Hypocrisy of this Magnitude has to be Respected.

Interesting article available at Information Clearinghouse about Russia/Georgia and the West. It's by William Blum so you know it's worth reading.

So what then was the purpose of the Georgian invasion of Ossetia if not to serve the electoral campaign of John McCain, a man who might be the next US president and be thus very obligated to the Georgian president? Saakashvili could have wanted to overthrow the Ossetian government to incorporate it back into Georgia, at the same time hopefully advancing the cause of Georgia's petition to become a member of NATO, which looks askance upon new members with territories in dispute or with military facilities belonging to a nonmember state such as Russia. But the nature of the Georgian invasion does not fit this thesis. The Georgians did none of the things that those staging a coup have traditionally found indispensable. They did not take over a TV or radio station, or the airport, or important government buildings, or military or police installations. They didn't take into custody key members of the government. All the US/Israeli-armed and trained Georgia military did was bomb and kill, civilians and Russian peacekeeper soldiers, the latter legally there for 16 years under an international agreement. For what purpose all this if not to incite a Russian intervention?

What Could WeDo With $523 Billion?

Thats the direct cost of the Iraqi war so far, Charlie Stross has some ideas...

NASA have plans for a manned Mars expedition based on the Ares spacecraft they're developing as a replacement for the Space Shuttle. Price estimates vary from $20Bn (presumably for a single round-trip) to $450Bn (presumably for a single round trip plus all the externalities, like developing the spacecraft and equipment and conducting a thorough prior reconnaissance using unmanned landers).

Either way, the direct costs of the Iraq war exceed the maximum cost estimate for a manned Mars expedition, infrastructure and all, by 20%. If we take $20Bn as the cost per mission and $450Bn as the cost to develop the technology to go there, the direct cost of the Iraq war would be sufficient to develop a gold-plated Mars expeditionary capability and send six crews of astronauts to Mars (and bring them back afterwards).

link

$4,000 a second

Apparently the war in Iraq is costing the U.S. $10 Billion a month, thats $4,000 a second apparently - a mind boggling amount. Tom Tomorrow illustrates here 'At first they told us the war would pay for itself'

A Difference take on Prince Harry's Trip

Cry 'God for Harry, England and St George'

It's better than Kitchener's "Your country needs you." Skilfully and chillingly, it speaks to this century and through the most modern media.

Kosovo Declares Independance

Well the first chapter of the next Balkan war was written on Sunday as Kosovo declared independence. Looking at the map below it's not hard to see why Kosovo wants independence but unfortunately for them a lot of very important Serbian monasteries are located in that little patch of land. I once had the opportunity to ask a Serbian woman why Kosovo was so important and she basically said "Everything that is Serbia is there", something similar to being say, Greek, but the Turks occupying Athens. The only question is why the U.S. and Europe are so keen on this idea? Is it just to stick it to the Russians?

War Made Easy

Interview with a U.S. Marine

Information Clearing house posts a pretty chilling interview with an ex-marine named Jimmy Massey, it's not a present read.

Q: You have also denounced the use of depleted uranium…

A: I am 35 years old and I only have 80 percent of my lung capacity left. I have been diagnosed a degenerative disease in my backbone, chronic fatigue and pains in my tendons. You know, I used to run 10 kilometers just because I liked to run, and now I can only walk between 5 and 6 kilometers every day. I am afraid of having children because of that. I got a swollen face. Look at this picture (He shows me the photo on his Book Fair credential). This photo was taken shortly after I returned from Iraq. I look like Frankenstein. I owe all that to depleted uranium, now you can imagine what is happening to the people in Iraq.

They also report that the estimated Iraqi dead is now at 1 million...