BPR Mailing List Digest: 07/26/00

Philologos
BPR Mailing List Digest
July 26, 2000

Digest Home | 2000 | July, 2000

To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - July 26, 2000 TV Programs
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Wed, 26 Jul 2000 08:27:20 -0400

8:00 PM Eastern

HIST - THE CHILDREN'S CRUSADE - In 1212, two young boys
begin a crusade to retake the Holy Land from
Islam.(CC)(TVPG)

9:00

A&E - AMERICAN JUSTICE - "Getting Away With Murder" -
The double jeopardy law can prevent criminals from being
punished.(CC)(TVPG)

HIST - MUMMIES: TALES FROM THE EGYPTIAN CRYPTS - Sacred
carvings were believed able to come to life.(CC)(TVG)

9:30

TBN - JACK VAN IMPE PRESENTS

10:00

HIST - HELICOPTERS - The aircraft is a most agile and
potent weapon.(CC)(TVG)

TLC - THE GREATEST ENGINEERING FEAT: THE HOOVER DAM -
Imagination and science come together to tame the Colorado
River.(CC)(TVG)

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To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Finally--It's Safe to Say 'I'm Sorry'
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Wed, 26 Jul 2000 08:41:26 -0400

Tuesday July 25 11:03 AM ET

Finally--It's Safe to Say 'I'm Sorry'

SACRAMENTO (Reuters) - Californians have a lot to apologize for -- and it's
finally became safe to say ``I'm sorry.''

Under a new law signed Monday by Gov. Gray Davis, apologies or
``benevolent gestures of sympathy'' cannot be used or interpreted as
admissions of guilt or liability in California courts.

State Rep. Lou Papan said he wrote the bill to bolster efforts at mediating
civil disputes, which he said are often stymied by lawyers and insurers who
counsel clients to avoid apologies at all costs.

Apologies, he said, could function as ``another tool for resolving disputes''
and open the way for sympathetic dialogue.

``A simple apology is certainly no remedy for damages or harm suffered
through negligence of carelessness of others but it can be part of the overall
resolution to a legal dispute,'' Papan, a Democrat, said. ``An act of contrition,
if only symbolic, has tremendous value.''

http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/nm/20000725/od/apologies_dc_1.html

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

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Playboy Mansion Readies for Democratic Convention Fete
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Wed, 26 Jul 2000 08:45:09 -0400

Tuesday July 25 11:03 AM ET

Playboy Mansion Readies for Democratic Convention Fete

By Sarah Tippit

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Embarrassed Los Angeles can't find a public
place for a party where its citizens can celebrate the Democratic National
Convention. But to the chagrin of nominee Al Gore (news - web sites), the
guest list is swelling for a private bash at the politically incorrect Playboy
Mansion.

Citing worries about overcrowding, potential unrest, traffic, funding and
competing events, five sites have told local organizers that there would be no
room at the inn. The uninterested venues include several historic city parks
and the CityWalk promenade at Universal Studios,

``Over five months we visited five venues, none of which worked out. Basically
we got stood up Friday night,'' said Ben Austin, a spokesman for LA
Convention 2000, the committee organizing the logistics of the Aug. 14-17
convention.

The committee, Austin said, had been prepared to pay up to $150,000 for the
event meant to celebrate the city's first Democratic convention in 40 years --
the convention that saw John F. Kennedy win the Democratic nomination.

Other parties, including ones for delegates and even a $1.5 million fete for
15,000 journalists attending the convention, are in the works at private
venues including several movie studios.

But the public party -- which might have attracted thousands of people -- was
considered too risky because of fears of unruly crowds and the threat of
violence, sources close to convention organizers said,.

Meanwhile, Orange County Democratic Congresswoman Loretta Sanchez is
pressing ahead for a huge bash Aug. 15 at the bunny-filled mansion of
Playboy empire founder Hugh Hefner, a contributor to the Gore campaign.

Playboy Enterprises Inc is also kicking in some $20,000 to the party's
sponsors, the bi-partisan Hispanic Unity, USA, political action group,
Playboy spokesman Bill Farley said.

The party, to be held in a tent on the grounds of the Playboy complex in an
elite corner of Beverly Hills, will feature Playboy bunnies demurely dressed in
business suits and cocktail dresses, escorting guests on tours of the 5-1/2-
acre estate. The lush grounds include exotic flora, birds and monkeys,
waterfalls, winding forest trails, and a ``grotto'' consisting of a dimly lit
swimming and Jacuzzi area where guests to the mansion ``are known to
frolic,'' Farley said.

Sanchez felt using the Playboy Mansion as a venue would help raise
awareness of Hispanic issues and encourage more Hispanics to register to
vote, but an embarrassed Gore ``sent word he would not attend prior to even
receiving an invitation,'' Farley said.

Word of the party immediately raised the ire of prominent Democrats
including Los Angeles feminist attorney Gloria Allred, who believes it might
taint the greater cause of the Democratic party.

``I'm glad Vice President Gore is not going to be there. Obviously if he were
there, the Republicans would try to suggest he's a playboy just like
President Clinton. First of all he's not, and secondly it would send the wrong
statement,'' Allred told Reuters Monday.

``This is like handing an issue on a silver platter to our enemies. It is not
worth it.'' she said.

``I think this venue must be moved,'' Allred added. ''There's no question this
controversy won't die down. It will receive huge press coverage. Elected
officials who attend will have to be ready for the fact that this may end up
being an issue for their next reelection campaign,'' Allred added.

Some 600 politicians, donors and celebrities are expected to attend the
event, proud of the fact that at least they have a party to attend.

http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/nm/20000725/od/playboy_dc_1.html

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

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Police Dog Takes Bullet, Dies
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Wed, 26 Jul 2000 08:48:43 -0400

Tuesday July 25 11:03 AM ET
Police Dog Takes Bullet, Dies

MIAMI (Reuters) - A suspected carjacker has shot and killed Atlas, a Miami
police dog, just three months after the animal joined the canine unit, police
say.

The 2-1/2-year-old Belgian Malinois was chasing the suspect through a
Miami schoolyard late on Saturday when the man opened fire, striking the
golden-haired dog in the stomach, police said Monday.

Another bullet nearly struck Atlas' handler, police officer Wayne Cooper.
Atlas died early on Sunday.

Police described Cooper as ``distraught.''

A 22-year-old man was charged with killing a police dog, attempted murder
of a police officer, armed carjacking, possession of a firearm by a convicted
felon, and violently resisting arrest.

Killing a Florida police dog carries a maximum five-year prison term, but
``that's the least of (the suspect's) worries,'' police spokesman Delrish Moss
said.

The combined charges could land the suspect in jail for life, Moss said.

http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/nm/20000725/od/dog_dc_1.html

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

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Infobeat News items (7/26/00)
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Wed, 26 Jul 2000 08:56:47 -0400

*** Group wants Saddam Hussein on trial

LONDON (AP) - A U.S.-funded group said Tuesday it has complied a
dossier with enough evidence to bring Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein and
dozens of his senior aides to trial on war crimes. The evidence has
been handed over to the United States and Kuwait, said Ann Clwyd, a
British lawmaker and the chairwoman of the London-based group Indict.
Indict said it has gathered enough evidence to justify prosecutions
of Hussein and his top aides under the Geneva Convention or the
International Convention against Torture. The allegations against
Hussein's regime include war crimes during Iraq's 1990 invasion of
Kuwait, the 1980 invasion of Iran and aggression against Saudi Arabia
in 1991. See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2568412090-986

*** Russian module links space station

KOROLYOV, Russia (AP) - The international space station linked up
Wednesday with the Russian-made Zvezda control module, the component
that will allow the first crew to live and work on the long-delayed
station. A large screen at Russia's Mission Control showed the
components coming together, then briefly lost contact with the
station. Once it was clear the linkup had been achieved, scientists
at Russia's Mission Control applauded, shook hands with one another
and gave each other thumbs-up signs. The first crew is set to arrive
at the international space station in October. But the space
laboratory, a massive 16-nation project headed by the United States,
will not be complete for another five years, after more than 40 space
flights. See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2568414834-ae4

*** U.N. Envoy: Israel violates border

BEIRUT, Lebanon (AP) - A U.N. envoy accused Israel Tuesday of
violating its border with Lebanon, saying the Jewish state's behavior
was "unnecessary, counterproductive and totally unacceptable." The
accusations by Sweden's Terje Roed-Larsen followed earlier complaints
from Lebanese officials that Israel had committed fresh encroachments
across the U.N.-drawn frontier. Plans to deploy U.N. peacekeepers
along the border starting Wednesday were put on hold, Lebanese
officials said. Larsen said the Israelis were crossing into Lebanese
territory at various points along the border and that U.N.
peacekeepers confirmed the violations. The two sides have worked for
weeks surveying on the border to resolve the claims of violations.
See http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2568409555-746

*** Groups link media to child violence

WASHINGTON (AP) - Marking what one lawmaker called a turning point in
the battle against entertainment violence, four national health
associations are directly linking violence in television, music,
video games and movies to increasing violence among children. The
joint statement by the American Medical Association, the American
Academy of Pediatrics, the American Psychological Association and the
American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry will be the
centerpiece of a public health summit Wednesday on entertainment
violence. "The conclusion of the public health community, based on
over 30 years of research, is that viewing entertainment violence can
lead to increases in aggressive attitudes, values and behaviors,
particularly in children," the organizations' statement says. See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2568419911-5e5

*** Cos. agree on messaging standards

SPRINGFIELD, Va. (AP) - A group of high-tech companies said Tuesday
it will make its instant messaging services compatible with each
other this fall. The new coalition, dubbed IMUnified, includes AT&T
Corp., ExciteAtHome, icast Corp., Microsoft, Odigo, Phone.com,
Prodigy, Tribal Voice and Yahoo!. Conspicuously missing from the list
of participating companies is Dulles-based America Online Inc., which
dominates the instant messaging market. AOL, with 160 million
registered instant messaging users worldwide, has repeatedly blocked
competing services from tapping into its network of users, citing
concerns about privacy and security. Instant messaging software
allows users to instantly zap messages to friends and co-workers. See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2568410253-fc8

*** Cisco creates Internet-wired home

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) - Keeping up with the Joneses just got a lot
harder. Making good on its word of providing the plumbing for an
Internet-connected society, Cisco Systems Inc. is helping create what
promises to be the most futuristic community in the world. The
Internet equipment provider announced Wednesday that it is working
with the planned Southern California community of Playa Vista to
create a massive model for the way consumers will live and interact
in the future. With cutting-edge technology such as fiber optics and
voice-over-Internet telephony, the 1,087-acre mixed residential and
business community in West Los Angeles will allow Playa Vista's
residents to do everything from remotely unlock doors for kids
arriving home from school, to turning on the heat and adjusting the
water temperature. Residents will even be told by their television
set when they've left the refrigerator door open. "We wanted to
design a community where...people will be able to take full advantage
of the future connected society we are rapidly becoming a part of,"
said Kenneth Agid, vice president of marketing for Playa Vista. See
http://www.infobeat.com/stories/cgi/story.cgi?id=2568419895-8b7

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - The trilateral statement
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Wed, 26 Jul 2000 09:07:14 -0400

July 26, 2000

The trilateral statement

The following is the trilateral statement issued yesterday by the U.S. Israel
and the Palestinians at the end of the Camp David summit:

Between July 11 and 24, under the auspices of President Clinton, Prime
Minister Barak and Chairman Arafat met at Camp David in an effort to reach
an agreement on permanent status.

While they were not able to bridge the gaps and reach an agreement, their
negotiations were unprecedented in both scope and detail. Building on the
progress achieved at Camp David, the two leaders agreed on the following
principles to guide their negotiations:

1) The two sides agreed that the aim of their negotiations is to put an end to
decades of conflict and achieve a just and lasting peace.

2) The two sides commit themselves to continue their efforts to conclude an
agreement on all permanent status issues as soon as possible.

3) Both sides agree that negotiations based on U.N. Security Council
Resolutions 242 and 338 are the only way to achieve such an agreement and
they undertake to create an environment for negotiations free from pressure,
intimidation and threats of violence.

4) The two sides understand the importance of avoiding unilateral actions
that prejudge the outcome of negotiations and that their differences will be
resolved only by good-faith negotiations.

5) Both sides agree that the United States remains a vital partner in the
search for peace and will continue to consult closely with President Clinton
and Secretary Albright in the period ahead.

http://www3.haaretz.co.il/eng/scripts/article.asp?mador=14&datee=07/26/00&
id=86540

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Solar Storms Heighten Impact Event Concerns
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Wed, 26 Jul 2000 13:24:48 -0400

Solar Storms Heighten Impact Event Concerns

YOWUSA.COM, July 26, 2000
http://www.yowusa.com/Archive/VOL3Q00/26JUL00a/26jul00a.html

Cometary impacts follow cyclical patterns with long periods of light activity,
followed by short periods of high activity and are more likely to occur during a
solar maximum.

What concerns British scientists is the correlation between solar maximums
and impact events, such as those that occurred during the solar maximums
of 1908 and 1930.

The now famous Tunguska air burst occurred in 1908 over Tunguska, Siberia
and leveled an area the size of Connecticut.

The 1930 impact was observed by a Catholic priest and leveled a huge
expanse of jungle near an upper tributary of the Amazon in Brazil close to
the border with Peru, resulting in fires that burned for months.

Will this current solar maximum pass soon? Not so according to Dr. David
Hathaway, a solar physicist at the Marshall Space Flight Center.

SPACE SCIENCE: There is a common misconception that "Solar Max" is a
single episode of high activity. Not so, Hathaway cautions. The solar
maximum will last over an extended period of time, perhaps as long as two
years interspersed with many powerful solar flares and CMEs.

There is cause for concern when one takes into mind that Tunguska-class
impact events are statistically expected to happen every 50-100 years. What
this means to each of us, is that we are more likely to die in an impact event
during a solar maximum than than in a commercial airplane crash . Hence
the justifiable concern of the British government.

UK SUNDAY TIMES: A group of scientists known in government circles as
"The X Files committee" has warned that the Earth is overdue for an asteroid
strike serious enough to wipe out 10% of its population.

Lord Sainsbury, the science minister, is studying the report by the Near
Earth Objects Taskforce and is expected to announce its findings within
days. It calls for international co-operation to track asteroids and comets
likely to cross the Earth's orbit.

Given that the intensity and duration of the current solar maximum has far
exceeded estimates, the concerns of the British government are prudent and
well-founded and the time has certainly come for the establishment of a
international effort to deal with this ominous threat.

UK Sunday Times, July 23, 2000
Beware: The Next Giant Asteroid Belt Is Overdue
http://www.sunday-
times.co.uk/news/pages/sti/2000/07/23/stinwenws02016.html

SOHO/NASA, July 25, 2000
CME and Particle Storm of July 14, 2000
http://sohowww.nascom.nasa.gov/data/CME/

Space Science, July 14, 2000
Space Radiation Storm
http://www.spacescience.com/headlines/y2000/ast14jul_2m.htm

Space Science, July 7, 2000
Solar Storm Warning
http://www.spacescience.com/headlines/y2000/ast07jun_1m.htm

YOWUSA Repository
USAF Planetary Defense Plan, October 1996
http://www.yowusa.com/repository/PlanetaryDefense/1.htm

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - (Fwd) Arutz-7 News: Wednesday, July 26, 2000
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Wed, 26 Jul 2000 13:33:36 -0400

------- Forwarded message follows -------
Date sent: Wed, 26 Jul 2000 18:38:04 +0300
To: arutz-7@arutzsheva.org
From: Arutz-7 Editor <neteditor@IsraelNationalNews.com>
Subject: Arutz-7 News: Wednesday, July 26, 2000
Send reply to: netnews@a7.org

Arutz Sheva News Service
<http://www.IsraelNationalNews.com>
Wednesday, July 26, 2000 / Tammuz 23, 5760

TODAY'S HEADLINES:
1. BARAK SUMS UP; EREKAT PROMISES AGREEMENT BY SEPTEMBER
2. COMMENTS BY LEFT AND RIGHT
3. NATIONAL-UNITY GOVERNMENT POSSIBLE
4. THE YESHA COUNCIL'S POSITION
5. POST-CAMP DAVID THOUGHTS
6. HUNGER STRIKE ENDS
7. SECURITY TALKS
8. PROTESTS IN JERUSALEM
9. SHORTS
10. REFLECTIONS ON RABBI YOSEF KAPACH

1. BARAK SUMS UP; EREKAT PROMISES AGREEMENT BY SEPTEMBER
Announcing the end of the summit last night, Prime Minister Ehud Barak
said, "There are three things - namely, the security of Israel, that which
is holy to Israel, and the unity of the nation - on which we will not
compromise. If the choice arises between the possibility of harm to one of
them, or a conflict, the decision is clear to every Israeli citizen." He
admitted, however, that he had been willing to give up on several Jerusalem
neighborhoods and the Jordan Valley. Other concessions included permission
for tens of thousands of Arabs to enter Israel over the next 20 years, and
a Palestinian state over more than 90% of Judea and Samaria. Barak
declared that all of the above is "null and void," and that future
negotiations will not begin where the Camp David summit left off.

"The end of the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians is apparently
unattainable," a senior official on Prime Minister Barak's plane back to
Israel said today, "as the Palestinians will not rescind their demands for
the 'right of return' for the Arabs displaced in 1948." On the other hand,
Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat promised yesterday that "an agreement
will be signed by Sep. 13" - the date set by Arafat for the declaration of
a Palestinian state. "The seeds were planted in Camp David, and they will
quickly blossom into a comprehensive agreement," he said. Erekat added
that Jerusalem must be the capital city of both Israel and the Palestinians.

Barak is expected to arrive in Israel from Camp David at 6 PM today, and
will issue a statement at the official welcome ceremony at the airport.
Yasser Arafat received a hero's welcome in Gaza this afternoon, after a
similar greeting in Alexandria, Egypt. He told the Gaza throngs that he
sticks by his plans to declare a Palestinian state on Sep. 13. "Whoever
does not accept the fact that Jerusalem will be the capital of a
Palestinian state," Arafat said, "can drink from the Dead Sea."

2. COMMENTS BY LEFT AND RIGHT
Labor MK Avi Yechezkel said today that Camp David proved that Yasser Arafat
was not sufficiently mature to make historic decisions. When asked about
the further concessions made by Barak after arriving in Camp David, MK
Yechezkel said, "I assume that Begin, too, left Camp David [in 1979] with
different red lines than that which he entered." Arutz-7's Ariel Kahane
then asked, "Could it be that the Palestinians do not want peace, but just
territory?" Yechezkel: "No, I believe that most people in the Middle East
really want peace, but that Arafat did not want to make a decision..."

Likud MK Danny Naveh said that the Camp David summit caused irreparable
damage to Israel, given the extent of Barak's concessions there: "We
received nothing, while Arafat received clear promises by Barak... Maybe
[the diplomatic points scored by Israel in having been declared 'less
stubborn' than Arafat] can be counted as a short-term advantage, but Israel
should not concern itself with such short-term gains. We have to be
worried about the implications of Barak's behavior for the future. As long
as he remains Prime Minister, he can return to the negotiating table, and
he will begin his talks with Arafat on the Old City of Jerusalem, and with
Bashar Assad on the banks of the Kinneret!"

Arutz-7's Ariel Kahane: "But Barak stressed in his speech last night that
nothing he offered legally obligates Israel, and that the offers are now
null and void."
MK Naveh: "Formally, this is correct, but I ask you and your listeners:
If he returns to the negotiating table, or a U.S. official comes to the
region, do you at all doubt that discussions will begin from the point he
left off at Camp David - including the division of Jerusalem, the handing
over of 97% of Yesha, and the acceptance of 100,000 Arab refugees? Even if
he says he is not legally bound, he will be diplomatically bound, as long
as he is Prime Minister. We must go to elections, and a nationalist
government must replace his." Naveh said that a new Likud-led government
would not be bound to any promises made by Barak, given the fact that the
offers were not approved by the cabinet or Knesset.

3. NATIONAL-UNITY GOVERNMENT POSSIBLE
Prime Minister Barak will meet with opposition leader Ariel Sharon within a
day or two to discuss the "domestic political situation." Talk of a
national-unity government is rampant, but there is no consensus as of yet.
Within the Labor party, Knesset speaker Avraham Burg and coalition whip
Ophir Pines support such a government, while Justice Minister Yossi Beilin
objects. In the Likud, leader Ariel Sharon has officially expressed his
opposition, as have some other senior Likud MKs, but commentators predict
that Sharon will respond positively to an invitation from Barak to join a
unity government.

Other reactions:
* The National Religious Party's Sha'ul Yahalom said today that his first
choice is new elections, "so that the public can judge Ehud Barak at the
ballot box, now that it knows that he was willing to divide Jerusalem and
make such great concessions in the Jordan Valley and Yesha." As his second
choice, he would support a national-unity government.
* MK Avigdor Lieberman of the National Union-Yisrael Beiteinu faction told
Arutz-7 today, "The summit ended without results not because of Prime
Minister Barak's strong stance, but because of
Arafat. Barak, in his speech last night, did not hide his intention to
continue on the same track, and that a U.S. official will be here once
again in a few weeks. He agreed to concessions that no Zionist leader ever
agreed to... He is just determined to hold onto power..." Lieberman said
that the nationalist camp should first of all come to an agreed-upon policy
regarding a national-unity government, and criticized the "over-eagerness"
of various right-wing parties to "be the first to join a national-unity
government."
* MK Natan Sharansky of Yisrael B'Aliyah has been in the forefront of the
public struggle on behalf of a unity government for several weeks.
* Shas leader Eli Yeshai: "All options are open, we are not hurrying back
to the coalition..." Party MKs did not participate in a meeting of
opposition leaders today, and neither will they come to greet Prime
Minister Barak at the airport.
* Shinui is willing to join a broad unity government, but not with the
hareidi parties. Shinui is also against a narrow government.

4. THE YESHA COUNCIL'S POSITION
The Yesha Council is leaning towards supporting the establishment of a
national-unity government. Yesha leaders said last night that the Likud
sees the end of the Camp David summit as an opportunity for it to return to
power, instead of as a chance to strengthen Israel's hold over Jerusalem
and Yesha via a unity government. The Council will convene today to
formulate its official position.

A senior Council figure, Ze'ev (Zambish) Chever, told Arutz-7 today:
"The settlement leadership will have to determine where Barak is heading.
There are two possibilities, of which I prefer the first: a recognition
that the path taken until now - the belief that the Palestinians would
abandon terror and war and recognize the State of Israel - is wrong,
together with a decision to direct our resources to building and creativity
at home. If this is the approach, we have to help it along, support and
encourage it, and the sores will heal, as we all head together in one
direction... However, the other possibility is that Barak wants to
continue along the path of concessions. If this is so, then the danger
remains the same, and we have to find a way to topple him. The situation
is presently unclear, and we have to wait and see... Unity is important,
but if it is just a means by which to perpetuate the policy of
capitulation, then we must topple the government."

5. POST-CAMP DAVID THOUGHTS
One of those intimately involved with the Oslo process may be having second
thoughts. Eitan Haber, who was director-general of the late Prime Minister
Yitzchak Rabin's office, spoke to Arutz-7 today about Camp David II's
impact on his view of Oslo: "...When we began, I had thought that we had
climbed aboard the peace train. But I suppose that peace is only acquired
through pain and suffering, and these events are part of that... I hope
that after some time passes, negotiations will resume under the auspices of
the new American President..."

Arutz-7's Ariel Kahane asked whether it might not be time to recognize that
Arafat does not want peace, but only Israeli territory. Haber: "I have
always said that I am interested in peace not because of Arafat - I
couldn't care less about him - but because I was convinced that it was good
for Israel. As the military correspondent for Yediot Acharonot for many
years, I visited the homes of some 300-400 bereaved families... I think
that I became emotionally-handicapped by this experience, and I could be
mistaken, but I feel that this cycle of death must be stopped... It may be
an issue which only the coming generation can solve. But we needed this
experience. Even if we fail, we will be able to look in the eye those who
go out to battle..."

Dr. Daniel Tropper of the Gesher Foundation issued his response to the end
of the Camp David summit today: a call for renewed dialogue between
religious and non-religious Israeli Jews. "We have failed at this point to
achieve an external peace," Tropper declared, "and we should therefore now
try to obtain peace at home... We should use this upcoming period to heal
the rifts in the nation, and to increase unity in preparation for the
difficult struggles waiting for us in the not-too-distant future." On the
eve of Prime Minister Barak's departure for the Camp David summit, Dr.
Tropper was among a group of left-leaning religious-Zionist leaders who
went to wish him success.

6. HUNGER STRIKE ENDS
The 15-day old hunger strike against the Camp David talks has ended, and
the strikers will "celebrate" with a meal outside the Prime Minister's home
after his return from the U.S. The Rose Garden hunger strikers received
guidance from a doctor, himself one of the strikers, as to how to break
their fast most healthfully. By the end of the protest, 66 people had
joined the hunger strike. The pro-Camp David demonstration planned for
this Saturday night in Tel Aviv has been called off.

7. SECURITY TALKS
Senior members of Israel's security establishment met this morning to
deliberate on possible Arab-initiated violence in Yesha, in light of the
new diplomatic situation. Early evaluations indicate that the Palestinian
Authority is not interested in "heating up" the region, given the
widespread sense that it was Arafat himself who was responsible for the
collapse of the talks. Arafat will likely dedicate the weeks ahead to a
series of trips to world capitals to garner international support for his
declaration of a Palestinian state.

Arutz-7's Haggai Huberman noted that government sources warned from the
start that Arafat could not afford to be flexible, especially on the
Jerusalem issue: "Just as Barak sees himself as the heir to Ben Gurion,
Arafat feels that he is similarly the heir to other Arab leaders. He
doesn't want to go down in the history books as having ceded Jerusalem to
the Jews. Even the various methods and temptations that were offered could
not compete with his vision of his place in history."

8. PROTESTS IN JERUSALEM
Two demonstrations in Jerusalem led to some eleven arrests yesterday. In
the first incident, Jewish activists ascended the Temple Mount and raised
an Israeli flag there. "First the Waqf pounced on us, but were unable to
lower the flag," said Noam Federman, the leader of the group. "Then some
Arab policemen - who, I am sorry to say, were there on the Mount - tried to
do the same, but also failed. Finally, our own police came and arrested a
few of us. Apparently, an Israeli flag on the Temple Mount angers the
Arabs..."

The second protest - which Federman also helped coordinate - took place at
the entrance to Jerusalem, when some 1,000 Jews blocked the road last night
in protest of the concessions that Barak offered in Camp David. "We were
tired of the tame protests that have been taking place," he explained.
"Don't get me wrong, they serve a function - but we thought it was time to
say once and for all, 'enough of this treachery towards the Land of Israel.
Our protestors came out prepared to be arrested" - and several were.

9. SHORTS
        Hundreds of Jews demonstrated outside Hilary Clinton's campaign
headquarters last night. Their ire was directed at her support of the
establishment of a Palestinian state and the anti-Semitic statements she is
alleged to have made. Ms. Clinton is running for a Senate seat from New
York State...
        Stones were thrown at Israeli cars from Arab villages outside the hareidi
city of Kiryat Sefer this afternoon. No damage was reported...
        Fifty Southern Lebanese Army fighters and their families left Israel for
Germany this afternoon. They are the first SLA group to choose to leave
Israel and live elsewhere...

10. REFLECTIONS ON RABBI YOSEF KAPACH
Rabbi Yitzchak Shilat of Yeshivat Ma'aleh Adumim, a student of Jerusalem's
Rabbi Yosef Kapach who passed away a few days ago, told Arutz-7 about his
teacher:
"Rav Kapach opened a new period in the study of Maimonides (Rambam) in
that he went to the original Arabic source - he spoke Arabic, as is known -
and since his childhood he studied Rambam in this way. He translated the
writings anew, mostly the commentary on the Mishnah. This was a most
important contribution, because up until this generation, the [translation
of the] commentary on the Mishnah reached us only in a damaged and
inaccurate fashion. He therefore re-translated it, based on a handwritten
manuscript [of five of the six Orders] by the Rambam himself, which
survived and reached us in a miraculous manner after 800 years. His
republication of the Arabic text together with the Hebrew translation
opened a new period in the study of the commentary of the Mishnah -
including on Halakhic [Jewish legal] matters, which for the Yemenite
community [which rules almost solely in accordance with the Rambam] has
practical consequences. He then published a new edition of the Yad
HaChazakah [the Rambam's Halakhic code, written in Hebrew] based on old
Yemenite manuscripts, which are better in many ways than what we have. He
published it as a monumental 23-volume work, with the original text and an
entire compendium of commentaries on the Rambam. In short, he opened a new
world in the study of Rambam..."
"He was very strong on Eretz Yisrael. He was not a public figure, but
said that we should institute a fast over this process of giving away the
Land just as that of the 17th of Tammuz or Tisha B'Av... Mori [Teacher]
Yosef Gafech, as he was known by the Yemenite community that he led, was a
unique personality - he lived in the modern world, but carried with him the
tradition of thousands of years. His customs were those of Yemenite Jewry
from hundreds and thousands of years ago - especially his tzni'ut
[modesty]. He would sit on a bench for hours a day, without shoes, just
like they did in Yemen, and write. He awoke at 4 AM every day, and gave a
class in the synagogue from 4:30 until 6:30 every day, just as a 'warm-up.'
He was very modest and simple. He was also very 'original,' something
which he liked to emphasize - because he felt that many of the customs of
the other Jewish communities were new, not directly from the Talmud. He
wished to rely directly on the Rambam and Rabbi Saadiah Gaon. He preserved
his old customs, but at the same time maintained his connection with the
modern world and modern scholarship. His loss will not be forgotten."

Hebrew News Editor: Ariel Kahane
English News Editor: Hillel Fendel and Ron Meir

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

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========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Third Japanese nuke reactor shut down in five days
From: bpr-list@philologos.org
Date: Wed, 26 Jul 2000 16:26:14 -0500

via: hblondel@tampabay.rr.com

7/25/2000 02:28:00 ET

Third Japanese nuke reactor shut down in five days

TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's largest power utility on Tuesday
began shutting down its third nuclear reactor in five days
after discovering an increase iodine in the reactor"s
water, but it said no radiation had leaked outside the
plant.

It was the third incident at Tokyo Electric Power Co Inc's
(TEPCO) Fukushima nuclear facility 250 km (155 miles)
northeast of Tokyo since an earthquake struck last Friday,
but TEPCO said the incidents were probably unrelated.

It said the leaked iodine at the 1.1 gigawatt (gW) reactor
was rated level zero on the International Nuclear Event
Scale (INES) but it comes amid growing public unease about
Japan"s nuclear industry following a spate of accidents.

A TEPCO spokesman said a faulty fuel rod at the Fukushima
No. 2 station may have caused the iodine leak. "We suspect
that there may have been a tiny hole in the fuel (rod), but
we would have to wait for the results of the checks to make
a conclusion," the spokesman said.

On Monday, TEPCO shut a 784-megawatt reactor after finding
an oil leak, which local media quoted TEPCO officials as
saying was due to a cracked duct. The oil was being pumped
to a valve to control the flow of steam from the reactor to
a turbine. That incident occurred two days after TEPCO shut
down a 1.1 gW reactor after a rise in waste gas -- fumes
released by a nuclear generator -- following an earthquake
earlier in the day.

"The incidents are not similar in nature and are most
probably unrelated," the spokesman said on Tuesday. Public
anger at several major accidents at nuclear-related
facilities over the past five years --including Japan's
worst-ever accident last September that killed two uranium
plant workers -- has forced delays in the government"s
nuclear energy programme. Japan has 51 commercial nuclear
reactors that provide about a third of the country's
electricity.

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Real World News - 07/26/00
From: bpr-list@philologos.org
Date: Wed, 26 Jul 2000 16:30:41 -0500

Selected items from:

REAL WORLD NEWS 07/26/2000

Visit Real World News online at http://www.realworldnews.net

ONLY 51% OF AMERICANS WOULD VOTE FOR CONSTITUTION
In a finding that shocked some observers, a new poll says
that barely half of Americans - just 51 percent - would
vote for passage of the U.S. Constitution if the same
document approved over two centuries ago were presented in
ballot form today. The survey, conducted by Portrait of
America and released Tuesday, said 22 percent of
respondents would vote against the Constitution while
another 27 percent said they were not sure whether they
would support it.
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/bluesky_dougherty/20000725_xnjd
o_only_half_.shtml

KENTUCKY BARRED FROM ERECTING TEN COMMANDMENTS
A federal judge on Tuesday prohibited the state from
erecting a monument to the Ten Commandments on the Capitol
grounds. In his ruling, U.S. District Judge Joseph Hood
said putting the monument on display would amount to
government endorsement of religion.
http://www2.nando.net/nation/story/0,1038,500232123-
500337051-501925992-0,00.html

EVOLUTION DEBATE IS HOT ISSUE IN KANSAS POLITICS
Not too long ago, the biggest complaint about the Kansas
Board of Education was that no one knew exactly what it did
or who served on it. A lack of visibility isn't the board's
problem now, after its approval last year of new science
testing standards that de-emphasize evolution. The decision
has become the hottest issue in Kansas politics, with
unprecedented attention and spending in the campaigns for
board seats.
http://www2.nando.net/nation/story/0,1038,500232291-
500337437-501929096-0,00.html

EGYPTIAN COMMANDER: WAR WITH ISRAEL 'INEVITABLE'
Twenty-one years after Israel and Egypt signed the first-
ever Israeli-Arab accord at Camp David, relations between
the two countries remain chilly. Highlighting the tenuous
nature of the peace, a top Egyptian military commander has
said that war with Israel is inevitable. Field Marshal Abd
Al-Halim Abu Ghazaleh made the comment in a media interview
where he outlined what he sees as Israel's vulnerability to
a concerted Arab attack.
http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewGlobal.asp?Page=/Global/archive/G
LO20000721a. html

FEARS OF VIOLENCE AFTER PEACE TALKS COLLAPSE
The Camp David peace talks between Israel and the
Palestinians collapsed yesterday, casting a bleak shadow
over the Middle East, after the two sides failed to agree
on the future of Jerusalem. Although the Israeli Prime
Minister, Ehud Barak, and the Palestinian leader, Yasser
Arafat, issued a joint statement with President Clinton
pledging to continue the talks, the summit ended amid
recriminations. Mr Barak said concessions made at Camp
David were being withdrawn.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/et?ac=001136033854542&rtmo=aqudd5
dJ&atmo=mmmm 0wSR&pg=/et/00/7/26/wisr26.html

ARAFAT DEFENDS HIS CAMP DAVID SUMMIT POSITION
Palestinian President Yasser Arafat said Wednesday in his
first comments since the Camp David summit that he had
defended the Arab and Muslim world's interests over
Jerusalem at the talks with Israel. ``We came with the
determination not to cede our rights. Jerusalem is not only
for the Palestinians, it is for the Palestinians, for the
Arab nation, for the Christians and for Muslims
everywhere,'' he told reporters on his return home.
``Jerusalem is the capital of the Palestinian state, like
it or not. Whoever does not like it, let him go and drink
from the Sea of Gaza,'' he said at Gaza airport.
http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/nm/20000726/ts/mideast_summit_d
c_157.html

U.N. ENVOY ACCUSES ISRAEL OF BORDER VIOLATIONS
A U.N. envoy accused Israel on Tuesday of border
violations in Lebanon, saying the Jewish state's behavior
was "unnecessary, counterproductive and totally
unacceptable." The accusations by Sweden's Terje Roed-
Larsen followed earlier complaints from Lebanese officials
that Israel had committed fresh encroachments across the
U.N.-drawn frontier. Plans to deploy U.N. peacekeepers
along the border starting Wednesday were put on hold, an
official Lebanese statement said.
http://www.nandotimes.com/global/story/0,1024,500232120-
500337047-501925 976-0,00.html

PUTIN STRESSES DEVELOPMENT OF RUSSIAN ARMED FORCES
Speaking before top military and security officers
Tuesday, President Vladimir Putin said the development of
the armed forces should be a government priority to ensure
stability in Russia. Putin indicated that the Russian
military must be prepared to handle domestic threats, such
as rebels in Chechnya, and external ones -- such as
international terrorism and a perceived threat from the
West. "Today, the military factor is vital above all for
preserving stability in the country, for ensuring its
peaceful and progressive development," Putin told top
military and security officers.
http://www.nandotimes.com/global/story/0,1024,500232157-
500337118-501926 463-0,00.html

GORE HAS ACCEPTED HEFNERS' DONATIONS
Vice President Al Gore, who has expressed strong
disapproval of a Democratic fund-raiser at the Playboy
Mansion, has accepted thousands of dollars from Playboy
founder Hugh Hefner and his daughter, Playboy CEO Christie
Hefner. http://washtimes.com/national/default-
200072623753.htm

ISRAEL'S CHIEF RABBI DEBATES POPE ON JERUSALEM
Israel's Chief Rabbi Meir Lau waded into a theological
debate with Pope John Paul II Tuesday, telling him that
Jews have an historic and religious right to rule
Jerusalem. "To the pope who calls us 'our senior brothers'
we ask for the rights of the first born because we have no
alternative other than Jerusalem," Lau told reporters.
http://news.excite.com/news/r/000725/11/mideast-summit-
religion

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Scientists spot Achilles heel of the Internet
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Wed, 26 Jul 2000 18:47:17 -0400

Scientists spot Achilles heel of the Internet

Updated 2:29 PM ET July 26, 2000
By Patricia Reaney

LONDON (Reuters) - The complex structure of the Internet makes it resistant
to errors or failure but is also its Achilles heel, scientists in the United
States said Wednesday.

Because the system is so varied, if one or more nodes --- the crossroads
through which Internet data travel -- go down, it has very little impact.

But researchers at Notre Dame University in Indiana, who have analyzed the
connections within the Internet, have found that if the networks with the
most highly connected nodes were attacked by cyber-terrorists it could
fragment the Web into isolated parts.

"The Achilles heel (of the Internet) is that the structure has this double
feature. Like Achilles it is very hard to kill it, but if you know something
about the system then you could," Albert-Lazlo Barabasi, a structural
physicist, said in a telephone interview.

An estimated 3 percent of nodes are down at an given time but no one
notices because the system copes with it.

"The reason this is so is because there are a couple of very big nodes and
all messages are going through them. But if someone maliciously takes down
the biggest nodes you can harm the system in incredible ways. You can very
easily destroy the function of the Internet," he added.

TOPOLOGY OF INTERNET SIMILAR TO US AIRLINE NETWORKS

Barabasi, whose research is published in the science journal Nature,
compared the structure of the Internet to the airline network of the United
States.

The majority of airports are small but they are all connected to much larger
hubs -- cities such as Chicago, Atlanta, New York and Los Angeles.

"That's exactly the situation on the Internet: there are a couple of hubs
that are crucial to the system," he explained.

Those big hubs or nodes control the traffic in the system.

If the Internet hubs are taken out simultaneously, there would be a serious
problem, but Barabasi said the probability of random errors hitting the big
nodes was very small.

In a commentary on the research, Yuhai Tu of the IBM T.J. Watson Research
Center in New York said the research was a first step toward understanding
the robustness of the Internet.

"The good news is that we do not have to worry about random fluctuations of
these networks. The bad news is that Internet terrorists could cause great
damage by targeting the most connected router," he said.

http://news.excite.com/news/r/000726/14/science-internet2

via: isml@egroups.com

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========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Spacedaily items (7/26/00)
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Wed, 26 Jul 2000 18:51:16 -0400

- NASA, Russia Sign New ISS Management Protocols To Avoid Accidents
http://www.spacedaily.com/news/iss-00zo.html

Moscow - July 25, 2000 - NASA and the Russian Aerospace
Agency (Rosaviakosmos) intend to sign a supplemental
agreement on the avoidance of emergency situations on
the future International Space Station (ISS).

- Russian Plans 14 More Launches For 2000
http://www.spacedaily.com/news/launcher-russia-00b.html

Moscow (Interfax) July 25, 2000 - Russia's strategic rocket
forces have planned at least 14 more space rocket launches
before the end of the year, the forces' press service has
announced with reference to deputy commander in charge of
space programs, Lt. Gen. Valery Grinya.

- ILS Racks Up A Billion In New Launches
http://www.spacedaily.com/news/launchers-00l.html

McLean - July 25, 2000 - International Launch Services
reported Monday that it had a total of over $US1 billion
in new launch services business from orders taken year to
date. The new business includes 13 firm launch orders with
17 options for a mix of the full complement of ILS launch
products including Proton, Proton M, Atlas IIAS, Atlas III
and Atlas V.

- China Could Help Fund Russian GPS Network
http://www.spacedaily.com/news/gps-00h.html

Moscow - July 25, 2000 - Russia and China could be
close to signing documents on cooperation in the use
and advancement of Russia's global navigational system
Glonass by late October, early November when Russian
Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov plans to visit Beijing.

- US Must Protect Against Missile "Threat": Cohen
http://www.spacedaily.com/news/bmdo-00zzs.html

Washington (AFP) July 25, 2000 - The United States must
step up efforts to defend against threats from nations
that may acquire weapons of mass destruction and long
range missiles, US Defense Secretary William Cohen told
lawmakers Tuesday.

- LockMart Ships Spy Sat For October Launch
http://www.spacedaily.com/news/spysat-00g.html

Sunnyvale - July 25, 2000 - An Air Force Defense Satellite Communications
System (DSCS) spacecraft with significant
performance upgrades was shipped Saturday evening, July 22,
by prime contractor Lockheed Martin Space Systems to Cape
Canaveral for a launch tentatively scheduled in October.

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

========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Tips on spotting the International Space Station
From: bpr-list@philologos.org
Date: Wed, 26 Jul 2000 18:54:19 -0500

via: hblondel@tampabay.rr.com

Tips on spotting the International Space Station

July 25, 2000
12:39 PM EDT (1639 GMT)

(CNN) - The International Space Station should be easy to locate from
the ground. Even without the new service module, expected to dock with
the orbiting outpost late Tuesday, the other two segments together
rank
among the largest spacecraft ever in orbit.

The high-flying collection of hardware looks like a bright, slowly
moving star when it passes overhead in the nighttime sky.

Orbiting about 240 miles (384 km) up and traveling 5 miles (8 km) per
second, the clustered craft takes three or four minutes to cross the
sky
in a generally west-to-east direction.

Since it travels in an orbit inclined 52 degrees to Earth's equator,
the
space station periodically drifts over most populated landmasses,
including all of the continental United States and much of Europe.

The following Internet sites provide predictions for where and when to
look for the space station.

• Sky & Telescope's Visibility Predictions for the ISS

http://www.skypub.com/sights/satellites/iss.shtml

• NASA SkyWatch

http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/realdata/sightings/index.html

• Where is the ISS?

http://liftoff.msfc.nasa.gov/temp/StationLoc.html

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