Accidents at Disease Lab Acknowledged (Update)

April 11th, 2008 By LARRY MARGASAK, Associated Press Writer

Plum Island Animal Disease Center Building 257, closed in 1995, sits fenced and boarded up on Plum Island off of the east coast of New York's Long Island, in this Feb. 16, 2004 file photo. The Bush administration plans to move its research on one of the most feared animal diseases from an isolated island laboratory to a new facility on the U.S. mainland near herds of livestock, raising concerns about the possibility of an economically catastrophic outbreak. (AP Photo/Ed Betz)

(AP) -- The only U.S. facility allowed to research the highly contagious foot-and-mouth disease experienced several accidents with the feared virus, the Bush administration acknowledged Friday.

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• SDMike - Apr 11, 2008
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  "Roberts supports moving the government's new lab to his state. Manhattan, Kan., is one of five mainland locations under consideration. "It will mean jobs" and spur research and development, he says."
  
  Screw the farmers, screw the ranchers, screw the public, screw the country - we (As in I the politician) want more jobs=votes=$$ ! Politicians catch something in D.C. and become insane.
  
  This is as stupid as putting an oil sands refinery in the heart of the SD bread basket - Oh! I forgot. They are doing that! "We'll all get rich! The governor will get oil money to run for president! Perhaps we've ALL become insane!
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• p1ll - Apr 11, 2008
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  the bush administration? I didnt know they were scientists
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• sheber - Apr 12, 2008
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  Sometimes I wish I didn't know how to read...
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• mikiwud - Apr 12, 2008
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  Of the last two outbreaks in the UK,one came from contaminated illegally imported stock and the other the virus "escaped" from a government facility.Keep it on a island!
  Animals can be vacinated against Foot and Mouth,UK,s government kills uninfected animals to stop the spread probabily because of their lack of organisational skills.
  BTW,the "playstaion game" Crimson Sky must have been programmed by the same people that the IPCC use and presumes the same lack of intelligence in the US public that AL Gore does.I think they would see it for what it is,Propaganda,and insulting at that.
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• hudres - Apr 12, 2008
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  The isolated environment of Plum Island makes it the perfect location, in spite of all other issues. Any money for this type of highly dangerous work should be spent there and not put the rest of the population at risk for the sake of government pork. Someone has to draw the line on this type of stupidity before the entire population is adversely affected. 73
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