Military men and women are increasingly refusing to be vaccinated
against Anthrax for fear the immunization is worse than the threat of
disease.
There is growing evidence they may be right.
Researchers at Tulane University
found that squalene, a
naturally occurring substance in the human body, was found in higher
than normal levels in the bodies of all service personnel who were
vaccinated with a full compliment of vaccines by the U.S. government,
whether they actually served in the Persian Gulf or not.
Since that initial discovery, squalene has again surfaced as a
possible causative agent in another military vaccine — Anthrax — that
has sickened more military personnel who have begun taking the series as
ordered by the Pentagon last year.
Squalene, says Karin Schumaker of the National Vaccine Information
Center (NVIC), is added to vaccines “either
to increase the vaccine’s potency or to preserve it.” However, she told
WorldNetDaily, one reason why more people are becoming alarmed over the
use of squalene is because “it has not been fully tested.”
Schumaker said one of the reasons why former and current members of
the military, as well as immunization research groups like NVIC, oppose
vaccines containing the untested squalene is because “the U.S. is going
against the Nuremberg codes (established after World War II) and the
Helsinki accords.” American authorities never officially signed those
codes of conduct, Schumaker said, but “since we helped establish them,
we ought to be following them. It’s almost as though we think we’re
above the law.”
She said that according to those documents, any government wishing to
use experimental drugs on their citizens or military personnel had to
first get consent from those subjects. But as far as military personnel
are concerned, “they haven’t done that. Commanders have been demanding
that their troops get this Anthrax vaccine, no questions asked.”
Schumaker added that the military has informed troops that “there is a
chance of a mild reaction” to the vaccine, but “then are not allowing
men and women to opt out, which is the basis for informed consent.”
Even though the military has a responsibility to protect troops sent
to an area where biological weapons like Anthrax could be deployed by an
enemy, Schumaker said she “understood the need for order and discipline
and the ability for troops to take orders from superior officers.”
However, she said that congressional reports indicated that “out of 50
possible biological weapons, the only one America has a vaccine against
is Anthrax.”
“Are military minds in this country that inane that they would
believe an enemy, believing our troops are protected against an Anthrax
attack, would then use Anthrax against them as a weapon?” she asked.
“Out of 50 possible choices, I would think an enemy would use an agent
we cannot protect our troops against.”
Besides, she said, Anthrax can be manufactured “in a number of
different strains, so why do we think our troops would be protected
against the exact strain launched against them by our enemies?”
Though the military vaccinates troops against a number of possible
illnesses, “there are no immunizations for the multitude of viruses out
there than can be used against you as a weapon.”
The Pentagon, however, maintains the vaccine is safe and has refused
to rescind its order to vaccinate every active duty member of the armed
forces.
Nevertheless, increasing numbers of troops have refused to take the
series, citing the questionable Pentagon research allegedly declaring
the vaccine safe. In fact, a recent report stated that an air wing
commander at Dover Air Force Base in Maryland temporarily ordered a halt
to the vaccine program before being forced by Pentagon officials to
resume the series. However, after repeated attempts to contact Dover
AFB, this report remains unconfirmed by WorldNetDaily.
Despite the Pentagon’s claims of safety, Schumaker said in fact there
have been no long-term studies performed on the Anthrax vaccine and the
effects of increased levels of squalene in the human body. Furthermore,
while the government is claiming that no experimental drugs are being
used on troops, Schumaker said squalene “definitely qualifies as an
experimental drug or compound.”
“It was a play on words,” she told WorldNetDaily. “Yes, squalene is
an adjuvant — a substance that makes the vaccine either work better or
preserves it — and not a real drug, but it’s added to the Anthrax
vaccine, so it’s in there too. The government’s statement is
technically correct, but come on … if it’s in there, then it should
qualify as an experimental compound.”
Lori Greenleaf, an activist seeking to discourage government use of
the Anthrax vaccine and, specifically, the chemical compound squalene,
told WorldNetDaily, “I’m responsible for this battle,” which is now
raging between former and current military members and the Pentagon over
the controversial immunization program.
Her story began when her son, a sailor stationed on the aircraft
carrier USS Independent in March 1998, was set to deploy to the Persian
Gulf. She said he called her when orders came down from command that
the Anthrax immunization program was set to begin aboard ship.
Greenleaf said her son told her that “he had been hearing rumors that
the vaccine may be linked to Gulf War illnesses.” He asked her to “see
what I could find out about it, and he told me he’d call me back later
to check on my progress.”
“He told me they were only given 24-hours notice before the
vaccinations would begin,” she said.
“I called my state health department, my physician, hospitals — I
called everyone I could think of,” said Greenleaf, “but no one had ever
heard of it (the Anthrax vaccine). They didn’t know what it was.”
The government claims that “thousands of veterinarians had been using
the vaccine for years but that’s just not true,” she said. “We finally
got them to admit that recently,” she added, but did not elaborate.
Next, Greenleaf began searching the Internet for information, and
found that indeed the vaccine had been linked to Gulf War illnesses.
“The thing that really caught my eye was a 1994 Senate report I found
that stated that the Anthrax vaccine could not be ruled out as a
contributor to Gulf War Sickness,” she said.
At that, she said she decided to tell her son to refuse the vaccine,
which is given in a series over an 18-month period. “The Independence
was the first warship to get the vaccine,” Greenleaf said. “At the time
he was ordered to take the shot, he only had four months left in the
Navy.”
When her son refused, he was summarily “busted down in rank,
restricted to the ship and fined, and was told that the punishment would
continue until he agreed to take the vaccine.”
“Eventually he decided to take it,” Greenleaf added, “after he was
threatened with court martial and being dismissed from the service with
a less-than-honorable discharge. Since he knew that kind of discharge
would follow him all of his life, he changed his mind.”
Emboldened by the Navy’s action against her son, Greenleaf made
numerous Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests and obtained
information indicating that the “lot” — or batch — of Anthrax vaccine
given to sailors on the Independence “was expired when it was given.”
“That particular lot was manufactured in 1993, then improperly
relabeled,” she said. “After they re-dated the lot, they then sent it
out to be used to inoculate our troops.”
Since she began her crusade, she said she has discovered “people
coming out of the woodwork everywhere that are ill” and has been
contacted by a number of them.
Greenleaf testified before Congress March 24, 1999, then attended a
follow-up hearing on April 29. She told WorldNetDaily that the
Government Accounting Office (GAO) is also conducting an investigation
into the mystery surrounding the Gulf War illnesses.
Ultimately, Greenleaf says she’d like to see the immunizations become
optional, but realizes that may be impractical given the military
considerations of troop inoculations and the dangers U.S. military
personnel face from potential weapons of mass destruction, including
chemical and biological warfare.
And, she says, “I understand there are many people who want to feel
like they’re protected against Anthrax, but the GAO has some serious
concerns” over whether or not the current vaccine is effective,
especially given the high incidence of what can only be described as
squalene overdoses.
In the interim, Greenleaf sides with the GAO’s conclusion that the
military should stop the Anthrax immunization program for now, “given
that there have been no long term health studies of the side effects
done with this vaccine.”
Greenleaf said she was considering legal action over the use of the
Anthrax vaccine on her son, and has contacted Washington-area attorney
Mark Zaid.
Zaid told WorldNetDaily that the initial discovery process in the
case was proceeding, but “nothing has been received yet. The
prosecution has denied our requests, and we’re fighting over it.”
However, he said a trial date of June 5 had been set, “and discovery
motions will be argued on June 9 and 10.” He said there are currently
no lawsuits that have been filed over the military’s immunization
programs, but he speculated that he “will probably seek an injunction to
stop the program” in the short term.
