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No. 7 on that internet list of Signs Your Engagement is in Trouble: “she refuses to hold your hand in public.” Okay, I made that one up, but there was an awkward and perhaps telling moment on today’s Morning Joe. When Joe Scarborough went to hold the hand of Mika Brzezinski–his long-time fiancée–Mika pulled away, saying: “Don’t. Don’t do that! Not on the air! Not on the air! What are you doing?”Get the rest of the story and view the video here.

JERUSALEM — The United Nations envoy to the Middle East acknowledged in an interview with McClatchy Sunday that he has maintained quiet contacts with the Islamist group Hamas for “years,” despite the international community’s official policy to isolate the group. Robert Serry described his office’s contacts with Hamas, which has ruled the Gaza Strip since 2007, as “quiet engagements” and said his office was working now, in the wake of a cease-fire agreement that ended eight days of Israeli bombardment of Gaza, “hoping to help the parties get to a more durable solution.” “Because we are on the ground we...

Many married women choose to hyphenate their married name and maiden name. But there are times when you just shouldn't!! [see link slideshow]

WASHINGTON, April 16, 2006 – Coalition forces in Iraq killed seven terrorists today, five in a safe-house raid in Yusifiya and two who were planting a roadside bomb in Kirkuk province, military officials reported. Early this morning, coalition troops killed five terrorists and detained five suspects while searching for a wanted al Qaeda associate. Upon arrival at the Yusifiyah hideout, the troops received small-arms fire. They returned fire, assaulted the building and ultimately neutralized the threat, officials said. During the assault, five terrorists, three of them wearing suicide vests, were killed; five others, one of whom was wounded, were detained....

LONDON (AP) - Queen Elizabeth II has canceled three engagements after catching a cold, Buckingham Palace announced Monday. The engagements included a visit to the elite Sandhurst military academy near London, where the 79-year-old monarch's grandson Prince Harry is a cadet officer. The queen developed a sore throat over the weekend and has a "heavy" cold, a spokeswoman for Buckingham Palace said. She withdrew from a reception late Monday to mark the centenary of the charity Friends of the Elderly at St. James' Palace in central London. She also canceled a Tuesday visit to Sandhurst to watch officer cadets on...

The purpose of FreeRepublic.com's multiple message boards is to limit the topics for each board to particular topics. Posting the same message on all the boards defeats the purpose of multiple-boards for special topics. It is very annoying to see the same message on every bulletin board. PLEASE! DO THE READERS A FAVOR. STOP CROSS-POSTING YOUR MESSAGES!

Today, the 15th of Av in the Jewish calendar, is "destined for engagements and marriages," according to Jewish tradition (Bnei Yissaschar). A record number of wedding were registered in the Jerusalem Rabbinate last night - 33 - and another 24 will be married today and tonight. Although the day has been secularized to a degree - some even call it Jewish Valentine's Day - it has been rooted in Jewish tradition for 3,300 years. The Mishna explains that on this day, which it calls one of Judaism's most festive, Jewish maidens used to go out to the fields wearing borrowed...