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Tag Archives: biodefense
One of the two H5N1 influenza papers that fueled this brouhaha has finally seen the light of day. Rather than rehash what others have already said so well, I refer readers to the excellent summaries by Vincent Racaniello and Ed … Continue reading
2012.05.02
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Some Unsolicited Debate Coaching for Tonight’s Speakers
The New York Academy of Sciences is hosting a panel discussion tonight about H5N1 influenza, “dual-use” research, and scientific censorship. Of course this stems from the ongoing debate about the alleged development of mammal-adapted H5N1 strains (see my earlier summaries … Continue reading
Who’s Afraid of the Big, Bad Bioterrorist?
The recent dustup about The H5N1 Bird Flu Plague That Will Kill Us All (not) has brought the topic of “bioterrorism” into the media spotlight again. This is an issue I’ve been following for several years, and during that time … Continue reading
The Day the Science Died
This afternoon, a coalition of influenza virologists released a statement saying that they are voluntarily suspending research on H5N1 “bird flu” for 60 days. This was in response to the Category 5 hype storm that has accompanied the publication of … Continue reading
The Biodefense-Industrial Complex vs. Science
I was revving up to post a long rant about the censorship of a new paper on H5N1 influenza, but my friend and TWiV co-host Vincent Racaniello beat me to it. I do, however, have a couple of things to … Continue reading
Friendly Fire in the War on Bioterror
Today’s New York Times brings a sobering story:
A 2-year-old boy spent seven weeks in the hospital and nearly died from a viral infection he got from the smallpox vaccination his father received before shipping out to Iraq, according to a government report and the doctors who treated him.
The boy, who lives in Indiana and has recovered, became ill in early March, two weeks after his father’s deployment was delayed and he was allowed to make a trip home. Over the next few weeks, the boy suffered kidney failure and lost most of his skin to the disease, eczema vaccinatum.
By my count, “bioterrorism” has killed somewhere around six Americans. How many have been killed and maimed by the multi-billion-dollar-and-mushrooming “biodefense” response? Continue reading