Overview

Until the events of September 11 and the anthrax attacks of 2001, biological weapons had never been a major public concern in the United States. Today, the possibility of their use by terrorists against Western states looms large as an international security concern. In Biological Weapons, Jeanne Guillemin provides a highly accessible and compelling account of the circumstances under which scientists, soldiers, and statesmen were able to mobilize resources for extensive biological weapons programs and also analyzes why such weapons, targeted against civilians, were never used in a major conflict. This book is essential for understanding the relevance of the historical restraints placed on the use of biological weapons for today's world. It serves as an excellent introduction to the problems biological weapons pose for contemporary policymakers and public officials, particularly in the United States. How can we best deter the use of such weapons? What are the resulting policies of the Department of Homeland Security? How can we constrain proliferation? Jeanne Guillemin wisely points out that these are vitally important questions for all Americans to consider and investigate-all the more so because the development of these weapons has been carried out under a veil of secrecy, with their frightening potential open to exploitation by the media and government. Public awareness through education can help calm fears in today's tension-filled climate and promote constructive political action to reduce the risks of a biological weapons catastrophe. Biological Weapons is required reading for every concerned citizen, government policymaker, public health official, and national security analyst who wants to understand this complex and timely issue.

Full Product Details

9780231129428

Table of Contents

Reviews

This sane and sensible book ends by arguing for a more balanced approach. -- Malcolm Dando, Nature The book ranks high as a historical introduction to the subject and a handbook on contemporary remedies. -- Publishers Weekly Guillemin's account of biological weapons is lucid and concise, providing an excellent guide through the evidence on the past and issues for the future. -- Lawrence D. Freedman, Foreign Affairs Jeanne Guillemin presents a cogent history of biological warfare and its horrific implications -- Karl Helicher, ForeWord Guillemin's book is an extremely valuable and insightful work on a topic of significant national and international concern. -- Thomas May, Journal of the American Medical Association The scholarship and the clarity of the writing are remarkable...deserves to be read widely -- Karl M. Johnson, M.D. A clear, well-written general survey... it eschews the sensationalism and fear mongering which surrounds much of the current literature. -- John Ellis van Courtland Moon, Journal of Military History Read it. -- Alan D B Malcolm, Biologist There is no better source for an overview of the history of biological weapons research. -- Susan Lindee, Bulletin of the History of Medicine

This sane and sensible book ends by arguing for a more balanced approach. -- Malcolm Dando Nature The book ranks high as a historical introduction to the subject and a handbook on contemporary remedies. Publishers Weekly Guillemin's account of biological weapons is lucid and concise, providing an excellent guide through the evidence on the past and issues for the future. -- Lawrence D. Freedman Foreign Affairs Jeanne Guillemin presents a cogent history of biological warfare and its horrific implications -- Karl Helicher ForeWord Guillemin's book is an extremely valuable and insightful work on a topic of significant national and international concern. -- Thomas May Journal of the American Medical Association The scholarship and the clarity of the writing are remarkable...deserves to be read widely -- Karl M. Johnson, M.D. New England Journal of Medicine A clear, well-written general survey... it eschews the sensationalism and fear mongering which surrounds much of the current literature. -- John Ellis van Courtland Moon Journal of Military History Read it. -- Alan D B Malcolm Biologist There is no better source for an overview of the history of biological weapons research. -- Susan Lindee Bulletin of the History of Medicine

Chilling history of biological and chemical weaponry from WWI to the present. Rather than preaching a passionate sermon against evil, Guillemin (Sociology/Boston College; Security Studies Program/MIT; Anthrax, 1999) coolly marshals her facts to provide a chronology of names, dates, experiments, mistakes and sometimes deliberate use of biowarfare by major powers. She also covers the concomitant international moves toward control: the Geneva Protocol, the Chemical Weapons Convention, the Biological Weapons Convention, and sundry national laws and international agreements aimed at destroying stockpiles and empowering international inspections. New to some readers will be details about Japan's use of plague to decimate civilian populations in Manchuria during the 1930s, Russian outbreaks of smallpox and inhalational anthrax in towns near bioweapons factories, and major British and French biowarfare programs based on fears that Hitler would launch such assaults. (Surprisingly, those fears were unfounded.) Most disturbing of all is the story of America's ventures into bioweaponry. The post-WWII buildup of anthrax, smallpox, tularemia, hemorrhagic fevers, cholera, botulinum toxin, and other biological agents went on until Nixon's 1969 renunciation of bioweapons, which opened an era of dismantling programs. But after the end of the Cold War and the emergence of the US as sole superpower, America started withdrawing from multilateral agreements. Growing concerns about bioterrorism led to public-health preparedness programs and biodefense research. The buildup grew after 9/ll-and so did secrecy, communication controls and failures, a lack of accountability, a growing distrust of the government by the public and of the US by the world: exactly the ingredients that can fuel bioterrorism. Guillemin advocates transparency, improving international relations to increase mutual trust, and freely shared information. The author doesn't quite tell us to abandon all hope, but it's certainly not reassuring to read how easily governments move from defensive programs against bioweapons to offensive use and abuse. (Kirkus Reviews)

Author Information

Jeanne Guillemin is professor of sociology at Boston College and senior fellow in the Security Studies Program at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She is the author of Anthrax: The Investigation of a Deadly Outbreak. She lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Tab Content 6

Customer Reviews

Recent Reviews

Countries Available