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To:            arutz-7@ArutzSheva.org
From:          Arutz-7 Editor <neteditor@ArutzSheva.org>
Subject:       Arutz-7 News: Sunday, January 9, 2000

Arutz Sheva News Service
 <www.ArutzSheva.org>
Sunday, January 9, 2000 / Sh'vat 2, 5760
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TODAY'S HEADLINES:
  1. NEW PALESTINIAN DEMANDS
  2. A FRAGILE PROCESS
  3. SURPRISING SUPPORT FOR GOLAN
  4. RAIN RAISES KINNERET

1. NEW PALESTINIAN DEMANDS
The Palestinian Authority has completed the construction of what is to serve as its parliament in Abu Dis, just east of Jerusalem.  A small portion of the building is located within Israeli sovereign territory.  The Palestinians claim that Israel has already agreed to include Abu Dis in the next withdrawal, scheduled for eleven days from now. 

Arutz-7 correspondent Haggai Huberman reports that another Palestinian demand in the final-status talks is that Israel rid itself of its nuclear capabilities.  Israeli sources did not deny this, but claim that the demand is an Egyptian initiative, as Egypt has been waging a struggle against Israeli nuclear capabilities for years.  In addition, the government is conducting "advanced negotiations" with the PA on the entry of 2000 Fatah terrorists from Lebanon to PA areas. 

2. A FRAGILE PROCESS
If peace between Israel and Syria means that American troops will be stationed on the Golan Heights, some Americans want no part of it.  Harold Cosner, whose son David was one of the 241 U.S. marines murdered in the 1983 terrorist bombing in Beirut, Lebanon, wrote a letter last week to U.S. President Clinton, explaining his objections.  The letter, a copy of which Cosner sent to AFSI [Americans for a Safe Israel], states,  "Please, as the Commander-in-Chief of our Armed Forces, do not send our fine young men into harm's way unnecessarily.  The Israeli army has been doing an excellent job securing its own borders.  It is its place to continue doing so."

Another fragile element of the peace process with Syria is Assad's health. Middle East Newsline journalist Steve Rodan, reporting in the Israel Resource Review, states that Assad's various illnesses - including a heart ailment and diabetes - have severely curtailed his ability to function, and that the two hours of work he puts in daily are basically dedicated toward securing the Presidency for his son Bashar.  These efforts have not borne fruit, though, as Rodan notes, "Bashar has not been approved for a leadership post in the Ba'ath Party . and family infighting has prolonged delays.  [Highly-placed government] sources said that should the President die soon, a fight over succession will erupt." 

Rodan writes that the above explains why Foreign Minister Farouk A-Shara, and not Bashar, has been enlisted to lobby Ba'ath party officials to openly support the latest diplomatic initiative with Israel.  European Union envoy Miguel Mauritinus told Israeli officials in late December that A-Shara spent five hours trying to persuade the Ba'ath Party's central committee to support the negotiations.

3. SURPRISING SUPPORT FOR GOLAN
Polls and surveys on the positions of different sectors of the public on various formulations of the Golan withdrawal question continue to be conducted and publicized.  One poll shows that some 20% of One Israel (Labor party) voters, and 25% of those who voted for Meretz, object to a full withdrawal from the Golan.  Some 60% of new immigrants object.  Among Shas voters, pollster Dr. Yaakov Katz of Bar Ilan University found that 63% object to an agreement involving the evacuation of any Golan settlements, and 54% object to an agreement involving the evacuation of any Yesha settlements.  Only 5 and 7% of these, respectively, would change their minds if Rabbi Ovadiah Yosef would announce that it is permitted to uproot settlements in exchange for a peace treaty.

4. RAIN RAISES KINNERET
The level of the Kinneret stands today at 213.12 meters below sea level, ten centimeters higher than it was a week ago.  This is still 12 centimeters below the official "red line," and some five meters below the optimal level.  Each centimeter represents 1.7 million cubic meters of water.  The heavy rains of last week have ceased, although more rain is expected early this week.

The Agricultural Center has called on farmers not to adhere to the orders of the Ministry of Agriculture to cut their water use by 40%.  According to the Center, the Ministry has no legal right to order such cuts.  A spokesman added that the government issued similar demands last year, but partially rescinded them due to the strong opposition of Israeli farmers.

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To:            arutz-7@ArutzSheva.org
From:          Arutz-7 Editor <neteditor@ArutzSheva.org>
Subject:       Arutz-7 News: Monday, January 10, 2000

Arutz Sheva News Service
 <www.ArutzSheva.org>
Monday, January 10, 2000 / Sh'vat 3, 5760
------------------------------------------------

TODAY'S HEADLINES:
  1. WHO'S PAYING, AND HOW MUCH?
  2. ARENS: NO SALE OF HOMELAND

==== SPECIAL INSERT: GOLAN HISTORY ====

1. WHO'S PAYING, AND HOW MUCH?
The Shepherdstown summit ends tonight with the departure of Ehud Barak and Farouk A-Shara.  The Americans hope that their document detailing the issues of agreement and of disagreement will be the basis of understandings for the next round of talks, scheduled for two months from now.  The London paper Al Hayat claims that Israel has agreed to withdraw from Mt. Hermon and the entire Golan, up to a few meters from the Kinneret Sea.  Prime Minister Barak and State Department spokesman James Rubin denied the Al Hayat report.

Estimated costs of the withdrawal and related matters are now nearing $100 billion.  Respected military analyst Ze'ev Schiff, writing in Ha'aretz last week, said that the sum of $17.4 billion that had been previously quoted would be needed only for the relocation of IDF bases and the enhancement of Israel's intelligence and offensive capabilities.  Another sum of over $50 billion would be required for the removal of settlements and the relocation of the residents, more intensive security arrangements, and desalination costs to cover the loss of Israel's water sources.  Neither of these sums include aid promised to Syria, and then to Jordan and the Palestinians. Journalist David Bedein, covering the Shepherdstown talks, reported today that the Americans have entered into negotiations with the World Bank and with Saudi Arabia to cover these costs. 

Bedein also dismissed reports that President Clinton had arrived in Shepherdstown to "solve crises in the talks - for there were no crises. This is all Carville ice cream...  [a reference to American public relations advisor James Carville].  He arrived simply for his own prestige."  His interview with Arutz-7's Ron Meir can be heard at www.a7.org/engclips/100100/bedein-talks.ram.

2. ARENS: NO SALE OF HOMELAND
Moshe Arens, who served as Israel's Defense Minister three different times, is outspokenly against a withdrawal from the Golan Heights.  Asked today about his opinion of the Shepherdstown summit, Arens said, "The important things happened well before Shepherdstown.  Assad sent his Foreign Minister, A-Shara, to meet with Barak only after he received a clear promise that Israel had agreed to withdraw from the Golan - and all the denials by Israeli officials won't help them."  Arens lamented what he called a "surrealistic aspect" of the talks:  "Barak appears to be representing the defeated country, and A-Shara and the Syrians appear to be the victors, when in fact it's the opposite, both militarily and economically.  Yet somehow the Syrians are dictating the terms to us."

Arens put in a plug for tonight's giant rally in Tel Aviv:  "We will wage a stubborn, unyielding campaign, and we will reach every home, and explain to them the catastrophe involved in abandoning the Golan. This campaign is not political - it crosses all political lines.  The participation of hundreds of thousands may deter not only Barak, but may even deter Assad [from negotiating an agreement that may not earn Israeli public support]." Regarding the costs of the withdrawal, Arens said, "It would be pretty nervy of us to ask the U.S. for such a high sum, and we don't have much chances of getting it - but what's worse is that it creates the impression that we are willing to sell parts of our homeland for money."


==== SPECIAL INSERT: GOLAN HISTORY ====

*  The Bashan Region, of which the Golan is a part, was promised to the Patriarch Abraham and the people of Israel on the occasion of the "Covenant Between the Parts," recounted in Genesis 15.  Half of the tribe of Menasheh settled in the area after the Jews returned to the Land, and the city of Golan in Bashan served as a city of refuge (Deut. 4, 43).

*  In the period of the Kings, the Golan was the site of the battle between King Ahab of Israel and the army of Aram.  Israel's victory over Aram was achieved at the present site of Kibbutz Afik, only a few miles east of the Kinneret in the southern Golan.

*  In the Second Temple period, the Jews who had been exiled to Babylonia returned to their homes in the Golan.  Jewish communities in the Golan were attacked by their gentile neighbors, and Judah Maccabee launched a rescue expedition on their behalf.

*  At the end of the Hasmonean period, King Alexander Yannai conquered the Golan and settled it with Jews.  Jewish settlement in the central Golan existed continuously since then for a period of 700 years. Major cities were Banias and Susita.  The district capital was Gamla, which fought with supreme heroism in the Great Revolt, losing 10,000 residents in battle in defense of the Golan.  Second Temple period coins were found there after the Six-Day War inscribed with the words "For the Redemption of Holy Jerusalem." 

* In the Talmudic period, Jewish settlement in the Golan flourished and expanded.  Among the wealth of archaeological findings in the Golan Heights were remnants of 34 synagogues.

* In the Byzantine Period, Jewish settlements existed beside Christian communities, until the defeat of the Byzantine army, and nomads took over the area.

* In the 19th century, the heads of the Zionist movement and the people of the old settlements of Tsfat and Tiberias made every effort to settle the Golan.  In 1886, the Bnei Yehuda society of Tsfat purchased a plot of land in the Ramataniya village in central Golan, and settled there for about a year.  In 1887, they purchased the lands of the Bedouin village Bir Ashkum, between Bnei Yehuda and Ein Gev. The Bnei Yehuda members held on to the land with determination, until two of the last settlers were murdered in the Arab riots of 1920, thus bringing an end to the settlement.  In 1891, Baron Rothschild purchased some 18,000 acres in eastern Golan (approx. 15 km. east of present-day Ramat Magshimim). 

* At the beginning of the 20th century, the settlers of the First Aliyah struck roots in the Horan lands (just east of the Golan), establishing five settlements, but were evicted by the Turks in 1898. Following the eviction, the land was managed as a farm by PICA until the land was seized by the Syrian government.  In light of the Golan's Jewish history, the Zionist organizations demanded that the Golan be included within the borders of the Jewish National Home.  The Golan Heights were liberated on June 10, 1967, the last day of the Six Day War.  (Much of this information can be found at <www.golan.org.il>.)

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To:            arutz-7@ArutzSheva.org
From:          Arutz-7 Editor <neteditor@ArutzSheva.org>
Subject:       Arutz-7 News: Tuesday, January 11, 2000

Arutz Sheva News Service
  <http://www.arutzsheva.org>
Tuesday, Jan. 11, 2000 / Shevat 4, 5760
------------------------------------------------

TODAY'S HEADLINES:
  1. LARGEST RALLY EVER
  2. LIKUD DEMANDS BARAK PRESENTATION
  3. IN THE PROTEST'S AFTERMATH
  4. COURT FEARS BLOODSHED, REJECTS PETITION

1. LARGEST RALLY EVER
Between a quarter and a half of a million people - depending on which estimate is used - took part in what was probably the largest demonstration in Israeli history last night, calling on Prime Minister Barak not to sign an agreement involving an Israeli withdrawal from the Golan Heights.  The main boulevard leading to the rally was blocked with people up to a kilometer away.  Speakers representing many different public sectors told Barak that the tremendous costs of the withdrawal would come at the expense of the lower and middle classes, told Clinton not to intervene, and announced that they would not allow the glorious settlement enterprise in the Golan to be destroyed.  A Russian immigrant, speaking in Russian, emotionally told the crowds that the Golan is "everything" for him, and repeated several times, "Ya ne oydu z'Golan" - "I am not leaving the Golan!"  Yehuda Harel, termed the "father of Golan settlement," looked out at the giant cheering audience and said, "Today, we have stopped the withdrawal from the Golan!"

Katzrin Mayor Sammy Bar-Lev, the evening's M.C., was delighted with demonstration.  Speaking with Arutz-7 today, Bar-Lev noted the "rich cross-section of Israeli society [that was] represented there: religious and secular, old and young, native Israelis and immigrants." He said that he hopes Prime Minister Barak will stop and re-think the negotiations with Syria:  "Destroying a community of 7,000 citizens [Katzrin] is no small matter.  And what is Barak being offered in return?  Not even real peace - only 'security arrangements' with a dictatorial regime! We have had fine security arrangements in the Golan for 33 years now."

Following are some excerpts from last night's speeches:

*Gen (res.) Meir Dagan:
"They tell us that if we vote 'no' in a referendum, Israel will face a war. I can think of a worse scenario: that we return the Golan, and there will still be a war - this time, with the Golan in our enemy's hands!  The price we will have to pay in blood in such a case will be unparalleled in the history of the State."

*Activist Moti Ashenazi:
"While I was driving here, I heard the radio announcer say that the 'right wing' was hosting a protest against leaving the Golan Heights.  This is a lie.  I stand before you tonight, and hereby declare: I am the Left!  I am the true Left - and I am joining you here!"

*Rabbi Mordechai Elon, Dean of the Horev Yeshiva High School, Jerusalem:

"We have one question only, and it bursting forth from our hearts: You, our brothers, you are our emissaries - is there a greater peace than the peace between us?  Are you willing to sell this for peace with a dictator?  What kind of peace do we want?  We long for peace, and pray for it daily, but in our daily prayers we say: 'L'ma'an achai v're'ai' -For the benefit of my brothers and friends, - 'Adabra na Shalom bach' - I speak to you of peace. Friends, peace must be achieved for the benefit of our people, not at their expense!"

A video clip of the demonstration can be seen at www.a7.org/engclips/110100/golan-demo-28.ram.

2. LIKUD DEMANDS BARAK PRESENTATION
Prime Minister Barak will return from Shepherdstown today, without concrete results in the talks with A-Shara.  U.S. President Clinton has scheduled another meeting between the Israelis and Syrians for as early as next week.

White House sources said that Clinton is determined to achieve a withdrawal agreement within two months, as the presidential campaign will already be in high gear after that.  The Likud demands that Barak report to the Knesset tomorrow on the talks in Shepherdstown. The opposition party claims that reports emanating from the West negate Barak's claims regarding his withdrawal plans.

Meanwhile, Likud leader Ariel Sharon, MK Silvan Shalom (Likud) and other MKs opposed to a Golan giveaway met this afternoon with advisors experienced in the conducting of national referendums.  Tomorrow, contingents of the Likud and One Israel are slated to meet in an effort to reach a compromise on the details of a Knesset referendum bill.  At present, the main point of disagreement is whether a special majority will be required to approve a withdrawal.  Other issues in dispute are the funding of referendum-related advertisements and the gap in time between the vote in the Knesset on the withdrawal and, if necessary, the subsequent referendum.

3. IN THE PROTEST'S AFTERMATH
Although it downplayed the size of last night's crowd, Israel's written media could not ignore the sheer power of the event.  Self-proclaimed left-leaning journalist Nachum Barnea writes in
today's Yediot Acharonot: "There is no purpose to nit-pick about the numbers [that attended] - this was simply one of the most impressive demonstrations in the history of Rabin Square."  Describing the crowd that participated, Barnea writes, "[In addition to the right-wingers,] there were others who were identifiable as Barak supporters: secular Jews, residents of agricultural communities, Labor and Centrist party voters.  These were the type of people who joined the masses in the Square on election night to celebrate Barak's victory and Netanyahu's defeat."  How should Ehud Barak respond to the protest? Barnea: "He must not ignore the facts.  The renewing of negotiations with Syria has not inspired the type of joy that overtook the country with the initiative of Egypt's Anwar Sadat [in 1977]...  From the beginning, support for the talks with Syria was restrained, and in the last few weeks, it has only decreased...  The problem is not only Barak's.  All of the participants in the Shepherdstown day-camp must take the situation into account, from Clinton to A-Shara."

Middle East analyst Dr. Guy Bechor agrees.  Speaking with Arutz-7 today, Bechor noted that President Clinton had no choice but to take a break and call an urgent meeting next week of the Israeli and Syrian delegations. "There is a crisis of authority here," Bechor said. "It is quite clear that A-Shara is merely a clerk, a messenger of Assad.  A-Shara has no real power to strike an agreement.  This stands in sharp contrast to previous negotiations between Begin and Sadat, Rabin and Hussein, and the like - who were real leaders with the authority to make independent decisions.  Barak, too, faces a crisis of authority.  He left the country when the 'street' was docile, but of late, things have changed course with the formation of new public and political pro-Golan coalitions.  For Barak, this is a new, somewhat overwhelming phenomenon, and he is limited in that even if he does sign a deal, he is dependent on the Knesset and the public for
approval."

Regarding Assad's reaction to last night's rally, Bechor said, "He certainly saw the clips of last night's demonstration.  Assad has a real business mind.  He knows that signing a deal with Israel would be interpreted as the formal cessation of the conflict between Syria and Israel. But he is well aware that Barak may not win the referendum, in which case Assad may conclude that he could experience a double defeat after all is said and done:  he will fail to get control of the Golan, yet his entire raison d'etre - namely, Syria's state of hostility with Israel - will have been shattered."

In related news, former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger says that a peace deal between Israel and Syria will not lead to peace throughout the Middle East.  According to Kissinger, peace deals only affect the state of hostility between nations after an extended period of time.  So reports journalist Danny Ben-Israel, who heard Kissinger's speech at a New York farewell party for the outgoing Israeli ambassador to the United States, Zalman Shoval.

4. COURT FEARS BLOODSHED, REJECTS PETITION
The Supreme court this morning rejected an appeal by the Temple Mount Faithful organization regarding the illegal excavation works by the Moslem Waqf on the Temple Mount.  The judges ruled that although the Waqf is indeed transgressing the law, the court will not order the necessary law enforcement agencies to halt the works, since such a move "is liable to disturb the public peace and cause bloodshed," and that such "matters should be dealt with on the governmental level."  The justices added a caveat, however:  Since the courts are refraining from issuing judgements on issues related to the Temple Mount, it is incumbent on the government to directly address the matter.

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To:            arutz-7@ArutzSheva.org
From:          Arutz-7 Editor <neteditor@ArutzSheva.org>
Subject:       Arutz-7 News: Wednesday, January 12, 2000

Arutz Sheva News Service
  <http://www.ArutzSheva.org>
Wednesday, January 12, 2000 / Sh'vat 5, 5760
------------------------------------------------

TODAY'S HEADLINES:
  1. NEW ELECTIONS TO BYPASS REFERENDUM?
  2. PREVENTING THE DIVISION OF JERUSALEM
  3. N.Y. TIMES ON ISRAELI-SYRIAN TALKS

1. NEW ELECTIONS TO BYPASS REFERENDUM?
The Prime Minister's Office is considering the option of calling new general elections, instead of holding a referendum on the Golan.  A victory in the election would give Barak a mandate to withdraw from the Golan, writes Arutz-7 correspondent Haggai Huberman in today's HaTzofeh [and allow him to pass a new law rescinding the requirement for a popular referendum - ed. note].  A committee has been established to look into this option, in light of surveys show decreasing support for a Golan withdrawal. "General elections have some significant advantages for Barak," writes Huberman. "Quite notably, there is no one heading the opposition camp at present who will be able to run against Barak.  Ariel Sharon, unfortunately, is considered a 'beaten willow' who is no longer able to garner massive support." 

Despite the decrease in public support, Ehud Barak has been waging an informational offensive ever since his return from Shepherdstown.  He says that cracks in Syria's stubbornness have begun to appear, and notes that his predecessor Binyamin Netanyahu agreed to a full withdrawal from the Golan.  Netanyahu, in response, denied today ever having doing so.

2. PREVENTING THE DIVISION OF JERUSALEM
A forum of Jerusalem-area municipal leaders convened last night in Ma'aleh Adumim, kicking off the struggle against an Israeli withdrawal from areas north and east of Jerusalem.  The Israeli delegation to the final-status talks with the Palestinians has reportedly agreed to transfer Arab-populated suburbs of Jerusalem to the PA.  Ma'aleh Adumim Mayor Benny Kashriel, Yesha Council Chairman and founder of the forum, declared last night that Ehud Barak would not be able to ignore the objections of 65,000 Jewish residents of the Jerusalem periphery, not to mention those of the residents of Jerusalem itself:  "If we don't work together, we will lose the battle, and we will regret it for a long time to come.  But if we work together - and we only have less than two months to act - we can win!"  The members, including the mayors of Givat Ze'ev, Gush Etzion, Beitar, Adam, and others, plan to involve the entire nation in the struggle against the division of Jerusalem.

Efrat Regional Council Chairman Yinon Achiman talked about the complete freeze on new building plans in Jewish communities surrounding Jerusalem: "We have never known such terrible decrees... All expansion plans been frozen - residents of communities like Ma'aleh Adumim, Givat Ze'ev, Efrat, and Beitar are permitted to build only balconies!"   Anatot secretary Shimon Shimon told Arutz-7 today that he thought "that Barak, as a security-minded person, would attend to the needs of Israelis - and now I'm not sure whether I acted correctly in voting for him."

Active concern about Palestinian infiltration into Jerusalem is shared in hareidi circles, as well.  Ramat Shlomo, a mostly-hareidi neighborhood in northern Jerusalem, borders two of the Arab
neighborhoods to be handed over to the PA - Shu'afat and Beit Hanina. Ramat Shlomo administration head Chaim Mordechai Weiner said that his community is only "a stone's throw" away from, and practically adjoins, what are scheduled to be the new PA-controlled neighborhoods.  Weiner noted that the Jerusalem neighborhoods of French Hill, Ramat Eshkol, Ramot and N'vei Yaakov will also find themselves "uncomfortably close to localities controlled by the PA military - and that's only in the north.  In the south, the handing-over of Abu Dis to the PA will harm the Jewish presence in the Old City, Talpiot, Armon HaNetziv, Gilo, Katamon, and more.  "Simply put, we are against the division of Jerusalem and the return to the 1967 borders.  This time, Israel is in a worse position than before the Six-Day War - facing a heavily-armed Palestinian entity with its eyes set on a state with Jerusalem as its capital!  The situation is very dangerous, and could lead to the eventual dismantling of the State." 

What does Weiner plan to do about the matter?  "First of all, I spent a whole week just trying to convince public figures, media personalities and the like, of the gravity of what is about to happen.  They scoffed at me, thought I was crazy - until mainstream journalists began writing about it."

 Weiner also said, without elaborating on the details, that he has received the blessing of prominent hareidi rabbis to begin "drastic measures, both collectively and individually - all within the law" to fight the abandonment of Jerusalem suburbs to the Arabs.

3. N.Y. TIMES ON ISRAELI-SYRIAN TALKS
Two recent opinion articles in The New York Times display a measure of impatience with the roles played by Syrian President Assad and American President Clinton in the Israeli-Syrian talks.  Respected columnist William Safire, in a piece entitled, "Don't Butt In," writes that Clinton has a great temptation "to try to force a deal by making promises on which he will not be around to deliver."  Specifically, Safire believes that for three reasons - the traditional American peacemaking role, Clinton's yearning for a 'legacy' with which to leave office, and his desire to boost his wife's senatorial chances with a White House signing ceremony - he may be led to promise an American peace-keeping force as well as additional tens of billions of dollars in aid, on neither of which he is likely to be able to deliver.  Safire concludes, "Clinton should facilitate, not intervene with fast-souring sweeteners.  He should press Syria and Israel to make peace with each other and not with him."

Veteran Middle East analyst Thomas Friedman, not ordinarily known for his pro-Israel stance, sharply attacked Syrian President Hafez Assad in an article entitled "Dear Hafez."  Written in the form of a letter Friedman hopes Clinton will write to Assad, the article states: 

"...Anyway, Hafez... the substance [at the talks] lagged. I'm still not sure you guys really get it...  I hate to say this, but your economy can barely make a light bulb and your Soviet backers are gone. You're in a rather weak position...  Anwar el-Sadat also had a weak hand when he initiated the Camp David peace, but he compensated for it by [reaching] out to the Israeli people in such a sincere, compelling way... You seem to believe that your mere negotiating with Israel is a concession, and now Israel must reciprocate by agreeing to your every demand...  Right now -- forget about the Israeli hawks -- most Israeli doves don't trust you.  Did you see what the Israeli novelist and peacenik Amos Oz said last week? 'The Syrians think they can get the Golan and send us a receipt by fax.' Not a chance...  You want peace with Israel to get just enough goodies out of the West to sustain your regime, so you won't have to change much internally...  You want to keep Syria's door closed, but you're willing to open the window a crack so we can pass the goodies in that way...  I suggest you use this timeout to consider a new strategy.  Best wishes, Bill."

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