The Pros And Cons Of Bioterrorism

“Bioterrorism remains a major threat for the United States despite more than $65 billion spent on protecting the country from myriad dangers, the Bipartisan WMD Terrorism Research Center said in its latest report Wednesday. The center's Bio-Response Report Card evaluated U.S. preparedness for countering threats from bioterrorism and found the country remains vulnerable to multiple threats and "largely unprepared for a large-scale bioterrorist attack."”(UPI.com, 2011). There have been over a dozen leading U.S. bio-defense experts that have taken part in figuring out where we are exactly as a county and what the effects of a terroristic attack

These biological agents could be viruses, toxins, bacteria, etc. Agents could be used in war or terrorist attacks. Also, they could be modified to cause extreme diseases and disorders, according to The Center for Disease Control and Prevention. It makes bioterrorism even more tempting to use as it is easy and inexpensive to produce, disseminate and can cause a more widespread panic than other acts of terrorism (1).

Following the 9/11 and anthrax terrorist attacks, studies focused on the mental state of the nation were performed. While these events occurred over a decade ago, they are not a danger of the past. With increasingly advanced technology, anthrax is relatively easy to produce in large quantities (Inglesby). Additionally, many countries such as China, Israel, and North Korea have nuclear weapons (The Biological Threat). Although biological weapons were forbidden during the Geneva Convention, it would be foolish for America to believe that a bioterrorist attack is out of the picture, especially at a time where large terrorist attacks are increasingly common. Thus, it is important to consider whether bioterrorism’s psychological ramifications,

Bruce Ivins, other than his suicide when things homing on to him with the FBI, is the anthrax killer, exposing and estimated thirty thousand people to the deadly spores, killing five, leaving its illness with seventeen others. (Shactman) The problem with chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear terrorism, also know as CBRN, is that, in threats where conventional explosives are not used, chemical, biological, and radiological threats are hard to detect and prevent, and after-the-fact, are, usually, impossible, expensive, or extensive in labor and use of high-tech, cutting-edge equipment, which is complicated and needs technical expertise, to make the clean-up take very long in chemical and radiological threats, and is nearly impossible to collect evidence for examination in a laboratory in chemical and biological threats if aerosolized or in a vapor form, which dissipates into the atmosphere, environment, and plants around it (Center For Excellence in Emergency

The US right now is taking military and counterterrorism actions, but it is not enough to stop them. Bioterrorism is harder to stop because you won't know whether it is a deliberate outbreak by terrorist group or a natural outbreak of disease (Okoth 2). Bio Attacks are not only deadly to people but also the environment according to Naftali Okoth “dual threats of emerging infections and bioterrorism would pose a major conceptual and technical challenges for a regions intelligence

After events such as 9/11, terrorism still instills fear into America’s population. Why? Simply because it is the one danger the American people cannot control. Biological terrorism is not always feared or worried about, but it is a genuine possibility and a lethal surprise that causes devastation. If not prepared, these deadly pathogens could easily kill large amounts of people. With tensions on the rise, what will the government or citizens do to defend themselves? If something happens, how will Americans be able to care for themselves and families? Bioterrorism is becoming a serious threat that needs to be eradicated to gain biosecurity and to ensure the safety of Americans.

Imagine this: you wake up hours before your alarm sounds to find your entire neighborhood in chaos; people running, robbing banks and stores, and bodies are littering the once calm streets. Over the night, a government-run biological experiment dealing with germ weapons had been released, infecting, destroying, and causing panic across the globe. As a single, globalized society, we need to heighten our security against biological weapons and biological terror to prevent the endangerment of mankind. It would be most beneficial to our species if we did not try to use or experiment with biological weapons, seeing as they are engineered specifically to create social, economic, governmental, military, and general fear and disruption. Bioterror

Bioterrorism is directly focused on the livestock and crops, which are valuable sources of food. The agroterrorism attack in the U.S. has started an economic warfare, which can turn fatal to most Americans. Economic warfare has calculated of being damaging to the

According to Powerpoint on Select Agents and Toxins in Module 2, a select agent is a biological agent that has the potential to pose a severe threat to animal health and safety, plant health and safety, or to the safety of animal or plant products. Biosecurity is a set of procedures intended to protect humans or animals against disease or harmful biological agents, according to Module 1, Biosecurity and the Importance of Invasive Species. According to the CDC video, "History of Bioterrorism" in Module 2, bioterrorism is the use of weapons of viruses, bacteria, and other germs for an attack. Ricin is a poison found naturally in beans (Select Agents and Toxins Module 2 Powerpoint). It prevents cells from making protein. If inhaled, it can cause

To this date, anthrax seems to be the so called weapon of choice by bioterrorists because of how affective the biological agent can be. Anthrax is considered to be noncontagious, since there are no confirmed cases where the bacterium spreads from person to person. “Bacillus anthracis is the bacterium that causes the disease anthrax. It has historically affected herbivores like cattle, sheep or other grazing herds, but has also been a threat to humans who work with these animals and their by-products.” (Lee Ann Obringer). The anthrax spores are actually harmless when they are on the ground or on another unidealistic surface, but once the spores find the right environment, they become deadly. The dream environment for anthrax is one that has

Before the 20th century, the use of biological agents took three major forms, Deliberate contamination of food and water with poisonous or contagious material using of microbes, biological toxins, animals, or plants (living or dead) in a weapon system, using of biologically inoculated fabrics and persons. Now a day sophisticated bacteriological and virological techniques allowed the production of significant stockpiles of weaponized bio-agents such as; Anthrax, Brucella, Tularemia, Smallpox, Viral hemorrhagic fevers, Botulinum, Ricin, (Legvold, 2012).The most likely route of dissemination is an aerosolized release of 1-5mm particles. Other methods of dissemination include oral, intentional contamination of food/water supply, percutaneous,

Anthrax Disease is one of the top choices to use for attempts of a bioterrorist attack. This disease is one

Bioterrorism is not a distant threat that may concern us twenty years from now.  It has occurred throughout history and continues to this day.  As recently as 1996, a man from Ohio with connections to an extremist group was able to obtain Bubonic Plague cultures through the US Postal Service (Danzig & Berkowsky, 1997).  In the last month, several people within the United States have become infected with anthrax.  As we stand right now, America is unprepared for a large-scale attack with biological weapons, and as we continue with our "War on Terrorism," the likelihood of such an attack is increasing every day.  Terrorists can use three major methods to most effectively distribute a biological agent in the US: 1) air dispersal to

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) identifies bioterrorism as “the intentional use of microorganisms or toxins derived from living organisms to produce death or disease in humans, animal, and plants”. Bioterrorism is known as biological warfare. This particular kind of warfare is unique for specific use of microorganisms. This includes attacks from viruses and dangerous bacteria to cause fatality or sickness to people, animals, or plants. According the Human Diseases and Conditions Forum, “when organisms are used in this way, they become weapons”. The agents are usually discovered within nature. They can however be

Imagine a civilian in an American neighborhood creating and using a weapon of mass destruction, a global weapon. This could happen anywhere with someone with half a brain. Biological warfare includes these weapons. Bio means life so Bio warfare attacks the body. It spreads violently and quickly to any place on the globe. Bioterror is more threatening than nuclear war because it is easily mishandled, worldwide in lethality, and easily acquired.