despite Root's concerns, Irwin
said staying open later would still
be of interest for some South Uni-
versity establishments, but cau-
tioned that the Council "will have
to weigh that with the relationship
the city has had with those opera-
tors (and) with the public safety
concerns that City Council has."
Irwin also added that the Uni-
versity would likely want input
regarding how to treat the South
Universityareaunderthe potential
new law.
"I know the city is always clam-
oring for more input into deci-
sions that the University makes, so
maybe it could be an opportunity
for the city and University to work
together on something and hope-
fully that will be a place where the
two entities can compromise," he
said.

0