Biological attack likely by 2020, report warns

[The Straight Story]

Biological attack likely by 2020, report warns

By Mike Nartker, Global Security Newswire
A terrorist group is "likely" to conduct an attack using biological weapons by 2020, according to a report released Thursday by a CIA think tank.

Over the next 15 years, successes in the global war on terrorism and advances in information technology are likely to result in an increasingly "decentralized" terrorist threat, consisting of an "eclectic array of groups, cells and individuals," says the report, prepared by the National Intelligence Council.

While influenced by al-Qaeda, such smaller groups are expected to overshadow the terrorist organization by 2020 and could recruit new members through the war in Iraq and other possible conflicts, the report says.

Acts of bioterrorism would be "particularly suited" to these smaller and better-informed terrorist groups, the report says.

http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0105/011405gsn2.htm

[Massacure]

1. Biological attack likely by 20200 I warn,

[bluestateguy]

2. And it will be Bill Clinton's fault!

Just watch!

[The_Casual_Observer]

3. I predict

How does one get on the list to get paid for half assed predictions like this? Or do you have to have graduated Ivy League and know somebody first?

[RC]

4. We can head off this attack by stopping the war on terror now.

It is almost as simple as that.

The next step is to take all this Money we are spending on paranoia, killing, war toys and High tech boondoggles and use it to help people live a better life.
Education, health care, housing and taking care of our elderly and infirmed without bankrupting families.

Contented people that feel safe are less likely to resort to anti-social activities such as blowing up down town city blocks.
WOW! What a concept, Huh?

[trezic]

7. Not really

Revolutionaries, like the top echelon of al-Qaeda, tend to be well off in relation to the rest of their societies. The idea that ending poverty will magically end all violence is wishful thinking. While anti-poverty programs can strip away followers, as in the Phillippines in the 50s, those programs won't affect the dedication of the radicals.

The guns and the bombs and the bullets are necessary. Though, I do wonder if it's not time to offer a New Deal, to some extent, for the 3rd world.

[RC]

9. Without support, the the leaders are powerless.

Eveh bu$h... err, al-Qaeda

[mojavekid]

5. Yikes! If you need me, I'll be in the basement...

wrapped in duct tape...hold all my calls.

[Lostnote03]

6. The New Product???

.......I wonder if Card will be enlightning us again as to the viability of his "neext" product...War, the gift that keeps on giving......

[pinto]

8. Major Quake Likely to Strike Between 2000 and 2030 (USGS)

Major Quake Likely to Strike Between 2000 and 2030

by Andrew J. Michael, Stephanie L. Ross, David P. Schwartz, James W. Hendley II, and Peter H. Stauffer
United States Geological Survey

On the basis of research conducted since the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and other scientists conclude that there is a 70% probability of at least one magnitude 6.7 or greater quake, capable of causing widespread damage, striking the San Francisco Bay region before 2030. Major quakes may occur in any part of this rapidly growing region. This emphasizes the urgency for all communities in the Bay region to continue preparing for earthquakes.

Just before dawn, residents of a bayside urban area, thought to be well prepared for earthquakes, were jolted from their beds by a magnitude 6.9 quake. This 1995 temblor killed more than 6,000 people and caused $100 billion in damage. The quake struck Kobe, Japan, but similar losses could have occurred in the San Francisco Bay region in 1989 had the magnitude 6.9 Loma Prieta earthquake been centered in an urbanized area.

Damaging earthquakes are inevitable in the Bay region, but taking actions based on the odds of future quakes will help save lives and protect property. Following the Loma Prieta quake, the U.S. Geological Survey's (USGS) Working Group on California Earthquake Probabilities reassessed the likelihood of large quakes striking the Bay region and issued a report in 1990.

Since then, scientists have gained new insights into Bay region earthquakes, providing a better basis for determining quake odds. In 1997, the USGS working group, now known as WG99, was expanded to include more than 100 scientists from Federal and California State governments, consulting firms, industry, and universities.

http://www.wsspc.org/pubs/news/eq9911.htm#USGS