BPR Mailing List Digest: 07/13/00

Philologos
BPR Mailing List Digest
July 13, 2000

Digest Home | 2000 | July, 2000

To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Buddhist Group Plans World's Largest Statue
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 08:41:13 -0400

Wednesday July 12 10:42 AM ET
Buddhist Group Plans World's Largest
Statue

PATNA, India (Reuters) - A California-based Buddhist organization will build
a Buddha statue in the eastern Indian state of Bihar which it says will be the
tallest statue in the world.

Project officials said the complex, expected to be ready by the end of 2005,
will consist of a 500-foot bronze
statue sitting on a 105-foot throne that will house a temple and a cinema
hall screening films on the life of the
Buddha.

``The Maitreya (future incarnation) Buddha will be seated on the throne with
his feet on a lotus touching the
earth,'' said L.P. Singh, the project's general secretary.

``The posture reflects the Buddha's readiness and willingness to come into
this world and start his worth as a
universal teacher.''

Singh said the $150 million project in Bodh Gaya, the place where the
Buddha is said to have attained spiritual
enlightenment, is managed by the Foundation for the Preservation of the
Mahayana Tradition of Buddhism.

http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/nm/20000712/od/buddha_dc_1.html

Link via:
http://www.newsviewtoday.com

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========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - FW: Universe Today #271, July 12, 2000
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Shophar_Sho_Good")
Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 07:49:40 -0500

Another Perspective/Report....

-----Original Message-----
From: Universe Today [mailto:newsletter@universetoday.com]
Sent: Wednesday, July 12, 2000 6:04 PM
Subject: Universe Today #271, July 12, 2000

the
U N I V E R S E T O D A Y

Space Exploration News From Around the Internet, Updated Every Weekday.
July 12, 2000 - Issue #271 http://www.universetoday.com
info@universetoday.com

An HTML version of this Newsletter is available at:
http://www.universetoday.com/html/misc/today.html

**************************************

A quick note...

It's eclipse time again! I don't know if you've heard, but this Sunday
there

will be a total lunar eclipse starting at 1157 GMT. What's special about
this eclipse, though, is that the moon goes right through the centre of
the Earth's shadow - this is the longest lunar eclipse we'll see for 1000
years.

First the bad news. The eclipse will only be visible from the Pacific,
including Australia, New Zealand, Hawaii, and Southeast Asia. If you live
in most of North America, South America, Europe and Africa, you won't be
able to see it live.

Now the good news, I've organized a network of astrocameras: two in New
Zealand, four in Australia, two in Japan, and one in San Diego to
broadcast the eclipse live from around the world. We're still looking for
more volunteers, so if you want to pitch in, please let me know
(mailto:info@universetoday.com), we'd love to have your assistance. Links
to all the different astrocameras is available at the link below.

I've also got a press release describing the event, so if you work for a
media agency, or you know someone at a media agency, or you think a media
agency would listen to you, please let me know, and I'll send you a copy
of the release. I'd also accept message boards, newsletters, posters,
society meetings, pretty much anything to help get the word out there.

Finally, I've put together a lunar eclipse contest with Astronomy.com to
give away about $8,000 in astronomy-related prizes, including several
telescopes,

binoculars, and camera equipment. You don't have to wait until Sunday to
enter. ;-)

Check it out:
http://www.universetoday.com/html/special/le0700.html?271

Fraser Cain
Publisher
Universe Today

P.S. I don't know if you caught yesterday's launch of the Zvezda service
module, but it was a pretty emotional event for me. I think I didn't
breathe for the

entire launch. I can just imagine how the folks at NASA felt.

**************************************

-- UNIVERSE TODAY STORY SUMMARY --

* Live Lunar Eclipse Coverage on July 16th
* Zvezda Launch Successful
* Pizza Hut Sponsors Proton Launch
* Brown Dwarf Flare Spotted by Chandra

LIVE LUNAR ECLIPSE COVERAGE ON JULY 16TH
-------------------------
Universe Today will have live coverage of the total lunar eclipse on
Sunday July 16, 2000. The eclipse won't be visible from North America or
Europe, so we've gathered together a network of Astrocameras in Australia,
New Zealand, and Southeast Asia to broadcast the event live. You can also
enter a contest sponsored by Astronomy.com to win all kinds of astronomy
equipment.

http://www.universetoday.com/html/special/le0700.html

ZVEZDA LAUNCH SUCCESSFUL
-------------------------
After two years of delays, a Proton rocket carrying the Zvezda service
module for the International Space Station lifted off from the Baikonur
Cosmodrome at 04:56 GMT (12:56:36 am EDT). Now safely in orbit, the Zvezda
module will fly

under its own power for the next two weeks to catch up with the ISS, and
during this time, NASA engineers will ensure its systems are working
properly. An engine pressure problem with a previous Proton launch was a
minor concern, but engine pressure remained normal throughout the flight.
This launch clears the way for continued development of the space station,
with the next mission planned for September.

Original Source:
http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/spacenews/reports/issreports/2000/iss00-27.htm
l

Internet Coverage:
http://abcnews.go.com/sections/science/DailyNews/ISS_Zvezda000712.html
http://spaceflightnow.com/station/zvezda/000712launch/index.html
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/sci/tech/newsid_827000/827496.stm
http://www.cnn.com/2000/TECH/space/07/12/space.station.launch.02/index.htm
l http://www.discovery.com/news/briefs/20000712/sp_station.html
http://www.foxnews.com/science/071100/iss.sml
http://www.msnbc.com/news/431561.asp
http://www.space.com/missionlaunches/launches/zvezda_launch_000712.html
http://www.chron.com/content/interactive/space/station/stories/2000/200007
12 a.html http://www.flatoday.com/space/explore/stories/2000b/071200o.htm
http://www.spacedaily.com/news/iss-00zh.html
http://www.spaceviews.com/2000/07/12a.html

PIZZA HUT SPONSORS PROTON LAUNCH
-------------------------
Unlike NASA, the Russian Space Agency has no problems accepting commercial
sponsorship of their missions, and the recent International Space Station
Proton launch proved this was the case. Painted on the side of the 61
metre rocket was a giant Pizza Hut logo - for which they paid a rumoured
$1.2 million. Was it good business? That remains to be seen, but the
launch was viewed by an estimated $500 million people.

Original Source:
http://www.pizzahut.com/CorpStuff/PressReleases/2000/071200_rocket.htm

Internet Coverage:
http://abcnews.go.com/sections/science/DailyNews/spaceads000711.html
http://www.foxnews.com/science/071200/rocket_pizzahut.sml
http://www.msnbc.com/news/431643.asp
http://www.chron.com/cgi-bin/auth/story.mpl/content/interactive/space/news
/2 000/20000712.html http://www.spaceviews.com/2000/07/11b.html

BROWN DWARF FLARE SPOTTED BY CHANDRA
-------------------------
The Chandra X-Ray Observatory recently captured a rare image of a flare
erupting from a brown dwarf star only 16 light-years from Earth. This came
as a surprise to the Caltech researchers working on the project, as they
didn't expect to see such a flare from a lightweight object. The energy
emitted was comparable to

a small solar flare from our own Sun.

Original Source:
ftp://ftp.hq.nasa.gov/pub/pao/pressrel/2000/00-103.txt

Internet Coverage:
http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n0007/12chandraflare/
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/sci/tech/newsid_830000/830447.stm
http://www.discovery.com/news/briefs/20000712/sp_chandra.html
http://www.msnbc.com/news/431666.asp
http://www.chron.com/content/interactive/space/astronomy/news/2000/ds/2000
07 12.html http://www.spaceviews.com/2000/07/11c.html

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

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Leaders Agree To An African Union
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 08:51:16 -0400

"Today this continent takes its place in the world." Libya's Moammar
Gadhafi

Leaders Agree To An African Union
Timetable For Creation Unclear
Will Include Central Bank, Court, Parliament
Gadhafi Says Africa's Borders Make Little Sense

LOME, Togo, July 12, 2000

(Reuters) Africa's leaders signed legal texts Wednesday for the creation
of an African Union, keeping faith with a pledge they made in 1999 to
Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi.

But they extended the timetable for implementation of the agreement.

The accord, signed at the closing session of the three-day annual
Organization of African Unity (OAU) summit in Togo, falls short of
Gadhafi's dream of a United States of Africa and follows the European
model—as did the pledge in his home town of Sirte in September 1999.

But Gadhafi hailed the signing as historic and launched into an
impassioned plea for the world to acknowledge that the nation state had
had its day and urged Asia and Latin America to follow Africa's example
and set up Unions.

"Today is a historic day for Africa. As far as the world is concerned, it
is the greatest event since the start of the third millennium," he told
his fellow leaders. "Today this continent takes its place in the world."

"This is the crowning achievement, the result of gradual, successive
action over a period of decades, from regional conferences to treaties and
agreements," Gadhafi told Reuters correspondent Anne Boher.

Asked if it meant Libya was now detached from the Arab world, he replied:
"Libya is a very dynamic country. Libya's territory is African. The Arab
countries can catch up with the African countries."

The fine print of the agreement points to a longer timetable for the
creation of the new Pan-African grouping than that envisaged in Sirte,
after continental heavyweights such as South Africa insisted on a go-slow
approach.

But Gadhafi, who helped foot the bill for the summit and came to Togo keen
to maintain the momentum of Sirte, appeared unfazed by the compromise.

"The era of the nation state is now over, not only in Africa but in the
world," he said, urging the continent to go even further and embrace his
vision of a federal United States of Africa. "The role of the nation
state, a product of colonialism, has ended. Keeping these nation states is
a mistake."

He said that Africa's borders made no social, economic, linguistic or
geographic sense.

Formal creation of the new Union, which will replace the OAU, will not
start until two thirds of the OAU's 53 members have ratified the texts,
which envisage a transition period of up to a year.

Thirty-three heads of state and government attended the summit in Togo's
capital Lome.

Angola led a boycott that included Congolese President Laurent Kabila and
Namibia's Sam Nujoma. Angola accused summit host Gnassingbe Eyadema,
Africa's longest-serving head of state and the new OAU chairman, of
trading in rebel diamonds that fuel its civil war.

Africa set up the OAU in 1963 to realize the dreams of a generation of
independence leaders. Presidents close to Gadhafi say that it has rid the
continent of colonial rule but has now outlived its usefulness.

The Union's headquarters will be situated, like the OAU's, in Ethiopia's
capital, Addis Ababa.

The texts also envisage a Pan-African parliament, a court of justice, a
central bank, an African monetary fund and an investment bank. Like the
EU, its secretariat will be called The Commission. The leaders' conference
will decide on its powers.

Critics of Gadhafi question his motives, describing the Union as a pitch
for power in the continent. Others question the practicalities.

"Once people started to look at the detail of what needed to be done, I
think it became clear that you would have to take this step by step,"
South Africa's president, Thabo Mbeki, told Reuters during a briefing
Tuesday.

By NICHOLAS PHYTHIAN
Copyright 2000 Reuters Limited. All Rights Reserved.

http://cbsnews.cbs.com/now/story/0,1597,214554-412,00.shtml

Link via:
http://www.newsviewtoday.com

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Gospel of Andy, Barney, Opie gains popularity
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 08:55:57 -0400

Gospel of Andy, Barney, Opie
gains popularity

The Associated Press
7/11/00 1:33 PM

                BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) -- A minister said he chose the
                gospel according to Andy, Barney and Opie for his
                Birmingham congregation because it contains many moral
                lessons that have been used successfully at other
                churches.

                The Rev. Jerry Sims said "The Andy Griffith Show,"
                featuring the adventures of the red-headed Opie, bumbling
                lawman Barney Fife and the other residents of Mayberry,
                covers every walk of life.

                Sims' church, Avondale United Methodist, will offer Bible
                studies based on episodes of "The Andy Griffith Show."
                The sessions starting next week are free and open to the
                public.

Full Story:
http://www.al.com/newsflash/index.ssf?/cgi-
free/getstory_ssf.cgi?j8903_BC_AL--MayberryGospel&&news&al_headlines

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - World's Greatest Prying Eyes
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 09:01:26 -0400

"It completely destroys the idea of freedom of assembly, freedom of
movement. That's got to fly in the face of the sort of constitutional protections
that we fought for for centuries." Simon Davies, Privacy International

World's Greatest Prying Eyes
A Million Cameras Monitor The People Of Britain
Officials Say It Cuts Crime Dramatically
Critics Say It Cuts Into Human Rights

CIRENCESTER, England, July 11, 2000 (CBS) How would you like to be on
television? You may not have a choice. As CBS News Correspondent Mark
Phillips reports, cameras installed to combat crime are encroaching on
personal privacy.

Some people expect to have their picture taken. Prince Charles and his
usually private companion Camilla set off a barrage of shutters whenever they
pop up in public. But they are not the most photographed people in Britain.

The most photographed people in Britain are normal people going about
normal lives. From cameras situated on rooftops, cornices, trees or
disguised street lamps, almost everybody in Britain is being spied on almost
every day.

According to every international survey, Britain leads the world in the use of
closed circuit television cameras in public spaces. Criminologists estimate
the total number of cameras at around a million.

To walk in front of London's Victoria Station is to be within view of perhaps a
dozen cameras. While most people have come to accept, even welcome the
security they offer, not everyone does.

Simon Davies is with Privacy International, an organization that opposes
public surveillance. "It completely destroys the idea of freedom of assembly,
freedom of movement. That's got to fly in the face of the sort of constitutional
protections that we fought for for centuries," says Davies.

Yet the closed circuit systems were developed to provide another kind of
protection -- protection from IRA terrorism for example, or protection from
crime.

Adrian Grimmitt of the Gloucestershire Police Department says he uses the
systems because they work. "It's certainly proven to reduce crime. In fact,
the car crime in the town is reduced by 95 percent."

And if you thought you could get away from the incessant prying eye by
leaving the nasty big city and coming to some charming little town, you'd be
wrong. Surveillance cameras have infiltrated rural areas as well.

And the technology is getting better. Face-recognition software can pick
repeat offenders out of the crowd.

Whether the video surveillance actually reduces crime or merely moves it
elsewhere out of camera range is still a matter of public debate here. But if
you're out on Britain's public streets, minding your own business or intent on
crime, it pays to know you are being watched. Copyright 2000, CBS
Worldwide Inc., All Rights Reserved.

http://cbsnews.cbs.com/now/story/0,1597,214086-412,00.shtml

Link via:
http://www.newsviewtoday.com

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - IsraelWire items (7/13/00)
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 09:19:04 -0400

Hebron Deputy Mayor Dweik on prayer at Cave of the Patriarchs
(IsraelWire-7/13) [The Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron is the only intact
Second Temple Period structure. A mosque, then a church and then again a
mosque were built using the walls of the structure]

IMRA interviewed Kamal Dweik, the deputy mayor of Hebron, in English, on
June 22, 1999:
IMRA: Yesterday some Jewish holy books were found defiled in Hebron. Is
there any Palestinian official response to this?

Dweik: This is the first time I heard about this matter. As Moslems, Jews
and Christians we pray to one God. Nobody would do these bad things to
holy
books. I do not think that this information is true.

IMRA: What is the situation now in the Mosque of Ibrahim (Cave of the
Patriarch). Are both Jews and Moslems praying there now?

Dweik: After the massacre by Baruch Goldstein in the Ibrahim Mosque they
divided the mosque into two parts: one part for the Moslems and one part
for the Jews. On holidays the entire mosque is for the Moslems on the
Moslem holidays and for the Jews on Jewish holidays.

The situation is not right. We refuse this thing and we hope to change this
idea because who did the massacre? Goldstein, and who pays for these bad
things? The Moslems.

IMRA: What do you expect there to be in the future?

Dweik: It is a mosque, not a synagogue. It will be open to all visitors. It
will not be divided. It is a mosque. Not a church. Not a synagogue. It is a
mosque. It will be returned to being a mosque and the Jews who want to
visit the mosque are welcome.

IMRA: Visit but not pray.

Dweik: Look, Jewish prayer would mean that it is a synagogue. But it will
be open for those wishing to visit the holy places.

IMRA: Under Islamic laws a Jews cannot pray in a mosque?

Dweik: For Jews to pray in a mosque would mean that it is changed into a
synagogue. And we refuse this thing. But to visit the Tomb of Avraham and
the others, as visitors, that's OK.

IMRA: You would expect that if the Mosque of Ibrahim came under
Palestinian
control that it would be only a mosque.

Dweik: It would only be a mosque. At no time was it a synagogue. At no time
in the last thousand years. It is not a synagogue, it is a mosque. But for
anyone wanting to visit it as a holy place: welcome.

IMRA: Would you expect there to be a set up again for the Jews to pray
outside the building?

Dweik: Before 1948 the Jews were praying outside. Nobody said no. But to
pray inside the mosque would mean changing the mosque into a synagogue.

IMRA: So we will go back to that arrangement?

Dweik: Yes. (IMRA - Independent Media Review & Analysis,
imra@netvision.net.il - http://www.imra.org.il)

Fatah announces general enlistment and beginning of military exercises
(IsraelWire-7/13) During a peaceful demonstration in the autonomous city of
Ramallah on Wednesday, Fatah activists called for a general enlistment of
all eligible persons, to begin military exercises next week.

The Fatah leaders stressed their military training is for self-defense
purposes only, explaining that following a unilateral declaration of a
Palestinian state, they me be compelled to defend themselves against
Israeli aggression.

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Eclipse info and contest
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 09:52:25 -0400

Total Lunar Eclipse, July 16, 2000
Latest News (July 7, 4:30pm PDT)

Return to this page for live coverage of the July 16 total lunar eclipse,
broadcast from cameras all around the world. Coverage begins July 16, 2000
shortly before 11:57 UT which is when the eclipse starts (check listings
below for the time in your area.)

This total lunar eclipse is the longest since 1859, and there won't be another
this long for over 1000 years. The moon will pass directly through the centre
of the Earth's shadow.

Subscribe to the Universe Today newsletter to get daily space news, as well
as a special alert when the eclipse is about to begin. Enter your email in the
box on the right side of the page.

We're looking for more volunteers to help take part. Click here to find out
how.

                Eclipse Contest
               Before you check out the eclipse, make sure you enter
               the total lunar eclipse contest, brought to you by Universe
               Today and our friends at Astronomy.com. There are
               over $8,000 in prizes to be won including telescopes,
               cameras, binoculars, and more. It's free to enter.

More:
http://www.universetoday.com/html/special/le0700.html?271

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - For Gore, Baptist Worship Mixes With Environmental Spirituality
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Shophar_Sho_Good")
Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 09:48:05 -0500

AP Headlines
For Gore, Baptist Worship Mixes With Environmental Spirituality
By Julia Lieblich
AP Religion Writer
July 12, 2000
<<...>> -- NEW YORK (AP) - Vanderbilt University's divinity school was
known as a draft dodger's haven in the 1960s. By the time Al Gore arrived in
1971, the antiwar mood had muted, and it was a good place for an ex-soldier
to figure out what to do with his life.
His professors called him one of ``the searchers,'' who thought studying
theologians and philosophers could help them make sense of Vietnam.
He stayed for a year, taking courses on the Hebrew prophets and social
justice, religion and the natural sciences, and the like - a far cry from
the fundamentals he learned growing up in the New Salem Missionary Baptist
Church near Carthage, Tenn.
Both the conservative church and the progressive divinity school left their
mark. Gore and his wife, Tipper, say they are both ``born-again,'' and they
attend a small church that's part of the increasingly conservative Southern
Baptist Convention. But Gore's writings about the spiritual roots of the
world's environmental problems in his book, ``Earth in the Balance,'' have
brought charges of New Age pantheism from Christian conservatives.
Gore maintains that exploring diverse teachings about religion and the
environment has been key to finding his own spiritual balance.
``The search for truths about this ungodly (environmental) crisis and the
search for truths about myself have been the same search all along,'' he
writes in the book.
Spiritual influences competed from Gore's earliest days. ``He grew up with
what we in the South call a mixed marriage,'' says Eugene TeSelle, a
Vanderbilt professor who taught Gore. His father went to a Baptist church,
his mother, the Church of Christ, and they brought their son on alternate
Sundays. During the summers in Carthage, he joined his grandparents at what
one biographer called ``hellfire and damnation'' revival meetings that could
last for days.
He spent most of the year in Washington, where his father served in the
House and then the Senate. There, young Al attended morning chapel at St.
Albans, an Episcopal school favored by the Roosevelts and Bushes, which
preached to young men about heaven and Harvard.
During his junior year at Harvard, Gore had his first ``born-again''
experience.
``It's very personal and I don't want to be advertising all of the
particulars and details,'' he told ABC News. ``When I was a young man, I had
an experience (of) a very intense awareness of the presence and the meaning
of Jesus and the message of God through Jesus.''
But Gore says his experience in the Vietnam War - he spent a five-month tour
as an army journalist - would challenge teachings he had taken on faith.
``It's wrong, we're wrong,'' he wrote of the war in a 1966 letter to his
future wife. In the end, he called the war ``one of the most painful and
costly experiences in American history'' and said it left him ruminating on
the ease with which people inflict suffering and such evils as massive
starvation and nuclear war.
He wanted to know, ``How can human beings do these things to each other?''
said Jack Forstman, a Vanderbilt professor. ``He thought a few courses in
religious studies, particularly in ethics and philosophy of religion, would
be helpful in ordering his own mind.''
Gore never intended to become a minister. He attended Vanderbilt on a
yearlong Rockefeller Foundation scholarship for people planning secular
careers, and later said that he had hoped to make sense of the social
injustices that seemed to challenge his religious beliefs.
The university in Nashville was a center of social activism. In the 1960s,
when James Lawson, a black divinity student, was expelled from the school
because of his anti-segregation work with the Southern Christian Leadership
Conference, the faculty protested until he was readmitted. Feminism was
already a key issue in the 1970s, and ecological concerns were emerging.
``Our strength was interfaith understanding, grappling with critical
philosophical issues that seemed to undermine theology,'' said David
Ogletree, Gore's Christian ethics professor who now teaches at Yale.
Still, Gore remained grounded in traditional worship after he left
Vanderbilt, attending churches and prayer meetings as his political career
advanced, representing religiously conservative Tennessee, as his father
did. He invoked Christian parables in political speeches as a congressman
and senator, and later as vice president, at times falling into a preacher's
cadences.
When Gore began a talk at the Temple Of Deliverance, Church of God in Christ
in Memphis in September 1996, it sounded like a political speech. But when
audience members cried out ``amen'' and ``preach,'' he segued into the
biblical tale of the good Samaritan.
``When we reach down to the man beside the road who has been passed by for
so long, we are called upon to lift him up and testify, and with our, faith,
breathe life,'' he said, blowing into the microphone for emphasis.
While in Carthage, the Gores continued to attend the Salem Missionary
Baptist Church of Al's childhood. In Washington, they went to Tipper's home
church in Arlington, Va.: Mount Vernon Baptist, where she would serve as a
deaconess.
In the late 1970s, she and her husband reaffirmed their religious commitment
when they were ``born again'' at the Arlington church.
``He was baptized here, full immersion.'' says the Rev. Martha Phillips, the
church's interim minister. ``When we are immersed we are burying our sins
with Christ.''
A few years later, Tipper earned points with the religious right with her
campaign to put warning labels on records that contained sexually explicit
and violent lyrics.
A family crisis intensified the couple's self-reflection. In 1989, Gore saw
his 6-year-old son Albert hit by a car and almost lose his life.
``A single horrifying event triggered a big change in the way I thought
about my relationship with life itself,'' he wrote in ``Earth in the
Balance.'' The incident ``gave me a new sense of urgency about those things
I value the most.''
Determined to spend time with his wife and four children, he decided not to
seek the 1992 Democratic nomination.
Tipper continued her work as an advocate for the mentally ill and homeless,
a commitment her husband calls an expression of faith. Gore went on to write
his personal, passionate discussion of his environmental beliefs.
In ``Earth in the Balance,'' Gore wrote of his faith, which he said was
``rooted in the unshakable belief in God as creator and sustainer, a deeply
personal interpretation of the relationship with Christ, and an awareness of
a constant and holy spiritual presence in all people, all life, and all
things.''
Faith, he wrote, should lead to an adherence to just principles, including a
responsibility to preserve the earth for future generations. He talked of
lessons to be learned from other religious traditions, including ancient
earth goddess worship, and of God's place in the universe.
``Why does it feel faintly heretical to a Christian to suppose that God is
in us as human beings?'' he wrote. ``Why do our children believe that the
Kingdom of God is up, somewhere in the ethereal reaches of space, far
removed from this planet? Are we still ... looking everywhere except in the
real world.''
Ogletree says Gore's sense of the sacred in nature was not at odds with a
belief in a transcendent God: ``The Old Testament is full of images of God
being concretely present and yet totally beyond.''
But Mark Tooley of the conservative Institute for Religion and Democracy
wrote that Gore offended Christians who believe that ``the Earth is but a
footstool to the sovereign and very distinct creator of all creation.''
His positions on political issues involving religion have been tough to
categorize. Gore is pro-choice and supports gay rights, positions that
Southern Baptist Convention officials have urged him to recant. He is also
against school vouchers supported by many religious conservatives.
While he agrees with liberals that evolution should be taught in public
schools, he made conservatives happy when he said localities should be free
to teach creationism as well.
He supports ``charitable choice,'' a plan that many religious conservatives
support and more liberal groups call a violation of church-state separation.
It allows the government to fund church-based social programs, such as drug
abuse counseling, homeless shelters and efforts to combat youth violence.
``The men and women who work in faith- and values-based organizations are
driven by their spiritual commitment; to serve their God, they have
sustained the drug-addicted, the mentally ill, the homeless; they have
trained them, educated them, cared for them, healed them,'' he said in
Atlanta last May. ``Most of all, they have done what government can never
do; what it takes God's help, sometimes, for all of us to manage; they have
loved them.''
When in Washington, Gore still attends Baptist services, drawn to the
boyhood prayers, the familiar cadences and the faith he says helps him ``to
choose meaning and direction ... despite the buffeting chaos in life.''
``He always listens very carefully to the sermon,'' says Pastor Phillips.
``His eyes are glued on you when you're preaching.''

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - (Fwd) Arutz-7 News: Thursday, July 13, 2000
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 12:11:22 -0400

------- Forwarded message follows -------
Date sent: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 18:48:56 +0300
To: arutz-7@arutzsheva.org
From: Arutz-7 Editor <neteditor@IsraelNationalNews.com>
Subject: Arutz-7 News: Thursday, July 13, 2000
Send reply to: netnews@a7.org

Arutz Sheva News Service
<http://www.IsraelNationalNews.com>
Thursday, July 13, 2000 / Tammuz 10, 5760
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TODAY'S HEADLINES:
  1. JERUSALEM ENDANGERED
  2. GUSH KATIF IMPERILED
  3. WAR IN THE OFFING?
  4. POLICE RALLYING FOR MASSIVE RALLY
  5. CHINA UNHAPPY WITH CANCELLATION OF PHALCON DEAL
  6. WEIZMAN GOES HOME; DOUBLE STANDARD QUESTIONED
  7. WITNESS POINTS TO GOLAN'S "OBSESSION" WITH ARUTZ-7
  8. RABBINATE, IDF DENY HA'ARETZ REPORT ON MACHPELAH CAVE
  9. HENDEL OFFERS LAND EXCHANGE
  10. ROCKS SPARK IDF COMPLAINT
  11. IN BRIEF

1. JERUSALEM ENDANGERED
The Camp David summit marks the first time that an Israeli Prime Minister
is prepared to place Jerusalem on the negotiating table, says a Likud
statement today. "Here is proof that Barak deceived the public when he
pledged that there would be no impingement on the unity of Jerusalem," the
statement said.

The statement came in response to reports such as that in Ha'aretz today
indicating that Barak plans to propose a "relatively high degree of
autonomy" for Arab neighborhoods in Jerusalem, in exchange for the
absorption of the Jewish towns of Ma'aleh Adumim and Givat Ze'ev into
Jerusalem. The paper quotes the former head of Tel Aviv University's
Jaffe Center for Strategic Studies, Joseph Alper, to the effect that
although Barak continues to believe in "united Jerusalem as Israel's
eternal capital," he "understands the importance of Jerusalem for the
three religions and for the Palestinian people." Jerusalem Mayor Ehud
Olmert told Yeshivat Beit Orot supporters last night that Barak may become
the first Jew in history to willingly give up Jewish control over the
Temple Mount.

2. GUSH KATIF IMPERILED
The Camp David summit enters its third day today, but Prime Minister Ehud
Barak and Yasser Arafat have not yet met one-on-one. U.S. officials are
apparently concerned that at this point, such a meeting would end in an
impasse. Arafat-confidante MK Ahmed Tibi says that he has information
indicating that Israel and the PA have already agreed to uproot all
residents of the Gaza Jewish communities from their homes.

Yigal Kirschenzaft of the Gush Katif community of N'vei Dekalim responded
to the above claim by recalling that the communities of Gush Katif were
established by Israeli governments, and that the residents "have no
intention of leaving." Arutz-7's Haggai Segal reminded Kirschenzaft of
the latter's experience as a resident of the Sinai settlement of Hatzar
Adar in 1982, "and you know what happened there in the end [the town of
Yamit and approximately a dozen Jewish communities were uprooted by the
Israeli government to make way for the peace with Egypt]." Kirschenzaft
responded:
"The situation here is different. We have established many yeshivot and
kollels, charitable institutions and the like... Our patriarch Ya'akov,
while preparing to meet his brother Esav, came armed with 'prayer, gifts,
and a readiness to do battle.' We are following his lead. Our 'prayer'
was evident this week at the huge vigil [of tens of thousands] at the
Western Wall. Our 'battle' is our determined efforts to engage in public
protests; in the Negev, for instance, we are working closely with both
Chabad and Shas to impact on public opinion; and the 'gift' is our love
for our fellow Jew, both in the form of charitable institutions and our
emphasis on good relations between neighbors - on both the national and
community level..." True faith in the eternal connection between G-d's
people and G-d's land, Kirschenzaft concluded, is also one of their
weapons: "We firmly believe that we will be here for a long time to
come."

3. WAR IN THE OFFING?
A senior IDF intelligence official confirmed yesterday's report of
Palestinian preparations for armed conflict. He said that Yasser Arafat
has instructed his military forces to prepare for a clash with Israel in
the event that the Camp David summit fails. The officer noted that among
other measures, the Palestinians are conducting practice exercises for
attacks on Jewish settlements. IDF officials have said in the past that
they are prepared for such an eventuality, and that Palestinian civilian
"marches" on Jewish towns are to be treated as "life-endangering."

An announcement by Naif Hawatme's terrorist organization warns the
Palestinians not to make concessions under American or Israeli pressure at
Camp David.

MK Limor Livnat (Likud) is headed to Washington to speak on behalf of her
party's position on the issues being discussed in Camp David. Others who
have arrived in Washington for similar purposes include Sigal Megidish and
Yehudit Dasberg - speaking on behalf of families of victims of Arab
terrorism - and representatives from the Jordan Valley.

Public Security Minister Shlomo Ben-Ami, a leading Israeli negotiator at
Camp David, said that the "practical negotiations on the problematic
issues" will begin today.

4. POLICE RALLYING FOR MASSIVE RALLY
The Police Department is prepared for the huge Yesha Council rally this
coming Sunday evening in Tel Aviv. Tel Aviv district police have
promised that the traffic arrangements before and after the protest are
based on the lessons learned after the massive Golan rally three months
ago. The police promise an effective and short dispersion of the
demonstration, and advise those who plan to attend to use public
transportation.

Meanwhile, the number of hunger-strikers in the Rose Garden opposite the
Knesset has increased. A delegation from the Likud, headed by party
leader MK Ariel Sharon, came to visit the strikers yesterday. The
protestors, who include Professors Eli Pollack, Ron Breiman, Andrei
Veisman, and others, as well as Tzvi Slonim, Col. (res.) Gideon Altshuler,
Col. (res.) Yitzchak Kahani, and over a dozen more, vow to continue until
the end of the Camp David summit. Pollack said that the strikers and
their supporters have been treated to a series of lectures on various
topics, such as Jewish Law, Students of the Vilna Gaon, and more.

Another sit-in, this one of Barak supporters, is being held in Tel Aviv's
Rabin Square. Prime Minister Barak called them last night and thanked
them for their support.

Yisrael B'Aliyah leader and recently-resigned Interior Minister Natan
Sharansky continued to man his protest tent today, in his campaign for a
National Unity government. He took a break this afternoon, however, to
attend his party's Central Committee session, where preparations for
national elections or, alternatively, the party's new role as a Knesset
opposition faction, will be discussed.

5. CHINA UNHAPPY WITH CANCELLATION OF PHALCON DEAL
Heavy pressure on Israel from the U.S. Congress and the Clinton
administration over the past several weeks finally convinced Prime
Minister Barak to inform his American hosts this week that he had canceled
the Phalcon surveillance jet sale to China. The Chinese are upset with
Israel over the cancellation, and a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman in
Beijing announced today that China expects that countries such as Israel
will faithfully honor its commitments to his country. He added that no
other country has the right to interfere in relations between China and
another state. Israeli defense industry officials are also perturbed by
the debacle, and fear that the cancellation of the deal will harm Israeli
industry chances while competing for international defense contracts.

Finance Minister Avraham Shochat said today that no compensation would be
offered the Israel Aircraft Industries for the loss it will suffer as a
result of the negation of the deal. "The industry is strong enough to
overcome the expected losses," according to Shochat.

6. WEIZMAN GOES HOME; DOUBLE STANDARD QUESTIONED
After seven years as President, Ezer Weizman left the President's
Residence in Jerusalem this morning. Israel's new President will be
elected by the Knesset towards the end of the month. Ha'aretz columnist
Ari Shavit reflected today on the different standards used to deal with
Weizman and with former Shas leader Aryeh Deri. "By an incredible
coincidence, both public figures yesterday reached their respective
'moment of truth,' wrote Shavit. "One of these two public figures, the
one who had received $440,000 from a business tycoon with a myriad of
vested interests and from a well-known car importer, enjoyed an honorable,
prestigious departure from the post of president of the State of Israel,
after spending a pleasant time, two days before, with the commanders of
the very police force that had recommended that no indictment be made. In
contrast, the other public figure, who had received a much smaller sum
from a group of poverty-stricken students at a yeshiva... was sent to
prison..."

Investigative journalist Yoav Yitzchak, whose revelations ignited the
Weizman scandal late last year, agrees with Shavit's assessment. "What
bothers me is that the State Prosecution and Attorney-General, despite
apparent evidence of Weizman's involvement in bribery and the like, chose
not to indict him, even on actions not covered by the statute of
limitations," Yitzchak said. "I do not agree with the claims by Deri's
camp that the courts discriminated against him because of his Sephardic
ethnicity, but I do think that the State Prosecution operates by
discriminatory criteria. This is abhorrent and very grave behavior. With
one type of person, it proceeds to the very end, even over a period of
many years, while it leaves another category of person alone."

7. WITNESS POINTS TO GOLAN'S "OBSESSION" WITH ARUTZ-7
The trial of the management of Arutz-7 continues today in the Jerusalem
Magistrates Court. Arutz-7's defense attorneys called to the witness
stand a former employee of the inspection division of the Ministry of
Communications, Jay Nataf. Nataf testified that the station's broadcasts
did not interfere with the air traffic at Ben Gurion International Airport
- in contrast with testimony offered beforehand by his superior, Chanan
Golan. Nataf also testified that Golan, who was the central prosecution
witness, had "an obsession with Arutz-7.'" Arutz-7's Effie Meir reported
the following from the Court:
"I may not be totally objective, but it seems that the prosecution
suffered a serious setback in today's hearing. Until just a few minutes
ago, Jay Nataf testified. He explained how he and Chanan Golan tried their
best to find [illegal] Arutz-7 transmitters [on the mainland], but were
unsuccessful, and how Golan said on several occasions, 'I have got to get
Arutz-7!' On one occasion, Nataf said to Golan: 'There are plenty of
stations whose signals are really interfering with flights to and from the
airport - why don't we pursue them?' Golan replied, 'Don't bother me!'
Nataf also described the details of a planned raid on Arutz-7 three years
ago, which was eventually canceled. It was to include huge trucks,
helicopters and 350 security forces..."

8. RABBINATE, IDF DENY HA'ARETZ REPORT ON MACHPELAH CAVE
Chief Ashkenazi Rabbi Yisrael Meir Lau said that the Chief Rabbinate
insists that the Machpelah Cave and Joseph's Tomb remain under Israeli
control in any future arrangements with the Palestinians. In a
conversation with Arutz-7 today, Rabbi Lau dismissed yesterday's report in
Ha'aretz, which stated that the rabbis expressed a more "lenient" opinion
on the issue to Barak-aides Oded Eran and Brig.-Gen. Ya'akov Ohr. Ohr's
office, too, denies that the rabbis gave a green light to an Israeli
forfeiture of the Machpelah Cave. According to Ohr, the rabbis stated
that the Jewish people have a historic right to the cave and the Tomb of
Joseph.
Hevron's Jewish community called on the Chief Rabbis to dispatch an
explicit message to this effect to Prime Minister Barak's entourage in
Camp David.

9. HENDEL OFFERS LAND EXCHANGE
MK Tzvi Hendel (National Union-Yisrael Beiteinu) has proposed that Israel
cede Israeli-Arab towns in the densely-populated areas of "The Triangle"
near Hadera, in exchange for the Israeli annexation of Yesha settlements.
National Union party leader MK Rechavam Ze'evi reprimanded his colleague
for the idea, and MK Benny Elon also disassociated himself from Hendel's
proposal.

The Yesha Council, however, explained that the offer was aimed at showing
the hypocrisy of the Israeli political left, which supports the uprooting
of Jews from their homes, but hesitates to take much less major steps
regarding Israeli Arabs. This morning, Justice Minister Yossi Beilin said
that citizens may not be transferred to foreign rule without first hearing
their view on the matter.

10. ROCKS SPARK IDF COMPLAINT
The IDF has lodged a complaint with the United Nations on the situation on
Israel's northern border since the May withdrawal. The petition presented
today lists 43 incidents of stone-throwing at soldiers and residents of
Israel from the Lebanese side of the border fence, plus attempts to cut
and penetrate the fence. A number of IDF soldiers have been hurt recently
by rocks hurled at them near the Fatma Gate outside Metullah. IDF sources
added that the attacks make daily life for northern residents difficult,
and especially hamper their ability to tend their fields and orchards
along the border.

11. IN BRIEF
Israel's domestic airline Arkia has received a charter to operate regular
flights to Amman, capital of Jordan. New Transportation Minister Amnon
Lipkin-Shachak, in granting the license today, said that the government
had previously decided to allow airlines other than El Al to fly
international routes…
Adi Sharon, the 13-year-old lad who was held for ten months in Russian
captivity by Chechen rebels until he was rescued almost six weeks ago, was
released from the hospital yesterday. His considered is listed as
"good..."

Hebrew News Editor: Haggai Segal and Haggai Seri
English News Editor: Ron Meir and Hillel Fendel

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

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Jewish Calendar Question???
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Shophar_Sho_Good")
Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 11:41:56 -0500

Is it in debate as to the Hebrew Calendar year of Christ's birth?
What is the year and the corresponding date using our current system???

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - God may become dot-com site
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Shophar_Sho_Good")
Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 11:44:31 -0500

God may become dot-com site
BY OLIVER WRIGHT http://www.the-times.co.uk/ 7/13/2000
FIRST there was dot-com and it was good. But then came dot-God and it was
better. In a move that may alarm church traditionalists, some Christians
in cyberspace have even mooted registering God as a new domain code to
rival the dot-com system. At a meeting in Japan this week Icann, the US
government-endorsed body which regulates and controls domain names, will
consider whether to increase domain codes to include a religious element.
It brings forward the possibility of websites appearing under the dubious
names of good.god, my.god and ohmy.god. Other web suffixes which have been
suggested include .sex, for top shelf material, .shop for the high street
on the net and even .sucks for sites dedicated to consumer complaints. A
decision on the new domain codes is expected in the next few weeks. Icann
has emphasised that even if the new names receive the go-ahead, it could
be several years before they get online. A spokesman said yesterday: "We
are looking at a whole range of options to increase capacity on the Net
and are asking for suggestions. However, at the moment nothing has been
formally decided and even if we give the go-ahead it will still be some
time before the new domain names come into use." The Internet's
infrastructure could theoretically handle hundreds more domains, but Icann
is charged with protecting the network's stability. No one can predict
what would happen if many new domains came on at once. Anyone can register
a dot-com domain name and set up a website. The Church of England said the
new sites suffix could cause offence. "If this is a serious suggestion we
would certainly have concerns about its viability," said a spokesman. "If
it is meant to be a category which encompasses all religions then I think
some people might take offence. It might be better to look at something
more neutral like .rel which would also include religions like Buddhism
which do not have the same beliefs about one God as we do. It is certainly
something which would need further discussion."

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Scientists warn of germ terror threat
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Shophar_Sho_Good")
Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 12:00:44 -0500

Scientists warn of germ terror threat
By Roger Highfield
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/et?ac=002550734463243&rtmo=qXMJRpJ9&atmo=tttttttd
&pg=/et/00/7/13/ecngerm13.html
THE risk of a terrorist group using a biological weapon has grown to the
point where simulated attacks should be conducted to help plan for dealing
with the aftermath, the Royal Society said last week.
Preparations needed to be made to co-ordinate the response of the police,
local authorities, the NHS, intelligence agencies and the military,
according to a report released by the national scientific academy.
Sir Joseph Smith, a member of the society's working group and former
Director of the Public Health Laboratory Service, said: "Plans should be
based on the present arrangements for dealing with naturally occurring
outbreaks of infection, and key medical and laboratory staff should be
trained to recognise the diseases that would be caused by biological
weapons."
Over the years, about 25 naturally occurring micro-organisms, from anthrax
to plague, have been considered as biological weapons. The type of incident
considered by the society ranges from a blackmailer's threat to contaminate
supermarket food to a terrorist attack on a city.
Its report calls for an assessment by both Government and independent
scientists of the effects of the weapons that would be most likely to be
used so that, for example, stocks of vaccines can be prepared. Real-life
examples, such as the spread of legionella bacteria from a BBC building,
resembled the consequences of a biological attack and could be used to help
to assess the threat, said Sir Joseph.
Information on the consequences and how to deal with them should be prepared
in advance for the public, partly to reduce the risk of panic. Prof Harry
Smith, chairman of the society's working group on biological weapons, said:
"Biological weapons are potentially a serious threat, but their danger
should not be exaggerated. Observations from natural infectious disease
indicate that biological weapons are unlikely to have as devastating an
effect as nuclear weapons."
In the past decade, genetic engineering has made it possible to modify
micro-organisms so they are more dangerous or resistant to treatments. At
the same time, the human genome programme
<http://www.telegraph.co.uk:80/et?ac=002550734463243&rtmo=a2pJRp8L&atmo=tttt
tttd&pg=/et/00/7/1/nken01.html> has raised issues such as whether a
biological weapon can be targeted at a particular ethnic group.
Others have raised the spectre of a Trojan Horse virus, which could infect a
population and cause a massive outbreak of disease when that population was
exposed to a trigger, such as a contaminant in water. But Prof Smith said
such developments were "some way away, and some may be in the realms of
fiction". He said: "Exaggeration of the effects of biological weapons could
lead to panic."
The Biological Weapons Convention offered the best opportunity for reducing
the threat of biological agents being used in warfare or terrorism,
according to the report. It said all countries should urgently seek a
successful conclusion to the negotiations over the convention's verification
protocol, which reconvene in Geneva next week

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Thinking big
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Shophar_Sho_Good")
Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 12:09:20 -0500

Thinking big
http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns224737
GIANT fruit, vegetables or even rice grains could appear on supermarket
shelves following the identification of the main gene that determines the
size of tomatoes. It's the first time that a gene for a quantitative trait
such as height or weight has been found.
"We think this is a member of a new family of genes," says Steven Tanksley
of Cornell University in New York. "The gene controls cell division very
early in flower development. The parts of the flower that become the fruit
have more cells even before they are pollinated."
Tanksley's team pinpointed the location of the ORFX gene by crossing
different strains of tomato. When they took the gene from a wild plant with
small fruit and put it into a large domestic tomato, the fruit got smaller.
Doing it the other way round should make wild tomatoes bigger.
When the researchers compared the gene with others in public databases, they
found related genes in many plants. Understanding how these genes work
should eventually allow biologists to control the size of parts of plants.
"At the moment, we are changing crops by conventional breeding," says
geneticist Barbara Pickersgill of Reading University. "If we have now fished
something out of the tomato that affects fruit size, then we could have a
speeded-up way of domesticating a crop."
Source: Science (vol 289, p 85)

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - July 14, 2000 TV Programs
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 17:59:58 -0400

9:00 PM Eastern

PBS - THE GREAT WAR AND THE SHAPING OF THE 20TH CENTURY -
          "Total War; Slaughter" - The spreading war introduces
          chemical weapons, aerial bombing and genocide; casualties at
          Verdun and the Somme reach 1 million each; trench
          warfare.(CC)(TVPG)

DISC - DISCOVERY NEWS - (CC)

HIST - DEFEAT AT WATERLOO: NAPOLEON VS. WELLINGTON -
Military experts and the current Duke of Wellington examine
the bloody clash of 1815.(CC)(TVG)

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Re: Jewish Calendar Question???
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 18:15:19 -0400

> Is it in debate as to the Hebrew Calendar year of Christ's birth?
> What is the year and the corresponding date using our current system???

Lots and lots of different opinions on this one from what I've read. Most of the
dates are "computed" by looking for something that happened in the sky that
would explain what the wise men were following--anywhere from 10 years
before and after our "0" year date.

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Harpazo News items (7/13/00)
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 18:23:01 -0400

Bashar al-Assad Instructs His Pictures Not To Be Hanged On Buildings
In a remarkable development which indicate the attitude of the new stage of
rule under the leadership of Bashar al-Assad, well-informed sources in
Damascus said that according to a "note" from the Prime Minister
Muhammad Mustafa Miro, a decision was circulated to all the state's
establishments to "stop printing pictures to Lt. Gen. Bashar al-Assad and to
ban pending big pictures for him on the buildings." Arabic
News

Moscow Questions Need For U.S. Presence In A United Korea
Russia's foreign ministry on Thursday questioned the need for U.S. troops to
remain in South Korea in the event of Korean unification. "In the context of a
possible Korean reunification, the presence of American soldiers on the
peninsula raises questions," Russia's deputy foreign minister Alexander
Losyukov said in Thursday's Nezavissimaya Gazeta daily. "Top American
and South Korean officials recently discussed keeping a US military
contingent (in Korea) after reunification of the two Koreas. What would be the
goal and nature of such a force?" he added. Washington and Seoul agree on
the need to maintain U.S. troops there at present to counter the military
threat posed by North Korea and to preserve the regional equilibrium. Early
this month, US Defense Secretary William Cohen pronounced in favor of
maintaining a military contingent in South Korea,
even in the event of Korean reunification. Russia Today

Sun Eruption Causes Radio Blackouts
A strong solar flare early Wednesday morning caused some radio blackouts
on parts of the Earth facing the sun and more are possible as the active solar
region rotates toward the center of the sun, NASA announced.

The space agency said on its science web site that the Solar and
Heliographic Observatory (SOHO) satellite recorded a massive solar flare,
called an X-class flare, about 6:37 a.m. EDT Wednesday.

Streams of electromagnetic energy erupting from the flare disrupted some
radio communications, the announcement said.

SOHO, a joint project of NASA and the European Space Agency, also
detected two coronal mass ejections, huge clouds of electrified gas, erupting
from the sun on Monday and Tuesday.

The National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration, which predicts
the effects of solar eruptions, said there was a 40 percent chance that the
mass ejection would trigger a disruption of the Earth's magnetic field by
Friday. This could create aurora lights reaching into the mid-lattitudes, which
would include the southern U.S. Aurora lights are common in the far northern
and southern latitudes.

The coronal mass ejection sent a bubble of plasma, or electrified gas, toward
the Earth at more than 2 million miles an hour. The first shock wave of the
fast-moving mass was expected to smash into the Earth's magnetosphere,
the magnetic field that surrounds the planet, on Thursday. Material from a
second, more powerful ejection is expected on Friday.

The aurora, or northern and southern lights, are a shimmering glow in the sky
caused when energetic particles from the sun strike atoms of gas in the
upper atmosphere of the Earth. The Earth's magnetic field protects the planet
from these solar particles, but the field dips low over the poles. For this
reason, the aurora is most commonly seen at high northern and southern
latitudes. Unusually powerful solar bursts can produce the blue and green
lights in the night sky closer to the equator. Experts say that the aurora is
best viewed around midnight, local time.

The corona mass ejection poses no health risk to people on the ground, but
such solar bursts have been known to damage spacecraft and to disrupt
electrical power grids. Most utility systems and satellites now are designed
to resist such effects, however. The sun is currently at the peak of its 11-
year cycle of intense activity. AP

Clinton Prepared To Force Discussion of Compromises At Mideast Summit,
officials say
With no breakthroughs yet and much work remaining at the Mideast peace
summit in Camp David, Maryland, senior U.S. officials have told CNN that
President Bill Clinton is prepared to force discussion of potential
compromises if necessary. The officials say Clinton is carrying
recommendations from advisers as well as his own thoughts on how to
bridge some of the major divides between the Israeli and Palestinian
positions. But, the officials said, Clinton first wanted to get a sense of how
ready the Israeli and Palestinian delegations are to make direct concessions
to each other. Meanwhile, both Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat
and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak reached beyond the curtain of privacy
at the summit on Wednesday -- Arafat to ask PLO leaders to come to Camp
David and Barak to telephone supporters holding a vigil in Israel. CNN

Arafat Wants Palestinian Leaders At Camp David President
Yasser Arafat wants to hold a gathering of Palestinian leaders at Camp David
to show they are united behind his negotiating stance with Israel, but the
United States opposes the plan, Palestinian and U.S. officials said
Wednesday. The Palestinians said Arafat has asked his American hosts to
arrange for members of the Palestine Liberation Organization's ruling
Executive Committee and ministers in the Palestinian Authority to enter the
secluded presidential retreat, where he is engaged in a Middle East peace
summit. Some of those officials had opposed the 1993 Oslo accord which
paved the way for the summit but accepted Arafat's invitation to come to the
United States.

White House spokesman Joe Lockhart told a news briefing the Palestinians
had not requested permission for their leaders to enter the Camp David
compound. "No such request has been made. I haven't heard anything nor
has anyone on our delegation heard a request ... for a meeting between
Chairman Arafat and some of his leaders who are not here at Camp David,"
he said. Another U.S. official said the meeting could not take place. The
whole idea of using the presidential retreat as a venue was to give the two
sides a chance to negotiate away from the daily pressures of domestic
politics. "There's not going to be any meeting. Camp David is closed," the
official told Reuters.

But Palestinian officials said Arafat would nevertheless insist on bringing his
leaders together for a meeting at his headquarters at Camp David. Attendees
would include Tayseer Khaled of the radical Democratic Front for the
Liberation of Palestine, Suleiman al-Najab of the Marxist Palestinian
People's Party and Sameer Ghosheh of the Popular Struggle Front -- officials
who opposed the 1993 Oslo pact that formed the basis for these talks.
Reuters

Barak Unveils Plans For J-lem 'Everything is on the table,' aide says
Prime Minister Ehud Barak will propose a "relatively high degree of
autonomy" for the Palestinian neighborhoods in Jerusalem, as well as an
exchange of territory in which the Jewish neighborhoods of Ma'aleh Adumim
and Givat Ze'ev will be incorporated into Jerusalem, in exchange for the
transfer of some of the Palestinian neighborhoods to the area of the
Palestinian state. Israel's position was presented to correspondents in
Washington on the eve of the Camp David summit by Joseph Alpher, a
former head of Tel Aviv University's Jaffee Center for Strategic studies who is
Barak's special adviser on media relations for the talks. Alpher said that
"everything related to Jerusalem is on the table" but that the Jerusalem issue
is the hardest in the negotiations, and it is not certain that agreement will be
reached. Alpher stated that while Ehud Barak continues to believe in "united
Jerusalem as Israel's eternal capital," he nevertheless understands the
importance of Jerusalem for the three religions and for the Palestinian
people. Ha'aretz

Shooting Attack In Eastern Jerusalem!
At about 5:00am, Arabs fired upon undercover security forces operating in
the Ras el-Amud area of eastern Jerusalem from a two-story structure. First
reports indicate that elite undercover police units were operating in the area
when person(s) using automatic weapons fired them upon from the building.
There were no immediate reports
of injuries. Several persons were taken into custody. Israel Wire

Newsweek's Live Vote This Week Asks
"What should Jerusalem's future be?"

      The four options are:
    1.The city should be a self-governing Vatican-style state.
    2.It should be divided between the Jews and the Palestinians.
    3.Israel should have control over it.
    4.A new Palestinian state should incorporate it.

Votes must be in by Friday, July 14, 2000. Click Here to Vote!

Volcano Spews Ash, Gases Into Chile, Argentina
A volcano on the border of Chile and Argentina spewed ash and gases on
Wednesday in what has been the volcano"s worst activity in 25 years, but it
is believed to be subsiding, a government official said. Blasts at the Copahue
volcano, which sits in the Andes Mountains straddling the border, began last
week but because of bad weather, Wednesday was the first day officials
could fly over it, Alberto Maturana, national director of Chile"s National
Emergency Office (Onemi), told Reuters. The flight over it showed bursts
occurring every one to four minutes, sending ash and gases 1,500 feet (500
meters) into the air and dispersing the matter 30-40 miles (50-60 km) to the
north-northwest, he said. No evacuations are necessary for the moment, he
said. Reuters

Tokyo, Nearby Volcanic Islands Rattled by Quakes
Three earthquakes hit Japan before daybreak Wednesday morning, but there
were no reports of injuries or damage from any of the tremors. The quakes
were centered in eastern Japan and in the Izu Island chain. The beleaguered
islands, which were slammed by a typhoon last weekend, have also
experienced ongoing seismic activity associated with an eruption of Mount
Oyama Volcano. Earth Alert

http://www.harpazo.net/news.html

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - US Congress Resolution Favors Holy See Presence at UN
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 18:24:46 -0400

12-Jul-2000 -- Vatican Information Service

U.S. CONGRESS RESOLUTION FAVORS HOLY SEE PRESENCE AT U.N.

VATICAN CITY, JUL 12, 2000 (VIS) - Following is the declaration released
today by Fr. Ciro Benedettini, vice director of the Holy See Press Office, on
the Resolution by the U.S. Congress favoring the Holy See presence at the
U.N.:

"The Holy See has learned with satisfaction that the Congress of the United
States of America on July 11 adopted a Resolution in favor of the presence of
the Holy See at the United Nations. The text, voted by roll call, was adopted
almost unanimously (416 in favor, one against).

"This Resolution takes on particular significance in that the American
Congress not only expresses support for the presence and activity of the
Holy See at the United Nations, but recognizes it as a sovereign entity,
capable of acting in the international field and, in addition, pays tribute to its
contribution in favor of peace and the promotion of human rights.

"The Holy See is grateful to the members of the United States Congress and
applauds the promoters of this instance for their commitment in assuring the
Resolution a full reception.

"Analogous initiatives had already been adopted by the Senate in Chile and
the Philippine Parliament, in answer to the position taken by several groups
which had criticized the presence of the Holy See in the Organization of the
United Nations."

http://www.ewtn.com/vnews/getstory.asp?number=4963

Link via:
http://www.harpazo.net/news.html

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Treading lightly on the Temple Mount
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 18:29:24 -0400

Thursday, July 13, 2000

Treading lightly on the Temple Mount

Negotiators at Camp David need to balance Islamic sensitivities over the
Temple Mount with Israel's security demands

By Nadav Shragai

A year after the Six-Day War, on July 4, 1968, several Interior Ministry
officials met in the offices of the ministry's deputy director-general,
Mordechai Gazit. Among them was Shlomo Hillel, who later served as police
minister and Knesset speaker, and Meron Benvenisti, who was in charge of
East Jerusalem on behalf of the Jerusalem municipality. The group
attempted to come up with solutions to the problems arising from Israeli rule
in East Jerusalem, in the event of an agreement with Jordan's King Hussein.
Discussion centered on the future of the Temple Mount.Even then, 32 years
ago, there was discussion of the possibility that, in addition to giving the
Mount a special status - with a flag, or declaration of extra-territorial status,
for example - Muslims from throughout the Islamic world would be
guaranteed free access to the Temple Mount, independent of Israeli
authorities. The officials also discussed, for the first time, the idea of paving a
special road that would be under Muslim or Jordanian sovereignty. There was
even a proposal to dig tunnels to replace a road, all in order that "King Faisal
[then king of Saudi Arabia] would not have to tread on Israeli soil and receive
Israeli permission on his way to the Al Aqsa mosque."

The Beilin-Abu Mazen plan, which is the basis for the discussions underway
at Camp David, also proposes establishing an independent Palestinian
corridor between Abu Dis and the Temple Mount, with the identical aim: of
enabling Muslims to reach the Temple Mount without depending on Israeli
personnel and without being forced to step on soil that is not under Muslim
sovereignty.

The logic behind this idea lies in the nearly unanimous Islamic religious
position rejecting non-Muslim sovereignty in a place that is holy to Muslims.
Position papers of the Foreign Ministry's research department have over the
years contained many analyses of the significance of this position and its
implications for arrangements on the Temple Mount. A paper that was written
recently and is grounded in many previous ones reminds readers that "for
hundreds of years, the Jews in the Muslim world were tolerated only as a
subjugated people, without the rights of political status, after they rejected
the teachings of Mohammed, and because of this became the symbol of an
accursed people that misrepresents the Law of God. It was against this
background that the inevitable conflict between the appearance of the Jewish
state and the Muslim world took place. The Arabs opposed immigration and
the establishment of a Jewish state not only for practical reasons, but also
on principle. For these same reasons," experts on the Middle East believe,
"they will reject substantive changes to the status of the mosques and the
area of the Temple Mount that is holy to them, when a non-Muslim authority
dictates them."

Islam therefore has deep religious reservations regarding the control of a non-
Muslim entity over its holy places - in addition to the political disagreements
with the Palestinians over the future of areas of the Land of Israel. Over the
years, Muslim qadis and religious figures have been highly critical of Israel
on the religious issue. The previous Mufti of Jerusalem, Sheikh Sa'ad A Din
Al Alami and the current one, Sheikh Ekrima Sa'id Sabri, both used the
same words, accusing Israel of "defiling the Muslim nature of Jerusalem."
Sheikh Bayud Al Tamimi, who was deported from the West Bank in 1980
following the murder of six yeshiva students at Beit Hadassah in Hebron,
spoke of a holy war aimed at "purifying Palestine of the Jews and returning it
to the lap of Islam."

"According to the religion," Jerusalem Mufti Sheikh Sabri declared only
recently, "a Jewish, Christian or international Jerusalem is forbidden." A
former director of the Waqf, the Muslim religious trust, Hassan Tahbub , who
died about a year ago, said shortly before his death: "There is no
disagreement between the two sides with equal rights over Jerusalem and
the Temple Mount. The right is single - Muslim - and there is no place
without Muslims until Judgment Day, as the Koran teaches us." These
extremist statements fitted in very well with the Islamic saying attributed to
the Prophet Mohammed himself: "Islam is superior forever and there is
nothing superior to it."

That is the logic of the plan for a corridor between Abu Dis and the Temple
Mount, to which Israel has already agreed and which will be an inseparable
part of the permanent status arrangement, if one is achieved. The Palestinian
flag will probably fly from the Temple Mount itself, although the definition of
the Mount is still unclear. Will it include only the mosques, or the entire area
surrounding them, or perhaps only part of it? When Moshe Dayan was
foreign minister, for example, he suggested in the previous Camp David
summit that an Arab flag would be flown only from the mosques on the
Temple Mount, and not in the entire area. Prime Minister Menachem Begin
was also willing to consider this option, but only with regard to a flag on the
mosque itself.

Security is another element in the arrangement being discussed for the
Temple Mount. Israel insists on retaining responsibility for security over the
Temple Mount area, but agrees to employing Palestinian police officers
holding Israeli identity cards as part of a special police force that would be
established for the holy sites, which would be responsible for policing the
area. Israel also agrees that the Palestinian Authority would maintain contact
with this police force. Here too, religion as well as politics colors the
Palestinian viewpoint.

The Mufti of Jerusalem has said more than once that the current situation is
only temporary. "We must aspire to a restoration of the situation that
prevailed on the Temple Mount from the 12th Century until 1967, when the
political sovereignty was also Muslim." Another implication of an agreement
on the Temple Mount is that the status of Jordan on the Mount, which has
deteriorated in recent years - against the background of the PA's increasing
strength - is likely to be further damaged. The Palestinians are demanding for
themselves the last vestiges of authority that Jordan still holds on the Temple
Mount.

http://www3.haaretz.co.il/eng/scripts/article.asp?mador=5&datee=07/13/00&i
d=84712

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Infobeat News items (7/13/00)
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 18:36:15 -0400

*** Umpire punched at youth baseball

HOLLYWOOD, Fla. (AP) - An umpire with a broken jaw is the most recent
victim of what experts say is a disturbing trend - violence at youth
sporting events. A youth baseball coach was charged Wednesday with
punching the umpire and breaking his jaw. The move comes less than a
week after a Massachusetts man was charged with beating another
father to death during an argument at a youth hockey game. The cases
may be extreme examples of violence at youth games, but are not the
only ones. The National Association of Sports Officials said it
receives two or three calls a week from officials assaulted by an
angry parent or spectator, spokesman Bob Still said. See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2568079988-f35

*** Woman charged with giving away son

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - A California woman has been charged with
giving her 10-year-old son to someone she met on the Internet because
she could no longer cope with his misbehavior. The woman arranged to
give the boy away nearly three months ago to a Florida man she knew
only as Gus, then moved to another town, said Vacaville Police
Detective Patrick Cowan. The boy was found apparently unharmed over
the weekend and will be sent back to California, Cowan said. The
child's mother, Helen Chase, 29, has posted $1,000 bond on charges of
child endangerment, child abandonment and failure to provide for a
child. No hearing date has been set. See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2568079910-dad

*** Nearly 28 mln orphaned by AIDS

DURBAN, South Africa (AP) - Nearly 28 million children in Africa will
have lost at least one of their parents to AIDS by the year 2010,
causing a social nightmare for these countries for decades, according
to a report released Thursday. "The HIV pandemic is producing orphans
on a scale unrivaled in history," said Susan Hunter, an author of the
"Children on the Brink 2000" report by the U.S. Agency for
International Development. A summary was released at the 13th
International AIDS Conference. Currently there are nearly 16 million
children who have lost at least one parent to the disease. About 90%
of these orphans are in sub-Saharan Africa. See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2568082997-759

*** Norway approves gay clergyman

OSLO, Norway (AP) - Norway's minister of churches has upheld the
appointment of an openly gay clergyman - a precedent-setting ruling
that defies the state Lutheran church's religious guidelines.
Minister of Churches and Education Trond Giske announced Thursday
that he had hired Jens Torstein Olsen. The decision makes Olsen the
first clergyman hired to preach in the Church of Norway while openly
living in a homosexual relationship. The appointment has caused
furious debate that some fear could split the church. Gay marriages
are legal in Norway, with all the rights of heterosexual marriages
except church weddings and the right to adopt. See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2568081640-db5

*** Palestinian writer defends stoning

JERUSALEM (AP) - Edward Said, a New York-based Palestinian writer,
has acknowledged throwing stones at Israel's border fence - but he
says it was a harmless act of joy. Said - whose writings excoriate
Western stereotypes that diminish Arabs as primitive and violent -
was photographed among Lebanese who show up daily to celebrate
Israel's troop withdrawal from south Lebanon by stoning the new fence
between the countries. Israel has complained the stonings violate the
U.N. resolutions that mandated the end of its 18-year occupation of
south Lebanon. Since the troop withdrawal in May, several soldiers
and others have been injured in the stonings. See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2568084784-18e

*** Cat Stevens deported from Israel

JERUSALEM (AP) - The man who gained fame as pop star Cat Stevens was
denied entry into Israel and deported hours after arriving, officials
said Thursday - reportedly because he gave money to a militant
Islamic group during his last visit. Defense Ministry officials
refused to comment on Yusuf Islam's case other than to say that the
Shin Bet, Israel's internal intelligence agency, had ordered the man
who wrote such songs as "Peace Train" and "Wild World" barred from
the country. Islam, 51, who changed his name after becoming a Muslim
in the late 1970s, last visited Israel in 1988. The government claims
that during that trip he delivered tens of thousand of dollars to
Hamas, a militant Islamic group, the Maariv daily reported. Two years
later, in 1990, he tried to enter again along with his 8-year-old son
but was barred. See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2568079827-dd2

** Bulgaria state of emergency declared

SOFIA, Bulgaria (AP) - Authorities in southern Bulgaria declared a
state of emergency Thursday as gusting winds fanned fires that had
been smoldering since last week, state radio reported. The government
sent soldiers to put out wildfires that spread to 10 villages around
the town of Haskovo, 145 miles southeast of Sofia, the report said.
Fires caused by a protracted heat wave destroyed or damaged 40 homes
near Haskovo last week. Fires also broke out in dozens of spots in
the country's second biggest city, Plovdiv, 100 miles southeast of
Sofia, the radio said. ###

*** Indian state bans plastic bags

LUCKNOW, India (AP) - India's largest state has banned plastic bags,
a decision that is drawing protests from businesses, an official said
Thursday. Given India's poor garbage collection facilities, tons of
plastic bags litter the roads. Thousands of cows die every year after
choking on plastic bags while trying to eat the vegetable waste
inside. The government of northern Uttar Pradesh state banned plastic
bags earlier this week, and New Delhi and several other states have
pledged to follow suit. But business officials complain that at least
15,000 people will lose their jobs in Lucknow, the Uttar Pradesh
state capital. In that city alone, they say, 90 factories that
produce plastic bags would go out of business. The state government
on Thursday rejected the traders' protest. See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2568079640-f4b

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Balak/Balaam and the Mid-East Summit
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 19:43:27 -0400

This has been kicking around in my head for about a week so I thought I'd
throw it out there and we could all have a laugh and then move on.

This week's Torah portion has to do with Balak and Balaam. Balak wants
Balaam to curse Israel. I started thinking about the summit this week. I
suppose Balak could be either Barak (because the names are oh-so close)
or more probably Arafat? They're both asking Clinton/Balaam (yeah, I
would've thought he might've been the ass but then I thought Clinton is riding
the Democratic Party?) to intervene with Israeli affairs. I was hoping Clinton
would trip at Camp David (I know, I'm being horrid now) but then I could say,
well he hurt his leg just like Balaam did when the ass saw the angel and
pushed him up against a wall. Anyway....there just seem to be some
parallels here that might make some sense to somebody (and maybe we'll
be looking at this years from now and saying, "oy, within our midst, a
genius..." :))

Please send all comments directly to:
Moza
moza@butterfly.mv.com

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Israel will pay, but deny responsibility, for refugees
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Thu, 13 Jul 2000 21:35:33 -0400

Friday, July 14, 2000

Israel will pay, but deny responsibility, for refugees

PA not opposed to territory exchange

By Aluf Benn
Ha'aretz Diplomatic Correspondent

CAMP DAVID - Israel will give a "substantial" contribution to a new
international organization which will be set up to compensate and rehabilitate
Palestinian refugees, and will absorb tens of thousands of them as part of a
"family reunification" program on a humanitarian basis; Israel will not object
to the Palestinians referring to these moves as a "realization of the right of
return," so long as no further demands on Israel are made in this context.
These are the main points of the Israeli plan for solving the refugee problem.

The program is to be presented by Prime Minister Ehud Barak at the Camp
David summit. Barak will stress that Israel refuses to recognize the
Palestinians' right of return, and will not accept legal or moral responsibility
for creating the refugee problem, beyond expressing sorrow for their suffering.

The government will explain to the Israeli public that absorbing tens of
thousands of Palestinian refugees is a reasonable price to pay for the
agreement, and will note that in the years before 1967, Israel absorbed
60,000-70,000 Palestinians as part of a family unification program.

Senior Israeli sources speculated that an additional half a million Palestinian
refugees would be absorbed in the future Palestinian state. The remaining
refugees are to be absorbed in the countries they are currently living in -
Jordan, Syria and Lebanon - with the help of international funding.

The proposed international body will be headed by Canada or Sweden and
entrusted with raising money for the refugees' rehabilitation. The funds will be
distributed among the Palestinian state, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon and
designated for improving the refugees' living conditions. The National Security
Council, instructed by Barak to concentrate the efforts regarding the refugee
problem, has recommended that Israel raise a substantial contribution for the
refugees' rehabilitation so that it is more easily able to shake the moral and
legal responsibility for the problem. The council is now negotiating with the
Finance Ministry on the size of the Israeli contribution.

Regarding the question of borders, a senior Palestinian source told Ha'aretz
that the PA is not opposed to the idea of "swapping" territory between Israel
and the future Palestinian state, as a way to solve the dispute over the
settlement clusters Israel is demanding to annex. According to the source,
the Palestinians view this as a blurring of the Green Line and an entrance
into the "1948 borders," therefore advancing their own national goals.

According to an Israeli source, the option currently under discussion is not
based on swapping equal size territories, but rather on a transfer of
"symbolic" territories to the Palestinians in return for the West Bank
settlement clusters to be annexed to Israel.

Minister Haim Ramon confirmed on Wednesday that the Israeli and
Palestinian negotiators had agreed in principle to exchanging territories, and
that this could be part of the permanent settlement. The White House has
refused to comment on the issue.

At Camp David yesterday, the Israeli delegation presented a new draft
proposal outlining the border between Israel and the Palestinians. At the
center of the proposal is Israel's demand for continued rule of the areas
above the mountain aquifer - the country's main water reservoir situated on
the slopes of the Samarian hills. This area, just east of the Green Line, is
also where the large settlement clusters lie. Prime Minister Ehud Barak
views the mountain aquifer as a "red line" he cannot give up on.

The Camp David talks turned yesterday to the details of the framework
agreement, with an emphasis on the borders and settlements, putting off the
question of Jerusalem. Israeli sources said that Barak and Arafat met in
private for an hour. The two leaders came to no agreements on any basic
issue, the sources added, but concluded that they are both under a heavy
responsibility to formulate an agreement.

http://www3.haaretz.co.il/eng/scripts/article.asp?mador=14&datee=07/14/00&
id=84935

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

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