User talk:71.206.196.96

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[edit] October 2007

[edit] Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor

Howdy, I just thought I would clarify why the space tourism thing is being removed. Shukor is not a tourist. Technically he is a Malaysian astronaut, from their own program, going to the ISS under contract with the RSA. While they give him the term "Spaceflight participant", he is not personally paying for the flight, his country is, through the Angkasawan program, so this means he is not a tourist. Also, he is a medical doctor in that country. Bachelor's degrees in Malaysia are not equal to those in the US, (and confusing, yes) names, but a MB BCh is equivalent to MD, and Shukor is an orthopedic surgeon. While I initially also added the space tourism tag, it was removed after it came to light the way Shukor is traveling, since he doesn't fall into that category. Hope that helps clear things up! Ariel♥Gold 13:11, 9 October 2007 (UTC)