Two of the three did not return (IBM was the exception), but none of the sponsors ever condemned the male-only policy at Augusta National.

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And second, with the exception of Paul, none of these candidates -- including Obama -- have succeeded in creating anything like a movement behind them in this cycle.

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How these magazines fare in the face of economic hardship remains to be seen, since none of them, with the exception of People, were around in their current forms during the last big downturn in the early 1990s.

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The latest exception to this rule comes from none other than Bill Gates, who recently praised Apple's iPod, calling it "phenomenal, unbelievable, fantastic" in front of an audience at Stanford University, California.

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With the exception of Mr Clarke, however, none has made any substantive compromise on the issue of Europe, which has brought the party to its knees.

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None the less, I believe there is an exception.

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Still, with the exception of the LG combo playing BH100, none of the major players have shown any plans to change sides, so until they do, prepare for a prolonged stalemate before this war is truly over.

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