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The new technologies of terror and their increasing mobility are improving everyday. Many types of warfare look to take out major numbers of people, and some even look to take specific individuals. The specific technique I will focus on is call Biological warfare. Biological warfare is a type of war that targets specific people or a specific whole country. When Biological warfare is used it usually involves a substance in which to harm others by immediate death, or death by exposure. The substance is usually used within a confined space for maximum exposure to the victims of the gas, disease, or radiation. Biological warfare usually kills people on the spot, or has long term effects in which to haunt the victim for his or her entire life. Biological warfare dates all the way back to 400.B.C., when spartan greeks used high acidic sulfur fumes against the britain enemy soldiers, which in that time, was highly effective, so this technique was used very often in this time period. In 1914, during world war I, poison gas was released and was also very effective , there were over 100,000 deaths, and 900,000 casualties as the cause of this poison gas. Although the potential for nuclear annihilation has been reduced with the end of the cold war, America still faces attacks by weapons of mass destruction. Since the United states now has a military edge over its old enemies, the concern for nuclear deterrence should take a back seat to providing protection against small terrorists attacks involving biological weapons. Biological weapons have a catastrophic killing potential and they are easy to make and conceal. American defensive measures, however should continue to upgrade to protect itself, and Britain. Disadvantages to using Biologica... ... middle of paper ... ...eath. Brookfield, CT. 2010. Print 5.) Radford, Tim K. Biological Warfare Warning for UK. 1996. 14 November. 1996. 6.) Josh, King-Farlow. Biological Weapons. 1998. 11 December. 7.) Collins, Nick. Biological warfare tests by british WW2 Scientists. 2010. 17 May. 8.) Gay, Kathlyn L. Silent Death. Brookfield, CT. 2010. Print. -Focuses on the new technologies of terror and their increasing availability, along with the increasing mobility of terrorists in Britain. 9.) Barnett, Anthony. Millions were in germ war tests. 2002. 5 April. 10.) Adam, Kennedy. Biological Weapons in Britain. 1989. 1 March.
Guillemin, J. (2005). Biological weapons: From the invention of state-sponsored programs to contemporary bioterrorism Columbia University Press.
Though biological weapons have been available for under a century, there is a long history of their use between 1914 and 1972. Chemical warfare was first introduced in 1914 at the beginning of World War I. Because of the new style of warfare with automatic weapons, trenches were dug out from the ground to defend against a slaughter. The introduction of this issue caused us to invent weapons such as the grenade, flame thrower, and finally, biological weapons. Biological weapons were distributed by hoses, grenades, and aerial attacks. By doing this, we eliminated many enemy trenches and saved a large amount of Ally lives. (Menace)
Mauroni, A. J. (2007). Chemical and biological warfare a reference handbook (2nd ed.). Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-CLIO, Inc..
enemy. It has been around for thousands of years, but in different forms. To take a case in point, the article, “History of Bioterrorism,” states that the Assyrians poisoned the well of their enemies with rye ergot in the 6th Century B.C. More recent examples of bioterrorism include the anthrax inhalation from received mail in 2001 (Office of The Surgeon General). Although these are only recorded acts, there is a whole other story to what should happen once a victim is diagnosed with any type of bioterrorism and what treatment they should undergo, if one exists. For example, the medical response and treatment are different for anthrax, smallpox and tularemia. The medical response and treatment depend on the severity of the case and the type of bioterrorism.
Biological warfare cannot be explained by SCOT theory because stabilization and closure which is the cornerstone of the SCOT theory are not clearly apparent in the dynamic of biological warfare. In biological warfare, rhetorical closure has not yet been achieved within the international community. For example, the morality of using biological weapons is still an ongoing debate among the countries of the world. In fact, not all countries have signed the Biological Weapo...
Throughout the progression of mankind, there has always been a need to become superior in tactics and technology over an opponent. It did not take long for man to discover the effective and deadly tactic of Bioterrorism, which is the deliberate release of viruses, bacteria or other germs used to cause illness or death in people, animals, or plants. As time passes, everything about bioterrorism becomes more and more sophisticated, making it very difficult to combat with. By examining the history of bioterrorism, one can learn how military forces utilize this deadly weapon.
Ryan, Jeffrey R., and Jan F. Glarum. Biosecurity & Bioterrorism: Containing and Preventing Biological Threats. Oxford: Elsevier Inc., 2008.
The aftermath of a bioterrorist attack can be catastrophic to the population in any affected country. The effects can be medical, economic, political, psychological, and social, depending on what agent is used, and the conditions of its release. If the agent is professional prepared and released then the effects could be more both significant and long lasting, and although an attack can affect a country in a disruptive manner, it could also affect it in a positive way. Among the positive results are the cooperation among countries, a country more unified, and the procurement of more facts about the attack by authorities, leading them to the improvement of bio-security protocols to prevent future attacks.
SASSOON, J. (2004). Biological Warfare. In K. L. Lerner & B. W. Lerner (Eds.), Encyclopedia of Espionage, Intelligence and Security (Vol. 1, pp. 115-117). Detroit: Gale. Retrieved from http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CCX3403300086&v=2.1&u=40mwrlib&it=r&p=GVRL&sw=w&asid=81bde5170dd4a5c1d8a95bcaebc62cc9
Biological weapons are frightening, in part, because of limited public understanding of this type of warfare. The popular and uninformed opinion on biological warfare is that huge communities of people will be wiped out in one fell swoop by fatal infections. In this paper I will answer basic questions about biological warfare to provide a better understanding of what biological warfare means and how we can defend against it. Although biological warfare is frightening, it will not necessarily lead to the destruction of life on Earth. These infections are often fatal if untreated, but people can survive the illness if they seek appropriate medical treatment.
Biological warfare can be defined as “living organisms or infected material derived from them, which are used for hostile purposes and intended to cause disease or death in man, animals, and plants, and which depend for their efforts on the ability to multiply in the person, animal, or plant attacked” (Beeching, Dance, Miller, & Spencer, 2002). These agents have a huge impact on agriculture and on human health.
We should expect that terrorist attacks will become even more lethal for a few reasons. First, the terrorists themselves are becoming more technologically adept. Second, governments such as Iraq and Syria are providing the wherewithal for attacks against new and more sophisticated targets. Third, religious radicals are establishing new boundaries for mass violence beyond what had been previously anticipated. Finally, the threshold for new forms of attack has already been breached--such as the attacks on technological infrastructure and poisonings of municipal water supplies. Techno-terrorism is the topic of discussion for this paper, however, it is also a topic for legislators, governments, communities, and families to evaluate when molding the world of tomorrow. The purpose of this paper is to examine terrorist ideology and to explore the technology of terrorism and what impact it may have for the future of civilization.
In spite of the positive influences of biological/chemical weapons, there are many more negative effects, including the immense terrorist threat. Because biological and chemical weapons can be a seemingly effortless construction, the possibility of terrorist use is always evident: “If a bioterrorist attack were to happen, Bacillus anthracis, the bacteria that causes anthrax, would be one of the biological agents most likely to be used" (“Anthrax”). According to the CDC, anthrax is a likely bioterrorist weapon for a few main reasons: including the former use, the spores can be found in nature or produced in a scientific lab, the spores are microscopic and near impossible to detect, and the spores can be put into many environments and still
Biological warfare is infecting humans, animals and plants with a disease intentionally. This act is performed by introducing a bacterium or a virus into such an environment where population is not prepared to combat the infection caused by a pathogen. During warlike situations these biological weapons result in potent killing of humans, livestock, plants and pets. The infection causing bacteria or viruses are genetically or conventionally modified to have resistance to antibiotics. These pathogens could easily spread further through air, water, touch and food. Bacillus anthracis commonly known as anthrax is a bacterium which is when exposed to humans, releases toxin and can be fatal if not treated timely.
Thesis: Biological Warfare is morally and inhumanely wrong, It is the wrongful killing of men, women, and children. It should be stopped no matter what the circumstances are.