Editorial – Story about commissioner candidate needed to be told
July 20, 2010 at 7:00 pm in Alexandria Echo Press
Some residents in Douglas County Commissioner District 4 who read our story about a candidate, Steve Hensley, being charged with writing bad checks won’t care. Continue Reading
Moderator note: Comments have been turned off on this article. If you care to know why, just read through most of the comments below and refer to the rules. It should be apparent.
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Why would anyone have an “ax to grind” with him? When you put yourself out there as a candidate for public office, things like this become public.
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Yes, actually….
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Do you honestly believe that the reason the Echo Press ran the story is because they lost business due to Mr. Hensley’s publication? KSAX ran the story as well, before the Echo Press did in fact. What ax would KSAX have to grind with him? It’s called journalism. The public has the right to know about people who aspire to run their county.
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What is the circulation of Hensley’s publication? How often does he publish? Who advertises in it?
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It’s one thing to be an unknown quantity of the public who keeps to his or herself. But when someone spouts their mouth off on a variety of matters with a holier-than-thou attitude and then is suddenly brought down to earth with a human/forgivable but very dumb mistake… the last guy is right. If the shoe fits…
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Hensley! Who cares about the editor – he’s an editor. Nothing to work your panties up in a bundle about. The editor is not running for public office, Hensley is. If Hensley spent money that was not in his checkbook, that is stealing from the bank – from OTHER account holders. Not cool if you ask me.
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If you’re short money, borrow it, then write the check. That’s what honorable people do. Yes, writing bad checks is stealing. Not cool.
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“You mean you have never written a check in your life that was not covered in the checking account? I have. I wrote a check back in 1964 and forgot to deposit enough from savings to cover it.
No one seems to be giving Steven Hensley the benefit of the doubt. It seems some may be all too willing to paint him as a crook. I wonder why …..â€
I think I understand. I think there’s a difference between a small math error in one’s checkbook ledger or forgetting to transfer funds vs. a felony in excess of $500; not only once but twice within the same time period! This would seem to suggest more than just a simple mistake was made and seems to lean more toward blatant wrong-doing. If we knowingly write a check when we do not have the funds in the checking account, we are stealing. It does not matter if we have the money in our savings account or in our pocket it is stealing just the same.
Am I guilty of doing it? Yes, when I was young, carefree, and stupid. I got away with it because of the time it took for the banking system and the US Mail to deliver the check back to my bank for payment but that did not make it right. I knew it took roughly four days for a check to clear so I would write a check and figured I had about three days to get the funds into my checking account before it got flagged for insufficient funds. Today, that time lag is less than 24 hours and in some cases retailers will clear the check immediately. It’s behavior like this that is prompting more and more retailers not to accept personal checks and I don’t blame them.
As to the question whether or not it is appropriate for this information to be brought forward:
Information like this can be a very important consideration at election time. The voters are responsible for deciding who to hire for the job opening. This person is asking the voters of his county to trust him with managing their tax dollars. I suppose having the ability to use money in an underhanded way might be considered a good trait by some but I should think that most voters would prefer they can trust an individual to manage their money wisely and honestly. Getting caught trying to pass bad checks seems to demonstrate that this individual may not be qualified for either.
Good luck at your next election.
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Quote “If he’s not able to manage his own checkbook, how can he be expected to manage a position on a $100 million corporation, which is the Douglas County Board?†Anderson asked.
I about died laughing, it’s almost like he means we will only spend what we have. It’s too bad we can’t arrest our politicians when they over spend whats in they checkbook, OH that’s right they just raise taxes in order to bring the balance up so it’s a little different for them.
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True fiscal conservatives would not support someone guilty of a felony by writing bad checks to be a county commissioner. He needs to be able to manage his own finances before he’s able to manage hard working peoples’ tax dollars. He should withdraw.
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I couldn’t agree more. Managing personal finances oughta be a minimum requirement. If you can’t mind your own house I don’t want you near mine.
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Sometimes personal finances can be thrown into total ruin without spending beyond your means. I’m not asserting that was the situation in this case, but people often say that filing bankruptcy is indicative of irresponsibility when that may not have anything to do with the situation.
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I understand that circumstances beyone your control can lead to filing bankruptcy. However, being charged with two felonies or having other personal financial problems sure isn’t a selling point for someone wanting to be a county commissioner.
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He wouldn’t be the first to have personal problems…nor will he be the last.
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Y wld gr tht bm shld rsgn thn?
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Well, that’s interesting!
I post 2 words in answer to Pitt, “Yes, actually”, and he goes off like a skyrocket. Something about being sued.
LIfe sometimes sucks, but don’t hack on me for it, OK?
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If you have no proof, just what the heck are you crying about?
And where the heck did “poor loser” come from?
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You make it seem like there’s some big conspiracy against Mr. Hensley. Did the Echo Press or KSAX force him to write bad checks? Did they force him to miss his court date? All the media outlets did is report the facts because they pertain to a candidate for office. At some point, character and personal responsibility have to count for something, and in this case Mr. Hensley has displayed a serious lack of both.
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Oh boy, Hensley has definitely hurt my newspaper. LOL.
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It’s significant enough for you to spend time reading and commenting on it. Where does that place you on the significance continuum?
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Yes, my newspaper is insignificant in this debate about Hensley, just like Hensley’s attempt at being a newspaper publisher was insignificant!
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This guy may not be qualified to be a county commissioner but he seems to be perfectly qualified to be the new leader of the RNC.
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What does it take to get a felony nowdays?
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The original article said, “Because the offense allegedly involved more than $500, it is currently a felony level charge, which carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $10,000 fine.
“If convicted of a felony, Hensley wouldn’t be allowed to vote or hold public office, according to the Minnesota Secretary of State’s Office.”
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I’m afraid it’s most likely too late to put the real culprits in the slammer.
Considering that Dubya made up the most of the deficit, the half a bill that Obama added really don’t have a lot to do with it.
Of course, the idiots here just don’t care to quote real stats.
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Thanks for the copy/paste, you didn’t need to though, I already read the article.
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Ther is no such thing as a felony if you’re a Democrat.
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No one can comment on any of the letters to the editor anymore. The only thing we’re allowed to comment on is content written by Echo Press staff. Again, there’s no conspiracy, it’s just Echo Press’s policy.
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Hy dschbg, Mrv Jnsn sn’t rnnng fr pblc ffc.
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wld thck cllng pstrs dschbgs mnts t prsnl ttck. f crs f y’r n th lft ths rls dn’t pply.
[Where are the vowels?]Bth hv ptd t b n th pblc y. D y rlly thnk Mrv nly wnts hs lttr t b rd by th dtr nd nt t b pblshd.
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You are completely in outer space. No one can have comments added online to their letter to the editor on the Echo Press. You have pretty bad reading skills, if you missed that part of their editorial policy.
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This guy could have been a key figure in the Obama administration but Barack beat him to it as he is much better at writing big bad checks.You folks criticize a small potatoes crook like this and applaud the king of crooks in Washington, Barack Obama.
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So you agree he’s a crook. That settles that.
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If he’s writing bad checks he’s a crook just like Obama.
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Right, except that THIS ARTICLE is about local government. Not every single article in every single paper needs to be tied back to the faults of the federal government. How about you discuss what THIS article is actually about?
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I did. It’s about people writing checks for money they don’t have.
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Rubbergate.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_banking_scandal
Congrats to the Dems, they had the most members (twenty) making the top 24 that the House Ethics singled out.
Boxer was among the top 24 involved in the House bank scandal. On March 1, 1992 the Sacramento Bee quoted Boxer as admitting she didn’t pay enough attention to her House bank account. More specifically, that meant 143 bad checks totaling $41,417 over a three-year period that she had written on the House bank.
Seems to me that both parties had it going on…they abused the system and thought nothing of it, until they were exposed for living by a different set of rules.
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Overdraft protection is just a fancy way of saying “it’s OK, to overdraft my account, I’m good for it.” It cut into the collection of those NSF fees that individuals can collect from someone who writes a bad check, but also helps protect individuals from being stiffed by legitimate accts with that protection in place, and, the bank gets to collect a fee for their service of protecting the acct holder’s butt.
It would be foolish IMO, to decline the protection, unless one never let’s their balance fall below a certain number and is totally confident that they have complete control and up to date knowledge of their balance. Are there people that can’t get it? I don’t know, as I’ve never went without it, nor been declined that service.
I have to wonder what the percentage of checking acct holders do not have OD protection. It was projected that US banks would collect over $35 Billion in OD charges in 2009. That’s a serious chunk of change, and, IMO, indicates that it’s truly more commonplace then we think. At $15 bucks for each OD, that’s 2.3 BILLION checks that went BOING in a year, 7.7 checks PER person in the US, if averaged out over a year, the stats look even worse if we consider that some folks don’t even have checking accts.
So, if one person is NOT writing any rubber checks, someone else is making up for that shortage by writing more than the average.
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$15 per check???where do you bank. it’s more like $39.
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I’d change banks.
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Ths gy Rndy lsn s ctlly th dtr f ppr WW. lmst fnd tht nblvbl.
[Where are the vowels?]pstr wh clls nms nd trs t dmn thrs, jst thght h ws sm dmwt ffth grdr trll.
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Jls, mch? 1,736 sbscrbrs nd cntng. < hrf="http://www.hrmnhffmntrbn.cm" rl="nfllw">http://www.hrmnhffmntrbn.cm
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Hw ld r y? 12?
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Tht’s ll y’v gt? ws xpctng mr, gss vr-stmtd y.
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Yh, rdcl lftst wh rglrly bshs th tchrs nn vry chnc gt – nt t mntn ny pblc ffcl wh gts py rs r spprts py rs drng rcssn. Yp, ’m lfty lrght.
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I find it very interesting that instead of actually defending Hensley, you try to shift the focus onto something else. First it was the Echo Press, then Obama, and now the Herman-Hoffman Tribune. Why? Could it be that you know there’s no excuse for Hensley’s irresponsibility and you have something to gain by shutting people up about it? Just an observation..
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Actually, Pitney, I was thinking the same thing. Why is this open to comments when the man has not yet been charged with anything and convicted. Some of the most interesting news stories have been closed to comment pending proof of guilt so what is different with this story? I don’t know the man, never met the man and won’t be in a position to vote for or against him but I do think he has a right to have this story not open to comment at this point. Not that it matters anymore being as they have allowed it to go on this long. This stinks!
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A couple of things to ponder. More and more businesses in Alex are refusing to accept checks. I went to Dairy Queen South and ordered from drive up banana splits for everybody. They would not accept a check. Perkins will not accept even local checks. Not to mention that a local area bank just last month has added an additional page to monthly statements in order to list overdrafts!!! Yes, an overdraft page. No it wasn’t just my statement. I have never written a check with insufficient funds in my lifetime. Adding a whole new page to all statements is not cheap so they must be getting enough bad checks to make it a feasible move. Sad
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LL, as long as you’re online, and depending on your bank, you SHOULD be able to request them to stop sending you paper statements.
Also, if your bank issued you a checking card, just about every place will take that. No fees, no problems.
I’ve been using mine for years, and the only trouble I have it that I tend to run out of check registers before I run out of check blanks. No trouble, the bank gives me more registers whenever I get time to stop and ask.
It IS 2010, after all….
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Thank you for the information, bac, but I do not put any personal information on any computer that is hooked to the internet for any reason. No banking info at all ever. If I can get online my computer can be hacked. Not going to find anything here. I could care less if they send an extra page with my statement. Just saying that it is a sign of the times that it is even necessary.
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Actually he has been charged and it would seem by his own admission he is guilty. See the article, “Hensley tells his side of the story.” Was his letter of admission a truly heartfelt apology or was it a political ploy to hopefully stem any negative feelings the voters may feel due to what he has done? Only he knows for sure.
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You need to breathe into a bag and quit hyperventilating! Nobody said there shouldn’t have been a story written and published. EP has stated that they allow no comments until the party is tried or not charged etc. This is just dirty politics–accussations. Show me the court findings and then you can comment to your hearts content.
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He already admitted to writing the bad checks, he admitted to missing his court date, and he acknowledged that there was at one time a warrant out for his arrest. Are you under the impression that he’ll somehow plead “not guilty” and we’ll all have to wait for a verdict?
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Exactly, Pitney!
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A note from the Echo Press editor: The newspaper decided to allow comments because Mr. Hensley is a public figure seeking public office. The other court cases that were cited here involved private individuals and comments were not allowed until they had been found guilty or not guilty. Like it or not, even our court system has determined that there is a clear difference between public figures and private citizens.
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Just like I said at 11 a.m. “This Hensley guy is a public figure as much as anyone in a political campaign.” Glad to see that’s cleared up.
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A note from the editor: He’s had court appearances; he’s pleaded guilty to one of the charges; and he was given an opportunity to fully state his side of the story, which the newspaper printed.
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Now, with the editor’s factual additional information, I hope this if finally settled. A public figure, yes, even a conservative, when accused of a crime related to the duties required in a position he is campaigning for, can be the subject of a news story about the crime he of which he has been accused and pleaded guilty to.
Most of us understood this already.
Thanks Mr. Editor. We all hope it sunk in now. Doubt it though.
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In the othe cases you mentioned, Pitney, didn’t the sex offender plead quilty and the juvenile admitted to shooting his stepfather but the stories were closed to comments. I hate when rules get changed to suit people.
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Yes, you are right on that one also.
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bac, are you suggesting that I should not agree with someone if you don’t agree with him? I thought that a story stating the facts was sufficient and shouldn’t be open to speculation on the part of people that have no knowledge of the facts. That happens to be MY OPINION and you are welcome to YOUR OPINION.
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Evidently you have problems with the new rules, bac, I have also noticed that you have little to say but to be critical of me, Reika, Pitney and others. Is that your mission? You didn’t used to spend your entire time trying to find fault with everyone else and your posts used to be interesting reading and I don’t need permission to choose the views with which I might agree.
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If he didn’t “intentionally” write the bad checks then he demonstrates a character flaw that would make this voter’s decision quite assuredly were he in my county. Is he that irresponsible and careless that he would “accidentally” write two felonious bad checks in the same month and then fail to appear at his appointed court date? What does this say about how he might serve the people of his county should he actually pull off the election.
His best hope would be to somehow demonstrate that he is still a worthy candidate for the office of county commissioner. I don’t know how he could do that under the circumstances. It will be tough to be sure.
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I hate to break it to you, but exposing your opponents incompetence is NOT on the same level as committing a felony.
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I’ve never committed a felony. Nope. Can’t say I’ve ever even been to court, except to serve on a jury. Not even a speeding ticket. Haven’t pled guilty to breaking any law either.
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If you ever do, however, just remember that you can blame it on the media, you can blame it on Obama, or you can blame it on an opponent in a political campaign… On a serious note, everyone making excuses for Hensley is part of an ongoing theme in this country where nobody’s held accountable for their actions anymore.
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You, Pitney, have tried to excuse and minimize what he did in every possible way. First it was because people had an “ax to grind” with him. Then it was the echo press or the individual reporters who must have had something against him. Later, some commentators decided there’s nothing wrong with what Hensley did because “everybody else does it” or “the government does it.” The latest attempt to minimize what Hensley did is pointing out that the incumbent brought these matters to light. What part of personal responsibility is so hard for some people?
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There’s a difference between the eyes of the law and the eyes of public opinion. Just because someone is considered innocent until proven guilty in the eyes of the law, doesn’t mean the general public is going to see it the same way. Since Hensley is a candidate for public office, thus the eyes of public opinion are very important in this case. I’m not going to go and re-read every single post you’ve made to debate this any further, as most of them are “hidden due to low comment rating” anyway.
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Use your attitude toward Mr. Hensley at the ballot box. Tell your friends what you think – in private. Prejudging in a public forum is unfair to everyone. None of you can point to malice aforethought as a motivator for Mr. Hensley’s actions.
I have nothing to gain from any of this. My residence is in South Dakota.
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“In private”?? Now we can’t comment on politics or improprieties if they involve the “spunky and cute” Steve Hensley? Any other free speech you want to squelch there Pitney?
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DO YOU KNOW ALL THE FACTS???? No you don’t – nor do I. This whole discussion thread has become a medium for gossip and rumors and supposition. Expressing opinions on fact is fine. Going beyond that is disgusting.
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It sure seems like all the backpedaling and excuse-making have had the opposite result of what was intended. The comments on here sure don’t shine a very positive light on Mr. Hensley as a candidate for county commissioner. The road to H… is paved with good intentions. I have only read a variety of rationalizations for possible felonious behavior and not one mention of qualifications he has for he job. Other than he’s “cute” and has “spunk”. That sounds like a description of a labradoodle puppy and not a serious candidate for county commissioner.
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The Pitney doth protest too much, me thinks.
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I have no horse in this race. I have nothing to gain or lose, but civility and fair play get ground into the dirt. That affects everyone. I would defend you if you were in a similar position. I doubt you would defend me. That is what separates the mature from the immature ….. That is what separates the givers from the takers. It separates the hate-filled from the compassionate.
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God forgives sinners and thieves and murderers and the like. Who are we that we cannot try to do likewise? Are we better than the God who created us?
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Throw out a little prosthelytizing for good measure. So we should forgive and forget when a public official commits a felony? What happened to the rule of law?
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Pnd snd, Lttl Jnr dtr ….
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Michelle – Charles Rangel and a whole bunch of others in Congress are crooks too. They and your hero in the White House are squandering $TRILLIONS that this country will never be able to pay back. Bet you would defend them to the death ….. just because they are Democrats!
Hot debate. What do you think?
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