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   November 19, 2001  QUOTE OF THE DAY "I think the most important thing is that he is not  able to function any longer,  and we're agnostic as to how   that happens. I rather doubt   just given the circumstances here I rather  doubt we're talking about a long, drawn-out trial."  CONDOLEEZZA RICE, on whether United States troops expect to kill Osama bin Laden or capture him for trial.    HolidayShopping Holiday Shopping Take advantage of special offers and discounts -- on gifts, travel and luxury items from NYTimes.com's premium advertisers -- with the Holiday Shopping E-Mail.  Sign up now .     NATIONAL Laid Low by Last Recession, California Is Ready for Next  Experts are expressing guarded optimism over California's economic future, saying the state may come through the tough times in better shape than other regions.   Challenge Revives SAT Test Debate  The challenge being mounted against the SAT exam by the University of California has brought attention to a previously arcane debate.   Ford Motor Workers Get on the Job Training in Religious Tolerance  Several hundred Ford workers of many faiths and jobs turned out on Thursday for "An Islamic perspective on the events of Sept. 11".     MORE NATIONAL NEWS   Advertisement    The most comprehensive Real Estate listings site in town  NYTimes.com/realestate combines The New York Times Classified ads with listings from nearly every broker in the city- more searchable New York listings than you'll find anyplace else.  Most listings feature: neighborhood maps, photos, floor plans and virtual tours.   [IMAGE]   INTERNATIONAL More U.S. Troops in bin Laden Hunt; Hide-Outs Bombed  With the rapid collapse of the Taliban, the United States has intensified its pursuit of Osama bin Laden and his network.   Afghan Victors Agree to Talks on Interim Rule  Bowing to American pressure, Northern Alliance officials agreed Sunday to attend a meeting of Afghan opposition groups somewhere outside the country.   Foes Claim Taliban Are Killing Soldiers Who Seek to Defect  Foreign soldiers fighting for the Taliban have begun killing their Afghan Taliban comrades in a desperate effort to hang on to the encircled city of Kunduz.     MORE INTERNATIONAL NEWS    BUSINESS Phillips and Conoco to Form U.S. Gasoline Giant  The Phillips Petroleum Company and Conoco agreed to merge, creating an oil company with a market value of $35 billion.   Companies Compete to Provide Saudi Internet Veil  Nearly a dozen software companies are competing for a contract to help Saudi Arabia block access to Web sites the Saudi government deems inappropriate.   Wild Welcome Greets Rivera at Fox News  Geraldo Rivera's hiring as a war correspondent for Fox News has ruffled feathers inside   and outside the network.     MORE BUSINESS NEWS    TECHNOLOGY Companies Compete to Provide Saudi Internet Veil  Nearly a dozen software companies are competing for a contract to help Saudi Arabia block access to Web sites the Saudi government deems inappropriate.   Executive Moves From Ticketmaster to Trade Shows  Fredric D. Rosen turned Ticketmaster into a multibillion-dollar behemoth, but doing the same with trade show operator Key3Media is turning out to be a tough second act.   William Daley Will Assume Post at SBC  William M. Daley, the campaign chairman of Al Gore's unsuccessful presidential bid, will be the next president of SBC Communications.     MORE TECHNOLOGY NEWS    POLITICS Sept. 11 Attacks Refocused the Spotlight  The terrorist attacks have considerably altered the profiles  and power  of many of the nation's leading political figures.   Torricelli Backed Donor's Bid for a Korean Project, a Letter Shows  Senator Robert G. Torricelli recommended a political donor for a contract on a sensitive nuclear-reactor project in North Korea.   Top Democrats Politic Through Rural Mexico  Thousands of miles away from their own constituents, the two top U.S. Democrats took a ride Sunday through a rural stretch of central Mexico.     MORE POLITICS NEWS    SPORTS Jets Continue Mastery of the Dolphins  The Jets trounced the Dolphins for the eighth   straight time to vault into first place in the A.F.C. East.   Hoping for an Appealing Match  This week's rankings suggest the potential for an appealing championship game in the Rose Bowl: Miami against Nebraska.   Strahan Runs Down Success  Giants defensive end Michael Strahan is sacking quarterbacks at a pace more furious than any defensive player in N.F.L. history.     MORE SPORTS NEWS    ARTS 'Potter' Movie Sets Box Office Record  "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" sets the record for the biggest movie opening of all time, earning an estimated $93.5 million in its first three days.   Iconoclastic Physicist for All Occasions  Peter Parnell's "QED" is such a textbook example of  biographical theater that it's hard to watch  it without seeing the diagram beneath.   Hemingway's Blessing, Copland's Collaboration  A pastiche of the adventures of young Hemingway, with a dramatic script written by A.E. Hotchner in 1957 and music composed by Aaron Copland, will finally have its premiere.     MORE ARTS NEWS    NY REGION United in Grief and Prayer, Sharing the Common Language of Tears  Thousands attended a service in Rockaways, Queens, to honor victims of the Flight 587 crash.   Torricelli Backed Donor's Bid for a Korean Project, a Letter Shows  Senator Robert G. Torricelli recommended a political donor for a contract on a sensitive nuclear-reactor project in North Korea.   With Water and Sweat, Fighting the Most Stubborn Fire  Experts are calling the World Trade Center site the longest commercial building fire in United States history.     MORE NY REGION NEWS    OP-ED  The Vanishing Act   By BOB HERBERT  The end of welfare faces the cold reality of a  recession that  threatens to leave millions of American families jobless, and all but helpless as well.   Big Mo   By WILLIAM SAFIRE  The elder Bush once called political momentum "the big Mo." Nothing gathers support like a sense of  inevitability. The younger Bush has  it now.   The Job Nobody Trained For   By ROBERT M. GATES  For all practical purposes, the   federal government started homeland defense from scratch on Sept. 11.     MORE OP-ED  NEWS    About This E-Mail You received these headlines because you requested The New York Times Direct e-mail service. 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