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Fascism strikes again, Dr. Steven Kurtz, Associate Professor of Art at the University of Buffalo, faces a possible twenty year sentence for mail fraud. When Dr. Kurtz wife died in her sleep on a heart attack earlier this year he was charged as bioterrorist. Why? Kurtz is a founding member of the Critical Art Ensemble, a science/performance art troupe that mixes on-hand labs with humor. Themes of past CAE performances have been the nearly non-existent genetic difference between races and demonstrating how food is biochemically engineered. In the wake of his personal tragedy, and large scale out cry from the scientific and artistic communities, the absurd 'bioterrorist' charges were dropped. Okay, it was a terrible mix up right? Not to the FBI-- they have instead charged Dr. Kurtz, and Dr. Robert Ferrell, Professor of Genetics at the University of Pittsburgh, with mail fraud for mailing harmless unmarked biological agents through the mail. Which is exactly what every scientist does everyday because you can't mail 'marked' biological agents. If the charges stick the FBI would have too arrest half the research scientists in America and charge them with mail fraud. Coincidently,, the CAE next project was going to a critic on the Bush administrations proposed plan to build a series a high security germ warfare research facilities. For more info, details of case, and ways that you can help (some of which don't cost money!) go here: http://www.caedefensefund.org/
