Kudos to the Much Maligned United Nations - Rinderpest eradicated

[malaise]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-11542653
<snip>
Scientists working for the UN say that they have eradicated a virus which can be deadly to cattle.

If confirmed, rinderpest would become only the second viral disease - after smallpox - to have been eliminated by humans.

Rinderpest was once prevalent in the Middle East, Africa and Asia.

The UN's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has said that it will now suspend its efforts to track and eliminate the virus.
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This is a big fucking deal - from Huffpo
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/10/14/rinderpest-the-cattle-pla_n_763036.html
"This is the first animal disease virus that's been eradicated through a vaccination campaign," and only the second viral disease, after smallpox, to have been wiped from the earth, says Chris Oura, a veterinary scientist at the Institute for Animal Health in Pirbright, UK who was involved in the effort. "It is a major achievement."