I, for one, would really like to believe the government when they say that Ivins was the guilty party. I really would. The jackass (and that is probably the mildest possible term, or string thereof) responsible for the anthrax attacks deserved to be punished to the fullest extent of the law. However I find it hard to believe the government when they already ruined the life of one innocent person.

On a related note, is anybody else bothered that Hatfill will never get an apology, just cash? That kind of pisses me off. Why can't the investigators in that case be the bigger people and admit they made a mistake? I assume there was a release of liability signed by Dr. Hatfill. So why can't they just own up to their mistakes? If I was Hatfill I'd want an apology rather than a bunch of money and a denial that any mistakes were made.

I just want to say this was one of the few things the Bush Administration has done well.
The amount of fear and anxiety reaped by this operation was admirably cost effective. Hey, it's not like much was going to be done with this anthrax, anyway, am I right?
Also, I have to compliment you on the nice and neat job of cleaning up your mess.

You'll only have to worry about people asking after motive, I guess, and knowing humans (particularly in this country), that shouldn't be difficult at all.

----- The earth may burn, but we will quiver

AP is reporting:

And then there is a bizarre poem written months after the attacks. In it, Ivins described "exchanging personalities" and said the sensation was "rather fun."

Another poem went like this, according to the affidavit:

"I'm a little dream-self, short and stout.

"I'm the other half of Bruce--when he lets me out.

"When I get all steamed up, I don't pout.

"I push Bruce aside, them (then) I'm Free to run about!"

The significant fact of the anthrax mailings was that they all went to political enemies of George Bush.  That's something that has never been explained, nor does this explain it.

If Ivins was a sociopath, I would expect his victims to be people who were inconvenient to him, not people who were inconvenient to the Sociopath-in-Chief.  But now he's conveniently dead, so Case Closed!

Bradblog points out that the media is remarkably silent on the identities of the people the anthrax letters were addressed to, although they generally say things like (New York Times) "The 2001 anthrax mailings were baffling in several ways, not least because the victims -- whether they were chosen or were struck at random -- seemed to have nothing in common."  Never mind that the victims were mostly mail handlers who were exposed in the process of delivering the letters.

Brad spoke with Ivins's brother about what the press was asking him, and discovered that he had no idea who the targets had been, was surprised to learn that they had all been people or organizations identified as enemies by the Bush administration.  Ivins's brother also said that no one had asked him about his brother's political leanings.

If Ivins was the anthrax terrorist, one has to wonder why he targeted The National Enquirer.  On the other hand, if the anthrax terrorist was working for Bush, that question is easily answered, because The Enquirer had published embarrassing cover photos of the Bush twins on at least four occasions, as well as an expose of how the 2000 vote was rigged by Jeb.

Acetaminophen ("Tylenol") overdose damages the liver, and it's a painful death. Acetaminophen is also fairly easy to overdose on. Especially if you've been drinking booze a whole lot more because the feds won't get off your ass. 4 grams/24 hours is the maximum recommended dose for a healthy adult; if you're a regular drinker (2+/day), the maximum recommended is half of that. I'm just wondering how big this "massive" dose was, and how much of it was taken at once. I'm assuming Ivens knew pharmaceuticals, he'd know it was a slow death.

- derumi (del-me)
"Bobby Fischer? Man, that guy is crazy!" - Mike Tyson

The implications of this point to several ways to improve the "war on terrorism."  It re-emphasizes that terrorism is a tactic, and it is a tactic that can be employed by not only radical Muslims but also by sociopaths and nihilists.  To the extent that we can identify groups of people who are likely to employ terrorism, go after them; but we must recognize that we are also in danger of terrorist attacks from ordinary generic screwed-up people.