Russia in the 21st Century [Superthread]

[Staff Weenie]

I do have serious concerns, especially with the known Russian narrative. The 'wild strains' of Yersinia pestis are a Bio Safety Level 3 pathogen. If you're curious, you can look up the protocols in place for safe handling and storage of BSL 3 pathogens. Dropping a vial on the floor or under a fume hood is not good, but there are protocols in place for how it is handled - there should not have been a risk of infection. Contamination should have been limited to those in the room at the time, a decontamination protocols should have dealt with it. This makes me wonder if the lab was lax in it's training/storage/handling (most probable - I hope), or whether this is not a wild strain, but a weaponized strain and decontamination efforts failed. A long shot - this was actually a targeted killing of some kind. Regardless, time will tell over the next few weeks.

 

[brihard]

I do have serious concerns, especially with the known Russian narrative. The 'wild strains' of Yersinia pestis are a Bio Safety Level 3 pathogen. If you're curious, you can look up the protocols in place for safe handling and storage of BSL 3 pathogens. Dropping a vial on the floor or under a fume hood is not good, but there are protocols in place for how it is handled - there should not have been a risk of infection. Contamination should have been limited to those in the room at the time, a decontamination protocols should have dealt with it. This makes me wonder if the lab was lax in it's training/storage/handling (most probable - I hope), or whether this is not a wild strain, but a weaponized strain and decontamination efforts failed. A long shot - this was actually a targeted killing of some kind. Regardless, time will tell over the next few weeks.

Fair to say that if any transmission chain established itself, we’d probably see quite a number of unmistakably abnormal actions taken by various authorities?

 

[PrairieFella]

Such as a mushroom cloud over Irkutsk?

 

[Staff Weenie]

I would watch for mobilization and movement of medical and military personnel and resources into the area, especially CBRN units. Then, watch for restrictions on movement into/out of the area - road/rail/air. Cutting off internet would also be indicative of a big problem. There's other possible telltales - i.e. during COVID, the CIA was using atmospheric analysis over China to see if there was a spike in signature molecules generated by widespread cremation of human remains. Apparently there are some real telltales in that regard indicating higher mortality than reported. I'm hoping Occam's razor holds, and the simplest hypothesis is reflective of the truth.

 

[dapaterson]

I'm hoping Occam's razor holds, and the simplest hypothesis is reflective of the truth.

Russian incompetence with bioweapons?

Because that's pretty much the simplest hypothesis.

 

[Staff Weenie]

Russian incompetence with bioweapons?

Because that's pretty much the simplest hypothesis.

I'm trying to keep my BP down these days, so I'm hoping for old/outdated/missing/broken safety equipment coupled with poor training and lack of supervision

 

[dapaterson]

I'm trying to keep my BP down these days, so I'm hoping for old/outdated/missing/broken safety equipment coupled with poor training and lack of supervision

Or equipment sold as a scrap on the black market for a handful of rubles to buy vodka.

 

[YZT580]

Or equipment sold as a scrap on the black market for a handful of rubles to buy vodka.

It isn't possible to create the treatment before the virus so it is quite likely that if they are working on weaponizing any bug which is their intent in the first place, they probably haven't identified and tested the antidote so anyone who came into contact with the victim is screwed. Isn't that basically what happened with Covid?

 

[Gordon Dundas/]

Or equipment sold as a scrap on the black market for a handful of rubles to buy vodka.

Or all of the above Russians just got to Russian