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American Government and Politics Today, 2007-2008, Alternate Edition

by: Schmidt, Steffen W.; Shelley, Mack C.; Bardes, Barbara A.

American Government and Politics Today, 2007-2008, Alternate Edition

by: Schmidt, Steffen W.; Shelley, Mack C.; Bardes, Barbara A.

ISBN 13:
9780495007357
ISBN 10:
0495007358
Edition: 1st
Format: Paperback
Copyright: 12/05/2006
Publisher: Wadsworth Publishing
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Summary

Go beyond the television newsrooms and the canned political speeches with AMERICAN GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS TODAY, 2007-2008, ALTERNATE EDITION. With up-to-date information and the inside track on public policy makers, this edition presents what you need to know about American politics in an easy-to-understand format. And, special sections on the impact of economics and foreign policy make this textbook particularly relevant in today's political climate.

PART ONE THE AMERICAN SYSTEM

The Democratic Republic

(26)

What If . . . Citizens Were Required to Vote?

(1)

Politics and Government

(1)

Why Is Government Necessary?

(2)

The Need for Security

(1)

Limiting Government Power

(1)

Authority and Legitimacy

(1)

Democracy and Other Forms of Government

(3)

Types of Government

(1)

Direct Democracy as a Model

(1)

The Dangers of Direct Democracy

(1)

A Democratic Republic

(1)

What Kind of Democracy Do We Have?

(1)

Democracy for Everyone

(1)

Democracy for the Few

(1)

Democracy for Groups

(1)

Fundamental Values

(5)

Political Socialization

(1)

Liberty versus Order

(1)

Equality versus Liberty

(3)

Tensions over Big Government

(1)

Political Ideologies

(4)

Liberalism versus Conservatism

(1)

The Traditional Political Spectrum

(1)

``Classical'' Liberalism

(1)

Problems with the Traditional Political Spectrum

(1)

A Four-Cornered Ideological Grid

(1)

Other Ideologies

(1)

Ideology in the Islamic World

(1)

The Changing Face of America

(9)

The Aging of America

(1)

Our Growing Population

(1)

Ethnic Change

(3)

Why the Term Hispanic?

(1)

The Hispanic Vote in the 2006 Elections

(1)

Other Trends

(4)

Key Terms

Chapter Summary

Selected Print and Media Resources

The Constitution

(50)

What If . . . Roe v. Wade Were Overturned?

(1)

The Colonial Background

(2)

Separatists, the Mayflower, and the Compact

(1)

More Colonies, More Government

(1)

British Restrictions and Colonial Grievances

(1)

The Colonial Response: The Continental Congresses

(1)

The First Continental Congress

(1)

The Second Continental Congress

(1)

Declaring Independence

(2)

The Resolution of Independence

(1)

July 4, 1776---The Declaration of Independence

(2)

The Rise of Republicanism

(1)

The Articles of Confederation: The First Form of Government

(3)

Accomplishments under the Articles

(1)

Weaknesses of the Articles

(1)

Shays' Rebellion and the Need for Revision of the Articles

(1)

Drafting the Constitution

(6)

Who Were the Delegates?

(1)

The Working Environment

(1)

Factions among the Delegates

(1)

Politicking and Compromises

(3)

Working toward Final Agreement

(2)

The Final Document

(1)

The Difficult Road to Ratification

(3)

The Federalists Push for Ratification

(2)

The March to the Finish

(1)

Did the Majority of Americans Support the Constitution?

(1)

The Bill of Rights

(1)

A ``Bill of Limits''

(1)

No Explicit Limits on State Government Powers

(1)

Altering the Constitution: The Formal Amendment Process

(3)

Many Amendments Proposed, Few Accepted

(1)

Limits on Ratification

(1)

The National Convention Provision

(1)

Informal Methods of Constitutional Change

(7)

Congressional Legislation

(1)

Presidential Actions

(1)

Judicial Review

(2)

Interpretation, Custom, and Usage

(4)

Key Terms

Chapter Summary

Selected Print and Media Resources

Appendix to Chapter 2: The Constitution of the United States

(19)

Federalism

(30)

What If . . . One State's Same-Sex Marriages Had to Be Recognized Nationwide?

(1)

Three Systems of Government

(1)

A Unitary System

(1)

A Confederal System

(1)

A Federal System

(1)

Why Federalism?

(3)

A Practical Solution

(1)

Other Arguments for Federalism

(1)

Arguments against Federalism

(1)

The Constitutional Basis for American Federalism

(4)

Powers of the National Government

(1)

Powers of the State Governments

(1)

Concurrent Powers

(1)

Prohibited Powers

(1)

The Supremacy Clause

(1)

Vertical Checks and Balances

(1)

Interstate Relations

(1)

Defining Constitutional Powers---The Early Years

(2)

McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)

(1)

Gibbons v. Ogden (1824)

(1)

States' Rights and the Resort to Civil War

(2)

The Shift Back to States' Rights

(1)

War and the Growth of the National Government

(1)

The Continuing Dispute over the Division of Power

(6)

Dual Federalism and the Retreat of National Authority

(1)

The New Deal and Cooperative Federalism

(2)

Methods of Implementing Cooperative Federalism

(3)

The Politics of Federalism

(3)

What Has National Authority Accomplished?

(2)

Federalism Becomes a Republican Issue

(1)

Federalism and the Supreme Court Today

100

(7)

Reining in the Commerce Power

100

(1)

State Sovereignty and the Eleventh Amendment

101

(1)

Tenth Amendment Issues

101

(1)

Other Federalism Cases

102

(5)

Key Terms

Chapter Summary

Selected Print and Media Resources

PART TWO CIVIL RIGHTS AND CIVIL LIBERTIES

Civil Liberties

107

(38)

What If . . . The Government Monitored All E-mail?

108

(1)

The Bill of Rights

109

(2)

Extending the Bill of Rights to State Governments

110

(1)

Incorporation of the Fourteenth Amendment

110

(1)

Freedom of Religion

111

(7)

The Separation of Church and State---The Establishment Clause

111

(6)

The Free Exercise Clause

117

(1)

Freedom of Expression

118

(8)

No Prior Restraint

119

(1)

The Protection of Symbolic Speech

119

(1)

The Protection of Commercial Speech

120

(1)

Permitted Restrictions on Expression

120

(2)

Unprotected Speech: Obscenity

122

(1)

Unprotected Speech: Slander

123

(1)

Campus Speech

124

(1)

Hate Speech on the Internet

125

(1)

Freedom of the Press

126

(2)

Defamation in Writing

126

(1)

A Free Press versus a Fair Trial: Gag Orders

126

(2)

Films, Radio, and TV

128

(1)

The Right to Assemble and to Petition the Government

128

(2)

Street Gangs

129

(1)

Online Assembly

130

(1)

More Liberties under Scrutiny: Matters of Privacy

130

(5)

Privacy Rights in an Information Age

130

(1)

Privacy Rights and Abortion

131

(2)

Privacy Rights and the ``Right to Die''

133

(1)

Privacy Rights versus Security Issues

134

(1)

The Great Balancing Act: The Rights of the Accused versus the Rights of Society

135

(3)

Rights of the Accused

135

(1)

Extending the Rights of the Accused

136

(2)

The Exclusionary Rule

138

(1)

The Death Penalty

138

(7)

Cruel and Unusual Punishment?

138

(1)

The Death Penalty Today

139

(1)

Time Limits for Death Row Appeals

140

(5)

Key Terms

Chapter Summary

Selected Print and Media Resources

Civil Rights

145

(44)

What If . . . Illegal Immigrants Were Granted Citizenship?

146

(1)

African Americans and the Consequences of Slavery in the United States

147

(6)

Ending Servitude

148

(1)

The Civil Rights Acts of 1865 to 1875

148

(1)

The Ineffectiveness of the Civil Rights Laws

149

(2)

The End of the Separate-but-Equal Doctrine

151

(1)

Reactions to School Integration

151

(1)

An Integrationist Attempt at a Cure: Busing

152

(1)

The Civil Rights Movement

153

(2)

King's Philosophy of Nonviolence

153

(1)

Another Approach---Black Power

154

(1)

The Climax of the Civil Rights Movement

155

(4)

Civil Rights Legislation

155

(2)

Consequences of Civil Rights Legislation

157

(2)

Women's Struggle for Equal Rights

159

(7)

Early Women's Political Movements

160

(1)

Women's Suffrage Associations

160

(1)

The Modern Women's Movement

161

(3)

Women in Politics Today

164

(2)

Gender-Based Discrimination in the Workplace

166

(2)

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964

166

(1)

Sexual Harassment

166

(1)

Wage Discrimination

167

(1)

Immigration, Hispanics, and Civil Rights

168

(3)

The Continued Influx of Immigrants

168

(1)

Illegal Immigration

169

(1)

Bilingual Education

170

(1)

Affirmative Action

171

(2)

The Bakke Case

172

(1)

Further Limits on Affirmative Action

172

(1)

State Ballot Initiatives

173

(1)

Special Protection for Older Americans

173

(1)

Age Discrimination in Employment

173

(1)

The Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967

174

(1)

Securing Rights for Persons with Disabilities

174

(2)

The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990

174

(1)

Limiting the Scope and Applicability of the ADA

175

(1)

The Rights and Status of Gay Males and Lesbians

176

(1)

Growth in the Gay Male and Lesbian Rights Movement

176

(1)

State and Local Laws Targeting Gay Men and Lesbians

177

(1)

The Gay Community and Politics

177

(3)

Gay Men and Lesbians in the Military

178

(1)

Same-Sex Marriages

179

(1)

Child Custody and Adoption

180

(1)

The Rights and Status of Juveniles

180

(9)

Voting Rights and the Young

180

(1)

The Rights of Children in Civil and Criminal Proceedings

181

(8)

Key Terms

Chapter Summary

Selected Print and Media Resources

PART THREE PEOPLE AND POLITICS

Public Opinion and Political Socialization

189

(30)

What If . . . Students Were Required to Pass a National Civics Exam?

190

(2)

Defining Public Opinion

192

(1)

How Public Opinion Is Formed: Political Socialization

193

(4)

Models of Political Socialization

193

(1)

The Family and the Social Environment

193

(2)

The Impact of the Media

195

(1)

The Influence of Political Events

196

(1)

Political Preferences and Voting Behavior

197

(6)

Demographic Influences

198

(5)

Election-Specific Factors

203

(1)

Measuring Public Opinion

203

(5)

The History of Opinion Polls

204

(1)

Sampling Techniques

205

(1)

Problems with Polls

205

(2)

Accuracy of the 2006 Polls

207

(1)

Technology and Opinion Polls

208

(2)

The Advent of Telephone Polling

208

(1)

Enter Internet Polling

209

(1)

Public Opinion and the Political Process

210

(9)

Political Culture and Public Opinion

210

(2)

Public Opinion about Government

212

(2)

Public Opinion and Policymaking

214

(5)

Key Terms

Chapter Summary

Selected Print and Media Resources

Interest Groups

219

(30)

What If . . . Retired Government Employees Could Not Work for Interest Groups?

220

(1)

Interest Groups: A Natural Phenomenon

221

(2)

Interest Groups and Social Movements

222

(1)

Why So Many?

223

(1)

Why Do Americans Join Interest Groups?

223

(2)

Solidary Incentives

224

(1)

Material Incentives

224

(1)

Purposive Incentives

224

(1)

Types of Interest Groups

225

(9)

Economic Interest Groups

227

(5)

Environmental Groups

232

(1)

Public-Interest Groups

232

(1)

Other Interest Groups

233

(1)

Foreign Governments

234

(1)

What Makes an Interest Group Powerful?

234

(3)

Size and Resources

234

(2)

Leadership

236

(1)

Cohesiveness

237

(1)

Interest Group Strategies

237

(5)

Direct Techniques

238

(2)

Indirect Techniques

240

(2)

Regulating Lobbyists

242

(2)

The Results of the 1946 Act

242

(1)

The Reforms of 1995

243

(1)

Recent Lobbying Scandals

243

(1)

Interest Groups and Representative Democracy

244

(5)

Interest Groups: Elitist or Pluralist?

244

(1)

Interest Group Influence

244

(5)

Key Terms

Chapter Summary

Selected Print and Media Resources

Political Parties

249

(36)

What If . . . Parties Were Supported Solely by Public Funding?

250

(1)

What Is a Political Party?

251

(1)

A History of Political Parties in the United States

252

(8)

The Formative Years: Federalists and Anti-Federalists

253

(1)

The Era of Good Feelings

254

(1)

National Two-Party Rule: Democrats and Whigs

254

(1)

The Civil War Crisis

254

(1)

The Post--Civil War Period

255

(1)

The Progressive Interlude

256

(1)

The New Deal Era

256

(2)

An Era of Divided Government

258

(1)

Partisan Trends in the 2006 Elections

259

(1)

The Two Major U.S. Parties Today

260

(3)

The Parties' Core Constituents

260

(1)

Economic Beliefs

260

(2)

Cultural Politics

262

(1)

The 2004 Elections: Economics and National Security

263

(1)

The Three Faces of a Party

263

(7)

Party Organization

264

(1)

The National Party Organization

264

(3)

The State Party Organization

267

(1)

Local Party Machinery: The Grassroots

267

(2)

The Party-in-Government

269

(1)

Why Has the Two-Party System Endured?

270

(2)

The Historical Foundations of the Two-Party System

270

(1)

Political Socialization and Practical Considerations

270

(1)

The Winner-Take-All Electoral System

271

(1)

State and Federal Laws Favoring the Two Parties

272

(1)

The Role of Minor Parties in U.S. Politics

272

(4)

Ideological Third Parties

273

(2)

Splinter Parties

275

(1)

The Impact of Minor Parties

276

(1)

Mechanisms of Political Change

276

(9)

Realignment

278

(1)

Dealignment

279

(1)

Tipping

280

(1)

On to the Future

280

(5)

Key Terms

Chapter Summary

Selected Print and Media Resources

Campaigns, Nominations, and Elections

285

(38)

What If . . . Spending Limits Were Placed on Campaigns?

286

(1)

Who Wants to Be a Candidate?

287

(3)

Why They Run

287

(2)

The Nomination Process

289

(1)

Who Is Eligible?

289

(1)

Who Runs?

289

(1)

The Twenty-First-Century Campaign

290

(2)

The Changing Campaign

290

(1)

The Professional Campaign

291

(1)

The Strategy of Winning

292

(1)

Candidate Visibility and Appeal

292

(1)

The Use of Opinion Polls

292

(1)

Focus Groups

293

(1)

Financing the Campaign

293

(2)

Regulating Campaign Financing

293

(1)

The Federal Election Campaign Act

294

(1)

Interest Groups and Campaign Money

295

(5)

PACs and Political Campaigns

295

(1)

Campaign Financing beyond the Limits

296

(3)

The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002

299

(1)

Campaign Financing and the 2006 Elections

300

(1)

Running for President: The Longest Campaign

300

(5)

Reforming the Primaries

301

(1)

Types of Primaries

302

(1)

Front-Loading the Primaries

303

(2)

On to the National Convention

305

(1)

The Electoral College

305

(2)

The Choice of Electors

305

(1)

The Electors' Commitment

306

(1)

Criticisms of the Electoral College

306

(1)

How Are Elections Conducted?

307

(4)

Office-Block and Party-Column Ballots

307

(1)

Voting by Mail

308

(1)

Vote Fraud

308

(3)

Turning Out to Vote

311

(4)

The Effect of Low Voter Turnout

312

(1)

Is Voter Turnout Declining?

312

(1)

Factors Influencing Who Votes

313

(1)

Why People Do Not Vote

314

(1)

Legal Restrictions on Voting

315

(8)

Historical Restrictions

315

(2)

Current Eligibility and Registration Requirements

317

(1)

Extension of the Voting Rights Act

317

(6)

Key Terms

Chapter Summary

Selected Print and Media Resources

The Media and Cyberpolitics

323

(30)

What If . . . The Media Had to Reveal All of Their Sources?

324

(1)

The Media's Functions

325

(3)

Entertainment

325

(1)

Reporting the News

326

(1)

Identifying Public Problems

326

(1)

Socializing New Generations

326

(1)

Providing a Political Forum

327

(1)

Making Profits

327

(1)

A History of the Media in the United States

328

(5)

The Rise of the Political Press

328

(1)

The Development of Mass-Readership Newspapers

328

(1)

The Popular Press and Yellow Journalism

329

(1)

The Age of the Electromagnetic Signal

329

(1)

The Revolution in the Electronic Media

330

(1)

Talk-Show Politics and Satellite Radio

331

(1)

The Internet, Blogging, and Podcasting

332

(1)

The Primacy of Television

333

(1)

The Increase in News-Type Programming

333

(1)

Television's Influence on the Political Process

333

(1)

The Media and Political Campaigns

334

(7)

Advertising

335

(2)

Management of News Coverage

337

(1)

Going for the Knockout Punch---Presidential Debates

337

(2)

Political Campaigns and the Internet

339

(1)

The Media's Impact on the Voters

339

(2)

The Role of the Media in the 2006 Elections

341

(1)

The Media and the Government

341

(2)

Prepackaged News

341

(1)

The Media and the Presidency

342

(1)

Setting the Public Agenda

342

(1)

Government Regulation of the Media

343

(5)

Controlling Ownership of the Media

343

(2)

Government Control of Content

345

(2)

The Public's Right to Media Access

347

(1)

Bias in the Media

348

(5)

Do the Media Have a Partisan Bias?

348

(1)

A Commercial Bias?

349

(4)

Key Terms

Chapter Summary

Selected Print and Media Resources

PART FOUR POLITICAL INSTITUTIONS

The Congress

353

(36)

What If . . . Nonpartisan Panels Drew Congressional Districts?

354

(1)

Why Was Congress Created?

355

(1)

The Functions of Congress

356

(3)

The Lawmaking Function

356

(1)

The Representation Function

356

(1)

Service to Constituents

357

(1)

The Oversight Function

358

(1)

The Public-Education Function

358

(1)

The Conflict-Resolution Function

359

(1)

The Powers of Congress

359

(1)

Enumerated Powers

359

(1)

The Necessary and Proper Clause

360

(1)

House-Senate Differences

360

(2)

Size and Rules

361

(1)

Debate and Filibustering

361

(1)

Prestige

362

(1)

Congresspersons and the Citizenry: A Comparison

362

(2)

Congress after the 2006 Elections

363

(1)

Congressional Elections

364

(3)

Candidates for Congressional Elections

364

(2)

The Power of Incumbency

366

(1)

Party Control of Congress after the 2006 Elections

366

(1)

Congressional Apportionment

367

(3)

Gerrymandering

367

(1)

Redistricting after the 2000 Census

368

(1)

``Minority-Majority'' Districts

369

(1)

Constitutional Challenges

369

(1)

Changing Directions

370

(1)

Perks and Privileges

370

(2)

Permanent Professional Staffs

370

(1)

Privileges and Immunities under the Law

371

(1)

Congressional Caucuses: Another Source of Support

371

(1)

The Committee Structure

372

(3)

The Power of Committees

372

(1)

Types of Congressional Committees

373

(1)

The Selection of Committee Members

374

(1)

The Formal Leadership

375

(3)

Leadership in the House

375

(2)

Leadership in the Senate

377

(1)

How Members of Congress Decide

378

(1)

The Conservative Coalition

379

(1)

``Crossing Over''

379

(1)

How a Bill Becomes Law

379

(2)

How Much Will the Government Spend?

381

(8)

Preparing the Budget

381

(1)

Congress Faces the Budget

382

(1)

Budget Resolutions

383

(6)

Key Terms

Chapter Summary

Selected Print and Media Resources

The President

389

(34)

What If . . . There Were No Executive Privilege?

390

(1)

Who Can Become President?

391

(1)

The Process of Becoming President

392

(1)

The Many Roles of the President

393

(13)

Head of State

393

(1)

Chief Executive

394

(3)

Commander in Chief

397

(1)

Chief Diplomat

398

(3)

Chief Legislator

401

(4)

Other Presidential Powers

405

(1)

The President as Party Chief and Superpolitician

406

(3)

The President as Chief of Party

406

(1)

The President's Power to Persuade

406

(1)

Constituencies and Public Approval

407

(2)

Special Uses of Presidential Power

409

(1)

Emergency Powers

409

(1)

Executive Orders

409

(1)

Executive Privilege

410

(1)

Abuses of Executive Power and Impeachment

410

(2)

The Executive Organization

412

(3)

The Cabinet

412

(2)

The Executive Office of the President

414

(1)

The Vice Presidency

415

(8)

The Vice President's Job

416

(1)

Presidential Succession

416

(1)

The Twenty-fifth Amendment

417

(1)

When the Vice Presidency Becomes Vacant

418

(5)

Key Terms

Chapter Summary

Selected Print and Media Resources

The Bureaucracy

423

(28)

What If . . . The Public Graded Federal Bureaucracies?

424

(1)

The Nature of Bureaucracy

425

(2)

Public and Private Bureaucracies

425

(1)

Models of Bureaucracy

426

(1)

Bureaucracies Compared

426

(1)

The Size of the Bureaucracy

427

(2)

The Organization of the Federal Bureaucracy

429

(7)

Cabinet Departments

431

(1)

Independent Executive Agencies

431

(3)

Independent Regulatory Agencies

434

(2)

Government Corporations

436

(1)

Staffing the Bureaucracy

436

(4)

Political Appointees

436

(2)

History of the Federal Civil Service

438

(2)

Modern Attempts at Bureaucratic Reform

440

(4)

Sunshine Laws before and after 9/11

440

(1)

Sunset Laws

441

(1)

Privatization

442

(1)

Incentives for Efficiency and Productivity

442

(2)

Helping Out the Whistleblowers

444

(1)

Bureaucrats as Politicians and Policymakers

444

(3)

The Rulemaking Environment

445

(1)

Negotiated Rulemaking

445

(1)

Bureaucrats Are Policymakers

446

(1)

Congressional Control of the Bureaucracy

447

(4)

Ways Congress Does Control the Bureaucracy

447

(1)

Reasons Why Congress Cannot Easily Oversee the Bureaucracy

447

(4)

Key Terms

Chapter Summary

Selected Print and Media Resources

The Courts

451

What If . . . Supreme Court Justices Had Term Limits?

452

(1)

The Common Law Tradition

453

(1)

Sources of American Law

454

(1)

Constitutions

454

(1)

Statutes and Administrative Regulations

455

(1)

Case Law

455

(1)

The Federal Court System

455

(6)

Basic Judicial Requirements

456

(1)

Types of Federal Courts

456

(3)

Specialized Federal Courts and the War on Terrorism

459

(1)

Parties to Lawsuits

459

(1)

Procedural Rules

460

(1)

The Supreme Court at Work

461

(3)

Which Cases Reach the Supreme Court?

462

(1)

Deciding Cases

462

(1)

Decisions and Opinions

463

(1)

The Selection of Federal Judges

464

(4)

Judicial Appointments

464

(2)

Partisanship and Judicial Appointments

466

(1)

The Senate's Role

467

(1)

Policymaking and the Courts

468

(5)

Judicial Review

469

(1)

Judicial Activism and Judicial Restraint

469

(1)

Strict versus Broad Construction

470

(1)

Ideology and the Rehnquist Court

470

(3)

What Checks Our Courts?

473

Executive Checks

473

(1)

Legislative Checks

473

(1)

Public Opinion

474

(1)

Judicial Traditions and Doctrines

475

Key Terms

Chapter Summary

Selected Print and Media Resources

Appendix A The Declaration of Independence

(2)

Appendix B How to Read Case Citations and Find Court Decisions

(1)

Appendix C Federalist Papers Nos. 10, 51, and 78

(8)

Appendix D Justices of the United States Supreme Court since 1900

(3)

Appendix E Party Control of Congress since 1900

(1)

Appendix F Spanish Equivalents for Important Terms in American Government

Glossary

(1)

Index

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American Government and Politics Today, 2007-2008, Alternate Edition

American Government and Politics Today, 2007-2008, Alternate Edition

9780495007357

0495007358

Summary

Table of Contents

Supplemental Materials

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Amazon no longer offers textbook rentals. We do!

American Government and Politics Today, 2007-2008, Alternate Edition

American Government and Politics Today, 2007-2008, Alternate Edition

9780495007357

0495007358

Summary

Table of Contents

Supplemental Materials

Write a Review

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