Greetings everyone,
Just checking in before I have to go back to work. Very, very busy these days. Just one or two posts that I am going to address.
The first post actually I guess is in response to admin’s concern over the technological content on the blog. While I don’t believe it wise to be having that conversation in such an open forum, the first amendment allows you to do it unless you discuss classified information. I won’t go through and tell people what is correct and what is incorrect (when I am able to distinguish between them) simply because of the terrorism issue. Misinformation is a powerful ally that I won’t alienate.
With regards to Dr. Crockett, she is an excellent Biodefense expert with awesome mentors. I’m very happy to call her colleague and I very much respect her knowledge and opinions. I would not discard any theories to try and explain the different observations regarding the anthrax formulation as they are all just theories. No one except the attacker knows for sure how things were done and therefore which technique was effective. We haven’t been allowed to do the required testing (to support theory) in the USA since the end of the offensive component of our BW program in 1969.
That's not true.
It may be a "theory" that the attack spores had a sophisticated silica coating. However, when you have expert eyewitness testimony and solid facts which show that the attack spores did not have a coating, that is not an alternative "theory".
Facts and expert testimony are not the same as "theory."
And when facts show the "theory" about a sophisticated coating to be total unscientific nonsense, and that it's just a screwball conspiracy theory, it's doubly wrong to suggest that such a disproven theory is as equally valid as what solid facts indicate.
No offense intended.
Misinformation is a powerful ally that I won’t alienate.
Misinformation is used to promote all sorts of conspiracy theories. Allowing such idiotic theories to continue and to gain new converts every day does no one any good.
Misinformation should be identified and debunked whenever possible. We can't assume that ignorance is what is best for Americans or anyone.
The First Amendment, of course, has no application as no state action is involved.
Admin is all-powerful in this FreeRepublic. And his motto, printed in bold red for any poster to see, is: “Loose lips sink ships.”
So if qualified microbiologists who are concerned about such things, and they choose to write Admin, he should oblige them.
If they don’t, then they can’t be heard to complain (and trust me, they are the types to complain and be heard).
My concern is what TrebleRebel says — having minted a lot of PhD’s, he knows a lot of big words — and I think his quest to debate the details is appropriately moderated by those concerned with the proliferation of know-how.
“No one except the attacker knows for sure how things were done and therefore which technique was effective. We haven’t been allowed to do the required testing (to support theory) in the USA since the end of the offensive component of our BW program in 1969.”
Extensive attempts to recreate the product have been conducted at Dugway.