Old Jarhead's Political SitRep for October 19, 2012
Your one-stop-shop for political news and opinion. Please forward to friends who need to be informed. This SitRep (Military for “Situation Report”) is created by many readers who send me items for inclusion, which I would have likely missed or skipped. And I can only spend at most three hours a night pulling stuff, plus the healthcare or economic stuff that crosses my desk at work. As always, I—and you—owe them thanks and appreciation. I post articles because I think they are of interest and will stimulate thought and discussion. Doing so doesn’t mean that I necessarily agree (or disagree) with every—or any—opinion in the posted article, or that I was able to verify the information presented, which is the responsibility of the author. I try not to post things that are false, or too far a stretch, regardless of the view point, but I don’t always succeed. As always on the Net, or in the legacy media, you must read critically and with skepticism.
Something about those guys….
Good cartoon.
Binders?
Democrats are making much of Romney’s remark that in Massachusetts
Prediction
I think that in any state where the legit polls are tied on election day, and perhaps even if Romney is only one or two points down, he will carry that state, because the anti-Obama voters are much more motivated to turn out. But a lot can happen in the next 17 days to impact those polls. Getting late for an “October Surprise,” as a “Wag the Dog” thing would be pretty transparent, though the media would try to cover for Obama. ~Bob.
The Coming Collapse of the American Republic
All royalties go to a charity to help wounded veterans. E-Book available at Smash Words: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/59105
Please forward and post where possible. For a free PDF of Collapse, write to me at tartanmarine(at)gmail.com.
Important: Jobless Claims Spike to Four-Month High. By Guy Benson.
Excerpt: Weekly applications for U.S.
Media Suddenly Muted on Jobless Claims. By Joel B. Pollak
Excerpt: This week, jobless claims have soared to 388,000--a four-month high. NPR explained, correctly, that both changes were largely the result of the fact that California
Excerpt: Mitt Romney widened his lead over President Barack Obama to seven points today, giving the Republican challenger his biggest lead yet in the poll and putting him well outside the margin of error. (Don’t celebrate—work! ~Bob.)
Fannie and Freddie's Huge Profits Raise Questions for Future of Mortgage Finance
Excerpt: Never have the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) dominated the U.S.
Individuals, Liberty
Excerpt: Liberty
The Solyndra Tax Break
Excerpt: In a recent twist, Solyndra's investors could be rewarded for their failure, thanks to a tax benefit the Obama administration handed out in a bid to evade political accountability, says the Wall Street Journal. The Internal Revenue Service exposed this double Solyndra debacle last week in the U.S.
Worth Reading
http://www.realclearmarkets.com/articles/2012/10/17/social_securitys_war_on_working_wives_99940.html
Excerpt: We've heard a great deal about the "war on women" lately, mostly in connection with hot-button issues like abortion and birth control. But beyond all this rhetoric, there is in fact a large program whose design reflects antiquated, sexist thinking about women. It's called Social Security. Social Security's spousal and survivor benefit provisions - which date back to 1939 - make the program a terrific deal for spouses who stay out of the labor force. As such, they are unfair to the growing number of two-earner families, and they discourage married women from working outside the home.
Worth Reading
Excerpt: If Obama called the Benghazi attack an "act of terror" in his Rose Garden speech, then he also said the victims of that attack were buried in the "hallowed grounds of Arlington Cemetery " and that he had visited them at Walter Reed -- other comments in that speech not specifically referring to the Benghazi
Book: Rise of gender and ethnic studies programs helped bring about decline of modern academia. By Jamie Weinstein
Excerpt: Modern academia has gone astray and identity studies programs are in large part the culprit, argues author and poet Bruce Bawer in his new book ”The Victims’ Revolution: The Rise of Identity Studies and the Closing of the Liberal Mind.” “Identity studies sum up everything that’s wrong with the humanities today,” Bawer told The Daily Caller. (A pundit said if your kid is majoring in something that ends in "studies," don't convert the bedroom to a den. That one is coming home. ~Bob.)
I Hope Everyone Is Ready
Excerpt: Second, Syria and Turkey
Now, now, don't go all Islamophobic--remember the progressive Mantra:" All cultures are equally valid." I assume they will cover this under Obamacare, for fear of offending Muslims. ~Bob.
Excerpt: Greek workers will walk off the job for the second time in three weeks on Thursday, hoping to show EU leaders meeting in Brussels
Jimmy Kimmel Live asks people ‘Who won the debate?’ four hours before debate
http://dailycaller.com/2012/10/17/jimmy-kimmel-live-asks-people-who-won-the-debate-four-hours-before-debate/#ixzz29bBIn6n8
http://dailycaller.com/2012/10/17/jimmy-kimmel-live-asks-people-who-won-the-debate-four-hours-before-debate/#ixzz29bBIn6n8
Funny--but they vote. ~Bob.
The Huffington Post ? ~Bob. Excerpt: But Obama's record on high-paying jobs leaves much to be desired.
Excerpt: Another debate, another debacle for America
Excerpt: Before that attack and as recently as a week ago, Obama had taken to saying Al Qaeda is on the road to defeat. During a Miami
Excerpt: What are the odds for getting the last word in a debate with Barack Obama? If the moderator is Obama-sycophant Candy Crowley, the odds are 8 to 3 against you. That’s what happened to Mitt Romney in the second presidential debate.
U.S., Israel Prepare for Major Joint Military Drill
http://www.defensenews.com/article/20121017/DEFREG04/310170002/U-S-Israel-Prepare-Major-Joint-Military-Drill
Excerpt: U.S. troops and equipment have begun arriving in Israel ahead of what a senior air force officer on Oct. 17 called “the largest exercise in the history of the longstanding military relationship between the U.S. and Israel.” (Drill--or Wag-the-Dog October surprise? ~Bob.)
http://www.defensenews.com/article/20121017/DEFREG04/310170002/U-S-Israel-Prepare-Major-Joint-Military-Drill
Excerpt: U.S. troops and equipment have begun arriving in Israel ahead of what a senior air force officer on Oct. 17 called “the largest exercise in the history of the longstanding military relationship between the U.S. and Israel.” (Drill--or Wag-the-Dog October surprise? ~Bob.)
Syrian Rebels Get Missiles
Excerpt: Some Syrian rebel factions have obtained advanced portable antiaircraft weapons, according to rebels and regional officials, a development that could alter the Syrian war's trajectory and fan U.S. concerns that such weapons could end up in the hands of anti-Western Islamist militias. (This is not good. There are no "good guys" in Syria
Report: Obama campaign turning grim on Florida , Virginia , North Carolina — and Colorado
Excerpt: You need to read way, way, way down into this National Journal piece to find the key bit, but it’s worth it.
Obama’s Concept Of Feminism and His War On Women: JayZ gets the Presidential Seal of Approval
Excerpt: Obama is considering hiring JayZ to energize his campaign. That’s fine, but maybe American women should be aware of the type of lyrics JayZ uses in his songs, that Obama considers so influential….. After listening to these lyrics and by Obama edifying JayZ’s position in the cultural world of young people, these negative images are re-enforced. (Warning—bad language and then some on transcript. --Barb.)
White House to meet with industry groups on cyber order. By Jennifer Martinez
Excerpt: The order would create a voluntary program in which companies operating key infrastructure would elect to meet a set of cybersecurity standards developed, in part, by the government. The White House started exploring an executive order after Senate Republicans blocked a bill co-sponsored by Sens. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.) and other Democrats in August. "Unfortunately, the current prospects for a comprehensive bill are limited, and the risk is too great for the administration not to act," White House spokeswoman Caitlin Hayden said in a statement earlier this month.
Bloomberg forms own super-PAC. By Mario Trujillo
Excerpt: New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is forming a super-PAC to spend some of his personal fortune helping centrist candidates win election to Congress. Bloomberg will spend at least $10 million promoting his top priorities — gun control, education policy and gay marriage — while helping centrists such as Independent Senate candidate Angus King in Maine, Democrat Gloria Negrete McLeod in California and Rep. Robert Dold (R) in Illinois, according to The New York Times. In a statement, Bloomberg said he would work to elect centrists, regardless of party. (Focus is national gun control and “preservation of our freedoms.” Seems like an oxymoron to me….Barb.)
It’s Time for the 99% to Start Supporting the 1%. By Roy W. Spencer, Ph. D.
Excerpt: Demonizing the rich is demonizing the driving force which elevates the standard of living of the whole country. If you want prosperity, allow the producers to produce. Make it easier for them, not harder. Not only does this raise our standard of living, it also increases tax revenue, because revenue is a percent of the action, and the more economic activity there is, the greater the tax revenue which is collected to support government services. (Rush Limbaugh was playing JFK tapes saying just this thing last week……Said no Democrat would dare say such things these days, despite the fact that it is sound economic policy. --Barb.)
What Exactly Would Obama Do With A Second Term? By Doug Mataconis
Excerpt: However, it does bring up an interesting point in relation to the fact that we still don’t have a good idea of what exactly the President wants to do with a Second Term. If the President really wants to keep the job, then why isn’t he telling us what he wants to do with it during his final four years? Isn’t that sort of a relevant question that voters deserve an answer to?
Obama plans election-night rally in Chicago
Excerpt: President Barack Obama plans to usher in what he hopes will be a second four-year term in the White House at an election-night rally at a huge convention center near downtown Chicago McCormick Place Chicago Chicago
Gov Agency Tells People to Register to Vote in Wisconsin
Excerpt: A loophole in the law has led to a state agency in Wisconsin urging would-be voters to register to vote for the November election without proving they are in fact Wisconsin residents, Media Trackers has learned. State law says that anyone who registers to vote 20 days or more before an election does not have to prove they are a resident in order to vote at a Wisconsin Wisconsin
Obama, Oy Vey! American Jews Finally Have Had Enough. By Stella Paul
Excerpt: "Two Jews, three opinions" goes the famous joke. And every day, more of those opinions turn pro-Romney, as American Jews increasingly reject the collapsing presidency of Barack Hussein Obama. Romney's surging poll numbers in the crucial state of Florida reflect his growing success with Bubbie Molly and her unemployed grandson Adam, who both thought their right hand would wither if it ever pulled the lever for a Republican.
Excerpt: President Obama believes that his economic policies are working, which begs the question: What are the goals of his policies? If his goals have been job creation, leveling of the trade imbalance, and economic growth and stability, his policies have been a huge failure. If however, his goals has been the opposite, he is correct…they have been amazingly successful. (I am glad to see a lull in the internecine mud slinging in this article by a certain Randy, who has a good handle on the way politicians and the msm have been spinning the facts to make virulent socialism acceptable. As wishy-washy as Mitt may be, he seems to promise at least a bit less of these rank socialist policies that absolutely KO economies even as the wielders of those policies tout their "success." We may be a nearly brain-dead nation, but I guarantee that another 4 years of Obama will awaken many of the comatose to the fact that his Keynesianism didn't work, at least not in the USA Weimar
Excerpt: It’s been a pretty big year for welfare—and a new report shows welfare is bigger than ever. The Obama Administration turned a giant spotlight on the welfare system in July when the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) proclaimed it had the authority to gut the work requirements from the welfare reform that had helped lift so many people out of poverty after 1996. This morning, a new report by the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service (CRS) shows the staggering reality of the growing welfare state—echoing Heritage’s own research that reveals welfare spending is approaching the $1 trillion mark.
Obama Debate Coach Named Mao as Favorite Political Philosopher
Excerpt: Everybody realizes at this point that one of President Barack Obama’s debate coaches is 2004 losing presidential candidate Sen. John Kerry (D-MA). But it’s been largely overlooked that another one of his debate coaches is Anita Dunn. (Naturally. Mao was a much more successful socialist that Stalin or Hitler, killing far more of his own people, despite their best efforts. ~Bob.)
The Union Racket---Push for new members opens SEIU chapter up to charges of extortion. By Bill McMorris
Excerpt: The union that launched the career of Democratic National Committee executive director Patrick Gaspard is being accused of strong-arming a group of nursing homes to increase membership rolls. HealthBridge and CareOne, two nursing home companies, are suing the New England Health Care Employees Union (Service Employees International Union Chapter 1199 New England ), accusing the labor leaders of using political threats and dangerous workplace sabotage to force several non-union shops into their ranks.
Excerpt: Libyan authorities have singled out Ahmed Abu Khattala, a leader of the Benghazi-based Islamist group Ansar al-Shariah, as a commander in the attack that killed the American ambassador to Libya, J. Christopher Stevens, last month, Libyans involved in the investigation said Wednesday. (If only he hadn’t watched that movie trailer on YouTube, huh, Barack? ~Bob.)
Drone strike in south Yemen
Excerpt: A drone strike near the southern Yemeni city of Jaar killed at least seven Al-Qaeda suspects, including a local leader, at dawn on Thursday, an official in the restive region told AFP.
French firm: 7 sailors kidnapped off Nigeria
Excerpt: Gunmen attacked a ship operated by a French oil and gas services company off the coast of Nigeria
Worth Reading
Excerpt: Almost everything we have been told about Libya
Excerpt: Indeed, the working age population has increased by 8.4 million since President Obama entered office. With the same labor force participation as on Inauguration Day in January, 2009 (which would be closer to a real recovery), that would require 5.5 million new jobs just to keep up with the aforementioned population growth. But a generous reading of the data is that during President Obama's entire term in office, a grand total of only 787,000 jobs have been created overall on net. And all of that net growth came in the last month. As of August, 2012, the economy was still suffering a net loss of jobs during Obama's entire Presidency up to that point.
Journalists Who Don’t Even Try to Hide Their Bias. By Bernard Goldberg
Excerpt: The Washington Times ran an interesting tidbit the other day about those right-down-the-middle objective journalists who covered the second presidential debate at Hofstra University
Taliban coward using child for cover gets hit with hellfire
I don’t see the kid. ~Bob.
Transparency Watch: A Closed Door: From the EPA to NASA, the FDA to OSHA, President Obama has failed to make science accessible. By Curtis Brainard
Excerpt: A survey of science, health, and environmental journalists, conducted by CJR and ProPublica, suggests that while his record so far is more mixed than the anecdotal evidence from journalists indicates, President Obama has clearly not lived up to his promise on transparency and access. As has been the case on many fronts with Obama, the expectations among journalists that things were going to improve were so high, a failure to live up those expectations was almost inevitable.
Afghan girl beheaded for refusing prostitution: police
Excerpt: Mah Gul, 20, was beheaded after her mother-in-law attempted to make her sleep with a man in her house in Herat
Virginia Teacher Charged With Assault: Girl’s Hand Cut In Forced ‘Islamic Hand Sign’ Drill
Excerpt: Stephanie Bennett, the mother of the 10-year-old girl who was allegedly assaulted at Butts Road Intermediate School, told TheBlaze in an emotional phone interview that Harris has a disturbing trend of “indoctrinating” students with Islamic teachings. She also said the teacher openly campaigns for President Barack Obama in the classroom.
Hollywood’s Hysterical “Cancer Screening” Lie for Obama. By Michelle Malkin
Excerpt: As expected, President Obama poured on the #ladyparts pandering during the second presidential debate last night at Hofstra University Crowley
All the Small Things: Big Bird, binders, and Seamus key tenets of Democratic plans for the future
Excerpt: “If you don’t have a record to run on, then you paint your opponent as someone people should run from,” then-candidate Barack Obama said in 2008. “You make a big election about small things.” (You want to protect Big Bird, vote Obama. You want to protect America
Big Bird, Small President: As of fiscal 2011, Sesame Workshop had assets of $289 million.
Excerpt: Having been routed in the first debate, President Obama has found a comeback strategy: Fly Big Bird. Specifically, mock Mitt Romney's call to cut federal subsidies for the millionaires at the Sesame Workshop and pledge to defend the Public Broadcasting Service no matter how much money the Treasury has to borrow.
Worth Sharing: American Crossroads: "Act of Terror"
Obama’s Oil And Gas Production Claims Fact Checked
Former Obama Econ Adviser Says Obama “At The Bottom Of The Pack” For Economic Growth
Report: EPA Delaying Job-Killing Regulations to Aid Obama Re-Election
Excerpt: President Obama is putting off major environmental regulations until after the November elections in order to avoid the political blowback of the economic damage those regulations will cause, according to a new Senate report.
YouTube Videos Prove Syrian Rebels Have Anti-Air Missiles. By Walter Russell Mead
Excerpt: As CJ Chivers reported on Monday, video evidence on YouTube suggests the Syrian rebels have SA-7 shoulder-fired, heat-seeking surface-to-air missiles. Pieces of the SA-7 have been sighted in Syria
Pension Envy: Who Has More—Obama or Romney?
Excerpt: From the standpoint of a public pension, Obama is well-heeled. As president, he will receive $191,300 annually for life — win or lose in next month's election — and receives a travel allotment as well as mailing privileges. Should Obama lose, his presidential pension kicks in immediately after leaving office. Given that the president enjoys a normal life span, the pension allotment would be worth upwards of $6 million.
The Murders in Libya, The Presidential Debate, and The Pattern of Obama Foreign Policy. By Barry Rubin
Excerpt: Yet all three of the above lies were precisely a matter of turning “national security into a political issue,” and that is what Obama has done throughout his term. To acknowledge the cause of the attack would have been to acknowledge the real threat in the Middle East and the embarrassing fact that American weapons had been given to terrorist, anti-American groups. Incidentally, far from learning anything in Libya , Obama is now doing precisely the same thing in Syria
Says Barack Obama has pension investments that include Chinese firms, and "investments through a Caymans trust."
Excerpt: It’s an accurate set of statements when you consider investments made by managers of the Illinois China
After Committing Suicide In 1998, 'Newsweek' Finally Gets Buried
Excerpt: It took almost 15 years, but the rotting and decayed corpse called Newsweek will finally be buried as a print edition at the end of this year. Newsweek's actual time of death, though, was by suicide in 1998, the day Matt Drudge published a story on the Drudge Report: the explosive news that a sitting president had engaged in a clandestine affair with a 22 year-old intern. Newsweek had the story but refused to publish it, and when you choose protecting power and the status quo over reporting truth -- you're officially dead as a news outlet.
Baby Jesus 'barred' from Christmas market
Excerpt: She finds it strange that a nativity scene would be considered out of place at a Christmas market, considering it depicts the reason Christmas is celebrated in Helsingborg , as well as many other parts of the world.
Israeli Flags Now Illegal in Dearbornistan. By Daniel Greenfield
http://www.familysecuritymatters.org/publications/detail/israeli-flags-now-illegal-in-dearbornistan?f=must_reads
http://www.familysecuritymatters.org/publications/detail/israeli-flags-now-illegal-in-dearbornistan?f=must_reads
Excerpt: First, Christians were banned in Dearbornistan. Now, it's Jews who are illegal. Why not just declare the place an outpost of Saudi Arabia Dearborn Fordson High School
CNN Managing Editor Sends Staff Email Defending Crowley
Excerpt: This wasn’t the Battle Crowley
If Candy Crowley Was an Honorable Journalist She Would Resign Today. By Jim Holt
Excerpt: Candy Crowley confirmed what most fair-minded Americans already believe.
The media is biased and in the tank for Barack Obama. (Short, good review of her biased moderating, by points. ~Bob.)
The media is biased and in the tank for Barack Obama. (Short, good review of her biased moderating, by points. ~Bob.)
Excerpt: Just one “faithless elector” withholding his or her vote or voting for someone other than the person to whom he or she is pledged would prevent the tie just described. (…) Faithless, accidental (I’m not kidding), or withheld electoral votes have occurred in eight of the past 14 presidential elections and as recently as 2004. (…) This year, in a potentially catastrophic development, Ron Paul loyalists in Nevada and Texas
Muslim Gang Attempts to Kidnap Egyptian Christian Mother, 4 Dead
Didn’t get the memo. ~Bob. Excerpt: Ali Hussein, a 35-year-old Muslim gang leader, entered the home of a Coptic Christian family in the village of Abdelmassih
When Public Sector Unions Win in California
Excerpt: This November, California
Remember the “undecided” woman at the debate who asked the AK-47 question?
Tweet from talkradio200 @talkradio200
Thomas Sowell on why he doesn't give interviews, "I see no correlation between what I say and what the media reports." (Sadly true. ~Bob.)
Romney edge expands post-debate in Rasmussen tracking poll
Excerpt: The Left seemed pretty pleased with Barack Obama’s performance in Tuesday night’s debate, cheering his renewed energy and aggressiveness. How did it play with voters overall? The spot polls produced mixed results, generally agreeing with most pundits that it had been a draw.
Worth Reading : Leaks, Lies, and Libya
http://www.americanthinker.com/2012/10/leaks_lies_and_libya_how_not_to_inform_a_nation.html
http://www.americanthinker.com/2012/10/leaks_lies_and_libya_how_not_to_inform_a_nation.html
Excerpt: While the current administration has strayed far from Barack Obama's 2008 campaign promise that it would be the most transparent government in history, nothing so points to its failure to keep that promise as have events of the past two years. Starting with the killing of Osama bin Laden in May 2011, the Obama administration has, in a very real sense, "informed" Americans of current events via selective and random leaks (many of them apparently unintentional). (This gentleman, whom I am fortunate to know, has put together an excellent summary of events and what they mean. Shining a light on what the Administration would prefer to keep in shadows. --Del
Ad attacking Allen West features child with cerebral palsy. By Alexandra Jaffe
Excerpt: “In fact Congressman West corresponded with the Susser’s and even invited them to attend two town hall meetings," said Tim Edson, West's campaign manager, in a statement. "It is truly despicable that Patrick Murphy and his allies at House Majority PAC would exploit a disabled child for their own political gain,” he added.
Defaming Islam: Malaysia Lectures America About Freedom. A study in hypocrisy. By Doug Bandow
Excerpt: What is striking about the West is the fact that nominally Christian governments allow and sometimes even finance the defamation of Christianity. …That the functionary of a government which unashamedly restricts both freedom of religion and expression would lecture the rest of the world about both issues comes as no surprise. That the rest of the world seems reluctant to equally unashamedly defend these liberties is disheartening.
Scapegoat found: Feinstein faults Obama's intel director for mixed messages on Benghazi
Excerpt: Clapper's office has already claimed responsibility. On Sept. 28, the office put out a statement saying “there was information that led us to assess that the attack began spontaneously following protests earlier that day at our embassy in Cairo
Tweet from Jane Austin @janie_austin
Every time you go to the movies you are basically making a donation to Obama
Excerpt: At a campaign event for Barack Obama's reelection campaign, Bill Clinton said that Mitt Romney's argument "is true, we're not fixed": (Somewhere inside, Bill still remembers BO playing the race card on him. ~Bob.)
Mitt wants people to die?
Paul Krugman claims Mitt Romney wants to let people die. No, that's not a misprint. Writing in The New York Times, Krugman asserts that lack of health insurance causes "tens of thousands" of deaths every year and that if Romney repeals ObamaCare that's as good as killing people. All this is rubbish. NCPA scholars have discredited this claim completely. NCPA Senior Fellow Linda Gorman has made a comprehensive and critical review of the literature. Former Congressional Budget Office Director and NCPA author June O'Neill found that among Americans above 250% of poverty, lack of health insurance does not affect mortality. Among those with less income the effect is small. I'll expand upon this issue this weekend at Townhall.com. These efforts are made possible by your encouragement and financial support. Cordially, John Goodman, National Center
Study: Black Americans Feel Less Empowered Under Obama Than They Once Did
Excerpt: A new study from Washington University in St. Louis finds that under Obama, many black Americans feel less free than whites when it comes to political participation.
Uprising of the Peasantry Reaches the Suburbs.
http://legalinsurrection.com/2012/10/uprising-of-the-peasantry-reaches-the-suburbs/
Excerpt: What is very interesting [about the pick-up truck in this photo] is where it was parked – in a commuter train station lot on the Philadelphia Main Line, part of the swing suburbs in PA. In 2008, there were a lot of Obama/Biden stickers on cars, but hardly a one this year, for what it’s worth. Not many Romney stickers, but then there is always the risk of getting one’s car keyed with something like that, even on theMain Line .
http://legalinsurrection.com/2012/10/uprising-of-the-peasantry-reaches-the-suburbs/
Excerpt: What is very interesting [about the pick-up truck in this photo] is where it was parked – in a commuter train station lot on the Philadelphia Main Line, part of the swing suburbs in PA. In 2008, there were a lot of Obama/Biden stickers on cars, but hardly a one this year, for what it’s worth. Not many Romney stickers, but then there is always the risk of getting one’s car keyed with something like that, even on the
Barbara Streisand sent me an e-mail
Saying the Democrat Party urgently needed my help. Either they are desperate, or I’m on too many lists. Maybe both.
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