Robert Lederman here:
To really understand the full implications of the news report below 
consider the following: For months now the Bush administration has acted as 
if the Anthrax threat was from bin Laden or from domestic nutjobs, claiming 
they couldn't figure out the source of its production. Now they admit that 
it was US weapons grade anthrax produced by our governments' own supposedly 
long-discontinued bio-warfare program-which by the way, routinely sends 
Anthrax through the mail. So what else are they producing? West Nile virus, 
the WTC attack, AIDs, vaccines intended for the eugenics agenda? As for the 
bin Laden smoking gun tape, no film production including Harry Potter has 
had more of a buildup yet they keep announcing and cancelling the release. 
Are they still shooting the footage? 

There have never been more reviews written of a video that none of the 
reviewers have seen. Most Americans are fully-convinced that a video they 
haven't seen "proves" guilt. The endless repetition of news reports on a 
non-seen video is a form of propaganda even Hitler wouldn't have thought of. 
And Bush wonders why so many people believe in so-called "conspiracy 
theories". As described, the video conviently supplies the two most 
desireable things from the Bush administrations' viewpoint; "proof" of bin 
Ladens' guilt and his complete discreditation before the Islamic world as he 
laughs about sending unknowing "suicide martyrs" to their deaths. If Bush 
produced it himself it couldn't be any more useful. 

I could care less about bin Laden but is this the kind of evidence that will 
be presented to the military tribunals and why no terrorists can be tried in 
a real US court? And how about the Feds setting up the JDL (Jewish Defense 
League)? The Fed informer just happens to be the guy who tapes their plot, 
delivers the bomb-making materials to their homes and was to plant the bomb. 
Will Jews be rounded up next, as Ashcroft combs the US for more suspected 
terrorists? 
See http://baltech.org/lederman/  for more details of what the Bush 
administration is all about...and it's certainly not patriotism 
- Robert Lederman

Thursday December 13 2:07 AM ET 

Army Working on Weapons-Grade Anthrax, Report Says

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - An Army biological and chemical warfare facility in 
Utah has been quietly developing weapons-grade anthrax spores since at least 
1992, and has shipped samples of the bacteria to Fort Detrick, Maryland, the 
Washington Post reported on Thursday.

Citing government officials and shipping records, the newspaper said samples 
were shipped back and forth between the two facilities several times over 
the past several years.

The Utah spores were grown and processed at the Dugway Proving Ground about 
80 miles from Salt Lake City, the newspaper said.

According to the report, the Utah spores belong to the Ames strain -- the 
same strain used in the deadly anthrax-laced letters that killed five people 
in Florida, Connecticut, New York and Washington.

No other nation is known to have made weapons-grade Ames anthrax, the report 
said.

Army officials told the Post all the anthrax they have made has been 
accounted for and that they are cooperating with the FBI (news - web sites) 
in its investigation of the anthrax attacks in September and October.

The FBI would not comment on the Dugway program, the newspaper said.

The most recent shipment of the deadly spores to Fort Detrick left Dugway 
Proving Ground on June 27 and shipped back to Dugway on Sept. 4, less than a 
month before the spate of U.S. bioterrorism attacks began, the newspaper 
said, citing shipping records and interviews with officials. 

Thursday December 13, 2001 4:43 AM ET 

Report: U.S. Army Has Anthrax Powder

By The Associated Press, 

For years, U.S. Army scientists in Utah have been developing a powdered form 
of anthrax that matches the strain used in the deadly letters that have 
killed five people since September, according to a published report. 

Officials at Dugway Proving Ground in Utah confirmed that they have produced 
dry anthrax powder in recent years, according to reports in The Washington 
Post, The New York Times and the Baltimore Sun. The statement from Dugway 
did not specify which strain of anthrax was produced there, but the Post, 
citing government officials and shipping records, reported that the finely 
ground weapons-grade anthrax spores belong to the Ames strain. 

The anthrax found in recent months in New York, Connecticut, Washington, New 
Jersey and Florida has been linked to that same strain. The strain is 
relatively common and is used in numerous American labs, and there is no 
evidence Dugway material was used in the attacks. 

Anthrax can be produced in various forms, but the most dangerous is a powder 
form that can float freely and be easily inhaled into the lungs. The Dugway 
statement is the first admission that the U.S. government has produced a dry 
version of the lethal bacterium since the United States renounced biological 
weapons in 1969, the Sun reported. 

The Dugway statement said researchers there have worked with anthrax since 
1992, turning small amounts of wet anthrax into powder to test ways to 
defend against biowarfare. 

Until the latest anthrax threat, Dugway scientists sent anthrax samples by 
FedEx to the Army's biodefense center at Fort Detrick, Md., where the 
bacteria was rendered harmless through radiation before being returned to 
Dugway for experiments. Those samples were shipped in a wet paste form to 
minimize the danger of a spill or accident, the Dugway statement said. 

Army officials told the Post such mailings are in compliance with federal 
law. The Dugway statement said that all the anthrax its scientists have 
developed is accounted for and the researchers are cooperating with the FBI 
(news - web sites) in its investigation. 

Army Lt. Col. Dave Ecker declined comment Thursday to The Associated Press. 

Though the United States has signed an international treaty banning the use 
of biological weapons, small quantities may be tested for research. Army 
scientists have previously acknowledged making wet anthrax. 

Five fatal inhalation anthrax cases have been reported since tainted letters 
first appeared earlier this fall. The Centers for Disease Control and 
Prevention (news - web sites) has confirmed 18 cases of exposure - 11 
inhalation and 7 through the skin. 

On the Net: https://www.du
gway.army.mil/default.htm