Best way to learn Syriac for cheap or free?

[SteveCaruso]

And here's Charley being obstinately obtuse again... <!-- s --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/smile.gif" alt="" title="Smile" /><!-- s -->

[Where] do you see The Peshitta Aramaic New Testament at Steve's site?

One place (of several): <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://aramaicnt.org/the-gospels/mark/mark-01/">http://aramaicnt.org/the-gospels/mark/mark-01/</a><!-- m -->

Click on any link labeled "Apparatus."

The Peshitta is listed under the siglum "P."

But you're already aware of this.

And the fact is, Steve can't say with any certainty, what dialect of Aramaic Jesus and His Apostles used as their main dialect.

When Steve answers "No", it certainly doesn't mean that his opinions are true.

I draw my conclusions (which are not unique) with strong confidence because I have worked in the field of Aramaic Studies in a professional capacity for nearly a decade and a half and am very well established in that field.

If you wish to talk about certainty and opinions: You're an armchair amateur who can't even read Aramaic without consulting a Strong's Concordance. <!-- s --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/smile.gif" alt="" title="Smile" /><!-- s -->

When treating a serious illness, does one trust a practicing physician or something you google off of WebMD?

newly constructed dialect

This is the persistent claim that really has me baffled. I mean completely baffled. Galilean Aramaic is an established dialect family within Western Aramaic with a significant corpus ranging from funerary inscriptions, mosaics, and graffiti in the first few centuries to entire works during its renaissance in the 3rd-6th (such as the larger of the two Talmuds). To say it's "newly constructed" is a rejection of reality. <!-- s --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/smile.gif" alt="" title="Smile" /><!-- s -->

Peace,
-Steve