Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist David Willman tells the gripping story of the hunt for the anthrax killer who terrorized the country in the days that followed the 9/11 attacks. The Mirage Man: Bruce Ivins, the Anthrax Attacks, and America's Rush to War reveals how a seemingly harmless, if eccentric, scientist hid a secret life from his closest associates and family, and how the trail of evidence led to him. Willman also exposes the faulty investigation that led to the public smearing of the wrong man, Steven Hatfill, a scientist whose life was upended by the false allegations against him.
Guests:
David Willman
About The Leonard Lopate Show
Host Leonard Lopate lets you in on the best conversations with writers, actors, ex-presidents, dancers, scientists, comedians, historians, grammarians, curators, filmmakers, and do-it-yourself experts.
Hosted by Leonard Lopate
Links
- 2012 Election Coverage
- 25 Years of Lopate
- American History XX
- Backstory
- Food Fridays
- Globavores: Food Travels Around The World Since 1492
- Guest Hosts
- Guest Picks
- Please Explain
- The Gurus of How-To
- The Leonard Lopate Show Book Club
- The Lodown
- The Story of New York in 10 Objects
- Tributes
- Underappreciated
- Underreported
- Web Extras
- Word Maven: Patricia T. O'Conner
Show Archive
Show Archive
Comments [7]
Unfortunately, David Willman wrote his book BEFORE much of the evidence the FBI had withheld for years was finally released. NOTE: there is much more important information still being withheld.
See a vigorous discussion of many of the points David Willman missed or ignored at ...
http://caseclosedbylewweinstein.wordpress.com/ Search for “Willman” to locate many posts
The conclusion of the CASE CLOSED blog: the FBI has not made the case against Dr. Ivins: no physical evidence, no witnesses, an impossible time line, and science that goes more to innocence than guilt. The bottom line ... IT WASN'T IVINS !!!
Ivins was a registred, and apparently lifelong, Democrat.
It was fortunate for Mueller that the suspect committed suicide, because otherwise the FBI's case would not have held up for a moment in court,
Why did he send it to the Vermont senator? was he a right wing republican?
The most damning evidence against Ivins was the "spike" in his time spent in the lab, peaking in August 2001.
The al-Qaeda attacks followed soon after.
Ivins was not connected to al-Qaeda, so he must have been very "lucky" that he could tie in his anthrax-mailing activities to this new threat.
It is an implausible coincidence.
There WAS a connection between all the anthrax targets; they would all have been targets of right-wing ideologues.
This article from WIRED last March shows that there are still plenty of unanswered questions in the Anthrax case. Ivins was an easy out for the FBI who have not really solved the mystery:
"Anthrax Redux: Did the Feds Nab the Wrong Guy?"
http://www.wired.com/magazine/2011/03/ff_anthrax_fbi/
A few months prior to the suicide of the anthrax killer, I worked with a former postal police person. I asked him about the investigation of the anthrax killer and he surprised me with his response: "We know who it is. We are just waiting to get evidence on him."
Leave a Comment
Register for your own account so you can vote on comments, save your favorites, and more. Learn more.
Please stay on topic, be civil, and be brief.
Email addresses are never displayed, but they are required to confirm your comments. Names are displayed with all comments. We reserve the right to edit any comments posted on this site. Please read the Comment Guidelines before posting. By leaving a comment, you agree to New York Public Radio's Privacy Policy and Terms Of Use.