Modern Use of Anthrax
Anthrax has evolved in the last century from being a natural disease to potentially threatening the world if used as a weapon (D'Amelio, Gentile, Lista, & D'Amelio, 2015). Inhalation anthrax delivered through an aerosol is the most severe threat of an anthrax attack today. The World Health Organization, in 1970, estimated that 125,000 people would become incapacitated and 95,000 people would be expected to die if an aerosol form of anthrax was released over a city of 500,000 (Garcia et al., 2011). The goal of the aerosol release of anthrax on a target population is the spread the harmful spores leading to inhalation anthrax when the spores germinate in the lungs (Adalja et al., 2015). With an incubation period of 1-7 days,
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Even a small-scale attack could cause a lot of problems so they should not be disregarded. The threat and severity are indeed worrisome especially when considering the effect would have on the public, healthcare, and the government. In the instance of a biological attack, the common people would most likely panic and look to the government out of desperation to fix everything. If the government cannot react swiftly and fix the problems then they would lose the people’s trust which would only lead to further complications. The United States government is somewhat equipped to deal with a contained incident but if it was a multi-front attack on a large scale, I fear that the clinics, physicians, and government would be overwhelmed and resources would be exhausted. Unfortunately, modern multi-media channels would also be a concern if a biological attack occurred today. Whatever their intentions are, they are more likely to inflame the panic, distrust and false truths about the threat and/or incident which would only multiply the problems for the professionals trying to combat it. We live in an ironic age where common people believe what they read on Facebook more than what certified physicians and personnel say. I predict that if bioterrorists do plan a large-scale attack today, …show more content…
This ties into the concept of asymmetrical warfare. These nations/cells are unable to go toe-to-toe with a superpower nation such as the United States so they need to result to guerrilla use of weapons of mass destruction. In terms of a biological attack with anthrax, a small team could infiltrate and target location and dispense the aerosol anthrax over a population which would cause massive panic, death, and terror to
Guillemin, J. (2005). Biological weapons: From the invention of state-sponsored programs to contemporary bioterrorism Columbia University Press.
A different perspective on a smallpox epidemic during the French and Indian War appears in Andrew J. Blackbird's History of the Ottawa and Chippewa Indians of Michigan. Blackbird, Chief Mack-e-te-be-nessy, was a member of a distinguished Ottawa family from the northwest shore of the Michigan lower peninsula. He wrote his History late in life, after a long career in education, politics, and public service.
If an outbreak of anthrax were to occur it would probably happen in a form of an aerosol device of anthrax spores. The intentional bioterrorism outbreak would result in multiple cases of inhalation anthrax. If the outbreak was done by an aerosol can, there would be no indication of an attack because the United States, or anywhere else for that matter, does not have any appropriate method of detection for odorless, colorless, and tasteless spores of anthrax. This outbreak would cause the certain death of the first infected, since physicians in the U.S. would probably not detect anthrax as a cause of the patient’s flu-like symptoms. Most U.S. doctors and radiologists and lab personnel have not seen a form of inhalation anthrax and would not be able to identify it or notice Bacillus anthracis in a blood culture. Since an outdoor release of these spores can travel multiple miles and it only takes one gram to kill 10 million people, it could quite possible create extremely high fatality rates. In one city alone it is estimated that the release of aerosol anthrax could cause the death of up to 3 million people within the first couple of weeks.
The 2001 anthrax attacks was one of the worst bio-weapon attacks on the US in history. The attacks where done through the mail. The anthrax was placed in envelopes with a letter and mailed from various locations to different people and organizations. The anthrax filled letters ended up killing 5 people, causing 17 to become sick and exposing anthrax it is believed to as many as 30,000 people. During the mail process spores of anthrax from the letters escaped and got on mailroom equipment exposing postal employees. If a person was exposed to enough anthrax and developed symptoms they typically died in a few days. Postal workers during the attacks where told that anthrax will appear as a white powder t...
Linkous, J. (2004). More details on new anthrax search. Retrieved Oct. 06, 2005, from CBS News Web site: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/10/05/national/main647441.shtml.
If it does become a pandemic our current political, demographical, and psychological state will surely be
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.
Although the Columbian Exchange allowed for the beneficial exchange of cultures, ideas, foods, and animals around the world during the 1450-1750 time period, it also had a dark side. One detrimental result of the Columbian Exchange would be the spreading of smallpox from Europe to the New World.
Think of the bioterrorism attack using anthrax in 2001 and how it jeopardized the safety and security of the community. What would protect the community from this disastrous attack in the future?
The Center of Disease Control and Prevention has an emergency awareness and response page based off of a zombie apocalypse to help inform people on how they should be ready if a major emergency were to occur. The CDC has a range of research and information from heart disease to the worst, infectious, disease-causing agents. The CDC also shares information about how to prepare and what to do if a bioterrorism attack or pandemic were to occur. The Center of Disease and Control is a diversified government organization that has the main purpose of protecting the public against the serious threats of bioterrorism and dangerous pandemics.
Anthrax is a very real and dangerous threat to all people who come in contact with it. The bacterial infection is caused by the bacteriaium Bacillus anthracis. Anthrax is divided into three categories all are contracted in different ways. The first type is called Cutaneous Anthrax; this is where anthrax spores make contact with the skin. If there is a cut or a lesion then a person can be infected. Cutaneous Anthrax is the most common way to get anthrax, but is also the least lethal. The second type of anthrax is called Pulmonary Anthrax this is where a person inhales the spores of anthrax directly into the lungs. If this type of anthrax is left untreated it could lead to death. The third type of anthrax is called Gastrointestinal Anthrax, this form results from eating meat from animals that have been infected with the anthrax bacteria. This causes the intestinal tract to become infected and this from is almost always fatal. This particular mode of anthrax has never been seen in the United States.
Thinking historically while conducting counterinsurgency in the 21st century poses questions regarding how to develop political and strategic plans. This bibliographic essay will examine the political and military aspect of fighting counterinsurgent warfare by 20th century theorists Galula’s, “Counterinsurgency Warfare Theory and Practice” and Trinquier’s, “Counterinsurgency Warfare Theory and Practice”. Strategy in fighting guerilla wars will be discussed by comparing conflicts in battles and ideologies from the past to current day. Moreover, ways to avoid the one size fits all war mentality when combating modern day insurgents will be recommended.
“The trouble is that a praise worthy quest for precision can descend into a flattering of tidy minds at the cost of a realistic grasp of the complexity and interconnectedness that is the story of strategic history.” Colin Gray warns in the opening sentences of the chapter “Irregular Warfare and Terrorism” in his book Another Bloody Century of the dangers of oversimplifying the categories of warfare. To look at warfare as either regular or irregular without being absolutely clear on the definitions of each and the context in which the terms are used is fruitless. Regular forces have been known to use irregular type tactics just as irregular forces have used conventional warfare to reach their political goals. It is imperative then, that the U.S. military forces are trained to fight wars falling on a spectrum of warfare and educated to distinguish the type of war they face. In order to protect national security interests as outlined in the 2014 Quadrennial Defense Review, the U.S. armed forces must rebalance and be capable of conducting operations across the spectrum of conflict in order to win against both a regular and irregular adversary, combating a wide scope of tactics and strategies ranging from terror tactics to full scale, multi-phased conflict against a peer or near peer by maximizing the capability of the force and nation.
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.