Russia: The Pirate Escapade is getting Interesting!

Hello,

Seems to be an interesting issue that American warships have taken a huge interest in this pirate escapade.....

Several American warships from the 5th Fleet joined the USS Howard, which is blocking the Faina, a Belize-registered cargo ship with a $35-million load of weapons, which was seized by Somali pirates last week. Several European warships are also remaining in the area and the Russian Neustrashimy is heading to the scene from the Baltic Fleet. The American ships have so far restricted their actions to calling on the pirates not to touch the cargo, but their admonitions have gone unheeded. (Link)

But you have to remember that America is behind this whole escapade, so they are there trying to cover up another mess up. Russia is steaming in to put pressure on the American ships and try to expose the game. Pretty neat, Huh....

1st article on this pirate escapade! (Link)

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

PS: Update, It seems that everyone is confused - It was said by Ukraine that the tanks are going to Kenya then the USA says, "NO they are going to Sudan." Then Kenya said that they were for them and at the same time Sudan said that they are theirs. Then the pirates were fighting among each other, but that changed also to the Pirates are celebrating the Muslim feast of Eid al-Fitr despite being surrounded by American warships and helicopters. The Pirates say that they are having a good time and wish the world all peace and happiness.......

Russian news: September 30th, 2008!

Moscow, Seoul to Become Strategic Partners:
South Korean President Lee Myung-bak, who is in Moscow now, had a meeting with Russia’s President Dmitry Medvedev yesterday, September 29, 2008. The key result of that get-together was the agreement to proceed to another level in bilateral relations, the one of strategic partnership.

Russian nuclear submarine makes 30-day trip under Arctic ice:
A Russian Delta-III class ballistic missile submarine has successfully sailed from a naval base in northern Russia to the Pacific Ocean under the Arctic ice floe, a Navy spokesman said on Tuesday. Ryazan is a Project 667BDR Delta III class strategic nuclear submarine, which entered service with Russia's Northern Fleet in 1982. It has a crew of 130 and can travel underwater without coming to the surface for up to 90 days.The submarine is armed with 16 R-29RM (SS-N-23 Skiff) ballistic missiles with a range of 8,000 km (about 5,000 miles).

Medvedev pledges further economic, security assistance for Abkhazia:
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has pledged to continue security and economic assistance for Abkhazia, the Kremlin press service said on Tuesday.

Opinion poll says only 31% of Russians use Internet:
A poll conducted by the All-Russian Public Opinion Research Center has shown that two-thirds of Russians do not use the Internet.

Over 100 in hospital with meningitis in northern Russia:
A total of 101 people have been hospitalized with suspected aseptic meningitis in the northern Russian city of Arkhangelsk, the local emergencies department said Tuesday.

Lavrov Calls for New European Security Treaty:
Russia advocates negotiating a new treaty on European and Atlantic security that will cover NATO, the EU, OSCE as well as the security structures of the post-Soviet territory, Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov announced at the news conference in New York.

Belarus Parliament without Opposition:
The preliminary results of the Belarusian parliamentary elections were announced yesterday. Contrary to expectations, no representatives of the opposition were elected to the body. Observers from the OSCE severely criticized the elections. The recent warming of relations between Minsk and the West now looks problematic, but Moscow should be happy with the new parliament, which it expects to recognize the independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

Russia: Gorby Starts a New Political Party!

Hello,

On TV in Russia tonight it was announced:

Mikhail Gorbachev has said that he is planning to create a new political party in Russia. His partner is a Russian banker Alexander Lebedev.

The new organization will be called "the Independent democratic party of Russia", Its founders want it to take part in 2011 parliamentary elections and challenge the ruling party United Russia.

Go Gorby!

Kyle & Svet

From Russia: The USA - Bailout Failed! Hallelujah!

Thank Goodness the bailout was stopped for now.....

Hallelujah

Posted by Lew Rockwell at September 29, 2008 01:12 PM

What a heroic day! The people rose up against a coalition of every evil group in America: the central bank, Wall Street plutocrats, politicians, banksters, think tanks (including the pseudo-libertarian sort), big media, big academia, and big business, and won. Today we got a taste of what things may look like when the regime is finally toppled, and its theft and killing stopped. The Austrian economists are vindicated again, as is Rothbard's political analysis, and our pizza party for Mises's birthday today look on an especially festive air. The bad guys may yet beat us, but how sweet to see the CNBC types running around like chickens with their heads cut off. Now let's get to work to defend the free market and sound money, and finger the Fed and all who support it as the culprits. Oh, and by the way, congratulations, Ron Paul. (Link)

Update:

The US House of Representatives has passed a $700bn (£380bn) government plan to rescue the US financial sector.

The 263-171 vote was the second in a week, following its shock rejection of an earlier version on Monday.

The package is aimed at buying up the bad debts of failing financial institutions on Wall Street.

US President George W Bush praised lawmakers for their "spirit of co-operation" before signing the bill into law later on Friday.

The House adopted the new version after the Senate added about $100bn

Russia: South Ossetia taking Matters in its Own Hands!

Hello,

I was drinking my second cup of coffee and thinking about what South Ossatia is doing.

South Ossetian authorities are planning to put Georgia's President Mikhail Saakashvili on an international wanted list. The South Ossetian Prosecutor General's Office will complete all necessary procedures next week.

"The South Ossetian Prosecutor General's Office is drawing up charges against Saakashvili, who will be declared wanted internationally soon," South Ossetia's Prosecutor General Taimuraz Khugayev told Interfax on Monday.

"A warrant for entering the Georgian president on an international wanted list will be handed to the corresponding agencies of the states, which have recognized South Ossetia's independence," Khugayev said. (Link)

Some things make me smile and I was just thinking that Saakashvili will never ever go to South Ossetia and show his face again. :)

I wonder if they put his picture up on the post office wall like they do in America. Maybe they should put up his picture of eating a tie - That has to be a crime also....

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Russia: Visa Time - Soon Onward To Israel!

Hello,

This weekend (Sunday - Oct.5th) we leave for Israel. The tickets are bought, the dog has a sitter to spend a few weeks with. We are packing and getting all the mandatory necessities in order. The biggest necessity for me is to have about one month supply of my prescriptions for my heart. It is fun crossing the border with a small pharmacy! :) You have to explain to the whole world: I have heart problems and these pills are necessary.

They (not me) usually get nervous and get me on through when they realize that they do not want to do all the paper work involved with someone having a heart attack due to stress at the border crossing. I always say "Thank God for Nitro!" :)

Svet is so excited, this is one of the few countries that allow Russians to cross with out a visa. I think that is fantastic and truth is, any country that lets Americans in without a visa should let Russians in without a visa. Vietnam is close to no visa for Russians, so that looks like a good place to travel in the future. we have decided that visa restrictions are a factor in our travels. If the country has visa issues about Russia, then they really do not need our money. This visa issues are what keep us from traveling to Finland and Norway. Both countries treat Svet like she is second class person. :(

So when we get back from Israel we will be writing about getting my visa from the Russian Embassy in Israel!

This time we are going to cut cds of our pictures and also save the pictures on flash drives. We are not going to lose these pictures. (Knock on Wood!)

We will keep you updated before we leave...

Kyle & Svet

Russia: Help with Iran Means the USA gets Priorities Straight!

Hello,

I saw an interesting article while drinking my coffee that Russia will only communicate about Iran if the USA gets their attitude straight about Georgia. I guess we will see how important Georgia is to the USA.....

The UN Security Council held its latest meeting on Saturday. Due to Russia’s efforts, no new sanctions will be imposed on the Islamic Republic of Iran. Formally, Moscow wants to maintain the possibility for a diplomatic solution to the crisis around Iran’s enrichment of uranium. The Russian leadership had made it clear in advance, however, that it would be willing to come to an agreement on Iran only after the United States changes it position on Georgia.

Russian Ambassador to the United Nations Vitaly Churkin introduced the current document on Iran, saying that a resolution was needed that “would give wind to the political process” on Iran. The document urges Iran to follow all IAEA Guidelines and all previous Security Council resolutions demanding that Iran stop work on uranium enrichment. No mention is made of new sanctions in the resolution.

The Group of Six that is working on the Iranian crisis (Russia, the U.S., Great Britain, China, France and Germany) had planned to pass a much more pointed resolution on Iran that included sanctions during the UN General Assembly session in New York last week, but Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov made it known to a narrow circle that the U.S. would not be able to “punish” Russia for its actions in the Caucasus and work with it on Iran at the same time. It was then announced that Lavrov’s schedule did not permit him to meet with the group’s other foreign ministers.

Also on Saturday, Lavrov stated from the podium of the UN General Assembly that the majority of the world’s problems today stem from the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003. “Under the false pretense of fighting terror and the spread of nuclear arms, international law was broken and a global crisis was artificially created that still has not yet been completely overcome,” Lavrov told the General Assembly. (Link)

I find this interesting because the USA has cried wolf in everyone's backyards and now for once they are being sent home spanked.

Russia does not see the urgency about Iran that the USA does and I do not see the urgency either. But then I never saw the urgency in Iraq, Just like I never saw the urgency in Afghanistan, Just like the urgency to develop a terrorist black list, Just like the urgency of missiles in Poland, Just like we must build a wall against Mexico, Just like we must oppress the people speaking out at the Democratic and Republican conventions, Just like the urgency of Home Land Security and so on and so on and so on. The urgency of the situation is part of the crying wolf syndrome.

The last statement of Lavrov is very true and accurate. The USA has been playing crying wolf for a long time now. How does the world know what is truth or lies anymore?

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

PS: Crying Wolf - Even when liars tell the truth, they are never believed. The liar will lie once, twice, and then perish when he tells the truth.

Russia: NASA will Pay their Bills!

Hello,

'Okay, Houston, we've had a problem here.'
John Swigert, Jr. and James Lovell who, with Fred Haise Jr., made up the crew of the US's Apollo 13 moon flight used (almost) this phrase to report a major technical problem back to their Houston base.

The U.S. Congress has allowed NASA to make payments to Russia's Space Agency, its main partner in the International Space Station. Lawmakers moved to adopt an amendment after warnings from NASA officials that American astronauts may lose access to the ISS in three years. NASA regards the results of the vote in Congress as a victory.

Congress agreed to change the 2000 Iran, North Korea and Syria Nonproliferation Act which prohibits the government from making payments to Russia related to the International Space Station, because of Russia’s sale of nuclear materials to Iran.

In November 2005, NASA got a waiver until the end 2011, allowing the space agency to pay for rides to the ISS on Russian Soyuz space craft. Since then NASA has sealed a number of contracts with Russia's Space Agency worth almost $US 1 billion.

The exemption will now last until 2016. The timing is linked to NASA’s plans to get rid of its three shuttles in 2010 and redirect funds to Moon and Mars projects. A new spacecraft called Orion will only be ready by 2016 so the U.S. will need to use Russian Soyuz spaceships till then. (Link)

I can see Bush, Rice and Cheney jumping up and down over this one....

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

I Wanna be a Hurricane! You can be a Hurricane too!

Hello,

Tropical Storm Kyle Forms In the Atlantic.

Looks like a Bad, Tough Storm To Me! :)

I have mixed feelings about my name being used to name a possible Hurricane. I think that it is cool, but what happens if it turns into the storm of the century and destroys half the world. I would really feel bad then....

MIAMI, Florida (AP) -- The National Hurricane Center says Tropical Storm Kyle has strengthened as it churns through the open Atlantic, south of Bermuda.

The storm's maximum sustained winds have increased to 50 mph Thursday night. Forecasters say the storm could become a hurricane by Saturday as it moves north.

It's centered about 555 miles south of Bermuda and is moving near 13 mph.

Forecasters expect the storm to continue moving north and strengthen over the next couple of days.

Kyle is the 11th named storm this season in the Atlantic. (Link)

So my wish is to be the baddest Hurricane that ever hit the earth, The Daddy of all Hurricanes. The Hurricane that stories will be written about for thousands of years..... (But no-one can die or be injured - sorta like a Hollywood movie that everyone lives through!)

Kinda a Catch-22...... My luck the Hurricane Kyle will sink the Bermuda Islands, push Cuba into Texas and send Florida to become part of Europe. (Ouch)

But according to the Weather People: Kyle is just going to become a Hurricane and head up to the New York and Maine area. (Oh well!)

I just saw a news report that Tropical Storm Kyle has killed 4 people in Puerto Rico. :(

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Russia: As The Winds Do Change! (Part 5)

Could a storm be brewing?

Hello,

A little tid-bit of information that I posted a couple of weeks ago....

Update on Story: Ukraine says that the tanks were bond for Kenya and there was 33 tanks and parts and ammo.... (Hmmmmm oh OK!)

The United States and Israel have consistently refused to rule out the possibility of military action against Iran over its refusal to halt its uranium enrichment and Georgia would be an ideal bridgehead for a U.S. invasion of Iran. Then NATO proceeds to comment on the fact that it will rebuild the NATO class airport that was destroyed in Georgia. It will be better than it was and all the latest updated equipment. Russia seems to be getting the picture also, that Ukraine is shipping Soviet T-72 Tanks to Afghanistan for NATO (USA). Seems if I remember correctly (Soviet Times), Tanks are worthless in Afghanistan due to the terrain but they are great in the plains area of Iran.(Link)

This Ukraine is shipping Tanks is confirmed today with the CNN article:

KIEV, Ukraine (AP) -- The Foreign Ministry says pirates have seized a Ukrainian-operated ship off Somalia. The ministry says the Faina was sailing with 21 people on board under the Belize flag, though it is operated by Ukrainian managing company Tomax Team Inc. The ministry says in a statement that the ship's captain reported being surrounded by three boats of armed men Thursday afternoon. The ship's passengers include 17 Ukrainian citizens including the captain, as well as three Russians and one Latvian citizen. The ministry had no information on the ship's cargo. But the Interfax news agency cited an unnamed source as saying the ship was loaded with about 30 T-72 tanks and spare parts for them. (Link)

Opps - looks like it is cover up time for Ukraine, NATO and the USA! Update - seems that Ukraine first gave out information that the tanks were going to South Sudan, then hours later they changed the story to Kenya. Well wait and see what the next story says.

They also where caught very far from the normal shipping route. The explanation was: We were trying to avoid pirates so that is why we are so far off course.

So before anyone jumps up and down and says NATO don't have Russian made T-72's, think again, Iraq has 77 to 120 of these tanks which some Western sources refer to as the T-74 but NATO refers to as the T-80. Many of these tanks are in action as they are upgraded by NATO to NATO standards. Czech is upgrading all their T-72's to NATO standards right now.

In fact allot of Russian equipment is used in NATO, from Migs to tanks....

As the Wind Blows it has de-leafed a tree and exposed some interesting things....

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

PS: The yellow area on the world map is Somalia, They only had a little ways to travel before they were home free. The sources are reporting several hundred tanks have already been delivered.

Russian News: September 26th, 2008!

RBC, 26.09.2008, Moscow 12:35:07.The Russian stock market is expected to recover fully by mid-October, experts told RBC TV today. Until the end of September, the market will likely continue a moderately downward trend, with certain stocks remaining highly volatile. The trade volume depends not only on margin lending that resumes now on the market, analysts say, but also on government support anticipated to begin October 1. Investors will not take any active steps until then, experts note, or until US Congress decisions have been announced. The oil sector is expected to be the most attractive for investment during the next three to four months. Although Gazprom and Rosneft are currently under pressure, their shares, as well as those of LUKoil and Surgutneftegas, are projected to become the Russian market's best performers from October 1. In particular, analysts indicate that LUKoil is the most undervalued Russian company at the moment.

RBC, 26.09.2008, Moscow 11:59:46.The Russian state nuclear corporation Rosatom expects Australia to ratify a nuclear cooperation agreement, a high-ranking source close to the sector told journalists today. Russia is of course interested in the ratification, the source said, adding however that it was of no great importance for the country's nuclear industry. Russia and Australia are equally interested in cooperation, the source noted - the former in terms of the diversification of uranium supplies and the latter in terms of uranium sales diversification. Russia's participation in uranium production in Australia, including an asset swap, was discussed as part of the agreement, the source pointed out.

RBC, 26.09.2008, Moscow 10:28:50.Russian President Dmitry Medvedev will meet today with his Venezuelan counterpart Hugo Chavez, who has arrived in Russia on a short working visit. The talks are to take place in Orenburg, where Chavez is scheduled to go after Moscow. During his visit to Russia, several bilateral agreements on energy, scientific, and technological cooperation are to be signed. The Russian and Venezuelan leaders are also expected to visit a military range close to Orenburg, where the final stage of a large-scale exercise will take place.

RBC, 25.09.2008, Samara 18:44:09.Russia's potential WTO partners have lost interest in its entry into the organization, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin told leaders of the Agrarian Party in the Samara region today. He noted that WTO member states had apparently lost motivation to accept Russia. The country fulfills all commitments even without being a WTO member, Putin stressed, so there is actually no need for them to allow it to join the organization. He pointed out that Russia's partners had to realize that the process of entry to the WTO was not easy and that concessions were necessary from both sides.

RBC, 25.09.2008, Samara 17:55:23.Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin believes that the government and the Central Bank's measures taken to address the recent financial crisis were absolutely fitting and efficient. He made this statement during today's meeting with representatives of regional offices of the United Russia political party in Samara. Putin reiterated that the global markets were shattered primarily because the leading economies, including the US, were pursuing an unfortunate economic and financial policy. However, he stressed that Russia was strong enough to overcome the crisis, allowing it to remain secure amidst the present global crisis.

RBC, 25.09.2008, Samara 18:17:28.Russia is not making excessive claims to the Arctic Shelf, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin told the representatives of the United Russia political party's regional branches, adding that the country's claims were in line with current international law. Russia intends to develop relations with its Arctic Shelf partners on a friendly basis, while simultaneously protecting its own interests, the PM stressed. He also noted that he did not understand why Russia's partners had reacted so sharply when Russia clarified its position on the Arctic Shelf. Putin reiterated that the Foreign Ministers of Russia, Norway, Denmark, Canada, and the US had recently held a meeting on the matter. The Ministers have agreed that the problem would be resolved in accordance with existing international legal base, particularly maritime law.

RBC, 25.09.2008, Moscow 14:16:25.Russia may become the strongest financial center in Eastern Europe in the next five to seven years, Russian Presidential Aide Arkady Dvorkovich said during a lecture at the International University in Moscow. He indicated that at the moment Russia could not be considered a global financial center, but stated that Moscow itself was steadily becoming a financial center of the CIS. With that in mind, in the next 10 to 15 years Russia could be ranked among the top eight global financial centers, Dvorkovich noted. He added that the process could have been expedited if Russia created an offshore zone, stressing, however, that this would have harmed Russia's image.

RBC, 25.09.2008, Moscow 16:58:51.At the request of Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, the government will allocate RUB 500bn (approx. USD 19.94bn) to stabilize the stock market by buying out shares of Russian companies, making those with a government stake the first priority, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin told representatives of the United Russia political party's regional branches. The government will be buying out undervalued stocks, Putin noted, pointing out that it expected them to rise.

Russia: New Metro (Subway) Rules!

Starting Oct. 11th, 2008:

Moscow has adopted new instructions for use of the metro in the city. The new rules regulate the usage of metro tickets and introduce some new obligations for passengers.

Now the passengers are obliged to show their tickets or metro cards on the request of the metro staff, who work at the self-acting check-points, the source said. It is demanded after introduction of tickets for persons entitled to benefits, because the metro authorities registered lots of cases when the benefit cards are used not only by the people, who have the right to the benefits, but also by their relatives and friends. Now it contradicts the Code on Administrative Violations. Earlier this restriction was not mentioned.

The new rules assign the free of charge pass to children less than seven years old, setting aside the previously obscure wording "preschool-age children."

Passengers will not have to abide by the old rule of holding onto the handrail on the right side of the escalator, and walking on the left. Starting immediately, escalator workers will be managing the crowds in conditions of intensive passenger traffic. Their job will be to order commuters to access the left or right side of the escalators.

Perhaps the most stringent introduction is a ban on the private trade of metro cards. The city authorities were forced to initiate this rule because during rush hours and first days of the month, when the demand for metro cards is the greatest and the queues occasionally stretch out of the metro stations, people offer others to enter the metro using their cards for a charge, which can be lower than the official ticket cost.

This behavior falls within the purview of the Code on Administrative Violations.

Now only persons, authorized by metro authorities, have the right to sell metro cards and to let people to pass through the check points of the metro stations," the source said.

Additionally, beggars, sellers, moneychangers, and others will be banned from the metro premises.

It is unlawful to prevent metro employees from carrying out their duties, to ignore their justifiable claims, to approach passengers [with the intent to sell them some product or service], not to follow the legitimate claims of police officers when the latter are on duty, according to the the new rules. (Link)

In Russia Life is Simple: We can Just Remove that Border in South Ossetia!

Hello,

This is what I like about Russia, everyday you get to shake your head in disbelief at the news you hear:

“As far as integration is concerned, currently it will be enough if we essentially eliminate borders between the Russian Federation and South Ossetia, assisting to restore the republic’s economy, if we give people an opportunity to live quietly and bring up their children, develop their republic and communicate without restrictions, without formalities at the frontier,” Putin said.

He has added that one more document should be signed – on the one side it will be protecting Russia’s interests in respect to its outer boundaries, and on the other side it will give people an opportunity to communicate freely, “without any administrative barriers”.(Link)

But that is why I love Russia! The way Russians look at things is great, "Just erase the borders!".

Kyle & Svet

PS: This should start, Bush and Company jumping up and down again.....

comments always welcome.

Russia: Why is She Not Part of OPEC?

Think if you added Russia to this graph!

Hello,

I was drinking my second cup of delicious coffee after a long morning walk with the dog. I was thinking about OPEC and Russia! Why Russia was not part of OPEC? To answer that question, it looks like they may become part of OPEC soon. Russia is starting to lean toward that prospect and OPEC is showing open arms.

Russia's daily oil output stands at around 10 million barrels, or about 12% of (world) global production, very close to the level of leading producer Saudi Arabia. OPEC's 13 member states are Algeria, Angola, Venezuela, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Qatar, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Ecuador. The countries account for around 67% of global proven oil reserves and 42% of global oil output. So you see Russia would be a huge increase in the OPEC's Global standings. It would give OPEC over 50% of Global oil output and over 75% of global oil reserves!

What is OPEC?

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries(OPEC) was created in 1960 to unify and protect the interests of oil-producing countries. OPEC allows oil-producing countries to guarantee their income by coordinating policies and prices among them. This unified front was created primarily in response to the efforts of Western oil companies to drive oil prices down. The original members of OPEC included Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Venezuela. OPEC has since expanded to include seven more countries (Algeria, Angola, Indonesia, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, and United Arab Emirates) making a total membership of 12.

OPEC represents a considerable political and economical force. Two-thirds of the oil reserves in the world belong to OPEC members; likewise, OPEC members are responsible for half of the world's oil exports. The fact that OPEC controls the availability of a substance so universally sought after by modern society renders the organization a force to be reckoned with. (Link)

OPEC has opened it's arms and has made it clear that they would like to welcome Russia as its member. The respective statement was made by Algerian Oil Minister and OPEC President Chakib Khelil.

I know that Russia is being considered positively and that Russia has been cooperating with OPEC for at least a decade and potential of a new format is very interesting. Russia will be attending the next meeting of OPEC that is slated for December 17, 2008.

So why has Russia not been made a part of OPEC?

Answer: Is that Russia hadn’t officially applied for the membership!

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Russia Does Not Have the Time to Placate in Iranian Witch Hunts!

Hello,

Today while drinking my morning cup of coffee, I was thinking about what I had said over a year ago: http://kylekeeton.com/2007/06/russia-wont-take-much-more-and-i-dont.html This article was about a time I was upset with the involvement of American politics in Russia. (Boy was I correct!) Russia has reached the point of telling the USA to "BUG OFF".

Even CNN has got the picture correctly now, I have been impressed with the change of direction in reporting by Time and CNN. They have a ways to go but at least they seem to try to get the truth now. (sometimes) CNN says, "A key meeting of world powers to discuss a fourth U.N. Security Council resolution imposing sanctions on Iran is unlikely because of a Russian boycott, according to a top U.S. official." This is correct, Russia does not have the time to placate in Iranian witch hunts!

Seems that the USA wants to come down on Iran while the Iranian President is in New York City for U.N. meetings. It seems that the Iranian President came down hard on the USA: " In a blistering speech before the United Nations General Assembly, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad blamed "a few bullying powers" for creating the world's problems and said the "American empire in the world is reaching the end of its road.

"At the United Nations, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said countries are turning their backs on "bullying powers."

And while he insisted Iran's nuclear activities are peaceful, Ahmadinejad blamed the same powers for seeking to hinder it "by exerting political and economic pressures on Iran, and threatening and pressuring" the International Atomic Energy Agency.

Those powers, meanwhile, are building or maintaining nuclear stockpiles themselves, unchecked by anyone, he said.

As Ahmadinejad spoke, the only person at the United States table was a note-taker; no U.S. diplomat was present. When President Bush spoke earlier Tuesday, however, Ahmadinejad was in the room.

"As long as the aggressors, because of their financial, political and propaganda powers, not only escape punishment, but even claim righteousness, and as long as wars are started and nations are enslaved in order to win votes in elections, not only will the problems of the global community remain unsolved, but they will be increasingly exacerbated," the Iranian leader said.

He accused the United States of oppressing Iraqis with six years of occupation, saying Americans were "still seeking to solidify their position in the political geography of the region and to dominate oil resources."" (Link)

Strange feeling to me when the Iranian President makes a lot more sense than our own leaders in America. It seems to me that all I hear out of Washington is Blah, Whine, Blah, Whine, Blah, Whine, Blah. That is what the rest of the world seems to be hearing also.....

In Germany: It's not a call for assistance; it's a scream for help. US Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson is asking other countries to help buy up bad US debt. The US government is putting up $700 billion in taxpayer money in the hopes that the measure might restore stability in the financial system. The German government has answered this call quickly and clearly: NO!.

Germany will not be the only one to say, NO! The problem is created and grown in America and by Americans. The world will suffer greatly from the problems now, much less buy more worthless debt and hold more funny money.

I also saw that Bolivia is throwing the fire back at America: At the same U.N. meeting that the Iranian President scorched the USA in, Bolivian President Evo Morales on Tuesday said, "The United States has tried to thwart his political ambitions and, more recently, failed to condemn a pro-autonomy movement that uses "terrorist" tactics." Morales, in the address to the United Nations General Assembly, described privatization as the cause of the world's financial crisis, and credited his nationalization of Bolivia's petroleum industry as a boon to the nation's economy. (Link)

To end this hodgepodge of an article we will concentrate on the latest words of wisdom from Moscow: “We would like very much that, in Washington, they finally get clear what they want from relations with Moscow,” said Andrei Nesterenko, official representative of the RF Foreign Ministry. as he was commenting on the proposal of the U.S. Department of State spokesman Sean McCormack. McCormack has urged Moscow to put aside all issues where it disagrees with the United States and focus on the fields, where the cooperation is possible, for instance, on Iran.

“If they want to punish Russia, it’s one thing. If they agree that we have common interests to be promoted by joint efforts, that’s another story. But as Rice puts it, “You can't have it both ways,” Nesterenko pointed out. (Link)

Seems to me that the USA needs to get its "ducks in order" as they say. Russia does not have the time to placate in Iranian witch hunts!

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Russia: Is She Really That Corrupt?

Corruption Is Universal!

Hello,

I was drinking my second cup of coffee and reading once again about the corruption in Russia. Sometimes that is all you hear about. How corrupt the Government is, how corrupt the cops are and how corrupt Moscow is. The fact is the articles are correct and if Russia could really get corruption under control that would be fantastic. I am not going to hold my breath though.

Another fact is that out of all the countries that I have lived in, I find Russia one of the least corrupt countries that I have had to deal with. Now I realize that is going against everyone else's thoughts in the world. But corruption is a matter of opinion allot of times. Russia also is the cheapest country to bribe compared to other countries. The most expensive country I have dealt with was Vietnam then the USA.

The most corrupt places in Russia are Moscow (42% have paid bribes), Tatarstan and Krasnodar Territory (41%), Stavropol Territory (40%), Moscow Region (37%) and St. Petersburg (34%). The least corrupt places are Perm Territory (12%) and Tyumen Region (18%). There has been no research in Yakutia, Chechnya or Dagestan yet. Most Russians (54%) have a tolerant attitude toward those who take bribes. That figure ranges between 63 percent in Moscow and 32 percent in Sakhalin. Thirty-seven percent of Russians (55% in Leningrad Region, 30% in Moscow, 28% in Krasnodar Territory) strongly condemn corruption. (Link)

Remember most of what they are calling corruption has to do with the police. It can get interesting at times while you drive the Russian country side, but it also makes it exciting and fun. Also put in perspective about the people that pay bribes to get things done faster: We have yet to pay a bribe to get government work done, but then we do not wait until the day it is due to get it done. Everything gets done with out bribes, but bribes get it done faster....

I remember in America that I helped someone get a liquor license, after we had gone through Hades and back with the State application to get a license. We then had to deal with the local officials; We took (6) Six envelopes with several thousand dollars in each then it took us a day of begging and bribery: 1st and 2nd envelopes went to City Police department and County Sheriff department to ensure our status as non criminals. The 2nd envelope went to the Head of the Town Council to activate our application with the city. The 3rd envelope went to the Mayor of the town to ensure our future security with the police department. The 4th envelope went to the City Fire Chief to make sure our building passed fire code inspection. The 5th envelope went to the County Health Department to make sure that they passed us for serving beer. This was just the county and city side of the transaction. The State side was another whole ballgame of bribery and begging (Just bigger bribes.).....

So corruption is in the eye of the beholder:
I would much rather pay a 500 ruble (20 dollars) bribe, no points off my license, no increase in insurance and no court hearing; to a cop for speeding in Russia. Than a $250 dollar (6250 rubles), points off my license, court day and increase in my insurance (ouch), speeding ticket in America!

Just thoughts for a Tuesday...

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Russia: What Would An American Do For A Living in Russia?

Hello,

I was drinking my morning cup of coffee and thinking about what Americans do for a living in Russia. My first thought went leaning towards English teachers, then maybe business men?

I did a little searching into the subject and happened upon the little known fact:

Most Foreigners in Russia Are Managers! It was found that foreigners worked in 87 percent of the companies taking part in a research by Kelly Services (large and medium-size companies in Moscow), but the total number of foreigners was quite low at 1-5 percent of a company’s personnel. In 68 percent of cases, the foreign workers were top executives, in 26 percent they were middle managers and in 3 percent they were specialists. Among the spheres with the most foreign specialists were marketing (18%), sales (17%), finance (12%) and administration (10%). (Link)

Seems that the demand for Business Managers is the greatest need. I myself see that demand and understand the need. One of the weakest areas that Russia has is in Customer Service. This is a direct correlation with Lower Management and Middle Management, which is a directly stimulated by upper management!

The management training that I see in Russia falls mainly in the: "He wants to play manager let him play manager." Training is sporadic and on the job. To be fair to Russia though: The "McDonald's Management Syndrome" is slowly affecting the Russian work force. McDonald's has their University (or equivalent) in Russia that trains their managers. The training of management by McDonald's is some of the most ridged and thoughtful management training in the World. I taught in McDonald's University many years ago and I see the same young people in Russia running McDonald's the very same way we taught them in the USA. This is a trickle effect to the rest of the businesses in Russia. As McDonald's managers grow up (so to say), they leave McDonald's and move on to greener pastures. Many years from now you have a compounded effect of increased manager skills through out the country. Russia needs this....

The next area that I see many Foreigners in, in Russia: They teach foreign languages. The demand for teachers here is unbelievable. English seems to be the strong language to learn. If you like the solo side of life, tutoring individuals has no limit to the demand. If you like the security of a school or business environment then you can find no less than thousands of schools to teach at. (I receive about 5 to 6 offers a week to teach at some school in Russia.) Myself, I like the solo side of life. I teach one on one otherwise called tutoring. I then can control my schedule and pace.

Just another little tidbit about Russia you may not have known...

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Russian News: September 23rd, 2008!

The state company Petroleos de Venezuela S.A. has announced a new agreement with Gazprom concerning the Russian monopoly’s first foreign project to produce liquefied natural gas. Gazprom will invest about $850 million in the course of seven years and receive the income from the sale of 700,000 tons of liquefied natural gas, that is, about $420 million at current prices, per year. Alexander Medvedev, Gazprom deputy chairman, and Rafael Ramirez, Venezuelan Energy and Oil Minister and president of PDVSA, held negotiations last Friday and signed a memorandum of understanding on the Blanquilla and Tortuga project in the presence of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez.

Estonian police have arrested high-ranking member of the Defense Ministry Herman Simm on accusations of espionage. His wife Heete Simm, a police lawyer, faces similarly charges. Estonian authorities have not named the country the couple were providing information to, but Estonian media and local experts claim it was Russia. Herman Simm, 61, was responsible for military secrets. In spite of several earlier claims by the government of Russian espionage operations in the country, this is the first spy case in the modern history of the country in which an actual agent has been identified.

Food prices went up 12.2 percent in Russia from January through August, Interfax reported with reference to the country’s statistics authority Rosstat. Of interest is that the prices averagely stepped up no more than 3 percent in the European Union.

Georgian authorities intend to protest to the European Union about “violations of the Sarkozy-Medvedev agreement by Russia.” Tbilisi maintains that the agreement was violated in the village of Khurcha, near the border with Abkhazia, where one Georgian policeman died and two were injured in gunfire issuing from unknown sources. That was the third such incident in recent days. Georgian policemen have also been killed by sniper fire near the village of Karaleti, on the Georgian border with South Ossetia, where a Russian checkpoint is located, and on the bank of the Inguri River, which separates Georgia from Abkhazia.

Russia, Egypt, Qatar, Algeria and Iran are willing to host headquarters of gas OPEC – GECF, Interfax-AGI reported.

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez arrived in China on Tuesday for a three-day state visit, part of his week-long world tour which includes Russia, Portugal and France.

The official dollar rate set by the Russian Central Bank for September 24 is 24,9864 rubles, down 28.26 kopeks from Tuesday, the Central Bank said.

An intestinal infection has hospitalized a total of 29 cadets from a military school in the city of Minusinsk in East Siberia's Krasnoyarsk Territory, a source in the regional consumers rights watchdog said on Tuesday.

Russia: Helps Ukraine A lot - to Survive!

Ukraine likes to badmouth Russia but Russia always keeps their infrastructure going....

Ukraine has started electricity imports from Russia as domestic thermal power plants experience problems with coal supplies, the Ukrainian news agency UNIAN said on Tuesday, citing the country's fuel and energy ministry.

According to the ministry, it made the decision on electricity imports due to delays in coal supplies to thermal power plants, unplanned repairs on the second energy unit of the Khmelnitskaya nuclear power plant, and a failure by the state coal company, Ugol Ukrainy, to carry out in full planned coal deliveries.

"The state foreign trade enterprise, Ukrinterenergo, started from September 15 the commercial imports of electricity from the Russian Federation. The amount of electricity supplies defined in a contract with the Russian counterparty, Inter RAO UES, totals 500 MW. The cost of electricity has not been disclosed," UNIAN said.

Ukraine's fuel and energy ministry said Russian electricity was being imported at prices 12% below prices on the Ukrainian wholesale electric power market, but declined to specify the length of the contract. (Link)

This is just a small example of what Russia does on a daily bases. For years Russia has carried Ukraine in the Energy side of life. (Even when they owed multiples of billions of dollars in debt.) In fact as of right now they have outstanding, several billion dollars in energy bills.

Yet Ukraine continues to bite the hand that always helps them....

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Russia: Respected German Paper, Spiegel, has released the results of investigation into war in South Ossetia.

German journalists chronicle South Ossetian war:

The respected German news weekly, Spiegel, has released the results of its own investigation into the war in South Ossetia. It asked the question: who’s to blame? And then asked its journalists in both Georgia and Russia to find the answer. The results may surprise some people.

Spiegel published a series of in-depth articles and interviews in several issues, including “The Story of Tskhinvali's Resistance” and interviews with former German Chancellor Schroeder and former Georgian President Shevarnadze. One of the articles is called “The Chronicle of a Caucasian Tragedy”.

Back in 2004 Spiegel’s correspondents were the first to carry out a scrupulous investigation of the Beslan siege, the results of which were summed up in a book. Now we might expect another book – this time, dedicated to the conflict in the Caucasus. But it’s already clear that German journalists have done a huge job reconstructing accurately the “road to violence”.

Spiegel does not conceal it used intelligence data, which only adds value to the publication.

Unlike other international media, in its account of the events, Spiegel goes back to the beginning of the year rather than August 7. It was then that the satellites of several countries’ intelligence services picked up images of the first movements of military forces in the South Caucasian region, the weekly says.

The Georgian military had invited American colleagues to Georgia, who made their headquarters at the Sheraton Metechi Palace Hotel in Tbilisi. It is worth noting that the German publication’s figures differ from ours here. They counted 160 Americans in Tbilisi, not 126, as mentioned by Russia’s UN Ambassador Vitaly Churkin at a UN session.

Georgia’s military preparations did not remain unnoticed, and this pushed Russia to hold army exercises near its southern borders.

The point of no return, when the war in South Ossetia became inevitable, was reached in April after the NATO summit in Bucharest. During his visit to Vladimir Putin’s Black Sea residence in the resort city of Sochi, the U.S. President George W. Bush passed off Russia’s warning about the danger of NATO’s flirting with Georgia.

On April 20, an unmanned Gergian spy plane was shot down over Abkhazia. Soon after, Georgia’s President Mikhail Saakashvili sent 12,000 troops to the border town of Senaki. Moscow responded by moving 500 paratroopers and a maintenance team of 400 men to Abkhazia to restore rail lines south Sukhum, the Abkhazian capital. These Russian forces were later withdrawn from the republic.

At this time tensions were rising on the border between Georgia and South Ossetia, with shootouts taking place right under the eyes of UN and OSCE emissaries. At the beginning of July, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice arrived in Tbilisi for an informal dinner. Russians say this was when last-minute preparations before the upcoming offensive were made.

However, Ms Rice later said that her visit was an attempt to talk Saakashvili out of “military confrontation with Russia”. But the German weekly, without giving an assessment of her words, coolly notes: 28 days remained before the war.

On July 10, Georgia recalled its ambassador to Russia for consultations. On the same day bomb attacks killed four people in Abkhazia and two in Russia’s Black Sea resort of Sochi. Spiegel wrote that the Georgian military is suspected of being behind the explosions.

On July 15, large-scale military exercises began on both sides of the main ridge of the Great Caucasus Range. 1,000 American troops take part in joint Georgia-U.S. manoeuvres named "Immediate Response 2008”. On the same day, Russia launches a military manoeuvre called “Caucasus 2008” north of the Caucasus ridge, between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea.

On July 30, Western special services observed that after the manoeuvre had finished, the 58th army remained on high alert. And there were reasons for that. As the Germans wrote, a striking thing happened – the Georgian leader Mikhail Saakashvili, being closely supervised by the Americans, does not withdraw troops to their quarters, but sends them directly towards South Ossetia. Two Georgian artillery brigades meet in Gori.

The first exchanges fire with South Ossetia began on August. Five Georgian policemen were hurt by an exploding shell. The Ossetian side suffered heavier losses. Georgian snipers killed six Ossetians who were out fishing. The South Ossetians began evacuating women, children and elderly people.

At about 10.00pm (06.00pm GMT) on August 5, the South Ossetian capital Tskhinval came under massive artillery fire from the direction of the Georgian settlement, Nikozi, 3 km from the city. South Ossetians began a massive evacuation as the bombardment intensified. The Georgian side justified the onslaught by saying Russian soldiers were fighting for the Ossetians. But there is no proof of this.

In the morning of August 7, as western observers admit, the Georgians concentrated 12,000 of their troops at the border with South Ossetia. Seventy-five tanks and armoured vehicles were also at the ready. They were meant to play a special role in the ‘blitzkrieg’ – to advance to the Roki Tunnel and block it in order to stop Russian troops from entering South Ossetian territory. By then, 500 Russian peacekeepers together with 500 South Ossetian policemen and volunteers had resisted the Georgians.

According to data from western agencies, the massive bombardment of Tskhinval started at 10.30pm on August 7. Twenty-seven Georgian ‘Grad’ rocket systems shelled the city. At 11.00pm the Georgian leader, Mikhail Saakashvili, said that his aim was to establish constitutional order in South Ossetia. Ten minutes later the Georgian side informed Russia that it had begun to do this by military means. And to prove it, half an hour later a Georgian shell hit the roof of a three-storey building where Russian peacekeepers were quartered, killing two of them. Then heavy fire rained down on the building, killing 18 more Russian peacekeepers without giving them a opportunity to do anything.

At 11.54pm ‘an assault of the Georgian military against Tskhinval’ began.

The German journalists have also determined when the Russian side responded. The first Russian troops entered the Roki Tunnel at 02.08am on August 8.

It is hard to suspect the Germans of sympathy towards Russia. Spiegel has never been pro-Russian or loyal to Russia to any extent. The magazine regularly criticises the Kremlin. But as far as the facts are concerned, the Germans are punctilious.

But even after giving a timeline of the conflict, they have reached a conclusion that Russian readers may not expect.

The whole Western community is partly to blame for the events in the Caucasus, as it saw the tensions rising. And yet, 'old Europe', aware of the fact the Americans were running the show in the region, did nothing to ease tensions, apparently afraid of incurring U.S. anger.

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Russian News: September 19th, 2008!

1. U.S. Threatens Russia with War:
Russia will encounter a violent response, if it attacks Georgia after it joins NATO, U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates announced on Thursday. At the same time, Gates urged NATO not to respond provocatively to Russian actions in relation to Georgia, the British television channel Sky News reported. Gates was speaking before an informal meeting of NATO defense chiefs in London, where a response to post-conflict challenges from Russia was discussed.

2. A Russian missile-carrying submarine successfully launched Bulava RSM-56 intercontinental ballistic missiles at 6:45 p.m. Moscow time yesterday, reports Interfax, citing a representative of the Russian Defense Ministry. According to that source, the missiles hit their target in the Kura military range in Kamchatka. He also noted that telemetric data from the launch of the missile is still being analyzed, but it is already clear that the missiles performed up to expectations.

3. Former U.S. president George H.W. Bush presented former president of the USSR Mikhail Gorbachev with the Presidential Medal of Freedom on Thursday. Bush praised the former Soviet leader’s role in history, saying he “opened up new possibilities for the world to come together and solve its problems in the pursuit of liberty. When Eastern Europeans were living in the dark shadow of the Cold War, he provided a beacon of light. Now, almost twenty years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, we are still witnessing the positive impact his efforts have had across the globe. President Gorbachev is always looking ahead at a better future and helping all of us work to get there."

4. Moody’s Investors Service commented on the situation on Russia’s financial markets. So far, the crisis hasn’t undermined the country’s sovereign score that is still at Baa1.

5. Gold and silver prices surged over 10 percent yesterday, hitting the abrupt-growth records of many years. The crude oil prices are rising again. The analysts attribute the boom on primary markets to panic-stricken investors that pull money out of financial market to invest in precious metal and commodities. The gold rally might end once the financial turmoil in the U.S. is over, the analysts warn.

6. The Davis Cup semifinal matches begin today, September 19, 2008. For Russia, it will be the most difficult standoff of this year. The match is played in Argentina and the team of that country has never been beaten at home for a decade already. In another semifinal, Spain clashes with the United States.

7. Russia's Energy Ministry hopes that Russia and OPEK will sign a memorandum on cooperation in October 2008 in Moscow, the ministry's head Sergei Shmatko told journalists today. He reiterated that the organization was currently reviewing a series of Russia's suggestions, adding the country had been successfully cooperating with OPEC for the last 10 years and the new dialog format looked very promising.

Russia: The Ex-president of the USSR, Mikhail Gorbachev!

Hello,

Mikhail Gorbachev was receiving yet another award from the USA. But before he accepted this award he said a statement about Rice's behavior yesterday at a press conference held before the award ceremony......

The ex-president of the USSR, Mikhail Gorbachev, stated that US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice should “use more caution in her call for the West to stand up against Russia, which she said has become "increasingly authoritarian at home and aggressive abroad."

"I believe that the secretary of state should be more careful and should show greater calm and responsibility for her judgment in calling for the West to unite against Russia," Gorbachev said through an interpreter at a press conference held before the Liberty Medal ceremony at the National Constitution Center.

Gorbachev made other interesting statements:

“Being unable to find answers to global challenges, politicians tend to use weapons instead. There is nothing more absurd and running counter to common sense,” He also said “There is a shortage of political will and political leadership in the world today.”

You know he is correct.....

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Russia: The Stock Market Gained so Fast that they had to Close Again!

Hello,

Seems the Russian Stock Market is a real roller coaster.....

"Trading on the RTS and Micex was halted on Friday morning with the indices jumping phenomenally in the first hours trade. Friday is the first days trade after the RTS and Micex were closed on Wednesday to allow regulators and the exchanges to reconcile a repo backlog, triggered by a major share slump on Monday and Tuesday. During this time the government announced a $45 Billion liquidity injection into the financial system, and announced additional measures to underpin the stock market.

The RTS key index gained more than 12 per cent and the MICEX index rose by more than 15 per cent, and at 11.05 Moscow time (07.05 GMT) both Russia’s major stock exchanges suspended trade in all shares." (Link)

I studied the responses the last few days from the Kremlin. Seems that all the companies in Russia are looking to buy their own stock back cheap, very cheap!

I understand their thoughts and I think that they are on to something. The market opened at 10:30 am and due to the fact that everyone in the world knows that the stocks are very, very, and very undervalued in Russia, by 11:00 am Moscow shut the doors again to stop the 12% increase and ensuing calumnious results. In a half hour the best deal in stocks on earth were getting ready to flame again but in the opposite direction that was happening two days before.

Seems that a lot of business people outside the Russian borders (USA) did the usual panic and run. Now they are trying to get back in the door after realizing that they messed up. The Russian financial system is sound, strong and out of debt. Unlike the American financial system that is broke, unsound, $10,000,000,000,000 dollars in debt and prints money for any reason.

I myself hope that Russia is careful who (internationals) they allow to play in Russian finances. Seems like this is a good time to clean out the undesirables.

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Russia: The Stock Market is Toast or Better Yet it Went Up in Flames!

Hello,

I have in Russia watched the USA financial system meltdown into a pool of liqidated assets and then in turn watched the Russian financial system go up in flames. I have watched the Aisian market crash but not quite flame out. I have watched the markets all over the world smolder and sink out of sight.

If you are like me and you are having a little trouble understanding what seems to be behind the complete unraveling of the world's financial system: Don't worry you are not alone.

I do not believe in the stock market and now you see why. I believe in precious metals and other very long term stable financial tools. I never get rich but I still have my money!

How did this happen? I think of it as payback. Wall Streeters (All stock markets are wall streets) all over the world, didn't have to worry about regulation, and they didn't worry about risk. They had no fear of repercussions, this lack of fear became a hothouse of greed and ignorance on Wall Streets — and on Main Street as well. When greed exceeds fear, trouble follows.

A very Powerful man, Warren Buffett, probably one of the world's most successful investors, back in 2003 called greed and ignorance, "derivatives" or better yet he said, "weapons of financial mass destruction." But to the greedy rich wall streeters, what did he know? He was a 70-something alarmist fuddy-duddy who had cried wolf for years. No reason to worry about wolves until you hear them howling at your door, right?

The wolf has started howling.....

We started with Bear Stearns months ago, everyone said whew that was close and the worse is over. That was nothing but the tip of the iceberg because we now are going to see how much ice is under the water level on all these defaulting issues. The folly and fiasco of Fannie & Freddie started the avalance

The USA Government stopped Fannie and Freddie from going belly up. Why? Because many if not most of the mortgages and mortgage securities owned or guaranteed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were bought by foreign central banks, which wanted to own dollar-based securities that carried slightly higher interest rates than boring old U.S. Treasury securities. A big reason the Fed and Treasury felt compelled to bail out Fannie and Freddie was the fear that if they didn't, foreigners wouldn't continue funding our trade and federal-budget deficits.

Lehman's fall shows the downside of using borrowed money. Even though Lehman has a 158-year-old name, it's actually a 14-year-old company that was spun off by American Express in 1994. AmEx had gobbled it up 10 years earlier, and it wasn't in prime shape when AmEx spat it out. To compensate for its relatively small size and skinny capital base, Lehman took risks that proved too large. To keep profits growing, Lehman borrowed huge sums relative to its size. Its debts were about 35 times its capital, far higher than its peer group's ratio. And it plunged heavily into real estate ventures that cratered.

Then AIG collapsed...

The market lost faith in AIG too, but the government was forced to save it. A major reason is that AIG is one of the creators of the aforementioned credit-default swaps. What are those, you ask? They're pixie-dust securities that supposedly offer insurance against a company defaulting on its obligations. If you buy $10 million of GM bonds, for instance, you might hedge your bet by buying a $10 million CDS from AIG. In return for that premium — which changes day to day — AIG agrees to give you $10 million should GM have an "event of default" on its obligations.

America bailed AIG out. Now we have to remember that Bear Stearns died not long ago and Merrill Lynch bit the dust a few days ago.

Goldman stands, along with Morgan Stanley, as one of the last two giant U.S. investment banks not to collapse (as Lehman and Bear Stearns have) or be sold (à la Merrill Lynch), Goldman too has been pummeled. The firm's quarterly profit plunged over 70%. New York University economics professor Nouriel Roubini says: "They will be gone in a matter of months as well. It's better if Goldman or Morgan Stanley find a buyer, because their business model is fundamentally flawed." (Ouch!)

Now the big three: GM, Ford and Chrysler are knocking on deaths door. They are asking for loans from Uncle Sam to help them out. Then MaWu bank is arranging survival help. The story goes on and on and on and on...

Now in Aisia, Russia, Europe, South America, Austrailia and lets just toss the rest of the world in this pile. The realization that holding American securities was not such a good thing.

So whatever the politicians all over the world do, we as a world society are going to be poorer than we were a month ago. Wall Streets all over the world has lost credibility; everyone will be less likely than before to lend endless amounts of cheap money. America has lost a lot of credibility and that ultimately will lead to higher borrowing costs?

Coping in this new world will require adjustments by millions upon millions of people. We all will have to start living within our means — or preferably below them. If you don't over borrow or overspend, you're far less vulnerable to whatever problems the financial system may have. Companies need to start surviving with in their means!

My Grandma allways said, "If you don't have the money in your pocket, then do not buy it!"

Remember: "greed and ignorance, or better yet, "weapons of financial mass destruction""

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Stories form Soviet Childhood: Laddy! (2)

Hello,

Today we finish reading a story "Laddy" by Nikolai Nosov, what we started to read last Wednesday look Stories from Soviet Childhood: Laddy (1).

Laddy

(Part 2)

Next day Mishka came to my place and said:
"You know what? It turns out I'm a thief!"
"How's that?"
"Because I took someone's luggage."
"But you took it by mistake."
"I know. But someone might think I did it on purpose. Besides, the owner must be looking for it. I've got to get it back to him somehow."
"How will you find him?"
"I'll put up notices all over town. The owner will read them and come here for his bag."
"That's right," I said. "Let's write the notices now."
We cut up slips of paper and wrote in neat letters on each one:
"Found. A suit-case. In the train. Apply to Misha Kozlov. Peschanaya Street No. 8, Apartment 3."
After we had written out about twenty notices, I said:
"Now let's write a notice about Laddy. Someone may have taken our bag by mistake too."
"Yes, it must have been the man sitting next to us," said Mishka.
We cut up some more slips of paper and wrote another notice:
"Lost. A puppy in a suit-case. Please return to Misha Kozlov or write to Peschanaya Street No. 8, Apartment 3."
We wrote about twenty of these notices too and went out to paste them up. We stuck them on lamp-posts and on the walls. Very soon we had used up all our slips and went home to write some more. We were busy writing when the bell rang. Mishka ran to open the door. A strange woman came in.
"May I speak to Misha Kozlov?" she said.
"I'm Misha Kozlov," Mishka answered, looking surprised. How could the woman have known his name?
"I saw your notice," she said. "I lost a suit-case in the train."
"A suit-case?" said Mishka joyfully. "Just a moment, I'll go and get it." He ran into the next room and came back lugging the suitcase.
"Here it is."
The woman looked at it and shook her head. "No," she said. "That isn't mine."
"Not yours?" cried Mishka.
"Mine was bigger. Besides, it was black, this one is light brown."
"Then I'm sorry, we haven't got yours. This is the only one we found. But if we do find yours we'll be very glad to return it to you."
The woman laughed.

"You're a funny pair. That's not the way to return lost property. You ought not to show the bag to anyone who asks for it. You must first ask the person what sort of a suit-case he lost and what was in it. If he answers right, then you can give him the suit-case. Otherwise some dishonest person might take something that doesn't belong to him. There are all sorts of people, you know."
"We never thought of that," said Mishka.
"See how quickly our notices worked," said Mishka to me when the woman had gone. "We haven't finished pasting them all up yet and people are beginning to come already. At this rate we may find Laddy soon."
No one else came that day. But the next the bell kept ringing all the time. Mishka and I were surprised. We never thought so many people lost suit-cases in trains. But the real owner didn't appear. All sorts of people came. There was a man who had lost his bag in a tram-car, and another who had left a box of nails in a bus, and an old woman who had a trunk stolen from her—they all came hoping to find their belongings in Mishka's place. They must have thought that if we had found one suit-case we must be able to find all sorts of other things.
"I wish someone would find my bag," said Mishka.
"Yes, they could write a note to us at least, couldn't they? We would go for it ourselves."

* * *

One day Mishka and I were sitting at home when someone knocked at the door.
Mishka ran to answer it and came back with a letter. He was all excited.
"Perhaps it's some news about Laddy," he said, examining the address scrawled on the envelope which was covered with all sorts of queer postmarks and stamps.
"It's not for us at all," he said finally. "It's for Mum. Some brilliant scholar must have written it, judging by the way the address is spelt. Two mistakes in Peschanaya Street. He's written Pechnaya Street instead of Peschanaya. The letter must have travelled all over town before it reached us. Mum! Here's a letter for you from some grammarian."
"I don't know any grammarians."
"Well, read it."
Mishka's mother opened the envelope and began reading to herself:

"Dear Mum. Please let me keep a little puppy. He is so very sweet, he's brown all over except one ear which has a black spot on it, and I love him very much...."

"Why," says Mishka's mother. "It's your own letter."
I burst out laughing and looked at Mishka. He turned red as a beetroot and ran out of the room.

* * *
Mishka and I gave up hope of ever finding Laddy but Mishka couldn't forget him. He often talked about him.

"I wonder where he is now?" he would say. "What sort of a master has he got? I do hope he isn't a cruel man who beats dogs. Perhaps nobody took Laddy out of the suit-case and he died of hunger? I wouldn't even mind not getting him back so long as I knew he was alive and happy."

Before long the holidays were over and school started again. We were glad because we liked school and we were a bit tired of doing nothing.
On the first day of the term I got up very early, put on my new clothes and hurried off to Mishka's to wake him up. I met him on the stairs. He was coming to wake me up too.
We thought we would have the same teacher as last term, but when we came to school we found we had a new one. Vera Alexandrovna, our old teacher, had been transferred to another school. Our new teacher's name was Nadezhda Viktorovna.
Nadezhda Viktorovna gave us the time-table and told us what textbooks we would need, and then she called on each one of us so as to get acquainted. After that she asked us whether we had learned Pushkin's poem "Winter" the previous term. We said we had.
"Do you still remember it?" she asked.
The class was silent. I nudged Mishka and whispered: "You remember it, don't you?"
"Yes."
"Then raise your hand."
Mishka raised his hand.
"Very well, come out here and recite it," said the teacher.
Mishka went over and stood by her desk and- began to recite with expression:

'Tis winter! The rejoicing peasant
Is seen again upon a sleigh.
His pony also finds it pleasant
To trot along the snow-clad way....

I noticed that the teacher was staring at him. Her forehead was puckered as if she were trying to remember something. Suddenly she stopped him and said:
"Just a moment. I remember now. Aren't you the boy who recited verses in the train this summer?"
Mishka turned red. "Yes, it was me," he said.
"Hm. Well, that will do now. Come to the common-room after class. I should like to talk to you."
"Shall I finish the poem?" Mishka asked.
"No. I can see that you know it quite well."
Mishka sat down and kicked my foot under the seat.
"It's her! She was with the girl Lenochka and the man who kept making nasty remarks about us. Uncle Fedya they called him. Remember?"
"Yes," I said. "I recognized her the minute you started reciting."
"What shall I do?" Mishka said, looking worried. "Why did she tell me to stay behind? I suppose she's going to tell me off for misbehaving that time in the train."
We were so worried that we hardly noticed how the lessons ended. We were the last to leave the class-room. Mishka went to the common-room and I waited outside in the corridor. At last he came out.
"Well, what did she say?"
"It turns out it was her suit-case we took, or rather not hers but, that man's, which amounts to the same thing. It's theirs all right, because she told me exactly what was in it, and it all fits. She asked me to bring it to them this evening. Here's the address."
He showed me a slip of paper with an address on it. We hurried home, took the bag and set out.
We found the house without much trouble and rang the bell. The door was opened by that girl Lenochka we had seen in the train.
She asked us whom we wanted, but we had forgotten our new teacher's name and we didn't know whom to ask for.
"Half a mo," said Mishka. "It must be written here on the address. Here it is: Nadezhda Viktorovna."
"Oh," said the girl, "you've brought our suit-case! Come in." She showed us into a room and called:
"Aunt Nadya, Uncle Fedya, the boys have come with the suitcase."
Nadezhda Viktorovna and Uncle Fedya came in. Uncle Fedya opened the bag, snatched up his glasses and put them on his nose at once.
"My favourite spectacles, at last!" he cried, beaming all over. "I'm so glad I've found them. I couldn't get used to those new ones at all."
"We posted notices all over town as soon as we found we had taken the wrong suit-case by mistake," Mishka explained.
"Oh, I never read notices," said Uncle Fedya. "That just shows you. Next time I lose something I shall certainly read all the notices."
Just then a little dog came running into the room after Lenochka. He was brown all over except for one ear which was black.
"Look!" whispered Mishka.
The pup pricked up his ears and looked at us with his head cocked to one side.
"Laddy!" we cried.
Laddy gave a yelp of joy and rushed at us, jumping on us and barking excitedly. Mishka picked him up and hugged him.
"Laddy! Dear old Laddy. So you haven't forgotten us after all."
Laddy licked his face and Mishka kissed him right on the nose. Lenochka laughed and clapped her hands.
"He was in the bag we brought from the train. We must have taken yours by mistake. It's all Uncle Fedya's fault!"
"Yes," said Uncle Fedya. "It's all my fault. I took your bag and went out first, and you took mine, thinking it was yours."
They gave us back our bag, the one Laddy had travelled in. I could see that Lenochka didn’t want to part with Laddy. She looked as though she were going to cry, but Mishka promised her that next year when Diana had puppies we would choose the prettiest one and bring it to her.
"Really and truly? You won't forget, will you?" she begged.
We said we would not forget. Then we said good-bye and left. Mishka carried Laddy who kept turning his head this way and that and taking an interest in everything he saw. Evidently Lenochka had kept him in the house all the time for fear he would run away.
When we came home we found several people waiting for us.
"Are you the boys who found a suit-case?" they asked.
"Yes," we said, "but there isn't any suit-case any more. We've returned it to the owner."
"Then why haven't you taken down the notices? Making folks waste time for nothing."
They grumbled some more and went away. That same day Mishka and I went for a walk and tore down all the notices.



Svet

Russia: Stock Markets Crash, New Countries are Starting to be Born and a Irainian Revelation!

Hello,

Today Russia is just doing her thing.

While the USA Financial Crisis is melting down it has spread globally: The Russian financial sector has already entered the sharp phase of the crisis, and is ready to engage the financial ‘airbags’ built for it, says the Russian government. Other words the Russian stock market is toast from the inflamed and crashing American economy...

Then Medvedev has been playing with his new countries, that seem to be a nemesis around his neck.

Russia this morning inked a Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Aid Treaties with South Ossetia and Abkhazia. RF President Dmitry Medvedev, South Ossetia’s President Eduard Kokoity and Abkhazia’s President Sergei Bagapsh sealed the respective documents in the Kremlin Wednesday.

That should stir up some more "I hate Russia sentiment" from America. Then while speaking of America:

Azerbaijani leader Ilkham Aliev confirmed at a meeting with Medvedev that he is not going to get involved in a confrontation with Russia despite multiple attempts by Western powers to persuade him to do just that. Including, at the recent meeting with Dick Cheney in Baku, seems Mr Cheney’s urgings to confront Russia fell upon a cold shoulder and caused Cheney to shorten his stay in Baku!

Now while all this fun stuff is going on:

Russia is to determine northern borders, where Arctic is. The figure is 18 percent of the RF territory, i.e. that region will account for 20,000 kilometers of the state border. They say 25% of the worlds remaining oil is located in Santa Clause land, Santa is Rich!

Of course this information will cause Canada, Norway, Denmark and the United States to act like squeaky wheels. (bad Russia)

Now to end the day with a note on Iran: Russia just figured out something or at least said what it and I was thinking.

The United States and Israel have consistently refused to rule out the possibility of military action against Iran over its refusal to halt its uranium enrichment and Georgia would be an ideal bridgehead for a U.S. invasion of Iran. Then NATO proceeds to comment on the fact that it will rebuild the NATO class airport that was destroyed in Georgia. It will be better than it was and all the latest updated equipment. Russia seems to be getting the picture also, that Ukraine is shipping Soviet T-72 Tanks to Afghanistan for NATO (USA). Seems if I remember correctly (Soviet Times), Tanks are worthless in Afghanistan due to the terrain but they are great in the plains area of Iran.

Maybe just maybe the financial crises will get so bad that the USA will not have anymore money to blow up another crises...... (Naw, they will just print more money)

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Russia: Why Bush Why? (The Killing in Pakistan)

Women and children were among 15 people killed in an attack Wednesday: September 3, 2008 involving U.S.-led forces in a Pakistani village near the border with Afghanistan, officials and a resident said.

Hello,

On this side of the world, we get a lot of news about Pakistan, Russian TV gives the gory details that seem to be left out to Americans about the Afghanistan War. One of the details that seems to be ignored by Americans is the fact that the Bush administration is killing civilians in Pakistan all in the name of capturing or killing al Qaeda's leadership!

You have to wonder whether the Bush administration understands what it is getting into. In case anyone has forgotten, Pakistan has a hundred plus nuclear weapons. It's a country on the edge of civil war. Its political leadership is bitterly divided. In other words, it's the perfect recipe for a catastrophe. Seems that the Bush administration likes to stir up trouble all over this area of the world. Seems that Bush has secretly signed a bill not long ago that gives the Military the OK to do what it wants in Pakistan!

Pakistan Military has now been given orders to fire upon the USA Military if they cross borders again.

Bush seems to want to go out with a Bang....

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

From Russia: Remember This - It Holds True Even More Today!

The whole world needs to follow this!

Kyle & Svet

Russia: Vodka Pipeline to Estonia!

Traditional Russian Vodka Setup

Hello,

Smugglers can be the smartest dumb people on earth, they seem to know no bounds or limitations of how to make money. A Russian / Estonia crime ring of 11 people have been arrested and charged with pumping vodka from Russia into the Estonia - through an underwater pipeline.

Prosecutors in Russia and Estonia say they’ve uncovered an extraordinary crime. The accused include both Estonian and Russian citizens who were apparently on to a nice money making proposition. Smuggling Vodka into Estonia, Once Estonia joined the EU, the price of vodka has risen by almost 30 per cent and created conditions for bootlegging.

It's claimed the gang pumped at least 6.2 thousand liters (1638 gallons) of vodka from Russia to Estonia through a 2km (1.25 miles) long homemade pipe.

The smuggling ring was uncovered after a truck with a thousand liters of illegal vodka was found in Tallinn, according to police, the smugglers tried to sell the booze in the Estonian capital. But the low quality of the drink made it difficult to find a buyer.

I think that it would be easier just to make the vodka in Estonia.....

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Russian News: September 16th, 2008!

RBC, 16.09.2008, Moscow 13:26:26.Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin held a telephone conversation with Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel today. According to the government's press office, the officials discussed trade and economic cooperation between the two countries, especially concerning the energy sector.

RBC, 16.09.2008, Moscow 13:17:09.Investors are expected to start buying more stocks after the RTS index sank below 1,200 points, analysts told RBC TV, adding that the market is likely to close in negative territory today. However, experts note that if the global oil price does not slide below $90 per barrel, oil company securities are projected to see higher demand.

RBC, 16.09.2008, Kiev 12:59:54.Arseny Yatsenyuk, speaker of the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine's national parliament, has officially announced today that the governing coalition linked to Ukraine's 2004 "Orange Revolution" has been dissolved. During the 10 days that have elapsed since the dissolution, the two political parties that made up the coalition, the Yulia Timoshenko Bloc led by Ukraine's Prime Minister and the Our Ukraine-People's Self-Defense Bloc headed by President Viktor Yushchenko, failed to settle their differences and effectively work together.

RBC, 16.09.2008, Moscow 09:58:30.President of Russia Dmitry Medvedev will hold talks today with Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev who arrived yesterday in Moscow on a working visit. The two leaders are expected to look into the situation in the Caucasus and ways to expand trade and economic cooperation. Today's will be their third meeting this year, after two more in St. Petersburg during the informal summit of CIS leaders in June and during the Russian President's official visit to Baku in July.

RBC, 16.09.2008, Moscow 09:32:21.Russia's governmental delegation headed by Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin has arrived on a working visit in Cuba with a view to assess the degree of destruction and aid to overcome hurricane consequences in the republic, the Mayak radio reported. Cuba has recently been ravaged by three hurricanes, Gustav, Ike and Hanna, which severely damaged its economy.

RBC, 15.09.2008, Moscow 17:31:02.Russia guarantees, as an OSCE member, that no issues regarding South Ossetia will be discussed within the organization without the republic's own representatives taking part, Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told journalists today.

What Is Happening In Russia? Sep. 15th, 2008!

Hello,

Lets start with an airline tragedy:

A Boeing 737-500 belonging to an affiliate of Aeroflot, a company called “Aeroflot-Nord”, crashed in Russia. It was evident by witnesses that the pilots were trying to steer the falling aircraft away from dwellings on the ground, so they chose to try a crash-landing on the railroad tracks, with their safety zone 200 meters wide on both sides. Thanks to that maneuver, no life was lost on the ground. The crash is attributed to an engine failure.

Then in Moscow more senseless loss of life:

Four people including a schoolboy and an elderly woman were injured in a bomb blast in a market in northern Moscow, believed to be part of a turf war between retailers, a police source said on Monday.

Then Russia has woke up and realized that the West is not a Future:

A change in Russia’s foreign policy is imminent. It’s a pity, that our calls and requests which included in a most pleasant and considerate way into our Foreign Policy Concept, went totally unheard and unheeded by many of our “partners” (the West), so our declarations of partnership or even alliances produced no effect. It means, that it’s time to seriously reconsider our foreign policy priorities and look else ware for future partners.....

Which leads us to: China!

China is very much interested in the events in the Caucasus. The recent visit by a delegation of officials of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist party showed that China is watching the energy scene with utmost attention. In the case of a long-term conflict between Russia and the West, China could not only count on acquiring a system of pipelines for direct gas and oil supply from Russia but it could also be sure of securing for itself a much bigger share in Central Asian oil and gas than it can afford at the moment. (Say Goodbye Europe to Russian Gas! )

Now lets talk about Abkhazia:

Russian peacekeepers who have already abandoned their positions in Georgia proper and did it two days ahead of the schedule agreed upon in Moscow by Presidents Nicholas Sarkozy and Dmitry Medvedev. Have reported that Georgia plans to deploy its special forces in the areas previously held by Russian peacekeepers inside the “security zones”, i.e. much closer to the borders of South Ossetia and Abkhazia than Russia is prepared to tolerate. This step, showing that the Georgian president is not ready “to let it go” at all, may well become the trigger of another armed conflict at the border between Georgia and Abkhazia. Russia also plans to open an embassy in Georgia's breakaway republic of Abkhazia by the end of the year, a senior Foreign Ministry official said on Monday.

A little more about Georgia:

“The Georgian leadership tries to hide the real scale of military losses. Our data gathered from various sources indicates that Georgia lost up to 3,000 servicemen and police in attack on South Ossetia,” said a source, also claiming that Georgia's Western allies have been aware of the numbers of Georgian casualties.

That is what is happening in Russia...

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Russia: Continuation of the South Ossetian Testimonies!

Here is more information that the west will not print: With all the trash the Western media does print, you would think to print a little truth would not hurt....

Tshinval tragedy: eyewitnesses’ testimonies:

South Ossetians who survived the bombing in August, 2008 will never forget the terrible days they had to go through. And the children who saw the death of their loved ones will not remain children, they were forced to grow up too quickly.

Zasseeva Liana, 47 years old, tskhinval resident

Our house was located on the southern outskirts of the city, almost on the border. On August 7, in the evening everybody who lived in the house gathered in the basement. The elderly, women and children, they were all there. We had to put chairs in the passage as seventeen people were sitting there. Some have already spent four days in the basement.

There was a terrible bombing during the night. The morning was a bit calmer so some went into the yard to see what had happened to their flats. There, the barn was hit by a sell and caught fire, which could spill over to the building. We began to extinguish it. The entire south wall of our house was destroyed.

After 9 pm the shelling resumed and we returned to the basement. At 10-15 one of our neighbors looked out through a crack in the basement and said that there tanks with writing in Georgian on them follow by infantry all dressed in black - apparently, Special Forces. We heard Georgian speech.

The first Georgian column was passing near us until 2 am. They moved towards the centre of Tskhinval. The tanks at the streets turned around and fired at apartment blocks. The neighbor looked outside again and saw that a large number of Georgian troops had gathered near the Home for the Disabled. Then they started to search the flats.

In the nearby house an old man lived. His name was Kabulov and he was 70. The Georgian troops broke into his flat. A man for our basement went out and asked the Georgian troops not to kill Kabulov. But a Georgian soldier said that it was too late. The old man was already dead – killed after a tank fired at the building.

Gabueva Larisa, 40 years old, Tskhinval resident

On August 8, at 11-30 pm the shelling of the city with heavy weaponry began. My body is shaking when I recall these events. We thoughts it was going to be O.K. We were told that South Ossetia can cope with the aggression on its own. But we were not ready for such type of war, any Tskhinval resident will tell you this. We could not imagine that they would aim at peaceful citizens.

The shelling went on and on. It got quiet only in the morning and every body went out of the shelter to grab food, water and blankets. But then everything repeated. The massive shelling began again, and Grad " rocket systems were used. We saw how the sells hit the nearby buildings, where our neighbours – Murat Byazarov and Lerika Tedeeva – lived. After a strike by “Grad” the house burned to the ground in 20 minutes. We could not help them with buckets and rockets were flying in the air. Besides, we had no water to put out the fire. There was no water in the city. Even drinking water.

I’ve been to the burial of Kachmazov sisters. They had no basement and they were hiding on the first floor. Then a rocket hit their house and they were burnt alive. The people of Tskhinval were not ready for this war. We were left completely alone. It seems we like we were sacrificed.


Tshovrebova Zalina, resident of Tskhinvali

Two members of our family have died – my cousins Diana Kadzhaeva and Hsar Dzhidzhoev. Diana worked as a teacher in primary grades at School number 5. She recently had surgery and didn’t have time to fully recover. So she could not leave the city quickly. On August 9, during the night Diana decided to flee along with the neighbors. Of course, this was very dangerous.

Most of the refugees, who left that night, were killed. A Mercedes in which Diana was traveling with the members of Gagloevyh family was burned at Zarsky road. I saw what was left of the car. I never thought that metal can burn up to such a thin shell. Only ashes were left of Diana.

Her father was blinded seven years ago and at the funeral Diana’s sister was saying: “You are lucky to have lost your sight, because you do not see what we are burying”.

Valieva Dzerassa, Tskhinval resident

On August 8, the shelling of the city lasted through the night and morning. All of the neighbours gathered in the basement of our house. In the morning there was a strong explosion near our house on the Isak Kharebov street and after it we’ve heard women screaming. The family, which wanted to leave the city, came under strong shelling, a rocket hit their car and they all were burned alive. We watched the people, parents and their children, dying inside the car and could do nothing to help them. Only after some time were we able to come out to them, but there was no one to save. After this terrible picture, we waited in the basement for our fate.

Around 10 o'clock in the morning the Georgian tanks entered the city and began to kill peaceful people and destroy their home. The bombardment by “Grad” rocket system was so heavy that we had to cover our ears, because the noise could have torn our hearts to peaces.

Once the city was liberated, the sad news came. Our neighbour, Bagaev Amiran Pavlovich, was killed. His body was brought in a coffin, with was very difficult to find. We even didn’t have candles we could light for him. The shelling didn’t stop and Amiran’s parents had to leave the coffin and hide in the basement. On the next day we dug a grave in the garden and buried him. The ceremony took place under constant fire.

After the Georgian infantry and tanks abandoned the city, their snipers, who stayed, killed another of our neighbours, Inal Gazzaev.

Hubulov Sarmat, 18 years old, Tskhinval resident

I was in Tskhinval on August 7. There were seven of us - my grandmother, grandfather, aunt, two younger sisters and a nephew. We all went to sleep, because Saakashvili, said that he declared cease fire. Suddenly explosions began. One of the mortar shells fell on our balcony. We immediately ran into the basement. Two hours after that, the shooting stopped. I got out of the basement and went to sleep, because we got used expected that the shooting would stop after some time. I was asleep when they started to shell the city with “Grads”. I returned into the basement and this time spent four days there.

In the morning at about 9 am the Georgian tanks entered Tskhinval. Lenin Street was burning. There were four tanks on our Tabolov Street and they were firing at our home.

In the evening a car appeared on our street – a father was trying to save his child from this hell. They stopped at the crossing and a tank shot at them from behind. And they knew that the child was inside the car. Everybody saw it. This incident is well known in the city.

When the shooting calmed I ran home and returned with water. Then I searched for my relatives, and I also managed to contact my uncle by phone. He came to us on the fourth day - hungry and without water. He said he had a car at his work and that he would pick us up. We were driving to the hotel in a jeep, picking up another woman in Tbet.

When we reached the Zarsky road they began to shoot at us. The two cars that took off before us, were standing on the road, burned. My uncle looked into one of them and said it was empty. After that I examined another car: its roof was torn and people inside were burnt and blood was on the seats. We returned to our car and drove further.

The car behind us was driving with headlights turned on, and the Georgian troops fired at it. But my uncle told them to switch the headlights off and the shooting stopped.

Ualyty Marina, 17 years old, student Tskhinval resident

On August 7, at 11-30 pm we were getting ready to go to sleep and expected a quite night, because Georgian President Saakashvili promised to stop the shelling and start negotiation. And then we heard the explosion. We went straight to the basement and set there in the dark, thinking that the bombardment will end by morning as usual. But it was morning already and the shooting was far from over. And this time they were using “Grad” rocket systems. It seemed they were firing straight at the roof of our house. We started to phone our relatives, to find out about their fate. Later we found out that the Georgians were tracking mobile signals and then fired at the places where they came from.

On August 9, we left Tskhinal and set for Vladikavkaz. We’ve left the city by car and then walked by foot to Dzhava. Cars that drove near us were packed. In one car people were sitting inside the cabin – two on the front seat other were on the back seat – and two more were in the trunk with their legs hanging out. Fortunately, when we were driving the road was not shelled, but those who went after us came under fire.

My relative from Moscow came to Tskhinval to her parents. She wanted to leave on August 7 but couldn’t find a car. So she had to stay. The house owner hid her in the basement behind the iron boilers. She was sitting there when Georgian troops entered the house. They drank wine and ate all the food they could find.

The house was in mourning because less than a year ago a family member had died – his photo was hanging on the wall and they were shooting at it. They were just mocking; I can’t find any other word. And when they were leaving they dropped a couple of grenades into the cellar, just in case. My relative was lucky as the iron boilers saved her.

Olga Ataeva, 30 years old, Moscow resident

My brother Alan Atayev, born in 1971, worked as a dentist in the town's clinic. He was not in military service. During the heavy shelling of Tskhinval on August 8, he, together with my parents and sister, was hiding in the basement of our house in the city’s centre. On August 9, during a relative lull, Alan went out of the house to see whether anyone needed medical treatment and never returned. The next morning, my mother, despite heavy shelling, left the basement to search for her son. And she found his remains about 300 meters from our house. He was torn to pieces; apparently it was a deliberate shot by heavy weapons, a tank maybe. My mother identified Alan by his shoes. Together with her sister they collected the remains and a few hours, under fire, buried them in the garden. They were not sure that they would survive, the main thing for them was to bury what was left of Alan.

Gabueva Laura, Tskhinval resident

On the next morning after the shelling a neighbours son came and said that they would grab their things and hurry to the peacekeepers posts as Georgians were already in the city. My parents and I were in the basement and heard a noise. We went outside to find out what was going on. Then I ran to my sister - her family lives a few houses away from us - to find out whether they were alive. They were ok and I raced back to the cellar. And suddenly I saw our other neighbour, who looked at me very sadly from the window. I told her that she must hide in the basement because the shelling would be resumed. She said: "We have no cellar". "Hide in ours", I answered.

She lingered and asked in a most hopeless voice: "My husband is Georgian. Will you let him in?"

"Immediately take your husband and come to us,” I answered.

We all gathered in our basement and, under the noise of the tanks, waited for a miracle of God. And then the hail of shelling started, I don’t know how else to describe it, the noise was terrible, and the shells roared and the bullets were whistling. Everything was burning where “Grad” rockets fell. There were 12 people in the basement. None of us could eat, we only drank water. The funniest thing, if there can be anything funny in such situations, was that there were neighbours who had refused to talk to each other for more than ten years, and under the shelling got on very well together and cared for each other like they were relatives. You never know how life can turn out. (Link)

What happened in South Ossetia was Sad. So I guess that is why we ignore it, in the Western world....

Kyle & Svet

Russia: Do You Want To Read About The Start Of The South Ossetian War?

T-80u Russian Tank!

Georgian aggression: chronology of war:

About 7 PM on August 7, 2008 Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili said live on TV: "Let's stop the escalation and begin negotiations - direct, multilateral, what else. Let us give peace and dialog a chance". Saakashvili added that a few hours before he, as the commander of Georgian army, had ordered all units of the Georgian Defense Ministry and police not to open fire.

The statement calmed the citizens of South Ossetian capital, Tskhinval, who were living in anticipation of escalating conflict. The people believed that there were ways out of crisis and that the Georgian leadership would do all everything necessary for a peaceful settlement.

But within the next few hours tons of hot lead from artillery, howitzers and "Grad" rocket systems were hurled on the peacefully sleeping and defenseless city. Tskhinval plunged into chaos. People died in their beds, on the streets, and in the basements of the houses where they tried to escape the ruthless bombing.

"The Georgian side has virtually declared war on South Ossetia", - said the commander of the peacekeeping contingent in South Ossetia, Marat Kulahmetov, after the firing commenced.

The operation conducted by Georgian troops aimed "to establish constitutional order in the Tskhinvali region" and received the code name of "Clear Field". There are no doubts about what should have been a result of these actions. There are no buildings, infrastructure, human beings in the clear field. Following the logic, none of this should stay in the zone where the Georgian army was firing. The carpet bombing of civilian building were labeled "the destruction of a criminal regime" by Georgian Minister Temur Yakobashvili. But he didn’t specify how he suspected the residents of Tskhinval of being criminals.

Early in the morning of August 8, another massive wave of shelling from all kinds of weapons commenced, hitting the town. Georgian artillery was aiming at the Tshinval Republican hospital, where the wounded were brought throughout the night. In the middle of the day there were 270 people with gunshot and shrapnel wounds. Medical Personnel were unable to take new patients and had to evacuate the injured to the building basement.

Georgian tank columns entered Tskhinval. The Russian peacekeepers didn’t return fire, but the Georgian tanks, and artillery, attacked their positions. The first tank shot destroyed the observation post on the roof of the barracks of the Russian peacekeeping battalion, located in Tskhinval. As a result, Russian soldier, Sergey Kononov, was killed. The next series of bursts destroyed the battalion’s equipment, including hospital vehicles, which were clearly marked with Red Cross signs.

After this began a massive offensive on the battalion position, by infantry backed with tanks and artillery. In the first hours of battle, Russian peacekeepers suffered serious casualties - ten people were killed, and 25 wounded.

The shelling of South Ossetia was accompanied by an attack from the air. Five Georgian Su-25 aircraft attacked the village Tkverneti. In addition, planes were dropping bombs on the village of Kvernet and bombed a convoy with humanitarian aid, which was going into Tskhinval by the Zarskaya road.

In Tskhinval, now cut from the outside world, Georgian punishers were restoring “the constitutional order” with fire and sword. Saakashvili’s soldiers were opening fire at all moving targets: men, women, elderly people and children. Georgian tanks were shooting at vehicles stuffed with panic-stricken people trying to escape the burning city. Heavy vehicles ran over burning cars with people inside them. Basements, which sheltered those who could not run away, were bombarded with grenades. Georgian snipers occupied the key heights, showering the city with bullets from all the sides.

The essential priority in the protection of human rights is the right to life. Killing for the sake of a national idea cannot be justified. In South Ossetia, the key legal and human values, worked out by the world community over the course of centuries were crossed out by barbarity, by absurd and blind aggression, in one night.

The war in South Ossetia, Georgia unleashed on the opening day of the Olympic Games in Beijing, only produced the concern of the international community. The UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon stated that he was extremely concerned by the outbreak of violence in South Ossetia. Meanwhile, the United Nations Security Council, called for an emergency session on South Ossetia, was unable, not only to stop Georgia’s aggression but even come up with a joint resolution on the situation in South Ossetia. EU Foreign Policy Chief Javier Solana had a telephone conversation with Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili, urging him to take all necessary measures to stop violence in South Ossetia.

The reaction of the international community did not stop the Georgian military machine. On August 8, fighting went on for the whole day. A small group of Ossetian militia and police resisted the Georgian army - trained by American and Israeli instructors and equipped with brand new arms. Georgia’s Prime Minister Vladimir Gurgenidze stated that “government troops must establish guaranteed peace” and that the military operation would continue until the population is in security.

While exterminating the residents of Tskhinval and South Ossetian villages, the Georgian leadership made repeated statements insisting on a peaceful settlement of the conflict. By 3 p.m. on August 8 the Georgian authorities announced a shooting moratorium for the organisation of a refugee corridor. However, peacekeepers who stayed in the area refuted these statements, saying that the city was under constant shelling.

Could Russia not give an adequate response to the unprovoked, barbaric actions of the Georgian leadership? Thousands of Russian citizens live in South Ossetia, Russian peacekeepers with international status have been ensuring security in the region over the course of 15 years. All earlier agreements reached between Georgia and South Ossetia, with the participation of Russia, the European Union, and OSCE, were cancelled by war crimes which could not be left unpunished. The residents of South Ossetia wanted to survive at all costs while the Georgian authorities were doing their best to keep their grip on the occupied territory.

Taking into account the indistinct stance of the U.S. and the EU, the extermination of the South Ossetians could only be stopped by the tough and proportionate use of force. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev took the decision about a “peace enforcement operation”. On August 8, units of Russia’s 58th army entered the territory of South Ossetia.

In the evening of August 9 the Russian army started pushing Georgian forces out of Tskhinval. By this time, the peacekeeping camp was almost destroyed. At seized observation points Georgian soldiers were shooting at peacekeepers and local residents, preventing medical services from evacuating the wounded from the combat area. Hundreds of refugees were seeking rescue at the Zarsk road. Noticing tanks, people would rush to soldiers for help and protection. However, taking advantage of the similar look of the military equipment being used by both sides, the Georgian military coolly shot and burned defenseless people in their cars.

Supported by the South Ossetian militia, the Russian army was able to push the Georgian aggressors to the outskirts of the city, and a part of Georgian army was encircled. The Russian air force struck Georgian air bases from where Georgian planes were carrying out regular air strikes on Tskhinval. The fighting continued on August 10 and 11. On these days the Georgian military continued shelling the capital and villages of South Ossetia. On August 12 Georgian military bases near the city of Gori were destroyed. It was not until August 13 that the first columns with the humanitarian aid could make their way to Tskhinval and affected villages.

Georgian aggression claimed the lives of hundreds of South Ossetian civilians. Hundreds of injured filled the hospitals of Vladikavkas, in Russia’s republic of North Ossetia. In the first days of the war thousands of refugees crossed the border to North Ossetia. People were forced to leave their houses and belongings. They had to flee, leaving the bodies of their killed relatives unburied. By August 14 there were 34,000 people in refugee camps in Russia’s republics of North Ossetia, Kabardino-Balkaria and its Stavropol, Krasnodar and Rostov regions.

The Georgian military blew up the water pipeline in Tskhinval, which severely exacerbated the humanitarian disaster. People who stayed in the city during the military operation and the following week had no fresh water and food. Emergencies workers set up hospitals in Tskhinval and the village of Java, and started providing assistance. They also organised water supply and distribution of food.

The investigation of crimes in South Ossetia shows that the shelling residential areas by Georgia’s military used cluster bombs as well as various multiple artillery rocket systems; notably the GradLAR-160, and the 262 mm Orkan. A 46-kilogramme rocket launcher contains 104 dual purpose M85 cluster bombs produced in the U.S. One shell can cover a massive area. These are exactly the shells in service with the Georgian army.

From August 7 to 8, 18 Grad units, each containing 40 rocket missiles, were shelling Tskhinval. 720 missiles were fired in 30 seconds. The large coverage area of the shells coupled with the non-specific targeting resulted in multiple civilian casualties and victims in Tskhinval, and other cities and villages in South Ossetia.

According to the specialists’ assessment, 70 per cent of the South Ossetian capital was ruined. A calm and cozy city turned into Stalingrad, destroyed by the Nazi in 1942-1943. As a result of Georgia’s aggression, industrial facilities and government buildings are destroyed. Cultural and historic monuments suffered particularly, as they were deliberately targeted by the artillery and tanks. This shows that the Georgian military aimed to annihilate not only the people but their cultural heritage.

The historical part of the city, considered to be an architectural conservation area, has been completely wiped out. During the war of 1991-92 it was severely damaged, and this time it has been completely burnt down. After Grad shelling no joist has been left which would allow an assessment or determination of the age of the buildings, many of which having a thousand-year history. The city’s synagogue survived the bombing but was severely ravaged. Blast waves have caused deep cracks in the walls of the orthodox church of Georgy Kavtinsky, which dates back to the 9th century. The foundations of the Church of the Nativity of the Most Holy Mother of God, built in 1718, have been shaken.

The memorial house museum of prominent Iran researcher Vasily Abayev has been burned down, while his monument, in Teatralnya square in central Tskhinval, was beheaded. Georgian tanks virtually wiped off the face of the earth a memorial cemetery, in the courtyard of school #5, where those perished in the war of the 1990s are buried. All cultural institutions in Tskhinval suffered. The local history museum, “Chermen” and cinema are ruined, the Culture Ministry building with documents concerning South Ossetia’s more than 700 historical and cultural monuments, is burnt down. The Parliament building of South Ossetia, which is an architectural monument constructed in 1937, has also been reduced to ashes. (Link)

This is how it really happened, no more - no less!

Kyle & Svet

Russia: Medvedev, "Saakashvili is a unpredictable pathological and mentally unstable drug abuser"!

Hello,

Try this interview from Medvedev: It is great!

President Medvedev revealed in a frank and close to public discussion with the members of the Valdai Discussion club how news of war in South Ossetia came to him, why Russia will not deal with the Georgian president, what George W. Bush said in his latest phone call, and why he won’t see Russia turn into a state behind an iron curtain.


'I'll never forget that night'

“I was on vacation. They say, Russia was preparing for war – that’s a lie! The Defence Minister called me at 1 a.m. and said, the Georgians have told the Ossetians that they were starting a war. And while all those troops were moving towards South Ossetia, I took no decision and hoped those dimwits would have enough brains to stop. They didn’t! We held ourselves until they started firing rockets, shelling residential blocks, and shooting at peacekeepers. Even then we didn’t respond.”

“I’ll never forget that night. It was very hard to order the use of force, while knowing the consequences. We did everything right. And I’m proud of it. Our response was symmetrical and proportional.”

“For me the events in August put an end to any illusion that the world is just. For me personally it was the loss of my last illusions. For Russia, August 8 is like 9/11 for America.”

“The war took the whole last month of my life, and there were more productive ways to spend it. We didn’t want it, didn’t want it at all! For 17 years we’ve being mending what had broken apart a long time ago. And they didn’t thank us for that – rather they started shooting at us.”

“Russia was not expected to react like that. Georgia got the idea: do whatever you want, Russians won’t meddle. That’s a diplomatic mistake that belongs to textbooks for diplomats. It’s a mistake – and for Georgia it’s also a crime.”

George Bush would do the same

“When I talked to Bush on the phone last time I told him: you’d have done the same in a situation like this, just in a more harsh way. He didn’t argue.”

"Bush asked me: ‘Why do you need it? You’re a young president with liberal background!’ I don’t need it at all. But there are situations where image is nothing and real actions are everything."

‘I don’t want to live behind an iron curtain’

“We discussed the rearmament of the Russian armed forces yesterday. We’ll have to change some priorities, but all the rest remains the same. We don’t need a closed, militarised country behind an iron curtain. I don’t want to live in a country like that. I used to. It was boring and dull.”

"They should have invited Russia into NATO a long time ago. Were they afraid? Now we’d certainly have fewer problems. That was a serious mistake. And the second mistake is that any country prepared to get rude with Russia gets the right to be in NATO."

"If Georgia had a NATO membership action plan by August 8, I would have done the same without a second thought. And what would the consequences have been? They would have been way more complicated."

"The situation was humiliating for Russia some time ago, and we can’t take it any more. It’s a difficult choice for us, but we can’t take it."

"I don’t think the confrontation phase would last long. We don’t want to create new alliances to tease Europe and America. Foreign policy should be pragmatic. The concept that the U.S. State Department embraced is pure ideology. We all need to take effort and drive ideology away from foreign policy. The current U.S. administration’s problem is that they have too many sovietologists and to few experts on Russia."

"I’m not an advocate of creating alliances to spite anyone. There’s no sense in creating new alliances. If you think that Russia has decided to change its vector of development, that’s not true. At least as long as I’m the head of state. There’s no cold war now."

Saakashvili is a drug abuser

“The Georgian head of state is not just a man we won’t do business with. He’s an unpredictable pathological and mentally unstable drug abuser. Western journalists know it! A two-hour-long interview on the high – that’s over the edge for a head of state. Does NATO need such a leader?” (Link)

Gotta love it.....

Kyle & Svet

Russia: Tea or Chai as Russians Call It!

Hello,

I was drinking my morning cup of coffee and thinking about how Russians adore hot tea. This is not a admiration that I seem to be able to adapt to being from America.

Tea in Russia is an integral part of of the culture. Seems all Russian people like my wife have a real love for it. Whether you take it with a splash of milk or a slice of lemon when not feeling good; whether you brew it with a teabag in a porcelain cup or in a samovar (picture to left); tea in Russia is likely to be party of your daily life. In fact, despite the best efforts of the Coca-Cola Company to promote soft drinks, people in Russia drink more tea than all other drinks put together. That sort of popularity raises the status of tea from mere drink to cultural institution.

There are two different legends as to how tea was originally discovered:

The Chinese Legend:
Around five thousand years ago, The Chinese Emperor Shen Nung (Divine Healer), was revered as a great teacher of agriculture and herbal medicine. He took pride in teaching his people the value of cultivating the land and the wisdom in boiling water to make it safer to drink and believed that it also increased longevity. One day, while working in his own garden, Shen Nung was enjoying a cup of steaming water when he noticed that a few leaves of a nearby camellia-like bush had blown into the imperial cup. Sipping the concoction he discovered a drink that was refreshing, relaxing yet exhilarating and increased his sense of well-being.
And so tea was born.

The Japanese Buddhist Legend:
The Japanese legend traces tea’s beginnings to Prince Bodhidharma, (also known as Daruma) who was a missionary monk. He was instrumental in bringing Buddhism from India to China and Japan. During his mission Bodhidharma began a nine-year meditation in a temple, built in a cave, in Canton. Growing tired after endless months of staring at a stone wall, he fell asleep. When he awoke, Bodhidharma was so disgusted with himself for sleeping, that he cut off his eyelids and threw them to the ground. It was there, according to legend, that the first tea plant grew, providing Bodhidharma with the leaves with which to make an elixir that kept him awake and refreshed, for the remaining years of his mission.
And so tea was born.

While a 2007 a survey showed that 85 percent of Russians drink at least one cup of tea a day. It is said to have been introduced to Russia in 1616 when a Cossack by the name of Tyumenets returned from a diplomatic mission to Mongolia with samples of Chinese tea. From that point on it started the trip to become Russia's main drink!

Russians have become such devoted tea drinkers that as a nation they are the third-largest consumers of tea (behind China and India). Today, Russia’s thirst for tea is satisfied by production in Georgia (which has now developed into the seventh-largest tea producing region in the world) as well as imports from China, Taiwan, India, and Sri Lanka.

I myself will have a cup of tea with my wife once in awhile, but coffee is my drink. I grew up on iced tea and to me hot tea was always, for when you are not feeling well.

What about you, Is Tea your main drink?

Kyle & Svet

In Russia: I Remember 9-11, Do You?

CNN was the first network to have broken news of the September 11 attacks. Anchor Carol Lin was on the air to deliver the first public report of the event. She broke into a commercial at 8:49 a.m. ET and said:

This just in. You are looking at obviously a very disturbing live shot there. That is the World Trade Center, and we have unconfirmed reports this morning that a plane has crashed into one of the towers of the World Trade Center. CNN Center right now is just beginning to work on this story, obviously calling our sources and trying to figure out exactly what happened, but clearly something relatively devastating happening this morning there on the south end of the island of Manhattan. That is once again, a picture of one of the towers of the World Trade Center.

Stop for a moment and give a prayer.

Kyle & Svet

Russia: Island Paradise in the Black Sea!

Hello,

When Russians do something they seem to go all out. People seem to feel that Russians are dull, depressed and unhappy. I am here to tell you, that after I have spent over two years within the Russian Federation, They are not unhappy or dull! In fact they have very fantastic dreams that only can come from freedom of all expressions and money.

What am I talking about? Is he crazy?

Well: Take a look at Federation Island and then you decide....

Federation Island, the latest manifestation of Russia’s oil boom era ambitions, is to start rising next spring from the waters of the Black Sea, 150 yards off the coast of Sochi. From Kaliningrad to Sakhalin, this landscaped version of the Russian Federation is Russia’s response to Dubai’s Palm Islands.

Do not think miniature golf course, this is a 815 acre version of Russia that is to stretch 1.5 miles and cost $10 billion. Inside a breakwater crescent, an artificial archipelago is to contain a convention center, two marinas, and myriad hotels, villas, and apartments. To be operational by 2014 Olympics to full completion in 2020, Federation Island is to draw 100,000 people a day — tourists, residents, and workers.

“This island is about being outdoors, outdoor sports, a recreation area,” Erick van Egeraat, the architect, said in an interview in Moscow, poring over designs that showed sailboats and yachts plying the waters in this planned playground near Sochi, one of European Russia’s southernmost cities. In an echo of Miami, houses are to be built on narrow lots, with 10 to 15 meters of water frontage. In a liberal interpretation of geography, Russia’s “rivers” are to slice Federation Island from north to south, providing nearly 45 miles of water frontage to an archipelago with a total land surface area of only 1.25 square miles. (Link)

It should all be possible within five years, thanks to an unlikely real estate alliance that includes a Dutch architect, billionaire investors from Abu Dhabi, and Russian officials eager to create a Russia-shaped archipelago in time to greet visitors flying into Sochi for the 2014 Winter Olympics.

You may ask: Why would you build land in the country with the most land? Because it is cheaper than buying land in Sochi! Besides they want the Island to have the shape of Russia....

So Federation Island seems to have come to life, winning endorsements from the Kremlin down to Sochi’s City Hall. After permits fell into place during the first half of this year, M-Industry executives announced in June that landfill work would start in early 2009. Egeraat predicts that island construction will be complete by the summer of 2012 and that the hotels and marinas will be ready to greet visitors when the Winter Olympic Games open on February 7, 2014.

This is just so cool!

Kyle & Svet

For more information on Federation Island, visit http://www.eea-architects.com/

From Windows To Russia: Ron Pauls Speech, September 10th, 2008!

Ron Paul

Hello,

Out of My Norm: I have to post this speech from who I would have voted for and how I will vote this election. I was sadden that Ron Paul would not be one that I could vote for. For I feel that he is the best choice by far....

This is his opening statement from his speech today September 10th, 2008!

The American Majority: By Ron Paul

The argument that the two parties should represent opposed ideals and policies, one, perhaps of the Right and the other of the Left, is a foolish idea acceptable only to the doctrinaire and academic thinkers. Instead the two parties should be almost identical, so that the American people can ‘throw the rascals out’ at any election without leading to any profound or extensive shifts in policy. - Carroll Quigley – Author of Tragedy & Hope

The coverage of the presidential election is designed to be a grand distraction. This is not new, but this year, it’s more so than ever.

Pretending that a true difference exists between the two major candidates is a charade of great proportion. Many who help to perpetuate this myth are frequently unaware of what they are doing and believe that significant differences actually do exist. Indeed, on small points there is the appearance of a difference. The real issues, however, are buried in a barrage of miscellaneous nonsense and endless pontifications by robotic pundits hired to perpetuate the myth of a campaign of substance.

The truth is that our two-party system offers no real choice. The real goal of the campaign is to distract people from considering the real issues.

Influential forces, the media, the government, the privileged corporations and moneyed interests see to it that both party’s candidates are acceptable, regardless of the outcome, since they will still be in charge. It’s been that way for a long time. George Wallace was not the first to recognize that there’s “not a dime’s worth of difference” between the two parties. There is, though, a difference between the two major candidates and the candidates on third-party tickets and those running as independents.

The two parties and their candidates have no real disagreements on foreign policy, monetary policy, privacy issues, or the welfare state. They both are willing to abuse the Rule of Law and ignore constitutional restraint on Executive Powers. Neither major party champions free markets and private-property ownership.

Those candidates who represent actual change or disagreement with the status quo are held in check by the two major parties in power, making it very difficult to compete in the pretend democratic process. This is done by making it difficult for third-party candidates to get on the ballots, enter into the debates, raise money, avoid being marginalized, or get fair or actual coverage. A rare celebrity or a wealthy individual can, to a degree, overcome these difficulties.

The system we have today allows a President to be elected by as little as 32% of the American people, with half of those merely voting for the “lesser of two evils”. Therefore, as little as 16% actually vote for a president. No wonder when things go wrong, anger explodes. A recent poll shows that 60% of the American people are not happy with the two major candidates this year.

This system is driven by the conviction that only a major party candidate can win. Voters become convinced that any other vote is a “wasted” vote. It’s time for that conclusion to be challenged and to recognize that the only way not to waste one’s vote is to reject the two establishment candidates and join the majority, once called silent, and allow the voices of the people to be heard.

We cannot expect withdrawal of troops from Iraq or the Middle East with either of the two major candidates. Expect continued involvement in Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Georgia. Neither hints of a non-interventionist foreign policy. Do not expect to hear the rejection of the policy of supporting the American world empire. There will be no emphasis in protecting privacy and civil liberties and the constant surveillance of the American people. Do not expect any serious attempt to curtail the rapidly expanding national debt. And certainly, there will be no hint of addressing the Federal Reserve System and its cozy relationship with big banks and international corporations and the politicians.

There is only one way that these issues can get the attention they deserve: the silent majority must become the vocal majority.

This message can be sent to our leaders by not participating in the Great Distraction—the quadrennial campaign and election of an American President without a choice. Just think of how much of an edge a Vice President has in this process, and he or she is picked by a single person—the party’s nominee. This was never intended by the Constitution.

Since a principled non-voter sends a message, we must count them and recognize the message they are sending as well. The non-voters need to hold their own “election” by starting a “League of Non-voters” and explain their principled reasons for opting out of this charade of the presidential elective process. They just might get a bigger membership than anyone would guess.

Write-in votes should not be discouraged, but the electoral officials must be held accountable and make sure the votes are counted. But one must not be naïve and believe that under today’s circumstances one has a chance of accomplishing much by a write-in campaign.

The strongest message can be sent by rejecting the two-party system, which in reality is a one-party system with no possible chance for the changes to occur which are necessary to solve our economic and foreign policy problems. This can be accomplished by voting for one of the non-establishment principled candidates—Baldwin, Barr, McKinney, Nader, and possibly others. (listed alphabetically)

Yes, these individuals do have strong philosophic disagreements on various issues, but they all stand for challenging the status quo—those special interest who control our federal government. And because of this, on the big issues of war, civil liberties, deficits, and the Federal Reserve they have much in common. People will waste their vote in voting for the lesser of two evils. That can’t be stopped overnight, but for us to have an impact we must maximize the total votes of those rejecting the two major candidates.

For me, though, my advice—for what it’s worth—is to vote! Reject the two candidates who demand perpetuation of the status quo and pick one of the alternatives that you have the greatest affinity to, based on the other issues.

A huge vote for those running on principle will be a lot more valuable by sending a message that we’ve had enough and want real change than wasting one’s vote on a supposed lesser of two evils. (Via Campaign for Liberty)

I plan on voting for someone other than Obama or McCain. I have been a Republican all my life. My Grandpa was Republican and my Dad was Republican. I will not vote Republican this time.....

From an American and his wife in Russia,
God Bless & Thank You Ron Paul

Kyle & Svet

Stories form Soviet Childhood: Laddy! (1)

Hello,

Today we continue reading a Stories from my Soviet Childhood what seemed so funny for me. That will be one more story by Nikolay Nosov. This story is pretty long so we divide it on two parts. Hope you'll enjoy this story also. (You can read the story in Russian in Moshkov library.)

Laddy

Mishka and I had a wonderful time in the country this summer. I do love the country! You can do all sorts of exciting things like wandering about in the woods picking mushrooms or berries, bathing in the river and lying in the sun, and when you get tired of bathing, you can fish. When Mum's holiday ended and the time came to go back to town, Mishka and I felt very sad. We went about looking so miserable that Aunt Natasha took pity on us and persuaded Mum to let Mishka and me stay on for a while. She said Mum needn't worry, she would take good care of us. So Mum finally agreed and went back to town without us, and Mishka and I stayed on with Aunt Natasha.

Now Aunt Natasha had a dog called Diana. The day Mum left Diana had puppies. Six of them: five were black with brown spots and one was brown all over except for a black spot on his ear. When Aunt Natasha saw the puppies she said:

"Oh dear, that dog is a nuisance. She's always having puppies. What on earth shall I do with them? I shall have to drown them."

"Oh, please don't drown them!" we pleaded. "They want to live too. Better give them away to the neighbours."

"The neighbours have dogs of their own," said Aunt Natasha. "I can't keep so many dogs."
Mishka and I begged and pleaded. We promised to find homes for the puppies ourselves after they had grown up a little bit. At last Aunt Natasha gave in and said we might keep them.

Soon they grew bigger and started running about the garden and barking loudly like real dogs. Mishka and I had great fun playing with them.

Aunt Natasha kept reminding us of our promise to give them away, but we felt sorry for Diana. She would be very unhappy without her children.

"I ought never to have given in to you," said Aunt Natasha. "Now I'll be left with all these dogs on my hands. How shall I feed them all?"

So Mishka and I had to get busy and look for homes for the pups. And what a time we had! Nobody wanted to take them. We went from house to house for days and after a lot of trouble we managed to place three of them. Then two more were taken by some people in the neighbouring village. That left one—the pup with the black spot on its ear. We liked him the best. He had such a nice face and such beautiful eyes, big and round as if he was always wondering about something. Mishka couldn't bear to part with him and so he wrote a letter to his mother.

"Dear Mum," he wrote. "Please let me keep a little puppy. He is so very sweet, he's brown all over except one ear which has a black spot on it, and I love him very much. If you let me keep him I promise to be very good and get good marks at school and I'll train him so he'll grow up to be a fine, big dog."

We named him Laddy. Mishka said he would buy a book about dogs and learn to train him properly.

* * *

Several days went by but there was no answer from Mishka's mother. When her letter finally came there was nothing in it about Laddy. She wrote telling us to come home at once because she was worried about us. Mishka and I got ready to leave that day. He decided to take Laddy without waiting for permission, because after all it wasn't his fault if his mother hadn't answered his letter.

"You can't take him with you," said Aunt Natasha. "Dogs aren't allowed in trains. If the conductor catches you, you'll have to pay a fine."

"The conductor won't see him," replied Mishka. "We'll hid him in my suit-case."

We emptied all Mishka's things into my knapsack, made several holes in his suit-case for Laddy to breathe through, put a piece of bread and some fried chicken inside in case he would get hungry and set off for the station. Aunt Natasha came to see us off.

All the way to the station Laddy was as quiet as a mouse. When Aunt Natasha went to buy our tickets we opened the bag to see what he was doing. There he was sitting quietly at the bottom blinking up at us.

"Good dog!" cried Mishka. "Clever boy! He knows how to behave."
We stroked him a little and shut the bag. When the train came Aunt Natasha saw us safely inside and said good-bye. We found an empty seat in a quiet corner of the compartment. The only other passenger there was an old woman who was dozing on the seat opposite. Mishka stuck the bag under the seat. The train started and we were off.

At first everything was quiet, but at the next station a crowd of passengers came in. A long-legged girl with pigtails ran up to our quiet corner shouting at the top of her voice:
"Aunt Nadya! Uncle Fedya! Here's a seat, come quick!"
Aunt Nadya and Uncle Fedya came down the aisle to our seat.
"Hurry up, hurry up!" she rattled. "Sit down quick. I'll sit next to Aunt Nadya, and Uncle Fedya can sit beside the boys."
"Hush, Lenochka. Don't make so much noise," said Aunt Nadya, and the two of them sat down next to the old lady on the opposite seat. Uncle Fedya shoved his bag under the seat and sat down beside us.
Lenochka clapped her hands and said: "Now, isn't that nice—three gentlemen on one side and three ladies on the other."

Mishka and I turned away and looked out of the window. For a while the only sounds were the clicking of the wheels and the engine puffing up in front. But suddenly there was a rustling noise under the seat and the sound of something scratching like a mouse.

"It's Laddy," whispered Mishka. "What if the conductor comes this way?"
"Perhaps he'll quiet down in a minute."
"But suppose he starts barking?"
The scratching continued. He must have been trying to scratch a hole in the bag.
"Oh, Auntie, Auntie, a mouse!" squealed that stupid Lenochka, picking up her feet.
"Nonsense," said her Aunt Nadya. "Whoever heard of mice in a train?"
"Oh, but it is! Can't you hear?"
Mishka coughed as loudly as he could and kicked the bag with his foot. For a minute or two Laddy was quiet, then he began to whine softly. Everyone looked surprised. But Mishka quickly ran his finger over the window-pane, making a squeaking noise on the glass. Uncle Fedya turned and looked at Mishka sternly.
"Stop that, young man!"
Just then someone farther down the carriage began to play the accordion and for a while you couldn't hear anything else. But soon the playing stopped.
"I say," Mishka whispered to me, "let's start singing."
"Oh, but what will they think of us," I objected.
"All right then, let's recite poetry as if we're learning it by heart."
"All right, you begin."
Something squeaked under the seat. Mishka coughed quickly and began in a hurry:

Green the grassy meadow, bright the shining sun,
Gay the spring-time swallow; good cheer to everyone!

The passengers laughed, and someone said: "It'll soon be autumn and here we have spring." Lenochka giggled.
"Aren't they funny boys!" she said. "When they aren't imitating mice or making squeaky noises, they're reciting poetry."
But Mishka took no notice. As soon as he finished reciting one poem he went right on to the next, keeping time with his feet:

Fresh and green my garden looks,
With lilac fragrance in the air,
With its cool and shady nooks,
With bird-cherry and linden fair.

"There, now we have summer," joked the passengers. "The lilac is in bloom."
The next minute Mishka had plunged into the middle of winter:

This winter! The rejoicing peasant
Is seen again upon a sleigh.
His pony also finds it pleasant
To trot along the snow-clad way....

After that he mixed everything up and autumn came right after winter:


What a gloomy picture!
Clouds, and nothing more,
Rain from early morning,
Puddles by the door. ...

Just then Laddy let out a pitiful whine and Mishka rushed on at the top of his voice:

Why so early, Autumn,
With your chilly blight?
People's hearts are yearning
Still for warmth and light!

The old lady who had been dozing on the opposite seat woke up, nodded her head and said: "True, child, true! Autumn has come far too soon. The little ones would like to play in the sunshine a little longer, but the summer is over. You recite very nicely, child, very nicely indeed."

She leaned over and stroked Mishka's head. Mishka kicked my foot under the seat to tell me to take over, but for the life of me I couldn't think of a single poem. The only thing that came into my head was a song, so I blurted it out as loudly as I could:

My cosy little cottage,
Brand-new from floor to roof,
From maple floor and pine-wood wall to shining shingle roof!

Uncle Fedya scowled. "Good God! Another elocutionist!" Lenochka pouted and said: "Poof! Fancy reciting a silly thing like that!"
I rattled that song off twice and began another:

I sit in my prison cell murky and dark,
An eagle, in irons—born free as a lark....

"They really ought to put you in a cell, young man, for getting on people's nerves!" growled Uncle Fedya.
"Now, Fedya," said Aunt Nadya, "I see no reason why the boys shouldn't recite verse if they want to!"
But Uncle Fedya fidgeted and rubbed his forehead as if his head ached. I stopped to catch my breath and Mishka carried on, this time slowly, with expression:

Serene is the Ukrainian night.
The sky is clear, the stars are shining....

The passengers roared with laughter. "Well, well, now we're in the Ukraine. Where will he take us next?"

More people came in at the next stop. "Listen to that youngster reciting!" they remarked to one another. "The journey won't be dull."
By now Mishka was in the Caucasus:

The Caucasus lies at my feet, while alone
I stand at the edge of the dizzy abyss....

He went nearly all around the world, but by the time he got to the Far North he was quite hoarse and it was my turn. I couldn't remember any more verses, so I recited another song:

All the world around I travelled,
Nowhere could I find my love....

Lenochka burst out laughing. "That one only knows songs!" she squeaked.
"I can't help it if Mishka has recited all the poems," I said and began another song:

It's a jolly young head on my shoulders,
But I doubt that I'll keep it there long....

"You won't," said Uncle Fedya, "if you go on annoying people like this." He rubbed his forehead with a sigh, pulled the bag from under the seat and went out.

* * *

The train was approaching town. The passengers got up, gathered their belongings and moved towards the exit. We pulled out the bag and the knapsack and followed the others on to the platform. There was no sound from the bag.

"Look at that," said Mishka, "when it doesn't matter he keeps quiet, but when he ought to have kept quiet he made all that noise."

"Perhaps he's suffocated in there. We'd better take a look," I said. Mishka put the bag down and opened it. Laddy wasn't there! There were some books, note-pads, a towel, soap, a pair of horn-rimmed glasses, and knitting-needles, but no dog.

"Where's Laddy?" said Mishka.
"We've got the wrong bag!"

Mishka examined it. "So we have. Ours had holes in it, and besides it was dark brown, and this one is yellow. What an ass I am. I've gone and taken someone else's bag."

"Let's run back to the station, perhaps our bag is still under the seat." We ran back to the station. The train was still standing, but we had forgotten what carriage we had travelled in, so we ran through the whole train looking under the seats. But there was no sign of our suit-case.
"Someone must have taken it," I said.
"Let's go through the carriages again," Mishka proposed.
We searched the train once more, but we didn't find any trace of our bag. We were wondering what to do when a conductor came up and chased us away.

We went home. I went to Mishka's place to get my knapsack. Mishka's mother saw that something was amiss.
"What's the trouble?" she asked.
"We've lost Laddy."
"Who is Laddy?"
"The puppy we brought from the country. Didn't you get my letter?"
"No, I didn't."
"Well, I wrote you all about it." And Mishka told his mother the whole story: what a wonderful pup Laddy was, how we had packed him in the bag and how the bag got lost. By the time he finished he was in tears. I don't know what happened after that because I went home....


Don't worry that is not the end of the story - we'll continue next Wednesday!

Svet

Russia: As The Winds Do Change! (Part 4)

Ever wondered who owns NATO - first two guesses do not count!

Hello,

When Gorbachev was asked if the former U.S. Secretary of State, James Baker, really promised him that NATO would not expand eastward if the Soviet Union supported the unification of Germany and united Germany’s NATO membership, Gorbachev answers: “He didn’t promise it to me. He promised it to the whole World!” (Link)

This seems to be one of the most serious mistakes by the USA, the fact that they did not uphold their end of the bargain about NATO.

Background:

"In February 1990, after talks with West Germany's foreign minister, Secretary of State James Baker had assured Gorbachev and [then Soviet Foreign Minister, later Georgian President Eduard] Shevardnadze that 'NATO's jurisdiction would not shift one inch eastward from its present position.' The [first] Bush administration began backing away from that pledge almost immediately. The Clinton administration reneged on that commitment altogether when it decided to expand NATO to Eastern Europe. ...

"'The issue is not just whether Czechs, Hungarians and Poles join NATO. The problem is more serious: the rejection of the strategy for a new, common European system agreed to by myself and all the Western leaders when we ended the Cold War,' Mikhail Gorbachev wrote in March 1999. 'I feel betrayed by the West. The opportunity we seized on behalf of peace has been lost. The whole idea of a new world order has been completely abandoned.'" *

*- From the book "Hang Separately: Cooperative Security Between the United States and Russia, 1985-1994" by Leon V. Sigal, The Century Foundation Press, 2000.

Could Russia hold some deep resentment?

Seems the Wind is picking up speed now and the leaves are falling.....

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Russia: As The Winds Do Change! (Part 3)

Hello,

The USA continues to debate the Russian Georgia conflict.....

U.S. Intelligence Sees It Russia’s Way:

American intelligence confirms that the latest military actions in South Ossetia were started by Georgia and Russia’s position in the conflict was correct, says Republican California Congressman Dana Rohrabacher. He said the situation reminded him of the Bay of Tonkin incident, which the U.S. used as a pretext for beginning the war in Vietnam.

"The Russians are right! We're wrong! Georgia started it, the Russians ended it," Rohrabacher said at a hearing in the House of Representatives.

Assistant Secretary of State Dan Fried said U.S. intelligence was still working on an exact chronology of the events of August 7 to verify Georgian claims that Russian forces were in Roki Tunnel, linking Russia to South Ossetia, before Georgia attacked. Fried said that the Bush administration had forcefully and repeatedly warned the Georgians against beginning military actions against Russia, and he was unable to say why Georgia chose to ignore that advice.

Nonetheless, Fried acknowledged that supporting Georgia was in U.S. interests, even if it considers the countries actions foolish.

Russia acknowledged the independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia on August 26. Those republics requested that recognition after Georgian forces almost completely ruined Tskhinvali, the capital of South Ossetia, in the course of the event of August 8-12. More than 1500 civilians were killed in that time, according to South Ossetian authorities. (Link)

I think the wind is talking not whispering, in the tree leaves now!

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Russia: As The Winds Do Change! (Part 2)

Hello,

Today finds the winds blowing in little swirls in the USA Government as the U.S. Senate finds itself asking why? After a month since the war in Georgia, the Senate has gotten around to actually questioning the motives of Americans involvement in the Caucasus.....

U.S. officials split over Caucasus conflict:

U.S. officials are divided over the recent violence in South Ossetia. The U.S. Senate Committee on Armed Services hearing has cast Moscow as an aggressor but members of the U.S. House Committee on Foreign Affairs have sided with Russia. And making a decision will require from them assessing the U.S. foreign policy objectives, including those that have to do with Iran and the global war on terror.

At last, some U.S. voices have been raised against labeling Russia as the aggressor during the conflict in the Caucasus.

”The recent fighting in Georgia and its breakaway region was started by Georgia. The Georgians broke the truce, not the Russians! And no talk of provocation can change that fact,” said Congressman Dana Rohrabacher.

Congressman Ron Paul added the U.S. is in Georgia “not for democracy”.

”We are not for democracy there - we are there to protect a pipeline. And that is tragic for me,” he said.

Nevertheless, no concrete proposals came except one - Senator Hillary Clinton called for the creation of a special commission to get the facts straight before judging Russia.

”Rather than seeking to isolate them - which I think is not a smart proposal - we should be more strategic. We have to answer for ourselves: Did we embolden the Georgians in any way? Did we send mixed signals to the Russians?” Hillary Clinton said.

The answer of U.S. Military Officials was a ‘no’.

“For many months my colleagues and Secretary Rice had been telling the Georgians clearly and unequivocally that any military action initiated by them would be a mistake and would lead to a disaster,” Undersecretary of Defense Eric Edelman said. (Link)

And a denial came after Senator John Warner asked: “Were there any requests from the President of Georgia or other high-ranking officials for the U.S. to provide active military support for the Georgia military?”

Some also insisted that Georgia had not been promised membership in NATO.

Others though were quick to question that statement. ”That is inconsistent with the 2008 Bucharest Summit statement. It also seems to be inconsistent with the statement of Vice President Dick Cheney. Those sound like promises to me,” said Carl Levin, chairman of the Senate Committee on Armed Services.

Oh - I hear the breeze blowing through the leaves now, whispering the questions........

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Russian News: September 9th, 2008!

RBC, 09.09.2008, Moscow 17:51:39.About 3,800 Russian servicemen will be stationed in each of the breakaway republics of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, Russian Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov said during a meeting with President Dmitry Medvedev. The official pointed out that the ministry had already reached agreements to this effect with both republics, as well as defined the military structure and the dislocation sites, the Mayak radio station reported today. Serdyukov indicated that the Russian army units will be stationed in the villages of Dzhava and Tskhinval in South Ossetia and at former Russian peacekeepers' sites in Abkhazia.

RBC, 09.09.2008, Moscow 17:33:53.By sending its observers to zones adjacent to South Ossetia and Abkhazia, the European Union will give Georgia a clear signal that it will now be responsible, along with the OSCE and the UN, for ensuring security in the disputed republics, Russian Foreign Ministry Sergei Lavrov told journalists today. He added that from now on any provocations in the conflict zone would be aimed against the EU. It is vital that Georgian troops withdraw to their pre-conflict positions before October 1 and that Russia receives guarantees that Georgia will not resume attacks against South Ossetia and Abkhazia, Lavrov underscored. To this effect, the EU is to send 200 observers to the conflict zone, he pointed out.

RBC, 09.09.2008, Moscow 17:12:58.Russia's trade surplus under the balance of payments methodology increased 1.83 times to $19.144bn in July 2008 compared to the same month of the previous year, the Bank of Russia indicated in its announcement today.

RBC, 09.09.2008, Moscow 16:26:36.The European Union must be the first to take a step to settle the Caucasus conflict, according to agreements reached by Presidents Dmitry Medvedev of Russia and Nicolas Sarkozy of France on Monday, Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told journalists today. He reiterated that Javier Solana, EU High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy, assured the Russian side during the talks that the European Union would be able to deploy an observer mission in the conflict zone before October 1. On this condition, Russia will withdraw peacekeeping forces from Abkhazia and South Ossetia within the following 10 days, Lavrov said. If the EU delays the deployment of the mission, Russia will pull back the forces within 10 days from the actual day of its arrival, the Minister pointed out.

RBC, 09.09.2008, Moscow 12:46:05.The State Duma is expected to consider amending the military items of Russia's federal budget for 2009-2011, Speaker of the lower house of the Russian parliament Boris Gryzlov told journalists following today's State Duma Council meeting. He reiterated that a draft budget would be considered in its first reading on September 19. However, even now the deputies are ready to review amendments to the bill specifying the financing of the Russian Defense Ministry's expenses. The matter is to be discussed with Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov on Wednesday, Gryzlov said. He explained that the amendments were connected with the South Ossetian conflict and were aimed at enabling the Russian army to counter any threat, even a potential one.

RBC, 09.09.2008, Minsk 12:18:22.Severstal is interested in the construction of a new steel plant in Belarus, the country's Prime Minister Sergei Sidorsky was cited by the cabinet's press office as saying following talks with Vyacheslav Pozgalyov, governor of Russia's Vologda region. The PM noted that the matter had been discussed during a meeting in Minsk. Sidorsky added that the Belarus government planned to introduce the proposal on building the plant to President Alexander Lukashenko. The project has been estimated at more than $2bn. A feasibility study is being carried out, and Belarus intends to launch a construction tender in the near future. Severstal showed interest in the project a month ago, according to Sidorsky.

RBC, 08.09.2008, Moscow 19:04:23.Russia has received guarantees for the non-use of force by Georgia from the European Union and France, which is now holding the EU presidency, Russian leader Dmitry Medvedev said following today's talks with his French counterpart Nicolas Sarkozy. The Russian President stressed that the parties had accepted a document stipulating additional measures that were not included in the agreement signed on August 12.

Russia: 500 Confirmed and Rising, Killed During South Ossetia Massacre!

On Russian Television it was reported:

South Ossetian Prosecutor General, Teimuraz Khugayev told Interfax news agency that through talking to relatives and neighbors, investigators have collected information on over 1,600 people killed as a result of “Georgia’s aggression against South Ossetia”. The circumstances of deaths and the burial places of 500 people have been already determined.

Khugayev said they have also found the burial places of 160 dead, which will be exhumed and reburied. However, the investigation is limited by the fact not all relatives of the dead have come back to Tskhinval.

Kyle & Svet

Windows To Russia: Going to Israel and Egypt in October!

Hello,

My wife and I have just purchased airline tickets to Israel! We will leave on the 5th of October, 2008 and return by the 21st of October, 2008. We also plan to travel Egypt while we are in the area but not as extensive as Israel.We can travel to Egypt by bus after seeing the sights in Israel.

This is a trip of a lifetime for us both and we are very excited to be going. I have written about some of the worries (Link) but we decided that why worry just go. :)

We have a new lap top (Dell Inspiron) and this time we have secured reliable internet to work from any and all sources that we can find. (Israel seems to have WiFi everywhere, not sure about Egypt.)

This is a list we have found of some things to do and go see:

* Jerusalem
* The Gates of Jerusalem
* The City of David
* The Old City of Jerusalem
* Museum for Islamic Art
* Mount Zion
* Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial Museum
* The Tower of David Museum
* The Model of Second Temple Jerusalem
* The Jerusalem Botanical Gardens
* Nahlaot
* Mishkenot She'ananim
* The New Heart of Jerusalem
* The Tisch Family Biblical Zoo
* Ticho House
* Ben Yehuda Street
* Ramat Rachel
* Southern wall of Jerusalem from the time of the Hasmonean Dynasty
* Haifa
* The Bahai Gardens
* The Dead Sea
* Massada
* The Massada Museum
* Monasteries in the Judean Desert
* Arad region
* Arava Special Agriculture
* The Besor Region
* Nitzana Region
* Eilat
* The Coral Reef in Eilat
* The Red Sea
* The Dolphin Reef

Now as far as Egypt is concerned we have a desire to go to the oldest Monastery on Earth in the Sinai Peninsula. Then we want to see a pyramid.... (Egypt is ad lib as we go!)

As we get closer we will let everyone know more information. This time we are really working on being able to post as we travel!

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Russia: As The Winds Do Change! (Part 1)

What? Who Me!

Hello,

The second cup of coffee brought my attention to: One of the oldest and most respectable U.S. newspapers has published an article on the political situation in Georgia following the South Ossetian crisis. According to The Washington Post, “Georgians inside and outside the government have begun to question the wisdom of the costly confrontation, and of the leaders who set it in motion”.

Title of Article: Georgians Question Wisdom of War With Russia, President's Future At Stake, Some Say! (Link: you must sign up)
By Tara Bahrampour
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, September 9, 2008; Page A12

Initially, questions made by Georgia’s opposition to Saakashvili were raised quietly. Now they are growing louder and louder. While Russian peacekeepers are still in Georgia, some opposition leaders have spoken out about what they call ‘failures in diplomacy and warfare’, claiming that Saakashvili’s own actions have damaged his standing in Georgia.

Others predict Saakashvili, who reclaimed South Ossetia and Abkhazia back in 2003, will be forced from office by a war he hoped would earn him a place in history.

“Through military force, and all kinds of provocations, Saakashvili tried to show that he had the ability to reclaim these territories”, said the leader of the opposition New Rights party David Gamkrelidze to The Washington Post.

Saakashvili is blamed for not having a clear outlook on the situation due to the information provided to him by ‘his small circle’ of intimate followers.

Though an anonymous official quoted by the Post predicts that Saakashvili will be out of office this very year, the president himself is convinced that he will survive this crisis politically.

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Russia: Drawing The Red Lines!

Hello,

While drinking the morning cup of coffee, I was thinking about Russia and her outlook on the world...

Without a doubt, Russia is authoritarian; it does see itself as a great power and has engaged and will engage in power competition with those whom it sees as its rivals; it does insist on preserving links and influence in the former Imperial borderlands turned independent states; it looks at oil, gas and other natural resources as its few real assets before its economy is modernized and diversified; it does have a global view, it does have a future in mind that rejects US world domination and openly seeks to build what it calls a multipolar world order. True, Russia is not a post-modern player when it comes to international relations: it is nationalistic, sovereignty-conscious, and does not shy from wielding hard power, but apart from the European Union, no country is. Today, Russian people are freer and more affluent than they have ever been: capitalism is transforming Russian society on a daily basis. Yet even as Russia becomes progressively more Western inside, it has ceased to be pro-Western in its foreign policy.

These attributes of Russia are what scares the USA. For many years now the U.S. has not had anyone tell hem to not cross the red line. The U.S. has had the run of the "candy store" so to speak. Now the Bear said, no more candy from Russia & her territory!

What was the U.S. response to taking away her candy?

She (USA) had an unbelievable fit and is still screaming over lost candy! Rice has nonstop bad mouthed Russia for a month now. Bush has only shut up because his speech writers quit writing anti-Russian speeches. Cheney just made the rounds through this part of the world and proceeded to show his mentality level. Every time he spoke in the last few days, every other word was anti-Russian and he is so "talented" that he does not need speech writers to say, "Bad Russia!"

I have listen carefully the last few weeks and have watched the European Union work hard at a resolution. I have seen a Europe that wants to be a world power that mediates. I respect Europe, for the much more grownup attitude over the situation in the Caucuses. Yes Europe has its dissenting screaming children that try to stir up issues for the USA but the elder and wiser States keep them with pacifiers. The problem is that there is one child that Europe does not have a big enough pacifier for.....

Lets turn to the Biggest and Loudest Child (USA) for the last of these thoughts, centered on Cheney:

1. Dick Cheney denounced what he termed Russia’s war against Georgia. American political commentator Pat Buchanan pointed out that, while the Georgian conflict lasted five days, "We bombed Serbia for 78 days when it had not attacked the US for the province of Kosovo."

2. Cheney also warned that Russia’s recognition of Abkhazia and South Ossetia could set a precedent. “We know that if one country is allowed to unilaterally redraw the borders of another, it will happen and it will happen again," the Vice President said.

Just over six months ago, Russia expressed similar concerns - but then it was about recognising the independence of Kosovo. “We think to support the unilateral independence of Kosovo is wrong both from the moral and legal points of view,” Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said in February 2008. In spite of Russia's warnings, the Serbian province's unilateral declaration of independence was supported and recognized by the U.S. and more than 40 other countries.

3. Western politicians and media criticized Russia for what they called the invasion of a sovereign country. Again, terminology that would not be entirely out of place in a debate about the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003, which Russia opposed.

As the U.S. continues to attack Russia rhetorically, its inherent double standards are becoming ever more obvious. While the USA draws red lines and "you" better not cross, Russia slapped back when the USA crossed Russia's red line.

Hence: The Spoiled Child (USA) fell on the ground screaming, yelling and holding her breath until blue in the face.

Why?

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Russia: Will Now leave Georgia but Georgia is Minus Abkhazia and South Ossetia!

Nicolas Sarkozy and Dmitry Medvedev

Hello,

I have been waiting today to see the outcome of French President Nicolas Sarkozy, meeting with his counterpart Russian President Dmitry Medvedev. The meeting went as planned and Russia will pull out of Georgia. Now remember that they are pulling out of Georgia not Abkhazia or South Ossetia.

The French president said on Monday that Russia has promised to pull all troops out of Georgia, but not South Ossetia or Abkhazia!

Nicolas Sarkozy, speaking after talks with his counterpart Dmitry Medvedev near Moscow, also said that under the new agreement Russia has pledged to withdraw from observation posts located between the Georgian towns of Poti and Senaki within a week. (Link)

This was very expected on Russia's part and no one should be surprised by the news. Russia has also announced that they will put embassy's in both Abkhazia and South Ossetia. They are looking for buildings as you read this. There will also be 200 EU Observers stationed in Georgia near the conflict borders. These are to insure that Georgia does not start any trouble again.

He said Russian troops would pull out of the Black Sea port of Poti and nearby areas in the next seven days, but only if Georgia signed a pledge to not use force against Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

This is the same pledge that Russia has tried for years to get Georgia to sign and they refused. (You see why now.)

Strange how Russia has had to slap America and Europe in the face over Georgia. Russia went to the European Union, United Nations and NATO about Georgia way before all this happened. The USA blocked any and all problems brought up by Russia in every situation it could. That is why Medvedev and Putin say....

Georgia is actively working to restore its attacking potential, and is being aided by the U.S. He also accused Washington of complicity in Georgia's ground and air offensive against South Ossetia, which claimed the lives of a large number of civilians.

Saakashvili "decided to solve an old, complex problem, with historical elements, in one movement, through the use of military force. In this, he received the blessing of one country," Medvedev said.

I think that the USA is going to be not happy about this information....

Now you know a little more about what is happening in the world!

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Russia: The War Crimes are Being Compiled Against Georgia!

The Investigation Committee of the Russian General Prosecutor’s Office has provided non-governmental organizations (NGOs) with the first detailed reports from the inquiry into alleged war crimes by the Georgian army in South Ossetia between August 7 and 12.

All the data below has been provided by the Investigation Committee Russian General Prosecutor’s Office.

RT reproduces the information as part of a joint project with the investigation commission to make the information available.

Investigators collected more than 4,000 statements from people who claim they were victims of physical, material and moral attack as the result of the Georgian assault on South Ossetia.

The Russian General Prosecutor’s Office says Georgia’s military actions amounted to an attempt to ethnically cleanse the region of South Ossetians.

Witness accounts

The following statements were submitted to the Russian General Prosecutor’s Office by witnesses.


Larisa Khugayeva: “Georgian soldiers finished off the wounded and took prisoners from the civil population.”


Amiran Goyayev: “The Georgian army fired grenades into the basements where civilians were hiding, fired at those running away, ruined a wooden church in the village of Khetagurovo where people had found shelter”.


Artem Gobozov: “A car exploded in Tskhinval after being shot at with a self-propelled rocket launch system. The driver Yaroslav Valiyev and the passengers who were in the car with him were killed.”


Vyacheslav Gagloyev: “I saw soldiers of the Georgian army shoot dead Atsamat Gagloyev and Nuzgar Kozoyev and then cut their throat.”


Zhanna Safonova: “On August 7 the shelling started. It came from the Georgian village of Kekhvi. My friend Marina Chochieva and her children were shot on the Zar road by Georgian troops. All the people in the car were killed… I saw a lot of dead civilians in the hospitals of Tskhinval, including children.”


Lyudmila Tasoyeva: “A car carrying people was shot at by Georgians in Tskhinval. The family in the car, parents with two children, were still alive. Gasoline was then poured over it and it was set on fire".


Vali Bestayeva: “Georgian soldiers raped seven young women and then burned them alive in the village of Tsunari.”


Mikhail Tomayev: “On August 8 the mass shelling of Tskhinval started. Georgian troops entered the city and killed a pregnant woman who was running away. They stormed basements and killed civilians hiding there.”


Larisa Begayeva: “On August 8, at around 9am, Georgian tanks entered Tskhinval from near the Georgian village of Nikozi. They started to run over people who were running across a field, including women, children and old people. Some civilians hid in the church on Komarov street, and the Georgians, having seen that, blew up the building. All the people inside the church were killed.”


Findings of the investigation

The inquiry has established that 52 Russian peacekeepers were killed as a result of the Georgian army’s attack. Thirteen are missing and 229 are wounded.

A further 755 people were taken to hospitals in South Ossetia, five of them died later. Apartment buildings, schools, public buildings and infrastructure were destroyed in the city of Tskhinval and the villages of Khetagurovo, Dmenis, Sarabuk, Tbet, Zar, Rustav, Znaur, Didmukha, Ubiat, Mugrut, Arknet, Bekmar, Velit and Leningor.

The inquiry’s conclusions were reached after more than 600 observation missions to residential areas. A further 12 observation missions were made to Georgian firing positions and sites where peacekeeping forces operated. Many of these sites contained destroyed Russian and Georgian military equipment.

More than 5,000 items and documents have been collected as evidence of criminal actions by Georgian forces. These include military maps dealing with mass shelling of Ossetian residential areas. (Link)

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Russia: Lets See What Russia is Doing this Weekend!

Hello,

Lets see what Russia and friends are up to this weekend.....

* Russian President Dmitry Medvedev will attend the summit of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation organization in Peru on November 22-23, the Kremlin's press service said

* President Dmitry Medvedev said that Russia has not changed its warm and brotherly attitude toward the Georgian people after Tbilisi's recent attack on South Ossetia

* Russia's new carrier-based fighters will replace the Su-33 naval fighter in service with the Russian Navy after 2016, a senior military official said

* Gazprom is planning to receive licenses for the development of seven strategic gas fields in Russia by the end of September, the Russian energy giant said

* Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and armed forces will begin on Monday a three-day military exercise to test new weaponry and practice repelling potential air strikes on its territory, the local media said

* Iran will hold its next presidential election on June 12, 2009, the Fars news agency reported

* Poland's Alliance of the Democratic Left (SLD) has called for a national referendum on the deployment of a U.S. missile defense base in the country, a party's spokesman told RIA Novosti

* Six suspected militants were killed during a shootout with police in Russia's North Caucasus republic of Ingushetia, a local police source said.

Looks like normal stuff.....

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Russia: Traveling through ravaged capital Tskhinval, a delegation of international parliamentarians!

The facts are slowly coming out:

A delegation of international parliamentarians visiting South Ossetia say there is a media war against Russia unfolding in Europe. Traveling through the war ravaged capital Tskhinval, some officials said crimes against humanity had clearly been committed there.

“It’s terrible what I can see here,” Czech MP Lubomir Zaoralek said. “I don’t understand this attack against common people. It’s clear that it is a crime against humanity.”

Elected representatives from overseas saw with their own eyes houses and administrative buildings smashed by bombs. They visited basements where hundreds took shelter during the bombardment. Residents of the devastated city told them what they endured at the time of the attacks.

A visit to a ruined school left a painful impression on Ukrainian deputy Anatoly Tolstoukhov: “If a widely used Soviet expression “all the best goes to our children” is true, then shells and bullets are the best the Georgian authorities could give to these children,” he said.

But the harshest impression came when the delegation came to the Jewish quarter in Tskhinval. It was virtually destroyed in the bombing and scars of war are everywhere.

“We have to speak out about it and we have to investigate what happened there”, Czech MP Lubomir Zaoralek said. (Link)


Kyle & Svet

Russian News: September 5th, 2008!

RBC, 05.09.2008, Moscow 20:10:56.The leaders of Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) member states have supported Russia's initiative to develop a European security treaty, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev told a press conference today. In a declaration signed following a CSTO summit, the organization's members expressed concern over the proliferation of short- and medium-range missiles in Europe. The document also covers the prospects of building relations between the CSTO and the UN.

RBC, 05.09.2008, Moscow 19:18:37.While Russia has always stood for settling conflicts by political and diplomatic means, it is ready to robustly defend its interests in the future, President Dmitry Medvedev said following a Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) summit in Moscow today. He noted that during the summit, CSTO countries supported Russia's stance regarding the Caucasus conflict, criticizing Georgia's recent military actions in the region and urging the global community to assess the situation without double standards.

RBC, 05.09.2008, Tskhinval 18:38:55.First Deputy Speaker of the Russian State Duma Oleg Morozov claimed today during the visit of the interparliamentary commission to Tskhinval that the Georgian authorities who ordered to kill civilians in South Ossetia should be prosecuted. Morozov also suggested making a "White Book" containing information on each facility and house that had come under attack, and each victim of the conflict, based on which lawsuits will be filed.

RBC, 05.09.2008, Moscow 18:19:56.Russia has informed Oman that it is ready to buy out the latter country's stake in the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC), Russia's Deputy Energy Minister Stanislav Svetlitsky told journalists today. Russia accepted Oman's offer for the entire 7-percent stake it currently holds in CPC, the official specified. At the same time, he said that Kazakhstan, which shared a preemptive right for the stake with Russia, remained interested in acquiring the shares. The final decision on the distribution of the stake has yet to be made, Svetlitsky pointed out. He added that, among other options, Russia and Kazakhstan might buy out 4 percent and 3 percent of the shares, respectively.

RBC, 05.09.2008, Moscow 16:31:41.Russia hopes that the US will not act to prevent South Ossetian and Abkhaz representatives from participating in the upcoming discussions of the Georgia-Abkhazia and Georgia-Ossetia conflicts to be held at the UN headquarters in New York, said spokesman for the Russian Foreign Ministry Andrei Nesterenko. He reiterated that, following current international practice, South Ossetia and Abkhazia have the right to explain their point of view on the recent events in the Caucasus. When asked about the possibility of holding a UN Security Council meeting in Switzerland, Nesterenko expressed concern that the US might not grant Swiss visas to South Ossetia and Abkhazia representatives.

RBC, 05.09.2008, Moscow 13:16:15.The parliamentary session of the Russia-Belarus Union State is likely to review the recognition of South Ossetia and Abkhazia's independence, State Duma Speaker and Co-Chairman of the Union State parliamentary assembly Boris Gryzlov told journalists today. The Russian official made this statement in response to deputy Anatoly Lokot's urge to discuss the matter during the session.

RBC, 05.09.2008, Moscow 11:53:58.During a working visit to South Ossetia and Abkhazia, Russia's chief military prosecutor Sergei Fridinsky inspected the enforcement of law and order among Russian peacekeeping forces, the disposition of the troops and the delivery of all items required by the servicemen, the prosecutor's press office told RBC today. Russian peacekeepers have confiscated a large number of weapons from the Georgian military, including not only Soviet-made arms but also weapons and military equipment produced in the US, the Czech Republic, Ukraine and other countries, Fridinsky was cited by the press office as saying. Some of the weapons have been produced this year and are quite modern, Fridinsky noted. He added that all weapons would be thoroughly examined, registered, and given over to law enforcement officials, who would decide on their future destination in accordance with the law.

RBC, 05.09.2008, Sochi 11:14:41.The Bank of Russia expects a zero inflation rate in September, the bank's First Deputy Chairman Alexei Ulyukayev said during an international banking forum in Sochi today. He reiterated that Russia's inflation stood at 0.3 percent in August and 9.7 percent in the first eight months of 2008. Inflation was higher in late August this year, while it was negative in August 2007, Ulyukayev added. He also noted that the increase in this August's inflation could be primarily attributed to higher prices for meat and dairy products.

Russia: First victims of Ossetian War identified!

This is just the first list of 311 deceased from the barbaric attack by Georgia upon the sleeping people in South Ossetia:

Eternal rest, grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them. May the souls of the faithful departed through the mercy of God rest in peace. Amen.

A full list of all the victims of the conflict is not yet available as information is still being collected by South Ossetian authorities. The following are the names, dates of birth, causes of death and burial places of South Ossetian citizens so far confirmed killed in the fighting between the 7th and 12th of August 2008. The list will be updated as the Officials confirm the deaths....

1. Ataev Alan Muratovich, 1971 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

2. Kelehsaev Murzaba V. , 1944 D. O. B. Shot by a Georgian sniper. Buried in Tbet village.

3. Petoev Albert S., 1943 D. O. B. Killed by a BM-21 Grad rocket. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

4. Pliev Tamaz Sulikoevich, 1965 D. O. B. South Ossetian OMON police officer. Died during active duty. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

5. Melitoljan D., 1966 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

6. Valiev Aleksandr A. , 1946 D. O. B. Killed by a Georgian sniper during evacuation on Zarskoi road.

7. Ostaev Tauret S., 1957 D. O. B. Killed by shrapnel from artillery fire. Buried in Itrapis village.

8. Bosikov Guram H. , 1953 D. O. B. Killed by air strike. Buried in Zguderskom cemetery.

9. Tadtaev Sergey Lvovich, 1972 D. O. B. Burned in own car after it was shot by a Georgian tank. Buried on grounds of School No. 5.

10. Kozaev Suliko A. , 1940 D. O. B. Killed by shrapnel from artillery fire. Buried in Itrapis village.

11. Kachmazov Vadim L. , 1970 D. O. B. Killed by artillery fire in Hetagurovo village.

12. Chovrebova Valya, 1940 D. O. B. Car hit by artillery fire. Buried in the courtyard of his apartment block.

13. Tedeev David Albertovich, 1988 D. O. B. Killed by a BM-21 Grad rocket. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

14. Gazaev Valery M., 1957 D. O. B. Died during artillery strike on Satikar village.

15. Bagaev Nodar Grigorevich, 1957 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

16. Dzhioev Mitya, 45 y/o. Killed by shrapnel from artillery fire. Buried in Itrapis village.

17. Chovrebov Guram Ivanovich, 1948 D. O. B. Died during shelling of the city. Place of burial unknown.

18. Beteev Ivan Ilyich, 1956 D. O. B. Killed by a BM-21 Grad rocket. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

19. Hugaev Vasily Ivanovich, 1954 D. O. B. Killed by artillery fire in Hetagurovo village.

20. Bikoeva Liana Romanovna, 1957 D. O. B. Car hit by artillery fire. Buried in the courtyard of his apartment block.

21. Habalova Liana Romanovna, 1964, D. O. B. Hit by shrapnel from artillery shell. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

22. Tadtaev Ruslan Zaurovich, 1960 D. O. B. Killed by artillery fire in Hetagurovo village.

23. Kumaritova Tamara Tuganovna, 1923 D. O. B. Hit by shrapnel from artillery shell. Buried in Tbet village.

24. Harebov Tamazi Georgievich, 1965 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

25. Tuaev Radion Vasilevich, 1987 D. O. B. Killed by air strike. Buried in Zguderskom cemetery.

26. Basiladze Linana Konstantinovna, 1926 D. O. B. Killed by a explosive mine.

27. Kabulov Alan Albogovich, 1959 D. O. B. Killed by air strike. Buried in Zguderskom cemetery.

28. Habalov Tajmuraz Soltanovich, 1960 D. O. B. Killed by shrapnel from artillery fire. Buried in Itrapis village.

29. Doguzova Lida Bagratovna, 1934 D. O. B. Died during the conflict. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

30. Haradzishvili Angelina Dmitrievna, 1974 D. O. B. Killed during shelling of the city. Buried in Tbet village.

31. Chekhoev Abesalom B., 1967 D. O. B. Died during shelling of the city. Place of burial unknown.

32. Elbakieva Dina, 2005 D. O. B. Killed during shelling of the city. Buried in Tbet village.

33. Kabisova Jelza Zelimhanovna, 1966 D. O. B. Killed by shelling in Hetagurovo village.

34. Kadzhaev Vadim Vasilevich, 1966 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

35. Bestaev Vasily Gavrilovich, 1955 D. O. B. Shot by a Georgian sniper. Buried in Tbet village.

36. Gazzaev Genady Borisovich, 1982 D. O. B. Died during the conflict. Buried in a garden.

37. Sabanov Hamlet D., 1975 D. O. B. Killed by a tank shot. . Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

38. Kabulova Dusya Luarsabovna, 1927 D. O. B. Fatally wounded by shelling. . Buried in Zguderskom cemetery.

39. Chovrebov Alan Dmitrievich, 1987 D. O. B. Killed by a tank shot. . Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

40. Bestaev Samson Sosoevich, 1940 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

41. Bestaeva Anna Antonovna, 1941 D. O. B. Killed when house was shelled. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

42. Kozaev Abe, 55 y/o. Died when house was struck by artillery. Buried in a garden.

43. Bestaeva Maria Georgievna, 1941 D. O. B. Killed when house was shelled. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

44. Gabaraev Georgy Sokratovich g. r. , s. 1954 D. O. B. Killed by artillery fire on Zarskoi road. Place of burial unknown.

45. Gabuev Givi Mihajlovich, 1929 D. O. B. Killed by artillery fire on Zarskoi road. Place of burial unknown.

46. Alborov Valter Oneginovich, 1974 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

47. Bestaev Anzor Sedirovich, 1963 D. O. B. Killed by artillery fire in Hetagurovo village.

48. Dzhigkaeva Kristina Ruslanovna, 1997 D. O. B. Killed when tank shell exploded. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

49. Maldzigov Sevastia Stepanovich, 1965 D. O. B. Killed by a BM-21 Grad rocket. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

50. Kuluhov Soslan Andreevich, 1946 D. O. B. Died during shelling of the city. Place of burial unknown.

51. Kozaeva Maria, 76 y/o. Burned in home during shelling. Buried in a garden.

52. Gojaev Vitaly Vasilevich, 1990 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

53. Mamiev Amiran Nikolaevich, 1941 D. O. B. Killed by artillery fire in Hetagurovo village.

54. Dzhioev Botaz Davidovich, 1952 D. O. B. Killed by a tank shot. . Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

55. Bagaeva Olesya Givievna, 1983 D. O. B. Killed by a BM-21 Grad rocket. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

56. Kozaev Valery Ivanovich, 1965 D. O. B. Killed by a BM-21 Grad rocket. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

57. Bitarov Uruzmag, 1950 D. O. B. Killed by air strike. Buried in Zguderskom cemetery.

58. Hachirova Manana A. , 1955 D. O. B. Killed by a BM-21 Grad rocket. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

59. Dzhussoev Mair Zaurovich, 1971 D. O. B. Burned alive in car when Georgians covered it in petrol and set it alight. Buried in Nagutni.

60. Dzhussoev Aslan Mairovich, 15 y/o. Burned alive in car when Georgians covered it in petrol and set it alight. Buried in Nagutni.

61. Dzhussoeva Dina, 14 y/o. Burned alive in car when Georgians covered it in petrol and set it alight. Buried in Nagutni.

62. Bigulaev Viktor I. , 1952 D. O. B. Killed by a BM-21 Grad rocket. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

63. Kozaev Valery Ivanovich, 1965 D. O. B. Killed by artillery fire on Zarskoi road. Place of burial unknown.

64. Koroeva Lamzira Zaurovna, 1968 D. O. B. Killed when house was shelled. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

65. Gagloev Tajmuraz Antonovich, 1952 D. O. B. Burned in car after it was shelled by Georgian troops Buried in a garden.

66. Hubezhov Tajmuraz Sh, 1959 D. O. B. Killed by air strike. Buried in Zguderskom cemetery.

67. Dzhioeva Palina Sh., 1955 D. O. B. Killed in shelling of Zarskoi road. Place of burial unknown.

68. Bikoev Efim Sergeevich, 1938 D. O. B. Shot by a Georgian sniper. Buried in Tbet village.

69. Kelekhsaeva Tasya Sobaevna, 1924 D. O. B. Killed by a BM-21 Grad rocket. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

70. Gagloev Azamat Tajmurazovich, 18 y/o. Burned in car after it was shelled by Georgian troops. Buried in a garden.

71. Gubaev Vladimir Georgievich, 1956 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

72. Kachlaeva Zarina, 16 y/o. Killed when house was shelled. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

73. Bazzaev Vasily Vladimirovich, 1947 D. O. B. Burned in his own house when it was shelled. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

74. Dzhioev Renat Gergievich, 1980 D. O. B. Killed by shrapnel from artillery fire. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

75. Tibilov Inal Revazovich, 1940 D. O. B. Killed by artillery fire on Zarskoi road. Place of burial unknown.

76. Gagieva Zarema Gajozovna, 1961 D. O. B. Car hit by artillery fire. Buried in the courtyard of his apartment block.

77. Dzhigkaeva Inga Sergeevna, 1966 D. O. B. Killed when house was shelled. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

78. Beteev Inal Aleksandrovich, 1955 D. O. B. Died from wounds sustained during artillery bombardment of Tskhinval. Buried in Tbet village.

79. Tedeev Valerian T., 1972 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

80. Tedeeva Tamara Borisovna, 1947 D. O. B. Car hit by artillery fire. Buried in the courtyard of his apartment block.

81. Chovrebov Aslan Jurevich, 13. 01. 1985 D. O. B. Died during active duty. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

82. Dzeranov Auzbi Zaharevich, 1940 D. O. B. Killed by a BM-21 Grad rocket. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

83. Habalov Batyrbeg Vasilevich, 1941 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

84. Gobozov Merab Georgievich, 1960 D. O. B. Killed by shrapnel from artillery fire. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

85. Tekhov Muharbeg Jakovlevich, 1977 D. O. B. Shot by a Georgian sniper. Buried in Zguderskom cemetery.

86. Shanazarova Albina Chorshanbievna, 14 y/o. Shot by a Georgian sniper during evacuation on Zarskoi road.

87. Kuduhov Ramazi I. , 1982 D. O. B. Killed by air strike. Buried in Zguderskom cemetery.

88. Kozaev Shota Nikolaevich, 1951 D. O. B. Killed by a BM-21 Grad rocket. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

89. Gagloev Murat Vasilevich, 1936 D. O. B. Shot by a Georgian sniper. Buried in Tbet village.

90. Chovrebova Malvina Borisovna, 1960 D. O. B. Pregnant. Died of a Georgian shell explosion. Buried in a garden.

91. Kokoev Vitalik Vardanovich, 1950 D. O. B. Died during shelling of the city. Place of burial unknown.

92. Tedeev Anatolij Tengizovich, 1960 D. O. B. Shot by a Georgian sniper. Buried in Tbet village.

93. Alborov Otar Gerasimovich, 1940 D. O. B. Killed by shrapnel from artillery fire. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

94. Dzhatieva Zalina H. , 1958 D. O. B. Killed when house was shelled. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

95. Valieva Madina Dzambolatovna, 01. 01. 1988 D. O. B. Died from Georgian sniper bullet. . Body had been hidden. Found by ‘Vostok Battalion’ troops. Buried in Djava.

96. Siukaev Anatolij A. , 1958 D. O. B. Killed by artillery fire on Zarskoi road. Place of burial unknown.

97. Tedeev Vasily Muhtarovich, 1956 D. O. B. Killed by shrapnel from artillery fire. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

98. Kisiev Ibragim Felikosvich. Killed by artillery fire in Hetagurovo village.

99. Doguzov Leonid Nikolaevich. Died during artillery strike on Satikar village.

100. Parastaev Aleksandr Aronovich, 1958 D. O. B. Killed by shrapnel from artillery fire. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

101. Valiev Ruslan Vladimirovich, 1955 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

102. Bestaev Ushang Mihajlovich, 1954 D. O. B. Killed when a car was shelled. Buried outside his house.

103. Gabaraeva Lyubov Georgievna, 1930 D. O. B. Car hit by artillery fire. Buried in the courtyard of his apartment block.

104. Gazaev Yury Konstantinovich, 1957 D. O. B. Shot by a Georgian sniper. Buried in Tbet village.

105. Doguzov Guram Konstantinovich, 1945 D. O. B. Killed by a Georgian sniper during evacuation on Zarskoi road. .

106. Loloev Otar Garsevanovich. Died in artillery strike on Dmenis village.

107. Hatdziev Suliko Utievich. Died in artillery strike on Dmenis village.

108. Cahilov Aslan Vladimirovich, 1960 D. O. B. Killed by air strike. Buried in Zguderskom cemetery.

109. Hubaev Valik Mihajlovich, 1950 D. O. B. Killed by a BM-21 Grad rocket. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

110. Hubaev Amiran Vardenovich, 1937 D. O. B. Died during shelling of the city. Place of burial unknown.

111. Beteev Genady Borisovich, 1967 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

112. Gigolaev Boris Nestorovich, 1937 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

113. Nanieva Nina Ivanovna, 1956 D. O. B. Hit by shrapnel from artillery shell. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

114. Harebov Botaz Zaurovich, 1957 D. O. B. Killed by air strike. Buried in Zguderskom cemetery.

115. Alborov Oleg Zaurovich, 1955 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

116. Valiev Valery Pavlovich, 1961 D. O. B. Killed by a BM-21 Grad rocket. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

117. Dzasohov Vladimir Dzandorovich, 1950 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

118. Maldzigov Gija Vladimirovich. Killed by artillery fire in Hetagurovo village.

119. Dzhioev Gergiej Alekseevich, 1943 D. O. B. Killed by shrapnel from artillery fire. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

120. Tadtaev Robert Sergeevich, 1963 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

121. Kabisov Slavik Sardionovich, 1970 D. O. B. Died during shelling of the city. Place of burial unknown.

122. Maldzigova Evgenija Nikolaevna, 1927 D. O. B. Killed by a BM-21 Grad rocket. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

123. Dzhabiev Hamlet Georgievich, 1974 D. O. B. Killed by shrapnel from artillery fire. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

124. Chertkoev Inal Nikolaevich, 1957 D. O. B. Shot by a Georgian sniper. Buried in Tbet village.

125. Bestaev Tengiz Nikolaevich, 1950 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

126. Harebov Dmitry Dmitrievich, 1952 D. O. B. Shot by a Georgian sniper. Buried in Tbet village.

127. Tedeev Abe, 35 y/o. Killed during the conflict. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

128. Tedeev Vladimir Romanovich, 1948 D. O. B. Killed by shrapnel from artillery fire. Buried in the village of Kornis.

129. Dzhioev Radion Zurabovich, 1984 D. O. B. Killed by shrapnel from artillery fire. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

130. Bitiev Kazbek Borisovich, 1955 D. O. B. Killed by shrapnel from artillery fire. Buried in the village of Kornis.

131. Dzhagaev Radik Guramovich, 1983 D. O. B. Killed by shrapnel from artillery fire. Buried in the village of Kornis.

132. Tigiev Jeduard Kazbekovich, 1958 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

133. Dzhagaev Dzhumber Parmenovich, 1953 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

134. Nartikoev David Borisovich, 1980 D. O. B. Died while guarding an entrance to the city. Buried in Djava.

135. Hubezhov Aleksandr Dmitrievich, 1952 D. O. B. Killed by a BM-21 Grad rocket. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

136. Dzhioev Malhaz Aleksandrovich, 1960 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

137. Dzhabiev Shaliko Gabaevich, 1957 D. O. B. Killed by shrapnel from artillery fire. Buried in the village of Kornis.

138. Kozaev Alan Pavlovich, 1967 D. O. B. Died during shelling of the city. Place of burial unknown.

139. Cibirov Jemzar Rezoevich, 1967 D. O. B. Killed by shrapnel from artillery fire. Buried in Dmenis village.

140. Chovrebov Hazbi Shalvovich, 1955 D. O. B. Killed by a BM-21 Grad rocket. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

141. Alborov Leonid Zarbegovich, 1965 D. O. B. Killed by shrapnel from artillery fire. Buried in Dmenis village.

142. Dudaev Alan Andreevich, 1962 D. O. B. Killed by shrapnel from artillery fire. Buried in Dmenis village.

143. Kotolov Soltan Ilyich, 1953 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

144. Kulumbegov Hsar Grigorevich, 1945 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

145. Hugaev Sergey Sikoevich, 1940 D. O. B. Killed by air strike. Buried in Zguderskom cemetery.

146. Bagaev Oleg Valikoevich, 1964 D. O. B. Died during shelling of the city. Place of burial unknown.

147. Petoeva Ruzana Mihajlovna, 1916 D. O. B. Killed by shelling in Hetagurovo village.

148. Gazaev Ibragim Hazbievich, 1990 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

149. Bestaev Aleksey Sergeevich, 1952 D. O. B. Killed by air strike. Buried in Zguderskom cemetery.

150. Apaev Arsen Borisovich, 1964 D. O. B. Shot by a Georgian sniper. Buried in Tbet village.

151. Chekhoev Vladimir Vardanovich, 1960 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

152. Dzhabieva Zemfira Chermenovna, 1952 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

153. Sanakoev Jelbrus Kazbekovich, 1962 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

154. Bestaev Pavel Grigorevich, 1964 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

155. Kodalaev Guram Ilyich, 1952 D. O. B. Killed by air strike. Buried in Zguderskom cemetery.

156. Chovrebov Aleksey Vladimirovich, 1980 D. O. B. Killed by a BM-21 Grad rocket. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

157. Sanakoev Petja Efimovich, 1940 D. O. B. Killed by a Georgian sniper during evacuation on Zarskoi road. .

158. Alborova Zalina Vladimirovna, 1963 D. O. B. Car hit by artillery fire. Buried in the courtyard of his apartment block.

159. Arsoev Sadul Severjanovich, 1950 D. O. B. Died during shelling of the city. Place of burial unknown.

160. Kelehsaev Roland Vissarionovich, 1960 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

161. Sabanov David Grigorevich, 1947 D. O. B. Killed by a BM-21 Grad rocket. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

162. Dudaev Slavik Kazbekovich. Shot by a Georgian sniper. Buried in Tbet village.

163. Dzhioev Konstantin Zaurovich, 1954 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

164. Bestaev Valery Sergeevich, 1970 D. O. B. Shot by a Georgian sniper. Buried in Tbet village.

165. Kumaritov Valery Kuzmich, 1953 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

166. Tadtaev Dmitry Vjacheslavovich, 1983 D. O. B. Killed by a BM-21 Grad rocket. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

167. Habalov Givi Vasilevich, 1961 D. O. B. Killed by a BM-21 Grad rocket. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

168. Harebaty Zaur Vladimirovich, 1956 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

169. Chandieva Valentina Sergeevna, 1976 D. O. B. Killed when house was shelled. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

170. Dzhioev Aleksey Sergeevich, 1950 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

171. Kozaev Jelbrus (Muharbeg) Rutenovich, 1957 D. O. B. Hit by air strike on Tbet village. Buried in Zguderskom cemetery.

172. Gasseev Genady Nikolaevich, 1961 D. O. B. Killed by air strike. Buried in Zguderskom cemetery.

173. Zasseev Ruslan Grigorevich, 1956 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

174. Tibilov Murat Ivanovich, 1959 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

175. Tibilov Ivan Muratovich, 1941 D. O. B. Died during shelling of the city. Place of burial unknown.

176. Tibilov Vitaly Dzhumberovich, 1987 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

177. Ikaev Valery Vladimirovich, 1958 D. O. B. Killed by a Georgian sniper during evacuation on Zarskoi road. .

178. Kabulov Givi Ivanovich, 1953 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

179. Tedeev Volodja Matveevich, 1958 D. O. B. Hit by air strike on Tbet village. Buried in Jerco village.

180. Bolotaev Oleg Filippovich, 1957 D. O. B. Killed by a Georgian sniper during evacuation on Zarskoi road. .

181. Dzhioev Totyrbeg Ivanovich, 1964 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

182. Lalieva Valentina Sergeevna, 1940 D. O. B. Shot by a Georgian sniper during evacuation on Zarskoi road.

183. Puhaty Jedik Grigorevich, 1953 D. O. B. Killed when a car was shelled hlebovoza. Buried outside his house.

184. Dzhioev Genady Muratovich, 1948 D. O. B. Killed by air strike. Buried in Zguderskom cemetery.

185. Kochiev Jedik Sergeevich, 1961 D. O. B. Died during shelling of the city. Place of burial unknown.

186. Gagloev Hamlet G. , 1972 D. O. B. Killed by a BM-21 Grad rocket. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

187. Ikoty Zahar (Aleksandr) Borisovich, 1947 D. O. B. Killed when a car was shelled. Buried outside his house.

188. Adzhiev Vadim Rutenovich, 1981 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

189. Lalieva Laida M. , 1979 D. O. B. Fatally wounded by shelling. Buried in Zguderskom cemetery.

190. Kokoev Dzhemal Revazovich, 1955 D. O. B. Killed when a car was shelled. Buried outside his house.

191. Kozaev Zelim Tutievich, 1975 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

192. Bjazrov Ludwig Hazbievich, 1970 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

193. Kozaev Lev Aleksandrovich, 1987 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

194. Kochiev Pavel Grigorevich, 1949 D. O. B. Killed by a Georgian sniper during evacuation on Zarskoi road. .

195. Dzhioev Gocha Georgievich, 1965 D. O. B. Shot by a Georgian sniper. Buried in Dmenis village.

196. Pliev Aleksandr Sergeevich, 1960 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

197. Bestaev Pavel Vardanovich, 1949 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

198. Gussalov Vasily Karamanovich, 1959 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

199. Gagiev Alik Pavlovich, 1976 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

200. Gassiev Barsag Zaharovich, 1985 D. O. B. Killed by a tank shot. . Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

201. Vazagov Gajoz Davidovich, 1942 D. O. B. Shot by a Georgian sniper. Buried in Dmenis village.

202. Kochiev Acamaz Anatolevich, 1978 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

203. Dzhioev Muhar Sergeevich, 1950 D. O. B. Killed by a BM-21 Grad rocket. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

204. Gussalov Nikolay Vladimirovich, 1964 D. O. B. Killed in the conflict. Buried in a garden.

205. Kochiev Murat Davidovich, 1959 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

206. Gabaraev Fedor Georgievich, 1951 D. O. B. Killed when a car was shelled. Buried outside his house.

207. Dzoloev Nodar Nikolaevich, 1965 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

208. Guzzitaev Rafik Moiseevich, 1957 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

209. Kadzhaeva Jelina Kazbekovna, 1986 D. O. B. Wounded while the city was shelled. Buried alive in her house. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

210. Kadzhaev Zelim Zaurovich, 1965 D. O. B. Killed by a tank shot. . Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

211. Tebloev Chermen Petrovich, 1951 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

212. Tuaev Alan Ilyich, 1965 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

213. Gabuev Amzor Sosikoevich, 1940 D. O. B. Died during shelling of the city. Place of burial unknown.

214. Gagloeva Larisa Valikoevna, 1974 D. O. B. Killed by a BM-21 Grad rocket. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

215. Loloev Slavik Sulikoevich, 1954 D. O. B. Died during shelling of the city. Place of burial unknown.

216. Gagloeva Fatima Gavrilovna, 1948 D. O. B. Fatally wounded by shelling. . Buried in Zguderskom cemetery.

217. Tedeev Tolik Ivanovich, 1953 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

218. Ostaev Shalva Jeduardovich, 1973 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

219. Sanakoeva Aza Aleksandrovna, 1948 D. O. B. Killed when house was shelled. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

220. Tedeev Ibragim Gazanovaich, 1965 D. O. B. Killed in the conflict. Buried in Tbet village.

221. Tuaev Vasily Sergeevich, 1964 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

222. Alborov Vladimir Gersanovich, 1948 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

223. Valiev Luarsab Garitaevich, 1954 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

224. Bibilova Neli Alekseevna, 1938 D. O. B. Car hit by artillery fire. Buried in the courtyard of his apartment block.

225. Kadzhaev Tajmuraz Fedorovich, 1964 D. O. B. Died during shelling of the city. Place of burial unknown.

226. Bikoev Anatolij Dmitrievich, 1952 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

227. Gazzaev Vladik Albertovich, 1972 D. O. B. Killed in the conflict. Buried in a garden.

228. Alborova Natela Zaurovna, 1956 D. O. B. Killed by a BM-21 Grad rocket. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

229. Hubaev Givi Davidovich, 1962 D. O. B. Shot by a Georgian sniper. Buried in Dmenis village.

230. Dzhioev Azamat Gamatovich, 1993 D. O. B. Died during shelling of the city. Place of burial unknown.

231. Lalieva Irina Borisovna, 1966 D. O. B. Fatally wounded by shelling. . Buried in Zguderskom cemetery.

232. Tedeev Pavel Ivanovich, 1951 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

233. Muldarov Gajoz Grigorevich, 1972 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

234. Chovrebov Vladimir Inalovich, 1956 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

235. Guzzitaev Tamerlan Jasonovich, 1968 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

236. Bestaev Nikolay Gavrilovich, 1939 D. O. B. Killed by artillery fire on Zarskoi road. Place of burial unknown.

237. Dzhagaeva Liza Sandroevna, 1945 D. O. B. Fatally wounded by shelling. . Buried in Zguderskom cemetery.

238. Ikoeva Roza Viktorovna, 1936 D. O. B. Killed during shelling of the city. Buried in Tbet village.

239. Goginov Robert Tengizovich, 1955 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

240. Tasoev Botaz Georgievich, 1946 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

241. Kelehsaev Zahar Sardionovich, 1940 D. O. B. Killed by a BM-21 Grad rocket. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

242. Bagaev Feliks Jasonovich, 1955 D. O. B. Killed by a tank shot. . Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

243. Dzhioev Jelbrus Semenovich, 1973 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

244. Kadzhaev Soslan Kavkazovich, 1978 D. O. B. Killed by a BM-21 Grad rocket. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

245. Guzitaev Zviad Nikolaevich,1974 . D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

246. Sabanov Hvicha Mihajlovich,1961 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

247. Gucaev Valery Tasolovich, 1949 D. O. B. Killed by artillery fire on Zarskoi road. Place of burial unknown.

248. Kachmazova Lena, 56 y/o. Killed by a BM-21 Grad rocket. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

249. Besaev Alan Anatolevich, 1986 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

250. Dzhidzhoev Mitya Amiranovich, 1954 D. O. B. Killed when a car was shelled. Buried outside his house.

251. Sanakoev Vladimir Kubadievich, 1956 D. O. B. Killed when a car was shelled. Buried outside his house.

252. Sabanov Vasily Fedorovich, 1955 D. O. B. Killed by a BM-21 Grad rocket. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

253. Kachmazova Zaira, 58 y/o. Killed by a BM-21 Grad rocket. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

254. Gabaraev Vladimir Dmitrievich, 1972 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

255. Gigolaev Vadim Georgievich, 1963 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

256. Kulumbegov Radik Georgievich, 1966 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

257. Bekoev Alan Tuzarovich, 1974 D. O. B. Killed by a BM-21 Grad rocket. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

258. Abaeva Manana Georgievna, 1966 D. O. B. Fatally wounded by shelling. . Buried in Zguderskom cemetery.

259. Dzagoev Nodar Grigorevich, 1959 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

260. Dzigoev Alan Zurabovich, 1974 D. O. B. Killed by a BM-21 Grad rocket. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

261. Abaeva Lejla (Zhuzhu) Pavlovna. Killed by a BM-21 Grad rocket. Buried in a courtyard between apartment blocks.

262. Dzhioev Navroz Muhtarovich, 1953 D. O. B. Hit by shelling in Tbet village. Place of burial unknown.

263. Dzigoev Albert Shotaevich, 1982 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

264. Babaev Omar Lentoevich, 1956 D. O. B. Killed by a BM-21 Grad rocket. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

265. Asaev Valery Arshakovich, 1955 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

266. Kabulov Acamaz Tajmurazovich, 1988 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

267. Dzhioev Maharbek Chakoevich, 1946 D. O. B. Killed by a tank shot. . Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

268. Bestaev Hazbi Dmitrievich, 1933 D. O. B. Killed when a tank shot his apartment building. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

269. Dzhioev Almurat Aleksandrovich, 1976 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

270. Bagaeva Svetlana Georgievna, 1975 D. O. B. Car hit by artillery fire. Buried in the courtyard of his apartment block.

271. Zasseev Anatolij Filippovich, 1948 D. O. B. Hit by shelling in Tbet village. Place of burial unknown.

272. Kochieva Madina Chermenovna, 1963 D. O. B. Killed when house was shelled. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

273. Kumaritov Lev Hristoforovich, 1962 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

274. Tadtaev Georgy Pavlovich, 1986, D. O. B. Killed when a tank shot his apartment building. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

275. Gagloev Jedik Nikolaevich, 1954 D. O. B. Car hit by Georgian tank fire in Tbet village. Sgorel. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

276. Dzebisov Vladimir Ilyich, 1950 D. O. B. Killed by artillery fire on Zarskoi road. Place of burial unknown.

277. Gugkaev Alan Alanovich, 1977 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

278. Valiev Mihail Kuzmich, 1958 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

279. Tibilova Zalina Nikolaevna, 1956 D. O. B. Burned. Car was hit by a Georgian tank shell in Tbet village. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

280. Kokoev Leva Jashaevich, 1951 D. O. B. Killed by artillery fire on Zarskoi road. Place of burial unknown.

281. Gasseev Vitaly Nikolaevich, 1963 D. O. B. Killed by artillery fire on Zarskoi road. Place of burial unknown.

282. Beteev Auzbi Borisovich, 1972 D. O. B. Killed by artillery fire on Zarskoi road. Place of burial unknown.

283. Kadzhaeva Liana Sergeevna, 1960 D. O. B. Burned. Car was hit by a Georgian tank shell in Tbet village. Buried in Zguderskom cemetery.

284. Tekhov Vladimir Alekseevich, 1975 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

285. Bigulaev Zaurbeg Davidovich, 1955 D. O. B. Hit by shelling in Tbet village.

286. Gubiev Jakov, 1930 D. O. B. Killed by Georgian sniper fire. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

287. Muldarov Zelim Efimovich, 1964 D. O. B. Killed by artillery fire on Zarskoi road. Place of burial unknown.

288. Valiev Yury Vladimirovich, 1956 D. O. B. Killed by artillery fire on Zarskoi road. Place of burial unknown.

289. Gagiev Valery Vladimirovich, 1978 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

290. Chovrebov Sevastjan V. , 1937 D. O. B. Hit by shelling in Tbet village.

291. Kumaritova Madina A. , 1938 D. O. B. Fatally wounded by shelling. . Buried in Zguderskom cemetery.

292. Chibirov Vilen Valikoevich, 1975, D. O. B. Killed in the conflict. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

293. Kachmazov Igor Jurevich, 1963 D. O. B. Killed by artillery fire on Zarskoi road. Place of burial unknown.

294. Karkusov Feliks V. , 1940 D. O. B. Hit by shelling in Tbet village.

295. Gagiev Givi Grigorevich, 1942 D. O. B. Killed by artillery fire on Zarskoi road. Place of burial unknown.

296. Magkoeva Aza Pavlovna, 1949 D. O. B. Killed when house was shelled. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

297. Dzhabiev Vladimir Iosifovich, 1953 D. O. B. Killed by a tank shot. . Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

298. Kulumbegov Georgy Anatolevich, 1976 D. O. B. Killed in the conflict. Buried in Zguderskom cemetery.

299. Kisieva Dunja Iraklievna, 1940 D. O. B. Killed in shelling of Zarskoi road. Place of burial unknown.

300. Hubaev Murat Arsenovich, 1963 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

301. Kotaev Soslan Sadulovich, 1948 D. O. B. Killed by a tank shot. . Buried in courtyard of apartment block.

302. Bibilov Alan Georgievich, 1960 D. O. B. Killed in the conflict. Buried in Bibyltykau village.

303. Gabaraev Genady Matveevich, 1951 D. O. B. Killed during the conflict. Place of burial unknown.

304. Dzhigkaeva Lidija Vasilevna, 1947 D. O. B. Killed when house was shelled. Buried in Vladikavkaz.

305. Kuduhov Vsevolod Ilyich, 1947 D. O. B. Shot by a Georgian sniper. Buried in Dmenis village.

306. Bazzaeva Zhenja Gavrilovna, 1940 D. O. B. Killed in shelling of Zarskoi road. Place of burial unknown.

307. Dzhabiev Albert Vasilevich, 1976 D. O. B. Killed in the conflict. Buried in Rustau village.

308. Parastaev Lev Pavlovich, 1949 D. O. B. Killed when a car was shelled. Buried outside his house.

309. Kabisov Vasily Sosoevich, 1936 D. O. B. Killed by artillery fire on Zarskoi road. Place of burial unknown.

310. Bolataeva Zemfira Aleksandrovna, 1941 D. O. B. Fatally wounded by shelling. . Buried in Zguderskom cemetery.

311. Dzahov Valery Borisovich, 1987 D. O. B. Shot by a Georgian sniper during the conflict. . Buried in Tbet village.

As the list grows we will post it and total the deaths...


Update more dead added to list......

New victims of South Ossetian war identified

New names of South Ossetian victims of the 5 day war with Georgia were made public. Here is the list:

1 Abaeva, Violetta
2 Aguzarov, Aslan Feliksovich, born November 21, 1948
3 Aliferenko, Valentina Sergeevna, born 1926
4 Attaeva, Maya Muratovna
5 Bagaev, Amiran Pavlovich, born 1975
6 Bagaeva, Dzerassa Shalvovna
7 Bagaeva. Madina Revazovna
8 Bakaev, Valery Grigoryevich, born November 22, 1952
9 Basilidze, Elena Konstantinovna, born 1926
10 Bekoev
11 Besaev, Aleksandr, 70 years old
12 Bestaev, Garik Arshakovich, born June 30, 1963
13 Bichenov, Gaioz Ibragimovich, born October 31, 1982
14 Bogieva Lida, born 1982
15 Valiev, Miroslav Vladimirovich, born August 16, 1961
16 Valieva, Irma Timurovna
17 Valieva, Regina Tembolovna, born 1988
18 Vaneev, Vassily Dmitrievich, born May 6, 1936
19 Gabaraev, Ruslan Mikhailovich
20 Gagloev, Atsamas Sergeevich, born 1968
21 Gagloev, Ruslan Ivanovich, born May 12, 1971
22 Gagloeva, Tsitsino Vladimirovna, born February 21, 1960
23 Gagloshvili, Kote
24 Gazzaev, Inal Pavlovich, born December 6, 1980
25 Gaziev, Artur, military unit 98311
26 Galavanov, Oleg Ilyich, born 1976
27 Goyaev, Vassily Shalvovich, born 1931
28 Dzhagaev, Anisim Archilovich, born 1938
29 Dzhagaeva, Zema Ivanovna
30 Dzhidzhoev, Ahsar Soslanovich
31 Dzhioev, Azamat Sokratovich, 1984
32 Dzhioev, Aslan Ilyich, born December 20, 1941
33 Dzhioev, Marat Ahsarovich, born August 10, 1982
34 Dzhioeva, Asyat Kazbekovna, born 1934
35 Dzhioeva, Nastya Grigorievna, born July 27, 1927
36 Dryaev, Murad Khasanovich, born 1978
37 Dudaeva, Zhanna
38 Dudaeva, Liana Ilyinichna, born August 14, 1970
39 Yelbakieva, Nastya, born 1928
40 Zasokhova, Maria Razhdenovna
41 Zasseeva, Lyubov Savelievna, born 1930
42 Ikoev, Aleksandr Borisovich, born 1947
43 Ikoev, Zaur Sergeevich, born February 15, 1932
44 Kabisov, Alan Aslanovich
45 Kabisov, Irbek Dzhambulovich, born 1968
46 Kabisov, Tamaz Andreevich, born 1978
47 Kabulov, Zaur Nikolaevich, born 1928(9)
48 Kabulov, Koba
49 Kadzhaeva, Diana Sergeevna, born 1955
50 Kaziev, Mamuka Dzhimsherovich, born 1969
51 Karkusova, Frosya Semenovna, born 1929
52 Kasaeva, Zina Mushkelovna, born February 2, 1937
53 Kachlaev, Ruslan
54 Kachlaeva, Madina Tengizovna, born October 20, 1986

As the list grows we will post it and total the deaths...

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Russia: Britain Snubs Tradition in Moscow!

Hello,

Well seems Britain is striking a hard blow to Russia and the South Ossetian incident...

The British Foreign Office has decided not to send 40 bagpipers to a military music festival in Moscow in protest over Russia's actions in Georgia, a foreign office spokesperson said.

The festival to mark the 325th anniversary of the Russian Imperial Guards is scheduled to take place on September 11-14 in central Moscow.

Military bands from the U.K., Austria, Ireland, Scotland, and Canada have been invited to the event. The Scottish bagpipers were due to leave for Russia on September 8.

A spokesperson for the Foreign Office said on Friday however that the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers would not be able to attend the Kremlin Zorya festival due to the crisis in relations between Russia and the West over the recent war in Georgia.

The bagpipers have been one of the most popular acts at the festival in recent years.

OK, is it just me or is this a sign of the mental and maturity level of the West?

What does the issues in South Ossetia and Georgia have to do with a 325 year old Military event?

I guess: the only reason that I can see why British would not go to the Festival is.....?

There is no reason......

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Russia: Moscow Gets Approval From CSTO Countries Over Georgia!

Purple: CSTO members. Pink: Other CIS states.

Hello,

Russian diplomacy achieved an important triumph in foreign relations yesterday. At the Moscow meeting of the foreign ministers of the Collective Security Treaty Organization a joint statement was adopted that laid all the blame for the conflict in South Ossetia on Georgia. At the same time, the members of the organization gave support to a package of Russian proposals touching on global security, including Russian President Dmitry Medvedev’s idea of developing a European treaty. Moscow will try to build upon that success at the CSTO summit today.

What is the CSTO:
On October 7, 2002, the Presidents of Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan, signed a charter in Chişinău, founding the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) (Russian: Организация Договора о Коллективной Безопасности (ОДКБ~ODKB)) or simply Ташкентский договор. Nikolai Bordyuzha was appointed secretary general of the new organization. On 23 June 2006, Vladimir Putin announced that Uzbekistan had also joined the CSTO.

The charter reaffirmed the desire of all participating states to abstain from the use or threat of force. Signatories would not be able to join other military alliances or other groups of states, while aggression against one signatory would be perceived as an aggression against all.

The CSTO is an observer organisation at the United Nations General Assembly. (Link)

The document adopted by this group of seven – Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan – expresses support for “the Russian Federation’s active role in contributing to peace and cooperation in the Caucasus.” They advocate “a guarantee of firm security for South Ossetia and Abkhazia based on the United Nations Charter and the 1975 Helsinki Accords” and insist on “the rigorous fulfillment of the settlement principles developed by the president of the Russian Federation and president of France.”

The most pleasant part of the document for Russia is where the CSTO countries express “grave concern over the military actions undertaken by the Georgian side in South Ossetia that have led to numerous civilian victims and the deaths of Russian peacekeepers and a severe humanitarian crisis.”

In the midst of the numerous statements by the CSTO member states, it has gone unnoticed that none of its members has approved Russia’s recognition of the independence of South Ossetia and Abkhazia.Russia now has to still make efforts to find sympathizers ready to follow its example in recognizing the two Caucasian republics. Now that Nicaragua has done so, it will be at least a tiny bit easier for Moscow.

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Russia: Happy Birthday Moscow!

Past Moscow Day.

Hello,

This weekend Moscow will be fun. It is Happy Birthday Moscow!

Every year, as Moscow gets older, the festivities to honor its founding get bigger and brighter. This time, as our fair city celebrates its 861 birthday, numerous events will be held in all the districts, though as always the grandest celebrations will take place downtown. Which is why all the major streets will become pedestrian for the weekend of September 6 and 7. Tverskaya, Mohovaya, Ohotny Ryad, Lubyanka, Teatralny Proezd and various other streets downtown will be closed for cars and public transport (the metro will be in full operation). For tourists and visitors to the Russian capital you are here at a good time: the city will be all dressed up and looking its finest, with decorations and illumination art visible at every street corner. (Link)

We are going downtown and take pictures. It is always fun to walk around downtown Moscow because you get to see a mixture of all nationalities on earth. When Moscow has big events like this everyone comes out of the wood work, so to speak!

List of Events that will take place:

Sporting events

■ 1. "Run and smile" track and field race. September 6. (The Moskva River embankment).

■ 2. "Sports Capital 2008" sporting event. September 6, 11 a.m. (Moskvitch Experimental School of Higher Sporting Skill, Volgogradsky prosp., 46/15).

■ 3. The 39th Police relay race along the Garden Ring. September 6th, 1.45 p.m. - 4 p.m. (The Garden Ring, start and finish on the Triumphal Square).

■ 4. "Family for Health" Moscow festival of sporting families. September 6-7, 11 a.m. (Moskvitch Experimental School of Higher Sporting Skill, Volgogradsky prosp., 46/15; Yantar' stadium, Marshall Katukov St., 26).

■ 5. "Capital Cup" Moscow International Rowing Regatta. September 6. (The Moskva River, from MSU to Andreev Bridge).

■ 6. VIII Working Muscovites sports contest finals. September 6, 12 o'clock. (Moskvitch sports complex, Lyublinskaya St., 15).

■ 7. Guinness Book of Records International Festival. XVI Waiters race walking international competition. "The most festive table" city competition. September 7, 11 a.m. (Teatralny Proezd, Teatralnaya Square).

Family events

■ 8. "Moscow through the eyes of the young - 2008. Family and creation" Moscow creative youth competitive projects exhibition. September 1-10. (Central House of Artist, Krimsky Val St., 10).

■ 9. "Together with Moscow as a harmonious family," children and parents holiday. September 6. 4 p.m. - 8 p.m. (Bolotnaya Square, Repin public garden).

■ 10. "My Moscow - My Family, in a friendly family circle" September 7, 2 p.m. - 10 p.m. (Lubyanka Square).

■ 11. "A Walkabout of Moscow Galleries, or Capital Faces," theatrical family event. September 7, 4 p.m. - 8 p.m. (Bolotnaya Square).

■ 12.Moscow Festival of Family Art, dedicated to the Family Year 2008. September 7, 2 p.m. - 7 p.m. (Poklonnaya Gora).

Theme events

■ 13. III International Exhibition of Flower Design and Landscaping. June 27 - September 14. (All-Russia Exhibition Center).

■ 14. All-Russian Honey Festival. August 28 - October 10. (Tsaritsino museum and reserve).

■ 15. "Flowers" XV International Expo. September 4-7. (All-Russia Exhibition Center).

■ 16. VII Moscow International Youth Festival-competition of Circus Art. September 4-7, during the day. (Nikulin Circus on Tsvetnoy Boulevard, 13).

■ 17. "The First World Congress of Fouls" international Clown Festival. September 4-15. (Moscow State Academic Children's Music Theater named after N.I. Sats).

■ 18. "POKLONenie" (worship) IV Moscow Classical and Jazz Music Festival. September 6, 2 p.m. - 4.30 p.m. (Poklonnaya Gora).

■ 19. Light and music show, dedicated to the 150th anniversary of K. Tsiolkovskii, the 100th anniversary of S.P. Korolyov and the 50th anniversary of the first Earth satellite. September 6. (All-Russia Exhibition Center, Astronauts' lane).

■ 20. "From Belarus with Love" show. September 7, 6 p.m. - 8 p.m. (Tverskaya Square).

■ 21. "The Church Bells of Moscow" classical and religious music concert. September 7, 2 p.m. - 10 p.m. ( the square outside of the Cathedral of Christ the Savior).

Student and youth events

■ 22. Young Workers Initiation. September 6, 12 o'clock. (Novaya Square).

■ 23. Moscow Students Parade. September 7, 1 p.m. - 7 p.m. (from Vasilievsky Spusk to Gorky Central Park of Culture and Leisure).

■ 24. Students Initiation. September 7, 12 o'clock. (Novaya Square).

■ 25. "Creative Shift" event. September 7, 6 p.m. - 8 p.m. (Triumphal Square).

■ 26. "Musical Quarter" IV children's and youth music festival. September 7, 1 p.m. - 6 p.m. (the stage outside of Moscow P.I. Tchaikovsky Conservatory).

Moscow Day special events

■ 27. "Reflections of Moscow" light and music show. September 5, 7 p.m. - 10 p.m. (Krilatskaya St., 2).

■ 28. Moscow round dance. September 6, 4.30 p.m. - 10 p.m. (Poklonnaya Gora).

■ 29. Wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. September 7, 10 a.m. (Alexander Garden).

■ 30. Moscow Day theatrical ceremony. September 7, 12 o'clock - 1.30 p.m. (Tverskaya Square).

■ 31. "I love the wide avenue's of Moscow" event. September 7, 2 p.m. - 10 p.m. (Teatralnaya Square).

■ 32. "About Moscow with love" musical event. Moscow press festival. September 7, 2 p.m. - 10 p.m. (Pushkin Square).

■ 33. "Moscow - our mutual home" event. September 7, 8 p.m. - 10 p.m. (Tverskaya Square).

■ 34."Moscow round dance" event. September 7, 7 p.m. - 10 p.m. (Poklonnaya Gora).

■ 35. "Arts Boulevard" event. September 7, 2 p.m. - 10 p.m. (Tverskoy Boulevard).

■ 36. "Big city boulevard" event. September 7, 2 p.m. - 8 p.m. (Gogol Boulevard).

■ 37. Musical fireworks display. September 7, 10 p.m. (Vasilievsky Spusk).

So if you are in Moscow come on downtown! :)

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Russia: The Danilov Bells are Almost Home!

Hello,

This morning while drinking my morning cup of coffee, I was thinking about the Danilov bells that I wrote about a few months ago. I figured it was time for them to show up in Russia..... (Link)

On September 7, 2008, the Danilov bells will finally return to Russia after a 78-year stay in Harvard University. On that date the ship bearing them will dock in St. Petersburg and, by the 12th of September, the ceremonial procession will reach their home - the Danilov Monastery in Moscow. In the beginning of the series dedicated to this landmark event for the Russian Orthodox Church, RT looks at the significance of the Danilov bells, their compelling sound and their rich history.

The bells were highly valued even before their removal in the early 20th century. Konstantin Saradjev, a musical genius who could distinguish all of Moscow's 4000 bells simply by listening to their ring, wrote of the Danilov bells in the early 1900s: "They have an extraordinary musical value. It is an ingenious set of bells, which finds a significant place not only in church music, but also in the science of sound". Today, the Danilov bells are one of the few remaining heavy musical peals in the world.

The Bells

The Danilov bells come in a spectacular set of 18, all of of different shapes, sizes, metal compositions and pitch. Since most of them were cast at the Finlyandsky factory in Moscow between 1890 and 1907, they are all tuned to perfect harmony. Some bells in the set, however, date as far back as 1682. Such, for example, is the ‘Pervyi’ (or ‘first’) bell, which was Tsar Fyodor Alekseevich’s present to the Danilov Monastery in 1683. Each Danilov bell is ornate with depictions of Russian Orthodox objects of worship, such as portraits of saints and inscriptions in Slavic.

The main bell of the set is the 'Bolshoy' (literally meaning 'Big' in Russian). The name is a telling one, since this musical heavyweight is over 12 tonnes. To hang it, the Danilov Monastery’s old bell tower had to be replaced with a new one in 1904. The alloy used for the Bolshoy’s creation contains a significant part of copper, which means that the sound of the bell combines distinctively bright overtones with rich deep notes. This is a very rare combination for bells of such size. The other two major bells in the set, the 'Polieleynyi' ('celebratory') and the 'Budnichnyi' ('everyday'), weigh 6 and 25 tonnes respectively. The Danilov peal also includes a set of ten bells, weighing between 30 and 500 kg, which are used to accompany choral singing, and four light bells, the sound of which perfectly completes the sound of the Bolshoy.

The History

However, the Danilov bells are not only famous for their harmonious sound and artistic merit. Their story is one of dramatic uprooting, cultural exchange and eventual homecoming. By 1930, the Soviet government had firmly decided that "the sound of bells in Russia should be replaced with the sound of factory whistles.” Thus, the compelling and mysterious ring of the Danilov bells was to be reduced to scrap metal. It was due to sheer luck that Charles Crane, a Chicago industrialist, heard them while travelling around Russia in 1930. He was so taken by their music that he decided to save them from assured destruction. This proved to be easy: he bought them for the price of scrap bronze and, in a gesture of goodwill, donated them to Harvard University.

The bells were not immediately a popular feature on the university campus. Harvard students, claiming that the bells distracted them from sleep and study, called for their immediate removal and invented refined forms of protest. They banged pots and pans, heaved alarm clocks out of their windows and even flushed all of the toilets in the building simultaneously. The president of Harvard at the time was only interested in the bells if they could play "Fair Harvard", the university's anthem. Unfortunately, he didn't realise that the Russian style of bell ringing differed from the Western one in so far as the bells were not designed to play melodies; they were made to create complicated rhythmic patterns. So, on April 5, 1931 the Danilov bells were welcomed in the U.S. with headlines such as “Tons of Chimes at Harvard and Not a Note of Music”.

Eventually, the bells worked their way into the hearts, minds and ears of Harvard University staff and students. When talk of returning the bells back to Russia first started during the 1980s, the university responded with stiff rejection. A consensus was only reached a quarter of a century later, when the Russian side offered to replace the Danilov bells with exact replicas, matching the original ones not only in shape, but also in sound. So, the bells will now return to their spiritual home in the Danilov Monastery in Moscow, forever leaving a mark on the U.S. soundscape. (Link)

Welcome home Danilov bells and I am glad you have arrived safe!

Update: The Bells are in St. Pete! See Pictures at link below....
http://en.rian.ru/photolents/20080905/116567612.html

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Russia: First there was One! Then.....

Nicaragua

Hello,

Something interesting has happened......

Nicaragua a Central America country, bordering both the Caribbean Sea and the North Pacific Ocean, between Costa Rica and Honduras has become the first country outside Russia to recognize the independence of South Ossetia and Abkhazia.

The Central American state’s President, Daniel Ortega, said he backs Russia in its efforts to end tension in the Caucasus.

Vladimir Degay from the Russian Embassy in Nicaragua said that the president made the announcement on September 2.

“After the Georgian leadership launched an aggression that left thousands of people killed, wounded or displaced in these two republics, Ortega said Russia had no other option but to protect the free choice of these two states,” Degay said.

Lets see what happens next.....

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Russia: Putin Number One (1) Most Powerful and Influential Person!

Top World's 100 Most Powerful And Influential People

Vanity Fair has unveiled its annual list of the world's 100 most powerful and influential people, what the magazine calls "the New Establishment", and topping the table for the first time is Vladimir Putin, according to reports.

I keep saying: "Putin is the man everyone hates, but loves!"

read more | digg story

Russia: They Have X-Files FBI agents, Mulder and Scully Locked Up In Russia!

Hello,

Mulder and Scully from the X-Files have been thrown in cages in Russia. What are Mulder and Scully doing caged up in the Russian city of Ekaterinburg?

Ekaterinburg a town on the eastern slopes of the Urals mountains on the banks of the beautiful Iset river has a Zoo and it seems that employees of the city zoo have named a pair of skunks after the famous TV - FBI agents, the stars of the X-Files series.

Mulder and Scully are two striped skunks that were brought to the Ekaterinburg zoo from Moscow. They are currently in quarantine to ensure good health and will be on public view in mid-September. The normally pungent scented pair will now leave the air fresh since their scent glands, which release a distinctly revolting odor when skunks feel threatened, have been removed.

"The skunks are called Mulder and Scully. It was the employees who gave them their names, despite the fact that there's nothing mysterious about them." said a zoo representative in an interview.

This is the first time that the Ekaterinburg zoo has acquired skunks. (Link)

What good names for skunks! Gotta love it.

Kyle & Svet

Russia: South Ossetia recovering after the war!

Hello,

I had a comment that came from a reader awhile back who stated that he thought it would be nice to see pictures about the rebuilding of South Ossetia. Well today I found pictures from RIA. I will allow the pictures to speak for themselves......




Life is returning to Tskhinvali and the people are starting to come home after being driven out by Georgia....

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Russia: Americans ; Yes, You Can Vote Back Home!

Hello,

If you live overseas like I do then get registered and vote in the upcoming presidential elections in the USA. Just because I live in Russia does not mean, what I say and think does not count. The same goes for you no matter were you live in this world.

Yes You Can: Vote! (But get it going now)

Overseas Vote Foundation (OVF) helps overseas and military voters participate in federal elections. We do this by providing public access to innovative voter registration tools and services. If you are an overseas or military voter, OVF’s goal is to make it easy for you to get your ballot and vote.

Overseas American citizens, State Department employees, and active duty uniformed service members and their accompanying families within and outside of the United States vote under the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA) and can all register to vote from abroad using OVF's services.

OVF's mission is to facilitate and increase participation of American overseas voters and military voters and their dependents in federal elections by providing public access to innovative voter registration tools and services.

Integral to achieving our mission is making it easier for all Americans residing around the world, and all military and dependents residing outside their home jurisdiction, to be able to stay active in their home state's electoral process.

Our mailing address:
https://www.overseasvotefoundation.org/overseas/home.htm
Overseas Vote Foundation
4786 N. Williamsburg Blvd
Arlington, VA 22207-2836 USA

Telephone: +1 202 470 2480
Fax: +1 202 318 0653
Email: info(at)overseasvotefoundation.org

If you are like me, then you are dissatisfied with the state of affairs back home in the USA! It will not change if all you do is whine about it! Every Vote counts....

Kyle & Svet

comments always welcome.

Russian News: September 2nd, 2008!

RBC, 02.09.2008, Tashkent 18:48:16.It will not be critical for Russia, if other countries do not recognize the independence of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin told journalists in Tashkent today. He believes that at the most important thing is that Russia's actions on the territories of the republics would now be legitimate. Putin stressed that Russia would cooperate with South Ossetia and Abkhazia as it does with any other independent state. The official also noted that the recognition of their independence depended on their own actions, indicating that the republics had to form their own foreign policies.

RBC, 02.09.2008, Istanbul 18:30:00.Russia looks to the European Union to support its proposal to deploy international police forces in the Georgian-South Ossetian buffer zone, Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov stated after his talks with his Turkish counterpart Ali Babacan. Russia expects the EU to send its representatives to the international OSCE observer mission and, possibly, to the international police, the Russian Minister added. He stressed that Russia was willing to enlarge the international observer mission in the region, and was considering other international steps to show that the buffer zones organized by Russia in Georgia were safe and demilitarized, and "free from any movements and preparations".

RBC, 02.09.2008, Tashkent 18:02:58.Russia is not satisfied that Georgia's aggression against South Ossetia is not mentioned in an EU statement following the bloc's summit on Monday, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin told journalists in Tashkent today. Putin also regretted that the document mentioned Russia's allegedly inadequate and disproportionate response to Georgia's actions, while not specifying that those actions were pure acts of aggression. There are no words of sympathy for South Ossetians, the victims of the conflict, in the document either, the PM noted. He also added that Mikhail Saakashvili's Georgia was not a democratic state.

RBC, 02.09.2008, Moscow 17:43:13.Speaker of the Russian Federation Council Sergei Mironov has expressed assurance that Russia and the EU would be able to become normal once again. He made this statement, commenting on the results of the EU summit.

RBC, 02.09.2008, Moscow 17:07:20.Russia has not received official documents on the end of diplomatic relations with Georgia, spokesman for Russia's Foreign Ministry Andrei Nesterenko told journalists toady. He pointed out that Georgia's Ambassador to Russia had originally announced Tbilisi's decision to this effect. However, experts believe that Georgia is not going through with the decision because of the potential negative effect it may have on Georgia's citizens living in Russia. Nesterenko also indicated that the official end of diplomatic relations between the two countries would not promote a dialog between Moscow and Tbilisi on the settlement of existing conflict.

RBC, 02.09.2008, Moscow 16:17:57.Georgian troops are gathering in the Georgian-Ossetian conflict zone, spokesman for the Russian Foreign Ministry Andrei Nesterenko told a press conference in Moscow today. He pointed out that he had received data to this effect from Russia's General Staff, adding that Georgian armed forces were restoring their fighting efficiency in the security zone and near check points. Nesterenko noted that a series of demonstrations against Russian military took place in the town of Koraleti. He also indicated that, according to various data, the demonstrations were instigated by respective Georgian authorities.

RBC, 02.09.2008, Tashkent 14:38:48.Moscow and Tashkent have agreed on the gas price formula for Uzbek gas purchased by Russia, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin announced following talks with Uzbek President Islom Karimov. Putin pointed out that from now on the two countries would use the European formula for price calculation.

RBC, 02.09.2008, Tiraspol 10:34:37.Transnistria wants the Russian peacekeeping contingent on the Dniester to be increased to 3,000 people, and a new agreement guaranteeing peace, security and stability in the region to be signed. The statement to this effect has been made by the republic's President Igor Smirnov at a meeting held to mark Transnistria's 18th anniversary. According to Smirnov, the measures are needed in view of the recent dramatic developments in South Ossetia. He pinned all hopes for peace, security and stability on Russia, as its government was able to raise peacekeeping forces to 3,000 people as provided for by an agreement of July 21, 1992.