"BU outlines biolab safety steps; Scientists face in-depth screenings" by Stephen Smith, Globe Staff | October 14, 2008
Before they can handle the world's deadliest germs, scientists at a controversial laboratory being built by Boston University in the South End will undergo psychological testing and will have their financial records scoured, measures that administrators said are designed to prevent lethal organisms from getting into the wrong hands.
The sleuthing aims to spot researchers who might be unstable or whose financial plight could leave them susceptible to stress-fueled mistakes - or even extortion.
"We consider someone who is under financial duress to be a risk," said Gary W. Nicksa, BU's vice president for operations. "Do you want someone who could . . . have access to sensitive information or sensitive materials in a position that they could be approached by someone who says, 'Would you be willing to do something for me?' "
Happens anyway, even to those not under duress, guy. Look at all the WAR or WALL STREET LOOTING!
BU administrators, reticent in the past about disclosing security strategy at the National Emerging Infectious Diseases Laboratories, outlined safety steps during a 70-minute interview, which also included a description of how cameras will track researchers required to work in pairs.
The worst fears about lax security at the nation's research labs crystallized in August when federal authorities said the 2001 anthrax attacks were an inside job.
Does anyone find the MSM use of that term offensive when they continue with the cover story lies surrounding 9/11?
Please see: The Anthrax Attacks and the AmeriKan MSM
Nicksa said BU intends to go beyond the FBI screening, delving into researchers' medical, psychological, and financial histories. For example, if a scientist's house faces foreclosure or there is evidence of crushing debt, a red flag will be raised. Those reviews will be repeated episodically, BU administrators said, to detect any problems arising after the initial screening.
You can keep your damn mass-murder science job, assholes!
At BU, the scientists' irises, which are distinct like a fingerprint, will be scanned to confirm their identity before they enter the Level 4 lab or a lower-security Level 3 lab that is part of the project. And researchers will never be allowed to work alone.
In the Level 4 lab, if a scientist slips out of camera range for too long, the university's security force would be automatically dispatched. At lower-security labs, cameras will watch from corridors as well as from the entrance of the lab and the perimeter.
Nationally, nearly 15,000 researchers are approved to work with the deadliest germs in about 400 labs run by the federal government, universities, and private companies, said Richard Ebright, a Rutgers University chemistry professor.
"The number of people with the means to mount a bioterror attack exactly analogous to the 2001 anthrax attack has increased tremendously," Ebright said.
Especially since the government FRAMED an INNOCENT GUY and KNOWS who REALLY DID IT!
Ebright, an opponent of the Bush administration's expansion of high-security labs, said only one step would truly assure safety. "The most effective way to reduce risk at the Boston facility," he said, "would be never to open it." --more--"
For our "protection?"
