For A Monday

Don't forget Shark Week.

Yet another ceasefire that will inevitably be broken:

Israel and Hamas on Monday accepted an Egyptian cease-fire proposal meant to halt a bruising monthlong war that has claimed nearly 2,000 lives, raising hopes that the bloodiest round of fighting between the bitter enemies could finally be coming to an end.

Still, both sides signalled a rough road ahead, with an Israeli official expressing skepticism given previous failures, and a Palestinian negotiator saying "it's going to be tough."

A last-minute burst of violence, including a deadly Palestinian attack in Jerusalem, continued bloodshed in Gaza and the reported execution of a number of suspected collaborators with Israel, served as reminders of the lingering risk of renewed violence.

After weeks of behind-the-scenes diplomacy, and a previous truce that collapsed within hours on Friday, Israel and Hamas both announced late Monday that they had accepted the proposal for a preliminary 72-hour cease-fire, beginning at 8 a.m. (0500 GMT) Tuesday. Egypt was then set to host indirect talks to work out a long-term truce over the next three days. ...

State Department spokesperson Jen Psaki late Monday said the U.S. strongly supports the latest cease-fire proposal and urges "both parties to respect it completely."

(Sidebar: over the week-end, Netanyahu had to put the eunuch Obama administration in its place by telling it "not to second-guess" him on Hamas.)

Hamas is seeking a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, an end to an Israeli and Egyptian blockade of the territory, the release of Hamas prisoners held by Israel and international assistance in the reconstruction of Gaza.

(Sidebar: from Hamas' charter: "Israel will exist and will continue to exist until Islam will obliterate it, just as it obliterated others before it." Carry on.)

Related:

While the three major political parties in this country have been resolute in their support for Israel, federal NDP Leader Thomas Mulcair is now getting behind a campaign to bring injured Palestinian children to Canadian hospitals for medical treatment.

He wants Stephen Harper to do the same.

How about: no?

Hamas does not deplore violence against children the way Israel and Canada (the former of which has treated Palestinian children). If Thomas Mulcair feels so strongly about Palestinian children being treated for the injuries Hamas has directly or indirectly inflicted on them, he can insist that Hamas disarms and then he can ask Israel (which will say yes because it's the good guy) to let these kids be treated in Israeli hospitals (where they would be treated anyway).


Moving on....



Sure they are guilty, China. Sure they are:

Chinese media say two Canadian nationals are being investigated for suspected theft of state secrets. 

The allegations relate to China's military and defence research, but the reports gave no other details. 

The suspects are identified in Chinese state media as Kevin Garratt and Julia Dawn Garratt. 

Canada's Foreign Affairs Department said it's aware of reports two Canadians have been detained in China and is trying get more information. The department said consular officials are ready to provide assistance. 

Last week, Canada blamed Chinese hackers for infiltrating computers at the National Research Council of Canada, something the Chinese Embassy in Ottawa denied.

 Scum:

Strangers around the world are rallying around a Thai woman who has vowed to take care of the newborn boy she carried as a surrogate mother, after she says he was abandoned by his biological parents when he was diganosed with Down syndrome.

According to the surrogate mother the now seven-months-old baby, Gammy, was only born alive after she refused the Australian biological parents’ request that she abort him late in the pregnancy.

Meanwhile the unidentified Australian couple have reportedly taken the boy’s twin sister, who was born healthy, back with them to their home country.

Not only did they prostitute a poor ethnic woman but they abandoned their disabled son.

That's the post-modern West for you.


And now, if their parents find out about this....

You can't afford a trip to the seaside in the hot summer weather - so you make your own swimming pool at home.

That's what these Russian teenagers did yesterday, creating a fully-functioning water park in the living room of their flat in the city of Oryol.

With temperatures reaching an uncomfortable 34C outside, the boys used only 'polyethylene film and tape' to transform their carpeted lounge into a swimming pool several feet deep.