Rating: 
Summary: Good (though partisan) analysis of Germ Warfare
Review: The author starts the narrative with a very interesting and dramatic happenings of Oregon in 1984 where the disciples of Bhagwan Rajneesh were so easily able to infect a few hundred people of the town. What was fascinating though was the fact that the outbreak was hushed up by the government. Though the author thinks that the prime motive for hushing this up was to prevent the spread of panic, I think that the outbreak may have been the handiwok of the agency to get rid of the Bhagwan because he was becoming too rich and powerful. The partial coverup (and quick release of the convicted) doesn't otherwise make sense to me.As for other things, the author laments the biowarfare programs of the (ex) USSR, and Iraq, but has almost nothing to say of the American program. It is revelation that Iraq has developed its program by using clandestine help from American labs. But I wonder how many readers would be really surprized by that, since almost in all its wars across the world, America fights with and against the weapons made in America. There is also a great analyses of the dilemmas faced by America & its Allies in the Gulf War as well as in any future war with Iraq. In these times, when we constantly hear of Iraq being the next frontier against terrorism, this book provided me with good reasons for the hesitation of America in doing a quick & dirty a.l.a Afghanistan. Overall, a reader may do well to selectively absorb the author's theories and reasoning.
Rating: 
Summary: A compelling story, but not compellingly told.
Review: No one in the U.S. has any doubt about the potential seriousness of chemical-biological attacks after the anthrax mailings in Florida, New York and Washington, D.C. The only debate, now, would be over how great the danger might be in the future and what needs to be done to counter the threat and handle any emergencies. This book, unfortunately for the authors, was put together before 9/11 and before anthrax in public places became a realty. So, it is a little like getting on a airliner without a known destination. The authors are blind (to the immediate future that would unfold), but we, the readers are not. Having three writers and one book probably, also, is a very difficult, even awarkward, process. While I can't point to specific examples (since I don't know how they approached the task), the book lacks focus and there is little sense of an unfolding tale that pulls the reader forward. They tried to organize the material in an interesting way and, in part, they succeeded and, in part, they failed. To me, the book reads like a bunch of stuff about biological and germ warfare, not a unified story. Let there be no mistake, however, that this book contains one of the best collections of information about chemical and biological weapons ever put into the public domain. There are some very startling revelations in these pages, even if they author's work has to struggle against our knowledge of what has happened between the writing and the publication of the book. "Germs" should certainly be on the list of must reading for all public officials and representatives, but it should be taken as but one important source of information, not the definitive answer. Finally, a note about this book and a warning to writers everwhere: be very careful of publishing conclusions that make you sound silly once they are published. The "Conclusions" chapter of this book could be used as a classroom example of embarassment and, more, of why reporters should not be directly involved in public policy. An egregious example is in the first paragraph of "Conclusions":..."political leaders undermined their credibiliy by asserting that a biological attack against the United States was inevitable in the next few years---a matter of "not if, but when". Hello? Just whose credibility does this clunker of a sentence undermine, since we now know these "political leaders" were entirely correct? (At least so far as the public record stands, but, of course, we still don't know the source of the anthrax attacks or whether, in fact, they might have been carried out by some "mad scientist" intent on warning the world of the danger.) In any case, the authors almost wrecked their book with the "Conclusions" chapter, but what's huge mistake like that among friends? The book is still very worthy of reading and, indeed, a necessity in understanding what might lie in our future.
Rating: 
Summary: Repetitive, Sloppy, Sometimes Interesting
Review: My main problem with this book was that it was very repetitive, owing to the decision by the authors to tell the story chronologically. As a result we are constantly forced to re-read the same arguments for and against certain government decisions that were made in the war on bioterror. For instance the entire discussion of anthrax vaccinations, which should have been a fascinating subject is rendered completely flat as we see the same arguments repeated and spread over most of the book's length. Surely, it would have made for better reading if we were given perhaps two concise chapters on this subject, one on the debate in the months leading up to the war and one on the debate after the war. That would have given a very intriguing view of how decisions are made in the so-called military-industrial complex. Similarly, the subject of the scope of the Soviet germ program and its appalling degradation of human health and the environment is flattened out by the aauthor's approach in which they intertwine it with subjects that are only distantly related, such as Iraq's program and homeland defense. A story with spies, defectors and an evil regime callously disregarding the health of its citizenry should have been as good a read as any fiction. Instead the authors drag it out and take the fizz out of it. It's still incredible to read about it, but only due to the sheer force of the facts and not by any skill of the authors in bringing it to life. Another major strand of the book, the UNSCOM inspections of Iraq's germ facilities doesn't manage to provide a compelling read, although it should have. The authors weren't skilled enough to convey the complexities of this material. And again, the reader needs to be immersed in the subject for a chapter or two rather than constantly being brought back to it over the course of a book. There was also an occasional sloppiness to the book that was surprising for NY Times writers and probably reflected a rush to get it out after 9/11. At one point the home states of three Senators was botched. Names come flying back into the narrative after 20 or 30 pages, often without a reminder of who they are. Also, the writers give short shrift to the simulations performed by the government. The problem here is that you can't really make out what it means to be involved with one of these responses to a virtual crisis. Altogether, a major disappointment, although the material is often inherently interesting and, in the absence of a better book on the subject, this book is probably still worth reading.
Rating:
Summary: A frightening book about germ warfare and its future
Review: This book will absolutely terrify you. It is shocking to read about the vast stockpiles of germ weapons that many nations have stocked and that are capable of inficting death and destruction on a biblical scale. Since this book was written before the recent anthrax scares, the text becomes even more frightening and surreal when you realize that the things the authors discuss have actually occurred. Everyone should read this book, if only to become fully aware of the dangers that we now face.
Rating:
Summary: Fair
Review: Judith Miller is certainly an accomplished scientist, very well spoken and kinda cute but...
Sorry, I can't say this fullfilled my wildest nighttime reading fantacies.
As one reader suggested, I think that the author's timing was perfect for extra readership, otherwise I wonder if it would have been given the exposure.
I purchase the book thinking it was more of a description ABOUT different biological agents, what they do, why they are used and where they come from(more Biology/germ science),and less about the lives of individuals in history that have effected (or tried to effect) the course of biological science.If that is what turns you on, you'll love it.
Some of both are given,but (in my opinion), way too much DULL-very dull- personal/U.S. Department history narratives.
Rating: 
Summary: BETTER THAN FICTION! Timely, thorough & downright scary!!
Review: Rarely does a work of Nonfiction carry with it all the key ingredients of a great Thriller. It happened with "The Hot Zone" by Robert Preston and that rare phenomenon has again occurred within the pages of "GERMS: Biological Weapons and America's Secret War." I must admit, I really enjoyed this book immensely. "Germs" give the reader the background and history of the United States "Biological Weapons Program" (an oxymoron to be sure) and then, with that foundation, the reader is blasted into a world of stupidity, denial, politics and ineptness. In fact, (gasp, gag), when the final page is turned, the reader may even find himself or herself having an inkling of admiration for (choke, cough) former President William Jefferson Clinton!! When I finish reading, I wondered how it was that this Great country of ours has survived for its short but productive time of 200+ years. And oh, I even have a stash of antibiotics set aside now...just in case our luck doesn't continue. Even with the events of September 11, 2001, the tightening of security that followed, the awareness of Our vulnerability is only now beginning to dawn on "We, the People." The incredible ability of some group or even <b>one deranged person</b> to cripple and perhaps destroy this country (or any other for that matter) with just a little dash of this and that is mind boggling!! <B>PROOF THAT SOMETIMES REALITY IS REALLY MUCH SCARIER THAN FICTION!! I HIGHLY RECOMMEND READING THIS BOOK.</B>
Rating:
Summary: Reads like a thriller, but it's real life
Review: Now the authors are riding the wave of topicality following the anthrax letters in October 2001, but the truth is that their book would be frightening at any time. The authors have played off each other's strengths and come up with a book that addressess the political, scientific, and historic context of germs as a weapon of mass destruction. It is scary to hear what the Soviet Union and Russia, and Iraq have been doing in this area, and how we react. If it was possible I'd like to have seen more about other countries besides Russia and Iraq. What is really frightening is the description of the Gulf War debates and preparations; or rather the lack of perparation by the American government. And there is no real reason to think it's much different today. Both the specter and the dangerous lack of perparation leaves us, and quite frankly most countries, in a very precarious position. Much of the writing comes across almost as a Clancy thriller - with double and triple talking and hiding the facts. And even if you grant some literary license to the story, the kernal at the center is extremely frightening. Often times the book comes out as an 'Us vs. Them' posturing, and I for one don't believe that the american government has been clean on germ research, but this might help the story and what they are trying to say - they do not seem to have an axe to grind over this issue -rather they want to tell us what's going on. And it is a very scary situation.
Rating:
Summary: Treaties Will Be Ineffective
Review: "Germs: Biological Weapons and America's Secret War" by Judith Miller, Stephen Engelberg, and William Broad investigates the extent to which American soldiers and civilians are threatened by a potential biological warfare attack. The conclusion the authors come to is what you would likely expect: we are exposed but the danger should not be overstated. Miller, Engelberg, and Broad have done extensive research on not just the current threats posed by rogue states and terrorist organizations but also on the history of germ warfare and its development by both the United States and Soviet Union. While the US abandoned offensive biological weapons research in 1969, the Soviet Union continued to produce germ and biological weapons even after the signing of the 1972 treaty banning such activity. The Soviets created strains of superbugs using recombinant technology originally developed by scientists at Stanford University in the 1970s. The most dangerous of which was a new potentially vaccine-resistant strain of smallpox, the disease in its natural state which has been credited with killing more people in history than any other virus or bacteria. The Soviet Union's continued efforts to produce germ weapons may be more dangerous to American interests than any threat posed by their nuclear technology. With the fall of the USSR, former Soviet scientists are now either employed in low-skill jobs or are, even worse, barely surviving the collapse of the Russian economy. "Germs" makes it all too clear that rogue nation-states like Iran and even terrorist organizations like Osama bin Laden's al Qaeda have tried to not only acquire Soviet technology but also the scientists that developed it. In light of the sometimes abysmal situations in which these scientists find themselves, it's not surprising that some of them may be willing to sell their services to the enemies of America. "Germs" also makes it clear that America's defenses against germ attacks are woefully inadequate. Like with many government programs, our anti-terrorism efforts are a hodgepodge of competing departments and agencies that neither trust each other nor know how to work together. Perhaps the recent creation of a Homeland Defense office will create a more collegial atmosphere amongst these organizations as they become accustomed to working more closely together. The only thing I will nitpick about this book is the authors' conclusion that strengthening existing germ warfare treaties will have a positive effect on keeping these weapons from proliferating. There are some countries were this may be true; but, I wouldn't bet the farm that it would work on Iran, Iraq, North Korea, Libya, China, etc. Not to mention that terrorist organizations would have no compunctions about violating a treaty they have neither signed nor would even recognize as legally binding on themselves. Threatening to imprison people who are all too willing to give their lives for their cause seems wrongheaded at best and devastatingly naive considering what we know about these groups. Germs are certainly the most dangerous potential weapon of mass destruction the United States faces in the coming years. Nuclear and chemical weapons are single use weapons that are easily identified and contained. Biological weapons are harder to detect and can be made to spread through a population quickly. With modern transportation systems, containing an outbreak created by germ weapons will be almost impossible. Quarantining victims is not going to work the way it did only 50 years ago. Our best hope is the development of a super-vaccine that could be used to defend against any number of "oldie moldies" and designer bugs which scientists may create. Failing that, the best defense in this case may well be a good offense (i.e. identify the facilities doing this type of research and target them for destruction).
Rating:
Summary: Excellent "history" book on bio weapons and politics
Review: Great factual account of: the history of Germ warfare development, the organizations that made it real, and the politics behind them. Its one of the subjects that is almost too scary to think about, but we need to highlight the threat to have informed discussion about this in academia, government and in our communities. Tom Clancy's Executive Orders is a much scarier book now that I have read this one.
Rating:
Summary: Infectious secrets
Review: "Germs" is a shocking account of the secret biological warfare programs of the United States, Russia, and Iraq. The authors, talented journalists, rely on inside sources in and close to the U.S. government. The result -- in novelistic style -- is a page turner but not, unfortunately, a clear analysis of the key issues in the looming arms race in biological weapons. The authors essentially accept the rationale of the military for creating genetically engineered designer germs without probing hard enough whether these have value for defense -- or, as critics fear, only for offense.
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