Not to give the papers credit--chances are, the Anthrax case was planted by a terrorist. The last known death in the U.S. from Anthrax was in 1976 as a result of crafting with tainted (spore) goat hair (from the middle east, nonetheless). ie, hey guys--this case wasn't just perchance, know what I'm saying?
As regards the bleach--the type of disease caused by Anthrax that "kills" is the inhalation disease. Bleach will do nothing about that. I doubt, also, it would do much for spore contamination of surface objects either, since by definition, spores are little tank-like dwellings that the bug's DNA is temporarily hiding out in until it's deemed ready to burst out of its shell and kick some ass.
Other information: There are 3 "types" of Anthrax disease: 1) Inhalation, 2) Cutaneous--cured with penicillin/doxycycline and 3) Gastrointestinal--typically results in a fatal hemorrhagic ascities.
If the inhalation route were to be targeted by the Taliband--they could choose to drop 100kg/220# of Anthrax spores upwind of Washington DC, resulting in the death of 3,000,000 people. This, my friends, is as effective as a Hydrogen bomb. Savi?
Yes--we're at risk of terrible stuff. The only way you can POSSIBLY survive inhalation Anthrax (which results in a hemorrhagic mediastinitis, necrotizing pneumonia, bacteremia/sepsis, multi-system organ failure and hemorrhagic meningitis) is to simultaneously begin Ciprofloxacin 500mg bid AND receive the cell-wall Ag Anthrax vaccine. Antibiotics could be stopped after 60 fricking days. If one doesn't get vaccinated--as soon as you stop the antibiotics, the disease recurs resulting in instantaneous death.
This infection is so bad-ass that even sterile, treated blood (infection negative) of animals that have been treated for systemic Anthrax, will, when injected into healthy animals, kill that animal as well.
The microbiology of the bug is beyond the scope of this, but suffice it to say that the organism makes 3 exotoxins: 1) Edema factor 2) Lethal factor, and 3) Protective factor. The complex interaction of these toxins result in cell death even when the organism itself has been eradicated. Somewhat like Toxic Shock Syndrome.
So no, it's no joke. :(