You have commented 339 times on Rantburg.

Your Name
Your e-mail (optional)
Website (optional)
My Original Nic        Pic-a-Nic        Sorry. Comments have been closed on this article.
Bold Italic Underline Strike Bullet Blockquote Small Big Link Squish Foto Photo
Submit your comments on this article
Home Front: WoT
CIA Entering the Fight of the Global Spread of WMDs
2010-08-20
The U.S. Central Intelligence Agency said it will create a center to fight the spread of nuclear, chemical and biological weapons.

Weapons analysts will work alongside undercover operatives who are part of the CIAs National Clandestine Service, the agency said in a press release today. The center will be headed by an undercover officer.
(additional info from anonymous professional source) "The number one artificial biological threat has become a gene-synthesised virus. Although it is a good idea to try to monitor orders for viruses engineered by commercial services, this is unlikely to prevent an attack. The machines necessary to produce such viruses have already been sold to many countries. Such nations can produce highly lethal, highly infectious viruses at will, as well as sophisticated delivery systems.

"For its part, the failure of the CDC to implement basic procedures like high-throughput PCR for diagnostics and seroprevalence studies for CFR information is an indicator of incompetence. They had the equipment, they just didnt know how to use it. The CDC is 10-20 years behind in their knowledge of modern biological methods, because they are for the most part public health officials who typically have little or no recent laboratory experience. Likewise, they shun becoming bio-conflict oriented."
Building a weaponized virus or bacterium is not trivial but it is straightforward. A competent PhD in cell and molecular biology, with standard protocols, equipment and commercially-available reagents, materials, and kits, can build such viruses and bacteria. There are thousands of academic, government and pharmaceutical company laboratories around the world that can do this. Much of the work can be done quietly, on the side, by a motivated individual or small group using said laboratories of their employers, without their employers and supervisors being aware.

The DNA and RNA sequences for lethal virulence factors that could be inserted into a virus or bacterium are known and listed on government (e.g., NIH) websites. They can be cloned using kits. Plasmids and packaging vectors to receive the cloned DNA are widely available, and model viruses and bacteria are commercially available or can be obtained by an innocent letter to a colleague halfway around the world.

This isn't hard, particularly for a modern PhD.
Posted by: Anonymoose

#3  Truthfully, I think that the target here is not attacking people directly, but going after agriculture. For example, most of southern Asia would be devastated if a carefully distributed rice virus wiped out most of their crops one season. Much of the rest of the world if corn were attacked.

The CDC look like cub scouts compared to the USDA, which is continually at war with dozens of diseases, insects and parasites, and so are wartime authoritarian in their actions.

I watched once, when a few wheat samples in AZ were found to have a disease called Karnal Bunt. With no hesitation, the USDA ordered every speck of living wheat in the State destroyed, and prohibited growing it for five years. No arguments.
Posted by: Anonymoose   2010-08-20 14:40  

#2  hmmmm just now getting into it? Don't they read?
Posted by: Frank G   2010-08-20 13:32  

#1  Don't worry 'moose, it will all make sense to them after the first attack or two.

As for giving away deadly technology: Could we possibly stop doing that? It's mentally deficient. After we invented the A-bomb, plans were available until about the 80's. Then suddenly they got classified. And it hasn't slowed down since then. We give away every bit of tech we have until suddenly someone realizes that maybe being able to modify a virus could create all kinds of havoc and says "Hey, someone with half a brain could use this to kill millions of people" and then suddenly it gets regulated. After the horse has exited the barn and wandered off into Pakistain or wherever. Duh. Gotta quit that. Maybe next time. I shake my head every time that happens at the lack of the simplest common sense.
Posted by: gorb   2010-08-20 12:11  

00:00