<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/02/05/space.love/index.html">http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/02/05/space.love/index.html</a><!-- m -->


CNN:
Astronaut arrested on attempted kidnapping charges


Story Highlights
(special for Galt)

• An astronaut is accused of trying to kidnap a romantic rival
• Both were vying for the affection of astronaut Bill Oefelein, police report says
• Lisa Marie Nowak is arrested on battery, attempted kidnapping charges
• Nowak is married with three children



ORLANDO, Florida (CNN) -- A NASA astronaut was arrested Monday on battery and attempted kidnapping charges after allegedly trying to subdue a romantic rival with pepper spray and abduct her from a parking lot at Orlando International Airport, police said.

Navy Capt. Lisa Marie Nowak, who was a mission specialist aboard the space shuttle Discovery in July, and Colleen Shipman were both reported to be "in a relationship" with astronaut Bill Oefelein, a Navy commander, according to a police report of the incident.

Nowak, 43, has been charged with battery, attempted kidnapping, attempted burglary to a vehicle and destruction of evidence. Police have recommended Nowak be held without bond.

According to the report, she told police that her relationship with Oefelein was "more than a working relationship but less than a romantic relationship."

Nowak drove from Houston, Texas, to Orlando to meet Shipman, who was flying the same route, to talk with the woman about her alleged relationship with Oefelein, the report said.

Shipman is an engineer assigned to the 45th Launch Support Squadron at Patrick Air Force Base, near the Kennedy Space Center.
Police: Woman feared for safety

Shipman told police that she arrived at the airport at about 1 a.m. but had to wait two hours for her luggage to arrive.

Once she retrieved her bags, she said she took a bus to the lot where her car was parked, noticing a woman wearing a trench coat who appeared to be following her.

Fearing for her safety, Shipman quickly stepped into her car, the police report said, adding that she reported hearing "running footsteps" behind her.

Shipman closed and locked her car door as Nowak slapped the window of the car and tried to open the car door, the report said.

Nowak told Shipman her ride had not arrived and asked for help, but Shipman refused, saying she would send help instead. When Nowak complained she couldn't hear Shipman and started to cry, Shipman opened her car window "about 2 inches" -- and Nowak sprayed pepper spray into the car, police said.
Diapers for long car trip

Shipman, her eyes burning, drove to a toll booth in the lot to summonpolice. An officer went to the bus stop and found Nowak, who was wearing a different coat, the report said. Approaching the stop, the officer observed Nowak put some items into a trash can, the report said.

Those items included a wig and a plastic bag containing a carbon dioxide-powered BB pistol, the report said.

Inside a bag Nowak was carrying, the officer found a tan trench coat, a new steel mallet, a new folding knife with a 4-inch blade, 3 to 4 feet of rubber tubing, large plastic garbage bags and about $600 in cash, the report said.

Nowak admitted the details of Shipman's allegations, according to the police report, and permitted a search of her car.

Inside the car, police found an a half-dozen latex gloves, MapQuest directions from Houston to Orlando International Airport, e-mails from Shipman to Oefelein, diapers that Nowak said she used to eliminate stops along the highway, a letter indicating how much she loved Oefelein and directions to Shipman's home address in Florida, the report said.

Asked about the BB pistol, Nowak told police it "was going to be used to entice Ms. Shipman to talk with her," the report said.

"Mrs. Nowak stated that she was not trying to cause any bodily harm to Ms. Shipman and that she only wanted to scare Ms. Shipman into talking with her," the police report said.

Nowak, who is married with three children and has been an astronaut since 1996, flew her first shuttle mission in July as a mission specialist aboard Discovery.

Oefelein, 41, was the pilot of the last shuttle mission, also aboard Discovery, which flew in December.

Johnson Space Center spokeswoman Eileen Hawley said that Oefelein would not make any comments through NASA at this time. To her knowledge, no one from NASA had spoken with Nowak yet, she said.

Two astronauts, Navy Capt. Chris Ferguson and retired Air Force Col. Steve Lindsey, have gone to Florida to establish contact with Nowak, Hawley said, adding that her status as an active-duty astronaut remains unchanged.

Lindsey, the chief astronaut, was the commander of Nowak's shuttle flight.

Quote:PHILADELPHIA - A Philadelphia official wants the city council to look at whether the city's sidewalks should be made of rubber.

City councilman Jim Kenney recently toured Chicago to see environmentally-friendly city projects there. He came back with a number of ideas on which he plans to hold hearings.

One is using rubber for sidewalks.

No, don't expect to see people bouncing down the street. Kenney says the rubber is very solid — probably harder than a running track.

He says rubber sidewalks are made from recycled tires. They don't crack, and they last longer than concrete.

Kenney says rubber sidewalks could also reduce the number of slip-and-fall accidents and the resulting lawsuits.

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Some things I needed to say - w4m - 29
Reply to: <!-- e --><a href="mailto:[email protected]">mailto:[email protected]</a><!-- e -->
Date: 2007-02-02, 3:59PM CST




I can't call you right now because I'm way too emotional and I don't want you to hear me like that-I have too much pride. I guess there are just some things I wanted to say/forgot to say yesterday. Don't respond back to this e-mail because I still don't have a computer at home and I had to go to the library to write this. Actually, I don't expect you to respond to me at all. Don't worry, this isn't one of those "please, please, come back" type of things either.

First of all, I have to wonder, were you sad yesterday? I was. My hubby kept asking me what was wrong, and why I looked so sad. It's not like I could say "Oh, my boyfriend of 1 1/2 years ended things today, so I'm a little down." I'm even sadder today. The first night you and I were together you told me you'd been looking for me for a long time, and that we'd be friends and lovers for a long time. I believed you. I especially believed you after I was pregnant and you chose to stay together. If ever there was a time to leave, it was then. I would have expected that. Sometimes we joked about being together 20 years from now and I never thought that was out of the question. But jeezuz, you kicked me when I was down. In the past two months I could have died, I had a baby in the ICU that could have died or been retarded, I've been hospitalized and had two surgeries, and then you dumped me. What a great friend you are. I needed you more during that time, and now, then I ever have.

Did you wonder why yesterday was going to be the last time for me? It's not because I suddenly grew a conscience, or because of the baby. Partly it's because I wanted to feel that I've still got it even after having a baby. But mostly it was because I realized that I gave you everything and you would give nothing. I know that I taught you to treat me that way. I was so eager to be low maintenance and so easy to deal with that I let you get away with controlling everything. Here's you saying you would do anything for me- but the reality is that you might if you can fit it in between clients, the cable guy, tanning, and getting your eyebrows waxed. If I tell you I'll do anything for you, I will. You could have called me snowed in at the airport in Chicago, and asked me to take your mother to the doctor, and I would have moved heaven and earth to make it happen. But, like I said, I taught you to treat me like that. I was so comfortable with you that I didn't think you'd take advantage of my understanding nature. And like I told you before, when tell you I love you, it's not because I want to build a life with you, it's that I just want you in my life. I wish I didn't love you, it would hurt a lot less.

I hate that I am just wife and mother and not a lover anymore. The thing I feared most about having kids was that I would lose myself in the role of mom and not be "me" anymore. No, I don't anticipate finding a replacement for you. I've got too much shit to deal with to do anything like that. That was what was so great about you, you were already established. And we both know the sex was amazing. Even if I take another lover, it could never be like what we had. Seriously, I think that's a once in a lifetime kind of thing. It was a combination of skill, imagination, lack of inhibitions, and trust. I told you before, you gave me something more important than love, you gave me freedom.

Thank God you changed that picture on your website! That's the guy I know. I wish you had a picture of me, but you only wanted naked ones (so glad I didn't give in to you on that). I just don't want you to forget about me. I want to be one of the girlfriends you never forget, because I will never forget you. I don't understand how one person can make me so happy and so sad, but that's a question for the ages.

Some advice for you. Do not go looking for your next girlfriend on the internet or through the personals. You are not computer savvy enough and people can find out way too much about you through the internet. (By the way, who's going to "clean" your computer for you now that I'm gone?) Second, put your business license on the wall behind you. It has your home address on it and you don't want some psycho chick causing problems for you. Don't worry, I won't go psycho on you either. I realize that you have the power to have me killed with a phone call, and that's no exaggeration. Plus, psycho is just not my style. Third, you have to use condoms. You were lucky (and I was stupid) that I was a clean housewife, you may not be so lucky next time. Lastly, listen to my last CD I made for you. Don't listen just to the sexy songs. Listen closely to the other songs. You will hear how conflicted I was about you, how much you meant to me, you'll hear how I knew it was coming to an end, and the last song (19) will have more meaning to you now. The one Etta James song says how I felt yesterday "If you're thinking about quitting me give me one more day...on more day to do it to you baby...I'll do anything and be anything that you want me to be...buy anything you want me buy...try anything you want me to try." But I didn't get that one last day, and you know how pissed I am about that.

I feel like I still have so much to say but I don't want to go on and on, so I'll end this letter now. Take care, and hopefully we'll stay in touch. I will miss you so much, and for so many reasons.

Quote:CARTOON MORONS SPUR MASS. PANIC
STUNT HERE, TOO
By PHILIP MESSING and HASANI GITTENS
<B>COSTLY PRANK:</B> A cop removes a gizmo planted at 33rd and 12th yesterday to promote "Aqua Teen Hunger Force".
COSTLY PRANK: A cop removes a gizmo planted at 33rd and 12th yesterday to promote "Aqua Teen Hunger Force".
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PrintEmailDigg ItStory Bottom

February 1, 2007 -- This is one ad campaign that really bombed.

The Cartoon Network caused some serious trouble in the real world yesterday when electronic devices it planted in 10 cities as part of a guerrilla-marketing plan unleashed a massive bomb scare that shut down parts of Boston in the afternoon and also caught the NYPD's attention last night.

Peter Berdovsky, 27, and Sean Stevens, 28, who installed the devices, were both charged last night by Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley with placing a hoax device and disorderly conduct.

Berdovsky told the Boston Globe he was an "artist" and was "a little, kind of freaked out."

The "bombs" were part of a promotion for the late-night cartoon show "Aqua Teen Hunger Force."

The show is geared toward the Doritos-munching insomniac stoner crowd.

The devices, which Cartoon Network parent company Turner Broadcasting described as magnetic lights, were found around Beantown yesterday, causing a series of closures and evacuations.

Highways, bridges and an area along the Charles River were shut down and bomb squads were sent in before authorities declared the devices were harmless.

"It's a hoax - and it's not funny," said Mass. Gov. Deval Patrick.

An NYPD spokesman said 41 "Aqua Teen" boxes were found and confiscated by cops in Manhattan and Brooklyn last night. Two were at West 33rd Street and 12th Avenue, about 20-feet above ground, stuck to an overpass.

Over a dozen cops and four ESU trucks responded andshut down the street for 45 minutes after a team from the intelligence unit spotted the devices.

Turner Broadcasting said the devices have been in place for two to three weeks in 10 cities: Boston, New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Atlanta, Seattle, Portland, Ore., Austin, San Francisco and Philadelphia.

"We apologize to the citizens of Boston that part of a marketing campaign was mistaken for a public danger," said Turner Chairman Phil Kent.

The marketing company responsible for the campaign, Interference Inc., had no immediate comment.

The first device in Boston was found at a subway and bus station underneath Interstate 93, forcing the shutdown of the station and the highway.

Later, "suspicious packages" were found at the Boston University Bridge, the Longfellow Bridge, at a street corner and at the Tufts-New England Medical Center.

Boston Mayor Thomas Menino said he was "prepared to take any and all legal action" against the company and its affiliates "for any and all expenses incurred during the response to today's incidents."

Additional reporting by Larry Celona, Tom Liddy

<!-- e --><a href="mailto:[email protected]">mailto:[email protected]</a><!-- e -->

Quote: 2 men released as Boston officials seek restitution for ploy that sparked terrorism fears

The Associated Press
Thursday, February 1, 2007

BOSTON

In nine cities across the United States, blinking electronic signs displaying a profane, boxy-looking cartoon character caused barely a stir.

But in Boston, the signs — some with protruding wires — sent a wave of panic across the city on Wednesday, bringing out bomb squads and prompting officials to shut down highways, bridges and part of the Charles River.

Something that may have been amusing in other cities was not funny to authorities here, the city that served as the base for some of the hijackers who carried out the Sept. 11 attacks. Officials defended their reaction Thursday even as two men charged in the case, and some residents, mocked the response as overblown.

Young Bostonians familiar with the unconventional marketing tactics used by many companies tended to see the city's reaction as unmitigated hysteria.

Tracy O'Connor, 34, a retail manager, called the police response "silly and insane," contrasting it with that in other cities where no one reported concerns about the devices — an advertising gimmick for the Cartoon Network show "Aqua Teen Hunger Force."

"We're the laughing stock," she said.

Public safety officials and a large segment of Boston's older generation condemned the publicity campaign as unthinkable in today's post-9/11 world.

"Just a little over a mile away from the placement of the first device, a group of terrorists boarded airplanes and launched an attack on New York City," police Commissioner Edward Davis said in an interview with The Associated Press.

"The city clearly did not overreact. Had we taken any other steps, we would have been endangering the public," he said.

Davis said that as calls were coming in about the electronic signs in rapid succession Wednesday afternoon, police also received reports of two devices that resembled pipe bombs and had a confirmed report of a man walking down the hallways of New England Medical Center making a rambling speech about "God getting us today" and "This would be a sorry day."

Officials found 38 blinking electronic signs on bridges, a subway station, a hospital, Fenway Park, and other high-profile spots in and around the city.

In New York, officers went to the various locations and found only two of the devices — both attached to a highway overpass. Police said it did not appear it was targeting any landmarks such as the subway, Empire State Building or Brooklyn Bridge.

Officials have vowed to hold responsible Turner Broadcasting Inc., the parent company of the Cartoon Network, which airs the series about a talking milkshake, a box of fries and a meatball.

Two men who authorities say were paid to place the devices around the city pleaded not guilty Thursday to placing a hoax device and disorderly conduct. Peter Berdovsky, 27, and Sean Stevens, 28, were released on $2,500 (€1,920) cash bond — apparently amused by the situation, even though they face up to five years in prison.

They met reporters and TV cameras and launched into a nonsensical discussion of hair styles of the 1970s. As they walked off, Berdovsky gave a more serious comment.

"We need some time to really sort things out and, you know, figure out our response to this situation in other ways than talking about hair," Berdovsky said.

Late Thursday, Berdovsky released a statement through a Boston law firm. It said he "never imagined" the devices would be perceived as dangerous and he never intended to do anything to frighten the community.

"I regret that this incident has created such anguish and disruption for the residents and law enforcement officers of this city," the statement said.

The devices did not prompt calls of concern in any of the nine other cities where Turner said the devices were placed. Police in the other cities fanned out to find and remove them after Boston's scare.

Some enterprising people got to the devices before police: At least seven were for sale Thursday afternoon on the Internet auction site eBay, ranging in price from $500 (€384) to $2,100 (€1,613).

The publicity campaign was conceived by the Adult Swim marketing department and approved by the head of the Cartoon Network, Turner spokeswoman Shirley Powell said Thursday. She said the devices had been up for two weeks around the country and the network had not received any calls about them.

"We were simply promoting a TV show," she said. "If we had ever perceived this to be something threatening safety, we would never have proceeded with it."

The marketing company that placed the signs, Interference Inc. of New York City, did not return calls seeking comment and its offices were closed Thursday.

Is there anybody out there???

<embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/-DSVYGHVCsk" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed>

Quote:OPINION
By Vic Zast
MSNBC contributor
Updated: 5:07 p.m. ET Jan 30, 2007


Vic Zast
There are moments in a life that, like images in a photograph, take on different meanings when you look back at them.

From the memories that you have of these moments, you know exactly where you were and what was happening when they occurred. But they seem to become more vivid, and, in fact, unrealistic, over time.

Time allows you to ascribe more significance to certain memories than they actually deserve. After a period of detachment, your personal history of these happenings becomes part of a greater lore.

n this realm, some occasions that are merely historical become life changing. And some aspects of reality become myth. Out of myth, heroes are born.

These are not the thoughts that ran through the minds of legions of Barbaro fans when Roy and Gretchen Jackson put the Kentucky Derby winner down.

The time was not right for philosophy. The air was prepared for the let-down, but nobody is ever ready for the loss. Almost everyone would prefer to have the horse alive than to have him memorialized.

The emotions of Barbaro’s fans were stunned by his departure. They were hit with the gut-wrenching realization that his impossible odyssey was, at last, over, and they accepted it.

Such is the effect of death upon the ones left behind, even in those instances when you are hoping against hope and praying for miracles. The shock comes at you unexpectedly, confusing the system with inadequate resolve. Given time, the saga of Barbaro will become unbearable. No hero so intriguing deserves less. But, for now, only eulogies resound.

Barbaro is destined for a place beside Secretariat and Ruffian in that special category of horses that cause us to think differently about the sport. One can not explain why he came upon the scene when he did, or why he was the one to have suffered for our wonderment when, in fact, we were poised for the opposite. Yet, in the nine months that we knew of him, he raised the awareness for horse racing like no other horse in the last quarter century.

Barbaro will relegate Invasor’s status as Horse of the Year to being the answer of a trivia question. Like Elvis and JFK, and other pop icons, he will become greater in death than in life — if that is at all possible. His passing may be horse racing’s story of the decade, just as his recovery from surgery was the story of 2006.

Unfortunately, the legacy of Barbaro will be a sad one, even though it shouldn’t be. His time on the racetrack was brief, although brilliant. It is difficult to remember Barbaro as a racehorse. Yet, even then, he was amazing.

Barbaro won the Florida Derby despite starting from the far outside 10 post, a feat that is nearly impossible in two-turn races at Gulfstream Park. In addition, he won in the slop, on the turf, and on a fast track, proving to all that his talents were exceptional.

His Kentucky Derby was a tour de force that had experts predicting a Triple Crown sweep. As the second choice in the wagering, he defeated the competition by a margin of victory that was the widest since Assault 60 years ago.

Moreover, Barbaro’s trainer Michael Matz asked of Barbaro more than other trainers ask of Kentucky Derby winners, and got it. Matz gave Barbaro an unorthodox run-up to the big event, choosing to rest him five weeks, instead of the customary four, before turning him loose against one of the deepest and most balanced Derby fields in recent years.

No runner ever beat Barbaro — unless you want to count the ill-begotten Preakness Stakes in which he ran all of 200 yards.

Later, in retirement, the gallant horse emerged a symbol. He inspired thousands to join him in a struggle against the odds. He fought through a grueling surgery, overcame laminitis — a deadly disease, and remained treatable through setback after setback, as hundreds, maybe thousands, of compassionate Barbaro watchers kept their vigil.

In their efforts to keep Barbaro alive, the Jacksons became the embodiment of goodness. For all that the Jacksons did for him, they fulfilled our vision of how people should act toward each other, not just of how humans should relate to other living things.

In Dean Richardson, Barbaro’s soft-spoken surgeon, we witnessed an expert at work. He gave generously of his time, in the same way that the Jacksons gave generously of their money, and his reports from New Bolton Center gave us reassurance that whatever could be done was being done.

And, lastly, there were Barbaro’s fans to admire. For them, the daily news of the up and down struggle of the horse’s convalescence might have been a balm, but their infectious involvement in the lives of Barbaro, the Jacksons and Richardson was staunch. In times when the unanimity of humanity is unfound, the collective and unswerving support that they lent Barbaro and each other was admirable.

Many people might see Barbaro’s passing as nothing more than another sad turn in a sport already too burdened by tragic accident for its own good. Some may even turn bitter to horse racing as a result of the steady focus that Barbaro’s fight for life gave to the problem.

Nevertheless, Barbaro’s death will have a resounding effect that over the years will only grow larger and more phenomenal than it is already. The definition of greatness is found in the moments of transcendent effect similar to what happened Monday.

With the passing of Barbaro, for many reasons, the sport of horse racing lost a great one. Tomorrow, like the meaning of the image in a photo, his myth begins.
© 2007 MSNBC Interactive

Other than a few select Deniro moments this movie is pretty much a boring piece of shit. Other than the MOU! MOU! part there's really nothing to see here.

i can understand the desire to hire people that make for good tv, but would it have been impossible to hire people who:

1) know who george clinton is.
2) know who the editor in cheif and creator of rolling stone is.
3) listen to more than just rap music.
4) have heard of the roskilde festival

these have to be, with the exception of maybe 2 of the writers, the most musically illiterate people on the planet.