Washington – If the nation ever faces a large-scale attack by a biological weapon like anthrax, the U.S. Postal Service will be in charge of delivering whatever drugs and other medical aid Americans would need to survive.
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In an executive order released Wednesday, President Barack Obama put the Postal Service in charge of dispensing ”medical countermeasures” to biological weapons because of its ”capacity for rapid residential delivery.”
While most likely unrelated, the release of the executive order comes less than a week after a man with alleged ties to al-Qaida tried to bring down a Detroit-bound U.S. airliner. In recent days, Obama has sought to assure the public that his administration is doing what it can to protect the nation from terrorist attacks.
Under the new order, federal agencies must develop a response plan that includes possible law enforcement escorts for Postal Service workers and gives anthrax ”primary threat consideration.”
Anthrax made headlines in the weeks following the 2001 terrorist attacks when letters containing the substance were sent to lawmakers and news organizations.
The spores killed five people: Two Washington, D.C., postal workers, a New York City hospital worker, a Florida photo editor and a 94-year-old Connecticut woman who had no known contact with any of the poisoned letters. Seventeen other people were sickened.
Obama says his decision to give the Postal Service a role in responding to a widespread biological attack won’t supersede the authorities of other agencies.
Why are we being inundated with such stories this past week all because of the case of that Nigerian bochur?? Why do we have to suffer stories to raise the alarm and anxiety level every so often??
Thanks again mr. President! Great idea to utilize resources most ppl overlook. Keep up the good work!
Oh, great! Like they can be relied upon!
If the president did this because he want to keep the american pepole safe then he should rather give it over to fedex because by the time thell deliver the medication there will be no reciver to take it
We’d be better off walking to Washington DC to pick up the drugs in person than waiting for the post office to deliver it.
imagine the line to get help in the post office.
#5 & 6 so funny yet so true so true
In the past they used the postal to spread the Anthrax and therefore left several post offices out of comission.How will that idea work with no postal service in place.Mr President come up with something better.
The USPS is actually very reliable. I think this is a wonderful initiative that will save a lot of lives if an attack does god forbid happen.
Great job Obama!!!
Thanks
This wasn’t an Obama initiative. It’s been in the works for years.
But the timing is interesting.
zPathetic response. And, completely outside the duties of postal employees. I can’t believe the unions went for this and I wonder wha tthey got in return. OBAMA DOSENT OWN FEDERAL EMPLOYES. He cant just have them do what he wants. He is a president, not a king. He better learn that important lesson. Next he will have the police delivering the mail.