I have a feeling that Humanitarian Aid is about to get loud.

Where are our people who went in with the humanitarian aid?

So much for the cease fire. And the Russian "peacekeeping" claim.

MSM dropping the ball.

Neither is a good sign (Russians or Condi).

Maybe she will pull a rabbit out of the hat, but that hat seems to have been empty for a long while.

re: #1 Ford_Prefect

I have a feeling that Humanitarian Aid is about to get loud.

I hope so.

re: #4 Ben Hur

MSM dropping the ball.

Kind of.

This is really not good.

re: #4 Ben Hur

MSM dropping the ball.

Shocker!

uh... Olympics!

umm... Global Warming!

hmmm... USA Bad!
Colonialist Apartheid Israel!

Hey, let Russia solve its own internal problems!

/libs signing out

First Question - How come she hasn't left yet and why no stronger response?

Russia's failure to observe cease fire it agreed to will only deepen isolation. consequences will be even more significant. Russia has pushed things way beyond bounds of anything that might be related to South Ossetia.

re: #6 scottishbuzzsaw

I hope so.

I think this is going to be a Mexican standoff of epic proportions, and somehow the Russians will blink first.

We should enforce a 20-mile no-fly zone around the airport for anything except humanitarian transports, and start flying planes in there to get refugees out. It's the absolute least we could do.

re: #8 looking closely

This is really not good.

This was really not good when the very first tank rolled over the border.

Next up: Why isn't Condi going to Russia?

re: #13 Pawn of the Oppressor

We should enforce a 20-mile no-fly zone around the airport for anything except humanitarian transports, and start flying planes in there to get refugees out. It's the absolute least we could do.

Israel has been flying planes full of refugees out. And there have been buses into Armenia.

Now one of the reporters is claiming Rice is not an honest broker because of US support for Georgia.

re: #12 CIA Reject

I think this is going to be a Mexican standoff of epic proportions, and somehow the Russians will blink first.

Again, I hope so.

The Russians' audacity is quite something. They don't even seem to care about making a pretense of playing by the rules. Kind of breathtaking.

re: #11 galloping granny

What do you want her to do? Teleport? She's enroute to talk to Sarkozy (EU President), then she's off to Tblisi.

Looks like hard power, and a willingness to go to war no matter what the costs, wins this one. Of course, it's not like there have been any costs, so the Russians are going to win this one on the cheap.

re: #17 Occasional Reader

The Russians' audacity is quite something. They don't even seem to care about making a pretense of playing by the rules. Kind of breathtaking.

"What is this 'rules' thing you speak of?"

AMazing how when the IDF or USA military farts 2000 journalists are on it.

They know what the troops are doing before the generals do.

And they usually scream bloody murder.

Now, it's like "Surprise! We're 15 miles from the capital because you all turned away when you heard 'cease fire!'"

re: #18 Dianna

What do you want her to do? Teleport? She's enroute to talk to Sarkozy (EU President), then she's off to Tblisi.

Not me - I was reporting what the idiot MSM reporters are asking her! Of course I don't expect her to magically appear in France in a matter of two hours.

re: #14 galloping granny

Because her job - according to George Bush, this morning - is to express the US' unwavering support for Georgia.

The first C-17 has touched down, but I suspect the Russians are trying to rush to Tbilisi to thwart any beachhead of US humanitarian aid. Also, watch for the Russians to claim that the US has no intention of providing humanitarian aid but rather rescuing the Georgian military. Never mind that's exactly what the Russians have done - exploited their South Ossetian agent provocateurs to go after the Georgian government.

I think one of the "paramilitary" units will fuck up and start something that no one really wants.

Stock market seems to be shrugging the whole thing off...

re: #2 CIA Reject

Where are our people who went in with the humanitarian aid?

I heard on the radio about an hour ago that the first plane with humanitarian aid had arrived in Georgia..

Spooky development. Hope Putin isn't thinking "puppet government for Georgia".

/I had big hopes for Condi when she was appointed. Good thing I didn't have any bets riding on her succeeding as a Secretary of State.

Russian military is now within minutes of the Georgian capital of Tbilisi.

Looting, Raping girls, shooting all boys/men of fighting age and pillaging will follow. Its standard operating procedure for the Russian Army when they invade a country.

Didn't our satellites pick up the Russian troop movements? Are they looking at the Ukrainian border?

The Russians must know they are backing us in to a corner here; we could have let it go with a simple tongue lashing if they had backed off, but now its as if they're daring us to do something.
Perhaps, that was the plan all along..

Condi sounds too tremulous under these conditions.

re: #17 Occasional Reader

Rules? The Russians are playing by the rules. They had strategic objectives and decided to go for them without caring about what the world says.

When starting a war - win.

Use any means necessary.

Sun Tzu and all that.

re: #23 Dianna

Because her job - according to George Bush, this morning - is to express the US' unwavering support for Georgia.

I repeat - and obviously I was not clear; I have been posting what the reporters are asking Condi, since Charles made note of the fact that she is on TV now at the top of this thread. My apologies for my lack of clarity.

MSM: "Broken eggs...omellette...important commercial break..."

re: #22 galloping granny

That's a relief - given the joyous Condi-bashing I keep seeing, it's nice to see that some of us have kept our heads.

Now is the time to restore Americas place in the world.

re: #17 Occasional Reader

The Russians' audacity is quite something. They don't even seem to care about making a pretense of playing by the rules. Kind of breathtaking.

Why should they care? Who is going to oppose them when the greatest military threat to them "expresses concern" and sends "humanitarian aid"?

What's our DEFCON standing?

How many times has Russia released statements saying they have ceased operations?

re: #40 Silhouette

How many times has Russia released statements saying they have ceased operations?

How many times has the West been burned listening to Russian propaganda?

re: #24 lawhawk

I hope we take the opportunity to do something a little more active than simply evacuating the Georgian government and a few others.

Abandoning the civilians of Georgia - and their military - to the tender mercies of the Russians is a very bad idea. I can foresee the massacres, even if the media can't.

I wonder if the 82nd AB is available? ;)

I'll wait for some more info on these reports....just because some russian tank commander( or more probably, half track troop carrier driver, it had a pistiol out the window port to the msm = tank) made a wrong turn, does not turn it into the siege of Bastogne.

re: #39 MandyManners

Might want to change the colors on that Homeland Security barber pole, too.

re: #34 galloping granny

I didn't see your reply before I posted the comment you're replying to.

An email just received:

Maybe it's time you apologized to Pat Buchanan. His new book basically called this conflict before it happened. It also relates perfectly back to the mistakes that were made in the run-up to WWII, showing how history has a tendency to repeat itself.

Hell will freeze over before I "apologize" to Pat Buchanan.

re: #33 lawhawk

Rules? The Russians are playing by the rules. They had strategic objectives and decided to go for them without caring about what the world says.

When starting a war - win.

Use any means necessary.

Sun Tzu and all that.

But this is truly an "optional war" for them. It's quite something how far they're pushing their rhetoric and actions. As someone just pointed out; they rolled right through the point where this could have been settled with diplomatic huffpuffing, but with them getting their message through to Georgia.

Charles, could you please provide any more info on this. I can not find anything on this subject on any major news agency (I'm in no way saying this can not be true).

re: #40 Silhouette

At least two. Yesterday and today.

Of course, it was Medvedev both times.

re: #36 Dianna

That's a relief - given the joyous Condi-bashing I keep seeing, it's nice to see that some of us have kept our heads.

Oh I don't like Condi and I don't trust Condi. But, I am not an unreasonable person, she has been appointed by the President of the United States of America to go take care of this, to act as his mouthpeace. The Concorde is out of service and she needs at least enough time to send someone to fetch a suitcase. Not to mention time to acquire a plane, fuel it and file a flight plan. Nobody gets the heck out of DC in two hours even in an emergency.

re: #17 Occasional Reader

The Russians' audacity is quite something. They don't even seem to care about making a pretense of playing by the rules. Kind of breathtaking.

If you really want to be shocked, read what some English-speaking Russians are saying on various military fora... I thought maybe things had changed since the Cold War, but they are right in there, knees jerking, crowing and cheerleading for Comrade Putin's little tank party. Of course, we're the hypocrites because of Iraq, Bush is responsible because Georgia is his puppet, et cetera. This is in between calling for flat-out genocide ("We should just Grozny the whole place", according to one poster).

Putie has sent in Chechen "special forces" along with Russian regulars and Ossetian "rebels". I understand there is bad blood between Chechens and Georgians, so imagine if Egypt was a major world power, and they invaded Jerusalem because of something Israel did in Gaza, while sending in Palestinians at the front of their columns. It's really lovely stuff.

I've been burned in business by Russians, and frankly, I'll never be able to trust them. They've not done anything to change my opinion here.

re: #47 Charles

An email just received:

Hell will freeze over before I "apologize" to Pat Buchanan.

Go, Charles!

re: #37 Ben Hur

Now is the time to restore Americas place in the world.

+10 if I could.

re: #39 MandyManners

What's our DEFCON standing?

They don't announce that anymore do they?

Does anybody here think that this is one of the reasons Russia doesn't want the missle defense shields in eastern Europe? Would these shields put a stop to their nefarious plans for the region?

re: #17 Occasional Reader

The Russians' audacity is quite something. They don't even seem to care about making a pretense of playing by the rules. Kind of breathtaking.

Self-Appointed Superior Beings only follow the Hama Rule. Which is to say that there are no rules.

re: #47 Charles

An email just received:

Hell will freeze over before I "apologize" to Pat Buchanan.

That twit obviously doesn't know you at all.

re: #49 Abu Lahab

Charles, could you please provide any more info on this. I can not find anything on this subject on any major news agency (I'm in no way saying this can not be true).

The most recent report I heard was from Steve Harrigan on Fox News. He's the source for the "15 miles from Tbilisi" report.

re: #51 galloping granny

Oh I don't like Condi and I don't trust Condi. But, I am not an unreasonable person, she has been appointed by the President of the United States of America to go take care of this, to act as his mouthpeace. The Concorde is out of service and she needs at least enough time to send someone to fetch a suitcase. Not to mention time to acquire a plane, fuel it and file a flight plan. Nobody gets the heck out of DC in two hours even in an emergency.

I bet Air Force One does.

re: #31 toadbelly

This is exactly what I believe. They know the EU are energy dependent on them and will do squat,so the Russians are testing the water to see how far we'll let them go without acting.Oil hegemony is the name of this game here. Take your pick world, Russia or the ME.

Drill here, drill now!

We've so often referenced the scene in the movie Mars Attacks, where the martians are firing on the people all the time saying, "We come in peace."

re: #47 Charles

It also relates perfectly back to the mistakes that were made in the run-up to WWII

Ah, meaning of course how Churchill forced the peace-loving Hitler to go to war...

/

State Department is worthless playing catchup after saying Russia wouldn't dare do this.

Sorry, but State Dept. is worthless. And will cost American lives, in addition to the thousands of Georgians and others already dead & dying.

Instead of wasting time & $$$ jetsetting around, videoconference and tell Putin to go to hell.

Let John McCain do it for free.

re: #47 Charles

An email just received:

Hell will freeze over before I "apologize" to Pat Buchanan.

With due respect to this Buchanan-o-phile, increasing Russian aggression in the Caucasus isn't a new development.

More to the point, even if Buchanan was right about this (and I'm not sure its so), that doesn't excuse his historically inaccurate WWII revisionism and barely concealed Jew-hatred.

re: #55 galloping granny

They don't announce that anymore do they?

Just wondering about a SWAG.

If we flex our muscles, I just hope that we have the power and will to follow through. Putin will smash any paper tiger we put in their way.

It's hard to have a hard stance when everyone knows we can't do anything militarily about the situation. Not for Georgia, at least.

With all the talk on both sides, the US will not put any troops into a position that could result in a real fight. We are like a poker player with one card, bluffing.

We can hurt Russia down the road, but not militarily. If we fall into that trap, we will be following Georgia's mistake with the exact same one. Putin would like nothing more than to have us try to implement a "no fly zone." What better way to show the former Warsaw Pact that siding with the West is bad for them than to embarass a bluffing US President.

Whose big idea was it to leave the Soyz our only way to the space station once the shuttle ends its run?

Space Access Threatened

Gah, Condi, stop referring to Russian "peacekeepers"!

re: #33 lawhawk

Rules? The Russians are playing by the rules. They had strategic objectives and decided to go for them without caring about what the world says.

When starting a war - win.

Use any means necessary.

Sun Tzu and all that.

Too true - we seem to forget that with the Russians we are dealing with what is essentially an Oriental mindset.

Rice took a polite swipe at a Russian reporter.

Actually, if anyone deserves vindication, its George Patton. He wanted to obliterate the Russians right after WWII. Got him in a heap of trouble.

A reporter with a heavy Russian accent is now comparing this to our actions after 9/11. Please.

When they say that the "Russian Army" is 15 minutes from the Georgian capital.... they aren't just talking about drunk Vladimir and his unruly drinking buddies, are they?

Any clarification on the size of this force?

re: #24 lawhawk

"Also, watch for the Russians to claim that the US has no intention of providing humanitarian aid but rather rescuing the Georgian military."

And then watch lefties here, there and everywhere jump on the bandwagon and further claim we engineered the whole thing.

re: #56 UberInfidel67

No - missile shield defenses aren't precisely great for keeping an armored column out. Particularly when all your artillery sites have been plotted out to a fare-thee-well, and you don't have mobile armor of your own.

re: #48 Occasional Reader

They have apparently decided to toss American good will into the crapper. Putin may want to say "The Bear is Back!", but the reality is that the Russian military is but a shade of its former self. And it is still a conscript army with sub-standard equipment and lousy morale.

We still have B-2s and Ohios. Surely they don't really want to play that game. They're pissing in our face for no good reason.

re: #71 CIA Reject

Too true - we seem to forget that with the Russians we are dealing with what is essentially an Oriental mindset.

All those years of Mongol rule left their mark.

re: #59 Charles

Thank you so much! I can't watch that unfortunately. I hope this turns out to be untrue. I can not imagine what will happen if they enter the capital.

re: #70 Occasional Reader

Gah, Condi, stop referring to Russian "peacekeepers"!

"Blood-thirsty bastards" doesn't have the requisite diplo-tone.

re: #50 Dianna

At least two. Yesterday and today.

Of course, it was Medvedev both times.

Ah yes. At Obama's request, as I recall Kaine pointed out. Thank heavens for Obama. /

I hope the Obama voters are learning. He used his amazing powers of diplomacy and immediately got the bad guys to agree to stop. But, agreeing to stop and actually stopping are two different things. Like asking someone to stop and making them stop are two different things.

re: #61 vagabond trader

And build nuclear plants! And wind farms and solar chimneys and pretty much anything else that will help.

re: #70 Occasional Reader

Gah, Condi, stop referring to Russian "peacekeepers"!

* * *

Porque no se calla?

re: #67 Dainn

We can hurt Russia down the road, but not militarily.

Um, sure we can. It's highly risky, but sure we can.

We COULD own the skies over the Caucasus in fairly short order.

Again, very risky, but quite possible.

re: #80 Abu Lahab

Thank you so much! I can't watch that unfortunately. I hope this turns out to be untrue. I can not imagine what will happen if they enter the capital.

It's true. Harrigan is on the ground in Georgia and personally witnessed the Russian military's advance on Tbilisi.

re: #3 Semper Gumbi

So much for the cease fire. And the Russian "peacekeeping" claim.

No, the ceasefire did exactly what Putin wanted it to: it gave him time to move his heavy iron into position for the next attack.

CNN has this really sad story:
Troops pay baggage fees on way to war zones
Money blinds some people beyond belief sometimes.

Soviet victory!

re: #67 Dainn

If we flex our muscles, I just hope that we have the power and will to follow through. Putin will smash any paper tiger we put in their way.

It's hard to have a hard stance when everyone knows we can't do anything militarily about the situation. Not for Georgia, at least.

The hell we can't. We have at least one squadron of F-22s on line and friendly countries right next door. Georgia is not that big. We could lock up that airspace tight as a drum in 72 hours. Declare an area protected for humanitarian reasons, and tell the Russians that any tank that crosses line X gets plinked, and any plane that flies within Y miles of Z gets shot down, period.

We could do it, but we won't, because Europe needs Russian gas, and Bush doesn't want to.

It has often been said that the Russian's respect a show of power. And they don't mind a bit of subterfuge either, if well played; we may have to test that theory.

From the official Georgian Government website:

According to the recent information received by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs from the appropriate authorities of Georgia, on 13 August 2008, the Russian military have established an illegal checkpoint on the main highway at the city of Gori. All cargo vehicles passing through this checkpoint are being stopped and thoroughly searched by the Russian military, and being allowed the free passage only under condition of payment of ransom.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is assessing this act as a grave violation of international law and sovereignty of Georgia.
By introducing illegal armed formations and groups of bandits who are now blocking Georgian highways, looting peaceful population and disrupting trade, the Russian Federation again clearly demonstrates that its aim is the full occupation of Georgia.

re: #19 Iron Fist

Looks like hard power, and a willingness to go to war no matter what the costs, wins this one. Of course, it's not like there have been any costs, so the Russians are going to win this one on the cheap.

it may be cheap in the short term, but long term? we'll see. it'd be a damn shame if the local population suddenly discovered a bunch of RPG's lying around.... and maybe some EFP's?

/sauce for the bear.

re: #88 Dark_Falcon

No, the ceasefire did exactly what Putin wanted it to

What ceasefire? There was no ceasefire.

re: #87 Charles

It's true. Harrigan is on the ground in Georgia and personally witnessed the Russian military's advance on Tbilisi.

* * *
At fox.com, they write their sister network SKY reporters had a vehicle robbed from them by Abkassians or Russian allies.

They've been texted to get out now.

re: #47 Charles

An email just received:

Hell will freeze over before I "apologize" to Pat Buchanan.

you'd have to be wrong first. %-)

Press conference? Scary!

Hey, Michael Morre! It's the oil, stupid!

re: #87 Charles

And the Russian mouthpiece a couple hours ago released this
Russian troops not heading to Tbilisi - Russia
That makes FOX News report just more believable.

re: #83 Silhouette

Ah yes. At Obama's request, as I recall Kaine pointed out. Thank heavens for Obama. /

I hope the Obama voters are learning. He used his amazing powers of diplomacy and immediately got the bad guys to agree to stop. But, agreeing to stop and actually stopping are two different things. Like asking someone to stop and making them stop are two different things.

My neighbor, unfortunately believed both Kaine and Susan Rice. She actually thinks Obama was "statesmanlike" in his announcements.

re: #47 Charles

perhaps you should apolagize to pat buchanan,the sun came up this morning...
jack hole.(the sender of the e-mail,not you)

This shows signs of spiralling out of control.

re: #38 Lazarus

Humanitarian Aid? I hope that Pig Putin as much as blinks, and the Escort Service gets in some righteous target practice on his rolling stock.

Has Google renamed Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan yet?

I am monitoring two RSS feeds from Tblisi. If anyone knows of other/better ones, please post, and ideally, e-mail me. The feeds are:

Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia

Gia Jandieri News

PP: AskParisParamus@gmail.com

re: #69 buzzsawmonkey

I dinged you up even though "barely concealed" is not the proper term for Pat Buchanan's Jew-hatred. "Open and blatant" is more like it.

Well, in the spectrum of rank and naked Jew-hatred, he doesn't rank up there with the Palestinians or Iranians, for example.

And for the record, here is what Mr. Buchanan had to say about Georgia two years ago:

Many believe Putin's endgame is the overthrow of Saakashvili in a counter-revolution of the kind the Russians believe was engineered in the West to bring him to power. If that is Putin's goal, there seems little more that the United States could do to prevent it than Russia could do to prevent Bill Clinton's ouster of the Haitian junta or Bush 41's ouster of Manuel Noriega.

I hope all you Condi bashers, criticizers, have been listening to Fox, right now. She is diplomatically telling the commiee................left leaning press how it is! Not threatening, just how it is!

re: #95 Occasional Reader

What ceasefire? There was no ceasefire.

It thru the West off step congratulating ourselves that the crisis was over giving Russia more time to advance.

re: #75 Ms. Missive

It appears that the Russians have at least two divisions in Georgia; I'm not clear on their distribution.

Even if we discount by half the sites bombed according to this map from the Georgian Ministry of Defense, the Russians are busy. It wouldn't have to be that big a force, at this point, to take Tblisi.

re: #104 MandyManners

Has Google renamed Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan yet?

Heck, I cannot even find Tblisis, Georgia on Google.

re: #19 Iron Fist

Looks like hard power, and a willingness to go to war no matter what the costs, wins this one. Of course, it's not like there have been any costs, so the Russians are going to win this one on the cheap.

Personally, I think this is going to come back to bite them, big time. They had a pretty good gig going with lower-level, economic bullying. Now, the mask is off.

re: #67 Dainn

It's hard to have a hard stance when everyone knows we can't do anything militarily about the situation. Not for Georgia, at least.

The msm says we can't do anything we still have a tremendous amount of firepower in the hopper.

re: #32 Occasional Reader

Condi sounds too tremulous under these conditions.

You want her to sound tough? That's used up on Israel.

Imagining an army coming over the visible mountains 14 miles from my apt. is quite disturbing.

re: #78 Iron Fist

No, they have a good reason.

They know that we still play by the Cold War rules where we will not get into a shooting war with the Russians directly because where that can inevitably lead. It's the same reason why the Pakistanis and Indians always seem to avoid a major shooting war even as they both wrestle for control over Jammu and Kashmir and occasionally fight along the Line of Control.

Both sides always shy away from more serious fighting because of what lurks beyond.

Russia knows that we will not commit large forces because it can and would result in things getting a whole lot more dangerous in short order.

So, they're pressing the matter to the point where they appear more than willing to take over Georgia. And the Europeans aren't doing a single thing either. They've thrown up their hands.

As for all those who want to blame Bush for this, once again, you have to wonder what kind of intel he was getting from the CIA, and why they didn't know what the Russians were up to (or if they did, whether that passed on to the Georgians, and if so, why they didn't listen).

However, before all that 20/20 hindsight stuff, what do we do now. The US has sent in the C-17s, and the Russians are making a mad dash to Tbilisi. That increases the likelihood of the US coming under fire. And that opens up a can of worms that no one here is really prepared for.

re: #84 Dianna

No argument. Being from the northeast we require lots of oil and gas to keep warm in the winter. Until a logical replacement is found, drill here, drill now!

re: #43 Vergeltung

I wonder if the 82nd AB is available? ;)

at least one Bde is on the ramp, unless things have changed.

airlift, OTOH, might be an issue. good thing Congress decided we didn't need any more C-17's......

re: #47 Charles

It also relates perfectly back to the mistakes that were made in the run-up to WWII, showing how history has a tendency to repeat itself.

Not responding to the aggressions of Italy, Japan & Germany in the run-up to WWII is what led to WWII in the first place. This ass-bag is just upset that his side lost in that war.

The memo from Putin to Bush continues on it's 'screw you' theme.

Pat Buchanan's take on this would be to let them sort it out themselves wouldn't it? He would be in the de facto pocket of the Russian's. Pat is weak on America.

re: #107 Dizzy26

I hope all you Condi bashers, criticizers, have been listening to Fox, right now. She is diplomatically telling the commiee................left leaning press how it is! Not threatening, just how it is!

* * *
She took her eye off the Georgian ball and the Russian Bear while wasting 7 years flying around making makebelieve middle east "peace" processes.

State Dept. BLEW IT BIGTIME> and our military will pay in blood & lives.

School's letting out early. Gotta' go. bbl

Condi's lips are moving but is she saying anything? I can't tell.

re: #95 Occasional Reader

What ceasefire? There was no ceasefire.

Cease fire has a brand new definition in the 21st Century.

Ask the folks around Sderot.

re: #94 redc1c4

True. But is Russia's aim occupation, or simply making a desert and calling it peace?

re: #99 Abu Lahab

For some reason I can just imagine Barbrady dressed in a Russian Army outfit saying, "Move along, nothing to see here."

re: #78 Iron Fist

They think we're going to back down. They think we're over-extended. They think Bush is a lame duck. They think the American people don't care.

I sincerely hope that it is proved to the Russians that none of these are true.

re: #87 Charles

It's true. Harrigan is on the ground in Georgia and personally witnessed the Russian military's advance on Tbilisi.

Harrigan of Fox News? You can't trust that right-wing propaganda machine!
////

re: #104 MandyManners

Has Google renamed Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan yet?

It seems like Google was Putin ready. Ready to erase any democracy off the map.

re: #111 Occasional Reader

Personally, I think this is going to come back to bite them, big time. They had a pretty good gig going with lower-level, economic bullying. Now, the mask is off.

A lot of former slave states are getting a peek at the play book. Ethnic minorities, Disputed region, violence against minorities, peacekeeping, provocation, invasion.

re: #39 MandyManners

What's our DEFCON standing?

Fuscia, I think.

re: #120 hazzyday

Pat Buchanan's take on this would be to let them sort it out themselves wouldn't it? He would be in the de facto pocket of the Russian's. Pat is weak on America.

See my last post on this.
To his credit, Buchanan actually *did* see this coming (though he wasn't the only one, this has been brewing for a while).
Buchanan also predicted that if it did the USA effectively couldn't do anything about it.
We'll see if he turns out to be right about that too.

Here's a BBC report.

re: #107 Dizzy26

I hope all you Condi bashers, criticizers, have been listening to Fox, right now. She is diplomatically telling the commiee................left leaning press how it is! Not threatening, just how it is!

How is it?

re: #66 MandyManners

Just wondering about a SWAG.

i doubt it's moved much, but then again, we have a ways to go before it might, like sustained combat between US & russian forces....

/my swag

Condi is purported to be a Russia specialist? Seems she has spent an inordinate amount of time lecturing Israel to be sensitive to the Pals while Putin was licking his chops.

re: #75 Ms. Missive

When they say that the "Russian Army" is 15 minutes from the Georgian capital.... they aren't just talking about drunk Vladimir and his unruly drinking buddies, are they?

Any clarification on the size of this force?

Apparently a tank column. Could be the vanguard of a lot more.

Putin wants the British Petroleum pipeline, and won't stop until he has it. It may involve annexing the whole country, or just installing a puppet in Tblisi. Either way, he gets control of the oil.

Crude oil prices dropping like a stone hits him where it hurts.

re: #95 Occasional Reader

The Georgians evidently ceased firing.

re: #120 hazzyday

Pat Buchanan's take on this would be to let them sort it out themselves wouldn't it? He would be in the de facto pocket of the Russian's. Pat is weak on America.

I predict a Buchanan column within 36 hours blaming "neoCons".

re: #102 Peacekeeper

This shows signs of spiralling out of control.

"Well boys, I reckon this is it.."

So Tim Kaine was wrong?

re: #123 Killgore Trout

I finally answered your question in the other thread, #620...even mentioned Buchanan...*shiver*

re: #135 vagabond trader

Condi is purported to be a Russia specialist? Seems she has spent an inordinate amount of time lecturing Israel to be sensitive to the Pals while Putin was licking his chops.

She should stick to playing the piano.

re: #120 hazzyday

Pat Buchanan's take on this would be to let them sort it out themselves wouldn't it? He would be in the de facto pocket of the Russian's. Pat is weak on America.

He's pretty weak on common sense.

re: #141 scottishbuzzsaw

Ah, thanks. Interesting.

If the democrats were both smart and loyal Americans, they would simply say we stand forthright behind our President and our country. Well enough fantasy, we now switch you back to reality.

Bush should have fought harder for John Bolton. He knows the Russian's better than Condi. Too late though.

15 miles from Tblisi? Time to fire a warning shot in front of that tank column. Humanitarian aid should be close by now. Put some big holes in the road.

re: #107 Dizzy26

Feed keeps stalling out.

Grrrr.

re: #138 Opinionated

I predict a Buchanan column within 36 hours blaming "neoCons".

He's already blamed the neoconservatives for this, nearly two years before it happened!

Bush bought into the notion that U.S. vital interests required supporting ex-Russian republics against Moscow, which was absurd. Our vital interest was always in maintaining strong U.S.-Russian ties, which have been ravaged by the meddling of neoconservatives mired in Russophobia.

re: #138 Opinionated

I predict a Buchanan column within 36 hours blaming "neoCons".

To be followed shortly by a second column blaming Israel.

BHG

The shooter in Arkansas has died.

What time is it in Tbilisi? I'm watching a webcam and cars are driving all over the place....

re: #135 vagabond trader

Condi is purported to be a Russia specialist? Seems she has spent an inordinate amount of time lecturing Israel to be sensitive to the Pals while Putin was licking his chops.

* * *
Asleep at the wheel.

Mideast "Peace""Legacy," schmegacy.

The official Russian news agency is ASSURING us there is nothing to worry about.

re: #5 OldLineTexan

Neither is a good sign (Russians or Condi).

Maybe she will pull a rabbit out of the hat, but that hat seems to have been empty for a long while.

Surely she'll say that Georgia needs to consider the future when they decide how to respond. And to make sure no houses are being built by Georgia in the area So. Ossetia wants for their future state, as that would be the worst obstacle to peace. And Condi will ask the Georgians in the middle of their attempt to respond, "Don't you believe in diplomacy any more?" and she'll urge them to sit still, hopefully in shelters, while the rockets and attackers come after them in their cities.

Isn't that what the U.S. State Department says when a tiny ally is being attacked by the millions in neighboring hostile countries?

And in the meantime, the DoD will "give the green light" for Georgia to utterly defeat Russia's military infrastructure and will be "very disappointed" when Georgia can't figure out how to behave with these inconsistent messages coming from the U.S. government.

We need a post from Meryl and her "double standard time."

re: #131 looking closely

See my last post on this.
To his credit, Buchanan actually *did* see this coming (though he wasn't the only one, this has been brewing for a while).
Buchanan also predicted that if it did the USA effectively couldn't do anything about it.
We'll see if he turns out to be right about that too.

Although check out the very first sentence of Buchanan's piece (from Oct. 2006):

With the failure of the Orange Revolution, Ukraine is being drawn back into Moscow's orbit.

Not quite, Pat.

Russia has upped the ante & is playing a dangerous game of chicken with us.
Putin may have really miscalculated. In my opnion we should get aircraft over & around Tiblisi & establish total air superiority.
We should then tell Putin that we cosider an attack on the capital, as an attack on the U.S & we will destroy their oil delivery.
I really only think this now because their intentions are now clear.

re: #67 Dainn

If we flex our muscles, I just hope that we have the power and will to follow through. Putin will smash any paper tiger we put in their way.

It's hard to have a hard stance when everyone knows we can't do anything militarily about the situation. Not for Georgia, at least.

With all the talk on both sides, the US will not put any troops into a position that could result in a real fight. We are like a poker player with one card, bluffing.

We can hurt Russia down the road, but not militarily. If we fall into that trap, we will be following Georgia's mistake with the exact same one. Putin would like nothing more than to have us try to implement a "no fly zone." What better way to show the former Warsaw Pact that siding with the West is bad for them than to embarass a bluffing US President.

actually, there are things we could do militarily, and never leave Georgian airspace/territory to do it. hell, we wouldn't even have to engage russian forces directly.

there are only 5 LOC's into Georgia, and all of them are through mountainous terrain. cut those roads at choke points via B-2 & J-DAM at night, and all those armored forces shortly turn into rusting junk heaps right where they run out of fuel. give the Georgians some MANPADS and you rule out aerial resupply too, not that i'd want to try that with a large mech formation anyway.

"Logistics is the ball & chain of armored warfare."
Guderian

The gunman said something about losing his job before he shot.

re: #105 parisparamus

Here's everything I got -

Ministry of Foreign Affaris of Georgia blog.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs website - up & down sporadically.

Georgia Civil Affairs

About Georgia website

Ministry of Defense link from the other thread. I have not been able to get it to come up however.

Lech Kaczynski, President of Poland. He's got a Georgia dedicated column down on the right side of his page.

Dancho Danchev's Blog - The Russia vs Georgia Cyber Attack.

re: #148 looking closely

So Buchanan was in favor of appeasement all along. Very consistent! Congrats, Pat.

re: #151 bwohlgemuth

What time is it in Tbilisi? I'm watching a webcam and cars are driving all over the place....

Can you be sure it's live? There has been alot of chatter about Russia running a cyber war against Georgia as well. You might watching film from 2 weeks ago that makes it all look peaceful.

It's obvious that Rice and her people at Foggy Bottom are overwhelmed by events. I don't know if this was the case, but it sure looks that the CIA and people at State were caught napping. Condi is clearly not the person to defuse crisis or perform shuttle diplomacy under pressure. I'm not sure what sending our DOD people over there under the auspices of Humanitarian Aid will do other than escalate the crisis into a flair-point.

Funny that not once has the WH even leaked a trial balloon concerning freezing Russian overseas funds, boycotting their exports, or even kicking them out of the G8. It's all been "we deplore this, or deplore that". This is what happens when an entire generation of diplomats are trained in the use of "soft power" only. This is what happens when the President and Congress refuse to increase the size of the military. 7th Corps surely would come in handy right now.

Many years ago, I had high hopes for Dr Rice. From what I've seen, her biggest asset is being liked by the President.

re: #119 WriterMom

What memo? Or is that ironic commentary?

OT: Uday and Qusay Not Welcome in Israel.

re: #127 BeerDrinking_VictoryMonkey

Harrigan of Fox News? You can't trust that right-wing propaganda machine!
////

How is Harrigan ALWAYS in the hot spot at the most amazing time. They sent him to the U.S. Mexico border for his holiday and he did wild reports on the drug gang war going on there. He's fabulous.

re: #142 Ward Cleaver

I'm freakin' sick of this woman. She has zero--ZERO--credibility on this or any other issue. After she forced Israel to accept that disgraceful ceasefire in 2006 (okay, she had a fair amount of insistence from Olmert and Livni, a/k/a Tweedeldumb and Tweedledumber), she has no moral authority to say squat.

BHG

Has any body blamed the Jews yet?

re: #153 WriterMom

The official Russian news agency is ASSURING us there is nothing to worry about.

* * *
They played classical music while their presidents kept dying on Reagan--that was what gave us a clue.

(Thanks, clueless state dept.)

Quartet, schmartet~ another crappy Mideast Policy failure Condi supports full time.

re: #139 Colonel Panik

"Well boys, I reckon this is it.."

"Stay on the bomb run, Comrades! I'll get this bomb bay open if it harelips everyone in Krasnoyarsk!" (I know, wrong air force...)

re: #163 CommonCents

Can you be sure it's live? There has been alot of chatter about Russia running a cyber war against Georgia as well. You might watching film from 2 weeks ago that makes it all look peaceful.

Well for sure it is night time over there. So it has gotta be dark.

re: #166 WriterMom

Heh.

re: #165 Dianna

No real memo...I guess my comment flopped.

The press is vile. Cheerleaders for the enemy, as always. And Condi is clearly not cut out for this.

CSM throws in the towel.

Russia's big Caucasus win

Moscow has gained leverage, threatened Georgia's pro-West leader, and bolstered national pride.

PARIS and Moscow - In less than a week of military operations sparked by Georgia's assault on its breakaway province of South Ossetia, Moscow is emerging as the immediate winner. A still-stunned West is looking for ways to censure Russia for its "disproportionate" incursion into Georgia that has reshaped the strategic game in the Caucasus and beyond to Russia's great advantage.

It ain't over........

re: #76 eastvillageinfidel

"Also, watch for the Russians to claim that the US has no intention of providing humanitarian aid but rather rescuing the Georgian military."

And then watch lefties here, there and everywhere jump on the bandwagon and further claim we engineered the whole thing.

Don't tell me you'd be surprised at the American left paroting the Kermlin...

re: #169 Ziggy

I will. It's about time someone stood up and blamed the responsible party.

THIS IS ALL THE JOOOOOOOOOOOS FAULT.

/thank you thank you

re: #114 bosforus

Imagining an army coming over the visible mountains 14 miles from my apt. is quite disturbing.

only if you don't like a target rich environment.....

Hey IronFist, Real West, Law Hawk, and any others with up to date
military info., do we, (the US), have a real need to fear Russian retaliation?

I mean, if behind very closed doors, we inform Mr. Putin that we will
go all out, if necessary! (For the whole area, because that's what's really at stake. )

(short of and that means our nukes of course)

Asking serious.

re: #117 redc1c4

at least one Bde is on the ramp, unless things have changed.

airlift, OTOH, might be an issue. good thing Congress decided we didn't need any more C-17's......

we can always count on congress for some long-term thinking and strategy.

/

Shep Smith said US Troops are in Georgia delivering Humanitarian Aid. All it takes is a Russian with a bad hangover to enlarge this war.

re: #153 WriterMom

Ha.

re: #173 Killgore Trout

Pump up the bass, Uday and Qusay.

Double heh.

re: #156 opnion

Umm, not so sure about that. Do we really want a shooting war with the Russians right now?

BHG

re: #17 Occasional Reader

The Russians' audacity is quite something. They don't even seem to care about making a pretense of playing by the rules. Kind of breathtaking.

Actually, this is a severe lesson to President Bush and Secretaries Rice and Dumbsfeld: If we had cared less about world opinion -- and had cared MORE for our troops' welfare on the ground -- we would have gotten where we are in Iraq MUCH sooner and we would be MUCH farther along in Afghanistan.

I admire's Putin's balls -- as much as I despise his motives.

re: #150 Killgore Trout

The shooter in Arkansas has died.

Oh my.

re: #136 Spiny Norman

Very good, except for the bit about the drop in prices. That's too short term, and irrelevant.

re: #150 Killgore Trout

The shooter in Arkansas has died.

Anything on his ID or motive? I can't find anything really really current.

re: #169 Ziggy

Pitchfork Pat's next column should come out shortly.

BHG

Sarajevo was a backwater, once upon a time.

re: #166 WriterMom

OT: Uday and Qusay Not Welcome in Israel.

They probably smell a bit since they're dead.

re: #182 kuffar

Shep Smith said US Troops are in Georgia delivering Humanitarian Aid. All it takes is a Russian with a bad hangover to enlarge this war.

Bet there's plenty of those.

re: #176 jcm

CSM throws in the towel.

Russia's big Caucasus win

It ain't over........

Bizarre. If Bush suddenly had the Marines seize Baja California, I doubt the CSM would congratulate him on his "big win" less than a week later, do you?

re: #91 Pawn of the Oppressor

The hell we can't. We have at least one squadron of F-22s on line and friendly countries right next door. Georgia is not that big. We could lock up that airspace tight as a drum in 72 hours. Declare an area protected for humanitarian reasons, and tell the Russians that any tank that crosses line X gets plinked, and any plane that flies within Y miles of Z gets shot down, period.

We could do it, but we won't, because Europe needs Russian gas, and Bush doesn't want to.

We would be overstretched. Russia has a much higher tollerance for loss and would sustain losses to make it a real fight. They don't have to win, just make it look like the start of WW3 and that they are willing to see a regional war with the US to its "logical conclusion" and we would have to pull back. And the Russians can fight our airpower if they want the losses.

Putin will pay that price.

re: #189 pre-Boomer Marine brat

He said something about losing his job.

Thank G-d we have troops in Germany still. If we ever left the Russians would take advantage and still try to take over Europe.

Thank Pat Buchanan? No Way!

How about thanking the Neoconservatives who saw the Soviets, and now by extension the current Russian government, as the threat they were and remain even now. The Russians and their good friends the Iranians are never satisfied unless they throw plenty of wrenches in the works.

Two years ago Rice was instrumental in saving Hezbollah.

Too bad for Georgia they are not Islamic terrorists.

I'm sure when the Russians enter Tbilisi they'll be greeted as liberators

/

re: #189 pre-Boomer Marine brat

Anything on his ID or motive? I can't find anything really really current.

Something about loosing his job has cropped up in a few places.

re: #181 Vergeltung

good thing Congress decided we didn't need any more C-17's......

The criminal bastards...

re: #182 kuffar

Shep Smith said US Troops are in Georgia delivering Humanitarian Aid. All it takes is a Russian with a bad hangover to enlarge this war.

Thankfully that won't happen, as one must stop drinking in the first place to be hungover.

Looks like the Russians are threatening back:
Lavrov: US must choose between Russia and Georgia

The US must choose between the "virtual project" of Georgia and real partnership with Russia, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Wednesday, after US President George W. Bush demanded that Russia end all military activities in the former Soviet republic and dispatched US aid to devastated Georgians.

In other words, Georgia isn't going to be a country much longer

And

He was quoted by Russian news agencies as saying that at some point, the United States would have to choose "either support for a virtual project, or real partnership on issues that really demand collective action," referring to US cooperation with Russia in the UN Security Council on Iran and other global hot spots.

In other words, Russia gets Georgia, or Iran gets nukes.

Seriously, the US should help Israel take out Iran's nuclear program, or set it way back, and then see what the Russians do.

If Bush backs down, this will be the bear's nose in the tent. Any time we want their support on something, it will cost another country.

re: #180 Dizzy26

Hey IronFist, Real West, Law Hawk, and any others with up to date
military info., do we, (the US), have a real need to fear Russian retaliation?

I mean, if behind very closed doors, we inform Mr. Putin that we will
go all out, if necessary! (For the whole area, because that's what's really at stake. )

(short of and that means our nukes of course)

Uh, yeah, they have over 6,000 nuclear weapons with delivery systems. That's the basic problem.

re: #196 Killgore Trout

He said something about losing his job.

Obviously Bush's fault because of the economy.

/

It appears that the Russians have at least two divisions in Georgia; I'm not clear on their distribution.

Is there a standard, international definition of division? batalion? I believe the later is a portion of the former, but I really haven't a clue beyond that.

re: #91 Pawn of the Oppressor

The hell we can't. We have at least one squadron of F-22s on line and friendly countries right next door. Georgia is not that big. We could lock up that airspace tight as a drum in 72 hours. Declare an area protected for humanitarian reasons, and tell the Russians that any tank that crosses line X gets plinked, and any plane that flies within Y miles of Z gets shot down, period.

We could do it, but we won't, because Europe needs Russian gas, and Bush doesn't want to.

Yeah, we might not be able to wage a nice war with troops on the ground protecting civilians, but we could still probably bomb Russian armor into oblivion for awhile.
/Really hopes it doesn't come to that. I don't put anything past Putin the Poisoner, though.

re: #190 bald headed geek

Pitchfork Pat's next column should come out shortly.

BHG

He's busy trying to work out how Israel goaded us into this, then he'll put up a column on Townhall.com.

re: #198 Opinionated

I need an "OY" button.

re: #177 nikis-knight

Don't tell me you'd be surprised at the American left paroting the Kermlin...

I wouldn't be the least bit surprised in the Russian Foreign Minister posted a cheerful message of encouragement at the Daily Kos.

"Western countries should not support them (Israel) so much. The life of this regime has come to an end," Ahmadinejad said in comments translated into Turkish in a live interview broadcast by Turkey's NTV and CNN Turk channels.

He is going to Turkey.

I don't like this.

re: #198 Opinionated

Two years ago Rice was instrumental in saving Hezbollah.

Well said. She should go down in history for her lack of both judgment and courage in foreign affairs.

President Bush should go down in history as too weak to can Condi midway into his second term.

re: #203 Kosh's Shadow

Looks like the Russians are threatening back:
Lavrov: US must choose between Russia and Georgia

In other words, Russia gets Georgia, or Iran gets nukes.

Seriously, the US should help Israel take out Iran's nuclear program, or set it way back, and then see what the Russians do.

If Bush backs down, this will be the bear's nose in the tent. Any time we want their support on something, it will cost another country.

Reagan would know what to do.

/i still like that bear ad

Is there a link for this or a source?
The Russians are in the wrong and must be pushed back one way or another, so I am not asking this as some pro-Putinczar Russian nationalist. I am asking because getting facts out of a war zone can be harder than getting substance out of an Obama speech. Also, Charles usually has links on stories. (of course at this rate, the link may be to a photo of Condi Rice in front of a Russian tank)

"t is understood that talks are already taking place with US allies, including Britain, about whether to suspend Russia’s prized membership of the G8 club of industrialised nations. There is also a growing clamour to block Russia from becoming part of the World Trade Organisation and to rescind an invitation for it to join the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. "
From the lead article in the TIMES (London)

If only we had Madaline Albright to go quell the siuation.
I heard some years back say on one of the Late night talk shows that she liked to use her "Feminine Wiles'on male dignataries.
I am not making this up. I will now wait while you go to the bathroom to retch.

re: #186 gunjam

Putin is a very cagey and smart adversary. He understands the weakness of the West in general and NATO in particular, and that there is no appetite (especially in Europe) to confront him. Georgia and its pipeline are a test case. If he gets away with this--and all signs are that he will--the next targets will be the oil rich nations of Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan. And, I would be pretty nervous right now if I were a Ukrainian...........

BHG

re: #148 looking closely

Does he get royalties for writing Russian talking points.

re: #211 formercorpsman

Turkey has involvement with the pipeline as well.

re: #169 Ziggy

Has any body blamed the Jews yet?

I'm sure we'll be hearing the names Leo Strauss and Alan Bloom soon.

re: #178 WriterMom

I will. It's about time someone stood up and blamed the responsible party.

THIS IS ALL THE JOOOOOOOOOOOS FAULT.

/thank you thank you

It's always the Jews.

re: #203 Kosh's Shadow

Looks like the Russians are threatening back:

Like I said above: They're not even pretending any more. Quite remarkable.

the Kermlin...

Do you need to add the Muppets to this mess?!

re: #204 Occasional Reader

Uh, yeah, they have over 6,000 nuclear weapons with delivery systems. That's the basic problem.

I'm wondering if Russia is stupid enough to think they can let the Iranians serve as one of their "delivery systems".

Tymoshenko has now weighed in:

KYIV, Ukraine, Aug. 13 /PRNewswire/ -- Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko
responded again to the Georgian crisis on Wednesday, stating, "We stand in
solidarity with the democratically-elected leadership of Georgia. Georgia's
sovereignty and territorial integrity must be respected." Earlier on Tuesday, Tymoshenko sent Vice Prime Minister Hryhoriy Nemyria as a Special Envoy to Tbilisi. "Actions speak louder than words," said Nemyria from Tbilisi, "so it is important to be on the ground, lending our first-hand
support to the government of Georgia. This crisis has clear implications for regional security, and of course, for Ukraine." Nemyria, responsible for European and International Integration, explained, "This crisis makes crystal clear that the security vacuums that have existed in the post-Soviet space remain dangerous. Because it is the largest country in the region after Russia, and because it shares such a long border with the European Union, Ukraine remains at risk in this type of vacuum." While in Georgia, Nemyria was scheduled to meet with Georgian officials, as well as other international envoys that had arrived in Tbilisi.

re: #175 Salem

The press is vile. Cheerleaders for the enemy, as always. And Condi is clearly not cut out for this.

Well Fuk'n said.

re: #192 BeerDrinking_VictoryMonkey

They probably smell a bit since they're dead.

Just a bit.

re: #211 formercorpsman

He is going to Turkey.

I don't like this.

He doesn't have to come from Turkey?

re: #206 ParisParamus

Is there a standard, international definition of division?

No one set number, but for an infantry division 10 -15,000 is about the rule of thumb.

re: #204 Occasional Reader

Uh, yeah, they have over 6,000 nuclear weapons with delivery systems. That's the basic problem.

Make them blink now.

It will be too late later.

Shades of Hitler going into Sudetenland. (They had orders to retreat if the French resisted. Alas, the rest is history.)

re: #199 kham

I'm sure when the Russians enter Tbilisi they'll be greeted as liberators

/

Children will present them with flowers!

/

re: #208 Ward Cleaver

Well, you KNOW how those Jews are........

Sigh........

BHG

Is ammunition "humanitarian aid" in this instance?

re: #216 opnion

If only we had Madaline Albright to go quell the siuation.
I heard some years back say on one of the Late night talk shows that she liked to use her "Feminine Wiles'on male dignataries.
I am not making this up. I will now wait while you go to the bathroom to retch.

Gag.

Ahmadinejad to Turkey is not good...

re: #174 WriterMom

No, I'm trying to follow eight things at once - and at least pretend to work - and was worried that I missed something.

I did offer the option of ironic commentary!

re: #158 redc1c4

"Logistics is the ball & chain of armored warfare."
Guderian

Heinz was an armored warfare genius!

WOLVERINES!

Read this report from a British journalist - it happened "a mile out of Gori":"British Journalist Brush with Death in Georgia"

re: #91 Pawn of the Oppressor

The hell we can't. We have at least one squadron of F-22s on line and friendly countries right next door. Georgia is not that big. We could lock up that airspace tight as a drum in 72 hours. Declare an area protected for humanitarian reasons, and tell the Russians that any tank that crosses line X gets plinked, and any plane that flies within Y miles of Z gets shot down, period.

We could do it, but we won't, because Europe needs Russian gas, and Bush doesn't want to.

and we don't need to go confrontational with them: just cut the LOC's inside Georgian territory and supply them with ATGM's & MANPADS.

asymmetrical warfare is your friend.

The good news here is that it is keeping Rice busy.

Israel usually gets screwed when she has time on her hands.

re: #185 bald headed geek

Umm, not so sure about that. Do we really want a shooting war with the Russians right now?

BHG

No, we don't, but this is quite a provocation.
I am not even suggesting ground troops. To tell you the truth I was against any U.S involvement until now.
If we let the Capital fall, every crazy efen Jihadi in the world will be encouraged as the Great Satan gets humiliated.
We really have no good options.

re: #217 bald headed geek

Putin is a very cagey and smart adversary. He understands the weakness of the West in general and NATO in particular, and that there is no appetite (especially in Europe) to confront him. Georgia and its pipeline are a test case. If he gets away with this--and all signs are that he will--the next targets will be the oil rich nations of Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan. And, I would be pretty nervous right now if I were a Ukrainian...........

BHG

I totally agree with you....

... and I still admire Putin's balls... though he is an enemy.

Learn from your enemy's strengths.

re: #185 bald headed geek

Now or later, it seems to me.

re: #239 Peacekeeper

WOLVERINES!

Stay calm. Don't make any sudden movements. Let them have the keyboard. It's just not worth it, man.

You can bet that the Iranians are watching this very closely to preview how their upcoming BS will be met with by the west.

re: #228 Nevergiveup

If I read this correctly, it is predicated on a meeting being held tomorrow.

He very well could be in country now.

This smells bad.

IIRC, Russia did something right before the last flare in Lebanon.

Something broader is in the works here.

re: #234 Ben Hur

Yes.

Just a quick reminder to all lizards out there. Do not buy any gas from Lukol. Just saying.

re: #245 gunjam

and I still admire Putin's balls

GAH WOULD YOU PLEASE STOP ADMIRING PUTIN'S BALLS!

re: #240 yma o hyd

Read this report from a British journalist - it happened "a mile out of Gori":"British Journalist Brush with Death in Georgia"

Media Masturbation.

Journalists. The real heroes of a war.

God bless these brave little new democracies, standing up to the rotten Russian Bear that's just murdered thousands.

These brave souls have their fingers crossed hoping Uncle Sam keeps its word about life, liberty, freedom.

Put McCain on the air to tear Putin a new one and inspire our little allies.

McCain knows what it's like to sit in a gulag 5.5 years waiting for deliverance via American bombers overhead.

re: #194 Occasional Reader

If Bush suddenly had the Marines seize Baja California, I doubt the CSM would congratulate him on his "big win" less than a week later, do you?

In a US-led fight, if there is still one person shooting back, it's a quagmire, hopeless and endless.

Israel need to make sure to keep their eye on the ball in Iran.

re: #230 gunjam

Make them blink now.

It will be too late later.

Shades of Hitler going into Sudetenland. (They had orders to retreat if the French resisted. Alas, the rest is history.)

You mean the Rhineland. 1936. Sudentenland is in Czech Bohemia, and that happened in 1938.

re: #208 Ward Cleaver

He's busy trying to work out how Israel goaded us into this, then he'll put up a column on Townhall.com.

The connection there is that Israel has been selling arms to Georgia (see the neo-con conspiracy?).

Sorry about linking to lunatic "anti-war.com", but I stumbled on this one linked from that Buchanan thing:

[Link: www.antiwar.com...]

re: #161 Suihei Deloi

Great links. Know that many of those sites have been under cyberattack by the Russians. There is a good synopsis of these attacks on Wikipedia's article on what they are calling the 2008 South Ossetia war.

re: #117 redc1c4

at least one Bde is on the ramp, unless things have changed.

airlift, OTOH, might be an issue. good thing Congress decided we didn't need any more C-17's......

The problem with that is that Russians will see a major airlift coming. Tbilisi airport is already within range of their SAMs. The only way to ensure the transport got though would be a preemptive strike.

re: #205 Kragar (Proud to be Kafir)

Obviously Bush's fault because of the economy.

/

He was clinging to his gun because of the bad economy. Obama predicted this. He is a prophet!

Inclusion in the G8 can be withheld. The falling price of oil might hurt the Russian bottom line. Wouldn't hurt at all if Pelosi et all decided to drill. Seems as if oil production is a common denominator for many of our foes. What greater reason do we need to up our production?

re: #243 Opinionated

Oooh. Good point!

BHG

The simple fact is the Russian army in Georgia is highly exposed and cannot be mutually supported by other units. American airpower alone could destroy the army in place if Moscow plans on keeping it there it requires heavy sealift capability.