Some Questions for the MSM To Ask About the War in Georgia - and The US Role

1. Why haven't any citizens or government officials from the autonomous Province of South Ossetia been interviewed by the MSM?

2. Who started this war? Which army picked up its guns and tanks last Thursday and blasted a path through the Caucasus Mountains to the city of Tskhinvali, killing as many local militia as possible, bombing peacekeeping forces, and forcing 30,000 refugees to flee northward from the autonomous regions of Ossetia?

17 years ago, when the USSR disintegrated, South Ossetia was annexed by Georgian military forces, with which it shared neither nationality nor culture.

South Ossetia retained its status as an Autonomous Republic with its local authorities and a separate capital, Tskhinvali. Northern Ossetia is an autonomous part of Russia.

At dawn on August 8, this year Georgia changed the status quo and launched a surprise attack on the capital of South Ossetia in an attempt to "to restore constitutional order."

Georgians opened fire with heavy artillery against Tskhinval. Georgian troops stormed the city --- much as Russian Tanks stormed Prague in 1968. Georgian tanks and infantry were being aided by US and Israeli advisors and weapons.

Russia is outraged, accuses Georgian troops of war crimes against civilians, and promptly lauches a bloody, massive retaliation driving out the Georgian troops. Russia captures Tskhinvali and Russian fighter jets drop bombs in Georgian city of Gori, 15 miles from border with South Ossetia.

This reckless Georgian land grab attempt was founded on a fundamental misjudgment, according to Michael Evans in the Times of London.

The Georgian President thought he had the West on his side, but he was outsmarted by Putin who now holds all the cards and wants to institute a Russian Monroe Doctrine (which was used to justify U.S. imperialism in the Western Hemisphere) on his close neighbors in Central Asia.

The military adventure had all the hallmarks of rushed planning and a "fingers-crossed strategy", according to Evans, launched in the hope and expectation that the Russians would not react - and that if they did, the Americans would come to their aid.

"By seizing Tskhinvali, Georgian President Saakashkvili took one hell of a gamble that Russia wouldn't intervene. Georgia is paying a high price for this."

Evans wrote:

"However, with Russian troops never far away, it was always going to be David versus Goliath. But this time a slingshot was not good enough. He had Mr Putin to deal with and there was never any doubt who would win that battle."

Who benefits politically in the 08 American Presidential Election?

News Flash.

For hundreds of years Politicians have capitalized on international events to influence domestic politics and elections. It has happened with Democratic and Republican politicians,..... and with Dictators and elected officials as well.

McCain has been the strongest global voice behind Georgia since the shooting began, and the current crisis perfectly matches his campaign themes:

Obama is not ready to be President, and McCain -- the war hero -- is.

How did the Georgian President come to think that this was a good time to taunt the Russian bear?

As Machiavelli wrote in The Prince:

Theological and moral imperatives have no place in the political arena. "Men are always wicked at bottom unless they are made good by some compulsion."

Comments

[Cassie129]

Thank you for this article. THANK YOU.

[iggy06]

Jay, there is a great Russian news station that broadcasts in English called Russia Today. They have a YouTube profile with 20 minute news segments all day long where they interview Ossetian citizens. It is unbelievable how much we are being lied to by all of our media. Especially CNN. Theyve been the worst of all. Whoever said CNN was "Liberal" is nuts. Go to youtube.com/russiatoday and watch their news footage. They show it all. Interviews with eyewitnesses, they show dead UN peacekeepers, soldiers, civilians, etc . Whoever said that Russian media is censored has obviously not watched Russia Today. Their war coverage makes our US war coverage look like a joke.

[ANIMIST]

I was watching CNN this morning. They made it sound like hell on earth, Rusiian yanks are advancing to the Georgian capital. Ten minutes later, it turned out they were escorting Georgian tanks away from South Ossentia.

Then they showed images, emails & blogs from people affected by the conflict. They were all Georgian.

CNN the 'most trusted name in news'. Like John McCain 'spoke for every American' yesterday when he said we were all on the side of that tiny little brave nation of Georgia.

Reminder MSM, there are 2 sides to every story...

[galinha]

Question 3: Does America want another warmonger as president?

[joanndarc]

Some real conservatives might say "NO", but who know with American brilliant media propaganda.

[JenMI]

Let's not diminish the OIL factor here.

[coastalcarla]

Exactly! I find it very interesting that we have no interest in helping other countries with humanitarian crises, like in Africa every day of the week, but we have all this help flowing to a country that has lobbyists working for them (that also work on John McCain's campaign staff). And that the only reason we ever bother helping anyone out of a humanitarian crisis is when there is oil to be had for America. And the MSM doesn't even have the victim right in this scenario. Georgia is not the victim - they're the aggressor. Russia is going to smack us down if we get involved with this. May the flying spaghetti monster save us from our own politicians!

[Tommygun264]

Meanwhile McSame's top adviser in the matter was until this past March a paid lobbyist for Georgia. Is it any wonder why he now paints Russia as the bad guy and holds Georgia - the nation who initiated hostilities - blameless in a situation where the blame falls on both sides? Could you imagine the outcry if anyone on Obama's staff had been a paid agent for a foreign country? But as always, the mainstream corporate media laps up everything McSame says as gospel and doesn't research or verify anything before regurgitating it for public consumption.

[iggy06]

You are exactly right about McCain and his top advisor. McCain's jewish advisor is buddies with the Georgian Defense Minister who's also a zionist Israeli. Israel has provided billions in weapons. This is yet another deception by US and ISrael. Watch the excellent news coverage on the English speaking Russian news station..."Russia Today". www.RussiaToday.com and http://www.youtube.com/user/RussiaToday

They interview dozens of Ossetians, as well as an American family living in South Ossetia who witnessed the whole thing and blame the Georgians. They described horrible war crimes committed b y Georgians, Israelis, and US advisors...

[army193]

Hey facts get in the way of propaganda.

[randyjet]

I find it funny that the media has NO problem with the fact that our so called allies in Georgia LOVE their boy Joseph Stalin. They still have a big statue honoring him in Gori. Think how the rest of the world would regard ANY city in Austria or Germany which had a similar statue to HITLER! Yet the US media thinks that is just fine. I can see their point since Stalin was a guy they could sympathize with in that he kept the masses in line and in terror and ignorance.

[iggy06]

Because Stalin continued the Boshevik jewish plan and exterminated 45 million Russians. Ten times what the jews claim in the holocaust. Georgia is heavily funded by Likudniks.

[tompoe]

There is no MSM. There is corporate media. Do your questions have value when asked of corporate media?

[Snowball]

Excellent and insightful article. It's been fascinating to me to see how the coverage of this story has progressed over the last week in our Corporate Media. The slight detail that it was Georgia that provoked the conflict by invading South Ossetia is being conveniently and systematically omitted in order to paint Russia as the aggressor here. The thought had crossed my mind that Georgia's actions, as well as the consequent coverage by our Corporate Media, was all too neatly lined up to dovetail with the McCain campaign's belligerent rhetoric against Russia. The Corporate Media quickly rushed videos of wounded and dead Georgians (interesting we still don't see similar images from Iraq), but absent from their coverage has been any coverage of what the Georgians did in South Ossetia or any interviews with politicians or civilians from that region. Ultra-right Conservative foreign policy "experts" were immediately lined up for commentary and analysis in print, radio, cable and network news all echoing McCain's proscription for ousting Russia from international bodies such as the G8.

I find it highly likely that this was an international incident orchestrated from Washington to bolster the McCain campaign.

[cmp]

Ghastly thought but I'm learning slowly but surely how this White House works. Wouldn' doubt it.

[coastalcarla]

I also think that our war mongering government is irritated with the fact that Russia is backing Iran's ambitions for nuclear power for its citizens, against our wishes. And all of the war cheerleaders (the 23%ers) are just looking for another fight so we can elect their "war president". This whole situation stinks to high heavens.

[bronceye]

What I found humorous in the beginning of the Russian retaliation was the "news" people's constant referral to Putin being at the Olympics for deniability. They failed to give bush the same scrutiny. Georgia would not have tried this without a nod from somebody. Unfortunately, that nod eventuated into another "My Pet Goat" moment. Let us face it, bush and putin knew what was coming. Bush blinked, just like his dad did with the Iraqis.

[Tommygun264]

Bush's incompetence gives him deniability regardless of location. Look at the tapes of Bush being warned that the levies would most likely fail in a conference call BEFORE hurricane Katrina hit, then days later as he said "no one could have anticipated the failure of the levies". The proof is there on videotape and Bush still claims and has been granted deniability in the matter. The man has never been held responsible for any of his messes.

[BADEN]

McCain's IRI.ORG fingerprints alll over this one.

McCain's been working that "commie" angle for years through the TAX PAYER FUNDED INTERNATIONAL (let me repeat that part ) INTERNATIONAL REPUBLICAN INSTITUTE.

http://www.iri.org.ge/eng/engmain.htm

The neocon idiot in Georgia actually believe the Mac would come like Patton onna white horse...