Alien Theorists Theorizing

In May of 2008 the U.S. Congress Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations of the Committee on Energy and Commerce met to discuss the proliferation of bio-containment labs. At the time, the Department of Homeland Security was proposing the shutdown of a facility isolated on an island off the East Coast of the U.S. and transfer of its operations to the mainland. This specific bio-research facility had been at the center of the effort to combat the pathogen known as foot and mouth disease. Foot and mouth disease, a highly contagious disease caused by a virus that can severely affect cattle and farm animals. Its virulence made it a major concern during the Cold War when the U.S. military had considered using it to destroy Soviet farms and food stores. During the meeting in 2008, the subcommittee discussed a government exercise that had been implemented to assess the preparedness of the U.S. in the case of a large-scale outbreak. The exercise ended with the destruction of almost 50 million head of livestock, f