Okay. Here’s your first news article. See if you can pick out the pattern here. Your first clue: Israel is taking her time giving Desmond Tutu’s team permission to visit Gaza. One might even wonder if they’re going to grant permission at all.

A United Nations fact-finding mission to the Gaza Strip that was to be led by Desmond Tutu is in doubt because Israel has yet to give the Nobel laureate permission to enter the territory, officials said on Friday.

Tutu was to begin leading a six-member team this weekend in the northern Gaza town of Beit Hanoun to investigate the killings of 19 civilians in an Israeli artillery barrage last month.

But Israel has yet to grant the South African anti-apartheid campaigner and former Anglican archbishop of Cape Town the necessary travel clearance, said three different officials close to the talks between the global body and the Jewish state.

The officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because discussions were continuing, said they had yet to receive any indication from Israel that the mission will take place at all.

Israeli officials in Geneva said they were unable to comment immediately.

Tutu’s team was supposed to report its findings to the UN Human Rights Council by mid-December.

Now, why would Israel want to drag her heels on this, anyway? The UN Human Rights Council, that august body, needs to investigate human rights abuses, does it not?

Let’s see if we can find a reason.

Earlier Friday the UN Human Rights Council passed a seventh resolution criticizing Israel on Friday, this time for its failure to act on earlier recommendations that it end military operations in the Palestinian territories and allow a fact-finding mission to the region.

The rights body, which has only condemned the Israeli government in its seven-month existence, noted with regret its July resolution urging the release of all arrested Palestinian ministers has yet to be carried out.

Will you look at that! The Human Wrongs Council criticized Israel again! Say, was that the only time they did so?

Nope.

The UN Human Rights Council passed a seventh resolution criticizing Israel on Friday, this time for it’s failure to act on earlier recommendations that it end military operations in the Palestinian territories and allow a fact-finding mission to the region.

The rights body, which has only condemned the Israeli government in its seven-month existence, noted with regret its July resolution urging the release of all arrested Palestinian ministers had not yet been carried out.

So. Eight resolutions against Israel since its inception, the latest of which yelling at Israel for ignoring the other seven resolutions. And in case you’re wondering exactly why this is happening, simply check out the membership roster: Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Pakistan, Tunisia, Malaysia, Morocca… the Organization of the Islamic Conference has gained a majority of the Asia and Africa regional groups. Nobody is truly surprised that the Human Wrongs Council attacks Israel, but it sure does seem funny that the assholes on the council actually think that people with half a brain don’t know what they’re doing.

But then, we don’t have John Bolton to kick them around anymore, so I expect it will get even more ridiculous. I sure hope that Olmert keeps forgetting to sign the paperwork allowing the Human Wrongs morons into Gaza. Tell ‘em it’s in the mail. No, wait, tell them it’s in Sderot, and they have to stay there for two weeks or so before they can go to Gaza. Near Peretz’s house, actually, which the palis are trying so hard to hit.

Yeah, that works for me.

Yet another cat post, actually.

Gracie has a butt again. She’s gaining weight, and when I pet her, I no longer feel only her pelvic bones at the base of her tail. I am extremely happy about that; no doubt, so is she. She’s still flinching away from me when I pet her, except when she wants me to pet her. She didn’t really used to do that before. She would lean into the hand petting her. I suspect the weight loss has greatly affected the way she feels things against her skin. But hey, she’s eating lots, and even though we haven’t had another pure bellyrub experience, she’s still jumping into bed at night and in the morning, waiting for me to pet her. And she’s running up the stairs again, which she stopped doing after the second operation.

Meantime, Tig is also gaining weight, because he begs for wet food when I give some to Gracie, and I have to give him at least a little bit. He also tries to eat whatever she doesn’t finish. He’s up to about 17 pounds. He went to the vet’s for his shots today, and I have the scars to prove it. The vet doesn’t, though. He asked me to give Tig a kitty Valium before I brought him in, so after I fought with him for some five minutes and only succeeded because I had a piller for Gracie, I managed to get one down his throat. He managed to bloody my left pinky. Hooked it nicely with his claw, the bastard. Oh, well. At least he didn’t embarrass me too much at the vet’s. Hissed a bit after the first shot, but the vet, forewarned, grabbed Tig’s scruff a little harder, gave him the second shot before Tig could tell what was happening, and that was that.

They’re both outside right now. Gracie doesn’t care for cold weather much, but she’s so tired of being indoors that she’s going out even in weather she used to hate. Not rain, though. Nothing will get her out in the rain.

Gracie is also talking again as much as she used to. I got her to wish my mother a happy birthday this morning, and Gracie is back to her old habit of meowing to me in seven or eight different varieties of tone, chirrups, mews, meows, and mrowrs. And the deep, throaty purr has been back for some time now. Her tail isn’t back to its usual strength, though. I don’t need to move things off the table when she jumps on the chair to say hello. However, her recovery continues, and that’s a good thing. Oh, and her fur is growing back, so those ugly pink patches on her belly and throat and paws are all gone, replaced by the proper colors, if not the fur. I don’t expect her fur to grow back fully for about six months. We’ll have some good shots come summertime, I hope. Maybe by late spring.

In the meantime, we have this shot from two mornings ago, when I came upstairs to find Tig and Gracie butt-to-butt on my bed. It’s a rare twofer, and I present it to you for my Saturday catblogging.