Shuttle Astronaut arrested for attempted kidnapping !

If we could have been flies on the wall immediately after Nowak's arrest and at dozens of junctures thereafter, I'm sure what we would have heard would have been her repeated requests to speak and see, Bill Oefelein.

She's probably asking for the thousandth time right now.

Over and over: " I want to talk to Bill. Has Bill tried to contact me? When can I see him? I just need to speak to him for five minutes. Please! I need to see him. I need to explain. When will I be able to see Bill? " etc.

Oefelein will be the ONLY thing on her mind.

Too bad her husband, children, parents, siblings, friends and colleagues have been shocked, humiliated and inundated with newshounds and photographers.

Too bad her victim has been physically attacked and had her private life exposed to the world.

Too bad Oefelein's life and career have also been tainted irreparably.

And too bad Nowak's own private life, career and reputation have been decimated.

None of the above mattered to Nowak. She was in the grip of an obsession and she surrendered to it.

It wasn't a momentary lapse, such as a brief verbal confrontation with her rival, had they met by accident in a supermarket car park. It wasn't a bitchy remark over the cheese dip at a bar b que.

No, Nowak planned her confrontation with Shipman. Nowak went prepared; armed. She intended to win; to take Shipman out of the equation.

In order to get at Shipman, Nowak drove for 10 hours, alone.

You can do a lot of thinking and reconsidering during 10 solo hours.

So Nowak's defence cannot hope to claim her attack on Shipman was a momentary lapse of judgement resulting from an accidental meeting with her victim.

At any time during her 10 hour drive, Nowak could have turned around. She could have decided to put her family or children first.

She could have decided to consider how her planned attack on Shipman would reflect on her employers and her colleagues.

But Nowak did not reconsider. She did not turn that vehicle around. She did not contact a doctor or superior. She didn't even pull to the side of the road in order to give herself a good talking to or a slap to the side of her own head.

She planned what she was about to do. Paid cash in order not to leave a paper trail. Wore diapers in order to reach her victim sooner. Armed herself.

She didn't write or phone her victim, requesting a meeting at a mutually-agreed time and place.

No, she stalked her victim, pounded on the victim's car window and attempted to overcome her victim with pepper spray.

And for what?

On one side of the scales were her children. Their futures. Their pride. Their confidence. Their friends. Their reputations. Those who for the rest of their lives would be able to point at her kids (and to their future spouses and children) in derision.

On the same side of the scales were her parents, siblings, friends, neighbours, colleagues, all those who'd supported her and taken pride in her achievements. They'd lost anonymity through association with her.

Then there was her own future, possibly another 40 years of it.

On the other side of the scales was Bill Oefelein.

And in the middle sat Shipman.

Nowak decided to eliminate Shipman. Simple as that. Eliminate Shipman as if she were an empty paper wrapper.

Then what?

Was Oefelein supposed to then declare his undying love to Nowak ?

Is that likely?

If he'd had serious intentions regarding Nowak, where was the problem? Why would Shipman be considered a rival?

Clearly, Nowak had reason to doubt Oefelein's affections for her.

But Nowak didn't care what Oefelein or Shipman wanted.

Only one person mattered ..... herself.

She believed SHE had the right to control Oefelein AND Shipman.
And she believed it her right to destroy the lives of those close to her.

No-one else mattered. The only person who mattered to Nowak was Nowak.

Nowak acted like a common thug. Like the thugs who break into someone else's home and steal other people's cars. Like the thugs who rape, murder, lie, steal, kidnap to get what THEY want.

It doesn't matter if those thugs are members of symphony orchestras or high-ranking clerics or politicians or members of a ghetto gang. A thug is a thug and you can tell a thug by the way he or she behaves: by their lack of respect and compassion for their victims.

That Nowak is an astronaut is incidental. It makes the story more newsworthy, but apart from that, there's no difference between Nowak and any other punk.

Compare her actions with those of the millions of other men and women who make choices every day between personal gratification and those who need, rely and depend upon them. Nowak belongs at the bottom of the class.

Those with character are capable of personal sacrifice. They know right from wrong and they choose the decent option, regardless of the pain it costs.

How many of those associated with Nowak have had to make sacrifices every single day, in order she could climb the ladder to fame?

Who cared for Nowak's children while she was far away, training? Her husband? Her parents and siblings? Her friends?

They were the ones who tucked those children into bed and read them bed-time stories about brave astronauts. They were the ones to clean the house, do the grocery shopping and cooking, help Nowak's children with their homework and take them to sports and school-friend's birthday parties.

Nowak was riding her star to glory. But she couldn't have done it had she been a full time wife and mother.

She was in the limelight. She was the success story. And it came at a big cost to those who loved and believed in her.

Now she's shown them the meaning of ingratitude.

A half-way stable woman of 43 with 3 children at crucial junctures in their lives MAY have fallen madly in love with a co-worker. It happens every day. But an even half-stable woman would have weighed up the cost to those around them and decided that cost was just too great. Ordinary men and women make that decision every day. They honour their contract as wives and parents.

But Nowak wasn't even half-way stable and her character was weak and undeveloped.

Nowak knows how to win. But that alone doesn't build character.

Maybe NASA chooses testosterone-loaded obsessives like Nowak.

Ah well, Nowak's now thrown the bill for that in their faces.

Originally posted by Arkane
could this be some kind of government attempt to discredit her from going public about UFOs on spaceflight missions? It kinda compromises all three people involved now.

More likely it is substance abuse problem and plain old jealousy, but just thought I would throw the above out there for the huge conspiracy theorists

After reading all the posts so far and listening to the news reports... I'm going to agree with Arkane. I could be wrong but I think there is the possibility that the gov't is setting her up.

One more thing... we haven't heard anything on the news from the male astronaut and the other woman. Who's to say they didn't do something to provoke her?

Originally posted by annestacey
One more thing... we haven't heard anything on the news from the male astronaut and the other woman. Who's to say they didn't do something to provoke her?

Interestingly enough, it has been stated that her Husband had left her very recently....

Perhaps Shipman, who may have had even STRONGER feelings and desires of her own, made a phone call and spilled the beans to him?????? In most circles, going over someone's head to their lover IS most definitely an a** kickable offence!

As I said before.. she is did a serious crime, and she chose poorly no doubt...and she WILL PAY FOR IT.

But not enough information on motive for me yet, to just toss her into the infernal reaches. And although you certainly make a strong and convincing case Dock6, when there is a serious lack of hard details, I must always take past performance and documented character traits into consideration.



No one bit on my Buzz Aldrin bait yet??? Don't think the crime if any, and the underlying ramifications are just as serious as Nowak's??

I am sure this has been covered a brazillion times here, but just in case you missed it..... : )

Judge for yourselves... Judge not the one who asks the questions, but the responses that he receives for his VALID concerns....

Assault video and follow-up questions to others, all act the same way, but without the assault...


www.youtube.com...

video.google.com...


And the video that proposes and supports the questions he was assaulted for...


www.youtube.com...


Just please remember Aldrin is an American icon, and also public servant whom draws a taxpayer funded pension.. and in MY twisted viewpoint, needs to act like the man, patriot and officer he is supposed to be, and just answer the taxpayers question.

ONLY then he can strike him in the face for stupidity and harassment.

[edit on 8-2-2007 by ivymike]

Is anyone really surprised that astronauts might be crazy?

These are people who voluntarily fly a vehicle which has a 1 in 60 chance of disintigrating into in a ball of flaming wreckage.

What do you expect, stable, well rounded individuals to strap themselves into NASA's death trap that is the space shuttle?

Originally posted by Dock6

None of the above mattered to Nowak. She was in the grip of an obsession and she surrendered to it.
[snip]
Maybe NASA chooses testosterone-loaded obsessives like Nowak.

Yup, I agree with you on this, you have nailed it really well, in fact you should probably email this to Shipman's lawyers!

Update: "Billy O leaving NASA soon" to return USN as reported by SpaceRef.com in the daily email update.

Vic