Just a very brief comment on what is in the news at the moment. Russia’s attack on Georgian troops and territory seems to me to be prima facie a legitimate move to stop a Georgian attempt to subdue an enclave that clearly wants nothing to do with the Georgian government. I could be totally wrong on this. There may be considerably more behind-the-scenes Russian politicking then I think to get the province of South Ossetia to want independence. But my gut says not to trust the Georgian President on this one. The South Ossetian autonomy is long standing and Saakashvili has made a big deal of bringing the autonomous regions to heel. My gut instinct says that the Russians are in the right in this one.

I also think that it is entirely hypocritical of the US to denounce the violence in the region considering what it has done in Iraq with A LOT less justification. But then, the US sees Georgia as an ally in the Caucasus, and Russia views Georgia as something of an American stooge. Is the Cold War reheating?

Finally, I must say that regardless of the rights and wrongs, it is always the civilian populace that suffers. This is always broadcast clearly in the international media, but often with the agenda of making one side look like a ‘bad guy’. At the moment the media seem to be favouring Russia as the ‘bad guy’, but given that the Georgians have cosied up to the US and who controls the majority of the Western media, I’ll make up my own mind on this.

Nate