The recent Ebola virus epidemic has had its share of headlines, and some articles raise alarms with regards to its use in germ warfare.

This is a concern that should be examined. Can Ebola be weaponized? What is necessary for it to be usable by forces that want to unleash a pandemic upon us?

Let’s discuss the use of microbes as weapons. Biological warfare is the use of infectious agents such as bacteria, viruses, fungi or their by-products to wreak death and havoc among a specific population.

The user’s goal is to achieve control over an area or a segment of the population by weakening the ability to resist. Biological weapons don’t necessarily have to directly kill: unleashing a horde of locusts to destroy crops or agents that kill an  area’s livestock can be just as effective.

A number of anti-livestock and anti-vegetation bio-weapons have already been developed.

History Of Biological Warfare

This type of weapon has been used since ancient times, and even appears in the bible as some of the plagues visited upon Pharaoh by a wrathful God. Medieval accounts of diseased corpses catapulted into besieged cities abound; this method was used as late at 1710, when the Russians attacked the Swedish city of Reval (present day Tallinn) in this manner.

The Western hemisphere was changed forever by the inadvertent introduction of smallpox into the Native American population, killing 90% in some areas and opening vast swaths of land for European colonization.

In addition, purposeful biological warfare occurred against Native Americans when the British presented a large “gift” of infected blankets as a “peace” offering during Pontiac’s War in the mid-1700s.

As time progressed, new methods and infectious agents such as Anthrax were used in certain situations during World War I. As a result, use of biological weapons was banned by the Geneva Protocol in 1925, but research and production was still carried out by both sides during World War II. Research into the use of Anthrax by the United Kingdom left their laboratory area in Scotland contaminated for the next five decades.

Eventually, the storage, production, and transport of such agents was banned in 1972 by the Biological Weapons Convention (BWC). Despite this, there are a number of violations that have been documented in the former Soviet Union and Iraq, and various others suspected. Presently, 170 countries have signed the BWC pact.

The Perfect Bio-Warfare Agent

The perfect biological weapon would have these characteristics:

• Be infectious and contagious in a large percentage of those exposed
• Cause severe long-term debilitation or death of the infected organism
• Have few available antidotes, preventives or cures
• Be easily deliverable to the area or population targeted
• Have low likelihood of causing damage to those using the age

Some candidates for use as biological warfare agents include Anthrax, Smallpox, Viral hemorrhagic Fevers (Ebola, etc.), and Pneumonic Plague.

Anthrax

Anthrax is a bacterium that can be contracted in several ways: skin contact, inhalation, and through the gut. More common in livestock than people, Anthrax may be transmitted through the air, but isn’t perfect as a weapon.

A “cloud” of Anthrax would be necessary to affect a large population. Large numbers of infected livestock, however, could result in an epidemic of the disease in humans.

Having said this, Anthrax has been the biological weapon of choice. Why? It is exceptionally hardy and can survive for centuries in the ground despites weather extremes.

Although Penicillin, Doxycycline, and Ciprofloxacin (Fish-Pen Bird-Biotic, and Fish-Flox) are effective against this bacteria if treated early, full-blown inhalation Anthrax is deadly.

Pneumonic Plague

“Pneumonic” is one of three types of plague and, by far, the most contagious, easily spread by coughing bacteria into the air. It is caused by a bacterium known as Yersinia Pestis, usually found in rodents and other small animals and their fleas.

Unlike inhalation Anthrax, which may take weeks to develop symptoms, patients with Pneumonic plague may be dead in 2-4 days if not treated early. Tetracycline (Fish-Cycline), Doxycycline (Bird-Biotic) and Ciprofloxacin (Fish-Flox), and IV Gentamycin are common treatments.

Smallpox

Smallpox is another viral illness that is highly contagious and was responsible for the decimation of the Native American population in the Americas. Once infected, there is no cure. Although rare in developed countries now, FEMA is still thought to stockpile Smallpox vaccines in enough quantity to vaccinate every U.S. citizen.

Ebola as a Biological Weapon

(For general info on Ebola, see my article: http://www.doomandbloom.net/ebola-the-next-great-pandemic/)

The candidate in the news today is Ebola Hemorrhagic Fever. The current strain of the virus in West Africa has a 55-60% death rate and is out of control in the epidemic areas. You would think that Ebola would, therefore, be an excellent choice as a biological weapon.

It isn’t. Ebola virus is very sensitive to its environment and just doesn’t last long outside a host. It doesn’t tolerate sunlight and needs high temperature and humidity to survive. Most cities in developed countries don’t have the climate conducive to Ebola’s survival. It doesn’t transmit as well as, say, influenza, through airborne means.

It’s also not easy to work with. Even if a terrorist kidnapped an Ebola victim, working with the virus in anything less than an advanced microbiology lab (called a “Biosafety Level 4”) would likely result in the terrorist dying from the disease. As well, Ebola virus is too sensitive to survive the complex process of refining, enriching, purification, etc. that is necessary for weaponization.

So don’t panic the next time you read about “Ebola Gas” or “Ebola Bombs”. Be aware of the virus, have supplies available that will help in a crisis, and use your most important survival tool: Your mind. Do you own research, get the facts, and come to your own conclusions.

new SMD01

 

This article was written as a Guest Writer for Survivopedia by Joe Alton, M.D., aka Dr. Bones of www.doomandbloom.net.

Disclaimer: The opinions voiced by Joe Alton, M.D., and Amy Alton, A.R.N.P.,  aka Dr. Bones and Nurse Amy, are their own and are not meant to take the place of seeking medical help from your healthcare provider. The practice of medicine without a license is illegal and punishable by law. Seek modern and standard medical care whenever and wherever it is available.

Written by

Joe Alton, also known as “Dr. Bones the Disaster Doctor”, is a medical doctor and Amy Alton, also known as “Nurse Amy”, is an advanced registered nurse practitioner and a certified nurse midwife. They are medical preparedness writers and the authors of the #1 Amazon Bestseller in Survival Skills, Disaster Relief, and Safety/First aid, “The Survival Medicine Handbook”, a guide for when medical help is not on the way. Besides their book, the Altons produce a weekly podcast called the “Survival Medicine Hour”and have a YouTube channel named “drbonespodcast”. The Altons are also contributors to magazines like Backwoods Home, Survival Quarterly, and others. Their popular website at www.doomandbloom.net has over 500 posts on medical readiness. The Altons are also the designers of an entire line of medical kits to deal with issues you might encounter after a catastrophe, and produce instructional DVDs to teach skills that might be useful in times of trouble.

Latest comments
  • Once again someone is continuing to write about the myth that … “In addition, purposeful biological warfare occurred against Native Americans when the British presented a large “gift” of infected blankets as a “peace” offering during Pontiac’s War in the mid-1700s”. This is a lie started by ward churchill (the same anti-american creep that called all those killed in on 9/11 as “little Eichmanns”). From a scientific perspective, modern medicine suggests that it could not possibly have succeeded. Smallpox dies in several minutes outside of the human body. So obviously if blankets had smallpox germs in them, they were dead smallpox germs. Dead smallpox germs don’t transmit smallpox. Hence, no small pox happened from blankets. Stop supporting liberal lies.

    • Thank you for pointing this out the small pox… That stuff is getting old.. I’m surprised a Dr. would still peddle this….

  • it already has been you dumbass…Obama brought it here to declare marshal law and make himself king and put America into slavery.wake up..lock and load its coming soon

  • I’m afraid to inform you it ALREADY HAS been my friend.

  • I agree completely, Ebola, while devastating in it’s ‘natural environment’ is not so serious as it’s made out to be in the media, once you get away from the middle ages level water and sewerage problems of these areas where it’s currently raging. As you point out, UV rays (sunlight) and simple sanitation (Lysol or bleach) pretty much stops it in it’s tracks.

  • This Ebola strain has been proven to have heavy droplets that stay briefly in the air and can cause the spread of the disease. Virus strains are like any other organism on this planet, and mutates to better survive. Expect the next strain to be one with finer droplets for longer air suspension, and that one with the ability to survive in other climates is in the works as well. Deny this at the peril of you and your loved ones if you will, but the day is coming when we will all have to deal with this. The only real question is about how fast or slow the process will be. If you get ready now then you will be ready then.

  • A few years ago a huge number of British farm animals were destroyed because of an outbreak of Foot and Mouth Disease. One theory of the cause was some sausage illegally brought back from China by someone returning to the UK. Once established, the infection spread from farm to farm by wild birds and entire heards of cows, pigs and sheep had to be burned.

  • Ebola is easily curable with high IV doses of Vit “C”. Get Dr. Thomas Levy’s book “Curing the Incurable.” In the 3rd edition starting on Page 109 it shows that diseases like Ebola & SARS are curable in a couple of hours. The Sky is Falling nature of the coverage is part of someone’s plan to get more control over our lives.

  • Remember biological warfare is a gift that keeps on giving, It returns to the sender eventually. However the individuals that want to spread terrorism are not concerned with this. After all they blow themselves up and fly planes into buildings. Terrorism at its very nature is to terrorize. Ebola is not the best or easiest weapon to use, however it is the most available “Right now”. A few infected terrorists working at McDonalds in NY or LA could potentually spread Ebola to hundreds in big city’s simply by (gross) spitting on burgers. Now you have a weaponized version. Its not about killing everyone its about creating chaos in the economy, the media and making the government to react to their demands.

LEAVE A COMMENT