# New conspiracy: U.S. was funding Ukrainian "biolabs" **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Tags:** ukraine-invasion\ **Created:** [March 10, 2022, 11:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-conspiracy-u-s-was-funding-ukrainian-biolabs/960819 "2022-03-10T11:19:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2022, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-conspiracy-u-s-was-funding-ukrainian-biolabs/960819/21 "2022-03-10T17:22:10Z")
> [@Atamasama](#): > > That name sounds like a Bond girl instead of villain. In days of old, yes, but things may change. Maybe if Bond were gay, Dr Goodhead-Hummer could be the villain AND the love interest. It’s a New World Order of Wokeness! (I think I saw the word “woke” in every one-star review of No Time to Die in imdb.) ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2022, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-conspiracy-u-s-was-funding-ukrainian-biolabs/960819/22 "2022-03-10T17:34:58Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > Maybe if Bond were gay, Dr Goodhead-Hummer could be the villain AND the love interest. It’s a New World Order of Wokeness! They already made that movie! [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/P_SlAzsXa7E/maxresdefault.jpg "Miike Snow - Genghis Khan (Official Video)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_SlAzsXa7E) ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2022, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-conspiracy-u-s-was-funding-ukrainian-biolabs/960819/23 "2022-03-10T17:45:09Z")
For the record: The Department of Defense has a project called the Biological Threat Reduction Program: > **[Biological Threat Reduction Program](https://ua.usembassy.gov/embassy/kyiv/sections-offices/defense-threat-reduction-office/biological-threat-reduction-program/)** > > The U.S. Department of Defense’s Biological Threat Reduction Program collaborates with partner countries to counter the threat of outbreaks (deliberate, And to double check that, [here’s a copy of the page from 2020](https://web.archive.org/web/20200409110804/https://ua.usembassy.gov/embassy/kyiv/sections-offices/defense-threat-reduction-office/biological-threat-reduction-program/). That we do research and help countries to fight against biological threats is not a secret, nor is it nefarious. But, fundamentally, if you’re not of a mind to believe the US government then that doesn’t matter. If the US denies that they’re creating biological weapons in Ukraine, well clearly they’re lying. If Russia says, “We have proof!” Well, clearly they’re NOT lying. The only way to answer this question is to ask the question: **Where** would the US develop a weapon of mass destruction? Would they _really_ outsource WMD development to a country on the border of Russia, where 1/5th of the population are liable to be Russian sympathists? Well no, the only people that the US government would use for something like that are people who have gone through the most stringest of security clearances, and they’d be working at the bottom of a 500 foot deep well, in New Mexico. ---
**Author:** ![zimaane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a3d4f5/32.png) [@zimaane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zimaane)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2022, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-conspiracy-u-s-was-funding-ukrainian-biolabs/960819/24 "2022-03-10T17:47:18Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > From Russia’s mouth, to QAnon’s ears, to Hannity’s microphone. I’m not often one to defend Fox News, but I don’t see any mention of Mr. Hannity in these articles. ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2022, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-conspiracy-u-s-was-funding-ukrainian-biolabs/960819/25 "2022-03-10T17:51:33Z")
Maybe ask your friend why he is doing Putin’s work for him; is he being directly paid by Russia to spread propaganda, or is he merely a useful idiot? Offer to buy him a one way ticket to Moscow, where apparently he belongs. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2022, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-conspiracy-u-s-was-funding-ukrainian-biolabs/960819/26 "2022-03-10T17:52:54Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > My rightwing/Trumpster/conspiracy-minded acquaintance on FB just posted [this pile of shit](https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2022/03/breaking-us-department-defense-funding-ukrainian-biolabs-russia-releases-list-biological-agents-tested-us-biolabs-ukraine-including-salmonella-e-coli-anthrax-plague/). Cutting to the chase: the invasion by Russia is justified, because the U.S. is funding labs in the Ukraine that are engaged in biological warfare. Let me make sure I’m getting this right. This guy is saying he supports Russia attacking Ukraine because it was actually cover to attack American bases in Ukraine? So this guy supports attacks on American bases? ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2022, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-conspiracy-u-s-was-funding-ukrainian-biolabs/960819/27 "2022-03-10T17:53:44Z")
> [@zimaane](#): > > I’m not often one to defend Fox News, but I don’t see any mention of Mr. Hannity in these articles. Hannity is indeed repeating Putin’s propaganda, and even his own colleagues are trying to correct him: > **[Fox News Reporter Sets Hannity Straight on Russian Propaganda](https://www.thedailybeast.com/fox-news-jennifer-griffin-sets-hannity-straight-on-russian-propaganda)** > > The network’s national security correspondent had to correct Hannity during a discussion about Russia’s disinformation campaign around Ukrainian biolabs. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2022, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-conspiracy-u-s-was-funding-ukrainian-biolabs/960819/28 "2022-03-10T17:57:40Z")
> [@Sage\_Rat](#): > > The only way to answer this question is to ask the question: **Where** would the US develop a weapon of mass destruction? Would they _really_ outsource WMD development to a country on the border of Russia, where 1/5th of the population are liable to be Russian sympathists? Playing Devil’s advocate, someone might speculate that the US wants to develop those things in a foreign country, where if something gets out it won’t infect the US. It might even serendipitously infect Russia, due to proximity. It would also mean that the weapons are close to the enemy to be deployed swiftly, the way NATO has missile launchers in proximity to Russia in order to strike back in case of aggression. Yes, it’s easy to argue why that isn’t logical, but I can see why someone who is suspicious of the government would find it plausible. > [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > So this guy supports attacks on American bases? The super secret bases that Soros and Fauci are running, in a conspiracy with the Deep State and the Left, not bases that our American military heroes are deployed at. ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2022, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-conspiracy-u-s-was-funding-ukrainian-biolabs/960819/29 "2022-03-10T18:00:09Z")
> [@Atamasama](#): > > Yes, it’s easy to argue why that isn’t logical, but I can see why someone who is suspicious of the government would find it plausible. Then you ask, would Russia choose Canada as a place to research anti-USA diseases? ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2022, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-conspiracy-u-s-was-funding-ukrainian-biolabs/960819/30 "2022-03-10T18:03:26Z")
> [@Sage\_Rat](#): > > Then you ask, would Russia choose Canada as a place to research anti-USA diseases? Based on paranoid logic, absolutely! If they had a good enough relationship to set up those biolabs there, with some cooperation from Canada. ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2022, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-conspiracy-u-s-was-funding-ukrainian-biolabs/960819/31 "2022-03-10T18:14:50Z")
There’s a limit to what you can do with the paranoid. Make a real, reasonable argument rather than going, “Pshaw! That’s just FOX. They’re liars!” And maybe you don’t convert the paranoid, but you do get some movement from those around the edges. The biggest problem that I always see on the Internet is that all the people arguing the topics have no answer for their own side. If you believe your own side, be ready to offer evidence and reason to support it. If you can’t, keep skepticism for it as much as you have for the other side. Blanket skepticism ain’t a bad position. Most things don’t matter. If you’re confident about what you need to do to put food on the table, that’s all the world of things that you need to put much faith in. For the rest, shrug and move on unless you’ve got something hard to base it on. And be especially careful to note that neither CNN, Fox, nor any TV news source is “hard”. If you enjoy your news and it’s not a slog to read through, like you’re in a college lecture by a physics professor, then it’s probably not real news. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2022, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-conspiracy-u-s-was-funding-ukrainian-biolabs/960819/32 "2022-03-10T18:16:21Z")
By the way, Happy Cake Day! ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2022, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-conspiracy-u-s-was-funding-ukrainian-biolabs/960819/33 "2022-03-10T18:17:47Z")
Cake! 🎉 ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2022, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-conspiracy-u-s-was-funding-ukrainian-biolabs/960819/34 "2022-03-10T18:57:07Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > So this guy supports attacks on American bases? It would appear so. But I’m sure if I asked he would deny it. He would probably say something along the lines of, “No, I don’t support the attack. But I can see why Russia would do it.” He’s also a huge, _huge_ fan of Alex Jones. I haven’t checked AJ’s website (_shudder_), but I would assume he’s echoing the same bullshit. ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2022, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-conspiracy-u-s-was-funding-ukrainian-biolabs/960819/35 "2022-03-10T19:12:37Z")
I’ll also throw in this Wikipedia page from 2008: > **[Defense Threat Reduction Agency](https://web.archive.org/web/20080530055037/http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Defense_Threat_Reduction_Agency)** > > The Defense Threat Reduction Agency (or DTRA) is an agency within the United States Department of Defense (DoD) dedicated to addressing the threat of weapons of mass destruction at home and abroad. The main functions of DTRA are fourfold: threat reduction, threat control, combat support, and technology development. The agency is headquartered in Fort Belvoir, Virginia. DTRA employs 2,000 civilian and military personnel at more than 14 locations around the world, including places such as Russia, K... And that includes this PDF, dated 2002: > **[DTRAHix.pdf](https://web.archive.org/web/20080530055057/http://www.dtra.mil/about/media/historical_documents/books/DTRAHix.pdf)** > > 2.09 MB ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2022, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-conspiracy-u-s-was-funding-ukrainian-biolabs/960819/36 "2022-03-10T19:32:44Z")
Sean Hannity is a fucking traitor, apparently. He’s directly repeating Russian propaganda. I’m still stunned how in Russia’s pocket these conservatives are. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2022, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-conspiracy-u-s-was-funding-ukrainian-biolabs/960819/37 "2022-03-10T19:48:22Z")
> [@RitterSport](#): > > He’s directly repeating Russian propaganda. And that’s exactly what my friend is doing - repeating Russian propaganda. Yet he claims to be a “patriotic American.” Go figure. 🙄 ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2022, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-conspiracy-u-s-was-funding-ukrainian-biolabs/960819/38 "2022-03-10T19:50:49Z")
It really seems that the people flying the largest flags and loudly proclaiming their patriotism are most in Russia’s pocket. WTF is going on? ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2022, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-conspiracy-u-s-was-funding-ukrainian-biolabs/960819/39 "2022-03-10T19:53:21Z")
> [@RitterSport](#): > > WTF is going on? What’s going on is patriotic virtue signaling from the right. They don’t really mean it, but they do it because they think it makes them look good to their peers. Deep down, their allegiance isn’t to their country, it’s to the talking heads they listen to on the radio and watch on TV. ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2022, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-conspiracy-u-s-was-funding-ukrainian-biolabs/960819/40 "2022-03-10T19:53:46Z")
They fly huge flags, which makes them a patriot, which means that anything else they do is patriotic as well. I do believe that virtue signaling would not be an inappropriate term to be used here. ETA: ninja’d on the virtue signalling by @Atamasama [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-conspiracy-u-s-was-funding-ukrainian-biolabs/960819.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-conspiracy-u-s-was-funding-ukrainian-biolabs/960819.md?page=3)