Citation

Williams SJ. Soc. Theory Health 2004; 2(1): 67-93.

Affiliation

Department of Sociology, Centre for Research in Health, Medicine and Society, University of Warwick, UK.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2004, Holtzbrinck Springer Nature Publishing Group -- Palgrave-Macmillan)

DOI

10.1057/palgrave.sth.8700016

PMID

32226317

PMCID

PMC7099869

Abstract

This paper casts a critical sociological eye over the pros and cons of bioterrorism and biowarfare in the wake of September 11^th. The first part of the paper provides a brief sketch of the (not so) secret history of chemical and biological weapons (CBW), including arguments for and against their military/terrorist deployment to date. The sociological themes and issues this raises are then more fully explored in the remainder of the paper, with particular reference to: (i) (epidemics of) fear/panic; (ii) risk/(mis)trust; (iii) security/surveillance; (iv) combat/code. The paper concludes with some further thoughts and reflections on these global matters, and the relays between social theory and health they signal, including both the 'war on terrorism' and the health implications of war in general.

© Palgrave Macmillan, a division of Macmillan Publishers Ltd 2004.

Language: en

Keywords

biopolitics; bioterrorism; biowarfare; bodies; epidemics; globalization; panic; public health; risk; surveillance