Britain on smallpox alert

Evening Standard ^ | 2 Dec 2002 | Charles Reiss, Political Editor

[UKCajun]

Dramatic emergency plans to counter a biological warfare terrorist attack on Britain were announced by the Government today.

Within the next eight weeks, 12 disaster centres will be set up in London and across the United Kingdom ready to meet an attempt to spread smallpox among the population. In addition, some 700 key medical and Ministry of Defence staff are to be vaccinated against the disease to act as the front line against any attack.

The 12 "regional smallpox response groups" will hold supplies of vaccine under guard ready for rapid use. ...

[willyone]

There has not been a case of smallpox in twenty years. It is considered eradicated except for cultures in labs.

[willyone]

You must be doing some good stuff. Your paranoia is truly amazing. So where are these hundred thousand UN troops? Probably in the same place as the Navy missile that shot down TWA 800 that is constantly talked about on FR. In your immaginations.

[willyone]

Personally I would send some infected Jihaddis to the Super Bowl or on airliners over Christmas. Then kick back and wait for the outbreak. This is insanity to wait until an epidemic starts. Give the shots now to anyone who wants one.

[willyone]

Personally I would send some infected Jihaddis to the Super Bowl or on airliners over Christmas. Then kick back and wait for the outbreak. This is insanity to wait until an epidemic starts. Give the shots now to anyone who wants one.

[willyone]

It would be a very good idea to have enough food and water stored to last two or three weeks. Should an epidemic break out the best defense is to avoid exposure. Stay home and do not have contact with others.

[TBall]

And while you are home, might not be such a bad idea to spend some time cleaning the gun?

[justa-hairyape]

I also wonder if Bush would push the big red button.

I think its safe to assume that strategists are currently analyzing what it would be like in the US to spend the next 50 years living such as Israel does now. With of course the possibility that terrorism will progress or escalate to biowarfare during those 50 years. Its possible that we could have a 50 year depression with car bombs exploding everywhere, snipers randomly shooting people and WMD going off sporadically.

Its times like these when we need a leader with a strong backbone who is also guided by morals and justice. Not someone wondering who is going to polish the Presidential Knob today

[Madcelt]

http://www.news.scotsman.com/uk.cfm?id=1344702002

Just another article. Stay safe.

[Norman Arbuthnot]

And, yes, it would be a good reason to unleash nuclear weapons on the enemy. Otherwise, a hostile second rate power may well end up the day as the superpower. Better to send them to the Stone Age than take the chance of them taking us on while we are in a gravely weakened condition.

Does this mean we should nuke France and China?

[Terridan]

Strange, but in times of disaster, violence, and massive casualties, people forget they are libral P.C.! Everyone realizes how much they really do want to survive, and will kill whatever stands in their way of living or trying to feed their families. You'd be suprised... ;)

[SevenDaysInMay]

I think that Soylent Green factories take longer than 2-3 weeks to construct, but IMO, Pan-Islamists would relish the thought of Americans eating their dead.

We may well see, some of us anyway. We are foolish if we think that our nation's food and fiber production is not in their biowar sights.

[goody2shooz]

The HIV lobby is the force driving the anti inoculation bandwagon.

That, too, was my deduction a couple months ago. If you have an actual source stating that about the HIV lobby, I would like a reference, please?

[Pining_4_TX]

Some Muslim is putting up the dough to air a "documentary" on Islam and its prophet on PBS! Since when do people get to push their religious propaganda on taxpayer supported TV? If they want to proselytize, they should have to buy their time just like Benny Hinn and Oral Roberts. This really ticks me off!!!

[Mr. Mojo]

That ticks me off too, amigo. Can you imagine the leftists at PBS airing a Falwell or Robertson financed documentary on Christianity? And the majority of Americans are completely unaware that PBS is taxpayer subsidized, and therefore won't think twice when watching it.

[Scully]

80,000,000 Americans against 100,000 UN Troops, hardly seems like a fair fight?

Hmm...let's see...that would be about 800 US citizens per UN soldier...yeah, I think that's fair! LOL

[unending thunder]

Just a thought. I get lethally disseminated smallpox travelling on public transport. I die. Does my life insurance payout?
Just a thought.

[Woodman]

So let’s say 1 in 10 actually have the guts to stand up to the UN, 80 Snipers to each soldier. Still seems like it might not last to long. I'm also being gracious and assuming that the UN Soldiers will be willing to die for their cause.

I think ex-Texan has his tin foil hat screwed on too tight.

[Gritty]

It would be a very good idea to have enough food and water stored to last two or three weeks.

I would think 6 months to a year would be more realistic. Epidemics usually progress in waves. It would be a long time from the first infection until the last, much longer than 2-3 weeks, which might be a time frame if everyone were infected at once, which they won't be.

But, if the situation is that bad where tens of millions get the disease, we are in an apocylyptic scenario anyhow. The economy would collapse, transportation would collapse, food distribution would collapse for an extended period, and things that normally get done will just sit idle, perhaps for years. Hopefully, this scenario is nothing more than conjecture and we get through this dangerous period we are in quickly without an outbreak.

[Gritty]

it would be a good reason to unleash nuclear weapons on the enemy...

Does this mean we should nuke France and China?

Probably not. If the infection gets out from control, it will no doubt spread worldwide. They will get it also and it is unlikely they have any better vaccines than we do.

However, somebody possessing the weaponized disease will presumeably already have developed vaccines to protect themselves against their own weapon. That's why you have to annihilate them without hesitation while you are still able.

[Norman Arbuthnot]

My question was not entirely serious, but I appreciate your position.

I don't think we can erect a %100 effective defense against an enemy that is determined to use bio-warfare so we have to make it clear in very unambiguous language to our enemies and their proxies that their destruction is assured if we are attacked with WMDs. I just hope that our leadership has the will to retaliate on a massive scale if we are hit.