Start Me Up
Since our department has been without an administrative assistant lately (we miss you, C), I've been processing all of the returned newsletters (thousands of them, as no one has cleaned up the database in ages) -- and obsessively washing my hands as a result. You see, I handle marketing for a fund raising department at a reproductive rights/health nonprofit (we're not going to name names, since I'm not representing them here, and I don't want the crazy anti-choice folks going ape sh*t on me at the moment) and all of our mail is screened for bombs, toxic chemicals, and the like (yeah, real "culture of life" ya got going there in the red states). So sue me if I'm a teeny bit paranoid.
Not a lot of people realize this, but in the wake of 9/11 and the homegrown anthrax letter terrorism, over 500 anthrax threat letters (many containing packets of white powder!) were FedEx'ed or mailed to reproductive health clinics and pro-choice organizations by self-declared Christian terrorist Clayton Waagner in September and November 2001. (The sucka's now in jail after being convicted in December 2003 -- check out this story in Salon.com for the straight dope on this dope.) Funny how this whole episode received almost no coverage in the mainstream media, even as the freakin' terrorism alert levels keep flashing like a Xmas tree...even with potential WMDs involved. Oh well, the anti-abortion thing. Been there, done that.
So, the newsletters that I'm handling have been through the postal system round-trip, so each piece is covered in a tangible layer of crud. So as I'm sorting the "deceased" from the "unable to forward" (UTF in postal parlance) and thinking, "don't rub your eyes...don't touch your mouth" and trying not to breathe in to deeply. Did I mention that I'm asthmatic?
Just felt like mentioning this.
Not a lot of people realize this, but in the wake of 9/11 and the homegrown anthrax letter terrorism, over 500 anthrax threat letters (many containing packets of white powder!) were FedEx'ed or mailed to reproductive health clinics and pro-choice organizations by self-declared Christian terrorist Clayton Waagner in September and November 2001. (The sucka's now in jail after being convicted in December 2003 -- check out this story in Salon.com for the straight dope on this dope.) Funny how this whole episode received almost no coverage in the mainstream media, even as the freakin' terrorism alert levels keep flashing like a Xmas tree...even with potential WMDs involved. Oh well, the anti-abortion thing. Been there, done that.
So, the newsletters that I'm handling have been through the postal system round-trip, so each piece is covered in a tangible layer of crud. So as I'm sorting the "deceased" from the "unable to forward" (UTF in postal parlance) and thinking, "don't rub your eyes...don't touch your mouth" and trying not to breathe in to deeply. Did I mention that I'm asthmatic?
Just felt like mentioning this.
posted by Steve from Moon | 12:50 AM
2 Comments:
I was actually questioned by the FBI about those faux anthrax letters. It just so happened that I had sent out about 15 packages to health centers the same night as Waagner. Just one of my many moments of glory... being suspected of domestic terrorism.
Kim, it's kind of screwy that the FBI would be questioning you in this case, as you work for the good guys, so to speak. So much for staying off the grid...
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