Hopefully all those neanderthalic types who are running around burning and shooting things in response to the Pope's recent speech are paying extra close attention to this brilliant woman's achievements. Hopefully they'll see what capable women can do once unshackled from their crude social order. Hopefully they'll choke on their own impotent frustration at the spectacle.

James, You are being overly optomistic. Those folk can only ever blow themselves up to heaven.

Just like they showed when one bugger took out four Canadians soldiers and a load of kids in Afghanistan while the Canadian troops were handing out notebooks and pens to the kids.

On a more positive note. I can't think of anyone who deserves a trip into space than Ms Anseri.

Hope she has a great time... Aw who am I kidding. Of course she will. She's gonna adore it...

Just wish I was going up too.

This is a great story and thanks, Dale, for posting it. Helps to make my Monday. Sounds like a lovely woman, brave, smart, enterprising and er, rather delectable too. A pretty devastating combination.

TEN MILLION quid to spend a few days in the outer atmosphere?... FUCK!!!

Just a small inquiry on one of the finer points of theological protocol.
If one wishes another person "good-speed" in the name a deity, should the prefix bear the name of the well-wisher's deity or the name of the recipients deity? Getting it wrong might cause offence in some sensitive quarters these days.
Since Mrs Ansari professes to be Muslim perhaps out of courtesy one should properly wish her "Allahspeed" rather than "Godspeed".
On second thoughts, maybe just keep it to "good-speed" to avoid the possibility of error. (With apologies to Dale.)

It would be nice, wouldn't it, if we could have a comment thread during which there was no discussion of Islam. Please.

Jonathan,

*Snigger*

"It would be nice, wouldn't it, if we could have a comment thread during which there was no discussion of Islam. Please."

I agree, but a comment thread about a very unconventional (In a very good way) Muslim woman is probably not the best place to go looking for it...

Michael, indeed, I just think it would be nice if we did not have to think about the Religion of Peace for a bit. Let's not let them hog the conversation.

I would agree that talking about religion is probably not really part of the discussion, while the fact that she is giving hope to young girls in that part of the world.

Large numbers of Iranian-Americans are Christians; I have no idea what Anousaeh's family religions is, and frankly do not much care. I know they are decent, good people, folks who work hard and build wealth and deserve to be honoured.

I don't give an eff about religion unless someone comes screaming at me with intent to kill in the name of their deity.

So lets keep this on space. If I wanted to talk about the Middle East I would have written about it... something I have not been unknown to do in the past.

As Astra! Dale.

Sorry but I don't see what the big deal is. Other people have paid to go into space.

She and her family funded the X-Prize and she was the driving force behind that. They were the primary backers behind that $10M prize check that Rutan and the others competed for.

She is helping open the frontier on so many different levels that a century hence aerospace historians will get PhD's studying her and her family.

Anousheh puts her money where her mouth is and does it simply because she shares the all encompassing dream with the rest of us spacers.

The Britian based "Independent" newspaper managed to turn the space flight of Anousheh Anseri into a pro Iranian regime, anti American story.

For example, they mentioned that Anousheh Anseri had to remove the Iranian flag from her uniform - but did not mention that the lady wanted to wear this flag to send of sign of support for the opressed women of Iran (nor, of course, did they mention that the Anousheh Anseri was also told to remove an American flag from her uniform).

On the contrary the Islamic authorities were proud of Anousheh Anseri and ............

Just in case the lady ever got to hear of the small circulation "Independent" newspaper - the paper mentioned that Anousheh Anseri was accused of "insider trading" in a court case in the U.S. (in short "complain about our stuff, and we will monster you").

"What does it matter what such a newspaper says?" - actually the B.B.C. plugs the "Independent" every morning. Many newspapers are not mentioned in the morning press review, but the "Independent" nearly always be mentioned.

I noticed that the B.B.C. Radio Four 1200 (British time) news did not mention the Space Shuttle landing (in spite of occuring more than half an hour before - I watched the television pictures, thanks to Fox).

You see to the B.B.C. Radio Four crowd the Shuttle landing would only have been nice if the ship and crew had burned - although they would most likely not openly said "and the Americans deserved it" - B.B.C. people tend to be a little more careful in what they say than Robert Fisk and the rest of of his comrades on the "Independent"