Support: September 2, 2001

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Someone in the Pentagon has noticed that, if there is a chemical attack on our troops, there has to be a way to use a latrine without getting contaminated. The U.S. military has four firms working on designs for the Collectively Protected Expeditionary Latrine (CPEL). This is an add on to portable, chemical/bio proof structures (like field hospitals) that eliminates the need to suit up in your protective gear, go to an outdoor latrine to do your business, then decontaminate before coming back into the gas proof structure. No one will say if CPEL is being developed to; give troops a place to take a wiz during a chemical or bio weapon attack, spare them the hassle of going outside and then doing the decontaminate drill when they return, or provide work for some defense contractors. It's probably "all of the above." This is all based on the idea that there will be a lot more, and nastier, chemical/bio weapons used in the future and that it will be impractical to just be careful like troops did during World War I (the last time chemical weapons were used on a large scale.) Then again, maybe someone's just warming up for April 1st