Bruce Ivins

Abortion and the Other Post-9/11 Anthrax Attacks

Submitted by Anonymous on Thursday, 8/14/2008 6:02 pm
We reported earlier that the FBI believes that suspected Anthrax sender Bruce Ivins was motivated partly by his “right-to-life fervor.” Regardless of whether anti-abortion sentiment played a role in those attacks, there was never any doubt about the motivation behind the now forgotten anthrax scare that swept women’s health clinics the following month. Here’s an excerpt from an 11/29/01 FBI press release announcing new information about the then-fugitive suspect Clayton Lee Waagner:
During Labor Day weekend, 2001, Waagner abandoned a vehicle in Memphis, Tennessee, following a hit and run accident. Authorities recovered various items from the vehicle including a rifle, a shotgun, a pipe bomb, and anti-abortion literature. That same weekend, Waagner fled the area after committing a carjacking in nearby Tunica, Mississippi. Waagner had previously testified that he is an "anti-abortion warrior" and admitted to stalking abortion clinics around the country. During the second week of October 2001, more than 280 letters that threatened to contain anthrax were mailed to women's reproductive health clinics on the east coast. The envelopes were marked "Time Sensitive" and "Urgent Security Notice Enclosed." The envelopes also bore return addresses of the U.S. Marshals Service or the U.S. Secret Service. During the first week of November 2001 a second series of more than 270 anthrax threat letters were sent to women's reproductive health clinics via Federal Express.
It now appears quite possible that one deranged “pro-life” terrorist was inspired to action by another deranged “pro-life” terrorist. How tragic, and telling, that would be.

Pro-Life, Pro-Anthrax

Submitted by Anonymous on Thursday, 8/14/2008 5:08 pm
The FBI believes that Bruce Ivins – the FBI’s sole suspect in the 2001 anthrax terror attacks – was motivated in part by his fervent “pro-life” views to send anthrax-laden letters to two Democratic Senators and multiple media outlets, which killed five people and severely sickened others. We reported last week that Ivins, whose wife was the president of an anti-abortion group, was himself a longtime supporter of an anti-gay group that bashes Democratic senators and mainstream media outlets. But an affidavit released by the FBI and recent comments by investigators provide far more information about Ivins’ potential motivation. In a section of the affidavit titled “Frustrations with Members of the United States Senate,” investigators recount email messages written by Ivins concerning his “pro-life” views and frustration with civil libertarians in Congress over their opposition to Bush administration policies. They also describe an article found in his house from an anti-abortion newsletter which argued that Catholic senators like Leahy and Daschle “should be excommunicated for aiding and abetting abortion.” Additionally, NPR has reported that Ivins was connected to numerous anti-abortion groups and “did a great deal of mailing under pseudonyms and from various cities,” much of which “involved anti-abortion or Right to Life activities.” All of this has led officials to conclude that “Ivins’ right-to-life fervor was at least part of the reason he would target Daschle and Leahy.” If Ivins was in fact the anthrax sender, he would be far from the first “pro-life” advocate to resort to murder and terrorism. A perusal of the list of items confiscated by the FBI from Ivins’ home reveals these noteworthy items:
* Five (5) cards from Respect Life Committee * Black briefcase containing Glock 34 S/N KKP854; Beretta pistol s/n DAA274445; Glock 27 s/n ERP247 * Beige lockbox containing stunmaster 300s, airtaser, Stunmaster 100s, 2 peppersprays, batteries

Anthrax Family Values: Suspected Bioterrorist Supported Anti-Gay Group

Submitted by Josh Glasstetter on Thursday, 8/7/2008 1:27 pm

The virulently anti-gay American Family Association generates buzz and media attention year after year by launching outlandish boycott campaigns – McDonald’s is the latest target. It also doesn’t hurt that their flamboyant founder and chairman, Don Wildmon, more than lives up to his name.

PR is the lifeblood of a group like AFA, so you might think that they’d be thrilled when a longtime supporter of the group rocketed to the top of the media charts. Maybe so, but not when that supporter happens to be the FBI’s only suspect in the 2001 anthrax attacks – Bruce Ivins.

Indeed, the nation learned today that Ivins and his wife – who served as president of a local anti-abortion group – were strongly committed to the AFA:

Donations were made to AFA in the name of Mr. and Mrs. Bruce Ivins 11 times between 1993 and 1997. Another donation by the couple was recorded one month after an article about the Greendale incident appeared in the AFA Journal. The Ivins subscribed to the Journal until March 2005.

And his support for the AFA actually helped the FBI catch him:

Bureau investigators also connected the fictitious return address on the second round of anthrax letters – the "Greendale School" of Franklin Park, N.J. – to a charity well-known to Ivins. He had donated numerous times to a group called the American Family Association, which in 1999 had filed a lawsuit on behalf of parents at the Greendale Baptist Academy in Wisconsin in a dispute involving corporal punishment.

Here’s a scanned image of one of the envelopes:

Daschle_letter.jpg

Knowing more about Ivins’ background may help explain a great deal about the attacks, especially the targets. The anthrax letters were sent almost exclusively to prominent Democrats – Senator Pat Leahy and then-Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle – and large, New York media outlets. Interestingly, Senators Leahy and Daschle and the mainstream media have consistently served as punching bags for the AFA.

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Bruce Ivins Posts Archive

Abortion and the Other Post-9/11 Anthrax Attacks
, Thursday 08/14/2008, 6:02pm
We reported earlier that the FBI believes that suspected Anthrax sender Bruce Ivins was motivated partly by his “right-to-life fervor.” Regardless of whether anti-abortion sentiment played a role in those attacks, there was never any doubt about the motivation behind the now forgotten anthrax scare that swept women’s health clinics the following month. Here’s an excerpt from an 11/29/01 FBI press release announcing new information about the then-fugitive suspect Clayton Lee Waagner: During Labor Day weekend, 2001, Waagner abandoned a vehicle in Memphis, Tennessee, following a hit and run... MORE >
Pro-Life, Pro-Anthrax
, Thursday 08/14/2008, 5:08pm
The FBI believes that Bruce Ivins – the FBI’s sole suspect in the 2001 anthrax terror attacks – was motivated in part by his fervent “pro-life” views to send anthrax-laden letters to two Democratic Senators and multiple media outlets, which killed five people and severely sickened others. We reported last week that Ivins, whose wife was the president of an anti-abortion group, was himself a longtime supporter of an anti-gay group that bashes Democratic senators and mainstream media outlets. But an affidavit released by the FBI and recent comments by investigators provide far more information... MORE >
Anthrax Family Values: Suspected Bioterrorist Supported Anti-Gay Group
SUBMITTED BY: Josh Glasstetter, Thursday 08/07/2008, 1:27pm
The virulently anti-gay American Family Association generates buzz and media attention year after year by launching outlandish boycott campaigns – McDonald’s is the latest target. It also doesn’t hurt that their flamboyant founder and chairman, Don Wildmon, more than lives up to his name. PR is the lifeblood of a group like AFA, so you might think that they’d be thrilled when a longtime supporter of the group rocketed to the top of the media charts. Maybe so, but not when that supporter happens to be the FBI’s only suspect in the 2001 anthrax attacks... MORE >