RE: More bad news

["Franta, Jaroslav" <frantaj@aecl.ca>]

One bizarre item that came to mind on this topic, is something I read in a
book by I. Pacepa, called Red Horizons.
In it, the author - a former head of the secret service in Romania's
Ceaucescu regime - writes of the latter's penchant for using radioactive
substances for disposing of imprisoned political detainees (among other
nasty assasination techniques...). 
It all seemed a bit far fetched to me when I read it, and no way to
confirm/disprove one man's words - though it would be fairly easy to check
by surveying any victims, be they dead or alive....
My Romanian friends all seem to believe Pacepa's words, and hold his book in
high regard (but this could be a manifestation of the "martyr syndrome")
Ceaucescu was certainly evil enough to be capable of such crimes, but it
seems to me that such a method would be rediculously complicated and
expensive, especially in a country that is not known to have had any great
capacity for production of large quantities of radioisotopes...
Has anyone heard any more on this ?

jaro
frantaj@aecl.ca

> ----------
> From: 	Nathan Pell[SMTP:npell@rsoinc.com]
> Reply To: 	radsafe@romulus.ehs.uiuc.edu
> Sent: 	Friday, August 20, 1999 2:54 PM
> To: 	Multiple recipients of list
> Subject: 	Re: More bad news
> 
> I would agree that calling radiation a "deadly weapon" is a bit harsh/un
> realistic, but the law may not have any other means as to charge someone.
> I
> wonder if it could be called poisoning or something. I don't know, just a
> thought.
> 
> Nathan A. Pell
> RSO, Inc
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Philip Hypes <phypes@lanl.gov>
> To: Multiple recipients of list <radsafe@romulus.ehs.uiuc.edu>
> Date: Friday, August 20, 1999 11:28 AM
> Subject: Re: More bad news
> 
> 
> >A deadly weapon!?  Are we going to have to register bannanas?  Will it be
> >unlawful to carry concealed brazil nuts?  Has someone gone nuts?
> >
> >At 10:21 AM 8/20/99 -0500, you wrote:
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>Man charged with radioactive assault
> >>SANTA ANA, Calif. - A former university lab technician who authorities
> said
> >>sought revenge on a coworker by smearing her chair with radioactive
> >material was
> >>arrested Thursday on a charge of assault with a deadly weapon. Andrew
> Andris
> >>Blakis, 32, told police he thought the researcher who shared his work
> station
> >>had tried to poison him. In retaliation, Blakis smeared the compound on
> the
> >>chair of Jingtong Zuo. Zuo sat on the chair for about six hours before
> she
> >>discovered the contamination during a routine Geiger counter sweep.
> >>Investigators estimate Zuo was exposed to an average yearlong dose of
> >radiation.
> >>Although she is not experiencing any symptoms of radiation poisoning,
> the
> >>long-term effects are unclear.
> >>
> >>
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> >___________________________________________________________
> >Philip Hypes
> >Los Alamos National Laboratory
> >Safeguards Science and Technology Group (NIS 5)
> >(505) 667-1556  phypes@lanl.gov
> >
> >Opinions expressed are purely my own unless otherwise noted
> >
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