RE: Turtles and Crocodylians are not Reptiles - no? What are they?

[Erik Boehm <erikboehm07@yahoo.com>]

However, Reptilia also excluded birds
> and mammals, both of which are amniotes.  So the Reptilia
> never included Aves or Mammalia.  So in framing a
> phylogenetic definition of Reptilia it's impossible to
> satisfy all the criteria of "historical usage".

Its impossible to form a monophyletic definition, there is no way to reconcile 
the exclusion of birds, or the inclusion of synapsids but not mammals.

But a paraphyletic definition is pretty easy.
Wouldn't this be a good start for a paraphyletic definition:
All aminotes excluding those closer to birds than to crocodiles, and excluding 
all those descended from the cynodonts