Mo. lawmaker wants tax on violent video games

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — A Republican lawmaker from rural Missouri bucked her party’s anti-tax bent on Tuesday and called for a sales tax on violent video games in response to a deadly Connecticut school shooting.

Rep. Diane Franklin, of Camdenton, said the proposed 1 percent sales tax would help pay for mental health programs and law enforcement measures aimed at preventing mass shootings. The tax would be levied on video games rated “teen,” ”mature” and “adult-only” by the Entertainment Software Rating Board, the organization in charge of rating video games.

The rating board classifies games as “teen” if they contain violence, suggestive themes and crude humor. The popular music game “Guitar Hero” has a teen rating and would be taxed under Franklin’s plan. Another popular title, “Call of Duty,” has a mature rating and also would be subject to the sales tax. “Mature” games are deemed suitable for people 17 and older and may contain intense violence and gore.

“History shows there is a mental health component to these shootings,” Franklin said, referring to the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting that killed 20 students and six adults in Newtown, Conn., and the Aurora, Colo., movie theater shooting that left 14 dead.

Franklin’s plan is the latest in a string of measures proposed in response to recent mass shootings. Another Missouri Republican has filed a measure that would allow teachers to carry guns in the classroom. On the national level, Vice President Joe Biden is leading an effort to reduce gun violence and is expected to reveal recommendations Wednesday that include steps to improve school safety and mental health care, as well as address violence in entertainment and video games.

Franklin’s proposal already faces opposition from the Entertainment Software Association, which represents companies that publish computer and video games.

“Taxing First Amendment protected speech based on its content is not only wrong, but will end up costing Missouri taxpayers,” the association said in a written statement.

Tax increases typically are a hard sell in Missouri. This past November, voters rejected a proposed tobacco tax increase for the third time in a decade, choosing instead to leave the state’s cigarette tax at the lowest level in the nation. Republican legislative leaders and Democratic Gov. Jay Nixon both have taken stands against tax increases.

Other proposals to tax violent video games failed in Oklahoma in 2012 and New Mexico in 2008. In Oklahoma, Republican state Rep. William Fourkiller had proposed a violent video games tax to combat childhood obesity and school bullying, but his plan failed to make it out of a committee.

Other non-tax efforts to curb the effect of violent video games also have fallen short. U.S. Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-W. Va., put forward a measure last year for the study of the impact of violent video games on children, but it failed. A California law banning the sale of violent games to minors was struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2011.

The Entertainment Merchant’s Association sent a letter to Biden last week urging him to look elsewhere when it comes to his plans on gun violence.

“Make no mistake: blaming movies and video games is an attempt to distract the attention of the public and the media from meaningful action that will keep our children safer,” wrote the merchant’s association, a lobbying group for the home entertainment industry.

Others, however, have criticized the video game industry and its role in mass shootings.

“There exists in this country a callous, corrupt and corrupting shadow industry that sells, and sows, violence against its own people,” National Rifle Association Executive Vice President Wayne LaPierre said at a December news conference.

Franklin said she hopes her bill will “start a discussion” on the relationship between violent games and mental illness. Franklin, who has a granddaughter in kindergarten, added she is concerned about the safety of schools and universities in the state.

In 2008, there were 298 million video games sold in the U.S., generating $ 11.7 billion in revenue. Six of the 10 best-selling games included violence, and four carried a “mature” rating.

Franklin’s bill was formally introduced Monday and must be referred and approved by a committee before being considered on the House floor.

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William & Kate and Harry's Gift List Reveals Riches from Their Travels

By Simon Perry

01/18/2013 at 08:20 AM EST

What's on the gift list when party-lover Prince Harry comes to visit you? Reach for the rum.

For the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge? How about matching bathrobes from a fabled hotel.

These are just some of the gifts received last year by the Princes and Kate during their travels on behalf of Queen Elizabeth. (For the full list, click here.)

While William, 30, was given a prized dagger by the King of Malaysia, he and Kate were handed robes by the historic Raffles Hotel in Singapore.

Prince Harry, with a kangaroo he was given by Australian athletes, with the Duchess of Cambridge

Landov

Gifts for Kate, 31, tended to be fashion choices, including eight handbags or clutch bags that came during the couple's tour of southeast Asia,. She was also presented with sarongs in the Solomon Islands, and a sari in Malaysia.

During his March visit to Brazil and the Caribbean, Harry, 28, was given Brazilian soccer shirts, local liquor and, in the Bahamas, a magnifying glass. The Governor of Rio handed him a Beatles CD and a book.

And, should he want to pimp up his ride back home, he can always display the personalized license plate saying "HARRY" that he received while he toured Brazil. You go, Harry.

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Food servers more vulnerable to legal threats

WASHINGTON (AP) — People with severe food allergies have a new tool in their attempt to find menus that fit their diet: federal disabilities law. And that could leave schools, restaurants and anyplace else that serves food more vulnerable to legal challenges over food sensitivities.

A settlement stemming from a lack of gluten-free foods available to students at a Massachusetts university could serve as a precedent for people with other allergies or conditions, including peanut sensitivities or diabetes. Institutions and businesses subject to the Americans With Disabilities Act could be open to lawsuits if they fail to honor requests for accommodations by people with food allergies.

Colleges and universities are especially vulnerable because they know their students and often require them to eat on campus, Eve Hill of the Justice Department's civil rights division says. But a restaurant also could be liable if it blatantly ignored a customer's request for certain foods and caused that person to become ill, though that case might be harder to argue if the customer had just walked in off the street, Hill said.

The settlement with Lesley University, reached last month but drawing little attention, will require the Cambridge, Mass., institution to serve gluten-free foods and make other accommodations for students who have celiac disease. At least one student complained to the federal government after the school would not exempt the student from a meal plan even though the student couldn't eat the food.

"All colleges should heed this settlement and take steps to make accommodations," says Alice Bast, president and founder of the National Foundation for Celiac Awareness. "To our community this is definitely a precedent."

People who suffer from celiac disease don't absorb nutrients well and can get sick from the gluten found in wheat, rye and barley. The illness, which affects around 2 million Americans, causes abdominal pain, bloating and diarrhea, and people who have it can suffer weight loss, fatigue, rashes and other problems. Celiac is a diagnosed illness that is more severe than gluten sensitivity, which some people self-diagnose.

Ten years ago, most people had never heard of celiac disease. But awareness has exploded in recent years, for reasons that aren't entirely clear. Some researchers say it was under-diagnosed, others say it's because people eat more processed wheat products like pastas and baked goods than in past decades, and those items use types of wheat that have a higher gluten content.

Gluten-free diets have expanded beyond those with celiac disease. Millions of people are buying gluten-free foods because they say they make them feel better, even if they don't have a wheat allergy. Americans were expected to spend $7 billion on gluten-free foods last year.

With so many people suddenly concerned with gluten content, colleges and universities have had to make accommodations. Some will allow students to be exempted from meal plans, while others will work with students individually. They may need to do even more now as the federal government is watching.

"These kids don't want to be isolated," Bast says. "Part of the college experience is being social. If you can't even eat in the school cafeteria then you are missing out on a big part of college life."

Under the Justice Department agreement, Lesley University says it will not only provide gluten-free options in its dining hall but also allow students to pre-order, provide a dedicated space for storage and preparation to avoid cross-contamination, train staff about food allergies and pay a $50,000 cash settlement to the affected students.

"We are not saying what the general meal plan has to serve or not," Hill says. "We are saying that when a college has a mandatory meal plan they have to be prepared to make reasonable modifications to that meal plan to accommodate students with disabilities."

The agreement says that food allergies may constitute a disability under the Americans With Disabilities Act, if they are severe enough. The definition was made possible under 2009 amendments to the disability law that allowed for episodic impairments that substantially limit activity.

"By preventing people from eating, they are really preventing them from accessing their educational program," Hill said of the school and its students.

Mary Pat Lohse, the chief of staff and senior adviser to Lesley University's president, says the school has been working with the Justice Department for more than three years to address students' complaints. She says the school has already implemented most parts of the settlement and will continue to update policies to serve students who need gluten-free foods.

"The settlement agreement provides a positive road map for other colleges and universities to follow with regard to accommodating students with food allergies and modifying existing food service plans," Lohse said.

Some say the Justice Department decision goes too far. Hans von Spakovsky, a fellow at the conservative Heritage Foundation who worked in the civil rights division of the Justice Department under President George W. Bush, says food allergies shouldn't apply under the disability act. He adds that the costs could be substantial when schools are already battling backlash from high tuition costs.

"I certainly encourage colleges and universities to work with students on this issue, but the fact that this is a federal case and the Justice Department is going to be deciding what kind of meals could be served in a dining hall is just absurd," he said.

Whether the government is involved or not, schools and other food service establishments are likely to hear from those who want more gluten-free foods. Dhanu Thiyagarajan, a sophomore at the University of Pittsburgh, said she decided to speak up when she arrived at school and lost weight because there were too few gluten-free options in the cafeteria. Like Lesley University, the University of Pittsburgh requires that on-campus students participate in a meal plan.

Thiyagarajan eventually moved off campus so she could cook her own food, but not before starting an organization of students who suffer from wheat allergies like hers. She says she is now working with food service at the school and they have made a lot of progress, though not enough for her to move back on campus.

L. Scott Lissner, the disability coordinator at Ohio State University, says he has seen similar situations at his school, though people with food allergies have not traditionally thought of themselves as disabled. He says schools will eventually have to do more than just exempt students from a meal plan.

"This is an early decision on a growing wave of needs that universities are going to have to address," he said of the Lesley University agreement.

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Stock futures mixed as Intel offsets Morgan Stanley, China data

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stock index futures were little changed on Friday, a day after the S&P 500 rose to its highest level in five years, as a weak outlook from Intel was weighed against encouraging data out of China and a fourth-quarter profit at Morgan Stanley .

Shares of Intel Corp slumped 5.4 percent to $21.44 in premarket trading after the tech company forecast quarterly revenue that was below analysts' estimates and hiked capital spending plans for the year.

Futures got a lift after Morgan Stanley reported a fourth-quarter profit after a year-earlier loss, helped by higher revenue at the bank's institutional securities business. Its stock was up 7.2 percent at $22.25 in premarket trading.

Economic data out of China provided some support to the market. The country's economy grew at a modestly faster-than-expected 7.9 percent in the fourth quarter, the latest sign the world's second-biggest economy was pulling out of a post-global financial crisis slowdown which saw it grow in 2012 at its weakest pace since 1999.

S&P 500 futures rose 0.2 points and were above fair value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures slipped 3 points, and Nasdaq 100 futures lost 8 points.

Stronger-than-expected economic data boosted the S&P 500 on Thursday to its highest level in five years. The index is now just 5.6 percent from a record closing peak of 1,565.15.

It would be a normal reaction for investors to take a pause at this point, but any weakness in the market could be a buying opportunity, said Andre Bakhos, director of market analytics at Lek Securities in New York.

"It's the type of market where it's starting to gain momentum and if investors miss the run, they're going to be behind the eight ball early in the year," said Bakhos.

General Electric reported a rise in earnings on Friday, pushing its shares up 3.5 percent in premarket trading to $22.05.

Johnson Controls dropped 2.6 percent to $31.12 after its profit fell and the company forecast further declines.

Overall, S&P 500 company earnings are expected to have risen 2.3 percent in the fourth quarter, Thomson Reuters data showed. Expectations for the quarter have dropped considerably since October, when a 9.9 percent gain was estimated.

AT&T warned after Thursday's closing bell that it will take a fourth-quarter charge of about $10 billion due to bigger-than-expected pension obligations. Shares of the telephone company fell 1.4 percent to $32.74 in premarket trading Friday.

On the economic front, a report on consumer sentiment in early January will be released at 9:55 am ET (1455 GMT).

(Editing by Bernadette Baum)

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IHT Rendezvous: Is Something Toxic Buried in China's Financial System?

BEIJING — China’s economy, whizzing ahead as the West struggles, seems quite remarkable. Perhaps a little too remarkable? Like many things too good to be true, is it all a little, well, too good to be true?

There will be the yea- and nay-sayers in any debate, and China’s economy provokes plenty of both. So here’s the “yea” side: the forces of urbanization and industrialization unleashed here in the 1970s after the death of Mao Zedong represent a historically singular phase that still has a way to go.

Here’s the “nay” side: that’s true, but we need to look at what’s actually happening in China’s financial system — is it safe? The trouble is, that system is mostly hidden from the outside world by a combination of language difficulty and the pitch-dark opacity that envelops much important business here. What’s interesting about the “nay” argument is that increasingly, it’s Chinese media and some prominent Chinese economists who are making it.

And of course all of this matters to the world because China is by now deeply part of the global economy, so what happens here affects everyone.

A Hong Kong online magazine that follows the Chinese-language debate closely recently presented a clear argument: among key concerns about China’s financial system are wealth management products offered by “trust companies,” part of the shadow banking system that operates outside the official banking sector but is entwined with it.

As Week in China wrote recently: “Analysts worry that the trust firms (and their wealth management products) could provide an explosive element to China’s financial landscape — much as toxic CDO’s made the American system vulnerable.”

CDO’s, of course, are collateralized debt obligations, those complicated financial tools that spurred unhealthy debt and lending in the United States, causing shocks that spread around the world when the system collapsed in 2007. (This graphic makes them as simple as possible.)

For some time, Chinese-language media have been looking at the scene, with outlets such as the 21st Century Business Herald and the National Business Daily leading the way.

Spurring concern was a recent remark by Xiao Gang, the chairman of the Bank of China, that the way trust companies were run was, potentially, “fundamentally a Ponzi scheme.” (The report is in English.)

It is difficult to measure the amount and value of wealth management products in circulation in China, wrote Mr. Xiao. (Mr. Xiao has been a proponent of Chinese banks vigorously investing overseas.)

“KPMG reports that trust companies will soon overtake insurance to become the second-largest sector in the Chinese financial industry. According to a report by CN Benefit, a Chinese wealth-management consultancy, sales of WMP’s soared 43 percent in the first half of 2012 to 12.14 trillion yuan,” or $1.9 trillion, he wrote.

Either way, there are now “more than 20,000” wealth management products in circulation, “a dramatic increase from only a few hundred just five years ago.”

“Given that the number is so big and hard to manage, China’s shadow banking sector has become a potential source of systemic financial risk over the next few years,” wrote Mr. Xiao. “Particularly worrisome is the quality and transparency of WMP’s. Many assets underlying the products are dependent on some empty real estate property or long-term infrastructure, and are sometimes even linked to high-risk projects, which may find it impossible to generate sufficient cash flow to meet repayment obligations.”

The details are complex. But Week in China’s conclusion is this: “WiC suspects — along with swathes of the Chinese press — that the trusts and their wealth management products have now intertwined to become the weakest link in the Chinese financial system. In recent weeks it’s become clearer that these obscure institutions have waded into some wayward financial positions,” with certain companies, such as Zhongrong Trust and Shangdong International Trust, particularly involved.

“The question now is whether this might lead to a broader crisis,” the magazine wrote.

“On balance that may still be a way off,” it wrote.

As long as the economy expands at close to 8 percent a year, “the trusts may be able to ‘grow’ out of their bad assets. But if one of the major players collapses, the dynamic may be much more explosive. As Charles Ponzi well understood, confidence is everything,” it concluded.

Last week, several Chinese-language media reported the big four state banks had stopped selling trust company products to clients in Beijing and were scaling back in Guangzhou. “The official clampdown on the trusts might already have begun,” wrote Week in China.

Read the story and see what you think: Is China veering towards a U.S.-style financial crisis, or will it take action and avoid one? Or is the concern overblown?

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Missouri Lawmaker Wants Violent Video Games Taxed

A rural Missouri lawmaker wants her state to tax certain video games to help curb gun violence. The Associated Press reports state Rep. Diane Franklin, R-Camdenton, believes a 1 percent sales tax on video games rated teen, mature and adults only would help finance mental health programs aimed at reducing gun violence such as the recent mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn.

What does the legislation propose?

House Bill 157 proposes to create “an excise tax based on the gross receipts or gross proceeds of each sale” of video games rated by the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB). The tax also involves the “storage, use or other consumption” of violent video games in Missouri including “tangible personal property.” This means the tax could extend to memorabilia derived from the games such as toys, clothing and video game accessories.

How does the legislation hope to enhance public safety?

The law hopes to procure “new and additional funding for treatment of mental health conditions associated with exposure to violent video games… .” The revenue from the tax cannot be used to replace existing revenue already in place. Franklin deems the legislation “necessary for the immediate preservation of the public health, welfare, peace and safety.” Therefore, if the legislation passes it will go into effect immediately. There is no mention in the legislation as to how much revenue should be generated, nor does it say whether the sales tax is just on new merchandise as opposed to used games on the secondary market.

Have similar laws been considered before?

A similar proposal was struck down in mid-February in Oklahoma. Democrat William Fourkiller crafted legislation in 2012 that is very similar to Franklin’s idea in Missouri. A subcommittee struck down the bill by a 6-5 margin. Fourkiller, in defending the law , said it wasn’t a “magic bullet” but that Oklahoma had “to start somewhere” to curb childhood violence. Oklahoma also would have taxed ESRB teen, mature and adults only games at a rate of 1 percent.

Does the Missouri law have a chance to pass?

CNN notes a federal appeals court made a ruling in 2003 that video games are free speech protected by the First Amendment. Ironically, it was a federal case stemming from St. Louis County, Mo., that created the precedent for video games as free speech. Senior U.S. District Judge Stephen Limbaugh’s decision was reversed by an appellate panel. The ruling came shortly after the state of Washington banned the sale of certain video games to children under the age of 17. Gamasutra reveals New Mexico also tried, and failed, to pass a similar law in 2008.

What are Franklin’s credentials as they relate to the proposed bill?

Franklin was first elected in 2010 from Camdenton. She is a mother of two sons and served on Camdenton School Board from 1993 to 1999. She sits on the House Appropriations-Education committee. Franklin is a third-generation small business owner and comes from a farming family. Missouri Republicans currently have a veto-proof supermajority in the General Assembly. Camdenton is a small city of around 3,700 people near Lake of the Ozarks in central Missouri.

William Browning is a research librarian specializing in U.S. politics.

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Pawn Stars's Rick Harrison Sets Wedding Date

By Mark Gray

01/17/2013 at 08:30 AM EST

Rick Harrison and Deanna Burditt

MJT/AdMedia

Rick Harrison has gone from pawning to planning.

After months of going back and forth, the Pawn Stars ringleader and his fiancée, Deanna Burditt, have finally set a date for their wedding: July 21.

But the date is just the beginning for Harrison, 47, who tells PEOPLE, "She sticking me with all the planning!"

The nuptials – initially planned for Las Vegas – will now take place at the Ritz Carlton in Southern California's Laguna Beach.

"It will be a lot of friends and family," Harrison said while attending Wednesday night's opening of Wynn Las Vegas's Andrea's. "It started off with about 40 people and it's well over 100 people now. You know how those things go."

Aside from the guest count close to being finalized, Harrison said Danny Koker of the History Channel's Counting Cars will become an ordained minister and marry the couple, and Harrison's Pawn Stars costar Chumlee is set to be the ring bearer.

"I can't make that up," he said. "I just had no idea there was so much involved. I just thought you got a cake, had a party, buy a keg. But we're getting it done."

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Large study confirms flu vaccine safe in pregnancy

NEW YORK (AP) — A large study offers reassuring news for pregnant women: It's safe to get a flu shot.

The research found no evidence that the vaccine increases the risk of losing a fetus, and may prevent some deaths. Getting the flu while pregnant makes fetal death more likely, the Norwegian research showed.

The flu vaccine has long been considered safe for pregnant women and their fetus. U.S. health officials began recommending flu shots for them more than five decades ago, following a higher death rate in pregnant women during a flu pandemic in the late 1950s.

But the study is perhaps the largest look at the safety and value of flu vaccination during pregnancy, experts say.

"This is the kind of information we need to provide our patients when discussing that flu vaccine is important for everyone, particularly for pregnant women," said Dr. Geeta Swamy, a researcher who studies vaccines and pregnant women at Duke University Medical Center.

The study was released by the New England Journal of Medicine on Wednesday as the United States and Europe suffer through an early and intense flu season. A U.S. obstetricians group this week reminded members that it's not too late for their pregnant patients to get vaccinated.

The new study was led by the Norwegian Institute of Public Health. It tracked pregnancies in Norway in 2009 and 2010 during an international epidemic of a new swine flu strain.

Before 2009, pregnant women in Norway were not routinely advised to get flu shots. But during the pandemic, vaccinations against the new strain were recommended for those in their second or third trimester.

The study focused on more than 113,000 pregnancies. Of those, 492 ended in the death of the fetus. The researchers calculated that the risk of fetal death was nearly twice as high for women who weren't vaccinated as it was in vaccinated mothers.

U.S. flu vaccination rates for pregnant women grew in the wake of the 2009 swine flu pandemic, from less than 15 percent to about 50 percent. But health officials say those rates need to be higher to protect newborns as well. Infants can't be vaccinated until 6 months, but studies have shown they pick up some protection if their mothers got the annual shot, experts say.

Because some drugs and vaccines can be harmful to a fetus, there is a long-standing concern about giving any medicine to a pregnant woman, experts acknowledged. But this study should ease any worries about the flu shot, said Dr. Denise Jamieson of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

"The vaccine is safe," she said.

___

Online:

Medical journal: http://www.nejm.org

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Stock futures add to gains after housing, claims data

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stock index futures added to gains after data showed initial jobless claims fell to a five-year low last week and housing starts climbed to their highest rate since June 2008.

S&P 500 futures rose 6.3 points and were above fair value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration of the contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures added 8 points and Nasdaq 100 futures gained 12.25 points.

(Reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak; Editing by Bernadette Baum)

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Defense Secretary Leon Panetta Meets Pope

Francesco Sforza/Osservatore Romano

Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta met with Pope Benedict XVI at the Vatican on Wednesday.

ROME — On what is likely his last trip as defense secretary, Leon E. Panetta had an audience on Wednesday morning at the Vatican with Pope Benedict XVI, who told him, Mr. Panetta said, “Thank you for helping to protect the world.” Mr. Panetta said he replied, “Pray for me.”

Mr. Panetta, the son of Italian immigrants who attends Mass every Sunday, is halfway through a weeklong trip to Europe meant as a goodbye tour of American allies. Later on Wednesday he is to meet with the Italian prime minister, Mario Monti, as well as the president of Italy, Giorgio Napolitano.

Mr. Panetta’s audience with the pope was far from private, although he had a close-up view. Mr. Panetta sat in the front row of the Pope Pius VI Audience Hall, where some 7,000 others had gathered for the pope’s weekly audience. After an hour-long service, Mr. Panetta filed up with several dozen people, including a bride, to receive a blessing from the pope, who spoke to him at that time.

Defense officials said that Mr. Panetta previously had an audience with Pope John Paul II when Mr. Panetta, who was a budget director and a chief of staff to President Bill Clinton, accompanied Mr. Clinton to Rome. He also had an audience with Pope John Paul II in Washington.

Mr. Panetta is to be succeeded by Chuck Hagel, who is preparing for Senate confirmation hearings later this month or early next month. After 28 months as defense secretary and many decades in government, Mr. Panetta plans to return to his walnut farm in Carmel Valley, California.

He has also visited Spain and Portugal during the trip. On Tuesday, in Lisbon, Mr. Panetta restated the administration position that the United States would not send ground troops to Mali, where militants were pushing toward one of Mali’s largest cities as France continued with airstrikes and pledged more troops.

“There is no consideration of putting any American boots on the ground at this time,” he said.

Later on Tuesday in Madrid he reiterated that the United States would offer France air and logistical support but declined to be more specific. He said that France faced a difficult task in trying to rout extremists from a vast area in northern Mali and that the Pentagon remained in talks with the French over what kind of military aid the United States would provide.

At a news conference in Madrid, Mr. Panetta deflected a question asking him to assess any progress the French had made against the extremists, who overran a central village on Monday only hours after the French foreign minister said confidently that France had blocked “the advance of the terrorists.” Mr. Panetta said the United States was “still trying to get a read” on French efforts and strategy.

“I can’t really give you a full analysis as to just exactly what they’re targeting and how successful or not successful they may be in that effort as of this moment,” Mr. Panetta said at a joint news conference with the Spanish defense minister, Pedro Morenés. But Mr. Panetta added that “any time you confront an enemy that is dispersed and that is not located necessarily in one area makes it challenging, and the ability to go after that enemy and be able to stop them from moving forward represents a difficult task.”

 

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