To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Aug 10, 1999 TV Programs
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 08:46:08 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
7:00 PM Eastern
HIST - 20TH CENTURY - Chemical & Biological Weapons
8:00
DISC - CYBERCOPTER - The military shifts emphasis from fire
power to technological superiority.(CC)(TVG)
HIST - THE BEST-KEPT SECRET: D-DAY - The Allies launch
an elaborate deception to cover D-Day
plans.(CC)(TVG)
9:00
A&E - INVESTIGATIVE REPORTS - "The Organ Trade: Life
and Death for Sale" - The black market in human organs grows
internationally.(CC)
DISC - BIG TOOTH: DEAD OR ALIVE - Ancient teeth embedded in
cliffs reveal evidence of the megalodon
shark.(CC)(TVG)
HIST - HITLER'S HENCHMEN - "Wilhelm Keitel" - Wilhelm
Keitel rises from a staff officer to Hitler's most trusted
field marshal.(CC)(TVPG)
10:00
HIST - EARTH MOVERS: THE POWER TO MOVE MOUNTAINS - Shovels;
mining and construction equipment; tractors; cranes; steam
shovels.(CC)(TVG)
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Edupage items (8/9/99)
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 08:52:58 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
INTERNET SALE OF NAZI BOOKS IN GERMANY ASSAILED
The Simon Wiesenthal Center recently notified Germany's Minister
of Justice that Barnesandnoble.com and Amazon.com are breaking
German laws that forbid the distribution of hate literature. The
Center contends that the companies are violating the laws by shipping
banned material, such as Mein Kampf, "directly to the homes of
customers" in Germany. Both companies defended their actions. "We
view this as though a German was on vacation here and went into a
physical bookstore and bought the books," says Amazon spokeswoman
Lizzie Allen. However, Amazon's German-based site, www.amazon.de,
will not sell reading material that has been banned by the German
government, Allen says. The Justice Ministry and Bertlesmann A.G., an
equity partner in Barnesandnoble.com, plan to investigate the Center's
claims. Jack Goldsmith of the University of Chicago Law School says
retailers are responsible for complying with the laws of the
jurisdictions they ship to. (New York Times 08/09/99)
FINGERPRINTS AS PASSWORDS: TWITCHING TO TAKE HOLD IN INDUSTRY
Fingerprint scanning technology should be gradually implemented
by the banking industry as a means of verifying identity, says
Identix CEO Randall Fowler. Identix, a leader in image scanning
technology, produces biometrics products capable of distinguishing
between an actual fingerprint and a photo of one. Fowler stresses the
need for fingerprint scanning technology, noting that financial
transactions no longer occur face to face, but "between two strangers
with a piece of silicon in between them." He says, "Somebody has to
give the silicon the ability to recognize who it's dealing with,
particularly in the banking industry." In line with providing this
technology, Identix and Motorola recently formed a partnership to
develop biometrics devices that will eliminate the need to use PIN
numbers in accessing a banking network. Motorola's Digital DNA unit
has reduced the size of its CMOS-chips that store fingerprint optics,
so the chips can be attached to the side of phones, cash registers,
ATMs, and other devices. Fowler says financial institutions are
likely to adopt biometrics technology slowly, as they replace computer
systems. (Future Banker 07/99)
via: EDUCAUSE <EDUCAUSE@EDUCAUSE.EDU>
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - New Life for OT Language
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 09:17:40 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
New life for Old Testament language
Demand for Hebrew is fueled by archeology and desire to explore
Bible's roots
Gail Russell Chaddock (chaddockg@csps.com)
Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor
WASHINGTON
Learning Hebrew is not as tedious as James Madison was led to
believe.
As a freshman at the College of New Jersey (later Princeton
University) in 1769, the soon-to-be Founding Father was told
that mastery of ancient languages, such as Latin and Greek, was
critical. However, unless he planned on becoming a minister, he
could take a pass on Hebrew, as it had become "unhappily
unpopular" with students.
About two centuries later, many mainline seminaries came around
to the same conclusion - and started bumping the original
language of the Old Testament off their required list.
But the language that would not die is on a rebound in places
you might not expect. Everyone from adults to children in grade
schools is finding new ways - and reasons - to study it on their
own. And a spike of Web sites, CD-Roms, periodicals, classes,
books, and study aides is meeting the new demand.
Take Oilton, Okla., population 1,060. Last year, the Cimarron
Christian Academy began teaching Hebrew to all 103 of their
students, starting in kindergarten. Their instructor is a
graduate student at nearby Oral Roberts University, in Tulsa.
"The pastor of our church felt that the Hebrew language would
give children the foundation they need to read the Bible and to
build character," says Cimarron Principal Deborah Jones. "So
far," she says, "we only teach classes once a week. But there's
such enthusiasm, we'd like to expand it. We take our students to
the Jewish museum in Tulsa to add depth to their Bible study. A
majority of our adult congregation has visited Israel at least
once."
Nor are such ventures the odd exception. Hebrew educators say
they are seeing a groundswell of new interest in the language.
For some learners, it's the prospect of travel and study in
Israel, or the excitement of archeological discoveries, such as
the Dead Sea Scrolls. Others want to hear and feel the poetry of
the Old Testament in the original language.
"Every literary work suffers in translation. But of all the
world's classics, the Bible suffers most from translation," says
David Friedman, who has taught Hebrew in seminaries and
universities for more than 50 years.
"The seminaries are generally not requiring Hebrew and Greek
anymore, because they're not requiring languages in graduate
school. But there's a revival of Hebrew going across the board,
chiefly because of the existence of the state of Israel. That
gives you a much broader base. And the discoveries in archeology
excite everybody," he adds.
Much of the new demand for Hebrew learning materials is coming
from non-mainstream Christian groups who want to understand the
Hebrew roots of the Bible. Parents interested in home-schooling
are building a market for Hebrew-language materials.
At the same time, some Jewish groups are trying to halt what
some call a "meltdown" of Jewish life in the US, where fewer
than 1 in 5 American Jews can still read a text in the language
of the Torah.
For both groups, the possibility of distance learning over the
Internet is opening new ways into one of the world's oldest
languages. Suppliers say that requests for Hebrew materials have
gone from a trickle a few years ago to a flood.
"In Hebrew, it's not the nouns that are important, it's the
verbs. Hebrew [in the Old Testament] paints pictures of the
heart. The Hebrew language can change lives," says Cheryle
Holeman in Independence, Kan. She quit teaching elementary
school in 1981 - "I was fed up: The kids weren't expected to
read or do homework" -and began developing material for
Christian home-schoolers, especially related to Hebrew language
and culture.
"I'm now getting requests from more than 35 countries for
materials. I'm hearing people say, 'I want to read the
Scriptures for myself, rather than through the eyes of an
interpreter,' " she says.
Lenore Mullican, who teaches Hebrew at Oral Roberts University,
adds that she is getting more requests for Hebrew language books
from prisoners.
"Some of them are Jewish; some are Christian. They're
interested in self-study, and they really keep going with it,"
she says.
Not as hard as it looks
The Hebrew alphabet looks daunting, but in fact it's a
relatively easy language to learn. Words are built around three-
letter roots. Its syntax is simple, and any verb system is more
complex. The vocabulary of the Old Testament is limited to about
5,000 words, which consequently have a wide range of meanings.
"The Hebrew language is very earthy, very concrete, and every
evocative. Its words are like onions: You can peel off layer
after layer," says Dwight Pryor, who took up a serious study of
Hebrew after a visit to Israel in 1983. He directs the Center
for Judaic-Christian studies in Dayton, Ohio, and collaborates
with Jewish and Christian scholars on the life of Jesus.
"Take the word 'shalom,' which we normally translate 'peace.'
The English translation conveys a sense of the absence of
strife. But shalom is a positive, thrusting word: It speaks of
success, completion, well-being, wholeness, protection,
prosperity. It can be used in all these settings," he adds.
Delving deeper into the Bible
What's drawing many adults to study Hebrew is the desire for a
deeper spiritual experience.
"People are not satisfied with a cursory reading of the Bible
or a 'Jesus Loves Me This I Know' approach to spirituality. They
want roots. They want to get back to something they can sink
their teeth into," says Ward Nunnally, who teaches Hebrew at
Central Bible College in Springfield, Mo., which is affiliated
with the Assemblies of God.
Similarly, Jewish groups hope that a new emphasis on learning
Hebrew will revive tradition and culture. For example, last
month the Manhattan-based National Jewish Outreach Program
released "Virtual Shabbat," a CD-Rom that includes a "crash
course" in reading Hebrew. In November, the NJOP takes an annual
campaign on the road to teach Jewish adults "how to read a 5,000-
year-old language in five easy lessons." Last year, their Read
Hebrew American program taught free literacy clinics at 2,600
locations in the US and Canada.
"Years ago, most Jews could read Hebrew. Even in the Dark Ages,
when most people couldn't read or write, it was a universal
given of Jewish education that every Jewish man could read
Hebrew. Now, 80 percent of the Jews in America cannot...," says
Rabbi Yitzchak Rosenbaum, NJOP program director.
While helping Christians learn Hebrew is not a priority of such
groups, they say that the new resources coming online in this
effort will help all learners.
"We want to make this available first to people affiliated with
our movement," says Joshua Heller, a recently ordained rabbi who
is directing the launch of a distance learning program for the
Manhattan-based Jewish Theological Seminary of America. "But I
think the materials we have developed could be of great use to
other faith communities as well."
http://www.csmonitor.com/durable/1999/08/10/fp16s1-csm.shtml
Related links:
The Chosen Language of a Chosen People; A History of the Hebrew Language
http://humanities.byu.edu/classes/ling450ch/hebrew.html
RosettaStone - Free Hebrew Learning Site
http://www.arch.apana.org.au/ben_s/RosettaStone.html
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Israel Police Seal Wall of Holy Site
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 09:30:49 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
Israel Police Seal Wall of Holy Site
.c The Associated Press
By KARIN LAUB
JERUSALEM (AP) - Israeli police sealed an opening in the outer wall of
the Al Aqsa Mosque compound before dawn Tuesday in a showdown with
Muslim clerics over control of the site sacred to both Muslims and
Jews.
Muslim leaders said the wall opening is part of renovations carried
out by the Islamic Trust and that Israeli authorities had no right to
interfere.
They accused the new government of moderate Israeli Prime Minister
Ehud Barak of trying to provoke a confrontation and warned that police
action would spark violent Muslim protests.
The compound, known to Jews as the Temple Mount, or the site of the
Jewish Temple destroyed by the Romans in 70 A.D., is perhaps the most
sensitive spot in the Israeli-Arab conflict.
In 1996, Israeli and Palestinian troops engaged in three days of gun
battles after Israel opened an archaeological tunnel alongside the Al
Aqsa compound, Islam's third holiest shrine. Eighty people died in the
violence.
Israel captured the compound in Jerusalem's walled Old City in the
1967 Mideast war, but has given the Islamic Trust a great deal of
autonomy in administering the Al Aqsa and Dome of the Rock mosques
located there.
In recent years, the Islamic Trust, or Waqf, has carried out a number
of renovations, turning underground vaults into prayer areas. Israel
has protested, but has not stopped the work, apparently fearing a
repeat of the 1996 riots.
During the current renovations, workers enlarged a window on the
southern side of the compound's outer wall into a door-sized opening.
The opening is near the Western Wall, the last remnant of the Jewish
Temple and Judaism's most sacred site.
Israel's police minister, Shlomo Ben-Ami, said that enlarging the
opening was a violation of the unwritten agreement that neither side
introduce changes at the holy site.
Early Tuesday, under the cover of darkness, police sealed the opening
under orders from Ben-Ami, according to police spokesman Shmuel
Ben-Ruby.
Adnan Husseini, the director of the Islamic Trust, said the Muslims
were within their rights in carrying out the renovations and that the
work would not stop.
``Any interference of the police with this work will lead to
violence,'' Husseini said, speaking before police sealed the opening.
http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/ap/19990809/wl/israel_jerusalem_1.htm
via: End_Times_News@onelist.com
l
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - American Eugenics Reported
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 09:32:01 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
AMERICAN EUGENICS REPORTED August 7, 1999
For those who think it can't happen in America, CNN reported
today: "A doctoral student has uncovered a dark secret in Vermont's
past: Scientists in the 1920s and '30s had an active eugenics plan to
eliminate the state's 'degenerate' bloodlines and replenish 'old
pioneer stock.'...The 12-year survey, developed by an independent
team of social scientists, studied "good" and "bad" families in the
state and listed those which it determined needed to be eliminated.
The report was circulated among policymakers at the time and led to
the passage of a 1931 sterilization law. The law resulted in the
sterilization of several hundred poor, rural Vermonters, Abenaki
Indians and others deemed unfit to procreate, the Globe reported.
Vermont was hardly alone in embracing eugenics, the science of human
breeding that branched off from social Darwinism [theory of evolution
to replace creation]..."
via: "Pre-trib only" <rapture77@bigfoot.com>
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Eclipse visibility in North America/Research
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 09:34:57 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
NASA Space Science News for August 10, 1999
Two stories:
Scientists drawn to midday darkness near Transylvania: Watching a
solar eclipse in the foothills of Transylvania might sound like a
scriptwriter's concept for a bad science fiction movie, but it's part
of the plan for some serious science and science education. FULL
STORY at http://science.nasa.gov/newhome/headlines/ast10aug99_2.htm
Don't forget the partial eclipse! The maritime provinces of Canada
and the east coast of the USA could experience interesting shadow
effects from the partial eclipse near sunrise on August 11. The story
includes information about where the eclipse can be seen in North
America and how to safely observe partial eclipses. FULL STORY at
http://science.nasa.gov/newhome/headlines/ast10aug99_1.htm
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Weekend News Today items (8/9/99)
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 09:41:40 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
Moslem work on Temple Mount worries archeologist
Weekend News Today
By Andra Brack
Source: Jerusalem
Mon Aug 9,1999 -- The Moslem Wakf has punched out an opening on the
Temple Mount over looking the Western Wall plaza and archeologists are
concerned it may have damaged ancient sites. The "double gate" is one
of two gates built during Herod's reign, said former Jerusalem
District archeologist Dan Bahat. He said the gate is really a tunnel
which ran from the wide steps along the southern flank of the Temple
Mount. "Inside there were capitals with decorations from the Second
Temple; they are actually the most serious remnants inside the holy
mount from the Second Temple," Bahat told Israel Radio. According to
Bahat, the tunnel had been left alone since the destruction of the
Temple in 70 CE and legend has it that Mohammed used the gate as an
entrance onto the mount. Bahat said the gate was eventually sealed in
the 11th century. He said that the Wakf had knocked out an opening the
size of a door from one of the windows over looking the double gate.
He said that no archeologist has been allowed to visit the lower parts
of the Aksa Mosque and expressed concern that damage may be caused by
the renovations there. "It concerns me that they are doing something
they shouldn't be doing, particularly since there are there the most
serious remains of the Second Temple period which can be found on the
Temple Mount," Bahat said. "I am very concerned about their fate." He
said that the window probably doesn't pose any threat since it is high
above ground level. Bahat also said that the entire lower Al-Aksa area
has never been excavated properly and that now is an opportunity to
finally carry out excavations.
Devastating drought for farmers - a great year for winemakers
Weekend News Today
By Andra Brack
Source: TampaBay Online (AP)
Mon Aug 9,1999 -- While farmers across the Northeast are struggling to
save their crops from the worsening drought, the region's grape
growers can't get enough of the hot, dry weather. In fact, if it
doesn't rain until after harvest - some six weeks away - winemakers
from Virginia to New England could wind up with a great 1999 wine. "We
are not popping out corks in celebration yet. If these conditions
continue until harvest, we will probably be tasting one of our best
vintages," said a vineyard owner on Long Island. Vintners list many
reasons why hot weather is good for grapes. Sunshine produces sugar,
and the more sugar as the fruit ripens, the better the wine. And heat
causes the plant to perspire, forcing water to ooze through the plant
that contributes to the intensity of the fruit flavor. Less rain means
fewer weeds and - as Carol Russell of Westport Wineries in Westport,
Mass., notes - not having to fight mold and mildew as much. That means
less spraying of vines, which saves money. It all adds up: Dry heat
equals better wine. Though winemakers are conscious of the suffering
that the drought is causing other farmers, they can barely contain
their enthusiasm long enough to express sympathy. "You can give
everyone else my sincerest apologies, but every dog has its day and
maybe this is mine," said someone who has produced wine for 23 years
near Charleston, W.Va. Winemakers cannot help but boast about their
grapes compared to other brown and shriveled crops. California
produces 90 percent of American wine, but the Northeast has become a
more important grape region as wine has grown in popularity with
Americans. Every state in the region produces wine of some sort.
Still, there could be trouble in paradise. Both the crucial ripening
season for grapes and the hurricane season are just starting, said Kip
Bedell of Bedell Cellars in Cutchogue on Long Island's North Fork. A
hurricane or even a big storm could yet mar what looks otherwise like
a great year for wine grapes. The less water during ripening, the
greater the quality of the crop. ["A quart of wheat for a denarius;
and do not harm the oil and the wine." Rev 6:6b]
Secular Israeli educators demand same freedom as religious schools
Weekend News Today
By Andra Brack
Source: Ha'aretz
Mon Aug 9,1999 -- Representatives of the Humanistic Education Network,
headed by Dr. Nimrod Aloni, met over the weekend with Israeli Minister
of Education Yossi Sarid, demanding the same autonomy for their
network as that enjoyed by state religious schools. They the outline
of their beliefs, titled "A New Agenda in the Ministry of Education."
The network argues that amendments are due in the Compulsory Education
Law because the law currently discriminates against state education.
The curriculum of the state religious schools are determined by a
public council, and the network argues that two additional councils
should be established - one for state education and one for Arab
education - and that the authority and guidelines for the councils
should be clearly defined. They also requested that the Ministry of
Education determine a "core curriculum," a mandatory program for all
pupils that would include compulsory studies in civics, Hebrew,
Arabic, English, mathematics and science. "This minimum program will
guarantee equal opportunity in acquiring a profession and higher
education and the freedom to choose a lifestyle," they explained. T
paper also explained its goals. "Since the establishment of the state,
the religious population has appropriated education for itself. The
independent ultra-Orthodox and state-religious education networks have
used their autonomy to construct a clearly defined pedagogical system,
while the state educational system has been presented as the default
system, one devoid of any spiritual content. The Humanistic Education
Network wants to foster the coming younger generations, especially in
consideration of the impressive achievements of Israeli culture in
philosophy, science, literature, art, economics and technology - while
involved in an ongoing critical and creative dialogue with the
heritage of Jewish culture." [Editor: In simpler terms, they want to
remove God and Torah from education.] "I feel an ideological proximity
to the philosophy of the members of the Humanistic Education Network,"
said Sarid after the meeting, explaining that he would like to
integrate the network into the Education Ministry's pedagogical
activities. Sarid recently stated that he intends to grant autonomy to
the state education system and to regulate the independent status of
the ultra-Orthodox educational system, which would require the
implementation of a mandatory curriculum for ultra-Orthodox
pupils.[Does this mean it is already a done deal?] In order to do so,
Sarid added, it would be necessary to reach an agreement with
ultra-Orthodox rabbis. The curriculum in ultra-Orthodox schools
currently includes little beyond the study of religious texts.
Albright delays visit, Arafat agrees to further withdrawal in
September
Weekend News Today
By Andra Brack
Source: Ha'aretz
Mon Aug 9,1999 -- Madeleine Albright will postpone her Middle East
trip until September to coincide with the beginning of Israel's
implementation of the Wye River Plantation accords, Israeli and
Palestinian sources confirmed yesterday. A senior diplomatic source
told Ha'aretz: "Israel has much interest in a successful Albright
visit. Postponing the trip will enable us to finalize the Palestinian
track. It's best that she comes when something has been accomplished,
and not start shuttling back and forth between Barak and Arafat."
Senior Palestinian Authority sources said that Albright would arrive
in early September, to coincide with the Israeli withdrawals. At the
same time, Israel expects to begin final status talks with the
Palestinians. Arafat yesterday said that "we agree" to an Israeli
offer to begin implementing Wye at the beginning of September. "We are
pleased to welcome this offer from Barak, even though he promised to
implement the agreements in August. But the point is that Barak must
implement them quickly, as he promised to Presidents Clinton and
Mubarak." Emphasizing that he has not retreated from the demand for a
full implementation of Wye, Arafat said, "There have been delays in
the past and Wye should be implemented in full, without delay." He was
speaking to reporters after a meeting with the Crown Prince of Qatar,
the first Gulf leader to visit the PA in Gaza. Sources close to Barak
said yesterday that "the prime minister will respect any Arafat
decision about the format of implementing Wye." Meanwhile, the
official Egyptian newspaper Al Ahram published an article yesterday
that was highly critical of Barak, saying he was "picking up from
where his predecessor left off, especially with everything connected
to negotiating tactics and contradictory statements." Ziad Abu Ziad, a
minister in the PA, said yesterday on the Voice of Palestine radio
station, "Barak's negotiating methods, especially his attempt to delay
the implementation of Wye, did not contribute to the resurrection of
trust" between the parties. Commenting on reports that Barak and
Arafat may meet this week, Ziad said a summit would only be worthwhile
if it had substance and content that would lead to positive results,
not just for the sake of a photo opportunity.
via: bible_prophecy-news@onelist.com
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Kazakh Boy Dies of Plague After Flea Bite
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 09:44:16 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
Kazakh Boy Dies Of Plague After Flea Bite
ALMATY, Kazakhstan, Aug 10, 1999 --(Reuters) A 13-year-old
Kazakh boy died of a strain of plague after being bitten by a
flea in the southern Kyzyl-Orda region, an official said on
Monday, the first known death from the plague in the Central
Asian state this year.
"A boy died in the village of Bokaisai after falling ill from
septic bubonic plague, which strikes people down with lightning
speed," said Damir Dauletbayev, head of public health in the
Kyzyl-Orda region.
He told Reuters by telephone that 20 people who had come into
contact with the boy had been isolated, and that 2.5 million
tenge ($19,000) in state funds had been made available to
contain the disease following the incident.
He gave no further details of the death, but Russian news
agencies reported that the boy died on Sunday in hospital having
fallen ill on Friday.
Plague is not directly infectious from man to man but is
transmitted by flea's which carry the disease-causing organism,
Yersinia pestis.
A handful of cases of plague have already been reported in the
vast former Soviet republic of 15 million.
Two other people infected in the impoverished Kyzyl-Orda region
recovered, Dauletbayev said. Three more people were in hospital
last week with the illness in the western region of Mangistau
after cutting up a camel carcass.
The outbreaks have coincided with infestations of fleas in some
areas, which some health officials blame on cuts in health and
sanitation spending.
Shrinking government spending on health services and increasing
poverty have cut Kazakh's life expectancy, and diseases like
tuberculosis, meningitis and diphtheria have made a comeback in
central Asia. ((c) 1999 Reuters)
http://www.russiatoday.com/news.php3?id=84397&text
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Y2K/Jabbok River experience
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 12:16:29 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
Yisroel [Isreal] was born "Ya'akov," [Jacob] and Ya'akov
later became "Yisroel" at the age of ninety-seven, on his way to Eretz
Yisroel [land of Israel] in the year 2205/1556 BCE.
The truth is, as the Talmud points out, Ya'akov never really became
only "Yisroel" (Brochos 13a), and we see that the Torah uses the name
interchangeably. It seems that Ya'akov's name change represents a
potential, a spiritual potential, that was achieved that fateful
night.
What fateful night? The night that, according to the Torah, Ya'akov
fought with a "stranger" (Bereishis 32:25), and according to the
Midrash (Bereishis Rabbah 77:2), with an angel. And not just any
angel, but the protecting angel of Edom, the future nation of his
brother, Eisav [Esau].
This episode was towards the end of Ya'akov's long journey home. After
cunningly taking Eisav's blessings from their father Yitzchak
[Isaac], Ya'akov was forced to flee a furious, vengeful murderous
brother, Eisav. After fourteen years of Torah learning in the
yeshivah of Shem and Eiver, Ya'akov headed off to Padan Aram
(Mesopotamia), and his uncle Lavan's house.
Twenty years, two wives, and eleven children later, Ya'akov sensed it
was time to leave his deceitful father-in-law, and return to the land
of his fathers, Eretz Yisroel. He did exactly that, knowing full well
that he would once again have to cross paths with his dangerous
brother, Eisav. It was a high price to pay, but a necessary one, if
Ya'akov was ever going to return home to Eretz Yisroel.
Or was it? The Midrash seems to paint a different picture of Ya'akov's
so-called fateful confrontation:
Rav Huna began, "Like one who grasps a passing dog by the ears, so is
one who becomes impassioned over discord that is not his own."
(Mishlei 26:17). Shmuel bar Nachman said, it can be compared to leader
of thieves who was sleeping by the crossroads, of whom a person passed
and aroused saying, "Get up! It is dangerous here!" He asked him, "Are
you the bad person? Why did you wake me up? (Matanos Kehuna) You awoke
the bad person and endangered your own life!" So said The Holy One,
Blessed is He, to Ya'akov, "He [Eisav] was going his own way (i.e.,
his anger had subsided; Matanos Kehuna), and you sent to him
[messengers] and said to him, 'So says your servant Ya'akov ...' ."
(Bereishis Rabbah 75:3)
According to the Midrash, Ya'akov antagonized Eisav, and picked a
fight that could have been avoided. Why would Ya'akov do a thing like
that? Why would the gentle-natured Ya'akov actually go looking for a
fight? Yet, on the other hand, it was a move that eventually led to
Ya'akov's struggle with the angel, that led to his crucial name
change:
"Your name shall no longer be called Ya'akov, but Yisroel, for you
have struggled with a heavenly being and with man, and have
prevailed." (Bereishis 32:29)
-a very positive sign.
Perhaps we can understand Ya'akov's intention and success by
recalling an earlier dialogue that also involved Ya'akov, and his
new, unintended wife, Leah. Rachel had warned Ya'akov that Lavan
would try to make the switch, and Ya'akov had been prepared. However,
after the marriage took place, Ya'akov found out that, in spite of
his best efforts to counter Lavan, he ended up being married to Leah
instead of Rachel.
Ya'akov would have to deal with Lavan later. In the meantime, Leah,
too, had been party to the ruse, and she had to answer for herself:
"How could you pretend to be Rachel, and answer me when I called you
her name?" an angry Ya'akov demanded. "I am your student! Didn't you
come to your father, dressed as Eisav, and when your father called you
"Eisav," you responded? I only imitated you!" Leah defended. (Aitz
Yosef)
In other words, Leah was pointing out the irony of the situation. "You
disguised yourself as Eisav, and deceived your father to accomplish
what you thought was best," Leah countered, "and I have done the same
to you!"
However, was Leah correct and justified? Not only do two wrongs not
make a right, but perhaps Ya'akov could have proven that his had be a
"right," while Leah's was clearly an act of deceit. For, Ya'akov could
have answered, "There is a difference here. I was saving the future of
the Jewish people, and you were merely saving yourself! Furthermore,
legally, marriage demands that each partner accept the other as his or
her spouse, and I do not accept you as my wife! You were meant for
Eisav!" (Rashi, Bereishis 29:17)
True. However, in spite of this answer to Leah, we must note that
Ya'akov never abandoned Leah, nor was their marriage annulled. In
fact, as the Torah testifies, Ya'akov grows to love Leah. Eventually,
it becomes clear that Leah was also meant for Ya'akov from the
beginning. How? Why? What changed Ya'akov's perspective on the
situation?
Perhaps, there was an additional element to the dialogue mentioned
above by the Aitz Yosef, and perhaps it went something like this?
"How could you do this to me?! How could you pretend to be Rachel when
all along you were Leah!?" Ya'akov asked angrily. "What are you asking
me about?" Leah answered innocently. "What do you mean what am I
asking you about?" Ya'akov demanded. "You know full well that you were
supposed to marry Eisav, not me!" Ya'akov pressed. "I did!" Leah
answered.
Pause. Leah's answer would have been confusing, and it would have
forced Ya'akov to ask, "How's that?" to which Leah would have had to
explain, "When you bought the birthright and took the blessings, you,
for all intents and purposes, became Eisav!"
After all, Yitzchak did state:
"It is the voice of Ya'akov, but the hands of Eisav." (Bereishis
27:22).
-as if to say:
"Whoever stands before me now can't be the Ya'akov I knew, because he
is a simple person who does little else other than learn Torah. It
certainly can't be the Eisav I knew, because he's not so quick to
thank G-d for his successes. Whoever you are, you are a hybrid of the
two!"
In other words, what Ya'akov learned that day from Leah was that
buying the birthright and taking the blessings in place of Eisav was
far more than a symbolic gesture on history's part. Rather, as
different as Ya'akov felt from Eisav to that very day, he found out
from Leah that there was a lot of Eisav within him. After all, they
were twin brothers to begin with!
What a shock that must have been for Ya'akov, a real awakening for a
man that, up until then, had done everything he could to distance
himself from his evil brother and his ways. Now, it seemed from Leah
and history, that there was a part of his brother that had been
following him around everywhere he went-inside his very being!
The implications of this reality would have been frighteningly clear
to Ya'akov immediately. Within the father of the future Jewish people,
and therefore within the people themselves, was a potential to become
Eisav-like (we see the truth of this throughout Jewish history, in
almost every period). Therefore, for the sake of all his future
descendants, Ya'akov personally felt compelled to confront Eisav, but
not just any Eisav, but specifically the "Eisav" within himself, to
purge himself of his own "Eisavness" as much as he could. That meant,
apparently, a rendezvous with Eisav's protecting angel, wherever and
whenever that might be.
It turned out to be by the Yavok [Jabbok] river, an eastern tributary
of the Jordan river, north of the Dead Sea:
He arose that night, and took his two wives, two handmaids, and his
eleven children, and crossed the Yavok river ... Ya'akov was left
alone, and there he wrestled ... (Bereishis 32:22-24)
Rashi seemingly senses nothing extraordinary about the name of this
river, and says nothing other than "Yavok" was the "name of the
river." Then again, as Rashi points out from time-to-time, he only
comments to provide clarity on the simple explanation of the verse.
Deeper explanations are the role of the midrashim and Kabbalah. And,
in this case, they provide exactly that.
To begin with, there is:
Within [the name] "Ya'akov" is the mystery of "Yavok," whose letters
(yud, bais, kuf) stand for the words, "y'aneinu v'yom kareinu"-"on
that day He will answer us"; the mystery of "Yavok" is very, very
deep, because three names [of G-d] numerically equal "Yavok" ...
(Yalkut Reuveini, Aikev, 2)
According to this midrash, the word "Yavok" is actually an
abbreviation for three words which mean, "on that day He will answer
us." On which day, and who will answer us? Well, according to every
other usage of this phrase, it always refers to G-d redeeming the
Jewish people from exile once-and-for-all-an awesome day in history.
This would make a lot of sense, given that the rabbis view Ya'akov's
all-night struggle with the angel of Eisav as an allusion to the
"night" of exile the Jewish people were destined to endure (Rabbeinu
Bachaye; Targum Yonason; Tanchuma). Surviving the angel and proving
victorious in the morning is, therefore, the allusion to the Jewish
people reaching the Final Redemption in the days of Moshiach.
In fact, of all the accounts in the Torah, very few are the source of
as much symbolism as the battle with the angel that night. Therefore,
the more symbolic the struggle was for Ya'akov to become Yisroel, the
more symbolic the name "Yavok" becomes of that struggle. Ya'akov was
the twin-brother of Eisav; Yisroel is not, and the Yavok river,
therefore, symbolized the transformation from Ya'akov to Yisroel, as
the following reveals:
... If a person will endeavor to learn the hidden wisdom of Torah,
that is, the secrets of Torah (Kabbalah), then he will merit to
receive his Neshamah (third level of soul after "Nefesh" and "Ruach")
... and add level to level, and wisdom to wisdom, then he will be
called a "Complete Person" ... When a person only has his Nefesh, then
he receives only from "aleph-dalet-nun-yud"; If he merits to receive
his Ruach, then he receives from "yud-heh-vav-heh"; when he learns the
mysteries of Torah, then he receives also from "aleph-heh-yud-heh".
When the three names are added together, the gematria is "Yavok" ...
(Sha'ar HaGilgulim, Hakdamah 18, p. 51)
From this quote of the Arizal, it is clear that "Yavok" is not merely
the name of the river that Ya'akov just happened to meet an angel,
fight with him, prevail, and receive a name change. Yavok is the word
that alludes to the very spiritual perfection-and redemption-that
transforms a "Ya'akov" into a "Yisroel." This is why, perhaps, the
name Ya'akov itself has the word yavok within it, as if to allude to
Ya'akov's potential to become a Yisroel.
And, this is why Yavok speaks of the time that G-d will answer us,
because that is the day of redemption, the time that we stop being the
twin brother of Eisav, and stop sharing his tendencies, which we have
done so meticulously at times throughout history. We have been, to
borrow the vernacular, better Greeks than the Greeks themselves at
times. Ya'akov may have physically crossed the Yavok river thousands
of years ago, but every Jew since has had to cross his own Yavok river
at some point in time, to become a true and eternal Yisroel.
How much more so is this the case in our fast-paced, fast assimilating
society, where almost anything goes! How many Jews today even know
about Ya'akov, and their inherent potential to rise above our
surrounding Eisavian society, to become a Yisroel? How many Jews care
to change their lifestyles?
It is interesting to note, a rabbi pointed (half-seriously), that the
letters "Y2K," which stand for the "Year 2000," when translated into
Hebrew spell the work "Yavok":
y = yud
2 = bais
k = kuf
Does this mean anything special? Perhaps not. Then again, the Talmud
tells us that everything that happens in life is a function of Divine
Providence (Chullin 7b). In other words, according to Torah, there are
no coincidences, though sometimes what we perceive as a "sign from
Heaven," may in fact, be a test of faith. And sometimes, what we
perceive as a test of faith, may be a sign from Heaven. And,
sometimes, it may be both.
The trick in life is knowing how to understand and interpret what one
perceives. This is a function of knowing Torah, and the more one
knows, the better his perception of reality will match G-d's-the
ultimate accomplishment for a flesh-and-blood being. The deeper and
more profound that knowledge of Torah is, the deeper and more profound
his understanding and interpretation of reality will be.
Who even first coined the term, "Y2K"? Personally, I don't know, but
it is an interesting and unusual term, and that's what counts the
most:
"That which is from G-d is wondrous in our eyes." (Tehillim 118:23)
What are the odds of these three letters spelling the word "yavok"?
Does it really make a difference in the end? At the very least, it is
reminder that all of us have to cross our own "Yavok river" at some
point in our lives. And, as the nation struggles for a definition of
"What is a Jew?," we, as a nation, are approaching a national Yavok
river in need of crossing as well-"forced" upon us by the computer
age. Remember, if it catches our attention, it is a sign from Heaven
regardless of what others think.
We live in very, very interesting times. Everything is moving so fast
these days. There are so many influences, so many distractions. It is
so very difficult to be simple these days, pure, and therefore,
Torah-true. What does the year 5760/2000 hold for the Jewish people,
and the world in general? No one quite knows for sure, but everyone
wonders with mixed emotions, curiosity combined with an element of
concern, that, for some, grows with each passing day.
What we have to realize is that it is the Yavok river that we are
approaching, that awesome day that G-d "will answer us," after
thousands of years of exile. What does it depend upon? It depends upon
a willingness on the nation's part to confront the Eisav within us, to
expunge ourselves of it, to fight with heavenly beings and man, and to
prevail.
Then, and only then, will we finally assume the name "Yisroel,"
forever.
Mon, 9 Aug 1999 12:22:19 -0400
Rabbi Pinchas Winston <winston@torah.org>
Perceptions - Parashas Shoftim: Shudder or Blind?
=========================
Jacob had wrested the blessing of the birthright from his brother
Esau; but it was by cunning and deceit, and he had been obliged to
flee from his wrath in consequence. And now that he desired to return
to the land of promise and his father's house, and to enter upon the
inheritance promised him in his father's blessing; Esau was coming to
meet him with 400 men, which filled him with great alarm. As he felt
too weak to enter upon a conflict with him, he prayed to the covenant
God for deliverance fom the hand of his brother, and the fulfilment
of the covenant promises. The answer of God to this prayer was the
present wrestling with God, in which he was victorious indeed, but
not without carrying the marks of it all his life long in the
dislocation of his thigh. Jacob's great fear of Esau's wrath and
vengeance, which he could not suppress...had its foundation in his
evil conscience, in the consciousness of the sin connected with his
wilful and treacherous appropriation of the blessing of the
first-born. To save him from the hand of his brother, it was
necessary that God should first meet him as an enemy, and show him
that his real opponent was God Himself, and that he must first of all
overcome Him before he could hope to overcome his brother. And Jacob
overcame God; not with the power of the flesh however, with which he
had hitherto wrestled for God against man (God convinced him of that
by touching his hip, so that it was put out of joint), but by the
power of faith and prayer, reaching by firm hold of God even to the
point of being blessed, by which he proved himself to be a true
wrestler of God, who fought with God and with men, i.e. who by his
wrestling with God overcame men as well. And whilst by the
dislocation of his hip the carnal nature of his previous wrestling
was declared to be powerless and wrong, he received in the new name
of Israel the prize of victory, and at the same time directions from
God how he was henceforth to strive for the cause of the Lord.--By
his wrestling with God, Jacob entered upon a new stage in his life.
As a sign of this, he received a new name, which indicated, as the
result of this conflict, the nature of his new relation to God. But
whilst Abram and Sarai, from the time when God changed their names
(17:5,15), are always called by their new names; in the history
of Jacob we find the old name used interchangeably with the new. "For
the first two names denoted a change into a new and permanent
position, effected and intended by the will and promise of God;
consequently the old names were entirely abolished. But the name
Israel denoted a spiritual state determined by faith; and in Jacob's
life the natural state, determined by flesh and blood, still
continued to stand side by side with this." Jacob's new name was
transmitted to his descendants, however, who were called Israel as
the covenant nation. For as the blessing of their forefather's
conflict came down to them as a spiritual inheritance, so did they
also enter upon the duty of preserving this inheritance by continuing
in a similar conflict.
Keil & Delitzsch
Commentary on the Old Testament
Volume 1, The Pentateuch
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Group wants united religion
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Tue, 10 Aug 1999 07:32:27 -0500
From: owner-bpr@philologos.org
Group wants united religion
Is goal mere co-operation or creation of one faith?
By Jon E. Dougherty
© 1999 WorldNetDaily.com
Representatives of all religious faiths from some 50 countries
have held regular meetings since 1995 for the purpose of
creating one global religion, according to a United Religions
Initiative.
According to the group's draft charter, the effort is "the
result of a growing global conversation about the creation of
the United Religions -- a daily forum for cooperation and
peacemaking among religions and spiritual communities."
During their four-year history, URI has sponsored numerous
global events, six regional conferences and three global summits
in San Francisco from 1996 to 1998.
Citing "forces in our world today that are calling for and
supporting the creation of a United Religions," the group is
busy exploring a purpose, foundational values, principles,
actions and organization structure URI may eventually adopt.
However, critics of the initiative question the rationale for
the adoption of such a globalized religion and question what
"entity" -- taken from Christianity or another faith -- the
religion will choose to sanctify. Based on URI's published
statements, that entity appears to be focused more on earthly
"spirits" than on God or Jesus Christ.
For example, according to a published summary of URI's goals
and projects, the group believes that "all living beings are
both sacred and connected," and "recent human activities, which
have taken place in aggressive opposition to nature, have
resulted in an ecological crisis." The alleged crisis, URI said,
includes "deforestation, the loss of wild lands, overpopulation,
the loss of productive agricultural lands, degradation of the
resources of the water planet, dependence on non-renewable
energy sources, and extinction of species." The group, however,
cites no specific studies or evidence to substantiate their
claims.
Christianity, on the other hand, teaches believers that Man has
"dominion over the earth" and does not "share" it with animals.
Christians also believe in one Supreme Being, not a series of
"gods" that preside over specific earthly functions.
Furthermore, among URI's "actionable ideas" are several
statements indicating the group is largely concerned about
issues involving primarily "children and women," which critics
say is biased and exclusionary against men. And, they added,
such inclinations do not measure up to normal religious
standards of unity.
For example, signatories to the URI document must agree to "...
express our gravest concerns about the worldwide brutalities
against children and women, including physical, mental, and
sexual violence and rape as it occurs all over the world. We
earnestly appeal that all religious, spiritual and ethical
movements and individuals take all possible steps to end this
violence against children and women."
Bill Rankin, a spokesman for URI, told WorldNetDaily that as a
Christian he understood how other Christians might misunderstand
the focus of his group. However, he said, "that's not what we're
about."
"URI is interested in unity," he said, "and in finding the
common ground that exists in all of the world's religions. We
don't intend to make any one of them preeminent."
Rankin denied URI was working to create a so-called "one world
religion." In a published statement, URI said the group's
members only seek "to bring people of different religions and
spiritual traditions together in ways that respect and celebrate
their uniqueness. The 'united' part of the URI is not a blending
of religions but a unity of purpose: to work cooperatively for
the good of all people."
"URI believes people don't have to agree on theology in order
to work together to make the world a better place," Rankin said.
One of the main goals of the group is to put an end to multi-
ethnic, multi-religious violence which, he said, "has sparked
some pretty terrible violence in the world, especially in the
20th century."
"We want to create an environment where people of all religious
groups can come together in one place and work out their
differences," said Rankin. "We don't think these differences
always have to lead to violence."
He told WorldNetDaily that URI "is not funded by one or two
religious organizations, and we don't want that." He said URI
believes individuals, rather than organized religious groups,
should provide funding so "everyone will be comfortable with us
and can feel like they have an equal say in what we're trying to
do."
Regarding the ecological perspectives of URI, Rankin said to
his knowledge "that issue comes from what most people around the
world are saying, that they'd like to focus on saving the
ecology and preserving natural resources as a goal."
"I think that's different from what you've called 'earth
worship,'" he added.
A spokesperson at the Family Research Council offered no
comment on URI, but said FRC would examine the issue and analyze
URI's intentions. The Christian Coalition did not return phone
calls seeking comments.
Source: http://www.worldnetdaily.com/
bluesky_dougherty/19990810_xnjdo_group_want.shtml
Links of interest:
United Religions Initiative Homepage
http://www.united-religions.org
URI Draft Charter
http://www.united-religions.org/charter/index.shtml
--- BPR
BPR Web Site - http://philologos.org/bpr
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - North Korea news items
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Wed, 11 Aug 1999 12:36:33 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
JAPAN RECEIVES NORTH KOREAN WARNING
August 10, 1999
Associated Press reported today: "Amid rising tensions, North
Korea threatened Japan today with 'merciless retaliation' unless Tokyo
atones for its colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula. The strong words
came in a statement issued to mark the 54th anniversary of Korea's
liberation from Japan on Aug. 15, 1945. 'If Japan opts to open
good-neighborly relations through liquidation of the past, the (North)
will welcome it with pleasure,' said the statement, carried by the
country's foreign news outlet, the Korean Central News Agency. 'But if
it repeats its crime-woven history and undertakes a reckless
provocation, the (North) will never miss the opportunity of meting out
merciless retaliation,' the statement said..."
-------------------------------------------
NORTH KOREA ACCUSES AMERICA OF TRYING TO START WAR
August 10, 1999
Associated Press reported: "North Korea's ruling party newspaper today
accused the United States of trying to start a new war on the Korean
Peninsula, using the North's missile program as a pretext for
intervention. The Pyongyang government's Korean Central News Agency
carried a report of the Rodong Sinmun's commentary, which implied that
U.S. warnings to the North to drop any plans for a missile launch
could lead to war. 'The frantic U.S. maneuvers going on in the Far
East...prove that the next war may break out on the Korean peninsula,'
the newspaper said. 'In the Balkan war, the U.S. tested a Korean War
scenario.'..."
----------------------------------------------------------------------
JAPAN HARSHLY THREATENS NORTH KOREA
August 10, 1999
The New York Times reported: "Japan is turning up the heat
on North Korea, threatening to suspend all cash remittances
by Koreans to the communist country if it proceeds with plans
to test-fire a new long-range ballistic
missile. In his strongest warning yet, Foreign Minister Masahiko
Komura of Japan said Sunday that the government was considering
barring Koreans living in Japan from sending cash and goods to North
Korea. The remittances, estimated at $600 million to $1 billion a
year, are a major source of capital for North Korea. Their loss would
have dire consequences for a country whose economy is in shambles and
whose people are facing severe food shortages and even famine..."
---------------------------------------
HARVEST OF FAMINE STRICKEN NORTH KOREA DESTROYED
August 10, 1999
The BBC reported: "North Korea has warned that its grain harvest will
drop sharply this year due to torrential rains and a typhoon which
battered the peninsula. The internationally isolated Communist state
has requested food aid to the areas damaged by Typhoon Olga which
struck the Korean peninsula and east Asia on 3 August...the
International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies has
warned that flooding could have a lasting impact on the country. The
head of the organization's delegation to North Korea said that if rice
paddies were flooded for more than 48 hours they were likely to suffer
permanent damage. North Korea has been experiencing more than five
years of famine brought about by successive years of flooding which
have exacerbated an already inefficient food production system..."
via: "Rapture" <rapture77@bigfoot.com>
--- BPR
BPR Web Site - http://philologos.org/bpr
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Aug 11, 1999 TV Programs
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Wed, 11 Aug 1999 12:36:33 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
9:30 PM Eastern
TBN - JACK VAN IMPE PRESENTS
10:00
DISC - THE LAST SOLAR ECLIPSE OF THE MILLENNIUM - The
science of eclipses; cultural and historical
significance.(CC)
TLC - SURVIVOR SCIENCE - "Lightning" - Lightning strikes
unpredictably.(CC)(TVG)
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Genetic privacy bill heading to House
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Wed, 11 Aug 1999 12:42:32 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
http://www.boston.com/dailynews/222/region/Genetic_privacy_bill_heading_t:.s html -
Genetic privacy bill heading to House
By Martin Finucane, Associated Press, 08/10/99 23:21
BOSTON (AP) A bill that would prevent employers and insurers from
discriminating against people based on their genetic makeup is moving
through the state Legislature.
The state Senate passed a genetic privacy bill last week, 33-2, and
the bill is now heading to the House.
''If we went out 20 years and looked back at this session, I think
this might be the most important bill that we put out this session,''
said Sen. Stephen Lynch, D-Boston, one of the backers of the bill.
The bill was pushed by Senate Majority Leader Linda Melconian,
D-Springfield. It bans disclosure of genetic test results without the
consent of the person tested; forbids insurers or employers to require
genetic tests; and bans discrimination by insurers based on genetic
tests.
The specter raised by the proponents: that an insurer or employer
would turn away someone based on a genetic test that says they might
become ill in the future.
Rep. Lida Harkins, D-Needham, chairwoman of the House Science and
Technology Committee, said she was ''hopeful that some version of a
genetic privacy bill will be passed in this session.''
Harkins said her committee would hold a hearing on the Senate bill and
five other related bills sometime in the fall.
''I think all of us are interested in some of the privacy issues so
people aren't discriminated against in terms of jobs, health insurance
or life insurance,'' she said.
No one returned a message left Tuesday afternoon at the Life Insurance
Association of Massachusetts offices.
But insurance companies have been concerned about the bill, saying
that it's only fair that they be able to learn about their customers'
health.
Charles Glick, a spokesman for the Jewish Community Relations Council,
which has been pressing for the bill, said new language in the Senate
bill was acceptable to the industry.
''I think we've got all the parties at the table accepting this model
so I think it bodes well for action in the House,'' he said.
''We're talking about cutting edge technology that has the potential
to be cutting edge discrimination if it's not dealt with in the
appropriate manner,'' he said.
via: isml@onelist.com
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Weekend News Today items (8/10/99)
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Wed, 11 Aug 1999 12:49:26 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
Palestinian refugees in Jordan refuse bargain
Weekend News Today
By Andra Brack
Source: Arabic News
Tue Aug 10,1999 -- The Palestinian refugees absolutely refused to
bargain on their right to come back home to Palestine or any other
alternative, regardless of the formula of the compensation, its type
or direction, the defense committee for the rights of the Palestinian
refugees in Jordan said. In a statement yesterday, the group opposed
the settlement of the Palestinian refugees with its forms and formula,
adding that the conspiracy of settlement and incorporation aims at
stealing the right to ownership from its legal owners and attempt to
cancel their right to come back home.
Barak urged to protect Jewish rights on Temple Mount
Weekend News Today
By Andra Brack
Source: Arutz 7
Tue Aug 10,1999 -- Groups advocating Jewish rights on the Temple Mount
have already urged Barak to take advantage of the recent Moslem
provocation at the holy site. The El Har Hashem group [To the Mountain
of G-d] and Chai Vekayam [Alive and Enduring] demanded that Jewish
prayer be permitted within the compound. A spokesman of El Har Hashem
noted that the Moslem Waqf has obliterated or otherwise damaged Jewish
artifacts and archeological remains from the First and Second Temples.
"The status quo is a fiction," he asserted. "In recent years, two new
[Moslem] underground prayer halls have been opened. The renovation
works have damaged historical finds from the Jewish period, and we
assume that this is being done purposely. The Barak government, faced
with this new affront, should have... announced that a new special
Jewish entrance to the site is to be opened. In addition, a location
for Jewish communal prayer, away from the Moslem buildings in the
compound, could have been established." Yehuda Etzion of Chai Vekayam
commented, "This is another expression of the increasing brazenness of
the Waqf, in light of the continuing failure of all Israeli
governments to enforce Israeli sovereignty on the Temple Mount." He
said that this Thursday afternoon at the same spot, a
previously-scheduled re-enactment of a Biblical and Talmudic custom
will take place: the "declaration of the new month" of Elul. The
shofar will be blown, and special prayers will be recited, according
to customs that continued to be practiced for hundreds of years after
the destruction of the Second Temple. [The declaration of the month of
Elul is important because it is the start of the 40 days of repentance
for individual Jews which ends on Yom Kippur, the day of atonement.
During the days of the Temple, Yom Kippur is when the high priest
entered the Holy of Holies to cover the Mercy Seat of the Ark of the
Covenant with the blood of the sacrifice for all of Israel's sins for
the year. Elul starts the days where all Israelites turn to the
Almight to repent of their sins. To the best of the Editor's
knowledge, this is the first time the shofar will blow to start the 40
days since the first century.]
via: bible_prophecy-news@onelist.com
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Eclipse
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Wed, 11 Aug 1999 16:13:14 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
I watched the Discovery channel's coverage of the eclipse this
morning (7-9 am eastern) and jotted down a few notes.
*There was quite a strange mix of guests commenting on the
proceedings --an astronomer, astrologer, shaman, witch,
memorabilia collector, etc. Stranger yet, they all seemed to want to
present a united front by labeling themselves either scientific or
nonscientific professionals all discussing the same thing.
*The next solar eclipse will be over South Africa in 2001 on the
summer solstice.
*Cassini is a collaboration between Americans/NASA, Europeans and
Italians. Another strange mix. (For more info on Cassini, please see
BPR Research files at http://philologos.org/bpr/research.htm)
*Our moon is one of 66 moons in the solar system (I believe they keep
finding new ones, so this number probably changes).
*The solar eclipse of 1927 went over northern Russia and they
subsequently had severe storms in those areas.
*The solar eclipse of 1941 went over Pearl Harbor ten weeks before
the Japanese attacked.
*The current pope and Prince William were born on eclipse days.
*They showed a few shots where the moon completely covered the sun
except for a small area that looked like a ring almost all the way
around and ending with a large, bright sun spot. It looked just like
a diamond engagement ring and made me think of a wedding. Jesus is
the light of the world/sun and Israel/the church is his bride--this
is the usual interpretation of the sun and moon in Biblical circles.
Both the gold wedding band without the stone and the traditional
engagement ring with stone were depicted in the sky.
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - "Wake-up call to America to kill Jews"
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Wed, 11 Aug 1999 16:20:50 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
*** Alleged L.A. gunman surrenders
LAS VEGAS (AP) - The balding man who allegedly wounded five people at
a Jewish community center in Los Angeles turned himself in Wednesday
to the FBI here, a source told the Associated Press. FBI spokeswoman
Julie Miller in Washington confirmed the surrender. The man who
identified himself as Buford O. Furrow, 37, said he took a cab from
Los Angeles, an agency source said, speaking on condition of
anonymity. He told investigators "he wanted this to be a wake-up call
to America to kill Jews," an the source said. He walked into the
office and said, "You're looking for me, I killed the kids in Los
Angeles." The source said said Furrow assumed he had killed some
children there. ###
Infobeat News
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Maranatha New Briefs (8/12/99)
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Thu, 12 Aug 1999 09:13:53 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
MASSACHUSETTS -- Lycos Inc., one of the Web's most common
portal sites, says it won't renew a banner advertisement
from Jews for Jesus because of some complaints from the
Jewish community. The ad promoted a free book, Future Hope
-- A Jewish Christian Look at the End of the World, written
by the group's executive director, David Brickner.
Full Story: http://www.mcjonline.com/news/news3320.htm
TEXAS -- A Texas church took the unusual step of publicly
expelling a former Sunday school teacher and longstanding
member for adultery. Colleyville Presbyterian Church's firm
actions, which included a tearful service featuring a
"censure of excommunication" and prayer for "God's blessing
on the censure," may be part of a wider reaction to social
and cultural trends, reports The Dallas Morning News.
Full Story: http://www.mcjonline.com/news/news3321.htm
CHINA -- Within a year of arriving in a small rural
community in Shandong Province, Eastern Lighting -- a sect
which teaches about a "female Christ" -- had completely
taken over four churches and claimed 300 followers,
according to one local Christian. Different from other
groups, Eastern Lightning only recruits from already
established Christian congregations, believing that
"heaven's doors are already closed."
Full Story: http://www.mcjonline.com/news/news3322.htm
BELGRADE -- The bishops of Yugoslavia's biggest church, the
Serbian Orthodox Church, have called on Yugoslav President
Slobodan Milosevic to hand over power to a transitional
government, which they hope will restore the country's
economy and hold extraordinary elections. The demand by the
church follows a call in June at the end of NATO's 11-week
bombing campaign against the Belgrade government, for
President Milosevic's resignation.
Full Story: http://www.mcjonline.com/news/news3323.htm
--- BPR
BPR Web Site - http://philologos.org/bpr
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Infobeat News items (8/12/99)
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Thu, 12 Aug 1999 09:18:52 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
*** Eclipse spurs prayers, pizza
CAIRO, Egypt (AP) - Earthquakes and an unseasonable hailstorm
intensified solar eclipse unease in the Middle East. "Is this going to
be the end of the world?" said Andreas Christou, who fled his home in
Cyprus after a series of earthquakes jolted large parts of the Middle
East early Wednesday. One woman was killed in Iran and 15 people were
injured in other countries. In eastern Lebanon, an unseasonable
hailstorm pelted the Bekaa Valley town of Baalbek on Tuesday night.
Lebanese newspapers said residents blamed the impending eclipse.
Muslim tradition holds that the Prophet Mohammed, the founder of Islam
who lived more than 1,400 years ago, prayed for the duration of an
eclipse. Millions emulated him Wednesday and attended special eclipse
prayers in mosques from Algeria to Iran. See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2560669634-922 ***
Also: Eclipse causes economic slowdown, see
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2560669520-871
*** Sale of 'Mein Kampf' probed
FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) - Bavarian officials said Wednesday they are
looking into possible legal steps to stop U.S. Internet companies from
selling Hitler's "Mein Kampf," which is banned along with other Nazi
propaganda in Germany. In an interview on Hesse state radio in
Frankfurt, Bavarian finance ministry spokesman Horst Wolff said the
western allies gave Bavaria, a southeast German state, all rights to
"Mein Kampf" after World War II. He said Bavaria intends to protect
those rights. Germany's foreign ministry has been asked to check what
legal action Bavaria could take against U.S. booksellers that offer
the book in Germany, Wolff said. See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2560672769-5be
*** Israel, Palestinians hold talks
JERUSALEM (AP) - Israeli and Palestinian negotiators held talks
Wednesday against a backdrop of violence to try to iron out
disagreements over the promised pullback of Israeli troops from the
West Bank. Israeli soldiers clashed with about 200 Palestinians
protesting the demolition of three Palestinian homes in the West Bank
just hours before the talks began. Soldiers sealed off several
Palestinian villages elsewhere in a hunt for suspects in the
ambush-style shooting of a Jewish settler Tuesday night. Women wearing
long traditional robes screamed at heavily armed, but outnumbered,
Israeli border policemen who guarded the workers tearing down the
homes. See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2560671884-c5b
*** Arab League condemns Israeli move
CAIRO, Egypt (AP) - The Arab League condemned Wednesday Israel's
closure of an opening in a wall of the Al Aqsa Mosque compound in
Jerusalem, saying it harmed sanctity of the holy site. The league said
Tuesday's move by Israeli police contradicted the statements of Prime
Minister Ehud Barak who has promised to reactivate the Mideast peace
process. Muslim leaders have said the opening is part of renovations
being carried out by the Islamic Trust and that Israeli authorities
have no right to interfere. The Israeli government said the
enlargement violated a status-quo agreement. See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2560674423-b41
*** German man back on trial in Iran
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) - A German businessman went back on
trial Wednesday on charges of having sex with an unmarried Iranian
woman, after having a previous death sentence annulled. There were no
details from the first day of the retrial of Helmut Hofer, and neither
officials nor defense lawyers would comment on the two-hour session in
a Tehran court. Germany has maintained that Hofer should have been
released and has warned Tehran that relations will be damaged if the
56-year-old businessman is sentenced to death. Hofer was first
sentenced to be hanged in Jan. 1998 for having sex with a 26-year-old
law student. Under Iranian law, sex outside marriage is punishable by
flogging, but if the man is not Muslim, he faces the death penalty.
See http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2560670763-c25
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Religion Today items (8/12/99)
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Thu, 12 Aug 1999 09:23:18 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
"You'll never know if doctors are coming to cure you or kill
you," Bert Dorenbos, leader of the Dutch pro-life group Cry for
Life, told Reuters. He was reacting to an announcement that the
Netherlands plans to legalize mercy killing, making it the first
country in the world to do so.
...The plan, expected to gain parliamentary approval next year,
would allow children as young as 12 to demand and receive mercy
killing, also called euthanasia, under certain guidelines, news
reports said. The guidelines require that the patient make a
voluntary and informed request, and be suffering irremediable and
unbearable pain. All other medical options must be exhausted and a
second opinion must be sought. ...The euthanasia must be "carefully
carried out," and physicians must report each case to the coroner and
to one of five regional panels, made up of a lawyer, a doctor, and an
ethics expert. The panel can recommend prosecution if it believes the
doctor has not followed the guidelines. ...The Dutch government is
"mopping up the last remaining scraps of Christian morals from the law
books," the strict Protestant State Reformed Party, which holds two
seats in the Dutch parliament, said.
A controversy over the Boy Scouts ban on admitting homosexuals
has spread to churches. The United Methodist Church soon will be
asked to decide whether its ban on discrimination based on sexual
orientation applies to Scouting, a church official told The Washington
Times. UMC congregations sponsor more than 421,000 Scouts in 11,738
Scout units nationwide. Those that are chartering organizations for a
Boy Scout troop or Cub Scout pack can control who the leaders are.
..."We believe nondiscrimination is the order of the day," Jane Hall
Harvey, UMC assistant general secretary, said. The church=C6s Commission
on United Methodist Men is engaged in a drive to triple the number of
affiliated troops so that there is one in all 37,000 Methodist
churches. Joseph Harris, who heads the commission, believes so
strongly that homosexuals should be banned from Scouting that he
joined the Mormon church in a friend-of-the-court brief supporting the
Scouts in a recent New Jersey case. ...Churches nationwide sponsor 62%
of Boy Scout troops, accounting for 55% of all boys in Scouting.
Mormon churches sponsor 412,240 Scouts. Other denominations that
sponsor large numbers include the Roman Catholic, Baptist, Lutheran,
Presbyterian, Episcopal, Disciples of Christ, and United Church of
Christ.
Minnesota Christians have won a victory for religious rights. A
federal court ruled Aug. 10 that the state Department of
Corrections was wrong to discipline employees who read Bibles in
silent protest during a training session on homosexuality in the
workplace, Reuters said. "There was never any reason for our
clients to be forced to listen to state-sponsored indoctrination
about the acceptability of the homosexual lifestyle," attorney
Francis Manion of the American Center for Law and Justice (see
link #2 below) said. The court ordered that written reprimands
given to the employees be withdrawn. "This is a major victory for the
rights of religious believers who are singled out and punished for
their religious beliefs," Manion said.
RELATED LINKS:
2: http://www.aclj.org/
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Dagestan/Enemies of the Internet
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Thu, 12 Aug 1999 12:50:35 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
INDEPENDENT ISLAMIST STATE DECLARED IN DAGESTAN
August 11, 1999
The BBC reported yesterday: "Islamists have declared the Russian
province of Dagestan an independent state and called for a holy war
against Russia. The Shura of Dagestan, an Islamic council not
recognized by Moscow, reportedly signed the independence declaration
at a secret meeting. The declaration comes amid one of the most
serious outbreaks of violence in the region since the Chechen war
ended in 1996. =E6We, the Muslims of Dagestan, officially declare the
return of independence to the Islamic state of Dagestan,=C6 the text
states. Reports said it was signed at a meeting in one of the
Dagestani towns under the control of Chechen insurgents who crossed
into the Russian republic at the weekend. Police believe the rebels
are linked to the Wahhabi Islamic movement seeking to bring Dagestan
under Islamic law..."
20 NATIONS BRANDED ENEMIES OF THE INTERNET
August 11, 1999
The BBC reported yesterday: "Twenty countries have been branded
enemies of the Internet by the journalists' rights group Reporters
Sans Frontieres (RSF). The group has named countries they say control
access and censure websites. The worst offenders are said to have
'censured sites and attacked Internet users.' They were China, North
Korea, Cuba, Iraq, Iran, Libya, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Sierra Leone,
Sudan, Tunisia, Vietnam and Myanmar. The former Soviet republics of
Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and
Turkmenistan and Belarus were also named. They are among 45 countries
who totally or partially control access to the internet, said a report
from the group=E0RSF said Internet users got around the censorship by
using links connected over international, mobile or satellite
telephone lines."
via: "Pre-trib only" <rapture77@bigfoot.com>
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Infobeat News items (8/12/99)
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Thu, 12 Aug 1999 18:22:37 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
*** Vatican keeps envoy in Hong Kong
HONG KONG (AP) - The Vatican has kept an unofficial representative in
Hong Kong even though it has no diplomatic ties with Beijing, the Holy
See said Thursday. The news apparently surprised top local officials
and diplomats - including Hong Kong's chief executive, Tung Chee-hwa.
It is a sensitive issue, one that Beijing has made no official
pronouncement on, and had been a well-kept secret until the South
China Morning Post blew Monsignor Fernando Filoni's cover. The Post
reported that Filoni is believed to have played a key role in attempts
to include Hong Kong in Pope John Paul II's Asian tour this fall. The
Vatican's efforts to get Beijing's approval for a visit failed. See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2560681090-e8c
*** Geneva Convention marks anniversary
GENEVA (AP) - International figures Thursday marked the 50th
anniversary of the signing of the Geneva Conventions and appealed for
atrocities and war crimes to be made a thing of the past. U.N. chief
Kofi Annan and Prince Hassan of Jordan were among those who signed a
declaration urging combatants to respect the treaties, which protect
civilians, the injured and prisoners during war. The four conventions
were signed in the Alabama Room at Geneva's town hall on Aug. 12,
1949, and have since been adopted by 188 nations. See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2560683357-433
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Rural Kentucky school district displays Ten Commandments
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Thu, 12 Aug 1999 18:27:25 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
Rural Kentucky school
district displays Ten
Commandments
August 11, 1999
Web posted at: 6:47 PM EDT (2247 GMT)
MCKEE, Kentucky (AP) -- With essentially no
community opposition, volunteers placed the Ten
Commandments in every classroom in a rural eastern
Kentucky school district before classes began on
Wednesday.
The Jackson County school board and superintendent
made the decision as part of "an effort to start
having good morals in school ... because of all the
violent issues that have been showing up," said
Betty Bond, principal of Jackson County High School.
Timothy Crawford, the district's attorney, said he's
concerned about lawsuits, but believes the Ten
Commandment plaques in the district's five schools
are allowed by law because they were paid for and
posted by local volunteers.
Robert Lakes, a business teacher at Jackson County
High School, said the Ten Commandments were posted
in the classroom when he was growing up.
"It's like the flag," Lakes said. "We've been
tearing down symbols that have been in this country"
for a long time.
Jackson County isn't the only school district in
Kentucky or the country where the Ten Commandments
are on display in schools. Tonya Adams, principal of
Union Chapel Elementary School in Russell County,
which has had the Ten Commandments posted for years,
said she's never received any complaints about it.
In Adams County, Ohio, a group of ministers paid to
place Ten Commandments tablets outside four high
schools to counter "moral decline."
Jeff Vessels, executive director of the American
Civil Liberties of Kentucky, said the organization
just became aware of the situation in Jackson
County, and has not had time to consider a response.
"We're very concerned," he said in a telephone
interview from Louisville.
In 1980, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in a Kentucky
case that posting the Ten Commandments violated the
Constitution's ban on government-established
religion.
In June, the U.S. House passed a measure allowing
the Ten Commandments to be posted in schools and
other government buildings. The bill now goes to the
Senate.
http://cnn.com/US/9908/11/ten.commandments.ap/index.html
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Digital Organism Mimics Life--in Computer World
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Fri, 13 Aug 1999 08:44:28 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/1999/08/12/M N42502.DTL -
Digital Organism Mimics Life -- in Computer World
In cyberspace, reproduction is like biochemistry
Guy Gugliotta, Washington Post Thursday, August 12, 1999
They reproduce, they evolve and they mutate, all the while competing
with other species for scarce resources. And if they fail to adapt,
they die. It's a bug's life.
But not just any bug. These bugs are not actually ``living'' creatures
at all -- they're computer programs that function like real organisms.
They live in a virtual world created in a computer's memory by an
elaborate master program -- in effect mimicking life.
Researchers released the digital organisms in their computer
environment to watch them ``evolve'' and record the results in a
controlled experiment, the most elaborate use to date of the
``artificial life'' technique.
``We simulated a world,'' said Christoph Adami, a senior research
fellow in computation and neural systems at the California Institute
of Technology. ``These creatures have no idea that there's any other
world but this. The world is unreal but the creatures that live in it
are not.''
While scientists have created software that imitates evolution for the
past decade, the new work, reported today in the scientific journal
Nature, takes artificial life out of the realm of scientific curiosity
and puts it to work as a research tool.
As a first step, the team created a digital organism composed of a
string of relatively simple computer instructions. The organism was a
``bug,'' said Michigan State University microbiologist Richard Lenski,
the team leader, and the string was the cyber-equivalent of ``DNA''
because it carried instructions for all the organism's functions.
The digital organism's program contained a copy command, so that the
organism would ``reproduce'' itself, much like a computer virus, but
unlike the virus, the digital organisms only functioned in the virtual
environment the computer created for them.
Moreover, because the copy function had a built-in imperfection, a
copy of the organism would have an error, or ``mutation,'' in it about
every 1,000 times.
Sometimes the mutation would allow the organism to perform a
mathematical function that the environment ``rewarded'' by allowing
the organism to reproduce faster, crowding out its rivals and,
perhaps, driving them to ``extinction.'' This was the computer
equivalent of ``natural'' selection.
The team let the first bug evolve into 200 new bugs, or ``species,''
manipulating the environment so some species remained ``simple'' --
able only to replicate themselves -- while others adapted and grew
more ``complex.''
In the second stage of the experiment, the team watched the organisms
evolve as mutations were added, then measured their ``fitness'' --
their ability to reproduce during successive cycles.
The simpler organisms ``fell apart at a faster and faster rate'' as
they mutated, Lenski said, but the more complex ones were ``buffered''
and far less affected.
The results suggest that ``there seem to be governing principles that
exist in life,'' whether they are demonstrated in biochemistry or in
cyberspace, Adami said.
The team discovered that the more complex digital organisms could
absorb random mutations with fewer ill effects than simpler ones, and
that mutations did not necessarily have cumulative effects on an
organism -- that ``the whole could often be quite different from the
sum of its parts,'' Lenski said.
Both findings supported evidence gathered by biologists studying
bacteria, fungi and fruit flies, and suggested ``research moves you
might make in real life,'' Lenski added. Whether scientists will
embrace ``artificial life'' as a research tool, however, is far from
clear.
``Field biologists are dealing with the idiosyncrasies of the species
they're looking at, and they tend to be wary of all-embracing
theories,'' said Inman Harvey, a neural science and robotics
specialist at Britain's University of Sussex. ``This approach may be
taking generality and abstraction rather further than most biologists
are willing to go.''
Lenski said he understood the work was controversial, but said he is
``happy'' regardless of how the coming debate turns out: ``If digital
organisms behave like real organisms, that suggests that computer
genetic code is like human genetic code, and that's real
interesting,'' he said.
Interest in creating artificial life grew from the development of
computer modeling -- using computers to anticipate the likely
consequences of events ranging from a 1 degree rise in ocean
temperature to nuclear war.
An important advance came in the early 1990s when zoologist Thomas Ray
created a program supple enough to allow smaller digital organisms to
replicate themselves and mutate to fill the virtual environment
without crashing it.
This went beyond simulation, for the master program was designed
simply to accommodate the activities of the digital organisms, which
``evolved'' on their own. The master program did not did not react to
the organisms or impose an outcome.
Adami and research colleague Charles Ofria took the concept several
steps further. Funded by the National Science Foundation and
Microsoft, the researchers equipped their master program so it could
be used to perform actual experiments in evolution, and teamed with
Lenski, who had done extensive evolutionary work with bacteria.
There were huge potential advantages to a computerized approach. While
Lenski could produce mutations in the lab and watch their effects on
microbial evolution, the process was laborious, time consuming, hard
to control and subject to error.
By contrast, with the computer ``you can replicate your experiments
beyond your wildest dreams,'' without worrying about time or
complexity, Lenski said.
c1999 San Francisco Chronicle
via: isml@onelist.com
--- BPR
BPR Web Site - http://philologos.org/bpr
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Daywatch items (8/13/99)
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Fri, 13 Aug 1999 08:46:54 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
CHICAGO -- U.S. crime rates have been dropping throughout
the 1990s. An unpublished study being circulated among
economists suggests that legalized abortion might be a
contributing factor, because it permitted the elimination
of people more likely to commit crimes. The study suggests
that legal abortion could be responsible for about half of
the drop in crime since 1991.
Full Story: http://www.mcjonline.com/news/news3324.htm
MINNESOTA -- Three employees with the Minnesota Department
of Corrections were within their rights to protest a
mandatory diversity training session about working with
homosexuals by silently reading their Bibles, a federal
court ruled Aug. 9. U.S. District Judge Ann Montgomery
ruled that the Department of Corrections violated the
workers' rights to free exercise of religion and freedom of
conscience when it reprimanded them for not paying
attention during training.
Full Story: http://www.mcjonline.com/news/news3325.htm
PHILADELPHIA -- Dimitrius Underwood, a rookie defensive end
from Michigan State, signed a $5.3 million contract with
the Minnesota Vikings Aug. 2, then left training camp after
one practice without informing team officials. In a Aug. 9
story, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported that
Underwood, 22, was struggling between earning millions of
dollars as a professional athlete, or following what he
believes is God's calling for him to enter full-time
ministry.
Full Story: http://www.mcjonline.com/news/news3326.htm
ENGLAND -- "Jesus Day," a worldwide street celebration set
for June 10, 2000, was officially announced July 19 by
Global March for Jesus. A gathering of about 40 church
leaders, representing many major denominations, united in
support of the event. Organizers say the goal of Jesus Day
is to bring together all who love Jesus in a festival to
Him and hope the event will unite Christians of different
denominations, languages and cultures across the globe.
Full Story: http://www.mcjonline.com/news/news3327.htm
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Inside China Today items (8/13/99)
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Fri, 13 Aug 1999 08:54:37 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
HONG KONG PAPER SAYS WAR IS IMMINENT; U.S. MILITARY SEES NO SIGNS
HONG KONG -- Military conflict in the Taiwan Strait could erupt at any
moment, a Beijing-backed Hong Kong newspaper reported in front-page
headlines Friday. http://www.insidechina.com/news.php3?id=85252&text
U.S. LEADER 'DISTURBED' BY REPORT ON CHINESE FIRM AND PANAMA CANAL
WASHINGTON -- U.S. Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott says in a letter
to U.S. Defense Secretary William Cohen released Thursday that a
report on a Chinese firm securing control of key rights over the
Panama Canal is "very disturbing."
http://www.insidechina.com/news.php3?id=85271&text
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Bridges for Peace items (8/13/99)
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Fri, 13 Aug 1999 09:01:49 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
IMAN CALLS FOR DESTRUCTION OF JEWS & CHRISTIANS ON PA TV
"O Allah! Bless all true believers in their sacred Muslim
struggle against the wicked infidels. Help us to destroy the
cursed Jewish invaders who have stolen Muslim land, raped Muslim
women, and murdered Muslim babies.
"Help us in our struggle against the Christian infidel non-
believers who place their disgusting idolatrous symbols on their
Satanic churches in defiance of the will of Allah, blessed be
his name. " [they seem to overlook the fact that the crescent
moon adorning their Mosques was the symbol of the moon god, Allah]
"Help us defeat the cursed giant America, that nation of
Christian whores whose women are all prostitutes and whose
children are all pornographers.
"The non-believers want to destroy your mosques and holy
places. The infidels disrespect your holy Koran. The Jewish
devils and Christian crusaders have overrun the Muslim City of
Al Kuds [Jerusalem].
"Help us to regain control of all areas that the Jewish
soldiers have trampled upon. Help us to regain control of the
rest of Gaza from the fascist hordes of Jewish settlers. Help
us to regain control of the Negev, the Galilee and the Golan
Heights.
"Help us to defeat these Jewish infidel non-believers who are
your enemies. These Jewish soldiers of Meir Kahane and Ehud
Barak who wish to tear down Mecca and Medina." (PATV,
Palestinian Television, July 23, 1999)
KINNERET (SEA OF GALILEE) REACHING DANGER LEVEL
According to Tzvi Ortenberg of the Kinneret Water Authority,
the Kinneret will reach the red line of 213 meters (692 feet)
below sea level in about 50 days. It is believed the danger
level will be reached by October 1.( Some experts explain that
permitting the water level to drop below the red line would
result in an ecological catastrophe and it must be avoided at
all costs. (IsraelWire, August 9, 1999)
BRAVO FOR BURGER KING
A campaign is being waged, by the Arabs against Israel in
calling for a boycott of Burger King restaurants. The
international chain has opened a restaurant in a new shopping
mall in Ma'aleh Adumim, a rapidly growing neighborhood of 30,000
(with a unique Judean Desert view). Ma'aleh Adumim is located 10
minutes east of Jerusalem, overlooking the road to Jericho, and
is disputed territory.
Originally, a ten member coalition led by American Muslims for
Jerusalem, with headquarters in Washington, D.C., announced a
boycott against the fast food chain because it was allegedly, "a
party to illegal occupation."
Subsequently, the Arab League joined the AMJ in calling for the
boycott of Burger King. The Arab League will meet September 4-
5 to decide if they will force closures of already established
restaurants in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates,
and Qatar. The boycott would also affect the fast food chain in
Malaysia and other nations where Muslims and Arabs make up the
majority of customers.
To its credit, to date, Burger King has chosen to ignore the
threats and strong-arm tactics. Although it has agreed to "reach
out to those groups who have taken issue with our presence ..."
Christian and Jewish organizations in the U.S. and Israel are
just beginning to respond. The National Unity Coalition For
Israel, a group of 200 Jewish and Christian organizations
representing 40 million Americans, released a statement which
read in part: "Sadly, the campaign to harm Burger King reflects
the current mentality of Israel's 'peace partners.' Their
opposition to American corporations doing business in Israel is
an attempt to further their own political agenda at the expense
of the free enterprise system in the Middle East. Because the
settlements of Judea and Samaria are totally legal, it is only
through boycotts and intense Arab propaganda that these thriving
communities are being mislabeled 'obstacles to peace....' This
is a 'red herring' intended to influence the uninformed."
Americans for a Safe Israel chairman, Herbert Zweibon, says,
"The campaign by the Arab world to protest the opening of the
Burger King restaurant doesn't speak well for the peace process.
In the new Middle East, where trade and commerce are supposed to
be the offshoots of "peace," it is an ominous sign that American
enterprise is thwarted with threats of boycott because a
restaurant is opened in a disputed area of Israel. The community
of Ma'aleh Adumim, with its 28,000 residents, is very much a
part of Israel and will always stay that way. No negotiations
will change that.
The Arabs will have to accept that fact. We applaud Burger
King on their steadfastness and urge them not to succumb to
Arab blackmail."
Zionist Organization of America Executive-Director Morton Klein
noted "the broad consensus in Israel is that Maaleh Adumim will
always be a part of the state, and that it will soon become part
of the Jerusalem Municipality in the near future."
We encourage Christians who support Israel to contact Mr.
Dennis Malamatinas, Chief Executive Officer for Burger King
Corporation (Tel: 305-378-7770, Fax: 305-378-7403, email:
<cedwards@whopper.com>) to support the company's original
decision in face of the Arab boycott. (AFSI, Arutz 7 August 12,
1999)
INTERIOR MINISTER SHARANSKY WANTS TO EXTEND SUMMER TIME
Interior Minister Natan Sharansky has stated that he wishes to
extend summer time in future. This year, summer time will end
on September 3, 1999. The law regarding summer time states: "The
Interior Ministry will from time to time set the dates [for
summer time] for a period of three years in advance. The
Minister, in coordination with the Interior Committee, may
change these dates on the condition that the changes are made at
least six months in advance."
The previous Interior Minister set the dates for summer for
1999-2001. (GPO, August 10, 1999)
SOLAR ECLIPSE GRABS JERUSALEM IMAGINATION
In a city where omens, portents and apocalyptic visions are
practically a local industry, the solar eclipse (August 11)
captured the imagination of mystics of all stripes.
Even though Israel and the Palestinian lands do not lie
directly in the eclipse path, the partial darkening of the
heavens is viewed by many Christians, Jews and Muslims alike as
an awesome display of divine power.
And for a few, those moonshadow moments offer a foretaste of
millennial doom.
In the realm of the secular, the eclipse offered a rare
opportunity for scientists. Naturalists were able to observe the
behavior of Israel's rare vultures and night-blooming plants,
and monitor endangered sea turtles whose normal night-hatching
habits might have been thrown off by the eclipse.
Israel's Science Museum played host to hundreds of school
children, offering daylong education programs, a viewing area
protected by special filters and eclipse-viewing glasses, which
they sold for $4 a pair.
But the eclipse, like so many daily events here, was pervaded
by religious overtones.
At Islam's third-holiest shrine, the Al Aqsa mosque in
Jerusalem, Muslims offered a special eclipse-linked prayer,
dating back 15 centuries, which appeals for God's mercy. The
mosque was shuttered and darkened for the occasion, religious
officials said.
Jerusalem's highest Islamic authority, Mufti Ekrimeh Sabri,
said worshippers could also offer the eclipse prayer at home.
(Yasser Arafat's Palestinian Authority urged people to stay home
during the eclipse.)
Wednesday was a national holiday in the West Bank and Gaza
Strip, with businesses and government offices shut down. Mothers
were urged to keep their children indoors rather than risking
eye damage by allowing them outside.
For apocalyptic Christians who have been flocking to Jerusalem
in anticipation of the millennium, the celestial display offered
fresh confirmation that the end of the world is nigh.
"The eclipse goes together with everything else in the sky...
To me, it means that something is coming about,'' said a 27-year-
old Seattle man who gave only his first name, Raymond. He came
to Jerusalem two years ago because "God woke me up and told me
there was no more time to mess around, he was going to come
back.''
"The Bible says there will be signs in the heavens,'' said
Sharon, a fiftyish woman from Sacramento, California, one of a
group of several dozen Christian pilgrims who have settled on
the Mount of Olives to await the second coming of Christ.
"All together, with all the other signs ... this is leading up
to the Rapture,'' she said of the eclipse.
Mainstream Christian theology attaches no special significance
to eclipses, but biblical references to them abound. Eclipses
also appear in Jewish folklore, often as a symbol of
introspection and repentance, said Rabbi David Rosen, an
educator and anti-defamation activist.
He cited a Jewish blessing that applies to natural phenomena
such as thunder and lightning, praising a God who "performs the
wonders of the universe... Saying this particular blessing
during an eclipse would certainly not be out of place,'' he said.
This being the Middle East, the eclipse is also providing a
forum for political argument.
The eclipse also became a matter for brief consideration at a
weekend meeting of Israel's Cabinet. Minister without portfolio
Haim Ramon, an astronomy buff, who wanted to travel to Romania,
where the eclipse was visible for longer than anywhere else in
the world. Under Israeli law, ministers need permission to leave
the country which the Cabinet granted.
Nevertheless, eclipse fever isn't universal. National police
spokeswoman, Linda Menuhin, said no particular problems were
anticipated and police would not be out in any larger numbers
than usual.
Many Israelis displayed a matter-of-factness in the face of the
eclipse.
"I'll watch it if I have time, but it's no big deal,'' said
retired printer Yosef Shemesh, carrying sacks of vegetables from
a crowded open-air market in the center of Jerusalem. "It's just
the nature of the universe.'' (Excerpted from an article by
LAURA KING, AP, August 11, 1999)
http://www.bridgesforpeace.com
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - News items August 13, 1999
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Fri, 13 Aug 1999 12:14:47 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
NEW DON'T ASK, DON'T TELL BOY SCOUT POLICY
August 12, 1999
CNN reported today: "A controversy over a gay Eagle Scout in
Rhode Island has forced a local chapter of the Boy Scouts of
America to acknowledge publicly that a Scout can be a homosexual -- as
long as he doesn't advertise it. Legal experts say the case suggests
the organization may be relaxing its ban on gays, even as it prepares
to protect it in the nation's highest court. 'It sounds to me like the
Boy Scouts are in retreat,' said Mary Bonauto, an attorney with the
Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders in Boston. 'They acknowledge
the sexual orientation of their members is none of their business.'
The statement -- similar to the military's 'don't ask, don't tell'
policy toward gays -- was issued by the Narragansett Council of the
Scouts...The statement reaffirmed the Scouts' position that being gay
is 'inconsistent with' the oath all Scouts must take in which they vow
to be 'morally straight' and 'clean in thought, word and deed.' Still,
the statement suggested that Scouts who are covertly gay won't be
pushed out, by specifying that the organization 'does not accept those
who openly self-identify as homosexuals.'..."
---------------------------------------------
RECORD HURRICANE SEASON PREDICTED
August 12, 1999
Associated Press reported: "This year's slow start to hurricane
season shouldn't fool anyone, government scientists say. With
the peak period about to begin, meteorologists are predicting
more storms than usual. Scientists say three or more intense
Atlantic storms are possible, and residents living
along the East and Gulf coasts should remain prepared. Last
year's hurricane season produced 14 tropical storms, including
three major hurricanes. In a typical season, the United States
experiences five to six hurricanes, two of
which are severe and an average of 1.5 storms make landfall...Hurrican
season officially runs from June 1 to Nov. 30, but tropical storms
don't really rev up until mid-August. The peak period runs from
mid-August to mid-October."
-------------------------------------
CHINESE FIRMS STILL SHAKY ON MILLENNIUM BUG
August 12,1999
Reuters reported yesterday: "China has made good progress making air
travel, banking and telecommunications safe from the millennium bug,
but thousands of state-owned firms are still fumbling for solutions, a
key official said on Wednesday. The official also predicted rampant
lawsuits by angry firms seeking to blame computer companies or
business partners for lost revenues if the bug strikes. 'We still have
major shortfalls in terms of addressing Y2K, and this is particularly
true for enterprises,' Zhang Qi, the official in charge of China's Y2K
preparation, told a conference on the issue..."
---------------------------------------
FORMER SURGEON GENERAL URGES LEGALIZATION OF PROSTITUTION IN
U.S.
August 12, 1999
Associated Press reported yesterday: "Former Surgeon General
Joycelyn Elders advocated legalized prostitution and frank
sexual education at an appearance here Monday, the same type
of talk that made her controversial during her brief tenure
as the nation's chief health officer. Elders was in
Butte as part of a series of events to promote the restoration
of the Dumas Brothel. The International Sex Worker Foundation
for Art, Culture and Education plans to turn the brothel, which
was closed in 1982, into a museum and their international headquarters
-------------------------------------------
NEW KILLER BEE ATTACK IN MEXICO
August 12, 1999
The Nando Times reported yesterday: "Killer bees disrupted
a burial in the western Mexican state of Nayarit on Tuesday
and stung 60 people, official news agency Notimex reported.
The Africanized honeybees swarmed out of a
nest in the ground as mourners were at a burial in the cemetery
of the village of Puerta de Magos, Notimex said 'Africanized
honey bees are a hybrid of European bees and an aggressive
African import introduced to Brazil in 1956 for interbreeding.
Some 26 colonies escaped into the wild in 1957, and the insects
have been moving steadily north through Latin America at a rate
of about 300 miles a year. The aggressive bees reached Texas in
1990. They have killed people in Argentina and Costa Rica."
---------------------------------------------
POPULATION IN INDIA ESTIMATED TO REACH 1 BILLION ON AUGUST
15
August 12, 1999
The BBC reported yesterday: "On Sunday 15 August India is expected to
join China as the only other nation on Earth with a billion people.
But, on present projections, India looks set to overtake China by
2045. A report by the Worldwatch Institute, based in Washington DC,
says the birth of the billionth Indian 'is not a cause for
celebration.' It says half of India's adults are illiterate, more than
half of its children are undernourished, and a third of its people
live below the poverty line..."
--------------------------------------------
AMERICAN CHEMICAL INDUSTRY MAY NOT BE READY FOR Y2K
August 12, 1999
Reuters reported Tuesday: "Two U.S. senators today urged the
White House to hold a special Year 2000 chemical industry summit to
increase the readiness of the industry for the end-of-year computer
glitch. Robert Bennett (R-Utah) and Christopher Dodd (D-Connecticut)
said the nation's more than 69,000 hazardous chemical facilities were
not necessarily Year 2000-ready despite earlier optimistic assessments
by President Clinton's advisers...The senators, who lead the Senate
Special Committee on the Year 2000 Technology Problems, said
Koskinen's recent report on national Y2K readiness used two poorly
responded surveys conducted by the Chemical Manufacturers Association
and a coalition of seven chemical industry associations representing
smaller companies..."
----------------------------------------------
INDIA AND PAKISTAN TENSIONS MOUNTING AGAIN QUICKLY
August 12, 1999
Time reported: "India and Pakistan don't need much excuse to
start fighting, so Tuesday's shooting down of a Pakistani military
plane will be a real test of the two countries' restraint. Just weeks
after Pakistan -- under intense international pressure -- withdrew Kashmir,
Indian combat planes shot down a Pakistani coastal patrol plane
killing all 16 people on board,including five naval officers. India
said the plane was downed while flying over its airspace; Pakistan
insisted the plane was on the Pakistani side of the border and said
the location of the wreckage would prove it..."
Meanwhile, Associated Press reported today: "Pakistan fired
a missile at Indian aircraft flying near the crash site of
a Pakistani surveillance plane today, the second aerial clash
in the disputed border region in two days.
Pakistani military spokesman Brig. Rashid Quereshi said his
forces fired on two Indian fighter jets escorting three helicopters to
the crash site. An Associated Press reporter was among a group of
journalists aboard the helicopters. 'Two Mig 21 fighters...ap troops
who were there engaged them and fired one time,' Quereshi said. He
said a surface-to-air missile was used, but refused to elaborate.
Indian Group Capt. P. S. Bhangu said that from the cockpit he saw a
missile flash coming from the direction of the Pakistani border, and
immediately the three choppers veered away from the area..."
via: "Pre-trib only" <rapture77@bigfoot.com>
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Large Meteorite falls in Italy
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Fri, 13 Aug 1999 09:52:17 -0500
From: <owner-bpr@philologos.org>
--- begin forwarded message ----
Here is a news story from Italy's ANSA. This is the original story in
Italian followed by a ~very~ rough translation. We'll have to see
whether the USA news agencies pick up the story, or whether it goes
unreported as with the July 30th fireball over Rome - Hal
http://www.ansa.it/settori/societa/199908131244367506.html
GROSSO METEORITE CADUTO LA SCORSA NOTTE VICINO
GALLIPOLI
(ANSA) - LECCE, 13 AGO - Un grosso meteorite, le cui dimensioni
non sono state sinora verificate tecnicamente, e'caduto la scorsa notte
nelle campagne di Nardo' (Lecce) a qualche chilometro dalla strada
statale per Gallipoli, frantumandosi in vari pezzi nell'impatto con la
terra. Decine di persone hanno detto di aver assistito al fenomeno:
tutti parlano di "una palla di fuoco" che ha solcato il cielo e si e' divisa
in due tronconi prima di precipitare al suolo. Nel luogo in cui e'
atterrato, il meteorite ha provocato un incendio di sterpaglie, che e'
stato spento dopo qualche tempo dai vigili del fuoco.
Il fenomeno ha suscitato panico tra i numerosi villeggianti delle marine
vicine e degli abitanti di Nardo'. Un primo sopralluogo nella zona
e'stato compiuto stamani da tecnici del Cnr e dai vigili del fuoco; dai
primi accertamenti e' stata esclusa la presenza di materiale radioattivo.
Dopo aver fatto recintare la zona, i tecnici del Cnr sono attualmente
impegnati nell' esame dei reperti.
Here is a very rough translation...
Large Meteorite Fell Last night near Gallipoli
Ansa. Lecce, 13th August.
A big meteorite, whose size has not yet been calculated technically,
has fallen last night in the countryside of Nardo' (Lecce), some km.
away from the main road to Gallipoli. (the meteorite) has broken in
pieces hitting the ground. Dozens of people said to have witnessed
the phenomenon: everybody talk of a 'great ball of fire' that has
crossed the sky and was divided in two pieces before crashing in the
ground. In the landing place, the meteorite has caused a fire of the
bushes, that has been extinguished some hours after by the fire
guards.
The phenomenon caused panic among the many tourists of the
nearest sea villages, and the people of the city Nardo'. Technicians
from CNR (national research center) and fire guards went there this
morning to investigate, the first findings exclude the presence of
radioactivity. After having closed the zone with a barricade, the
technicians of CNR are studying the findings.
via: hblonde1@tampabay.rr.com
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Meteorite in New Jersey?
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Fri, 13 Aug 1999 10:02:18 -0500
From: owner-bpr@philologos.org
From: baalke@kelvin.jpl.nasa.gov (Ron Baalke)
via newsgroup: sci.space.news
Date: 9 Aug 1999 16:35 UT
The Press of Atlantic City August 6, 1999
In Ship Bottom, they're dropping like meteorites
By ROBERT FLORIDA Staff Writer, (609) 978-2012
SHIP BOTTOM -- A sizzling-hot rock, a suspected meteorite, fell
from the sky Thursday and sailed right over the heads of two
lifeguards sitting on their stand.
The egg-sized rock landed with a loud thump on the wet sand,
where it sizzled like a piece of lava, the guards said. It
landed near the surf about eight feet in front of their 11th
Street stand in this Ocean County community.
Full story here:
http://206.43.192.183/content/fri/axu64285.html
--------
The Press of Atlantic City August 7, 1999
Maybe a meteor, maybe not
* A self-proclaimed expert couldn't determine whether a rock
that landed on a Ship Bottom beach came from outer space. The
four lifeguards claiming ownership are still deciding what to do
with their seeming unearthly treasure.
By GREGORY J. VOLPE
Staff Writer, (609) 978-2015
SHIP BOTTOM -- Two lifeguards who saw a rock fall out of the
sky Thursday won't know whether it is a meteorite until further
testing.
"It's unusual whatever it is," Yoost said. He said the rock
didn't look like an earth rock, but it lacked a "fusion crust,"
or an outer layer of material charred from its passage through
the earth's atmosphere.
At the museum, scientists would analyze the 57-gram rock, which
is 2 inches long, 1.25 inches across and three-quarters of an
inch wide. The scientists would cut the rock open and perform
mineral and chemical tests to determine whether it is a meteorite.
Full story here:
http://206.43.192.183/content/sat/cas61909.html
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Astronomers baffled by dark streaks across
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Fri, 13 Aug 1999 13:07:36 -0500
From: <owner-bpr@philologos.org>
August 13, 1999
Astronomers baffled by dark streaks across sky
Astronomers admitted yesterday that they are unable to explain a
strange phenomenon which appeared in the sky just before and after
the total eclipse.
Long, dark streaks across the sky baffled watchers, including people
on the Channel Island of Alderney. BBC Radio Guernsey was
inundated with calls yesterday morning from those who had
witnessed them. One caller said she had taken a video recording, but
when she watched the tape later, the streaks had vanished.
Prof Donald Lynden-Bell, an astronomer at Cambridge University, said
the bands appeared at right angles to the direction of the Moon's
shadow. He said: "It appeared to be a line across the sky and a
darkening of the cloud about two fingers wide. It struck me as odd."
Prof Mark Bailey, director of the Armagh Observatory in Northern
Ireland, said: "I haven't seen anything in the literature that could
explain it." Prof Lynden-Bell witnessed the spectacle some 20 minutes
before totality, and saw another band which stretched two thirds of
the way across the sky after totality.
Prof Phil Charles, of Oxford University, said: "I was taking wide-angle
pictures, looking with my 17mm lens, and I saw this dark band that
went across a large fraction of the sky. It puzzled me because it was
roughly perpendicular to the direction of the Moon's shadow."
Paul Sutherland, of the Society for Popular Astronomy, said: "It was
very strange. I didn't know what they were and I have been an amateur
astronomer for years." Some reported that the bands sank gradually
downwards.
Dr Simon Mitton, astronomy specialist at Cambridge University Press,
said the bands must have been shadows cast on to the low cloud by
condensation trails from the two Concordes which tracked the path of
the eclipse. "The uneclipsed Sun is very, very bright and normally
there is insufficient contrast for you to see the shadow of a high cloud
being cast on a lower one.
"The Sun's brightness is greatly turned down because of an eclipse -
which makes the contrast easier. Nobody has ever reported seeing
this in an eclipse. It is a rare meteorological phenomenon."
But Dr Helen Walker, of the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, in
Oxfordshire, who saw four bands, dismissed this theory. She said:
"This was a uniform band of shadow and there was no shearing. You
might get one such trail, but not four." She believes it resulted from ice
crystals forming in the upper atmosphere due to the sudden drop in
temperature.
via: hblonde1@tampabay.rr.com
source:http://www.telegraph.co.uk/et?ac=001851641145319&rtmo=fM
w0Ylrs&atmo=FFFFFFtX&pg=/et/99/8/13/necl313.html
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - UN to Iraq: Pay Israelis Hit By Scuds
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Sat, 14 Aug 1999 12:28:38 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
UN TO IRAQ: PAY ISRAELIS HIT BY SCUDS
Baghdad has been ordered by the United Nations Claims Committee
to pay out $5 million in compensation to Israelis who suffered
bodily harm or other types of injury during the Gulf War that
adversely affected their ability to work, HA'ARETZ reported. The
Justice Ministry was informed earlier this week that the
Committee had processed the claims of 230 Israelis who had filed
compensation suits of up to $100,000 each against Iraq for
damages suffered as a result of Baghdad's actions.
The plaintiffs will soon receive an advance payment of $2,500,
with claims not in excess of this amount to be settled at this
stage. The Committee also ruled that seven additional Israeli
claims in excess of $100,000 should be reduced, and stipulated
that Iraq must pay the seven plaintiffs a total of $237,000.
An additional 30 such claims are still being processed. The
Justice Ministry has said that it does not know when the
compensation will be received. The money is docked by Western
countries purchasing oil from Iraq.
via: Consulate of Israel - New York <nycon@interport.net>
--- BPR
BPR Web Site - http://philologos.org/bpr
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Futuristic "bio-chip" eliminates lab work
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Sat, 14 Aug 1999 12:32:08 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
http://news.excite.com/news/uw/990812/university-38
-
Futuristic "bio-chip" eliminates lab work
Updated 12:00 PM ET August 12, 1999
By Gina D. Felton
The Lantern
Ohio State U.
(U-WIRE) COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The "biochip" -- a tool that promises to
speed drug discovery, detect human ills in seconds and quickly read a
gene sequence- may redefine biological research as we know it,
according to Marc Madou, professor of chemistry and materials science
and engineering at Ohio State University.
"Biochips may replace white mice and men in lab coats, making it
possible to quickly detect everything from cancer to diabetes," Madou
said.
Biochips are designed to read blood-gas information, such as oxygen
and pH levels. Until recently, these tiny chips, which behave like
living cells and perform thousands of biological and chemical
reactions at warp-speed, have been slow to hit the market. One reason
may be that most biochips are made of silicon.
"Silicon biochips are expensive to manufacture and are poisoning to
the body," Madou said.
Madou, who directs the Center for Sensors and Industrial Measurements
at OSU and works as chief scientist for Microbionics Inc. in Menlo
Park, Calif., has created a biosensor chip from plastics and polymers
that he hopes will cost one-tenth the amount of existing silicon-based
chips.
His research uses a patented technology that he invented called a
"pick and place" modular sensor. It combines traditional assembly line
machining with integrated circuit technology. Disposable plastic
biochips are mass produced on continuous large plastic sheets or
rolls. This technique mimics the way newsprint rolls are spun into
newspapers and then rolled off a printing press, Madou said.
Madou's technique of creating biosensors from plastics and polymers
has never been tried before. However, he believes his biochip research
will revolutionize medical technology.
"In biological applications, silicon simply won't cut it," Madou said.
"You need to use plastics that are disposable and made in a continuous
printing mode if it's going to be cost-effective."
Current methods require doctors to draw blood and send it to a lab for
analysis. Madou's technique would allow the biosensor to be placed in
a hand-held device and connected to an online computer in the
patient's room, ready to read a drop of blood and measure everything
from cholesterol to AIDS. The used biosensor chip would then be thrown
away and replaced with a fresh one. Each biosensor chip would cost
less than a dollar.
Madou's research at the Center for Sensors and Industrial Measurements
is a collaborative effort with Microbionics and NASA-Ames.
(C) 1999 The Lantern via U-WIRE
via: isml@onelist.com
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Weekend News Today items (8/13/99)
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Sat, 14 Aug 1999 12:37:18 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
Israel: Wheat shortage will result from severe drought
Weekend News Today
By Staff Writer
Source: IsraelWire
Fri Aug 13,1999 -- According to Dalia Harel, the deputy director of
the Ministry of Agriculture, the nation will have to import 170,000
tons of wheat as a result of the past winter's poor rainfall. Most of
the normal annual wheat crops did not survive the drought conditions.
As is became apparent that the water problem was becoming increasingly
serious, the government informed farmers growing hi-water demand
crops, such as cotton, to abandon the annual yield and they would be
compensated. Agricultural officials have now indicated they may need
to reevaluate the long-term situation in the region vis-=E0-vis crops,
water usage and water availably.
More than 100 aftershocks jolt Cyprus area
Weekend News Today
By Staff Writer
Source: Yahoo!
Fri Aug 13,1999 -- Cyprus was jolted by a tremor measuring 4.7 on the
open-ended Richterscale Friday in one of a series of aftershocks from
a powerful earthquake Wednesday morning. More than 100 aftershocks had
been felt from Wednesday, when a tremor measuring 5.8 on the Richter
scale shook the area, until early Friday evening. Cyprus is in a
region of high seismic activity which has affected most of the
Mediterranean for thepast decade. Judging by past seismic cycles,
scientists expect the tremors to fade out by 2002.
via: bible_prophecy-news@onelist.com
========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Clinton comes after the internet
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Sat, 14 Aug 1999 13:00:18 +0000
From: "Moza" <moza@butterfly.mv.com>
August 9, 1999
Clinton comes after the Internet
Well, it was a long time coming, but Bill Clinton has finally
made his move on the Internet.
Late last week, when reporters and members of Congress were
going home for the weekend, he issued one of his now-famous
executive orders -- this one on "Internet conduct."
Like almost all such orders, it will sound quite innocuous on a
quick first read. But these guys in the Clinton administration
are clever. This action sets up a working group of top U.S.
officials to study the whole concept of policing the Internet.
No, Clinton doesn't use that word, but that's clearly the intent
of this order -- the establishment of a national Internet police
force.
But if you catch that much -- and few will -- then the wording
of this order is designed to make you relax because the working
group is simply going to write a report! We all know government
reports don't kill people, right? Nobody gets hurt by a
government report unless they drop it on you.
However, let's take a look at what's being studied here: No. 1 -
- How the federal government can insinuate itself into this
revolutionary new medium. And, No. 2 -- How new technology
tools, capabilities or legal authorities may be required for
effective investigation and prosecution.
Let me repeat that last purpose behind this working group and
this executive order in the actual language used by Clinton:
"The extent to which new technology tools, capabilities, or
legal authorities may be required for effective investigation
and prosecution of unlawful conduct that involves the use of the
Internet."
Get it? "New technology" equals spying tools. "Capabilities"
means surveillance capabilities. And "legal authorities" means
Internet police.
You've got to understand the bureaucratic jargon here. Think of
me as your Clintonese translator. Remember, this is a man who
questions what the word "is" means. You've got to leave this to
the professionals -- and that means me.
Now here's the other scary part of this executive order.
Normally with these task forces, the president allows a year or
more for study and reports. Not this time. Guess what his
deadline is?
"The Working Group shall complete its work to the greatest
extent possible and present its report and recommendations to
the President and Vice President within 120 days of the date of
this order," the executive order states.
What! That means the report must be prepared before the end of
the year. I would suggest to you that this means the report is
already drafted. I would suggest further evidence for that
conclusion is that Clinton is also requiring the committee to
circulate the report to federal agencies well before it comes to
the White House.
Why would he do that? Because the White House has already seen
it. The White House has written it.
Who's going to be a part of this working group? The chairman is
Janet Reno, and the members are most of the important Cabinet
officers. Do you really think those guys and gals could draft a
report on policing the Internet in less than 120 days?
Uh-uh.
Something's up here, folks. Something smells really foul.
Now what do you suppose is in that future report? Hillary once
told us the Internet needed gatekeepers and controls.
"We are all going to have to rethink how we deal with this,
because there are all these competing values," Hillary said last
year. She also deplored the fact that the Internet lacks "any
kind of editing function or gatekeeping function."
I think Clinton's about to make his move on our last best hope
for freedom -- the Internet. Methinks the Internet is about to
get an official editor or a government gatekeeper.
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/bluesky_btl/19990809_xcbtl_clinton_co.shtml
===================
Text of Clinton executive order on Internet conduct
EXECUTIVE ORDER
WORKING GROUP ON UNLAWFUL CONDUCT ON THE INTERNET
By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution
and the laws of the United States of America, and in order to
address unlawful conduct that involves the use of the Internet,
it is hereby ordered as follows:
Section 1. Establishment and Purpose.
(a) There is hereby established a working group to address
unlawful conduct that involves the use of the Internet ("Working
Group"). The purpose of the Working Group shall be to prepare a
report and recommendations concerning:
(1) The extent to which existing Federal laws provide a
sufficient basis for effective investigation and prosecution of
unlawful conduct that involves the use of the Internet, such as
the illegal sale of guns, explosives, controlled substances, and
prescription drugs, as well as fraud and child pornography.
(2) The extent to which new technology tools, capabilities, or
legal authorities may be required for effective investigation
and prosecution of unlawful conduct that involves the use of the
Internet; and
(3) The potential for new or existing tools and capabilities to
educate and empower parents, teachers, and others to prevent or
to minimize the risks from unlawful conduct that involves the
use of the Internet. risks from unlawful conduct that involves
the use of the Internet.
(b) The Working Group shall undertake this review in the
context of current Administration Internet policy, which
includes support for industry self-regulation where possible,
technology-neutral laws and regulations, and an appreciation of
the Internet as an important medium both domestically and
internationally for commerce and free speech.
Sec. 2. Schedule. The Working Group shall complete its work to
the greatest extent possible and present its report and
recommendations to the President and Vice President within 120
days of the date of this order. Prior to such presentation, the
report and recommendations shall be circulated through the
Office of Management and Budget for review and comment by all
appropriate Federal agencies.
Sec. 3. Membership.
(a) The Working Group shall be composed of the following
members:
(1) The Attorney General (who shall serve as Chair of the
Working Group).
(2) The Director of the Office of Management and Budget.
(3) The Secretary of the Treasury.
(4) The Secretary of Commerce.
(5) The Secretary of Education.
(6) The Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
(7) The Director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.
(8) The Administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration.
(9) The Chair of the Federal Trade Commission.
(10) The Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration; and
(11) Other Federal officials deemed appropriate by the Chair of
the Working Group.
(b) The co-chairs of the Interagency Working Group on
Electronic Commerce shall serve as liaison to and attend
meetings of the Working Group. Members of the Working Group may
serve on the Working Group through designees.
WILLIAM J. CLINTON
THE WHITE HOUSE, August 5, 1999.
Members of the Working Group may serve on the Working Group
through designees.
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/bluesky_govdocs/eos/eo_internet.html
Please be advised that this domain (Philologos.org) does not endorse 100 per cent any link contained herein. This forum is for the dissemination of pertinent information on an end-times biblical theme which includes many disturbing, unethical, immoral, etc. topics and should be viewed with a mature, discerning eye.