Bioterrorism Introduction Imagine the United States fifteen years from now, 2030 an Ebola outbreak has accord. Infection spreading every second, cities all over America growing anxious not knowing how to react to such a deadly disease. Humans trying to find a safe place to shelter their family frustrated with the little supplies of food and water left to help them surviver for at least the next few days, but knowing they can’t do anything because the deadly virus is everywhere. Hospitals all over
Biological threats to the homeland are one of six strategic challenges outlined in The Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) 2014 Quadrennial Homeland Security Review. Biological threats are sometimes viewed as underrated threat to homeland security compared to the threat of terrorism and nuclear weapons. The following will explain the nature the threat of biological weapons pose on the homeland and the ongoing steps the federal government is implementing to meet this challenge. The nature of
One common theory about the origin of AIDS is that the virus originated in Africa. They believe that AIDS was transferred to humans by route of either eating infected chimpanzees or their blood infecting a human through an open wound or sore. After the first human was infected, the infection soon spread as Brandon Keim wrote in “Early Spread of AIDS Traced to Congo’s Expanding Transportation Network”. “The number of infections soon tripled, and the virus’s range expanded.” It is said that HIV
“Canada, France, Germany, Japan, Soviet Union and the United Kingdom were among many countries that investigated how to wage biological war.” (pg. 38) Some of these countries have biological weapons programs and even some biological weapons have been used in the past. A Russian program “known to the Soviets as “the Concern Bioreparat”, supposedly a series of laboratories and plants that manufactured vaccines and other medicinal
are nuclear, chemical and biological weaponry. Though the United States government and military has been enthusiastically involved in the evolution of these weapons, their enthusiasm dwindles when responsibility must be taken for the consequences that result. Consequences that are left unresolved or postponed only bring about more doubts and questions that all branch off of one basic issue: Is it ethical to continue the advancement of nuclear, chemical and biological warfare when the results cannot
for this week’s discussion falls squarely within the biological warfare threat and was chosen based on its past usage and resilience to environmental variables that may otherwise degrade the effectiveness of other agents when disseminated from a likely terrorist device. The anthrax spore is a robust organism, capable of causing a high percentage of fatalities in those who inhale it and is proven attractive to those seeking to employ biological weapons against America. The anthrax
The recorded history of warfare is filled with the use of biological weapons and agents to further the cause of belligerents. Today we face a threat that it is feared will make use of biological weaponry to become, what is termed, as bioterrorists. Bioterrorism is an intentional release of bacteria, viruses and other biological agents with the objective to cause diseases and/or death within a target population, animals and/or crops or other vegetation. Most of the agents used as bio weapons are widely
The evolution of warfare, from small raids to large scale total war, influenced the evolution in weaponry. Whether it is a rock for a caveman, a sword for a knight, or a gun for a marine, there is an ever-present need for a more effective way to kill the enemy. The obligation to better protect one’s citizens from the enemy further increases the demands for “better and improved” weapons, which dictate the need for weapons to evolve. The fundamental methods to injure and kill humans and other living
Project Bioshield and Keeping America Safe Now in this day and age biological threats and warfare are at an risk of all time high and the Project Bioshield Act will protect the United States of America from these threats. On July, 10, 2010, the House of Representatives created a bill that would withdraw two billion dollars from Project Bioshield to pay for a boost in development for other federal programs. Even though the money was not cut from Project Bioshield it showed us that the project is
Conflict around the world has called to action many forms of warfare. Everything from weapons involving nuclear activity to the use of child soldiers has been current and deadly. Not too recently, bioterrorism is an especially lethal and life threatening attack. “ A bioterrorism attack is the deliberate release of viruses, bacteria, or other germs (agents) used to cause illness or death in people, animals, or plants.” (CDC, 2007) Essentially, bioterrorism was developed to invisibly dispose of