Hey, we can agree on something. Not only the US, the entire pro-western world wins as the ugly face of the russian bear was once again revealed to the entire planet. Georgia is a winner - it was a win-win for them from the get-go, either they would have gotten their land back or they would have outed their mortal enemy as an invader, aggressor and hypocrite. Ukraine is probably a winner too as they'll be in NATO in no time and substantial pro-Russian forces there will be marginalized for generations to come, Poland will quickly sign the military treaty with the US it's been refusing to sign for quite some time... Having said that the US and others are the winners I would like to emphasize that that makes Russia the loser, not a victim worthy of sympathy.
a_person, Georgia as a nation will be a winner in the long term, but the civilian population was sacrificed - especially the minorities. The biggest losers in geopolitical terms are Europe and Russia. It was no "miscalculation" by the part of Saakashvili or other supporters like the US and commercial interests in Israel. On the other hand, in geopolitical terms, neither the US nor the commercial interests in Israel need Saakashvili - as a matter of fact, they might be happy to see him go and replaced by a more stable democratic government - as their strategic rewards are already met by the attack he initiated. It's all reminiscent of a repugnant and cynical powerplay with total disrespect for civilians life and property, or the best interests of a population. And just now - Poland is saying they will in fact be receiving the US missile defense system and have a mutual protection agreement ... So, there you have it - it's easily predictable and all the US strategic interests are played into their hands by Georgia attacking those minorities.
Good. I like that!!! Although I kinda disagree about Europe, especially Western Europe. They did not lose anything really but it should be a wake up call for them and a good reminder that nothing has changed in the world and without their own military and/or the US support they are all impotent hostages to oppressive and anti-democratic foreign regimes like Russia and equally oppressive domestic groups like their hostile muslim population. So perhaps america-hating fringe idiots and nutjobs are also losers.
a_person, what do you call people who celebrate and like the killing of civilians, minority populations then - especially when it serves their goals? See, this is how hypocrisy works in society - it's a necessary and integral part for the self-preservation of a society. In this case - the conflict was in the best interests of the USA and it's strategic place in the world. Did you get that part on the philosophical part of hypocrisy I mentioned in the other thread? The world is a dog-eat-dog place, and we all know that. I'm simply showing my indignation for the outrageous lack of respect of human lives by this geopolitical powerplay.
Certainly, the russians have their strategic goals in the region. However, in this conflict they were protecting the breakaway regions and their population. There was already a brokered peace agreement, which Georgia violated - in the interests of many, as I've pointed out. Of course, we all have egoistic interests when talking geopolitical strategies, conflicts etc. In the case of Israel - Europe is burdened in various ways by the destabilized region, while the US by proxy of Israel keeps the arab nations in control, and not prospering. Russia exerts great pressure on it's neighbours to avoid destabilizing it's borders, while the US gains by destabilizing it and tieing Europe closer. Russia enjoys the same privilege when Venezuela is the nation in their region increasing their military capabilities the most, and when Russia and India go with Russia in collaboration for the Sukhoi PAK-FA next generation fighter plane. The US pays a high price sometimes for it's geopolitical strategies and actions - like in the 9/11 attacks. As does Russia with the Chechen conflict. No matter what the reason, the complete disregard to civilian life and property is what is the foremost concern, in my opinion. That is most importantly why I don't like what has been happening.
"It's not true that the Georgians have destroyed Tskhinvali. Russian troops were stationed in Tskhinvali and from their base in the city have provoked the Georgian side [over a long period]. I work in Gori and there was hardly a day when there wasn't any shelling - virtually every day we had wounded delivered to our hospital - there was no end to Russia's provocation, all year round. So Georgia had no choice but to defend itself." However he insists that, even now, there is "practically no national animosity" between Georgians, on one hand, and Ossetians and Abkhazians on the other. "I'm absolutely convinced that we can live together. If the Russians don't provoke the situation, Georgians, Ossetians and Abkhazians could live a normal life together," he says. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7561801.stm
Unlike the US, Poland sees Russia as a bigger threat to its security than so-called "rogue states" such as Iran, our correspondent adds. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7561926.stm LOL, I wonder why!!!