[CTRL] Peace Center Alerts Risk of New Biotech Weapons

[Jim Rarey]

-Caveat Lector- I believe this is called stating the obvious. - JR       http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=570&u=/nm/20040609/sc_nm/arms_sipri_biotech_dc&printer=1 Peace Center Alerts Risk of New Biotech Weapons Wed Jun 9,11:20 AM ET Add Science - Reuters to My Yahoo! STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Biotechnology research to alter the genetic make-up of the human body could result in a new class of biological weapons for use by the military or terrorists, warned a leading security research center. Missed Tech Tuesday? LCD TVs may finally have a leg up on plasma displays. Digital projectors can turn a wall into a dream theater. Take a look at the Top 10 LCD monitors for sprucing up your desktop.   "Rapid progress in biotechnology could lead to a new class of biological warfare agents that will be engineered to target specific human biological systems," the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute said on Wednesday. Aimed at the cardiovascular, immunological, neurological and gastrointestinal systems, for example, such weapons "open new possibilities for potential future military or terrorist misuse," SIPRI said in its 2004 Yearbook. But such developments are hard to monitor as biotechnology which might be useful in medicine could also have applications in warfare, said SIPRI investigator Richard Guthrie. He gave the example of bioregulators which could be used as a compound to put enemy soldiers on a battlefield to sleep, meaning in theory "you could have a battle without killing anybody, with the soldiers all asleep in their foxholes." "What seems like innocent and beneficial scientific data can pose a very serious threat," said SIPRI director Alyson Bailes, saying scientists must decide if human genetic sequence data should be treated as a common resource, sold to private firms or kept secret because of the security implications. SIPRI researcher Roger Roffey gave examples of scientists using publicly available DNA sequences for research that could have devastating applications -- for example developing more lethal forms of mousepox and cowpox virus with the stated aim of developing "countermeasures against it and to deter terrorists." But while there is hard evidence that groups like al Qaeda have been "sniffing around trying to find out" whether there are any biological weapons that would be within their technological grasp, it is more difficult to ascertain whether they have begun any "active acquisition program," said Guthrie. www.ctrl.org DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance—not soap-boxing—please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'—with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright frauds—is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://www.mail-archive.com/[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ <A HREF="">ctrl</A> ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om