In January 2008, the ODNI Open Source Center (OSC) published a report on “Recent Worldwide Research on Animal Pox Viruses” principally authored by Dr. Alfred D. Steinberg of the MITRE Corporation.
Secrecy News has been trying unsuccessfully to obtain a releasable copy of the document. A request to ODNI was forwarded to the Central Intelligence Agency, which manages the Open Source Center, months ago. CIA did not reply to the request. The MITRE Corporation has also been unresponsive, except for a courteous note from the author.
Readers who have ready access to the OSC report on animal pox viruses are invited to forward the unclassified document to me directly, preferably in soft copy. Confidentiality — or, alternatively, an effusive public expression of gratitude — is promised, as you prefer.
Copies of other OSC publications would also be welcome.
Satellite imagery of RAF Lakenheath reveals new construction of a security perimeter around ten protective aircraft shelters in the designated nuclear area, the latest measure in a series of upgrades as the base prepares for the ability to store U.S. nuclear weapons.
It will take consistent leadership and action to navigate the complex dangers in the region and to avoid what many analysts considered to be an increasingly possible outcome, a nuclear conflict in East Asia.
Getting into a shutdown is the easy part, getting out is much harder. Both sides will be looking to pin responsibility on each other, and the court of public opinion will have a major role to play as to who has the most leverage for getting us out.
How the United States responds to China’s nuclear buildup will shape the global nuclear balance for the rest of the century.