If you’re having trouble making sense of the Litvinenko story, you have plenty of company. British and U.S. sources have produced a Dagwood sandwich of vague, conflicting and inaccurate information, with a side order of anxiety. To recap, Alexander Litvinenko, a former Russian spy, died recently of poisoning from polonium-210, a rare radioactive isotope. Surrounding these facts is a massive cloud of rumor, speculation and, one suspects, more than a few lies. The case is important to understand because, more than a murder, it is a public health crisis and a harbinger of things to come. The Litvinenko poisoning occurred in London, but experts warn that it is just a matter of time before the U.S. suffers a radiological attack, possibly a massive one.