[Calvin Locke]

Southeastern MA has been suffering from Eastern Equine Encephelitis for about a decade, in addition to the West Nile,
and probably Lyme Disease too.

[olde north church]

I tracked the history of West Nile Virus in the United States and the timeline is consitent with it being Saddam Hussein's first large scale biological attack on the United States. Soldiers were exposed to the disease via mosquitoes. His soldiers, if he cared, would already have been exposed to the disease and not truly susceptible.
American soldiers, returning from theatre would have initial symptoms which would have been overlooked as a rhinovirus. As an FYI, the rhinovirus jumped from horses to man during the domestication process. American horses have been affected by West NIle Virus.
The medical authorities refuse to make the link but it is there.