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Another post stated that ABC News reported the coating used in the Anthrax attack on Senator Daschle is known to be only used by Iraq. What the hell is going on!!! Some earlier articles stated the anthrax is from the US. While the Bush admin is denying any links with Saddam. Something very fishy is going on.

"Something very fishy is going on."

....and I guess we're 'cutting bait'?

Another post stated that ABC News reported the coating used in the Anthrax attack on Senator Daschle is known to be only used by Iraq. What the hell is going on!!! Some earlier articles stated the anthrax is from the US. While the Bush admin is denying any links with Saddam. Something very fishy is going on.

Anthrax, of the variety used in the attacks, has a chcmical footprint.

Vatieties can be attributed to lines developed in the US or Russia, for instance.

Academic labs frequently devlop strains of bacteria for testing, as in the case of Anthrax, whose behaviors are known.

The strains may have been developed in the US (one theory was an University Lab in Iowa) and then refined in Iraq.

Don't depend on idiot reporters to make careful scientific distinctions for you. Here's the facts:

The strain of anthrax used originally came from the U.S.A., but that was DECADES ago. All this means is that they didn't culture it from their own camel wool, they got it from a lab which got it from a lab which got it from a lab which .... which got it from a lab in the U.S. The word "strain" refers to the biological type of anthrax; different strains can be distinguished by their DNA as well as by their clinical effects.

The physical properties of the anthrax found in Daschle's office apparently point to a process, that was applied to anthrax spores of the abovementioned strain, to make the anthrax spread through the air more easily. At least three countries, the US, USSR, and Iraq, are known to have such a process, but the three countries developed their anthrax-weaponizing processes independently and the engineering details differ.

The latest reports are that further examination of the anthrax powder found in Daschle's office point to the Iraqi version of the weaponizing process rather than the other two known techniques.

I hope this clears things up.

Some earlier articles stated the anthrax is from the US. While the Bush admin is denying any links with Saddam. Something very fishy is going on.

You're confusing two different things. One has to do with the origin of the strain of the bacillus. The other is the type of preparation it has undergone for use. The strain could have come from the US years and years ago. The special coating is a type devised by Iraq. Maybe at this point the Bush Administration doesn't want to have to deal with (in public) the ramifications of everything many people have good reason to believe to be true. Although I'm sure they're taking everything into consideration, the public process is a matter of dealing with one thing at a time. 1. Usama bin Laden (aka Made in Anus Lab) and Afghanistan. 2. Saddam and Iraq.

The Bush administration is now saying that the equipment necessary to manufacture part of the coating of this anthrax costs around $200,000, and although Saddam bought a number of such units from us, "domestic terrorists" could have them (MSNBC). Funny, but I can't remember any domestic terrorist groups with that kind of funding. Why is the administration so patently and ridiculously defending one who has become so obviously the guilty party, in favor of blaming home grown terrorists. Is it fear of the two front war? Or fear of the long standing doctrine that a biological attack on the U.S. by a foreign state would be met with a nuclear response? Are we seeing a new doctrine? The Bush doctrine? A biological warfare attack on the United States will no longer be met with overwhelming force but with displaced blame?

I think back to when the first case of anthrax came up and the administration immediately termed it "isolated." I don't think that anyone at FP bought that at the time, and the FReepers were quickly shown to be right. We were lied to from the outset. But despite the ongoing lies, we are being prepared for something terrible. Now we have Cheney at every public appearance (at least three times in three days) making clear that we are to expect "more casualties at home than in the war abroad." Think about this. Either there isn't going to be much of a war on terrorism, or there is going to be a terrible war on us. If the latter, then we are certainly taking the slow and dangerous road to victory in our limited bombing, continued open immigration and visa policies, and failure to make a clear and convincing statement that any biological attack on the United States will be met with nuclear force.

Cheney knows something we don't about what threats we as U.S. citizens face. He is making clear that they are severe. Yet, our military response does not measure up to either his warnings or the attacks we have suffered.

First Daschle's letter more poten worse than anyones. The news media ran with it and Daschle says, he may have over reacted. But Gephardt wants to keep the Daschle spin going and so is the news media. I don't think 31 people in Daschle office handled one piece of mail. I think the Democratic party is responsible for this Anthrax scare. Their playing politics with our lives. I think now the copy cat Anthrax scare is getting out of hand but the Dems have gained publicity and popularity and ANthrax is just what they needed to pull their party up. Right now Daschle has got head as big as all out doors and now he can even stop the President of this country from nominating anyone, Daschle will stop Bush from getting his judges appointed. Gephardt will put government security in airports. Let the airlines off the hook and give Gephardt the airline security Blood Money. They same blood money that Gore was getting from the airlines.

They're reporting that a coating of a bentonite substance is used. Bentonite is a material that comes from certain types of clay and is used to waterproof foundations of buildings. When it gets wet it swells and seals out water. It comes in powder form and is placed in the cavities of cardboard sheets that are applied to building foundations during construction. They get wet, swell and seal out water. It can also be injected in walls to stop leaks. I think it can be made into an extremely fine powder too.

I wonder what other characteristics it has and why it is beneficial as a spore coating. Unless the drying process of the bentonite also does something to the bacteria to create spores? Maybe it keeps the spores drier and more effective?

Any ideas out there?

I suspect they know more than we are hearing. Remember that in war part of the strategy is psychological. A lot of things are being put out there for a reason, and perhaps one of these days we will all know why, or perhaps, not.
We are certainly getting conflicting reports and hopefully the enemy is just as confused as we are!