Truemors
Towards a Broader Russia-US Military Confrontation ?
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Back to where we never left…
******************************************************War in the Caucasus: Towards a Broader Russia-US Military Confrontation ?
By Michel Chossudovsky URL of this article: www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=9788 Global Research, August 10, 2008
During the night of August 7, coinciding with the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics, Georgia's president Saakashvili ordered an all-out military attack on Tskhinvali, the capital of South Ossetia.
The aerial bombardments and ground attacks were largely directed against civilian targets including residential areas, hospitals and the university. The provincial capital Tskhinvali was destroyed. The attacks resulted in some 1500 civilian deaths, according to both Russian and Western sources. "The air and artillery bombardment left the provincial capital without water, food, electricity and gas. Horrified civilians crawled out of the basements into the streets as fighting eased, looking for supplies." (AP, August 9, 2008). According to reports, some 34,000 people from South Ossetia have fled to Russia. (Deseret Morning News, Salt Lake City, August 10, 2008)
The importance and timing of this military operation must be carefully analyzed. It has far-reaching implications.
<?XML:NAMESPACE PREFIX = ST1 />Georgia is an outpost of US and NATO forces, on the immediate border of the Russian Federation and within proximity of the Middle East Central Asian war theater. South Ossetia is also at the crossroads of strategic oil and gas pipeline routes.
Georgia does not act militarily without the assent of Washington. The Georgian head of State is a US proxy and Georgia is a de facto US protectorate.
Who is behind this military agenda? What interests are being served? What is the purpose of the military operation.
There is evidence that the attacks were carefully coordinated by the US military and NATO.
Moscow has accused NATO of "encouraging Georgia". Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov underscored the destabilizing impacts of "foreign" military aid to Georgia: .
"It all confirms our numerous warnings addressed to the international community that it is necessary to pay attention to massive arms purchasing by Georgia during several years. Now we see how these arms and Georgian special troops who had been trained by foreign specialists are used," he said.(Moscow accuses NATO of having "encouraged Georgia" to attack South Ossetia, Russia Today, August 9, 2008)
Moscow's envoy to NATO, Dmitry Rogozin, sent an official note to the representatives of all NATO member countries:
"Russia has already begun consultations with the ambassadors of the NATO countries and consultations with NATO military representatives will be held tomorrow," Rogozin said. "We will caution them against continuing to further support of Saakashvili."
"It is an undisguised aggression accompanied by a mass propaganda war," he said.
(See Moscow accuses NATO of having "encouraged Georgia" to attack South Ossetia, Russia Today, August 9, 2008)
According to Rogozin, Georgia had initially planned to:
"start military action against Abkhazia, however, 'the Abkhaz fortified region turned out to be unassailable for Georgian armed formations, therefore a different tactic was chosen aimed against South Ossetia', which is more accessible territorially. The envoy has no doubts that Mikheil Saakashvili had agreed his actions with "sponsors", "those with whom he is negotiating Georgia's accession to NATO ". (RIA Novosti, August 8, 2008)
Contrary to what was conveyed by Western media reports, the attacks were anticipated by Moscow. The attacks were timed to coincide with the opening of the Olympics, largely with a view to avoiding frontpage media coverage of the Georgian military operation.
On August 7, Russian forces were in an advanced state readiness. The counterattack was swiftly carried out.
Russian paratroopers were sent in from Russia's Ivanovo, Moscow and Pskov airborne divisions. Tanks, armored vehicles and several thousand ground troops have been deployed. Russian air strikes have largely targeted military facilities inside Georgia including the Gori military base.
The Georgian military attack was repealed with a massive show of strength on the part of the Russian military.
Act of Provocation?
US-NATO military and intelligence planners invariably examine various "scenarios" of a proposed military operation-- i.e. in this case, a limited Georgian attack largely directed against civilian targets, with a view to inflicting civilian casualties.
The examination of scenarios is a routine practice. With limited military capabilities, a Georgian victory and occupation of Tskhinvali, was an impossibility from the outset. And this was known and understood to US-NATO military planners.
If the objective were to restore Georgian political control over the provincial government, the operation would have been undertaken in a very different fashion, with Special Forces occupying key public buildings, communications networks and provincial institutions, rather than waging an all out bombing raid on residential areas, hospitals, not to mention Tskhinvali's University.
The Russian response was entirely predictable.
Georgia was "encouraged" by NATO and the US. Both Washington and NATO headquarters in Brussels were acutely aware of what would happen in the case of a Russian counterattack.
The question is: was this a deliberate provocation intended to trigger a Russian military response and suck the Russians into a broader military confrontation with Georgia (and allied forces) which could potentially escalate into an all out war?
Georgia has the third largest contingent of coalition forces in Iraq after the US and the UK, with some 2000 troops. According to reports, Georgian troops in Iraq are now being repatriated in US military planes, to fight Russian forces. (See Debka.com, August 10, 2008)
This US decision to repatriate Georgian servicemen suggests that Washington is intent upon an escalation of the conflict, where Georgian troops are to be used as cannon fodder against a massive deployment of Russian forces.
US-NATO and Israel Involved in the Planning of the Attacks
In mid-July, Georgian and U.S. troops held a joint military exercise entitled "Immediate Response" involving respectively 1,200 US and 800 Georgian troops.The announcement by the Georgian Ministry of Defense on July 12 stated that they US and Georgian troops were to "train for three weeks at the Vaziani military base" near the Georgian capital, Tbilisi. (AP, July 15, 2008). These exercises, which were completed barely a week before the August 7 attacks, were an obvious dress rehearsal of a military operation, which, in all likelihood, had been planned in close cooperation with the Pentagon.
The war on Southern Ossetia was not meant to be won, leading to the restoration of Georgian sovereignty over South Ossetia. It was intended to destabilize the region while also triggering a US-NATO confrontation with Russia.
On July 12, coinciding with the outset of the Georgia-US war games, the Russian Defense Ministry started its own military maneuvers in the North Caucasus region. The usual disclaimer by both Tblisi and Moscow: the military exercises have "nothing to do" with the situation in South Ossetia. (Ibid)
Let us be under no illusions. This is not a civil war. The attacks are an integral part of the broader Middle East Central Asian war, including US-NATO-Israeli war preparations in relation to Iran.
The Role of Israeli Military Advisers
While NATO and US military advisers did not partake in the military operation per se, they were actively involved in the planning and logistics of the attacks. According to Israeli sources (Debka.com, August 8, 2008), the ground assault on August 7-8, using tanks and artillery was "aided by Israeli military advisers". Israel also supplied Georgia with Hermes-450 and Skylark unmanned aerial vehicles, which were used in the weeks leading up to the August 7 attacks.Georgia has also acquired, according to a report in Rezonansi (August 6, in Georgian, BBC translation) "some powerful weapons through the upgrade of Su-25 planes and artillery systems in Israel". According to Haaretz (August 10, 2008), Israelis are active in military manufacturing and security consulting in Georgia.
Russian forces are now directly fighting a NATO-US trained Georgian army integrated by US and Israeli advisers. And Russian warplanes have attacked the military jet factory on the outskirts of Tbilisi, which produces the upgraded Su-25 fighter jet, with technical support from Israel. (CTV.ca, August 10, 2008)
When viewed in the broader context of the Middle East war, the crisis in Southern Ossetia could lead to escalation, including a direct confrontation between Russian and NATO forces. If this were to occur, we would be facing the most serious crisis in US-Russian relations since the Cuban Missile crisis in October 1962.
Georgia: NATO-US Outpost
Georgia is part of a NATO military alliance (GUAM) signed in April 1999 at the very outset of the war on Yugoslavia. It also has a bilateral military cooperation agreement with the US. These underlying military agreements have served to protect Anglo-American oil interests in the Caspian sea basin as well as pipeline routes.
Both the US and NATO have a military presence in Georgia and are working closely with the Georgian Armed Forces. Since the signing of the 1999 GUAM agreement, Georgia has been the recipient of extensive US military aid.
Barely a few months ago, in early May, the Russian Ministry of Defense accused Washington, "claiming that [US as well as NATO and Israeli] military assistance to Georgia is destabilizing the region." (Russia Claims Georgia in Arms Buildup, Wired News, May 19, 2008). According to the Russian Defense Ministry"Georgia has received 206 tanks, of which 175 units were supplied by NATO states, 186 armored vehicles (126 - from NATO) , 79 guns (67 - from NATO) , 25 helicopters (12 - from NATO) , 70 mortars, ten surface-to-air missile systems, eight Israeli-made unmanned aircraft, and other weapons. In addition, NATO countries have supplied four combat aircraft to Georgia. The Russian Defense Ministry said there were plans to deliver to Georgia 145 armored vehicles, 262 guns and mortars, 14 combat aircraft including four Mirazh-2000 destroyers, 25 combat helicopters, 15 American Black Hawk aircraft, six surface-to-air missile systems and other arms." (Interfax News Agency, Moscow, in Russian, Aug 7, 2008)
NATO-US-Israeli assistance under formal military cooperation agreements involves a steady flow of advanced military equipment as well as training and consulting services.
According to US military sources (spokesman for US European Command), the US has more than 100 "military trainers" in Georgia. A Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman "said there were no plans to redeploy the estimated 130 US troops and civilian contractors, who he said were stationed in the area around Tblisi" (AFP, 9 August 2008). In fact, US-NATO military presence in Georgia is on a larger scale to that acknowledged in official statements. The number of NATO personnel in Georgia acting as trainers and military advisers has not been confirmed.
Although not officially a member of NATO, Georgia's military is full integrated into NATO procedures. In 2005, Georgian president proudly announced the inauguration of the first military base, which "fully meets NATO standards". Immediately following the inauguration of the Senakskaya base in west Georgia, Tblisi announced the opening of a second military base at Gori which would also "comply with NATO regulations in terms of military requirements as well as social conditions." (Ria Novosti, 26 May 2006).The Gori base has been used to train Georgian troops dispatched to fight under US command in the Iraq war theater.
It is worth noting that under a March 31, 2006, agreement between Tblisi and Moscow, Russia's two Soviet-era military bases in Georgia - Akhalkalaki and Batumi have been closed down. (Ibid) The pullout at Batumi commenced in May of last year, 2007. The last remaining Russian troops left the Batumi military facility in early July 2008, barely a week before the commencement of the US-Georgia war games and barely a month prior to the attacks on South Ossetia.
The Israel Connection
Israel is now part of the Anglo-American military axis, which serves the interests of the Western oil giants in the Middle East and Central Asia.
Israel is a partner in the Baku-Tblisi- Ceyhan pipeline which brings oil and gas to the Eastern Mediterranean. More than 20 percent of Israeli oil is imported from Azerbaijan, of which a large share transits through the BTC pipeline. Controlled by British Petroleum, the BTC pipeline has dramatically changed the geopolitics of the Eastern Mediterranean and the Caucusus:
"[The BTC pipeline] considerably changes the status of the region's countries and cements a new pro-West alliance. Having taken the pipeline to the Mediterranean, Washington has practically set up a new bloc with Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey and Israel, " (Komerzant, Moscow, 14 July 2006)While the official reports state that the BTC pipeline will "channel oil to Western markets", what is rarely acknowledged is that part of the oil from the Caspian sea would be directly channeled towards Israel, via Georgia. In this regard, a Israeli-Turkish pipeline project has also been envisaged which would link Ceyhan to the Israeli port of Ashkelon and from there through Israel's main pipeline system, to the Red Sea.
The objective of Israel is not only to acquire Caspian sea oil for its own consumption needs but also to play a key role in re-exporting Caspian sea oil back to the Asian markets through the Red Sea port of Eilat. The strategic implications of this re-routing of Caspian sea oil are far-reaching. (For further details see Michel Chossudovsky, The War on Lebanon and the Battle for Oil, Global Research, July 2006)
What is envisaged is to link the BTC pipeline to the Trans-Israel Eilat-Ashkelon pipeline, also known as Israel's Tipline, from Ceyhan to the Israeli port of Ashkelon.
"Turkey and Israel are negotiating the construction of a multi-million-dollar energy and water project that will transport water, electricity, natural gas and oil by pipelines to Israel, with the oil to be sent onward from Israel to the Far East,
The new Turkish-Israeli proposal under discussion would see the transfer of water, electricity, natural gas and oil to Israel via four underwater pipelines.
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1145961328841&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull"Baku oil can be transported to Ashkelon via this new pipeline and to India and the Far East.[via the Red sea]"
"Ceyhan and the Mediterranean port of Ashkelon are situated only 400 km apart. Oil can be transported to the city in tankers or via specially constructed under-water pipeline. From Ashkelon the oil can be pumped through already existing pipeline to the port of Eilat at the Red Sea; and from there it can be transported to India and other Asian countries in tankers. (REGNUM)
In this regard, Israel is slated to play a major strategic role in "protecting" the Eastern Mediterranean transport and pipeline corridors out of Ceyhan. Concurrently, it also involved in channeling military aid and training to both Georgia and Azerbaijan.
A far-reaching 1999 bilateral military cooperation agreement between Tblisi and Tel Aviv was reached barely a month before the NATO sponsored GUUAM agreement. It was signed in Tbilisi by President Shevardnadze and Israel's Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyu. These various military cooperation arrangements are ultimately intended to undermine Russia's presence and influence in the Caucasus and Central Asia.
In a pro forma declaration, Tel Aviv committed itself, following bilateral discussions with Moscow, on August 5, 2008, to cut back military assistance to Georgia.
Russia's Response
In response to the attacks, Russian forces intervened with conventional ground troops. Tanks and armored vehicles were sent in. The Russian air force was also involved in aerial counter-attacks on Georgian military positions including the military base of Gori.
The Western media has portrayed the Russian as solely responsible for the deaths of civilians, yet at the same time the Western media has acknowledged (confirmed by the BBC) that most of the civilian casualties at the outset were the result of the Georgian ground and air attacks.
Based on Russian and Western sources, the initial death toll in South Ossetia was at least 1,400 (BBC) mostly civilians. "Georgian casualty figures ranged from 82 dead, including 37 civilians, to a figure of around 130 dead.... A Russian air strike on Gori, a Georgian town near South Ossetia, left 60 people dead, many of them civilians, Georgia says." (BBC, August 9, 2008). Russian sources place the number of civilian deaths on South Ossetia at 2000.
A process of escalation and confrontation between Russia and America is unfolding, reminiscent of the Cold War era.
Are we dealing with an act of provocation, with a view to triggering a broader conflict? Supported by media propaganda, the Western military alliance is intent on using this incident to confront Russia, as evidenced by recent NATO statements.
************************************************************Back to where we never left indeed … "We have become a monster in the eyes of the whole world – a nation of bullies and bastards who would rather kill than live peacefully. We are not just whores for power and oil, but killer whores with hate and fear in our hearts. We are human scum, and that is how history will judge us… No redeeming social value. Just whores. Get out of our way, or we’ll kill you." – Hunter S. Thompson "We are watching a poorly staged rendition of Wag the Dog , interpreted for the morbidly stupid and performed by the criminally insane." - Jules Carlysle
Most RecentMost Recommended Comments (37)
at 10:03 on August 11th, 2008
As you should know by now, all these regional wars are executed by proxy...
So this is, de facto, the biggest military move on the Russia front in a long time for sure.
at 10:05 on August 11th, 2008
A few geographical references...
...and this all important one ;)
at 10:23 on August 11th, 2008
HERE WE GO !
By Ben, Think Progress
Russia's increasing aggression is putting a spark into American neoconservatives. Read more »
...and just to bring home the fact that we are dealing with two war criminals (Bush & Poutine) and their posse fighting over the corpses of women, children & civilians for oil & geo-political considerations...
Conflict Opens Front In The MediaBy Anatoly Medetsky, The Moscow Times
Russian television is flush with footage of misery left by the Georgian assault in the separatist district of South Ossetia, but few, if any, reports mention Russia's bombing of Georgia.
We can't do nothing about the russian crime syndicate... but we sure should be acting upon ours !
at 13:37 on August 11th, 2008
Pres. Bush has just had a press conference in Washington, and he is angry.
at 14:38 on August 11th, 2008
“See, in my line of work you got to keep repeating things over and over and over again for the truth to sink in, to kind of catapult the propaganda." - George W. Bush - 43rd US President
"The conscious and intelligent manipulation of the organized habits and opinions of the masses is an important element in democratic society. Those who manipulate this unseen mechanism of society constitute an invisible government which is the true ruling power of our country."- Edward Bernays, Propaganda"The issue today is the same as it has been throughout all history, whether man shall be allowed to govern himself or be ruled by a small elite." - Thomas Jefferson
at 14:27 on August 11th, 2008
Irresponsible Risk-Takers in Command
by Rodrigue Tremblay
There are people in charge who think that provocation and aggression can be acceptable government policy. The sudden conflict between the former Soviet province of Georgia and Russia in the Caucasus in Eurasia is a good case in point.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caucasus
What's behind this conflict that erupted last Friday at the outset of the Beijing Olympic Games? First and foremost, let us keep in mind that the real and first aggressors in this conflict is the belligerent government of Georgia, http://www.antiwar.com/justin/?articleid=13285 & http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/aug/10/georgia.russia led by an impulsive politician named Mikhail Saakashvili, who is openly supported by the governments of the U.S. and of Israel. Early Friday, August 8, Georgian tanks and infantry, assisted by American and Israeli military advisers, launched an early morning massive artillery and rocket barrage on the capital of breakaway South Ossetia, Tskhinvali, thus directly provoking Russia, which had soldiers in that province. http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/news/world/georgias-president-a-firebrand-with-a-smooth-facade/2008/08/10/1218306665613.html
At first blush, most people could easily arrive at the conclusion that Saakashvili is completely out of his mind for having declared war against its neighbor Russia, a country more than 50 times larger, with the goal of reoccupying the Russian-speaking province of South Ossetia, de facto independent since 1992. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Ossetia The only logical explanation would seem to be that the Georgia President believed, or had some form of assurance, that the Bush-Cheney administration would side militarily with him. Did he really believe that the Bush-Cheney administration, already deeply involved in two military conflicts in Iraq and in Afghanistan, would risk a world war to salvage an oil pipeline and a newly acquired colony in that far away part of the world? This would seem to be another insane idea. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan_pipeline
It is a little known fact that the U.S. and Israel have been training and arming the Georgian military since 2002. http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2002/may/12/nickpatonwalsh.theobserver & http://www.ynetnews.com/Ext/Comp/ArticleLayout/CdaArticlePrintPreview/1,2506,L3580136,00.html
This situation is tantamount to risking a restart of the Cold War with Russia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cold_War It has also sown the seeds of a much larger conflict in that part of the world by encouraging Georgia to embark on military manoeuvres. Little Georgia (4.5 m. inhabitants) even has 2,000 troops in Iraq, soldiers that the U.S. is now quickly flying back to Georgia. This goes a long way towards explaining how involved the Bush-Cheney administration and its Israeli surrogates have been in sticking it in the eyes of Russia. And now, the Russian bear is reacting. This is brinkmanship at a high level.
In the summer of 1914, a similar miscalculation resulted in igniting World War I. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_I
This was a conflict that started with a single death (the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand on June 28, 1914) but which resulted, in the end, in 40 million deaths. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assassination_of_Archduke_Franz_Ferdinand The catastrophe was the result of a chain reaction of war declarations by various countries involved in the affairs of other countries. This remains an example of how relatively minor regional conflicts can escalate into conflagrations when hotheads are in command.
The Georgia-Russia spat represents a good opportunity for the U.N. Secretary-General, Mr. Ban Ki-moon, to show leadership and not to let things degenerate. http://www.un.org/sg/ Indeed, there is always the possibility that one politician after another will try not to lose face by escalating things. For example, the U.N Secretary-General should obtain from the Security Council the mandate to visit immediately the two capitals directly involved, and he should attempt to broker an immediate face-saving end to the hostilities. He should persuade the Russian leaders not to overreact to the Georgian President's provocations. As for the latter, he has demonstrated that he is not worthy of occupying his functions.
Time is of the essence in such circumstances, because there are always some interests that stand to profit from a worsening situation.
For one, the presumptive Republican presidential candidate John McCain, who never met a war he didn't like, has already tried to stoke the fire of conflict by calling for the 26-country NATO to get involved in what is essentially a local ethnic conflict. http://www.opinionjournal.com/editorial/feature.html?id=95001375 & http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NATO On the campaign trail, John McCain said: "We should immediately call a meeting of the North Atlantic Council to assess Georgia's security and review measures NATO can take to contribute to stabilizing this very dangerous situation." http://www.thenation.com/doc/20080818/ames
Incredibly, the republican candidate is attempting to profit politically from this faraway crisis by advancing the frightening prospect of turning a small regional conflict into a world war. This could have something to do with the fact that Mr. McCain's main foreign policy adviser is a former lobbyist for the government of Georgia and is a former neocon lobbyist for the U.S. military invasion of Iraq. http://thinkprogress.org/wonkroom/2008/05/21/chalabis-lobbyist/ & http://www.alternet.org/story/14547/ This would seem to be a direct conflict of interests and reason enough for Mr. McCain to refrain from throwing oil on the fire.
I have said it before, and this incident confirms it; this man would seem to be unfit to be in charge of a heavily armed country. http://www.thenewamericanempire.com/tremblay=1088
_________________________________
Rodrigue Tremblay [ http://www.thenewamericanempire.com/author.htm ] is professor emeritus of economics at the University of Montreal and can be reached at rodrigue.tremblay@ yahoo.com. He is the author of the book 'The New American Empire'.[ http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0741418878/qid=1088897483/sr=1-5/ref=sr_1_5/104-6665916-6565553?s=books&v=glance&n=283155 ]
Visit his blog site at http://www.thenewamericanempire.com/blog .
Author's Website: http://www.thenewamericanempire.com/
Check Dr. Tremblay's coming book "The Code for Global Ethics" at: http://www.TheCodeForGlobalEthics.com/
_____________________________________
Posted, Wednesday, August 13, 2008, at 5:30 am
at 14:32 on August 11th, 2008
OUUUUU THAT PESKY WABIT !
"The master class has always declared the wars; the subject class has always fought the battles. The master class has had all to gain and nothing to lose, while the subject class has had nothing to gain and all to lose-especially their lives " - Eugene Debs
at 14:05 on August 13th, 2008
* MUST READ * MUST READ * MUST READ * MUST READ *
Russia Georgia War
Washington Risks Nuclear War by Miscalculation
By F William Engdahl
The dramatic military attack by the military of the Republic of Georgia on South Ossetia in the last days has brought the world one major step closer to the ultimate horror of the Cold War era-a thermonuclear war between Russia and the United States-by miscalculation. What is playing out in the Caucasus is being reported in US media in an alarmingly misleading light, making Moscow appear the lone aggressor.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article20489.htm
This means that the attack on South Ossetia is the first battle in a new proxy warfare between Anglo-American-Israeli led interests and Russia. The only question is whether Washington miscalculated the swiftness and intensity of the Russian response to the Georgian attacks of 8.8.08.
===
Bush's War in Georgia
Will it be the Flyswatter or the Blunderbuss?
By Mike Whitney
Sometimes war provides clarity. That's certainly true in this case. After this weekends fighting, everyone in the Russian political establishment knows that Washington is willing to sacrifice thousands of innocent civilians and plunge the entire region into chaos to achieve its geopolitical objectives.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article20478.htm
===
From Stupid to Moronic to Evil
By Paul Craig Roberts
The Endowment for Democracy purchased Georgia as a US colony. The affront to Russia was extreme, but at the time Russia was weak. Oligarchs with outside money had grabbed control over Russian resources, and Russia was in dire straits and could not resist American imperialism.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article20483.htm
===
Getting Georgia's War On
By Mark Ames
The outbreak of war in Georgia on Friday offers a disturbing and somewhat surreal taste of what to expect from John McCain should he become our nation's Commander in Chief.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article20479.htm
===
The War in Georgia Is a War for the West
By MIKHEIL SAAKASHVILI
President of Georgia
Why this war? This is the question my people are asking. This war is not of Georgia's making, nor is it Georgia's choice.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article20490.htm
at 19:13 on August 11th, 2008
One of the most fascinating thing about Internet is to be able to read those comments citizens leave for cyber posterity. They are usualy way ahead of the 100 IQ & 13 years old mental age Big Media is adressing its regular content to...
Case in point : Some reactions to the President of Georgia letter : The War in Georgia Is a War for the West By MIKHEIL SAAKASHVILI just posted above…
Check these angry customers ;)
*****
This CIA gophers plant's article is total crap.
I've hardly in 50 years seen anything more bluntly stupid than this.
Who the hell wrote this for him think we are?
The old trick? The perpetrators are the victims?
Give us a break!
Henk Ruyssenaars | 08.11.08 - 2:47 pm | #
*****
Mr. Saakashvili;
What most of the media in the west is attempting to downplay is that your country - aided by the US and Israel - was the aggressor in this war, so you currently stand in contravention of the Nuremberg Conventions.
You made your own bed, and now you have to lie in it.
See you at The Hague.
NavyBrat | 08.11.08 - 2:20 pm | #
*****
WHY doesnt Saakashvillan mention how HIS forces initiated the aggression by attacking Ossetians! From the AGE in australia,where otherwise the media is also pushing the Georgian line:
The truth is, it's not Russia that is the aggressor
• August 12, 2008
WHAT are the undeniable facts of the conflict that started on the day of the Olympic Games opening? Georgia, using the Games as cover, made a dash for cash, barely four hours after its President had publicly declared that he had no intention of using force.
In an area with UN-sanctioned peacekeepers and no overt conflict in progress, Georgian troops started shelling the peaceful city of Tskhinvali, using artillery and its air force. The people being killed and driven out of their homes are claimed by Georgia but are of a different nationality. Refugees are fleeing towards the Russian border — they know which way safety lies, even if the world hears a different story.
In the first hours of fighting, 10 Russian peacekeepers were killed. These are men who were performing their duty, supported by the United Nations. The Georgian military viewed them as valid targets, shelling their barracks.
The Russian President, barely four months in the job, is confronted with his country's peacekeepers being killed and genocide on his doorstep.
The Georgian gamble of a quick victory under the cover of darkness failed — now its President is scared and trying to frame himself and his country as a victim of aggression. It's up to the world to learn the truth of the matter.
Alex Radun, Dandenong
http://www.theage.com.au/opinion...tle.html? page=4
brian | 08.11.08 - 3:00 pm | #
*****
Any attempt to explain the war that doesn't contain the words "gas" and "pipeline" is nothing more than bull-shit propaganda.
Trevor | 08.11.08 - 3:10 pm | #
*****
Hey there Saak, remember not very long ago when you ordered the police to smash the heads of your own citizens?
Remember when you locked up your political opponents?
Do you recall smashing the media hardware? Shutting down the opposition's mouthpiece? You ordered that, uh-member?
You funny guy, Shaak.
Richard | 08.11.08 - 3:28 pm | #
*****
You, Mr Saakashvili, are a TOOL. A TOOL, sir, meaning YOU HAVE BEEN USED! You have no business running a pet store, let alone a country. And now you're all pissed off since, being annihilated by Russia, the US and Israel won't do your fighting for you. Shoulda talked to the Shiites in Iraq, whom, at Bush I's egging, tried to overthrow Saddam as they thought the US would help them. The US didn't. Shoulda talked to the US about Israel, who always provokes others into doing their fighting for them and when they go it along (2006 Lebanon), they get wiped out by a militia called Hezbolla. And you expect NATO to help you even though without US help NATO is pretty useless. You're on your own buddy!
DL | 08.11.08 - 3:28 pm |
NOW LET’S BET THAT THIS IS NOT THE VERSION FOX, CBS, ABC, NBC, CNN or NBC WILL RUN WITH !
HEY, BRING BACK THE RETIRED GENERALS THAT SOLD US THE IRAQ WAR SO ELOQUENTLY. THEY’LL WHIP UP THE NECESSARY FRENZY SO THE RABBLE CAN WILLINGLY SEND THEIR SONS & DAUGHTERS TO THE SLAUGHTER HOUSE. THANKS MINDFUCK INC.
at 19:24 on August 11th, 2008
American Witness Says U.S. and Georgia to Answer for Violence by moonwolf | August 11, 2008 at 04:26 pm | 225 views | 11 comments
http://www.nowpublic.com/world/american-witness-says-u-s-and-georgia-answer-violence
While the Pompous Potus throws accusations at Russia from his throne at the Olympics, an American witness to the unprovoked attack on civilians in South Ossetia by Georgian troops led by American mercenaries says the brutal massacres were genocide and that Russia had no choice but to intervene.
at 03:57 on August 12th, 2008
By Gary Brecher, eXiled Online
The president of tiny Georgia must have caught a case of his pal Bush's war lust to attack a Russian
EXCERPT : http://www.alternet.org/audits/94706/
There are two basic facts to keep in mind about the smokin' little war in Ossetia:
1. The Georgians started it.
2. They lost.
If you want to get all serious and actually study up on Ossetia, North and South, and Georgia and the whole eternal gang war that they call the Caucasus, you can check out a column I did on that school-hostage splatter in Beslan, North Ossetia, a few years back.
Most likely the Georgians just thought the Russians wouldn't react. They were doing something they learned from Bush and Cheney: sticking to best-case scenarios, positive thinking. The Georgian plan was classic shock and awe with no hard, grown-up thinking about the long term. Their shiny new army would go in, zap the South Ossetians while they were on a peace hangover (the worst kind), and then, uh, they'd be welcomed as liberators?
at 04:48 on August 12th, 2008
Georgia: the messy truth behind the morality tale
http://www.spiked-online.com/index.php?/site/article/5568/
EXCERPT...
Almost as soon as the terrible violence broke out in Georgia and South Ossetia, voices in the West were insisting that this was a straightforward tale of a plucky independent republic (Georgia) standing up to a ‘bully wreaking havoc’ (Russia).
Georgia is presented as bravely defending its democratic writ by wishing to hold on to South Ossetia, while Russia is accused of ‘dismembering’ a nation state by supporting the South Ossetians’ separatist sensibilities (1). There have been demands for the Western powers, in particular America, to defend Georgia – a rare representative of ‘freedom and civilisation’ in the East (2) – and to chastise the Russians. One commentator says Russia should be ‘denied the prestige that comes with membership of the G8’ (3).
The problem with this fairytale script that is being cut-and-pasted on to the horrendous massacres of people in South Ossetia and Georgia is that it is almost entirely wrong.
Georgia is no free-spirited, democratic republic, but an increasingly authoritarian regime that bans overly critical media outlets and criminalises opposition parties (4).
(1) The west can no longer stand idle while the Russian bully wreaks havoc, Guardian, 11 August 2008
(2) Saakashvili Signs Cease-Fire Pledge; Russia Launches New Raids on Georgia, Wall Street Journal, 11 August 2008
(3) The west can no longer stand idle while the Russian bully wreaks havoc, Guardian, 11 August 2008
(4) As Georgia reforms, judiciary under scrutiny, Christian Science Monitor, 17 September 2007
IMPORTANT NOTE
I must point out that I consider both parties (US & Russia) to be criminal organizations that both usurped power through democratic charade. Both Bush & Poutine are war criminals and should be trailed for their crimes (fat chance of that ever happening but hey, it doesn’t make it less morally & judicially adequate). Again we see women & child civilians spill their blood for oil & geo-political rationalizations.
"A people living under the perpetual menace of war and invasion is very easy to govern. It demands no social reforms. It does not haggle over expenditures for armaments and military equipment. It pays without discussion, it ruins itself, and that is an excellent thing for the syndicates of financiers and manufacturers for whom patriotic terrors are an abundant source of gain" - Anatole France"If the Nuremberg laws were applied, then every post-war American president would have been hanged." - Noam Chomsky "From way up in heaven, I wonder if we look like a nation of Christians – or an empire of Romans. " - Greg Palast
"It is an act of insanity and national humiliation to have a law prohibiting the President from ordering assassination." - Henry Kissinger
at 05:03 on August 12th, 2008
Absolutely amazing! Great Job!
at 05:03 on August 12th, 2008
White Noise, I like this story. It's good stuff.
at 06:37 on August 12th, 2008
Who's to blame for the Russian Georgian conflict ?
http://therealnews.com/t/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=31&Itemid=74&jumival=2042
Two Gangs of High-Testosterene, Arrogant Fools Strong-Armed America & Russia Into a Catastrophe. Greed & Mindfuck Inc. are the other fuels nescessary to these war crimes.
"Dictatorships start wars because they need external enemies to exert internal control over their own people." - Richard Perle
at 07:28 on August 12th, 2008
BUSH DID IT
Bush’s War in Georgia
By Mike Whitney
“Washington’s bloody fingerprints are all over the invasion of South Ossetia. Georgia President Mikhail Saakashvili would never dream of launching a massive military attack unless he got explicit orders from his bosses at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.”
Washington Risks Nuclear War by Miscalculation By F William Engdahl
at 11:35 on August 12th, 2008
Both sides of the conflict are misinforming the public
Russia: Reporting about Georgia is ‘Propaganda’ and ‘Disinformation’ By Editors Weblog. 12 Aug 2008-->
The Russian division of Human Rights Watch (HRW) declared that coverage of events in Georgia-Southern Ossetia is breeding “propaganda and disinformation”.
Tatiana Lokshina, a HRW spokesperson, said that both sides of the conflict are misinforming the public about the situation. HRW said that one of the reasons for this is the absence of correct data about the number of victims.
Vsepolog Bogdanov, a member of the Russian Union of Journalists, said that the coverage features opinionated material that is “not information”, reported gipp.ru. He mentioned that the situation might get more complicated if instead of a “balanced” approach reporters include one-sided points of view.
Guardian blogger Jack Schofield wrote that Georgia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has resolved to posting information by using Google Blogger. Other blogs include State Minister for Reintegration and Russia and Georgia At War.
Last week, the Georgian military attempted to overtake the pro-Russian Southern Ossetia region. Russia responded by sending its forces into Georgia, reported Reuters. Two Georgian journalists, Alexander Klimchuk, and Grigol Chikhladze, who writes for Newsweek, were killed while reporting the events.
Source: gipp.ru, Reuters, The Guardian, RBC News
See also:
Russia: Authorities call upon national media to abstain from promoting extremism
– By Alisa Zykova
at 17:30 on August 12th, 2008
"It's not a matter of what is true that counts but a matter of what is perceived to be true."
- Henry KissingerFrom his office in clouded cuckoo land:
Cheney: "Russian Aggression Must Not Go Unanswered"
"The vice president expressed the United States' solidarity with the Georgian people and their democratically elected government in the face of this threat to Georgia's sovereignty and territorial integrity," Cheney's office said in a statement.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article20491.htm
===
Propaganda And Presstitute Alert
McCain Accuses Russia of Bidding to Wipe Out Georgia
By AFP
Republican White House hopeful John McCain said Monday Russia appears bent on extinguishing Georgia's independence as he demanded a united Western front to protect the former Soviet republic. - "In the face of Russian aggression, the very existence of independent Georgia and the survival of its democratically elected government are at stake," the Arizona senator said.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article20494.htm
===
A Path to Peace in the Caucasus
By Mikhail Gorbachev
What happened on the night of Aug. 7 is beyond comprehension. The Georgian military attacked the South Ossetian capital of Tskhinvali with multiple rocket launchers designed to devastate large areas. Russia had to respond. To accuse it of aggression against "small, defenseless Georgia" is not just hypocritical but shows a lack of humanity.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article20493.htm
===
US, Allies Weigh Punishment for Russia
By MATTHEW LEE
Scrambling to find ways to punish Russia for its invasion of pro-Western Georgia, the United States and its allies are considering expelling Moscow from an exclusive club of powerful nations and canceling an upcoming joint NATO-Russia military exercise, Bush administration officials said Tuesday.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article20497.htm
===
Propaganda And Presstitute Alert:
Brzezinski: Russia's Invasion of Georgia Is Reminiscent of Stalin's Attack on Finland:
By Nathan Gardels:
Fundamentally at stake is what kind of role Russia will play in the new international system. Unfortunately, Putin is putting Russia on a course that is ominously similar to Stalin's and Hitler's in the late 1930s. Swedish foreign minister Carl Bildt has correctly drawn an analogy between Putin's "justification" for dismembering Georgia -- because of the Russians in South Ossetia -- to Hitler's tactics vis a vis Czechoslovakia to "free" the Sudeten Deutsch.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article20496.htm
===
The Reality Behind Western Propaganda Regarding War In Georgia
By Damian Lataan
Georgia would not have made any such move into South Ossetia without the backing of the US. It now seems, though, that both the US and Georgia have badly misjudged the Russian reaction and the US are unable to move.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article20495.htm
"As America becomes an increasingly multi-cultural society, it may find it more difficult to fashion a consensus on foreign policy issues, except in the circumstance of a truly massive and widely perceived direct external threat." - Zbigniew Brzezinski, National Security Advisor to President Carter
at 17:43 on August 12th, 2008
'Now look what you made me do!' sounds like a familiar tune from abusers.
at 13:40 on August 13th, 2008
YOU ARE NOT STUPID... THEY JUST TALK TO YOU THAT WAY !
This War Report Has Been Approved by Your Government
http://www.buzzflash.com/articles/lindorff/128
EXCERPT...
I was stunned by the graphic depictions of Russian brutality in Gori and other cities that were massively bombed and shelled, with apartment buildings collapsed into rubble, children killed, and civilians targeted. The New York Times, in particular, had photographic images of dead Georgian soldiers, of charred bodies, of hysterical mothers. On NBC News, Russian planes were shown dropping their loads of bombs on apartments.
We read that President Bush condemned the Russian invasion of another nation and called for an immediate ceasefire. Yet there was not one word of astonishment or challenge from reporters or commentators or editorial writers at this stunningly cynical statement coming from a leader who himself is responsible for the blatantly illegal and much more destructive invasion of another nation.
And remember, while Georgia is on Russia's border, and was at least possibly guilty of oppressing and attacking and perhaps even killing members of the Russian minority in two of its provinces (Georgia bombed the biggest town in the secessionist province of Ossetia, killing perhaps 1,000 civilians, before Russia invaded), Iraq is half a world away from America and was minding its own business, not threatening Americans in any way. Russia, thus far, has at most killed a few thousand Georgians. America has, by most accounts killed hundreds of thousands and perhaps as many as 1.2 million Iraqis, very few of them combatants.
DAVE LINDORFF is a Philadelphia-based journalist and columnist. His latest book is "The Case for Impeachment" (St. Martin's Press, 2006 and now available in paperback edition). His work is available at thiscantbehappening.net.
SO WHY ISN'T THERE MORE PEOPLE LIKE DAVE ?
Just a hint...
"A cynical, mercenary, demagogic press will produce in time a people as base as itself" - Joseph Pulitzer
Stupidity has a certain charm, ignorance does not. - Frank Zappa
"Kid's heads are filled with so many nonfacts that when they get out of school they're totally unprepared to do anything. They can't read, they can't write, they can't think. Talk about child abuse. The school system as a whole qualifies. Go to the library and educate yourself if you've got any guts... " - Frank Zappa
START HERE : http://www.freedocumentaries.org
or check my web site for an EXECUTIVE RESUME ;) http://www.whitenoise.webnode.com
PLEASE JOIN HUMANITY !
at 19:22 on August 13th, 2008
Putin Walks into a Trap
By Mike Whitney
13/08/08 - The American-armed and trained Georgian army swarmed into South Ossetia last Thursday, killing an estimated 2,000 civilians, sending 40,000 South Ossetians fleeing over the Russian border, and destroying much of the capital, Tskhinvali. The attack was unprovoked and took place a full 24 hours before even ONE Russian soldier set foot in South Ossetia. Nevertheless, the vast majority of Americans still believe that the Russian army invaded Georgian territory first. The BBC, AP, NPR, the New York Times and the rest of the establishment media has consistently and deliberately misled its readers into believing that the violence in South Ossetia was initiated by the Kremlin.
Let's be clear, it wasn't. In truth, there is NO dispute about the facts except among the people who rely the western press for their information. Despite its steady loss of credibility, the corporate media continues to operate as the propaganda-arm of the Pentagon.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article20508.htm
"The American people don't read."
- Former CIA director Allen Dulles, speaking about how the American people would respond to the inconsistencies in the Warren Commission report on the JFK assasination
at 04:42 on August 14th, 2008
White Noise, I think you're reporting really imporant issues here, but your presentation makes them almost impossible to read and to follow. I have some suggestions which might make your contributions to NP more accessible.
First, when you are making a post, use the highlight tool to quote material from outside sources. On NP, we only quote excerpts from external sources (and not full articles) and we add our own commentary.
Second, try to be a little more concise in your posts so that readers can see exactly what your point is very quickly.
Third, the comment sections on NP posts are designed to discuss the initial post. It might work better for you to post all the extra materials you have in the comments in a separate post, following the first and second suggestions.
Thank you.
at 07:32 on August 14th, 2008
White Noise, thanks for engaging in the PMs. I've removed the wrench because, as you mentioned, editing a post of this size is probably impossible at this stage.
at 18:45 on August 15th, 2008
By Ellen Brown webofdebt.com
"War is show business, that’s why we’re here."
– "Wag the Dog" (1997 film)
EXCERPT...
"Washington’s bloody fingerprints are all over the invasion of South Ossetia. Georgia President Mikhail Saakashvili would never dream of launching a massive military attack unless he got explicit orders from his bosses at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. After all, Saakashvili owes his entire political career to American power-brokers and US intelligence agencies. If he disobeyed them, he’d be gone in a fortnight. Besides an operation like this takes months of planning and logistical support; especially if it’s perfectly timed to coincide with the beginning of the Olympic games. (another petty neocon touch) That means Pentagon planners must have been working hand in hand with Georgian generals for months in advance. Nothing was left to chance."8
Part of that careful planning may have been the unprecedented propping up of the dollar and bombing of gold and oil the week before the curtain opened on the scene. Gold and oil had to be pushed down hard to give them room to rise before anyone shouted "hyperinflation!" As we watch the curtain rise on war in Eurasia, it is well to remember that things are not always as they seem. Markets are manipulated and wars are staged by Grand Chessmen behind the scenes.
[8] Mike Whitney, “Bush’s War in Georgia,” Global Research (August 11, 2008).
*******************************************************************
"We are watching a poorly staged rendition of Wag the Dog , interpreted for the morbidly stupid and performed by the criminally insane." - Jules Carlysle
"Politics is the showbizz of industry." - Frank Zappa
GOING UP !
Top 1% share of total income
Income gap between rich and poor
Foreign debt as a percent of GDP
Age at which one can receive Social Security
Hunger
Consumer credit debt
Housing foreclosures
Severe poverty rate
GOING DOWN !
Real income
Real manufacturing wages
Percent of single women and mothers in the workforce
The bottom 40%'s share of national wealth
Older families with pensions.
Workers covered by defined benefit pensions.
The savings rate
US manufacturing jobs
ALL THE WHILE...
Protest restricted/ignored
Dissenter labeled terrorist/traitor
False-flags
Elections suspect
Leaders benefit from wars/disasters
Use of propaganda/lies & partisan mass-media
Claims that War is needed for everchanging false reasons
Secret/extrajudicial/torture camps
Curtailed/suspended civil rights/liberties
Wiretap/intercept/surveillance net
Stealthily expands int'nl influence/power
Judiciary/Opposition ineffective/ignored
Legislation to defy Constitution
"The essence of oligarchical rule is not father-to-son inheritance, but the persistence of a certain world-view and a certain way of life ... A ruling group is a ruling group so long as it can nominate its successors... Who wields power is not important, provided that the hierarchical structure remains always the same." - George Orwell, 1984
"A society whose citizens refuse to see and investigate the facts, who refuse to believe that their government and their media will routinely lie to them and fabricate a reality contrary to verifiable facts, is a society that chooses and deserves the Police State Dictatorship it's going to get." - Ian Williams Goddard
Ignorance is the downfall of all cultures and we are about to hit bottom.
"People should not be afraid of their governments,
governments should be afraid of their People"
PS : Have you noticed that the good guys always win except on the news ?
EXECUTIVE RESUME
http://whitenoise.webnode.com/
at 06:21 on August 16th, 2008
WHEN EVEN MOON BAT RIGHT WINGER PAT BUCHANAN DESTROYS BIG MEDIA'S NARRATIVE OF LIES & DECIET ABOUT GEORGIA, YOU KNOW SOMETHING WICKED THIS WAY COMES INDEED !
******************************************************************
Blowback From Bear-Baiting
By Patrick J. Buchanan
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article20522.htm
15/08/08 "ICH " -- - Mikheil Saakashvili's decision to use the opening of the Olympic Games to cover Georgia's invasion of its breakaway province of South Ossetia must rank in stupidity with Gamal Abdel-Nasser's decision to close the Straits of Tiran to Israeli ships.
Nasser's blunder cost him the Sinai in the Six-Day War. Saakashvili's blunder probably means permanent loss of South Ossetia and Abkhazia.
After shelling and attacking what he claims is his own country, killing scores of his own Ossetian citizens and sending tens of thousands fleeing into Russia, Saakashvili's army was whipped back into Georgia in 48 hours.
Vladimir Putin took the opportunity to kick the Georgian army out of Abkhazia, as well, to bomb Tbilisi and to seize Gori, birthplace of Stalin.
Reveling in his status as an intimate of George Bush, Dick Cheney and John McCain, and America's lone democratic ally in the Caucasus, Saakashvili thought he could get away with a lightning coup and present the world with a fait accompli.
Mikheil did not reckon on the rage or resolve of the Bear.
American charges of Russian aggression ring hollow. Georgia started this fight -- Russia finished it. People who start wars don't get to decide how and when they end.
***************************************************************
"Man will occasionally stumble over the truth, but most of the time he will pick himself up and continue on." - Winston Churchill
at 06:37 on August 16th, 2008
All the Propaganda That's Fit to Print: The New York Times, Again, Tells It Like It Ain't By Sean M. Madden As part of an all-out Western media campaign to bury the simple fact that Georgia invaded South Ossetia a week ago -- an act of aggression which led, subsequently, to Russia's response -- Thursday's NYT's top headline helps to further instill the lie, at home and abroad, that Bush and the U.S government are truly concerned about the welfare of Georgians and human beings generally.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article20523.htm === Georgia: Another Neocon Farce? By Sean Gabb I am a citizen of a country that was a principal actor in the two big wars of the twentieth century. I believe that these wars were unnecessary for the security of my country and killed unimaginable numbers of people. They also destroyed British primacy in the world and were the means of transforming Britain from genuine liberal democracy to politically correct corporatism.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article20519.htm === The Daily Show Live From The White House By Paul Craig Roberts The Bush Regime imbeciles don't know when to stop. With the world still rolling in laughter from John McCain's claim that "in the 21st century nations don't invade other nations," the moronic US secretary of state declared: "This is not 1968 and the invasion of Czechoslovakia, where Russia can threaten a neighbor, occupy a capital, overthrow a government and get away with it. Things have changed."
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article20524.htm
at 17:32 on August 16th, 2008
Crazy Saakashvili eats his tie!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GqSIXIwGLhI
at 18:03 on August 16th, 2008
With his shorts soon to follow ;)
at 15:57 on August 18th, 2008
Washington's Hypocrisy By Dmitry Rogozin The Georgian air force and artillery struck the sleeping town at midnight. More than 1,500 civilians perished in the very first hours of the shelling. At the same time, Georgian special forces shot 10 Russian peacekeepers who didn't expect such a betrayal from their Georgian colleagues.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article20543.htm === Why The West Has Got It So Wrong Over Georgia By IAIN MacWHIRTER It's a sobering thought that, if George W Bush had had his way and Georgia had been a member of Nato, we would now be at war with Russia.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article20542.htm
Militarily overextended and with a faltering economy and collapsing currency, the cabal of morons that rules America still hopes to attack Iran, Syria, and to drive Hezbollah from Lebanon. American idiots in think tanks are busy at work drawing up plans about how the US is going to check China and prevent her emergence as a power beyond US control. The Republican presidential candidate has boasted that he will challenge Russia and bring Putin to heel.
Amazing. The world’s greatest debtor is going to take on the two powerful countries with the largest trade surpluses. According to the World Factbook, an annual publication of the CIA, Russia’s 2007 current account surplus is $465 billion and China’s is $363 billion. In contrast, the US current account deficit is $987 billion--an amount larger that the total deficits of all other countries in the world combined. - Anglo-American Ascendancy Lost in Unnecessary Wars By Paul Craig Roberts
"It would be easier to pay off the national debt overnight than to neutralize the long-range effects of our national stupidity" - Frank Zappa
at 14:39 on August 19th, 2008
Who Started Cold War II? By Patrick J. Buchanan Had George W. Bush prevailed and were Georgia in NATO, U.S. Marines could be fighting Russian troops over whose flag should fly over a province of 70,000 South Ossetians who prefer Russians to Georgians.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article20554.htm === Why Not Simply Abolish NATO? By Rodrigue Tremblay Since 1991, the Soviet empire no longer exists and Russia has been cooperating economically with Western European countries, supplying them with gas and oil, and all types of commodities. This has increased European economic interdependence and thus greatly reduced the need for such a defensive military alliance above and beyond European countries' own self-defense military system.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article20561.htm === Are You Ready For Nuclear War? By Paul Craig Roberts In order to keep the billions of dollars in profits flowing to its contributors in the US military-security complex, the Bush Regime has rekindled the cold war. As American living standards decline and the prospects for university graduates deteriorate, "our" leaders in Washington commit us to a hundred years of war.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article20555.htm ===
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