41.   But no, analysts said, the expansion is still alive but humbled.

42.   But NATO expansion has been a central concern because it offers so many opportunities.

43.   But settlement expansion is hardly a dead issue, and neither is uncertainty over what it will mean for peace.

44.   But such an expansion was not as easy as it sounded, because it would throw off the position of the other numbers.

45.   But that expansion is not likely to cut out big insurance companies as much as it will harm their armies of agents, both independent and captive.

46.   But the leading indicators were flat, factory orders dropped and payroll expansion was modest -- all saying the opposite.

47.   But some analysts Tuesday greeted the news with skepticism, saying the expansion might be little more than an attempt by the company to mask its cutbacks.

48.   But the temperate public response to date does not mean that NATO expansion will be cost-free.

49.   But there is vehement opposition among some preservationists, who say that the expansion is unnecessary and that allowing private concerns to finance it is a mistake.

50.   But the expansion was even stronger last year, with even lower unemployment, and yet wage growth perversely slowed down.