What is a LED Tube Light?

When a shadowy American who became a sworn member of al-Qaeda was captured in Pakistan in 2008, U.S. intelligence officials sensed they had struck gold.

The young jihadist was whisked away to a New York courtroom in early 2009, where he secretly pleaded guilty to terrorism charges and was then held in seclusion. His identity - but not much else - was made public a few months later.

More than three years later, the world could get a full introduction to Bryant Neal Vinas at a trial starting Monday of another man accused in a foiled plot to attack New York City subways.

Vinas' name appears on a list of potential witnesses in the case against Adis Medunjanin - and officials say he would offer a unique perspective on the inner workings of the terrorist group and how it indoctrinates born-in-the-USA extremists.

Medunjanin has pleaded not guilty in federal court in Brooklyn to charges accusing him of traveling to Pakistan with two former high school classmates, Najibullah Zazi and Zarein Ahmedzay, to seek terror training there and hatch their scheme back home.

Zazi, a former Denver airport shuttle driver, and Ahmedzay admitted in guilty pleas that they wanted to avenge U.S. aggression in the Arab world by becoming martyrs in a suicide attack on Manhattan subway lines in 2009. Both are key witnesses against Medunjanin.

Vinas, 29, was never charged in the case. But he is an intriguing and valuable cooperator because he had extraordinary access to al-Qaeda's leadership, a U.S. official said.

Known by the nicknames "Ibrahim" or "Bashir al-Ameriki," Vinas met on a few occasions with Abu Yahya al-Libi, al-Qaeda's now No.2. He also mixed with Mustafa Abu al-Yazid, the top commander in Afghanistan and Atiyah Abd al-Rahman, who orchestrated a plot involving a double agent that led to the killing of seven CIA employees - both since killed in drone strikes.

A video released in October 2008 and shot at an al-Qaeda outpost shows al-Libi with an armed man believed to be Vinas - his head wrapped in a scarf and an ammo belt around his waist - a month before his capture, said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity because the case is ongoing.

Vinas also could captivate the jury with his personal tale of radicalization - a subject of intense interest to counterterrorism officials concerned about homegrown threats. He also could explain what convinced him to betray al-Qaeda.

At some point, Vinas took the name Ibrahim and began attending services at the Islamic Association of Long Island, a mainstream mosque in nearby Selden. The president of the mosque recalled him as "very quiet, polite, smiley" - a calm disposition that apparently masked a growing resentment toward his own country.

Ultra Electronics USSI is pleased to announce a partnership agreement with Bluecolt Flashlights, LLC. Bluecolt is a manufacturer of low cost high-performance LED (Light Emitting Diode) flashlights and high performance military searchlights for long range applications, will supply Ultra Electronics USSI with industry leading illumination solutions.

Ultra Electronics USSI will offer the Bluecolt T3000, T400, and DV4 as individual accessories that can be easily integrated onto any HyperSpike acoustic hailing device (AHD) with supplied mounting hardware. The T3000 is a long range military grade searchlight capable of illuminating objects at 1000 meters. The Bluecolt DV4 has the capability to record video, capture audio, and take still photographs. The combination of unmatched illumination and HyperSpike acoustic technology gives a competitive advantage that is demanded by law enforcement, perimeter protection, and maritime security personnel.

"We are very excited about the arrangement between Ultra Electronics USSI and Bluecolt," said Thomas Link, Vice President of USSI-Audio Products. "Bluecolt’s state of the art technology and superior engineer capabilities made it an easy decision to form a partnership. The Bluecolt products will give us a distinct advantage in the market place to offer a high powered white light solution at a fraction of the cost of the competition."

"Bluecolt is very pleased to team up with Ultra USSI to offer our high performance flashlights to major military and tactical markets," said Jaspreet Singh Sawhney, President of Bluecolt Flashlights, LLC. "Ultra's worldwide infrastructure, strong management team, and exceptional track record of creating and selling products is a good fit for Bluecolt."

The Bluecolt line of flashlights has been rigorously tested in real world conditions and has been awarded an IP65 rating. All products are tested in a fire department burn simulator, thoroughly checked for quality assurance, and air-blown for dust particles before packaging. Bluecolt has paved a new path for high-performance illumination and is a great addition to Ultra Electronics USSI’s ever expanding solutions portfolio.

Peavey Plaza does need help. I know because, as I've written before, M. Paul Friedberg and I were on the team led by the Minneapolis-based landscape architecture firm Oslund and Associates the city selected to develop plans for the site. Unfortunately, Paul and I were shut out of the process before we could propose solutions that would maintain the integrity of Peavey's design while meeting contemporary demands and requirements, such as accessibility.

The city seems to have skillfully stacked the deck against Peavey by creating a false set of choices; essentially, restore Peavey to its original condition or create something new. Strangely, the only people insisting complete restoration is an option are city officials.

Friedberg and I never advocated that, as we explained in an October 27, 2011 Minneapolis Star Tribune commentary, and preservation organizations locally and nationally have all endorsed the idea of adapting Peavey to address accessibility and other issues, while maintaining the integrity of its major design elements. Indeed, Friedberg has offered to share design solutions that address these concerns with Mayor RT Rybak, the City Council and others who have been pushing to demolish Peavey.

Unfortunately, the city seems determined to get its way and has come up with some head-spinning lines of reasoning. For example, the city's Department of Community Planning and Economic Development (DCPED) in a recent report supporting demolition has implied that adding an accessibility ramp to Peavey's existing design is a bad idea. Why? Because DCPED says it "would substantially alter the original design." Their solution? Destroy Peavey altogether.

Can someone explain the logic of this argument? That's about as sane as saying the light bulbs in your house aren't energy efficient, so we're tearing down your house to solve the problem.

The city also says complete restoration of Peavey Plaza, which they claim is the most expensive option, would cost $8.7 million. However, the Minneapolis Star Tribune, in their editorial endorsing a new park design, estimates the total cost for the new park at $8 to 10 million, which means the complete restoration false choice is comparable or possibly less expensive. Setting aside that complete restoration false choice thing, if the city insists on pushing this argument, someone needs to check the math. How did the city come up with this number? What's it based on? And, more importantly, against what other budget is this being compared? Where's the budget for the new park?

The city has also said: "Any rebuilding/renovation scenario will require millions of dollars in donations/private dollars." Shouldn't we ask those potential donors what they think? Let's go through the likely candidates, starting with those on the Orchestra Hall board: Wells Fargo, U.S. Bancorp, General Mills, and RBC Wealth Management, or maybe their neighbor Target. OK, but the city has also said, "potential funders will not contribute millions of dollars to restore the plaza to its original design because it cannot address accessibility, safety, and sustainability issues adequately."