US not ready for bioterrorist attack

Jazzy · Post by **Jazzy** » Tue Jan 26, 2010 10:38 am

WASHINGTON â€“ A congressionally mandated panel says the United States isn't ready for a biological terrorist attack.

The Commission on the Prevention of Weapons of Mass Destruction Proliferation gives the Obama administration a failing grade for its efforts to prepare for and respond to a biological attack, such as the release of deadly viruses or bacteria.

Randy Larsen, the commission's executive director, says the poor preparation for the swine flu epidemic in 2009 is proof that the country is not positioned to respond to something more serious. Larsen points to the country running out of H1N1 vaccine despite a six-month warning from health officials that it would be potentially deadly.

Story Link: Panel: US not ready for bioterrorist attack - Yahoo! News

mikeinie · Post by **mikeinie** » Tue Jan 26, 2010 10:39 am

but really, is anyone?

FUBAR · Post by **FUBAR** » Tue Jan 26, 2010 2:05 pm

mikeinie;1285493 wrote: but really, is anyone?

How true. What would you prepare for? Could you save everyone? You cannot be prepared for everything the costs would be enormous....

gmc · Post by **gmc** » Wed Jan 27, 2010 3:49 am

worry about when it occurs to them they don't need elaborate plots to blow up planes or have bio weapons-a bomb attached to a petrol tanker outside the new york stock exchange or even simple car bombs going up in an underground car park or a bomb on the underground would actually be a lot more effective and far easier to carry out. It's not as if they don't know about car bombs and the like.

Post by **Oscar Namechange** » Wed Jan 27, 2010 5:55 am

gmc;1285638 wrote: worry about when it occurs to them they don't need elaborate plots to blow up planes or have bio weapons-a bomb attached to a petrol tanker outside the new york stock exchange or even simple car bombs going up in an underground car park or a bomb on the underground would actually be a lot more effective and far easier to carry out. It's not as if they don't know about car bombs and the like. We are very much used to bombs and the like here are we not? America on the other hand pre- 9/11 was oblivious to attacks on their home-land. I think the US is getting more Jittery by the day now they have had three attacks on their home-land, two very recently.

Post by **spot** » Wed Jan 27, 2010 9:11 am

The answer can only be to add more tax dollars to the underfunded US military. Speaking of which, where did the postal anthrax originate, did anyone work that out yet? Yemen? North Korea? Al Qaeda?

Post by **Oscar Namechange** » Wed Jan 27, 2010 9:22 am

spot;1285716 wrote: The answer can only be to add more tax dollars to the underfunded US military. Speaking of which, where did the postal anthrax originate, did anyone work that out yet? Yemen? North Korea? Al Qaeda?

I'm sure It was a guy from Tower Hamlets.

Post by **spot** » Wed Jan 27, 2010 9:26 am

oscar;1285721 wrote: I'm sure It was a guy from Tower Hamlets.

Surely not, it takes hundreds of millions of dollars to weaponize anthrax from scratch. You'd need a mulitary budget the size of... no, let's not go there. More money than Al Qaeda has though.

Post by **Oscar Namechange** » Wed Jan 27, 2010 9:42 am

spot;1285723 wrote: Surely not, it takes hundreds of millions of dollars to weaponize anthrax from scratch. You'd need a mulitary budget the size of... no, let's not go there. More money than Al Qaeda has though.
That's a good point.