See Irish story about individual CB protection ---------- From: Monterey Institute Sent: Wednesday, February 23, 2000 9:14 AM To: chembio-terror@miis.edu Subject: ChemBio Weapons and WMD Terrorism News - February 23, 2000
******************************************************* ChemBio Weapons and WMD Terrorism News - February 23, 2000 *******************************************************
1) BW CONCERNS DOWNPLAYED http://news.excite.com:80/news/uw/000223/health-33
2) BW THREAT ASSESSMENT http://www.ireland.com:80/newspaper/ireland/2000/0223/hom10.htm
3) ANTHRAX VACCINE PROGRAM http://www.al.com:80/news/birmingham/Feb2000/20-anthrax2.html
4) DOD RESPONSE TO SARIN EXPOSURE http://www.usia.gov/cgi-bin/washfile/display.pl?p=/products/washfile/topic/int rel&f=00022201.ppo&t=/products/washfile/newsitem.shtml
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------------------------------------------- BW CONCERNS DOWNPLAYED ------------------------------------------- 1) Biological Warfare Fears Misplaced, Harvard Professor Says U-Wire/Harvard Crimson February 22, 2000 Thomas J. Castillo
http://news.excite.com:80/news/uw/000223/health-33
"Should Americans be afraid of an attack with biological weapons? The country is in no grave danger of germ warfare from abroad, according to one Harvard professor who says the media tends to exaggerate the threat and inflate popular fears. In a speech to a national scientific organization on Friday, Cabot Professor of Natural Sciences Matthew S. Meselson expressed cautious optimism that biotechnology will not necessarily be used for weapons of mass destruction. Meselson's speech to the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) in Washington, entitled 'The Problem of Biological Weapons,' noted that although superpowers have developed and stockpiled biological weapons for over 50 years, they have only been employed once, by Japan in the 1930s."
-------------------------------------- BW THREAT ASSESSMENT -------------------------------------- 2) No Defence For Civilians Against Germ Warfare Irish Times February 23, 2000 Dick Ahlstrom
http://www.ireland.com:80/newspaper/ireland/2000/0223/hom10.htm
"Civilians could not be protected from biological warfare, a US military specialist has said. There are too few vaccines or gas masks to protect large populations and early warning systems are not well enough developed to afford any proper protection. The chilling possibilities of a biological attack were outlined yesterday on the final day of the American Association for the Advancement of Science meeting in Washington. Lieut Col George W. Christopher of the US Air Force described the main threats and what defence methods would be used. The deliberate use of microorganisms and poisons had been part of biological warfare throughout history, he said. 'Fortunately, few of the thousands of microbes known to science are suitable BW candidates.' They must be easy to mass-produce and store, remain highly infectious and users must have vaccines or other treatments available to protect themselves."
--------------------------------------------- ANTHRAX VACCINE PROGRAM --------------------------------------------- 3) Vaccine Questions Birmingham News February 20, 2000
http://www.al.com:80/news/birmingham/Feb2000/20-anthrax2.html
"The Pentagon's stubborn refusal to back off a plan to inoculate every active-duty and reserve troop with a controversial anthrax vaccine is frustrating - but certainly not surprising. As it proved by the way it handled Gulf War syndrome, once the Defense Department stakes out a course, it's hard to get it to change directions. Concerning its policy on the anthrax vaccine, though, President Clinton or even Congress should intervene to bring some common sense to the Pentagon's vaccination program."
-------------------------------------------------------------------- DOD RESPONSE TO POSSIBLE SARIN EXPOSURE -------------------------------------------------------------------- 4) Chemical Weapons Workers In Utah Not Exposed To Sarin Defense Department Report USIA Washington File February 22, 2000
http://www.usia.gov/cgi-bin/washfile/display.pl?p=/products/washfile/topic/int rel&f=00022201.ppo&t=/products/washfile/newsitem.shtml
"Asked about two employees repairing equipment at a chemical weapons incinerator in Tooele, Utah, who were possibly exposed to the deadly nerve agent sarin, Bacon said 'Alarms went off, indicating the possibility of exposure. The workers did exactly what they were trained to do; they evacuated the area extremely quickly and we have no evidence that there has been any problem....' Blood tests have shown 'no signs or symptoms of this gas GB, a nerve agent,' he said. There are many detectors at Tooele, which is one of the U.S. facilities for destroying supplies of nerve gas, Bacon said. The detectors, he added, 'are designed to detect parts of GB or sarin nerve gas, per billion, and (the alarms) are set to go off if they detect 20 percent of one part per billion -- in other words, one-fifth of one part per billion.'"
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