Posted on 10/17/2001 6:44:12 AM PDT by JohnHuang2
WASHINGTON (AP) - More than 20 people in Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle's office have tested positive for exposure to anthrax, sources said Wednesday.The tests were conducted after a letter sent to Daschle's office was found to contain a highly refined form of anthrax, suggesting it was produced by experts.
One official with direct knowledge of the test results said 22 Daschle staffers had tested positive for exposure to anthrax. All of them are taking the antibiotic Cipro. Another source said that more than 20 had tested positive. Both sources insisted on anonymity.
The FBI is investigating strong similarities in handwriting and style, including identical anti-American language, between the letter sent to Daschle in Washington and a letter with anthrax sent to NBC News anchor Tom Brokaw in New York.
Elsewhere in the country, four people are known to have contracted anthrax and nine others have tested positive for the bacteria.
Hundreds of people were tested Tuesday after the suspicious letter was opened in Daschle's office Monday. Nasal swabs were used on the staffers to see if there were any anthrax spores in their noses. A positive finding does not mean the person has the disease or will get the disease.
About 8,000 spores must be inhaled for a person to develop inhalation anthrax.
Sen. Joseph Lieberman, D-Conn., said about 200 people on Capitol Hill are taking Cipro because of the anthrax scare, including himself.
Lieberman, who has not tested positive for anthrax exposure, said during a CNN interview on Wednesday that his taking the antibiotic ``is probably unnecessary, but why not?''
Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson said of the anthrax scare: ``There's no question that right now we are in a period of the unknown.''
For Education And Discussion Only. Not For Commercial Use.
Amen! As Rush was saying yesterday. You can't mix up a batch of anthrax in Bin Landin's caves. This anthrax has to have an ideal enviornement in order to make it. Surprise! Saddam's has had this capability for years. Saddem, your A@@ is grass!
Get a handle on yourself. Testing positive for anthrax exposure means exactly what it says. It means that they have been exposed to anthrax in some way shape or form. How much clearer can this be?
Right. I've read testimony from two freepers that say it's not that challenging to produce weaponized anthrax.
One said a third year doctoral student, the other said any good lab. Should I believe them,
or should I believe a three word retort?
Get a handle on yourself. Testing positive for anthrax exposure means exactly what it says. It means that they have been exposed to anthrax in some way shape or form. How much clearer can this be?
Let me explain to you, slowly, how clear it isn't.
1. There is a ton of anthrax hysteria out there.
2. The news media have been hit, so they're among the most hysterical.
3. The news media are not always reliable in their construction of English. Look how often they were buffaloed by Clintonian doublespeak during his term. Many of them thought he had a good point about the definition of "is."
4. I've already seen the term "exposure" misused a number of times by the news media in the last week. As it happens, they got it right this time. But on a number of occasions I've seen them confuse "exposed" with "infected."
5. So when I see the term "exposure" in a breaking anthrax story, without any further qualification, I'm not absolutely certain that they're using the term as it was meant to be used.
6. Hence, the need to get a better handle on our terms.
Get it?
Yet?
Search
to educate yourself about anthrax.
Miss the point AGAIN if you like.
Might I suggest looking up the meaning of "obtuse?"
I appreciate that.
2) "Exposure" does NOT mean a person has the disease, or even will develop it. It simply means one or more spores have been found.
3) I say again, be wary, but be calm. Exactly ONE person has died from Anthrax, basically because no one was looking for it. In a nation of 250 million people, the odds of your personally being exposed are longer than your chance of winning the lottery.
4) Antibiotic treatment is VERY effective even if the disease has developed.
5) 20,000 people will die from the flu this year. No one is panicking over -that-.
See post #159.
#166 will better explain the context of my questions on #44, but rest assured, it's tone is not directed toward you.
Take care.
Anthrax_Scare_List
Go here:
and then click the Anthrax_Scare_List topic to initiate the search! !
Daschhle and his staffers clearly made the situation worse and panicked a lot of people. Now they are saying it is not weapons grade at all!
Explain to me why this would be bad if those taking Cipro are liberal Democrats or press people? Now if we have to start treating productive members of society, yeah, we got a problem. but so far. . . (There is a silver lining to even the darkest cloud.)
Trust me, I'm a doctor. No, really.
Well, in Congress that would be a good thing. Maybe we should force everyone there to take it!
Perhaps the reason they won't say is so as not to blow the operation that will do something about it. Time will tell.
lol. I agree.
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