Anthrax Tainted Letter Discovered...by Accident !

The Star Ledger | 08/16/03 | vanity

[FairOpinion]

"A new anthrax blogger hits the internet.

http://hatfill.blogspot.com/

I wonder who he is? ;-)"

===

We could NEVER guess. ;)

[genefromjersey]

Thanks ! Most helpful !

[genefromjersey]

I doubt it was "tracked down". It's more likely the Arkansas recipient was a "person of interest", and there was a court-approved "mail cover" on him, which turned up a letter from the Princeton/Trenton area.

The Postals probably intercepted and examined for type of envelope,appearance of handwriting, and return address.
They probably then delivered it to the recipient, who opened it in their presence, and probably showed them it was an invitation to a professional or alumni event, or fund solicitation, etc., and told them "You keep it, since you're so interested."

He probably also told them they should check it for anthrax, and they said "Yeah-yeah", triple bagged it, wrote up their report, and tossed the letter in the evidence locker.

I can't think of who it was,but I seem to recall there was a retired microbiologist living in the Beebe area,who had worked for USAMRIID at one time.

[Tunehead54]

Who was it from and to whom?

---

... Postal Inspectors and FBI agents made an effort to locate and check out other mail processed through that facility on or near that date, and succeeded in tracking down the letter referred to, and in retrieving it from its recipient, in Beebe, Arkansas.

Any FOB's in Beebe?

[Princeton]

"A new anthrax blogger hits the internet.

http://hatfill.blogspot.com/

I wonder who he is? ;-)"

===

We could NEVER guess. ;)"


Never? You're just joshin', right?


http://www.libertyforum.org/dosearch.php?Cat=&Forum=All_Forums&Words=ProjectHatfill&Match=Username&Searchpage=0&Limit=25&Old=allposts



(Bada; Looking forward to your new website.)

[Princeton]

Bad Things Come in Small Packages: White Powder Demo Given in Princeton N.J. Oct. 1999:


Deadly viruses coming to a hospital near you
Bioterrorism experts to give talk on state of preparedness

By Louise Handelman
Princeton Packet Staff Writer
Monday, Oct. 25, 1999


Princeton resident Richard Preston will talk about the state of preparedness to defend against a potential bioterrorism attack.


'Tis the season to be scary. And, according to Princeton-resident Richard Preston, the very real goblins come in the form of deadly viruses.

Mr. Preston, author of "The Hot Zone" and "The Cobra Event" and an expert on bioterrorism, will speak on Oct. 27 on the threat of bioterrorism — in particular, smallpox and anthrax — and the current state of preparedness to defend against a potential attack.

Mr. Preston will be joined by Dr. Donald A. Henderson, director of the Center for Civilian Biodefense Studies at Johns Hopkins University. Dr. Henderson headed the World Health Organization's campaign to eradicate smallpox worldwide. This 12-year program was remarkably successful, with the last case of smallpox reported in 1977. Dr. Henderson also has top security clearance and frequently advises the United States government on issues of bioterrorism.

In Dr. Henderson's view, the availability of deadly biological organisms has made the risk of mass destruction far greater than ever. "There was a time, not all that long ago, that we didn't think so — myself as well. That perception has changed," he said.

According to Michael Lemonick, senior writer at TIME magazine and moderator of the seminar, Dr. Henderson and Mr. Preston's concerns carry weight. "Any time these two men appear together there is reason to take notice. D.A. Henderson is a towering figure in public health. And Dick Preston — his facts are always impeccable, and he is very good at scaring the hell out of us," Mr. Lemonick said.
BIOTERRORISM TALK

What: Bad Things Come in Small Packages: Bioterror and Public Health at the New Millennium
When: Wednesday, Oct. 27, 7:30 p.m.
Where: Richardson Auditorium, Alexander Hall, Princeton University

Speakers: Richard Preston, Princeton author and bioterrorism expert; Dr. Donald A. Henderson, director of the Center for Civilian Biodefense Studies at Johns Hopkins University; opening remarks by Christine Grant, Commissioner of the Department of Health and Senior Services; moderated by Michael Lemonick, senior writer at TIME.
Cost: Free to the public
Information: Call The Medical Center at Princeton Foundation at (609) 497-4190.

Mr. Preston isn't the only writer spreading a hue and cry about the need for general biological defenses. Witness the extensive media coverage on the West Nile-like virus in the greater New York City area. (Significantly, Mr. Preston, in a recent issue of The New Yorker, raised the reporting bar one notch higher, noting possible links between the outbreak and Saddam Hussein's development of West Nile virus for bioterrorist purposes.)

But is the public aware of the potential threat of bioterrorism to public health? According to Mr. Preston, more and more so.

The Princeton resident says that some of the heightened awareness is due to the publication of "The Cobra Event," his best-selling thriller about biological weapons and terrorism. He also cites the concerted efforts of Dr. Henderson and Michael Osterholm, chief epidemiologist for the state of Minnesota, to spread the word.

"The three of us are friends, and we got together about two years ago and decided to yell our heads off. I wrote the book, and they gave speeches and gave interviews with the media," Mr. Preston said.

Their concerns were given further credence, Mr. Preston said, when Ken Alibeck, a Russian defector and inventor of the world's most virulent form of anthrax, went public on the biological warfare program in the former Soviet Union. "The CIA more or less gave him permission to talk about the Soviet bioweapons program, and what he said scared the daylights out of people," Mr. Preston said.

Nor has Mr. Preston's effort stopped with his book. This past summer, he wrote an article for The New Yorker on the potential use of smallpox as a bioterrorist weapon. Smallpox virus is highly lethal, air-borne and extremely contagious — during the 10-day incubation period, the victim shows no symptoms and thus can inadvertently transmit the virus to many others.

Since the elimination of smallpox under Dr. Henderson's direction, there are only two secure laboratories that officially stockpile smallpox samples — the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, and Vector, the State Research Institute of Virology and Biotechnology in Novosibirsk, Siberia. According to Mr. Preston, however, more than just stockpiling is happening at Vector. In his article, he gives evidence concerning Russian experimentation with smallpox viruses.

He also cites U.S. government classified documents listing nations and groups who have illicit stockpiles of smallpox or who have made attempts to purchase the virus. Included on the list are China, India, Pakistan, Israel, North Korea, Iraq, Iran, Cuba and Serbia.

"Smallpox is the equivalent of the hydrogen bomb among bioweapons," Mr. Preston said. "Anyone who is involved in bioterrorism would want the best."

Moreover, the instability of the Russian government and the financial precariousness of Russian laboratories themselves make the possibility of other countries acquiring smallpox that much greater. "The scientists need to survive — that makes them vulnerable to working with places like Iraq or Pakistan or North Korea," Mr. Preston said.

Even the Russian government is beginning to be alarmed, he said, knowing that the bugs could be released on Moscow. Such concerns have not yet yielded cooperation between Russia and the United States to combat the lurking dangers, though. "The [Russian] military is not about to give up any weapons — the country is threatened, the military weak," he said.

Mr. Preston also raised the possibility that the threat of bioterrorism may have already influenced American foreign policy. "Saddam Hussein has smallpox. When President Clinton was thinking of bombing Iraq and held back, do you think it was because Saddam might have let go some smallpox?"

But what about vaccines? Wouldn't dispersing smallpox endanger the lives of his countrymen, let alone his own life? "Maybe Saddam Hussein has plenty of vaccines," Mr. Preston surmised.

Indeed, the issue of smallpox vaccine supplies in the United States and elsewhere is critical. What little quantity of vaccine is available in this country is owned by the government and not available for individual distribution. Nevertheless, Mr. Preston believes his article has "served as a kick." Following its publication, the government is getting serious about stockpiling smallpox vaccines, he said.

Indeed, such a stockpile is essential in the event of a bioterrorist attack because most people today have no immunity to the disease. The last widespread mass vaccinations for smallpox occurred around 25 years ago, and the effectiveness of most vaccines greatly diminishes over time.

But in the long and even short run, is the government moving fast enough to combat a potential threat? Dr. Henderson admits to being worried. "I think we could move a lot faster," he said.

As if this scenario isn't scary enough, Mr. Preston will also carry out a "benign" demonstration of biological warfare at the seminar. He will bring along an "anthrax nozzle," a heavy metal weapon, made by the U.S. Army in the 1950s and 1960s, that is used to disperse anthrax. Similar devices today, he confided, use microprocessors and are much smaller — the size of a Gameboy.

"I put in Johnson & Johnson's baby powder and discharge it," he said. The audience sees the particles spread through the air. "I've done this before, and I can always see a reaction from the people in the front row. For a moment they wonder, 'Oh, my God, he's a psycho — but then they smell the baby powder."

[muawiyah]

I was kind of thinking of a 5-digit direct tray to the US Senate! They would have taken it to Dulles to check it for a letter bomb, but otherwise it would have gone "all the way"!

Thinking back to the days where letter bombs were a big problem, I think it was a group in Algeria and another gang either for or against King Idris and then Ghadaffi who were involved in most of that!

Those terrorists also used single piece rate First-Class Mail thankfully.

[muawiyah]

The chart continues to be relevant to almost anything except single piece rate First-Class Mail which would travel by air from West Palm Beach to Philadelphia, or theother way around.

[FairOpinion]

We could NEVER guess. ;)"


Never? You're just joshin', right?

===

We don't need to "guess" --- we KNOW. :)

[Mitchell]

The chart continues to be relevant to almost anything except single piece rate First-Class Mail which would travel by air from West Palm Beach to Philadelphia, or the other way around.

Thanks for the information. I have no knowledge of this area myself; I posted the chart since I had seen it and thought it might be a starting point for geneforjersey in what he was looking for.

[Mitchell]

That's genefromjersey, not geneforjersey. Sorry for the typo, Gene.

[Princeton]

My Friends call me Victor

(Posted by NativeNewYorker to new cruelty On News/Activism 05/01/2003 9:55 AM PDT #11 of 44)

[First_Salute]

No doubt, Saddam Hussein is sitting in a jail in Iraq, but his jailers are ignoring his pleas, that he is in fact Saddam Hussein. "Yeah. Sure buddy!" they yell back to his cell. "Everybody's Saddam Hussein."

[Dr. Eckleburg]

Wonder if this "accidental" find is going to be used to pin all the anthrax letters on some one or some thing.

They think we're dumb as mud.

[snopercod]

This doesn't surprise me. The FBI was cited for contempt of court several times for mishandling evidence in the Randall Weaver case.

But it's OK now, the guilty parties have been promoted...

[Domestic Church]

" How the heck would it end up being stored in Arkansas?"

Especially considering that state trooper who died from weaponized anthrax back in the early nineties after he was investigating Clinton.

[Kay Ludlow]

Those terrorists also used single piece rate First-Class Mail thankfully

That's probably because they would have to provide an address and ID to get the permit to do bulk mailing - LOL!(evidence from previous terrorism shows money is no object, but providing ID makes it a little tougher.) Since the anthrax mailing, there has been some work on 'intelligent mail', that when you mail it in the post office the 'meter' strip would include much more data than currently. I can see how that would help with packages, but I haven't figured out how it would help with something like anthrax letters.

[muawiyah]

We also must be thankful these guys used only standard paper envelopes. If they'd used postal cards into which the spores had been pressed (I can think of several simple ways to do this), the contamination would have been much more widespread, and more folks would have died.

Note that USPS still requires that post cards must be made of wood fiber paper stock in order to get the postcard rate. If you use a safer material, e.g. plastic laminate, they will charge you the full letter mail rate. There's been absolutely no effort made to eliminate these very dangerous paper stock post cards.

Sometimes I wonder if anybody's tending the store over there.

It's been over a year and a half since I discussed this very issue with the people most responsible for the policy. Apparantly they do not fear death, but that's the sort of bravery that's best kept to yourself and not shared with the rest of us.

[vetvetdoug]

I knew that I paid that bill to the Credit Cards. The FBI had the letter all along.