http://news.yahoo.com/u-judge-allows-british-spies-testify-disguise-militants-211538110.html
YAHOO! NEWS
U.S. judge allows British spies to testify in disguise in militant's trial
Reuters By Mark Hosenball
2 hours ago [ Retrieved 3:30 PM Friday 30 January 2015 Pacific Time USA ]
By Mark Hosenball
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. federal judge has agreed to allow six officers of MI5, Britain's domestic counterintelligence agency, to testify in disguise and use pseudonyms at the Brooklyn trial of an alleged al Qaeda militant.
In a court order issued earlier this week, Judge Raymond Dearie said MI5 believes there would be dire consequences if its officers were required to testify without disguises and under their own names in the trial of al Qaeda suspect Abid Naseer.
Jury selection is scheduled to begin next month in the trial. U.S. prosecutors allege Naseer conspired with others to commit coordinated bombings in Manchester, England, New York City and Copenhagen on behalf of al Qaeda. Naseer is defending himself.
The judge said prosecutors argued it was essential to their case for MI5 officers to testify because they were the sole witnesses to many of the operational activities Naseer undertook in connection with his alleged plot to bomb Manchester.
Prosecutors expect the British spies will testify about Naseer's meetings with alleged co-conspirators, his sending of coded messages to al Qaeda leaders, and his scouting of possible bombing targets.
In his ruling, the judge noted MI5 officers operate covertly both in Britain and overseas and are authorized to maintain their covers throughout their careers and even after they retire. "As a result they are effectively anonymous," he said.
He said MI5 argued that forcing its officers to testify under their real identities would compromise past and current undercover operations and jeopardize their safety.
The judge said he agreed with prosecutors that the "light disguises" proposed for the MI5 witnesses, consisting of wigs and light makeup, would allow the defendant and jury to view the witnesses' full facial expressions and assess the witnesses' credibility.
http://www.springfieldspringfield.co.uk/movie_script.php?movie=deep-impact
Springfield! Springfield!
Deep Impact (1998)
[ Oren Monash: ] You haven't trained for this mission.
http://www.springfieldspringfield.co.uk/movie_script.php?movie=deep-impact
Springfield! Springfield!
Deep Impact (1998)
[ Oren Monash: ] We've trained on--
[ Tanner: ] On flight simulators.
http://articles.latimes.com/1995-07-03/news/mn-19901_1_american-astronaut
Los Angeles Times
Astronauts Undergo More Tests Aboard Joined Spacecraft
July 03, 1995 From Associated Press
HOUSTON — They call themselves "lab rats," not astronauts and cosmonauts, as they undergo nonstop examinations measuring every imaginable body function in orbit.
For the third straight day Sunday, American astronaut Norman E. Thagard and his two Russian comrades endured a battery of blood, heart and lung tests aboard the linked U.S. shuttle Atlantis and the Russian space station Mir.
Even as they slept, a blood pressure cuff inflated and deflated automatically every half-hour. And for one 24-hour stretch over the weekend, each had to wear an electronic heart monitor with wires stuck to sandpaper spots on their chests.
"I guess our main function is to be sort of lab rats," Thagard said Sunday, his 110th day in orbit, nearly all of it on Mir.
Sometimes, enough is enough, even for a doctor. Thagard, a physician, made it clear he only wanted to wear the heart monitor once, said NASA mission scientist Tom Sullivan.
"I've had to wear it a few times myself for medical tests, and it's not a pain at all, but they do have to shave their chest hair off and your skin is kind of sensitive afterward," Sullivan said.
NASA has never had an opportunity to study such long-duration space fliers, and consequently wants to know everything about Thagard and cosmonauts Vladimir Dezhurov and Gennady Strekalov.
"I know they are tired at the end of the day. It's a long day," Sullivan said. "But I think they truly believe in the work that's being done, and they're excited about the results."
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration and the Russian space agency tested the communication systems on Atlantis, Mir and the Soyuz capsule attached to Mir on Sunday in preparation for the undocking Tuesday.
Thagard, who turns 52 today, said that while he is looking forward to leaving Mir, it has been a memorable four months.
"I joked with these guys . . . you call for a taxi and wait forever," he said. "But the fact is, [Thursday's docking] was an emotional experience, one of the highest, I guess, of my life. I'm awfully glad to be here, and I'm really looking forward to seeing my family."
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http://articles.latimes.com/1995-07-05/news/mn-20449_1_space-station
Los Angeles Times
U.S., Russian Spacecraft Go Separate Ways : Docking: Shuttle Atlantis ends historic 5-day linkup with space station. It leaves with three crewmen who have been in orbit since mid-March.
July 05, 1995 from Associated Press
HOUSTON — Astronauts and cosmonauts watched their ships part and fade into the blackness of space Tuesday in an orbital pirouette that ended five days of flying as a single craft.
"We're just shaking our heads at how quickly this has all gone by," said Charles Precourt, pilot of the U.S. space shuttle Atlantis.
"We agree with that. . . . We agree 100%," Atlantis' commander, Robert L. (Hoot) Gibson, replied as he backed the shuttle away from the station. "In one of the simulations, the words 'cosmic ballet' came to mind, and I guess that's where we are now."
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0186566/quotes
IMDb
Space Cowboys (2000)
Quotes
Col. William 'Hawk' Hawkins: [Frank and Hawk are inside the centrifuge/spinning machine, which is about to be started] The first one to pass out buys the beers tonight...
Frank Corvin: [machine start spinning] You're on...
Col. William 'Hawk' Hawkins: [machine speed increases and it's moving really fast] This thing's moving?...
Frank Corvin: I don't know... Doesn't seems to be moving to me...
Col. William 'Hawk' Hawkins: [machine speed continues to increase] Say, fellas, is y'all's equipment broke down? Fellas?
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0080025/quotes
IMDb
Time After Time (1979)
Quotes
[H.G. Wells tracks down Jack the Ripper in the future]
Jack the Ripper: You are, quite literally, the last person on Earth that I expected to see.
http://articles.latimes.com/1995-07-05/news/mn-20449_1_space-station
Los Angeles Times
U.S., Russian Spacecraft Go Separate Ways : Docking: Shuttle Atlantis ends historic 5-day linkup with space station. It leaves with three crewmen who have been in orbit since mid-March.
July 05, 1995 from Associated Press
HOUSTON — Astronauts and cosmonauts watched their ships part and fade into the blackness of space Tuesday in an orbital pirouette that ended five days of flying as a single craft.
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration's Tommy Holloway, manager of the docking program, couldn't resist comparing this mission to the harrowing Apollo 13 flight, which took place 25 years ago and is currently being glamorized by Hollywood.
"In the 'Apollo 13' movie, the character of [flight director] Gene Kranz said just prior to the entry that this will be NASA's finest hour," Holloway said. "Gene, I'm here to report to you that . . . this is NASA's finest hour, and I expect it will continue for many years to come."
- posted by H.V.O.M - Kerry Wayne Burgess 3:43 PM Pacific Time Spokane Valley Washington USA Friday 30 January 2015
