Free Republic

KABUL, Afghanistan - Three American vigilantes tricked NATO (news - web sites) peacekeepers into helping with illegal raids, the security force said Wednesday, getting them to send explosives experts and bomb-sniffing dogs to check buildings in Kabul where they had detained suspects. A spokesman said the men, led by former U.S. soldier Jonathan K. Idema, seemed authentic — fluent in military speak, decked out in faux U.S. Army fatigues and claiming to belong to a nonexistent task force. "Their credibility was such that with their uniforms, their approach, our people believed they were what they said they were," said Cdr....

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (Reuters) - NASA (news - web sites)'s efforts to return its aging space shuttles to flight will siphon so many workers away from operations to work on safety that the program could be plagued by a worker shortage in the future, an oversight group warned on Wednesday. Since the fatal Columbia crash in 2003, NASA has created three new departments focused on safety and engineering, making them independent of the shuttle program and its concerns about budget and on-time flights. But those new departments are being staffed by workers drawn from other shuttle operations who are not...