It is my belief that articles on this subject in credible scientific journals would NOT be appearing if there were no credible evidence for the release of this virus from Russian "safekeeping."
Smallpox–The viral infection which once claimed millions of victims, but then was declared eradicated in 1979, is back at the top of the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention watch list–this time as the leading biological terrorism threat to the US. Russian intelligence reports and other evidence have lead CDC officials to conclude that North Korea and other potential adversaries may have harvested smallpox for use in weapons. Smallpox is unlike other biological agents, such as anthrax, in that it’s highly contagious but can be handled with impunity by those who are immunized. However, many are now vulnerable because for a while smallpox hasn’t been rec gnized as a general threat to human health and inoculations in the US and most other countries have all but stopped. That's from this site: Hazmatmag.com
105 posted on 11/03/2001 6:43:45 PM PST by ChemistCat