BPR Mailing List Digest: 02/15/00

Philologos
BPR Mailing List Digest
February 15, 2000

Digest Home | 2000 | February, 2000

To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Infobeat News items
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Tue, 15 Feb 2000 08:54:12 -0500

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

*** Arafat comments on peace impasse

MARRAKECH, Morocco (AP) - Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat said
Monday the current impasse in the Middle East peace process has
created a dangerous and explosive situation. The comments came a day
after an important target date was missed - the deadline for a
framework treaty between Israel and the Palestinians for a final
peace settlement. Sunday was the first of three ambitious peace
deadlines set by Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak. "The peace
process is at an impasse," Arafat said in Marrakech, Morocco, where
he was attending a meeting. "We are going round in circles a long way
from peace." Arafat said it was a "dangerous and explosive situation
brought about by the blockage in the Israeli-Palestinian peace
talks." Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, meanwhile, held Barak
personally responsible for the impasse, saying he is "creating an
atmosphere of mistrust" with Arabs. See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2564258308-7c5

*** Clinton optimistic about Mideast

WASHINGTON (AP) - President Clinton said Monday the Middle East peace
process is "in a little tough patch right now" but that he remains
optimistic about reaching agreements between Israel and the Syrians,
Palestinians and Lebanese. "I am basically optimistic," the president
said in an interview with CNN. He said he hoped for progress in the
next few weeks. He said peace was clearly in the interest of all
parties and "we're so close on the substance." The president was
interviewed in the Oval Office in what was billed as his first online
news interview. It was broadcast live on CNN and available online as
well. Peace negotiations between Israel and Syria were suspended last
month without a date for resumption. Progress on the Israel-Syria
track is expected to determine what happens in peace talks with
Lebanon. See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2564249494-56e
*** Also: Clinton urges balance with Austria, see
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2564259973-dfa

*** Israel awaits pope's visit

JERUSALEM (AP) - Israel is building a tent city for 6,000 people and
smoothing the cobblestones of Jerusalem's walled Old City streets in
preparation for the pope's visit here next month, an Israeli official
said Monday. John Paul II, however, will have to temporarily forsake
his popemobile because it is too wide for the winding alleys of
Jerusalem's walled Old City, said Yossi Noi, director of the agency
helping coordinate the visit. Instead, the pope will visit the Church
of the Holy Sepulcher, built over Jesus' tomb, in an Israeli armored
vehicle. The pope's visit to the Holy Land, the first by a pontiff
since 1964, is expected to bring thousands of pilgrims to Israel and
the Palestinian areas, and Israel wants to be ready. See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2564257868-336

*** Baffling rise in lymphoma studied

WASHINGTON (AP) - It started with flu-like symptoms that Michael
Locher just couldn't shake. Then an egg-shaped lump ballooned on his
jaw, and his doctor knew - the New York man was a victim of the
nation's baffling rise in lymphoma. Even as many other types of
cancer have leveled off or even dropped, this mysterious
immune-system cancer has been making a stealthy but astounding rise;
rates have nearly doubled since the 1970s. Is diet to blame?
Pesticides? Air pollution? Viruses? Obesity? Nobody knows. Cancer
experts are launching major studies worldwide to find what's behind
this cancer's march. See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2564250140-88f

*** El Nino tied to Gulf Coast lightning

WASHINGTON (AP) - Scientists studying weather records have made an
electrifying discovery that many Gulf Coast residents probably
already knew - the days with lightning storms doubled in the 1997-98
El Nino. The number of days with lightning during that December
through February was more than twice that of other recent winters.
There were 33 lightning days recorded during that winter in the
northern Gulf of Mexico compared with 15 days during other winters,
the researchers said in a paper appearing in the Feb. 15 issue of
Geophysical Research Letters. During those 33 days the network of
ground sensors and satellites counted 138 hours of lightning,
compared to 50 hours in other recent winters. See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2564251146-460

*** Goldfish in blenders spark outrage

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) - The art display at the small museum in
western Denmark features 10 goldfish, each swimming in its own
blender. The catch: Each blender can be turned on, depending on the
viewer's whim. The display, which opened Friday, has caused outrage
among animal rights activists and drawn unusually large crowds to the
Trapholt Art Museum. Two fish were blended at the opening, and police
ordered the plugs pulled after a local group, the Union for the
Protection of Animals, complained. Museum director Peter Meyer said
five more fish were blended on Sunday. Five surviving fish were also
stolen from their blender aquariums over the weekend, but the museum
replaces the goldfish to maintain the original work of art, Meyer
said. See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2564250716-b92

*** Gates' property tax bill tops $1 mln

SEATTLE (AP) - Being the world's richest man has its price,
especially when you own one of the world's most opulent homes. King
County mailed out property tax bills Monday, and the biggest by far
went to Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, whose home and land in
suburban Medina are valued at nearly $110 million. That translates to
a property tax bill of $1,076,231. Gates' home and five acres on the
Lake Washington waterfront nearly doubled in value last year, when
Gates had to pay $615,000 in taxes based on an assessment before
construction on the 48,000-square-foot house and grounds was
completed. See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2564258699-1b3

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To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Religion Today items (2/15/00)
From: bpr-list@philologos.org(BPR)
Date: Tue, 15 Feb 2000 08:56:23 -0500

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

Two mainline Protestant denominations say they won't take an
absolutist stand on homosexual "marriage." Committees for the
United Methodist Church and the Episcopal Church said the issue
is too complex to rule on authoritatively, news reports said.
..."We are not ready, theologically or scientifically, to say a
defining word about the life of homosexuals in the church," the
Episcopal Church's Standing Commission on Liturgy and Music said.
The commission's report, released Feb. 14, includes essays on the
subjects of Scripture, decision-making, tradition, and blessings
and their relation to homosexual "marriage," The Associated Press
said.
..."In the context of reverence - and humility - it seems best
not to take absolutist positions on a national level," the report
said. It calls on individual dioceses to "find their own way in
the matter." That policy has angered conservatives who believe
priests who conduct gay rites should be disciplined. The issue
has created a rift in the Episcopal Church (see link #2 below),
resulting in the ordination by Asian and African Anglican leaders
of two Americans to serve as missionaries to the United States.
...Sixty-nine Methodist ministers who performed a lesbian wedding
won't be punished, a UMC committee said Feb. 11. The ministers
were charged with violating church policy after participating in
the ceremony, but an investigating committee ruled they shouldn't
be tried, Reuters said.
..."No further steps or action will be taken or pursued" against
the ministers, Bishop Melvin Talbert of the California-Nevada
Conference said. He said he disagrees with the ban on gay rites,
but church law forced him to file the charges because the service
was performed in Sacramento. The investigating committee heard
testimony from church experts on Scripture, tradition, ethics,
experience, and reason before reaching its decision. "We may
never reach agreement on this issue," Talbert said.

An Oregon church was told to limit its attendance. More than
1,000 people packed Sunnyside Centenary United Methodist Church
to protest a bureaucrat's order to limit attendance to 70 people,
The Associated Press said.
...Elizabeth Normand, a land-use hearing officer, gave the order
after community residents complained that visitors at the
church's twice weekly feed-the-hungry program were causing a
nuisance. The meals program should be restricted and worship
services kept smaller to alleviate the situation, she said.
...Religious leaders will protest the ruling at a March 1
hearing. The church's fellowship and outreach programs do more
than government programs because they meet spiritual and physical
needs, church leaders said. City attorneys have said the
attendance limit should be dropped, but there should be
restrictions on the meals program.
...The order backfired, said Steve Sprecher, superintendent of
the Oregon-Idaho United Methodist Conference. "When was the last
time people of all faiths united around the right of a local
church to reach out and touch people in need?"

RELATED LINKS:
2: http://www.religiontoday.com/Archive/FeatureStory/view.cgi?file=20000210.s1..html

http://www.religiontoday.crosswalk.com

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

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To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - STRATFOR.COM Global Intelligence Update - Feb 15 2000
From: bpr-list@philologos.org
Date: Tue, 15 Feb 2000 09:57:47 -0500

STRATFOR.COM Global Intelligence Update
15 February 2000

Push for Peace Process May Tie U.S. Hands in Middle East

Summary

On Feb. 14, the Jerusalem daily Haaretz reported that Israel
and the United States are developing a joint defense pact. Under
the pact, Washington would actively guarantee Israeli security.
The pact is part of an effort to secure a formalized peace
between Israel and Syria. But to secure a peace agreement, the
United States may commit itself to a long-term policy that would
undermine its relations with Arab countries. This would
ultimately limit the ability of the United States to develop and
maintain relations with Arab nations.

Analysis

The United States and Israel are discussing a joint defense
pact, according to a Feb. 14 report in the Israeli newspaper
Haaretz. The pact would reportedly obligate the United States to
defend Israel in the event of attack. Meant to facilitate the
stalled, formal peace talks between Israel and Syria, the pact,
however, could leave the United States in an unfavorable
position in the region. It will effectively bind the foreign
policies of the two nations, strain Washington's relations with
Arab countries and dramatically limit Washington's future policy
options.

The completion of the Israeli-Syrian peace process has become a
major objective of the Clinton administration. U.S. President
Bill Clinton himself has taken an active role in leading the
negotiations, inviting the leadership of both former antagonists
to the United States, mediating the talks and offering
incentives to Israel for a formalized peace agreement.

Apparently to move the stalled talks along, U.S. ambassador
Martin Indyk has reportedly proposed that the United States
commit to defend Israel, particularly in case of an attack
involving weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and long-range
ballistic missiles. So far, both the Pentagon and the State
Department have refused to comment on the existence of the
negotiations. The agreement would also reportedly place U.S.
logistical bases on Israeli soil to expedite U.S. military
operations in the event of attack. The United States, however,
does not need pre-positioned supplies to launch a retaliatory
strike in the event of an attack.

Instead, the defense pact seems more like an increasingly large
package of American incentives meant to get Israel to keep the
talks alive. Unfortunately, the incentive may be more than the
United States can afford. The pact would substantially increase
the U.S. commitment to Israel's continued security, which now
stands at $3 billion annually - more aid than any other country.
Other reported initiatives include placing U.S. peacekeeping
forces in the Golan Heights and Israel's recent request for $17
billion in military aid, including cruise missile technology.
However, Washington has been careful to avoid firm security
commitments in order to keep from antagonizing Arab nations.

The United States already provides Israel with aid, weapons and
technology but a newly formalized defense pact would tie U.S.
foreign policy to Israeli foreign policy. If conflicts between
Israel and Arab nations arise, the United States would be forced
to side with Israel - regardless of U.S. interests or relations
with the Arab nations involved. The relationship would not work;
Israel's foreign policy is often in direct conflict with the
United States. Israel is known to have sold weapons and
technology to U.S. adversaries such as China and Iran.

In the Arab world, Washington's working - if tenuous -
relations would be further endangered. Already, Persian Gulf
nations have called for the United States to lower its military
profile in the region. And Iran and Iraq have long clamored for
the complete withdrawal of U.S. forces. By building a
formalized, bilateral defense agreement with Israel, Washington
ensures hostility from Arab nations.

Forged during the heat of the Cold War, the U.S.-Israeli
relationship has since cooled. No longer of vital importance to
U.S. strategic interests in the region, the peace process has
become a hot-button issue in Washington largely due to the fact
that it's an election year with an outgoing president who wants
to leave behind a legacy. In the hope of formalizing an already
tenuous peace, Washington may undercut its long-term interests
in the region, and ultimately re-formulate its entire policy in
the Middle East.

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To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Moderator: List Changes
From: bpr-list@philologos.org
Date: Tue, 15 Feb 2000 10:46:47 -0500

Hi guys...

The list will be changing to a new format for sending out email
messages. As you know, whenever a message is sent
it has the SENDER's name and/or email address in the header.
Some members would like to send in bible studies or news items
but wish to do so without their email address showing up. I can
certainly understand this in regards to it being a privacy issue
on the internet. To accomodate these folks that would like to
post items to the list without using their real names or addresses,
the list will go to the use of "nicknames." The first time you
try to post a message to the list, you will receive a message back
asking you to choose a nickname. Simply follow the instructions and
the next time you post a message your nickname will show up
instead of your real name and address.

This will keep the list totally private as your real name and address
will
never been seen unless you want it to be seen (e.g., as part of a
signature, etc.). The list will still be moderated, so posting a
message
and choosing a nickname doesn't mean that your message will
necessarily
be posted.

One more list item to mention. The list receives bounced messages
every
day for various reasons. However, the most common reason for a
bounced message
is that the member's mailbox is full. Please consider using the
SUSPEND
mode in cases where you are not able to read your mail for any length
of time.
(Sending a message to bpr-list@philologos.org with the word HELP in
the
subject will get you a list of commands explaining the various
options that
list members have). If the bounced messages continue from a
particular
address, then I will put that address in suspended mode myself for a
period
of 3 days to a week. After that, if they still continue, I will have
to delete
the member from the list.

Thanks guys. If you have any questions about anything, just holler.

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - (Fwd) The Friendly Republicans by Daniel Pipes
From: bpr-list@philologos.org
Date: Tue, 15 Feb 2000 10:59:51 -0500

------- Forwarded message follows -------
From: BSaphir@aol.com
Date sent: Tue, 15 Feb 2000 10:20:34 EST
Subject: The Friendly Republicans by Daniel Pipes
To: freemanlist@lists.io.com

The Friendly Republicans

Daniel Pipes
The Jerusalem Post
Tuesday, February 15 2000

(February 15) - What do the four leading candidates for president of the
United States, two Democratic and two Republican, have to say about the
Middle East? It's a timely question because the campaign for president has
begun in earnest.

Perhaps the clearest insight into the candidates' positions comes from James
Zogby, president of the Arab American Institute and a leading Arab-American
political operative. He's a man President Bill Clinton has praised as a
"remarkable voice for calm and clarity, no matter how heated the issues" and
"one of the most forceful, intense and brutally honest people who ever came
to the White House to see me." He's also a liberal democrat and one of Israel's
most determined foes in the United States.

Zogby's recently-published report, "The State of the Middle East Policy
Debate," begins with a look at public opinion. He finds that "a significant
partisan split" exists on Middle Eastern issues. Specifically, Republicans are
"more hard-line and pro-Israel" than Democrats.

This difference is very substantial, with Republicans three times more friendly
to Israel than Democrats. Thus, in response to the question, "With regard to
the Middle East, how do you feel the next president should relate to the
region," 22 percent of Republicans said he should be pro-Israel, while only 7%
of Democrats opted for this reply. (It also bears noting that among born-again
Christians, the percentage on the pro-Israel side rises to 29%.)

Not surprisingly, the presidential candidates reflect this difference in their
ranks, with Republicans far more pro-Israel than Democrats. On the key issue
of US policy toward the peace process, for example, Al Gore and Bill Bradley
endorse the current even-handed approach of pressing Israel and the Arabs
alike for concessions. In stark contrast, George Bush and John McCain (as
well as every lesser candidate) denounce this approach and insist that, if
elected president, they will not pressure democratic Israel into making
concessions to the likes of Yasser Arafat and Hafez Assad.

Same goes with the question of moving the US Embassy from Tel Aviv to
Jerusalem. On one side, Zogby found, "every Republican candidate has
promised to make the embassy move a priority for his administration." In
contrast, both Gore and Bradley "have taken more cautious stands," not
endorsing a move of the embassy outside the context of Israel's negotiations
with the Palestinians.

And so too on Iraq. All four leading candidates endorse the current tough
approach to Iraq, leading Zogby to describe their outlook as one of "near
consensus." But Republicans take what Zogby calls "a characteristically
tougher approach," with all of them advocating steps to bring down the
regime of Saddam Hussein, something the two Democrats shy away from.

In all, whether the question is Israel or Iraq, the candidates agree on basics
(friendly to Israel, hard-line on Iraq), with the Republicans more emphatic in
their views than either Democrat. This has several important implications.

First, the Arab and Moslem lobbies remain unable to affect the policy outlook
of presidential candidates. Zogby can rail against the candidates' agreement as
"pandering" to Jewish voters with "worn-out cliches" and "dangerous and
provocative posturing," but he can do little about it.

Second, several times more members of the Republican Party are friendly to
Israel than are Democrats, and their leaderships reflect this disparity.

Third, Jews nonetheless still overwhelmingly favor the Democratic Party.

This is because they care less over time about policy toward Israel and more
about domestic American concerns. An insightful observer of the US Jewish
scene, Jonathan S. Tobin, explains that "a pro-choice stand on abortion and a
willingness to vilify the National Rifle Association is the red meat that most
Jewish audiences hunger for, not speeches about Jerusalem."

Finally, despite a diminished focus on the Middle East among American Jews,
a consensus exists in the United States as a whole about the rights and
wrongs of the Arab-Israeli conflict and Iraq, and this consensus no longer
depends on a Jewish lobby to sustain it.

The writer is director of the Philadelphia-based Middle East Forum and author
of Conspiracy: How the Paranoid Style Flourishes and Where It Comes From
(Free Press).

------- End of forwarded message -------

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Arutz-7 News items (2/15/00)
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Tue, 15 Feb 2000 12:44:02 -0500

POPE AND ARAFAT ISSUE JOINT JERUSALEM DECLARATION

Pope John Paul II and Yasser Arafat issued a joint condemnation today of
any unilateral decision that would "change the unique character of
Jerusalem," terming such a decision "legally and morally invalid." The two,
who met in the Vatican today, called for an international status to be granted
to Jerusalem. Prime Minister Ehud Barak continues to refuse to include
areas around Jerusalem in the upcoming transfer of territory to the
Palestinian Authority. He is, however, apparently willing to make a change
in the withdrawal maps and grant territorial contiguity between several of the
Palestinian-autonomous enclaves. So reported Army Radio today.

HEVRONITES PROTEST

The Jewish residents of Hevron, outraged by a government decision to re-
open a gas station next to Beit Hadassah, will stage a demonstration at 4
PM this afternoon against the decision. The IDF closed the gas station,
located on King David Street, for security reasons six years ago. Against
the clear recommendations of the IDF and other security forces, the Barak
administration recently decided to allow the gas station to be re-opened, on
condition that Arafat himself be responsible for it. A statement by the Hevron
Jewish Community warns that the opening of the gas station "will place the
entire Beit Hadassah neighborhood in danger, including hundreds of children
who play in the area. They will be constantly threatened by thousands of
liters of gas, kerosene and other flammable substances. One terrorist,
taking advantage of this tremendous fuel supply, could transform the entire
neighborhood into flames, G-d forbid."

The members of the Knesset Finance Committee toured Gush Etzion,
Hevron, and the nearby Jewish communities today. Arutz-7's Haggai Seri
reported that Meretz MK Avshalom Villan enjoyed the Biblical landscapes,
but had criticism of the amounts of money being spent on the relatively few
Jews living in Hevron. MK Nachum Langental (National Religious Party)
retorted, "If we decide whom to evacuate based on economic considerations,
then I can think of a few development towns in the Negev that are not
particularly profitable - maybe we should evacuate them too?" MKs
Langental and Goldshmidt (Labor) recited Psalms together in the Machpelah
Cave.

SYRIA ON THE HOLOCAUST, ZIONISM

Middle East Media and Research Institute (MEMRI) reports of ever-
increasing anti-Semitic statements and Holocaust denial in the Syrian press.
Comparisons between the Holocaust and "the Zionist massacres" comprise
a consistent thread running through the articles of all the Syrian writers,
according to a recent MEMRI release. As examples, a Feb. 2 article in Al-
Thawra by Fayez Al-Sayegh, a member of the Syrian negotiating team at
Shepherdstown and Director-General of the Syrian News Agency, stated:
"Israel... was established on Arab land following the banishment of its
original inhabitants, their expulsion, and their murder in a series of horrible
massacres... What is the Holocaust in comparison with these massacres?"
The article referred to "the problematic historical nature of the Holocaust,
whose terrorizing spectacles and the stories about its magnitude have been
denied by writers and historians, including Israelis."

More directly anti-Semitic, Dr. Ali Aqleh Ursan, the Chairman of the Arab
Writers Association in Syria, wrote in Al-Usbu Al-Adabi, on Feb. 5: "The
covetous, racist, and hated Jew Shylock, who cut the [pound of] flesh from
Antonio's chest with the knife of hatred, invades you with his money, his
modern airplanes, his missiles, and his nuclear bombs. You must face a
hard question: 'Do you, Christians and Muslims, wish to live, survive and fulfill
your convictions...? Or are you Abraham's bleating lambs on the threshold
of the Jewish altar, who are led to be sent to the Hereafter?' You will always
be the 'Goyim' [gentiles], that the sons of snakes [i.e. the Jews] despise and
permit their blood, their belongings, and their land..."

Recent samples of other Syrian press articles denying the existence of the
Holocaust and comparing Zionism to Nazism can be seen at the MEMRI
website at www.memri.org. In another Arab media news item, the Middle
East Times of Egypt reported last week of a survey of Syrians on the issue
of a peace agreement with Israel. The paper reports that 51% of
respondents said they would vote against a peace accord that involved a full
Israeli withdrawal from the Golan Heights, while 25% would vote in favor.
Other items of interest from the Arab press can be read in Arutz-7's weekly
Arab Press Survey, at <a
href="http://www.a7.org/english/newspaper/arabpress/arab.htm">
www.a7.org/english/newspaper/arabpress/arab.htm </a>.

DRUZE ON BOTH SIDES OF THE FENCE

Druze residents of the village of Majdal Shams in the Golan threw rocks
during a violent protest yesterday, marking the 18th anniversary of the
distribution of Israeli ID cards to the local population following the annexation
of the Golan to Israel. Police responded to the protestors' violence with tear
gas and rubber bullets. A simultaneous demonstration elsewhere in the area
featured huge banners against the "Israeli occupation of the Golan" and in
support of Syrian President Assad. The protestors also chanted slogans in
support of Hizbullah, urging it to shell Galilee settlements. HaTzofeh reports
that the Druze are fearful of their possible return to Syrian rule, and their
protests are a way of "getting on the good side" of the Syrians.

Prof. Mordechai Nissan of Hebrew University explains that the Druze
"perceive that their self-interest is in identifying themselves with Syria...
They recognize that Israel's presence and control of the Golan Heights may
turn out to be temporary, as a result of which they... want to demonstrate
their solidarity with Syria in order to remove from them the [image] that
somehow they supported Israel's presence on the Golan Heights." Prof.
Nissan, speaking yesterday with Arutz-7's Ron Meir, added that the Druze
behavior is a function of "Syria's terror campaign" against them: "[They]
recognize that they will be subject to Syrian punishment and persecution if
they are deemed in any way to be collaborators with Israel. Therefore, as
long as Prime Minister Barak talks about withdrawal, we should expect the
kind of events that transpired on the Golan Heights today... [Israel itself] is
creating this emergence of insurgency by the Druze on the Golan Heights."

The entire interview with Prof. Nissan can be heard at <a
href="http://www.a7.org/engclips/150200/nisan-druze.ram">
www.a7.org/engclips/150200/nisan-druze.ram </a>.

YOSEFS MEET

Yonatan Yosef, 20, who was arrested a week ago for 36 hours on suspicion
of organizing a right-wing underground, visited his grandfather Rabbi Ovadiah
Yosef today, the spiritual leader of the Shas party. The young Yosef was
accompanied by his father Rabbi Yaakov Yosef, despite reports of a rift
between the two rabbis.

THE KINNERET TODAY

The level of the Kinneret Sea today, as measured by the Mekorot National
Water Company, is 212.37 meters below sea level, some 90 centimeters
higher than its lowest point this winter. Each centimeter represents 1.7
million cubic meters of water; Israel's water supply is still some 400 million
cubic meters short. The rains of the past two days have stopped, but are
expected to resume tonight.

The Knesset Water Committee discussed Israel's water shortage yesterday,
and decided to recommend immediate importing of water from Turkey.
Committee Chairman Shalom Simchon told Arutz-7 today that this would be
a temporary solution to an acute problem. "Our water problems will not be
solved in the next couple of years," he said, "and urgent measures are
required." Water can be imported from Turkey in two ways, Simchon
explained: either by tanker, which can bring between 50-100 million cubic
meters at a time, or by a new method of plastic pipes that pass under the
ocean.

Arutz Sheva News Service
<http://www.ArutzSheva.org>
Tuesday, February 15, 2000 / Adar Aleph 9, 5760

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Palestinians sign "historic" accord with Vatican
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Tue, 15 Feb 2000 12:44:02 -0500

Tuesday, February 15 10:07 PM SGT

Palestinians sign "historic" accord with Vatican

VATICAN CITY, Feb 15 (AFP) -

The Vatican and the Palestinians on Tuesday signed what they described as
an "historic" accord formalising the Roman Catholic church's activities in
areas of Palestinian self-rule.

Hailed by Palestinian sources as a diplomatic coup and a match to a similar
deal signed between the Vatican and Israel in 1997, the accord followed brief
talks here between Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat and Pope John-Paul II.
The agreement, produced in both English and Arabic and signed by
delegations from both parties after the end of the talks, will establish for the
first time a legal framework to provide services and security to Catholic
churches in the autonomous Palestinian areas.

It calls for a "special statute for Jerusalem, internationally guaranteed" and
for "the proper identity and sacred character of the city and universally
significant religious and cultural heritage" to be "safeguarded".

Israel's claim to Jerusalem as the unified capital of the Jewish state has
never been recognized internationally and the Palestinians want east
Jerusalem as the capital of their future state.

Under Israeli-Palestinian agreements, the fate of Jerusalem is to be
determined in so-called final-status talks which are due to reach a permanent
peace settlement by September.

The text of the new agreement insists that there should be "freedom of
religion and conscience for all", "equality before the law of the three
monotheistic religions" and "the freedom of access" to the "holy places". The
November 1997 agreement between the Vatican and Israel covered the
recognition of Roman Catholic property in "areas where Israeli legislation is
in effect".

The Palestinians interpreted this as a de facto recognition of Israel's rule over
east Jerusalem, since it is home to Christianity's holiest site, the Church of
the Holy Sepulchre, captured and annexed by Israel in 1967. The 15-minute
meeting between Arafat and Pope John-Paul, described by Vatican
spokesman Joaquin Navarro Valls as "very cordial", also covered the issue of
the stalled Middle East peace process.

"The president of the Palestinian Authority raised the latest developments in
the peace process, and discussed with the pope his preoccupation with the
current situation," Valls said after the meeting.

The talks also covered the pontiff's March visit, the first of its kind for 36
years, to Jordan, Israel and the Palestinian territories.

Valls said the pope promised Arafat he would add the Palestinian town of
Jericho to his tour, scheduled to run from March 20 to 26. It was Arafat's
eighth visit to the Vatican since 1982.

Following his meeting with the pope Arafat met Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran,
the papal foreign minister, for talks focused on the Middle East peace
process and the papal visit to the region.

Earlier in the day, Arafat met Italian President Carlo Azeglio Ciampi and
Prime Minister Massimo D'Alema.

The Vatican established diplomatic ties with the Palestinian leadership in
1994. It recognised Israel in 1993 and opened diplomatic relations in 1994.

http://sg.dailynews.yahoo.com/headlines/world/afp/article.html?s=singapore

via: End_Times_News@onelist.com

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Travolta Toys with Scientology
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Tue, 15 Feb 2000 19:31:00 -0500

TRAVOLTA TOYS WITH SCIENTOLOGY:
Here's an interesting toy story: The Church of Scientology will get a share of
the merchandising profits from the upcoming John Travolta flick Battlefield
Earth, even though the church didn't participate in the film's production.
Variety reports that toys for the film include an 11-inch figure of Travolta as
Terl, a villainous warlord who spouts snippets of dialogue like "Exterminate
all man animals at will" and "Rat-bastard." What would L. Ron
Hubbard say?

via: TVGuide@LISTSERV.TVGUIDE.COM

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Picosatellites Complete Mission
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Tue, 15 Feb 2000 19:34:32 -0500

Subject: Picosatellites Complete Mission (Forwarded)
Date: Tue, 15 Feb 2000 16:58:35 -0500
From: Andrew Yee <ayee@nova.astro.utoronto.ca>
Organization: UTCC Campus Access
To: SEDSNEWS@LISTSERV.TAMU.EDU

Aerospace Corporation
El Segundo, California

2/14/00

Picosatellites Complete Mission

The Aerospace Corporation and the Defense Advanced Research Projects
Agency (DARPA) have successfully concluded their pioneering mission
to fly the smallest satellites ever placed into orbit.

Aerospace engineers made the decision to close out the mission Feb.
10 because power aboard the tiny spacecraft -- which measure
4-by-3-by-1 inches and weigh less than one-half pound each -- began
to diminish after completing a number of groundbreaking operations.

These began Sunday, Feb. 6, when the tethered pair of picosatellites
were released from their "mother" satellite, built by Stanford University
students.

Milestones Achieved

The first milestone achieved during the operations period, from Feb. 6
through Feb. 10, was release from OPAL (Orbiting Picosatellite Automated
Launcher), the mother ship.

Figuring in were a new four-stage launch vehicle -- the Air Force's Orbital
Suborbital Program Space Launch Vehicle constructed from refurbished
Minuteman
II rocket motors and Pegasus XL motors -- and a succession of deployments
from
university-built satellites.

OPAL, the Stanford satellite, was released by JAWSAT -- the Joint Air
Force Academy Weber State University Satellite -- and the picosatellites
were released from OPAL. The launch itself occurred on Jan. 26 from a new
commercial spaceport at Vandenberg Air Force Base, a first from that site.

Distinguished Engineer Ernest Y. Robinson of The Aerospace Corporation
said a major achievement, in addition to getting the picosats launched
successfully and released from their mother satellite, was demonstrating
that they could be located and tracked. This presented a significant
challenge because they offered a diminutive profile, kept limited by
omnidirectional patch antennas that do not protrude from the picosats.

The insertion of thin strands of gold in the tether connecting the two
satellites was a key factor in enabling them to be located by radar and
tracked by the U.S. Space Command's Space Surveillance Network,
Robinson said.

Another achievement was establishing communications from the
50-meter dish antenna at the SRI International ground station at Menlo
Park, Calif.

Achieved were uplink and downlink transmission of data, including
the transmission of commands to the picosats; receipt of data on the
condition of the satellites, for example, battery and temperature data;
and reports on microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) experiments.

Validating an array of MEMS radio frequency switches designed by
Rockwell Science Center of Thousand Oaks, Calif., was the primary
goal of the mission, which was funded by the Microsystems Technology
Office of DARPA.

Infrastructure Established

"We've established the infrastructure which we will use and refine
in validating MEMS and microsystems for integration into miniature
satellites of the future," Robinson said. He said the picosats represent
a link toward mass-produced nanosatellites, envisioned by Aerospace
Corporation researchers as "inevitable" alternatives to many large and
costly spacecraft flown today.

The picosatellites were designed and built by The Aerospace Corporation
under funding from DARPA. Engineers at Aerospace conceived the mission,
tested and integrated the satellite components and delivered the picosats
ready for flight. They also were responsible for flight operations.

The Aerospace Corporation has been heavily involved in research into
miniature satellites for a number of years and formally advanced the
concept of nanosatellites at the 44th International Astronautical
Federation Congress in Graz, Austria, in 1993. A paper presented at this
conference described the concept of nanosatellites, slightly larger than
picosats, and how to build, power and use them.

The mission closed out Feb. 10 was the first of a series designed to
validate MEMS technology and demonstrate the capabilities of mass-
produced miniature satellites operating in constellations. Another
picosat mission is planned for mid-June aboard the MightySat 2.1
satellite built by the Air Force Research Laboratory, and a third more
complex "inspector" mission is planned for 2003.

Pioneering MEMS experiments were conducted in space aboard the space
shuttle Columbia last summer in an experiment designed by The Aerospace
Corporation in collaboration with a number of universities and research
organizations.

Decision to End Mission

In addressing the decision to close out the mission Feb. 10, Robinson said
a failure to communicate with the picosats during two passes they made
over the ground station that morning convinced the team of operators to
terminate the experiment.

"Our ability to communicate became more and more faint and we were in
a situation of diminishing returns," said Robinson.

Part of the problem with power was that it took nearly 24 hours after
the picosats were released from their mother ship on Feb. 6 to establish
communications from the ground station.

Because the tethered pair of satellites had been emitting beacon signals
continually during this period, they used up a third of their power.
Engineers then commanded the satellites to conserve power and issue
beacon signals only on passes over the ground station.

Most of the additional power was used up by exercises with the MEMS
devices, the primary payload. Considerable power also was used by one
picosat during a 12-hour period when a communications gap precluded
transmission of commands to put its beacon signal to rest.

"We knew we were using up our power budget," Robinson said. "By
Wednesday we had used two thirds of the power available (from the
lithium thionyl chloride batteries). Then, because of a number of passes
with no logins, we decided to close down the experiment."

Communications Challenges

Among challenges the engineers faced was doubling up radio transmitting
equipment used in tandem with the SRI antenna.

Affixed to the antenna dish was equipment Stanford students used to
communicate with OPAL, the mother satellite, as well as equipment used
by Aerospace Corp. engineers to communicate with the picosats. Stanford
moved its equipment to the SRI dish because it afforded more power and
"pointing" capabilities than the ground station at the university they used
initially.

In addition, operations were interrupted on at least two occasions when
JPL radio scientists used the dish antenna in efforts to detect signals
from the Mars Polar Lander.

Aerospace engineers had planned to to initiate network communications
among the orbiting picosats and another picosat affixed to the horn of
the SRI dish antenna and perform "data hopping" exercises. But the power
loss precluded this exercise, Robinson said.

More information on this mission and images are available at this Internet
site:
http://www.aero.org/news/current/picosat-00.html

IMAGE CAPTIONS: [http://www.aero.org/news/current/pico-complete.html]

[Image 1]
SRI International's 50-meter dish antenna at Menlo Park, Calif. (Dave
Hinkley photo)

[Image 2]
Engineer Dan Oltrogge (foreground) of The Aerospace Corporation works
on tracking operations at SRI International's Menlo Park, Calif., ground
station. Behind Oltrogge is SRI's operations director Mike Cousins. (Dave
Hinkley photo)

[Image 3]
Satellite Orbit Analysis Program developed at The Aerospace Corporation
shows orbital plane of DARPA/Aerospace Corp. picosats and university
satellites launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base on Jan. 26.

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Asteroid Eros
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Tue, 15 Feb 2000 19:40:12 -0500

EROS CAPTURES NEAR IN ORBITAL EMBRACE

Lo and behold, a heart is found on the asteroid named after the God of Love.
http://www.space.com/science/solarsystem/eros_sr_000211.html

--------------------

TODAY'S SPACEFACT

From: "space.com" <thoughts@SPACE.COM>
Craters on the asteroid Eros are to be named after "mythological and
legendary names of an erotic nature," according to guidelines of the
International Astronomical Union. The asteroid is named after the god of
love.
For more of space.com's Fact Collection go to:
http://www.space.com/news/facts.html

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

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