BPR Mailing List Digest: 11/17/99

Philologos
BPR Mailing List Digest
November 17, 1999

Digest Home | 1999 | November, 1999

To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Free Y2K Guides
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Wed, 17 Nov 1999 08:45:12 -0500

From: "Moza" <moza7@netzero.net>

From: Mitra Milani <mitra@utne.com>
Date: Tue, 16 Nov 1999 16:35:45 -0600
Subject: FREE: Utne Reader's "Y2K Citizen's Action Guide"

Dear Y2K preparedness friends,

Time is running out before the end of the year, and we at Utne
Reader want to be certain that we've done our best to contribute to
community Y2K education and preparedness. As you may know,
we've been selling our "Y2K Citizen's Action Guide" over this last
year, in order to bolster Y2K public awareness. Response to the
booklet has been phenomenal -- over 650,000 copies have been
sold and donated.

Now we'd like to add a final push to our Y2K preparedness work:
we would like to offer you FREE COPIES of the Y2K Citizen's
Action Guide, to help you with your work. Can you or your
organization use 50 or more?

There should be more than enough to go around, so don't hesitate
to call or email right away. All we need from you is the cost of
shipping and handling, and a few words about the work you're doing
:)

With warm regards,
Mitra Milani

************************************************
Mitra Milani
Special Projects Manager
Utne Reader/Lens Publishing Co.
1624 Harmon Place, Suite 330
Minneapolis, MN 55403
phone: (612) 338-5040 x68
fax: (612) 337-5560
http://www.utne.com

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========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - US Moscow Embassy Set for Y2K
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Wed, 17 Nov 1999 08:52:20 -0500

From: "Moza" <moza7@netzero.net>

Tuesday November 16
U.S. Moscow Embassy Set for Y2K

http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/ap/19991116/tc/russia_y2k_1.html

MOSCOW (AP) - The U.S. Embassy plans to set up letterboxes
and billboards in Moscow hotels and offices to help foreign citizens
keep in contact with each other if the Y2K bug knocks out Russia's
communications systems, a U.S. diplomat said Tuesday.

The embassy planned to send its staff's family members out of the
country over the New Year's period, and urged the estimated
10,000 American citizens living in Russia to leave in case the
"millennium bug" caused havoc. The bug threatens to shut down or
cause a malfunction in computers that cannot recognize the year
2000 on their internal clocks.

Russia is considered one of the countries least prepared to handle
problems that could result from certain computers' two-digit
chronometers mistaking the year 2000 for 1900.

Even under the best of conditions, Russia's telephone system is
quirky and even crosstown calls can require shouting. If computer
problems shut down the phones altogether, foreigners might need
the drop-boxes and bulletin boards to communicate.

"`Deep down inside, I hope a lot of people go home," the U.S.
diplomat said on condition of anonymity.

Diplomats said the Y2K bug was unlikely to cause life-threatening
situations in Russia, but could make life uncomfortable, particularly
if the hot water that heats most apartments goes off.

Such shutoffs have become commonplace in outlying Russian
towns, and locals tend shrug off the problems and tackle the
situations with commonsense solutions like wood stoves and
showering at friends houses.

But "Americans aren't used to going without hot water," the
diplomat said.

Russian authorities have said their power grid - a huge, complex
system spanning eleven time zones and linked to other countries,
will function normally through the New Year. Operators will switch
parts of the Soviet-era equipment to manual controls on New Year's
Eve to prevent computer crashes, they said.

via: nhney2k@onelist.com

See http://philologos.org/bpr for additional info.

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Weekend News Today items (11/16/99)
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Wed, 17 Nov 1999 08:58:18 -0500

From: "Moza" <moza7@netzero.net>

Missionary activity among new Israeli immigrants

Weekend News Today
By Andra Brack
Source: Arutz7

Tue Nov 16,1999 -- Adi Eldar, head of the Center for Local
Government, has blamed the police for neglecting missionary
activity among new immigrants. In an appeal to Public Security
Minister Shlomo Ben-Ami, Eldar asked that the police be directed
to deal with the hundreds of missionaries who "take advantage of
the difficult economic and social conditions in which tens of
thousands of new immigrants find themselves" to prevail upon them
to leave Judaism. "This problem is a threat to the Jewish character
of the State of Israel," wrote Eldar. The law forbids offering material
compensation as an inducement to convert to a different religion,
while attempting to convince a minor to convert is illegal under all
circumstances. Binyamin Kluger - a former Christian missionary
who later converted to Judaism and now works with the Yad
L'Achim organization to protect Jews from missionary activity -
strongly agrees with Eldar. "Missionaries in Israel mainly take
advantage of immigrants from the former Soviet Union and Ethiopia,
and such activity is increasing as we draw near the end of the
millenium. One sect here even promised them 500 shekels a
month to convert to Christianity. The fact that this is against the
law does not bother them," Kluger said. "They transgress other
Israeli laws, too. For instance, Israeli law states that a Jew who
has forsaken his religion for another faith [is not entitled to
automatic citizenship under the Law of Return]. Some years ago,
the Supreme Court determined that 'Messianic Jews' are to be
considered Christians. But this doesn't stop them from lying to the
Interior Ministry and the Jewish Agency about their real beliefs - all
of this in order to receive immigrant rights and benefits." Kluger
provided a look at what he called the missionaries' "deceptive
tactics:" "In my work as a missionary before I came to Israel, we
were instructed by our ministers to use different approaches for
Christians and Jews. When I would talk to Christians, I would invite
them to visit our church, but when I spoke to Jews, I was told to
use the word 'congregation' instead; not to say 'Jesus,' but rather
'Mashiach' (messiah); I would also make sure to replace the phrase
'New Testament' with the term 'second half of the Tanach (Bible)'...
This was our method, aimed at hiding our true intentions so that we
could deceive naive Jews..." "Perhaps the best example of this,"
continued Kluger, "is something one of my advisors once told me:
'When you establish a relationship with a Jew, he must not be
permitted to think that he is 'converting' to Christianity. You have to
explain to him that he remains a Jew even when he starts believing
in Jesus.'" This is of course not true. Just like the Armenian priest
on Israel television last night who said that because he believes in
Jesus, therefore he is a Christian and not a Jew. Who ever heard of
a Jew who believes in Jesus? It's like a vegetarian who consumes
meat; the two terms just don't go together."

Turkey key to united, democratic Europe says Clinton

Weekend News Today By Kelly Pagatpatan Source: Turkish Daily
News Tue Nov 16,1999 -- U.S. President Bill Clinton said Turkey is
key element of a united and democratic Europe. Clinton, who
arrived in Ankara late on Sunday for a five-day visit, spent a very
busy day, meeting with President Suleyman Demirel and receiving
Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit. As the first U.S. president to ever
address the Turkish Parliament, Clinton met with Parliamentary
Speaker Yildirim Akbulut prior to his speech to Turkish deputies.
Pledging to work with Turkey to help it recover from two deadly
earthquakes, Clinton said: "We will continue to do all that we can
to speed your recovery, to encourage private investment, to help
you prepare for future natural disasters. The United States is proud
to stand with Turkey in good times or bad," through "calamities,
terrorism or other threats to freedom and democracy." "We have a
chance to start a new century on higher ground," Clinton stated,
adding: "To me that means, in part, we must continue to fulfill the
vision of a Europe undivided, democratic and in peace for the first
time in history, anchored by a stable and prosperous Turkey."
Clinton also vowed to "work for a future in which Turkey continues
to be an ally of America, a partner in the new Europe and
reconciled with others in the region, especially our friends in
Greece."

See http://philologos.org/bpr for additional info.

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Trouble with Harry?
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Wed, 17 Nov 1999 09:08:51 -0500

From: owner-bpr@philologos.org

Published Saturday, November 13, 1999,
in the San Jose Mercury News

Trouble With Harry?

The exploits of the books' boy hero reflect Christian values,
say fans from a diverse group of denominations

BY RICHARD SCHEININ
Mercury News Religion and Ethics Writer

HARRY POTTER, are you friend or foe? Satan or savior?

Christian conservatives have made headlines by attacking the
Harry Potter adventure books as violent, death-obsessed and
Satanic. But Christian opinion on the skinny kid with glasses
turns out to be far more charitable and not so monolithic.

J.K. Rowling's three books about the young wizard-in-the-making
have sold more than 13 million hardback copies, and many of
those readers are Christians who view Potter as a near-messianic
paragon of humility, courage and self-sacrifice.

``There are some distinctly Christian themes in those books, so
much so that I'd like to preach a sermon on Harry Potter,'' says
the Rev. John Kraps, a Methodist in Cupertino who dressed up as
Potter for Halloween and is ``frosted'' over criticisms of
Rowling's series. ``We love Harry Potter, and our whole family
is outraged by the opposition of the Christian right.''

Contrary to what some news reports have implied, Christians who
admire Rowling's fiction turn out to cut across denominational
and political lines. The questing adventures of Potter and his
friends at the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry have
inspired liberal Episcopalians as well as more than a few
conservative Evangelicals. Why? Many clerics and theologians
extract explicitly Christian themes from the books: Potter's
mother is a Christ figure, hovering over the stories, who died
so that her son might live; Potter has a special destiny that he
is not fully aware of, much like numerous biblical prophets and
perhaps even Jesus himself.

Full story:
http://www7.mercurycenter.com:80/premium/svlife/docs/potter13.htm

See http://philologos.org/bpr for additional info.

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Huge Fireball Dazzles Midwest
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Wed, 17 Nov 1999 11:53:13 -0500

From: owner-bpr@philologos.org

From NASA Space Science News...

http://www.spacescience.com/newhome/headlines/ast17nov99_1.htm

Huge Fireball Dazzles Midwest

A brilliant fireball attracted stares across the eastern U.S.
Tuesday night. It could be a taste of things to come when the
Leonids meteor shower peaks late Wednesday night and Thursday
morning.

November 17, 1999: Tuesday night, on an Illinois highway east
of Chicago, traffic slowed to a crawl as motorists peered at an
extraordinary fireball blazing overhead.

"It was of the most beautiful meteors I have ever seen," said
Jamie Dresser, who was driving home from work just after 6 pm
CST. "It was so bright that it lit up the sky for quite a
distance. There was a blue corona ... and it was actually
trailing fire for quite a distance. I sincerely look forward to
driving home the next few nights!"

Hundreds of reports like this one are pouring in from all over
the mid western United States. Thousands of commuters and star
gazers saw what astronomers call an "Earth grazer" -- a
meteoroid or piece of space debris that travels nearly parallel
to Earth's surface as it disintegrates in our atmosphere. Earth
grazers are slow moving and feature vibrant colors in their long
beautiful tails. This one was spotted between 5:50 and 6:05 CST
as it sped over Wisconsin, Michigan, Illinois, Ohio, Kentucky,
New York and several other states.

Tuesday night's fireball was so bright that it was first
noticed by many observers while they were inside brightly lit
buildings.

"I was sitting in a Wendy's facing outside and saw the bright
orange light in the sky," recounts Wendi S. Abbott of
Cincinnati, OH. "I have no idea how long it lasted, but I had
time to jump up, race over to the window and ask the family
sitting there if they were seeing what I was seeing. The father
said it was just a reflection in the window, but quickly changed
his mind. It finally broke apart in about 3 or 4 pieces before
it died out. What an incredible sight! If this is any indication
of what's to come, this will definitely be a 'once in a lifetime
[experience]'."

The trajectory of the fireball was similar in appearance to an
aircraft, flying low and level across the horizon from west to
east. Many observers reported seeing the meteor fragment into
many iridescent pieces that traveled in a line like a string of
Christmas lights.

Could this be a taste of things to come in the next 24 hours?
Possibly. The Leonid meteor shower is expected to peak this
Thursday morning when the Earth slices through the debris stream
of comet Tempel-Tuttle around 0200 UT on November 18. Last year
a shower of Leonid fireballs (meteors brighter than magnitude -
3) dazzled observers in Europe and the Americas. In 1999 many
experts anticipate an even better show. No matter where you
live, the best time to watch will be between midnight and dawn
on Thursday. On Wednesday evening, November 17, before the
constellation Leo rises, star gazers could be treated to more
Earth grazers as Leonid meteoroids arc over the horizon.

With the Leonids just around the corner, it may seem surprising
that Tuesday's fireball was probably not a Leonid. Leonid
meteors emanate from a point in the sky within the constellation
Leo, which rises above the eastern horizon around midnight. At
the time of the fireball sighting Leo was about 35 degrees below
the northern horizon, which means that Leonid Earth-skimmers
appearing over the horizon would travel roughly north to south.
Most observers reported that the November 16 fireball moved west
to east. While it is possible that this meteoroid was a part of
the debris stream of comet Tempel-Tuttle (the parent of the
Leonids), it is far more likely to be an unrelated, sporadic
meteor or perhaps a piece of "space junk" decaying from low-
Earth orbit.

Whatever this fireball was, observers around the world have
been seeing genuine Leonids for over 24 hours. The Leonids
Environment Operations Center at the NASA/Marshall Space Flight
Center is managing data from a global network of observers
coordinated by the US Air Force and the University of Western
Ontario. Since early Tuesday morning trained spotters have filed
reports of 8 to 86 meteors per hour (ZHR). In most years, 86
meteors per hour would be considered a substantial shower, but
this could be the year for a full-fledged Leonids storm. Only
time will tell if predictions of more than 1000 meteors per hour
will come true. One thing is sure, the place to be before dawn
on Thursday morning, November 18, is outdoors and looking up!

via: hblondel@tampabay.rr.com

See http://philologos.org/bpr for additional info.

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Havel meets Kohl, Thatcher, Bush
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Wed, 17 Nov 1999 12:25:58 -0500

From: "Moza" <moza7@netzero.net>

Havel Meets, Kohl, Thatcher, Bush

PRAGUE, Nov 17, 1999 -- (CTK - Czech News Agency) After a
century of world wars and devastating ideologies it is time to
renew the rule of freedom and right, former British Prime
Minister Margaret Thatcher told President Vaclav Havel today.

Havel pointed to the fact that for people from post-communist
countries who did not experience the rule of right, it is
particularly difficult to prevent the growth of corruption and
crime.

Before Thatcher, Havel met former German Chancellor Helmut
Kohl, who said he considered his priority to support further
enlargement of the European Union (EU), presidential spokesman
Ladislav Spacek told journalists after the meeting.

Havel also met former U.S. president George Bush, but the
meeting was private.

Before Bush, Thatcher and Kohl, Havel today had separate
meetings with the former presidents of the U.S.S.R and Poland,
Mikhail Gorbachev and Lech Walesa, and late French president
Francois Mitterand's widow Danielle. In appreciation of their
exceptional contribution to the fall of communism in Central and
Eastern Europe ten years ago, Havel will decorate them with the
Order of the White Lion on Wednesday. ((c) 1999 CTK -Czech News
Agency)

http://www.centraleurope.com/news.php3?id=110510&text

See http://philologos.org/bpr for additional info.

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Forgot your password? Just stick out your hand!
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Wed, 17 Nov 1999 12:39:25 -0500

From: "Moza" <moza7@netzero.net>

FORGET YOUR PASSWORD? JUST STICK OUT YOUR HAND!
Motorola and Identix have developed a $60 fingerprint reader only
4.5-mm thick -- small enough to fit in mobile phones and computer
laptops and allow access to networks, programs and information
with a fingerprint rather than a password. (Reuters/San Jose
Mercury News 17 Nov 99)

http://www.sjmercury.com/svtech/news/breaking/reuters/docs/1092056l.htm

via: "NewsScan" <newsscan@newsscan.com>

See http://philologos.org/bpr for additional info.

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Arutz-7 News items
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Wed, 17 Nov 1999 12:45:08 -0500

From: "Moza" <moza7@netzero.net>

PALESTINIAN INCITEMENT CONTINUES Suha Arafat's vicious
accusations against Israel continue to receive support in the
Palestinian press and from Palestinian leaders. A report
distributed today by the Washington-based Middle East Media and
Research Institute (MEMRI - www.memri.org) quotes the Monday
edition of Al-Hayat Al-Jadida dismissing the American
condemnation of her remarks. The paper wrote that "the main
motive for the White House's eagerness to condemn sister Suha's
statement... lies in its wish to make New York Jews happy in order
to get a few votes supporting Hillary Clinton's candidacy..."

The weekly Al-Manar wrote yesterday, "Israel has conducted a pre-
meditated campaign against the Palestinians and their land...
Water poisoning incidents are known and proven; the burial of
nuclear waste is not a secret=85 and spoiled foodstuffs are collected
in settlements with the knowledge of Israeli leaders, and thrown to
Palestinian markets=85 Suha Arafat's statements represent what
the people suffer from the hated Israeli colonialism, which
continues [even now]..."

PA officials made similar public statements as early as the
summer of 1998. PA Health Minister Riyadh Al-Za'anoon told Al-
Ayam on July 25, 1998 that Israeli doctors "use Palestinian
patients=85 for experimental medicines and training new doctors."
PA Minister of Ecology Yousef Abu-Safiyyeh appears in the April
3, 1999 edition of Al-Hayat Al-Jadida with charges that Israel
damages the Palestinian environment by dumping liquid waste in
PA-ruled areas.

As recently as yesterday, the Egyptian Ambassador to the U.S.
was quoted as expressing "understanding" for Suha Arafat's
accusations against Israel last week. He also said that Egypt is
developing its army "in order to be ready for every threat."

ARABS STEP UP STONE ATTACKS; KATIF RESIDENS
PROTEST Reports of Arab stone-throwing attacks in Judea and
Samaria have risen significantly over the past few days. An IDF
soldier was injured yesterday by Arab-thrown stones near Ofrah,
and a woman was similarly injured later in the evening at the El
Aroub junction south of Gush Etzion. At least two incidents were
reported on the previous day. IDF officers blame Yasser Arafat for
encouraging an atmosphere of hostility.

Elkanah Zilbershein, who was attacked by a Palestinian mob
yesterday on his way home to Netzarim in Gush Katif, provided
details on the incident: "I was in a convoy of cars, and when we
reached the Netzarim junction, suddenly several Palestinian cars
entered the intersection and blocked me off. They came very close
to hitting me. I signaled the soldiers that I was in trouble, and they
motioned that I should try to keep going, and not stop and allow
myself to be surrounded by them. They could not do much more,
as there are simply not enough [Israeli] forces. Suddenly, though,
the intersection filled up with many, many Palestinians - I can't
even figure out where they all came from. The soldiers yelled that I
should keep going, and I had to continue going very slowly, as the
Arabs were standing purposely right in front of my car. One of
them jumped back in a very exaggerated way, and threw himself
down, as if I had hit him. They used this as an excuse and started
beating the car with their guns, smashing the windshield, and
punching me through the window. A Palestinian car tried to push
me off the road and hit me twice, until I finally got into Netzarim.
This provocation was definitely planned in advance. The situation
here is very tense, and there are frequent cases of the Palestinians
hitting our soldiers while the latter are vastly outnumbered. I have
seen it happen, but we are not allowed to respond, nor would we be
able to do anything if we could." Zilbershein said that the convoy
method - organized by the army for the Jews to travel through the
Gush - is not perfect, but "if the Border Guard soldiers hadn't been
there, I would have been a lot worse off=85"

Dozens of Gush Katif residents are rallying at this late afternoon
hour against the IDF, in protest of the near-lynch. Some of them
are blocking the highway to Arab traffic, while others are marching
along the security fence. The security concerns of the Gush Katif
residents are in addition to the financial difficulties faced by the
residents, largely caused by frequently-successful Arab threats
against Palestinians who work for the Jewish communities.

TIDBITS
Prime Minister Ehud Barak begins a week-long trip abroad today.
He and Foreign Minister David Levy have departed for Turkey,
where they will participate in a conference with over 100 world
leaders on European military preparedness. From there, Barak will
travel to the U.S. and Britain.

Arutz Sheva News Service
<http://www.arutzsheva.org>
Wednesday, November 17, 1999 / Kislev 8, 5760

See http://philologos.org/bpr for additional info.

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - America - The Good Neighbor
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Wed, 17 Nov 1999 12:57:51 -0500

From: "Moza" <moza7@netzero.net>

AMERICA - THE GOOD NEIGHBOR

"Widespread, but only partial news coverage was given recently to
a remarkable editorial broadcast from Toronto by Gordon Sinclair, a
Canadian television commentator. What follows is the full text of
his remarks as printed in the congressional Record: This Canadian
thinks it is time to speak up for the Americans as the most
generous and possibly the least appreciated people on all the
earth.

'Germany, Japan and, to a lesser extent, Britain and Italy were
lifted out of the debris of war by the Americans who poured in
billions of dollars and forgave other billions in debts. None of these
countries is today paying even the interest on its remaining debts
to the United States.

When the franc was in danger of collapsing in 1956, it was the
Americans who propped it up, and their reward was to be insulted
and swindled on the streets of Paris. I was there. I saw it.

When distant cities are hit by earthquakes, it is the United States
that hurries in to help. This spring, 59 American communities were
flattened by tornadoes. Nobody helped. The Marshall Plan and the
Truman Policy pumped billions of dollars into discouraged
countries. Now newspapers in those countries are writing about the
decadent, warmongering Americans. I'd like to see just one of
those countries that is gloating over the erosion of the United
States Dollar build its own airplane.

Does any other country in the world have a plane to equal the
Boeing Jumbo Jet, the Lockheed Tristar, or the Douglas 10? If so,
why don't they fly them? Why do all the International airlines
except Russia fly American Planes? Why does no other land on
earth even consider putting a man or woman on the moon? You
talk about Japanese technocracy, and you get radios. You talk
about German technocracy, and you get automobiles. You talk
about American technocracy, and you find men on the moon - -
and safely home again.

You talk about scandals, and the Americans put theirs right in the
store window for everybody to look at. Even their draft-dodgers are
not pursued and hounded. They are here on our streets (in
Canada), and most of them, unless they are breaking Canadian
laws, are getting American dollars from ma and pa at home to
spend here.

When the railways of France, Germany and India were breaking
down through age, it was the American who rebuilt them. When the
Pennsylvania Railroad and the New York Central went broke,
nobody loaned them an old caboose. Both are still broke.

I can name you 5,000 times when the Americans raced to the help
of other people in trouble. Can you name me even one time when
someone else raced to the Americans in trouble? I don't think there
was outside help even during the San Francisco earthquake. Our
neighbors have faced it alone, and I'm one Canadian who is tired of
hearing them get kicked around.

They will come out of this thing with their flag high. And when they
do, they are entitled to thumb their nose at the lands that are
gloating over their present troubles. I hope Canada is not one of
those.'

I wonder if a Frenchman or Englishman would like to add a
comment or two? I doubt it-- they hate the USA with white hot
passion. Whoever you are
up yonder in Canada, thanks." (E-mail from Pastor Jason Skipper)

News-of-Interest E-mail Newsletter
Vol. 3, Issue #43, November 15, 1999

See http://philologos.org/bpr for additional info.

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