Bacteria Revived after 250 Million Years:

IN AN ARTICLE IN THE OCTOBER 19, 2000 ISSUE OF THE sEATTLE TIMES, SCIENTISTS MAKE THE CONTENTION (PROBABLY TRUE) THAT THEY HAVE REVIVED BACTERIA THAT HAVE NOT BEEN ALIVE FOR 250 MILLION YEARS.  

ASSUMING FOR SAKE OF ARGUMENT THAT THEIR CONTENTION IS TRUE, WHAT IMPLICATIONS DOES THAT HAVE FOR SOCIETY?

THE FIRST POINT IS; DID THESE SCIENTISTS TAKE ALL REASONABLE PRECAUTIONS TO BE NEARLY CERTAIN THAT THEY WOULD NOT UNLEASH SOME PLAGUE DISEASE ON THE WORLD?  THEY PROBABLY DID NOT.

WHAT IMPLICATIONS WOULD THERE BE ABOUT THE NATURE OF LIFE IF A DEAD BACTERIA IS BROUGHT BACK TO LIFE AFTER SUCH A LONG TIME.  THIS SEEMS TO FLY IN THE FACE OF A MATERIALISTIC POSITION IN LIGHT OF THE INEVITABLE CHEMICAL DEGRADATION REACTIONS WHICH WOULD HAVE OCCURRED IN SUCH AN EXTREME TIME PERIOD.  (IN THE FUTURE, WE WILL HAVE SOMETHING TO SAY ON THIS WHICH WE BELIEVE WILL PROBABLY PROVIDE SOME UNIQUE AND IMPORTANT THOUGHTS IN THIS REGARD.)

IS THERE ANY MECHANISM WHICH WILL KEEP OTHER SCIENTISTS FROM DOING SOMETHING SIMILAR AND EVEN MORE DANGEROUS?  sadly, as far as we know, the answer is that there is no such safety mechanism.