W. Seth Carus

About the author: W. Seth Carus is a senior research professor at the National Defense University. He is also the author of Ballistic Missiles in the Third World and The Poor Man's Atomic Bomb? Biological Weapons in the Middle East.

An increased fear of biological or chemical terrorism has prompted the Clinton administration to raise federal spending on countermeasures and emergency response to attacks by such weapons. Although there have been few cases of this type of terrorism to warrant funding, the administration's concern is appropriate. The possibility of such attacks and their nightmarish consequences should motivate any government to take severe precautions. And with at least a dozen countries capable of making biological and chemical weapons, the budget for protecting against an attack may be justified...