Could SARS be part of a worldwide Bio Attack?

Par-a-noi-a
A chronic form of insanity characterized by very gradual
impairment of the intellect, systematized delusion, and
usually by delusious of persecution or mandatory delusions
producing homicidal tendency. In its mild form paranoia may
consist in the well-marked crotchetiness exhibited in persons
commonly called ``cranks.'' Paranoiacs usually show evidences
of bodily and nervous degeneration, and many have
hallucinations, esp. of sight and hearing.

That is very unlikely.

I doubt it. SARS spread quickly because it hit Hong Kong (a well traveled destination). The first cases also had to happen well before the ultimatum was issued because, IIRC, the disease has an incubation period of about a week. Officials believe that the first cases appeared in some village in China.

Have they even figured out if this thing is an influenza strain yet?

BlackGriffen

Could SARS be part of a worldwide Bio Attack?

No. It could not.

no, it not spreading fast enough. A Bio-attack would spread a lot faster.

You rang?

Yep, I agree with the other folks -- too slow. Maybe if it gets to weakened populations or confined populations it would be effective as a bioweapon, otherwise it's just another of those freak things.

It COULD BE a test run, in mild form, of a hotter bioweapon to see what the containment methods and response mechanism are worldwide. If I were going to launch a global plague, I'd do something like this first to see how it was dealt with and to see what kind of cooperation there was, then I'd get in the middle of setting policy (or at least monitor it). But that's just me.

I'd definitely put my money against the bioweapon scenario. One possibility being looked into is that SARS is the result of two virii working in tandem. In any case, it seems likely that it's just an animal virus that jumped to humans.

Not a bio attack.

To slow. To silent.

The point of a terrorist attack is to gain attention. There is no point if they don't claim responcibility. It wouldn't be a victory for them.

If there is a bio attack, you will know it.

If you ask if it is a bio-attack, then it is not a bio-attack.

You'd know if it was such an attack.

I find it very odd that Wired predicted this kind of thing in a special issue a few years ago.

In their version the Mcure gets released via Macdonalds.

what if this out-break is from a clandestine sect of illuminati, a prelude to world domination...

How about Mother Earth's self-treatment?

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!

RUN!!!!!!!

*runs*

I hope not.
I've only been home 10 days since my Vacation to Asia.
Didn't get to spend anytime in Hong Kong except for an hour in the Airport.

From what I had read in the news over there. The first case was a Doctor from China (Who died) and infected some other people at a Hotel in Hong Kong.
A Canadian Woman was one, if I recall correctly.

SCARY $H!T

Although it is theoretically possible, the odds of it being true are roughly the same as the odds of me repeatedly quantum-tunnelling several millimeters at a time until I reached Tokyo.

For one thing, why start the outbreak in Hong Kong? I don't know of any terrorist groups that have anything against that particular city, or at least, none with the capability to develop such a virus. And while the Chinese government is capable of many atrocities, HK is far too valuable to them; they wouldn't dare use it as a testbed for any weapons they might be developing.

As for SARS being resistant to everything we throw it: that's not anything particularly shocking anymore. Many diseases have been showing up in drug-resistant forms in recent years. Unfortunately, Darwin is killing us on that score; with drugs providing evolutionary pressure, the viruses are evolving.

I thought it started in Guangzhou (completely wrong spelling, belike)province in China, with Hong Kong soon after?

Anyway, back to speculation:
While it certainly doesn't appear to be a global attack, could it be an accidental escape from a lab? Breakdown in the air handling system or decontamination area? Ooh, spooky...

Latest report I read was that it appeared to be a mutation of a coronavirus, which is one of those responsible for the common cold. Maybe; IMHO various labs are way too eager to announce that they have Discovered the Cause.

I don't think so, but it does highlight how globally and indiscriminate a highly infectious bioweapon would be......
which is precisely why such a weapon is not likely to be used. Unless you can inoculate every one of your citizens, or tie the virii to specific racial genomes, it would be too hard to control out in the open.

I'm no expert, I just stayed at a holiday inn.

With all the resources this is tying up, this is looking more and more like an attack every day. Bioweapons don't have to be all that deadly to be effective.

Also there was a Scare today in San Jose Where they quarentined a plane on the Tarmac.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,82851,00.html

The reason it could have started in Asia is that maybe no one would suspect it or expect it.

Maybe I've been watching too much X-Files

If you've watched any at all, probably.

I recall SARS breaking out in Guang Dong (sp?). Am I wrong?

Either way, the possibility of it being a bioweapon are unlikely. Maybe it was just human encrachment on land previously unoccupied by humans, awakening something thats lied dormant for a looong time. That's my take, anyway.

to answer the question --- absolutely not. the point of a bio-weapon is to use organisms that can be spread easily (ie. via air) and has a very high mortality rate. the bioorganism would also have to have a cure because chances of allied troops or civilians getting sick is a possiblity and their deaths not an option.

SARS has a very very low mortality rate and it is unknown what the transmission vector is. added to that this outbreak broke out in a place that would not be a primary target for a bio-attack.

this will not stop some extremely paranoid people from thinking that ths is some plan hatched by some evil regieme somewhere

The voice of reason speaks again.

Supposedly it is highly contagious (SP) They have Quarantined many people in China and are ordering many people who travelled to Asia to stay home for a few days. I'm not saying that it is, but could it be? I would say that would qualify with your first notion easily spread. People get sick from it, some people die from it. It might not be used to kill people but causing a great scare, isn't that one thing a bioweapon is supposed to do?

It has finally come to the US as well There was supposedly a few reported cases in the States. One in PA,NY and a couple of other towns.

this illness has been around for a few months and it started, as i mentioned before, in an area of the world not expected to be a target of terrorist strikes. the spread has been rapid in the sense that before there was even a known problem modern transportation had already carried it to other coutries. if you take a close look at the histroy of this ailment you would realize that this by no means an effect bioweapon.

most importantly the reason it is absolutely not a bioweapon is because none has claimed responsibility for such a weapon. for a terrorist action to have occurred there hato be a body of individuals willing to claim responsibility for it. no one has and no one will because this is just an occurance of a known virus evolving (or possibly though not likely from the sounds of the research, a new virus).

as our population grows and spreads out chances that new plagues such as SARS or much much worse could seep into the population. the single biggest threat to our survival is not a few crazy men but how we choose to approach problems, such as SARS or meteors, that treat all life and all borders with equal disregard.

AFAIK it's only killed the elderly or infirm. That creates an unusual motive for a bio-attack, doesn't it?

Maybe this is the GOP's idea of Medicare Reform or Saving Social Security?

I figured it was I just posted this thread to pose a question/possiblity

i understand that and i just tried to be as honest and clear as i could.