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Norton begins defense in trust fund contempt
Attorneys for Secretary of Interior Gale Norton launched the
government's long-awaited contempt defense on Thursday with the
unsurprising request that the major charges against her and Assistant
Secretary Neal McCaleb be dismissed....
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McCaleb tries to explain state of shutdown
Leaving out some details about his department's handling of the
debacle, Assistant Secretary Neal McCaleb on Thursday tried to assure
concerned tribal leaders that making royalty payments to Indian Country
was a top priority....
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Yucca Mountain recommended as nuclear dump
1Setting off a political storm whose
resolution will be decided by Congress,
and perhaps the courts, Secretary of
Energy Spencer Abraham on Thursday
informed Nevada Gov....
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In The Hoop: Winners, Losers
Is it Friday already? That means it's time for the weekly list of the
movers and shakers in Indian Country and beyond....
Lawsuit filed on Pequot golf course
A Connecticut man and his family have sued a local planning commission
for approving a golf course and resort proposed by the Mashantucket
Pequot Tribal Nation, saying parcels of the land belong to them....
Billy Frank: Protecting our salmon
"I've stopped being surprised by folks who want to blame harvest for the
shape wild salmon stocks are in these days....
Exhibit features Iroquois beadwork
Grace Glueck of The New York Times reviews an exhibit of Iroquois
beadwork from historic times to the present, noting the fashion sense
and function of tribal craft....
Alleged tribe racks up more fines
A Connecticut group claiming to be a sovereign tribe is being fined an
additional $1,800 in fines for three vehicles abandoned on a piece of
property in the city of Norwich....
Sioux tribe worried about mold
Calling the situation an emergency, the Oglala Lakota Tribe of South
Dakota is asking the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Centers for Disease
Control for help in dealing with a mold infesting homes on the
reservation....
S.D. schools asked for mascot data
The Office of Civil Rights within the Department of Education has asked
school districts in South Dakota to provide data about their use of
Indian-themed mascots, symbols, performances and other
representations....
Mescalero election returns incumbent
A final election in a dispute over the leadership of the Mescalero Apache
Nation of New Mexico has returned what the loser is calling an
incredulous result....
N.M. reservation bank robbed
A bank in Santa Ana Pueblo of New Mexico was robbed on Thursday by a
man who took an undisclosed amount of cash....
Lawlessness of reservation decried
A White Earth Ojibwe couple who lost their 22-year-old son to a traffic
accident told a judge on Wednesday of the lawless nature of their tribe's
reservation and said the death could have been preventable....
Enron scandal widens to White House
The fallout over the bankruptcy of Enron Corp increased in breadth on
Thursday with a number of revelations that may prove damaging to the
Bush administration and increase the liability of the company....
Stop the pop, Wyo. schools urged
Public schools in Wyoming are being urged by a dentist to stop selling
soda pop in vending machines because the drink is high in sugar and
unhealthy....
Tribal compacts get favorable review
The Washington State Gambling Commission on Thursday voted
unanimously to approve compacts with two tribes....
Wash. court upholds double jeopardy
The Washington Supreme Court on Thursday unanimously upheld the
dual conviction of a tribal hunter, saying it was not prohibited by the
double jeopardy clause of the Constitution....
Navajo children buried in N.M.
A funeral was held in Gallup, New Mexico, on Wednesday for three Navajo
children who were allegedly murdered by their mother....
Sioux tribe honored for payments
January 10 was declared Lower Brule Sioux Tribe Day, in honor of the
South Dakota tribe's help in distributing general assistance checks to
Indian Country....
Editorial: Fix the trust problem already
In an editorial, The Bismarck Tribune calls on the Department of Interior
to fix its long-standing computer problems that led to an Internet
shutdown, now in its second month....
Nevada: Yucca Mountain decision 'stinks'
Reaction from Nevada regarding the Bush administration's decision to
push forward a nuclear dump in the state was swift, harsh and to the
point....
School takes stand on mascots
Schools belonging to the National Collegiate Athletic Association are
being urged by the president of St....
Seminole lawyer in hospital, tribe on guard
Jim Shore, general counsel to the Seminole Tribe of Florida, was still
hospitalized on Thursday after being shot several times in what has been
described as a mob-style, planned hit....
Consultation continues in South Dakota
The fourth meeting over a proposal to create a new Indian trust agency
was held in South Dakota on Thursday and was a repeat of prior sessions
in terms of opposition....
Tribal water deal seeing obstacles
A deal to settle the water rights of two Oklahoma tribe and sell the water
to Texas is running into obstacles from the state and, reportedly, the
prospective buyer....
Former BIA official says work altered
The former Bureau of Indian Affairs official who decided to recognize the
Duwamish Tribe of Washington on the last day of the Clinton
administration is charging that staff members altered a document he
authored....
Peyote dispute heading to Utah court
Utah's Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case challenging whether
non-Indians can use peyote....
Agreement reached on cultural sites
The city of Boulder, Colorado, has reached an agreement to consult with
area tribes and other representatives on cultural sites....
Suit against whale hunt filed again
A coalition of environmental groups has again filed suit against the
federal government for approving a whale hunt by the Makah Nation of
Washington....
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In The Hoop: Dances with Email
The British tabloids, always ripe for tales about marital infidelities, are all
over the latest divorce scandal to hit the United Kingdom....
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Judge questions state of Interior shutdown
US District Judge Royce Lamberth on Wednesday questioned the state
of the Department of Interior's Internet-related shutdown, suggesting
the delay in restoring access was a political ploy....
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GAO: Probe into fake FBI charges 'thorough'
The FBI was justified in meting out light punishment and in some cases,
none at all, to agents who charged the government $3,217 for attending
a retirement dinner but reported it as official training, a Congressional
investigation released on Wednesday concluded....
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Cobell plaintiffs rest case
Attorneys representing 300,000 American Indians rested their case in
Secretary of Interior Gale Norton's contempt today, calling to the stand
their final witness....
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End in sight for Norton contempt trial
Secretary of Interior Gale Norton's grueling contempt trial appears near
an end with attorneys representing 300,000 American Indian trust
beneficiaries ready to rest their case....
Death on reservation being investigated
The Montana Highway Patrol and Bureau of Indian Affair authorities are
investigating the death of a woman on the Northern Cheyenne
Reservation in Montana....
Tribes prepare for BITAM consultation
Tribal leaders held a meeting in Rapid City, South Dakota, on Wednesday
in preparation to discuss a proposed reorganization of the Bureau of
Indian Affairs....
Colombia scraps talks with rebel group
The government of Colombia has ended peace talks with a rebel group
that has been accused of terrorizing Indian tribes, President Andrés
Pastrana said on Thursday....
Author cited for Custer plagiarism
Historian Stephen Ambrose is acknowledging he may not have properly
attributed information in his books, including one on the Battle of Little
Bighorn....
Enron subject of criminal investigation
The Department of Justice has launched a criminal probe into the
collapse of the energy company Enron, officials confirmed yesterday....
Casino employees still get raise
Employees of the casino owned by the Mohegan Tribe of Connecticut are
getting a raise of 4 percent despite economic concerns....
Checks arriving for nuclear workers
Compensation for people who got work after being exposed to nuclear
radiation on Amchitka Island in Alaska is arriving to complaints about the
process....
Supreme Court overturns death sentence
The Supreme Court on Wednesday overturned the death sentence of a
South Carolina man convicted of murdering a pregnant woman, saying a
jury was not informed properly of sentencing options....
Wyo. drilling meets resistance
A plan to allow more oil and gas drilling in the Jack Morrow Hills of
Wyoming's Red Desert has been met with enormous opposition, including
concerns by tribes....
Threats to Missouri River cited
A two-year study by the National Research Council, a division of the
National Academy of Sciences, has recommended the flows of the
Missouri River be returned to its natural state in order to protect
endangered species....
Alleged tribe starts registering cars
A Connecticut group claiming to be a sovereign tribe has formed its own
motor vehicle division, issuing license plates and registrations....
Redskins name called 'dehumanizing'
The Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments on Wednesday
passed a resolution calling on the Washington Redskins football team to
drop its name because it is "demeaning and dehumanizing" to Native
Americans....
Former Pueblo leader indicted for theft
A former governor of Acoma Pueblo in New Mexico has been indicted by a
federal grand jury for allegedly embezzling $8,000 from the tribe....
Yucca Mountain decision could come today
Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham could make a decision on the
Yucca Mountain project in Nevada as early as today, Congressional aides
told the Associated Press....
Native man being held on terror threat
A fired nuclear employee, being held on charges he threatened fellow
workers, says he is being targeted in a terrorist probe because he is
Native American....
Run reenacts Northern Cheyenne escape
Runners from the Northern Cheyenne Tribe of Montana have completed
the re-enactment of an escape their ancestors attempted after being
imprisoned by the U.S....
Response wanted on N.M. gaming suit
The New Mexico State Supreme Court has asked both sides of a gaming
dispute to submit responses by January 22....
Lawmaker says Indians not 'normal' people
A Montana state lawmaker is being criticized for saying that tribal
members who are returning to reservations are "incapable" of working
like "normal outside people."
"They’re unwilling or incapable of working like normal outside people do,"
Sen....
Tigua Tribe defends its casino in court
The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals on Wednesday heard oral arguments in a
case to determine whether a casino owned by the Tigua Tribe of Texas
can remain open....
Man killed on Mescalero Reservation
A man accused of shooting another to death on the Mescalero Apache
Reservation in southern New Mexico has pleaded guilty to several tribal
crimes and has been fined....
Featured Story
Babbitt, others dropped as witnesses
Former Secretary of Interior Bruce Babbitt and his top aide won't be
called as witnesses by the Indian trust plaintiffs, an attorney
representing 300,000 account holders said today....
Featured Story
In The Hoop: Blue Light Special
The Internet woes at the Department of Interior aren't just affecting
Indian landowners, they've also hit Native American Systems (NAS), one
of the largest ($34 million in annual sales, according to corporate
figures) Native-owned computer technology firms in the country....
Featured Story
Interior waited weeks on trust fund shutdown
Despite claiming the disbursement of millions in dollars in payment to
American Indians has been a top priority, the Department of Interior
waited nearly a month to ask a federal court to sign off on a plan to
ensure speedy delivery of the funds....
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Top trust official lacks 'confidence' in reform
The Department of Interior's top trust official testified on Tuesday that he
lacked "confidence" in the government's plan to fix more than a century
of mismanagement of Indian trust funds....
Postal hike, layoffs coming in June
The Postal Service on Tuesday announced it would raise the price of a
first class stamp to 37 cents and lay off as many as 15,000 workers....
Pueblo man running state Democratic party
It's only temporary but David Gomez of Taos Pueblo is head of the New
Mexico Democratic Party....
Seminole Tribe hires top official
The Seminole Tribe of Florida has filled its administrator position amid a
lawsuit against the past holder of the post and ousted chairman Jim
Billie....
Cheney met with failed Enron Corp.
Vice President Dick Cheney and his aides met with the failed energy
company, Enron Corp., six times last year to discuss energy policy, a
letter sent to Congress disclosed....
Changes to clean air rules opposed
Two Democrat-led Senate committees and Attorneys General from
states in the Northeast said they would fight any attempt by the Bush
administration to limit clean air regulations affecting power plants....
Gene may affect infants of smoking mothers
Research being published today in The Journal of the American Medical
Association indicates that genetics may contribute to low birth weight in
infants of mothers who smoke....
Depressed? You're not alone
The number of people being treated for depression has increased
three-fold in the past decade, according to a study by a group of health
researchers at educational institutions....
Supreme Court limits disability act
In a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court on Tuesday limited the
scope of the Americans with Disabilities Act, ruling that the law doesn't
require employees to accommodate ailments or injuries that don't impair
a "major life activity."
Overturning a lower court decision, the Justices said the meaning of
disabled under the 1990 law must fit into certain categories such as
walking, doing household chores, bathing or brushing teeth....
Bush signs major education reform bill
President Bush on Tuesday signed into law a major reform of the nation's
public school systems, one of his key campaign promises....
Native man found dead in ditch
Police in Wright County, Minnesota, are treating as suspicious the death
of a Native man in his mid-20s....
Limits disputed for Native districts
A trial regarding the political maps in New Mexico continued on Tuesday
with a demographic expert testifying on behalf of the Navajo Nation....
Dispute arises over Navajo gaming
Two different governmental entities of the To'hajiilee chapter of the
Navajo Nation are fighting over who gets to broker a development deal
with a gaming company....
Judge stops Bush-ordered timber sale
A federal judge on Monday suspended the sale of timber from a
fire-ravaged national forest, saying a top U.S....
Interior shutdown making the rounds
With seemingly no end to the debacle in sight, the computer shutdown at
the Department of Interior is making the rounds in the media, a full
month after a federal judge ordered an Internet disconnect....
Yucca doubts won't be addressed soon
The Energy Department won't address nearly 300 questions raised by
Congressional investigators because they relate to the licensing of a
national nuclear waste repository and not the site's suitability, an official
said....
Redskins told to pick new name
By a vote of 10-2, with five members abstaining, the Metropolitan
Washington Council of Governments passed a resolution today calling on
the Redskins football team to choose a name not offensive to Native
Americans....
Editorial: 'Overreaction' at Interior
In an editorial today, The Los Angeles Times says the Department of
Interior's response to a court order requiring the protection of individual
Indian trust data "seems like an overreaction."
By pulling the plug on all its computer systems, including web sites, the
department has brought up "serious issues," the paper says, that go
beyond Indian trust....
Letter: 'Redskins' honors Native people
"The Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments is to decide today
whether to call on Washington's football team to put an end to the use of
the "Redskins" nickname because of the perceived negatives associated
with the name....
Crow elk case before Mont. court
The Montana Supreme Court on Tuesday heard arguments in a case over
a herd of elk donated to the Crow Tribe....
Chairman of House Indian panel resigning
Rep Jim Hansen (R-Utah), chairman of the House panel with jurisdiction
over Indian issues, on Tuesday announced his resignation from Congress
at the end of the year....
Ojibwe leader makes annual address
Mille Lacs Ojibwe chairwoman Melanie Benjamin gave her State of the
Band address on Tuesday, focusing largely on a legal challenge by a
Minnesota county....
Native venture seeks wireless refund
A joint venture of Alaska Native corporations is asking the Federal
Communications Corporation to refund $550 million the company paid in
a wireless license auction....
Six Yellowstone bison killed
Montana state officials on Tuesday said they rounded up and killed six
bison males that wandered out of Yellowstone National Park because
they tested positive a disease that can harm cattle....
Cleanup of mine near reservation costly
The cleanup of a mine next to the Fort Belknap Reservation in Montana
will cost $33.5 million more than the state has to reclaim the operation
that gutted sacred peaks....
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Energy near decision on nuclear waste facility
Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham toured a proposed national
nuclear waste dump in Nevada on Monday and said he was ready to
make a decision on the controversial issue....
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Order to distribute trust fund payments sought
The battle over millions of dollars in delayed trust fund payments
continued on Monday with attorneys for 300,000 account holders asking
a federal judge to punish top Department of Interior officials if money
isn't distributed soon....
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BITAM consultation in South Dakota this week
The Department of Interior is hosting its fourth consultation over the
proposed Bureau of Indian Trust Assets Management (BITAM) in Rapid
City, South Dakota, on January 10....
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EDS report on trust reform being finalized
EDS Corporation, a consulting firm Secretary of Interior Gale Norton hired
to assess trust reform, is due to present a final version of its report to
officials on Thursday....
Industry pushing for clean air break
The Energy Department and the Environmental Protection Agency have
made suggestions to reform clean air regulations, changes the industry
has sought but which environmentalists and some states oppose....
Appeal on Ore. trust land sought
The city council of Florence has asked the state of Oregon to challenge a
land-into-trust decision the Department of Interior approved for the
Confederated Coos Tribes....
Oneida Nation casino expanding
The Oneida Nation of New York is undergoing an expansion of its Turning
Stone casino to include a clubhouse and larger gaming floor....
Customer tracking part of Calif. casinos
Finding out who goes to casinos, how much they spend and where they
spend it is a vital part of many gaming operations, as California tribes
are learning....
Book set on Wyo. reservation
Margaret Coel's latest mystery is set on the Wind River Reservation in
Wyoming, featuring a Catholic priest and an Indian lawyer as sidekicks....
Meeting set on nuclear compensation
Federal and Alaska officials are hosting a public meeting on Wednesday
for persons who worked on a nuclear project on Amchitka Island before
Jan....
Yellow Bird: Fit or Fat?
"When your family grows small and you don't have a regular dinner to
make each evening, sometimes a bowl of popcorn and a can of diet Pepsi
is a pretty good supper to me....
Supreme Court hears land rights case
The Supreme Court on Monday heard oral arguments in a case testing
the limits of property rights....
Navajo districts sought in N.M.
Edward T Begay, the Speaker of the Navajo Nation Council, testified in
New Mexico state court on Monday about the need for more House
districts with a Navajo majority....
Suit challenges Alaska districting
Testimony began on Monday in a trial challenging the political districts in
Alaska....
Navajo mother said victim of violence
A Navajo mother accused of murdering three of her children was a victim
of domestic violence, a FBI agent testified in federal court on Monday....
Tribe's sovereign immunity upheld
The Gila River Indian Community of Arizona hasn't given up its sovereign
immunity and can't be sued, a federal appeals court ruled on Monday....
Terrorism a consideration for Yucca Mountain
Terrorism issues will be part of the decision-making process on a
proposed national nuclear waste repository, Secretary of Energy Spencer
Abraham said on Monday....
Interior says payments to be made sometime
A spokesperson for the Department of Interior told The Washington Post
that payments to individual Indians will be made as soon as the special
master in the class action lawsuit agrees to allow computer systems to
be reconnected....
Peru spymaster called ally by U.S.
The scandal-ridden former spy chief of Peru was considered a "valued
ally" by the United States in its war on drugs, according to documents
the State Department has provided to Peruvian investigators....
Woman pleads guilty for drug sale
A woman on the Northern Cheyenne Reservation in Montana pleaded
guilty in federal court on Monday to two counts of possession of
methamphetamine with intent to distribute....
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Contempt trial resumes with government cross-examination
The contempt trial against Secretary of Interior Gale Norton resumed
today in federal court with government attorneys finally getting a chance
to question a senior trust official....
Featured Story
In The Hoop: New Year Resolutions
The new year is upon us so that means it's time for a fresh start here at
In The Hoop....
Featured Story
Speedy trust fund payments sought
If the Department of Interior cannot make payments to as many as
300,000 beneficiaries to the Individual Indian Money (IIM) trust as soon
as possible, top officials should be thrown in jail, attorneys for the
account holders said today....
Featured Story
More shots fired over trust fund shutdown
Secretary of Interior Gale Norton's contempt trial resumed on Friday as a
federal judge accused top government officials of game-playing by not
disbursing millions of dollars in critical payments to thousands of
American Indians throughout the country....
Featured Story
The GRAMMYs: Native music nominees
Who will win this year's Native American music GRAMMY? Unless you're a
voting member of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences,
you won't have any ability to voice your opinion directly....
Featured Story
Native GRAMMY moves into second year
The GRAMMY music awards heralded the new year with a second round of
nominees in the Native music category on Friday, choosing six
recordings to compete for Best "Best Native American Music Album."
Heavy on pow-wow music and two record labels, the Native hopefuls
were among the scores announced at a star-studded press conference in
Beverly Hills, California....
Colo. tribe an Enron investor
The Southern Ute Tribe of Colorado is one of a number of investors in
Enron Corp trying to move the failed company's bankruptcy case to
Texas....
Impact of casinos can be great
To experts in the gaming industry and those who live with it, the
question of casinos is not whether they will impact a community but by
how much....
John Potter: Sacred toenail clippers
"Dream catchers, coincidentally, were the subject of an article in the
Dec....
Book documents Stillaguamish leader
A new book documents the life of Esther Ross, a leader of the
Stillaquamish Tribe of Washington....
Yellow Bird: Lake's deep history
"Once a slim, winding water snake ate a community and became a fat
and bloated boa they named Lake Sakakawea....
Photos show 'proud to be Indian'
The Peabody Essex Museum in Peabody, Massachusetts, is hosting an
exhibit of 71 Edward S....
BIA won't recognize tribe's leadership
The Bureau of Indian Affairs has found that the current leadership of the
Miwuk Tribe of the Buena Vista Rancheria of California is not legitimate....
Iroquois remains repatriated
The Peabody Museum at Harvard University in Massachusetts recently
repatriated nearly 200 sets of human remains to Iroquois Confederacy
tribes in New York....
Pueblos ring in new year with leaders
Traditional feasts were held at 15 New Mexico Pueblos on Sunday to
bring in a new year of leaders for the tribes....
N.M. lawmaker wants Indian friendly districts
A Republican lawmaker testified on Friday that a map he proposed for
the New Mexico House would create six majority Indian districts....
Bush pledges help for Klamath farmers
President Bush on Saturday said he would help white farmers in the
Klamath Basin of Oregon get the water they have been denied over the
past year....
Postal rates to increase per agreement
The price of a first-class stamp would raise from 34 cents to 37 cents as
part of an agreement made between the Postal Service and the mailing
industry....
Meeting over Okla. water deal set
Native Women for Justice is hosting a public meeting on January 19 to
discuss a proposed water compact between the state of Oklahoma and
two tribes....
Notice for recognition of Cowlitz Tribe
A notice was published in the Federal Register on Friday regarding the
affirmed recognition of the Cowlitz Tribe of Washington....
Projects boosting Wash. tribe
Several development projects on the Shoalwater Reservation in
Washington are near completion this year, bringing hope to a tribe long
neglected by the federal government....
Cheyenne women offered prayers at WTC
Henrietta Mann, a Montana State University professor, and her daughter,
Montoya Whiteman, were recently invited to the site of the World Trade
Center disaster in New York City by the Red Cross Spiritual Care Center....
Energy bill has tribes, industry excited
Tribes in New Mexico and the energy industry are welcoming a national
energy legislation bill proposed by Sen....
Calif. tribe ready to fight mine
The Quechan Nation is preparing to fight a gold mine on sacred land in
California although the Bush administration claims its reversal of a legal
opinion that prevented the development doesn't necessarily mean the
project will be approved....
Supreme Court refuses Wyandotte review
The Supreme Court without comment today declined to review an appeal
by the Wyandotte Nation of Oklahoma over a proposed casino in Kansas....
Interior says working on shutdown
The Department of Interior is denying it hasn't taken all steps possible to
send out millions of dollars in payments to beneficiaries to the Individual
Indian Money (IIM) trust....
Santee Sioux considering casino push
If the Nebraska Legislature doesn't act to allow casino gaming on the
state's reservation, the Santee Sioux Tribe will try to get the issue on the
2002 ballot, vice-chair Thelma Thomas says....
Trust land approved for Calif. casino
The Department of Interior has agreed to take into trust 49 acres of land
for the United Auburn Indian Community of California....
Opinion: War over Redskins plate
"The guy plays pro football for the Washington Redskins in the 1950s,
scores a rookie touchdown on a 99-yard kickoff return, and rides through
the twilight 40 years later in a little Toyota pickup with a plate that says
"1 REDSKN." There he is in Manhattan Beach now, 71 years old, and it's
been seven years since wife Wanda sprung the vanity plate on him as a
Christmas present....
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