Anthrax Suspect Took Secrets and Demons to the Grave

At first blush, news that federal investigators had fingered a respected Army scientist post-mortem as the culprit behind the cryptic 2001 Anthrax scare seemed, well, flimsy. Now some of the facts of this rather bizarre case are surfacing and the accusations seem more justified.


Puzzling and even disturbing is the fact that scientist Bruce Ivins was apparently a troubled soul plagued by dual demons of depression and paranoia yet continued his work as a bioweapons specialist. He struck without warning, without overt provocation. How many others are lurking in our military laboratories, toiling feverishly on their concoctions and twisted plans, known to be possessed by similar demons, but operating without impediment?


Much to his credit, though, Ivins seemed to be more messenger than rogue domestic terrorist. His point seemed to be to scare us out of our complacency. "Look at what the terrorists can do!" he was exclaiming. He hinted that he knew something we didn't. Perhaps, but we'll likely never know. He took his secrets to the grave when he kiled himself a few weeks ago.


What, if anything, could have been done differently? Could Ivins have been stopped before the end to his Anthrax terror spree? Could he have been better protected from his own illness?Sphere: Related Content