Month: August 2008

PHELPS’ GOLD AMONG SEVEN U.S. MEDAL WINS

Olympic Daily News
Tuesday, August 12

Beijing, China (Sports Network) – Michael Phelps easily won the
200-meter freestyle on Tuesday for his ninth career Olympic gold medal,
tying the all- time record.

He was one of seven American swimmers to make the medal stand on a
great morning for the U.S. team, a take that included backstroke gold
medals for Natalie Coughlin and Aaron Peirsol.

Phelps finished more than a body length ahead of Korea’s Park Taehwan
for his third gold medal of the Beijing Olympics, smashing his own
world record by .90 seconds to finish in 1 minute, 42.96 seconds.

It was a runaway victory, nothing like the thrilling, nail-biting
end to the U.S. win in the 400-meter freestyle relay on Monday that
barely gave Phelps his second gold here.

Leading from the start in the freestyle final, Phelps finished 1.89
seconds in front of Park, the 400-meter freestyle gold medalist who
touched in 1:44.85 seconds for the silver.

American Peter Vanderkaay took bronze at 1:45.14 for his first
individual Olympic medal.

Phelps was outside the middle of the pool in lane six — in good
position to get a jump on the other swimmers, disappear and hold on
for the win.

"I knew if I got a jump in the first 100 (meters), the guys in the
middle of the pool wouldn’t be able to see me and I could hold some
ground," said Phelps. "I knew [Park] was going to finish well, so I
had to finish a whole body length ahead."

Phelps’ ninth career Olympic gold medal moved him into a five-way
tie with U.S. swimming great Mark Spitz, American track and field
star Carl Lewis, former Soviet gymnast Larissa Latynina and Finnish
runner Paavo Nurmi for the all-time record.

"It is a pretty amazing accomplishment," said Phelps. "It’s definitely
an honor. I have met and spent time with Carl Lewis and exchanged
words with Spitz, (so) it is pretty amazing."

It was Phelps’ 11th Olympic medal overall, moving him into a tie with
Spitz and Matt Biondi for the most among male swimmers.

Coughlin and Peirsol both won gold in the 100-meter backstroke, joining
Phelps on a dominating morning for Americans at Beijing’s Water Cube.

Also the 2004 gold medalist at the distance, Coughlin finished with a
personal-best time in the 100 backstroke at 58.96 seconds, .23 seconds
ahead of world record holder Kirsty Coventry of Zimbabwe. U.S. teammate
Margaret Hoelzer took bronze.

"It hasn’t really sunk in yet," said Coughlin, who fought back tears
on the medal stand. "When I first saw the time, I thought they had
made a mistake. It was a very fast time.

"When I saw the [number 1] by my name, I thought they had made a
mistake. Then I saw my name there and I realized that I’d got it."

Peirsol, also the 2004 gold medalist in the men’s 100 backstroke,
broke his own world record in the distance. He came on strong in the
last 50 meters to touch at 52.54 seconds to lower the mark he set
last month at the U.S. trials by .35 seconds.

Fellow American Matt Grevers won the silver at 53.11 seconds, with
Russia’s Arkady Vyatchanin and Hayden Stoeckel of Australia tying
for the bronze at 53.18 seconds.

"I looked up and saw Matt next to me and I was elated," said
Peirsol. "Stuff like that is a dream come true."

On his medal, Peirsol said: "It’s just as wonderful as the first time."

Rebecca Soni, a replacement for Jessica Hardy on the U.S. team, won a
silver medal in the women’s 100-meter breaststroke behind gold medal
winner Leisel Jones of Australia.

Jones atoned for her disappointing bronze medal in Athens four years
ago finishing with an Olympic record time of 1:05.17 seconds. Soni won
silver at 1:06.73, while Mirna Jukic of Austria took bronze at 1:07.34.

Hardy withdrew from U.S. team after failing a doping test prior to
the Olympics, opening the way for Soni.

"I don’t even know how I feel yet," said Soni, "it’s still
registering. Who could have asked for more?"

Phelps, well on his way to challenging Spitz’s 36-year-old record of
seven gold medals in one Olympics, may have his three toughest tasks
out of the way.

At the 2004 Athens Olympics, where he also chased Spitz on the way to
winning six gold medals as a 19-year-old, Phelps settled for bronze
twice to come up short.

He finished third in the 400-meter freestyle relay and was beaten
by two of the greatest 200-meter freestyle swimmers of all time:
Ian Thorpe and Pieter van den Hoogenband.

Now Phelps has gold in both events — saved by Jason Lezak’s thrilling
anchor leg in the 400 freestyle relay on Monday for his second gold,
and an easy winner Tuesday in the 200 freestyle.

Phelps also made it through the tough 400-meter individual medley on
Sunday to win his first gold in Beijing in world-record time.

If he goes on to break Spitz’s Holy Grail record for gold medals in
one Olympics — or even if he wins eight medals of any kind here —
Phelps would be the all-time winningest medal winner among male
Olympians with 16.

"Every time he races he gets better and better," said Soni.

In keeping with his grueling schedule, Phelps also qualified for the
final of the 200-meter butterfly by equaling his own Olympic record
of 1:53.70 Tuesday morning.

"I barely had any time to relax," he said.

Next up for Phelps is a night off from preliminaries after swimming
in the first six swimming sessions here. He starts back up again with
200 butterfly final on Wednesday morning.

In other semifinals Tuesday morning, Katie Hoff qualified for the
finals of the women’s 200-meter freestyle and 200-meter individual
medley. Hoff already has a silver and bronze medal in Beijing.

U.S. SMASHES OLYMPIC RECORD IN 800 FREESTYLE RELAY

Beijing, China (Sports Network) – The United States smashed the
Olympic record in the 800-meter freestyle relay on Tuesday night,
setting Michael Phelps up to win a pair of gold medals on Wednesday.

The foursome of David Walters, Ricky Berens, Erik Vendt and Klete
Keller lowered Australia’s mark from the 2000 Sydney Olympics by 2.39
seconds to 7 minutes, 4.66 seconds.

Phelps, who won his third gold medal of the Beijing Olympics in
Tuesday’s 200- meter freestyle, will be a part of the "A" team that
goes for the gold medal in the 800 relay final on Wednesday.

The Americans are the reigning Olympic champions and world record
holders in the event.

Phelps is also favored to win the 200-meter butterfly final, meaning
he could have five Beijing gold medals by noon — three away from
breaking Mark Spitz’s record of seven gold medals in one Olympics.

Italy qualified second-fastest in the 800 relay, 3.18 seconds behind
the Americans. Russia was third.

SULLIVAN BETTERS BERNARD IN 100 AGAIN

Beijing, China (Sports Network) – Australia’s Eamon Sullivan posted
the fastest time in the men’s 100-meter freestyle preliminaries
Tuesday night, a day after he broke the world record in the distance.

Sullivan completed two laps in 47.80 seconds, well off the record
time of 47.24 he posted Monday in the first leg of Australia’s bronze
medal-winning effort in the 400-meter freestyle relay team.

Sullivan broke Frenchman Alain Bernard’s record in that race. He
finished .05 seconds ahead of Bernard in the preliminaries on Tuesday.

As close as that was, two swimmers were even closer.

Stefan Nystrand of Sweden qualified second-fastest at 47.83 — just
.03 off Sullivan’s pace — and Canada’s Brent Hayden was a fingernail
further behind at 48.84 seconds.

Jason Lezak, who’s thrilling comeback as the anchor of the U.S. 400
freestyle relay ensured Michael Phelps a gold medal, qualified 11th
fastest to make the semifinals.

American teammate Garrett Weber-Gale swam the eighth-fastest time,
while 30- year-old Netherlands star Pieter van den Hoogenband was
fifth.

CANCER-STRICKEN SHANTEAU TAKES FIRST BEIJING SWIM

Beijing, China (Sports Network) – Diagnosed with testicular cancer
two months ago, Eric Shanteau took to the water for the first time
competitively at the Beijing Olympics and qualified for the men’s
200-meter breaststroke semifinals.

Shanteau, who is expected to fully recover from his early-stage cancer,
posted the seventh-fastest time in preliminaries Tuesday night.

He had competed at the U.S. trials — and qualified, surprisingly,
ahead of breaststroke specialist Brendan Hansen — after he was
diagnosed with the disease in June, then decided he would swim in
the Olympics despite the disease.

Shanteau isn’t expected to challenge for a medal — certainly not
for gold with world record holder Kosuke Kitajima of Japan looking
better than ever.

All he ever wanted to do was just swim in the Olympics.

"That was the dream right there," Shanteau said afterward. "I just
had it come true and I think there’s a lot more to come."

Daniel Gyurta of Hungary qualified fastest with an Olympic record
time of 2 minutes, 8.68 seconds, while Kitajima, already a gold medal
winner in the 100 breaststroke, took it easy with a sixth-place swim.

American Scott Spann also qualified.

HERSEY, BREEDEN QUALIFY FOR 200 BUTTERFLY SEMIS

Beijing, China (Sports Network) – U.S. teammates Kathleen Hersey and
Elain Breeden qualified for the semifinals of the women’s 200-meter
butterfly with top-16 swims in the preliminaries on Tuesday.

The 18-year-old Hersey qualified seventh-fastest and Breeden, 19,
was ninth- fastest.

Liu Zige won the qualifier with a time of 2 minutes, 06.46 seconds
while world record holder Jessicah Schipper had the 11th fastest time.

CHINA WINS MEN’S TEAM GYMNASTICS GOLD, USA GETS BRONZE

Beijing, China (Sports Network) – China claimed the gold medal in
men’s team gymnastics Tuesday at the Beijing Games, but the big
shocker came with the U.S. winning a bronze medal despite a roster
of all first-time Olympians.

China, the current team world champions, finished with a total of
286.125 points. Japan won the silver with 278.875, while the Americans
had 275.850

China placed first in five of the six apparatus and the U.S. barely
reached the podium thanks to edging Germany by 1.25 points.

The U.S. team, comprised of Sasha Artemev, Raj Bhavsar, Joey Hagerty,
Jonathan Horton, Justin Spring and Kevin Tan, has overcome plenty of
adversity in recent weeks.

Paul Hamm, the reigning Olympic all-around champion, withdrew from
the Summer Games due to a broken right hand, and his twin, Morgan,
pulled out last week because of a left ankle injury. That left Artemev
and Bhavsar as replacement athletes, but they helped the U.S. to the
podium finish.

"We really were the underdogs," said Horton. "We read a lot of stuff
people say about us and it gets us fired up. So many articles said
the U.S. team was not going to make it to team finals or if they do
there would be no chance of a medal."

The Americans were in second place going into the final rotation,
which was pommel horse, the toughest to overcome for the U.S. That’s
when Japan, the 2004 gold medal winners, leaped over the U.S. to
claim the silver.

However, Artemev, who was named a replacement for Morgan Hamm Thursday
night, had a solid routine on horse with a 15.35, significantly
better than a struggling Tan and Bhavsar on the apparatus, securing
the U.S. the unlikely medal.

"Why did anyone count us out?," said Spring. "Anything that got
thrown at this team, we rolled with it. We never counted us out, we
never doubted ourselves. I guess that we’re all first-time Olympians,
we never counted ourselves out."

Meanwhile, the Chinese dominated with a spectacular performance from
Yang Wei, the favorite to win the individual all-around gold. Chen
Yibing, Huang Xu, Li Xiaopeng, Xiao Qin and Zou Kai were all solid
for the Chinese to thrill their home country.

While the Americans were all newcomers to the Summer Games, the Chinese
featured three-time returning Olympians and specialists at each event.

Zou thrilled the crowd with his tumbling performance on floor that
had a top score of 15.925.

"It’s really cool. I just let myself go off and performed as
myself. That’s good enough," Zou said.

USA MEN’S BASKETBALL TEAM ROUTS ANGOLA

Beijing, China (Sports Network) – Two games and a pair of blowout
wins for the Redeem Team.

Dwyane Wade scored 19 points, as the powerful United States men’s
basketball team overpowered Angola, 97-76, at the Olympics.

Dwight Howard added 14 points, while LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony
both tallied 12 as the Americans shot 55.9 percent from the field
and forced 25 turnovers.

The 2004 Summer Games bronze medal effort marked the first time the
U.S. men’s team had failed to win gold since the original Dream Team
breezed through Barcelona in 1992.

The talent-laden squad of this Olympic team though, which prides itself
on defense and quickness, overcame another slow start in their Group
B game Tuesday night. They also dominated again down low, outscoring
Angola 64-26 in the paint.

Carlos Morais had 24 points to pace Angola.

Tayshaun Prince had five consecutive points in the first quarter,
and the U.S. increased its lead to 29-18 after the opening period.

Angola used eight unanswered points to close the gap to 39-32 with
four minutes left in the second quarter, but just like their 31-point
win over China on Sunday the Americans turned it on before halftime.

Wade’s three-pointer started a 12-0 run that featured a few fast-break
buckets, including a thunderous jam from James to end the rally for
a 51-32 lead with 1:36 left in the half.

Angola trailed 55-37 at the half, but cut the margin to 14 early in
the third on Luis Costa’s basket. The U.S. then scored eight in a
row to move the difference to 63-41. A 10-0 run later in the stanza
moved the lead to 27 and Mike Krzyzewski’s team was on cruise control
in the last quarter with the advantage never getting under the final
score. The U.S. was ahead by as many as 33 in the fourth quarter.

Next up for the U.S. is a game against Greece, a team that beat the
Americans in the semifinals of the 2006 FIBA World Championships.

"It’s going to be very emotional game," said U.S. guard Chris Paul. "We
also understand that this is pool play. But at the same time, this
team right here, we’ve lost one game in three years and Greece is
that only team to do that so far. We definitely feel like we owe them."

Greece beat Germany, 87-64, on Tuesday. Vasileios Spanoulis scored 23
points for the Greeks, while Dallas Mavericks star Dirk Nowitzki was
limited to 13 points for the Germans. American-born NBA center Chris
Kaman was held to two points for Germany, which went just 19-of-53
from the field.

China nearly shocked Spain in a Group B matchup, but lost 85-75 in
overtime. The Chinese were up by 14 going into the fourth quarter
before faltering. Marc Gasol’s lane shot with 19.7 second left in
regulation tied the game for Spain and then they took over in the
extra session.

Pau Gasol had 29 points and Rudy Fernandez added 21 for Spain, while
Liu Wei had 19 points for China. Yao Ming was limited to 11 points
for China.

"Maybe our defense is not good enough or maybe our cooperation is
not good enough," said Yao. "There are many reasons."

In Group A action, Lithuania got 22 points from Linas Kleiza in a 99-67
win over Iran. Also, Marko Popovic had 22 points and Zoran Planinic
tallied 20 in Croatia’s 85-78 victory over Russia. Andrei Kirilenko
had 18 points for Russia. In the final game of the night, Manu Ginobili
had 21 points to pace Argentina to an 85-68 win over Australia.

ELLER GIVES USA SHOOTING GOLD

Beijing, China (Sports Network) – Walton Eller of the United States won
shooting gold in the men’s double trap Tuesday at the Beijing Olympics.

Eller finished with 190 points to set an Olympic record. He notched
145 points in qualifying and secured the gold with a score of 45 in
the finals.

"I knew I needed most of the shots to break the record, so they came
one-by- one," said Eller, who finished 17th in this event at the
Athens Games.

Francesco D’Aniello of Italy won the silver with 187 points and China’s
Hu Binyuan took the bronze with 184. Jeffrey Holguin of the U.S. came
in fourth with 182 points.

Ahmed Almaktoum of the United Arab Emirates was the gold medalist
in the double trap four years ago, but finished seventh in Tuesday’s
competition,

Earlier, Jin Jong Oh of Korea won gold in the men’s 50-meter pistol
event. It marked the second medal of these Games for Jin, who took
silver in the 10m air pistol competition over the weekend. Jin was
also the silver medalist in the 50m pistol in Athens.

Jin finished first with 660.4 points, narrowly defeating North Korea’s
Kim Jong Su, who ended with 660.2 points. China’s Tan Zongliang earned
the bronze with a score of 659.5.

Jin’s victory gives Korea five golds and 10 overall medals in this
year’s Games.

Daryl Szarenski of the United States finished in 14th and fellow
American Jason Turner was 21st.

WARREN UPSET IN OPENING FLYWEIGHT MATCH

Beijing, China (Sports Network) – American flyweight Rau’Shee Warren
was bounced out in the first round of the Beijing Olympics boxing
tournament on Tuesday after a shocking loss to Korea’s Oksung Lee.

Warren, the defending world champion, was handed a 9-8 setback by
Lee at Workers’ Gymnasium.

This was the second Olympic Games for the 21-year-old Warren, who
finished 17th in light flyweight competition in Athens. The Cincinnati,
Ohio, native was the first U.S. boxer to make consecutive trips to
the Olympics since Davey Lee Armstrong.

Lee and Warren tied each of the first three rounds and the score
was knotted at 7-7 heading into the final two minutes. Lee scored
the first point of the fourth round, but Warren quickly tied the
score. The Korean went ahead once again, but Warren was unaware Lee
had taken the lead as he was confused by the noisy arena.

"There was so much going on in the crowd. I just stood there at the
end, I thought I was up," Warren said.

Warren took issue with the scoring and felt that he should’ve won
the match.

"I feel like I should have been up every round and every round was
tied," Warren said. "I felt like the scoring wasn’t right because I
worked so hard for this and to come this far and lose in the first
round, it isn’t right. It doesn’t seem real to me."

Opening round action in boxing will conclude Wednesday. The U.S. will
have two matches tomorrow with heavyweight Deontay Wilder and light
flyweight Luis Yanez competing. Wilder will face Abdelaziz Toulibini
of Algeria and Yanez will take on Spain’s Jose Kelvin de la Nieve.

CHINA CONTINUES DIVING DOMINANCE

Beijing, China (Sports Network) – Young duo Chen Ruolin and Wang
Xin added to China’s diving gold medal haul at the Beijing Games by
capturing the women’s synchronized 10-meter platform event.

China has topped every podium in this event since it was introduced
in the 2000 Sydney Games. Chen and Wang combined for a point total
of 363.54, while the Australian team of Briony Cole and Melissu
Wu captured the silver, but were a distant 28.38 points behind the
Chinese.

The Mexican tandem of Paola Espinoza and Tatiana Ortiz earned bronze,
33.48 behind the winners.

The American duo of Marybeth Dunnichay and Haley Ishimatsu came in
fifth place with 309.12 points. They were in eighth going into the
final dive.

"We knew we could have dived better, but we’re really happy with how
we finished," said Dunnichay. "For our 3 1/2 somersault I ducked my
head a little bit on entry."

Chen is just 15 and Wang turned 16 Monday. She got a late birthday
present on Tuesday in the form of China’s third diving gold at
these Games.

The duo of Lin Yue and Huo Liang won the gold medal in the men’s
10-meter synchronized platform on Monday, and on Sunday Guo Jingjing
and Wu Minxia won gold in the women’s three-meter synchronized
springboard.

Although Chen and Wang have boyish short haircuts and look like new
teenagers, they are fierce competitors, so much that Wang actually
changed her name from the previous Wang Ruoxue.

"Before I went to Tsinghua University, my coach said my given name
Ruoxue (means ‘like snow’ in Chinese) appeared to be a little weak
(according to it’s Chinese meaning)," said Wang. "I’ve read a book
saying that a name is just a symbol and we have to make our own
efforts to achieve whatever we want."

The Chinese were on their game right from the start, receiving
a perfect 10 for their synchronization of an inward dive in pike
position. They got another 10 on the next dive, a reverse in pike
position. Their highest score of the day, a 90.78, came on their
final dive, a 2 1/2 somersault with a 1 1/2 twist in pike position.

CHINA’S ZHONG TAKES SABRE GOLD

Beijing, China (Sports Network) – Zhong Man of China won fencing gold
Tuesday at the Beijing Olympics, defeating France’s Nicolas Lopez in
the final of the men’s individual sabre competition.

Lopez held a 9-7 lead in the gold medal match, but Zhong finished the
bout with eight straight touches to win the event. The gold medal is
the first for China in fencing since Luan Jujie won the women’s foil
event at the 1984 Los Angeles Games.

"I didn’t feel any pressure. I was lagging behind in the first round,"
Zhong said. "My coach told me to be more aggressive and more active
in attacking so I did and the rest of the bout went smoothly."

Romania won the bronze as Mihai Covaliu defeated France’s Julian
Pillet, 15-11. Covaliu earned his second Olympic medal having won
gold in individual sabre at the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

Pillet was the gold medalist in this event four years ago in Athens.

Keeth Smart of the United States finished sixth after losing his
quarterfinal match to Pillet. Fellow Americans Tim Morehouse and
Jason Rogers finished 22nd and 28th, respectively.

O’REILLY SPARKS U.S. TO WIN, TOP SPOT IN GROUP

Shenyang, China (Sports Network) – Heather O’Reilly scored the fastest
goal in Olympic women’s soccer history, just 41 seconds into Tuesday’s
game against New Zealand at Shenyang Stadium, sparking the United
States to a convincing 4-0 win and an improbable climb to the top of
Group G.

The United States needed a win, a Norway loss and to make up a huge
deficit in goal differential to win the group, and everything fell
into place for the U.S. to avoid a quarterfinal showdown with 2007
World Cup runner-up Brazil.

Amy Rodriguez, Lindsay Tarpley and Angela Hucles also scored for the
Americans, who turned a minus-4 goal differential to Norway into a
plus-4 because Japan stunned the previously unbeaten Norwegians 5-1.

The United States plays Canada in the quarterfinals on Friday. Norway
fell into second in the group and plays Brazil. Japan also advanced
to the quarterfinals and plays China.

In Tuesday’s other late matches, China defeated Argentina 2-0 to win
Group E, while Sweden defeated Canada 2-1 to finish second in that
group and set up a quarterfinal with Germany. Canada still advanced
as the third-place team.

In Tuesday’s early matches, Brazil beat Nigeria 3-1 to win Group F
and Germany edged North Korea 1-0 to finish second in that group.

Carli Lloyd, who scored the only goal in the United States’ 1-0 win
over Japan, helped set up the record-setting goal by winning a goal
kick in midfield in the opening minute.

O’Reilly gained control of the ball after Lloyd’s header, and she took
just a few steps toward goal before unleashing a shot from about 40
yards. New Zealand goalkeeper Jenny Bindon wasn’t back in position
yet and O’Reilly’s shot swerved into the upper-left corner.

Rodriguez added a key goal just before half and Tarpley and Hucles
scored early in the second half to wrap up the scoring.

Rodriguez did well to race behind New Zealand’s defense in the 43rd
minute, and she was able to drill a shot into the lower-left corner.

Tarpley finished off a rebound in the 56th minute and Hucles lofted
a shot off of Bindon’s fingertips and into the net in the 60th minute.

In Shanghai, Norway jumped out to a quick lead but Japan’s Yukari
Kinga leveled the match before halftime and an own goal started a
four-goal second- half Japan outburst. Shinobu Ohno, Homare Sawa and
Ayumi Hara scored Japan’s other goals.

In Beijing, Lotta Schelin scored in the 19th and 51st minutes to give
Sweden a two-goal edge and it held off Canada. Melissa Tancredi had
Canada’s lone goal in the 63rd minute.

In Qinhuangdao, China got second-half goals from Duan Han and Yasha
Gu to beat Argentina and join Brazil and Germany as the only unbeaten
teams in the group stage.

Earlier in Beijing, Cristiane scored a hat trick in less than 15
minutes to lead Brazil to an easy win over Nigeria at Workers’ Stadium.

Cristiane, who finished third in the FIFA Women’s World Player of
the Year poll last year, scored in the 34th, 35th and 45th minutes
as the Brazilians overcame an early deficit.

Earlier in Tianjin, Anja Mittag scored Germany’s lone goal against
North Korea in the 86th minute at Olympic Center Stadium, but a draw
would have also been enough for the back-to-back World Cup winner to
secure second in the group.

Germany and Brazil finished with seven points, but the Brazilians
claimed the top spot in the group on goal differential. Brazil and
Germany tied, 0-0, last week.

Brazil and Germany could potentially play in the semifinals, and
both countries are on the opposite side of the knockout stage of the
United States. That means the U.S. can’t face Brazil or Germany until
the final.

Argentina, New Zealand, Nigeria and North Korea were eliminated.

U.S. PLAYS JAPAN TO 1-1 TIE IN FIELD HOCKEY

Beijing, China (Sports Network) – Kate Barber scored in the 58th
minute, and the U.S. women’s field hockey team played to its second
tie of the Beijing Olympics on Tuesday, 1-1 against Japan.

Kaori Chiba scored in the 12th minute to hand Japan a 1-0 lead,
which is where the game remained until Barber’s late goal.

Barber, the team captain, also hit a goalpost during the game.

"We like to think we have a balance in our forward line, that we
don’t focus too hard on one player, but by definition we have better
players in our group, and our captain is one of those," said head
coach Lee Bodimeade.

The U.S. women are now 0-0-2 in their first two games back following
a 12-year absence at the Olympics. They will next face Germany on
Thursday.

In other women’s field hockey action on Tuesday: China shut out South
Africa 3-0; Australia rolled to a 6-1 victory over Spain; Great Britain
and Argentina played to a 2-2 tie; the Netherlands defeated Korea 3-2;
and Germany edged New Zealand 2-1.

USA ADVANCES TO FINAL IN MEN’S EIGHTS

Beijing, China (Sports Network) – The United States qualified for
finals in men’s eights and women’s quadruple sculls at the Olympic
rowing competition Tuesday in Beijing.

The U.S. men’s eights squad won their repechage, or second chance heat,
with a time of five minutes 38.95 seconds. The Americans will now
get a chance for gold in Sunday’s A-final. Australia, the Netherlands
and Poland also qualified for the final round.

The American women moved on to the final round of competition in
quadruple sculls by placing second in their repechage with a time
of 6:39.53. Germany, who won the heat, will also head to Saturday’s
final along with Australia and the Ukraine.

The U.S. also gained semifinals in lightweight women’s double sculls
and lightweight men’s fours. Renee Hykel and Jen Goldsack won the
first repechage heat to advance in double sculls and the American
men’s four squad finished third in their heat to barely qualify for
the next round. Both semifinals will take place on Thursday.

"We had a really solid piece," Hykel said. "We got the job done and
are looking forward to the semifinal."

The Americans failed to advance to the finals in the women’s pairs
as the duo of Portia McGee and Anne Cummins finished third in the
second repechage. Only the top two teams in each heat moved on to
the final round.

In other rowing action Tuesday, Germany, Austria, Portugal and Cuba
qualified teams for the semifinals in lightweight men’s double sculls
and Estonia, Cuba and the Czech Republic placed teams in the men’s
quadruple sculls semis.

TUNNICLIFFE LEADS LASER RADIAL

Beijing, China (Sports Network) – World No. 1 Anna Tunnicliffe of
the United States holds the lead after the opening races of the Laser
Radial sailing event at the Olympics.

Tunnicliffe has fourth and fifth-place finishes for a total of nine
net points.

It was a topsy-turvy day near the top of the standings. Evi Van
Acker of Belgium won the first race, but then finished 10th in the
second. Sarah Steyaert of France was 11th in the opener, but won the
second and is in third overall.

Shahar Zubari of Israel holds the lead through four races of the men’s
boardsailing race. He is eight points clear of Hong Kong native Chan
King Yin.

In the women’s boardsailing, China’s Yin Jian has a nine-point lead
on Marina Alabau of Spain through four races. Albau is the world No.1
sailboarder. Three-time Olympic medalist Alessandra Sensini of Italy
is fourth overall, just behind Australian Jessica Crisp.

Nathan Wilmont and Malcolm Page have pulled into the top position in
the men’s 470, while fellow country members Elise Rechichi and Tessa
Parkinson lead the women’s portion after four races.

New Zealand’s Andrew Murdoch holds the edge in the laser after
two races.

MARTIKAN, GRIMM WIN CANOE/KAYAK GOLD

Beijing, China (Sports Network) – Michal Martikan of Slovakia and
Alexander Grimm of Germany won gold medals Tuesday in slalom canoeing
and kayaking events at the Beijing Olympics.

Martikan won the canoe single event and Grimm picked up the gold in
the kayak singles.

Martikan, a four-time Olympic medalist, finished the semifinal and
final rounds with a combined time of 176.65 seconds. He survived a
two-second penalty on his final run to defeat Great Britain’s David
Florence, who ended Tuesday’s competition in 178.61 seconds.

The Slovakian won gold in this event at the 1996 Atlanta Games and
picked up consecutive silver medals in Sydney and Athens.

"It was not easy," said Martikan. "It is fantastic for me to be the
Olympic champion again after 12 years. My dream has come true."

Robin Bell of Australia earned the bronze medal with a time of 180.59
seconds. Benn Fraker of the United States finished sixth.

Meanwhile, Grimm won the kayak event with a total time of 171.70
seconds, finishing ahead of France’s Fabien Lefevre, who came in at
173.30 seconds.

Benjamin Boukpeti finished third with a time of 173.45 seconds to
give Togo its first-ever Olympic medal. Boukpeti was born and raised
in France, but qualified to compete for the African nation because
his father was from Togo.

MAY-TREANOR/WALSH WIN AGAIN IN BEACH VOLLEYBALL

Beijing, China (Sports Network) – The defending women’s gold medal team
of Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh of the United States improved
to 2-0 in pool play of beach volleyball with Tuesday’s win over Cuba
at the Beijing Olympics.

May-Treanor and Walsh posted a 21-15, 21-16 decision over Dalixia
Fernandez and Tamara Larrea in a match that lasted just 37 minutes. The
loss dropped the Cubans to 1-1 in pool play.

The American duo has still never lost in Olympic competition and are
in excellent shape to make the round of 16. May-Treanor and Walsh
will have their final test of pool play Thursday against Norway’s
Nila Haakedal and Ingrid Toerlen.

"I most definitely think that we have improved since Athens, we just
keep getting better and better," said May-Treanor.

The American men’s team of Sean Rosenthal and Jacob Gibb picked up
a victory in the night session as they defeated Germans Julius Brink
and Christoph Dieckmann, 21-15, 21-13.

Wednesday’s action will have Americans Phil Dalhausser and Todd
Rogers battling Martin Alejo Conde and Mariano Joaquin Baracetti of
Argentina. Dalhausser/Rogers are 1-1 after rebounding from an upset
to Latvia in their opening match with Monday’s victory over the Swiss
duo of Sascha Heyer and Patrick Heuscher.

FEDERER, NADAL ADVANCE; WILLIAMS SISTERS WIN AGAIN IN BEIJING

Beijing, China (Sports Network) – Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal,
the top two seeds at the Olympics, breezed into the third round at
the Olympics.

The top-seeded Swiss Federer beat Rafael Arevale of El Salvador,
6-2, 6-4, while the Spaniard Nadal topped Australian Lleyton Hewitt,
6-1, 6-2.

Next up for Federer will be Czech Tomas Berdych, who downed Italian
Andreas Seppi on Tuesday. Federer lost to Berdych in the second round
at the Olympics four years ago.

"That’s going to be a good match," Federer said.

Third-seeded Serbian Novak Djokovic beat German Rainer Schuettler,
6-4, 6-2.

Nicolas Massu of Chile, who won the gold medal in both singles and
doubles in Athens, was a 7-6 (7-0), 6-1 loser in singles to seventh
seed David Nalbandian of Argentina.

Eighth-seeded American James Blake was a 6-3, 7-6 (7-3) winner over
Slovakian Dominik Hrbaty. Blake will next play 10th-seeded Frenchman
Gilles Simon.

Venus and Serena Williams chalked up victories Tuesday in second-round
singles play.

The seventh-seeded Venus, bidding for a third Olympic gold medal,
beat Iveta Benesova of the Czech Republic, 6-1, 6-4. Serena’s older
sister, the double gold medalist from the Sydney Games in 2000, is
playing in her first tournament since winning her fifth Wimbledon
title in July. She had been out with a right knee injury.

"I haven’t dropped a serve yet, which is great," Venus said. "I didn’t
even do that at Wimbledon. I lost serve at least once a match. So
that I didn’t lose serve yet is a good sign."

Serena, the fourth seed, blitzed Australian Samantha Stosur, 6-2,
6-0. After a 2-2 tie in the first set, Williams won the next 10 games.

Women’s second seed Jelena Jankovic of Serbia beat Alona Bondarenko
of the Ukraine, 7-5, 6-1 in a second-round affair.

A pair of Russian high seeds – No. 5 Elena Dementieva and No. 6 Dinara
Safina were also winners Tuesday. Dementieva beat Sofia Arvidsson
of Sweden, 6-3, 6-4, while Safina downed Spain’s Maria Jose Martinez
Sanchez, 7-6 (7-3), 6-1.

LORIG ADVANCES IN ARCHERY

Beijing, China (Sports Network) – Khatuna Lorig advanced to the
quarterfinals of competition in women’s archery at the Olympics,
but American teammate Jennifer Nichols wasn’t as fortunate.

Lorig scored a 107-105 victory over Virginie Arnold of France and a
112-109 victory over No.7 seed Alison Williamson of Great Britain.

Lorig, who is competing in her fourth Olympic Games but first for the
United States, scored the upset by topping Williamson, a five-time
Olympian and bronze medalist in Athens in 2004. Lorig just missed
the Olympic record of 114 points. At one point she scored four 10s on
five shots. She finished the round with six 10s out of the 12 arrows.

"I’ve been waiting for eight years to be here, to be here where I
am right now. So, you have to enjoy every moment and try to stay
positive," said Lorig, who just missed qualifying for the 2004 Games
in Athens for her native country of Georgia.

Lorig, the 26th seed, next will have a match against No.10 seed Ana
Maria Rendon of Colombia.

The 24th seeded Nichols had advanced through the first round after
tying an Olympic record with a score of 114 (out of 120) in a 114-101
victory over Ika Yuliana Rochmawati of Indonesia. Nichols then suffered
a 105-103 defeat at the hands of Nami Hayakawa of Japan.

Yun Ok-Hee of Korea also tied the 12-arrow record on Tuesday, while
top-seeded archers Park Sung-Hyun of Korea, Joo Hyun-Jung of Korea
and Khatuna Narimanidze of Georgia also advanced to the quarterfinals.

U.S. MEN DOWN ITALY IN VOLLEYBALL

Beijing, China (Sports Network) – The United States men’s volleyball
team improved to 2-0 in pool play at the Beijing Olympics with
Tuesday’s four-set victory over Italy.

The Americans lost the opening set 26-24, but took the next three,
25-22, 25-15 and 25-21, to earn the victory over the Italians.

The U.S. team is still reeling from Saturday’s fatal knifing attack
on a family member of head coach Hugh McCutcheon, whose father-in-law,
Todd Bachman, was stabbed to death by a knife-wielding Chinese attacker
in downtown Beijing. Ron Larsen has been filling for McCutcheon as
the American head coach.

"He is the guy that gives pre- and post-game speeches," said U.S. team
member Richard Lambourne of McCutcheon. "You don’t realize what an
important role he plays until he’s not there."

McCutcheon’s mother-in-law, Barbara Bachman, is still in the hospital
with serious injuries, but her condition has been upgraded from
critical to stable. Her daughter, 2004 U.S. Olympic women’s indoor
volleyball player Elisabeth Bachman McCutcheon, was with her parents
at the time of the attack but was not hurt.

The U.S. men continue Pool A play on Thursday when they face Bulgaria.

In other Pool A action on Tuesday, China beat Venezuela in five sets
and Bulgaria topped Japan in four sets.

In Pool B, defending gold medalists Brazil defeated Serbia three sets
to one, Russia downed Germany in five sets and Poland straight-setted
Egypt.

USA MEN EDGE ITALY IN WATER POLO

Beijing, China (Sports Network) – Jeffrey Powers scored three goals
and the United States men’s water polo team held on for a 12-11
victory over Italy Tuesday at the Olympics.

A goal from Powers extended the U.S. lead to 12-9 with 3:08 remaining,
but Leonardo Sottani and Maurizio Felugo each found the net to draw
the Italians within one. Then, Layne Beaubien was called for an
exclusion penalty for the U.S., giving Italy a man-advantage in the
final 15 seconds.

The Americans escaped the deficit at the end though when Alberto
Angelini misjudged his pass to Fabio Bencivenga, and the ball slid
to the back of the rope as time expired.

"In the world league final (2008) we were up two or three goals, then
there was a penalty shoot out and we lost," USA driver Adam Wright
said. "We gained experience from that, so we were able to hold on."

The victory gave the U.S. a 2-0 mark in Group B with an encounter
coming Thursday against Serbia.

Montenegro beat Canada, 12-0, Spain edged Australia, 9-8. and Hungary
battered Greece, 17-6, in matches from Group A Tuesday.

In a pair of Group B matches, Croatia beat Serbia, 11-8, and Germany
edged China, 6-5.

USA NO-HITS VENEZUELA IN SOFTBALL

Beijing, China (Sports Network) – Jennie Finch threw four no-hit
innings and Andrea Duran drove in three runs as the United States
softball team beat Venezuela, 11-0, in their opener at the Olympics.

Natasha Watley drilled a two-run homer, while Caitlin Lowe and Crystl
Bustos added solo shots as the Americans won at the Olympics for a
15th straight time, going back to the 2000 Sydney Games.

Finch had five strikeouts and a pair of walks, and Lowe had three
hits to pace the 11-hit attack in the five-inning game. Her homer
was an inside-the-parker in the second inning.

Abbott worked the final inning, striking out two, to complete USA’s
no-hitter. The 11 runs are the most by an individual team at the
Olympics.

"We are an explosive team, we can score easily," U.S. coach Mike
Candrea said. "It is great to be back on the field."

Johana Gomez was the losing pitcher, allowing six hits and five runs
in two- plus innings.

Next up for the U.S. will be a game against Canada on Thursday.

The Canadians beat Taiwan, 6-1, on Tuesday behind three RBI from
Megan Timpf.

China topped the Netherlands, 10-2, and Japan edged Australia, 4-3.

AMERICAN MILES GETS SILVER IN EQUESTRIAN

Hong Kong, China (Sports Network) – Gina Miles of the United States won
the silver medal in the eventing final of equestrian at the Olympics,
finishing just behind Hinrich Romeike of Germany.

Kristina Cook of Great Britain the bronze.

Miles, riding McKinlaigh, had a clear round that brought her up from
fourth to second place on 56.10 penalties. Romeike had 54.20 penalties.

"I am so happy he has his day today," said Miles of her huge chestnut
gelding. "There were bumps along the road to get this result. It has
been a great journey."

Germany edged Australia for the gold medal in team eventing Tuesday
night. Great Britain earned the bronze medal.

In the team portion, Germany had 166.10 total penalty points and won
the gold thanks mostly to Romeike with his ride aboard Marius.

Australia had a total of 171.20 penalty points, while Germany had
185.70.

The American team of Amy Tryon, Karen O’Connor, Rebecca Holder,
Phillip Dutton and Miles was seventh.

Dutton was disqualified in the individual eventing because his horse’s
protective leg gear weighed more than 500 grams.

NORTH KOREA’S PAK, CHINA’S LIAO WIN WEIGHTLIFTING GOLD

Beijing, China (Sports Network) – Pak Hyon Suk of North Korea won
the gold medal in the women’s 63kg weightlifting class on Tuesday.

Pak claimed North Korea’s first gold medal of the Beijing Olympics
with a total weight of 241kg, including the best lifts in the snatch
(106kg) and clean & jerk (135).

She edged Kazakhstan’s Irina Nekrassova by just one kilogram, with
the silver medalist finishing with a 240kg total. Lu Ying-Chi of
Taiwan took bronze at 231kg.

U.S. weightlifters Natalie Woolfolk and Carissa Gump finished outside
the top 10.

Liao Hui of China won the men’s 69kg division Tuesday night with a
lift of 348kgs, including a mark of 190 in the clean & jerk. France’s
Vencelas Dabaya- Tientcheu and Tigran Gevorg Martirosyan of Armenia
tied at 338, but the Frenchman was awarded the silver medal based on
a lower body weight.

China has won all five of the weightlifting categories it has
participated in thus far in these Games.

TANIMOTO, BISCHOF TAKE GOLD IN JUDO

Beijing, China (Sports Network) – Ayumi Tanimoto of Japan and Germany’s
Ole Bischof won gold medals in half-middleweight judo competition
Tuesday at the Beijing Olympics.

Tanimoto won her second straight Olympic gold in the women’s 57-63kg
division, defeating France’s Lucie Decosse, the 2005 world champion,
in the gold medal match.

"I’m very happy, especially with winning the -63kg category," said
Tanimoto. "It is very complicated and difficult so I am even more
happy with the my result."

Elisabeth Willeboordse of the Netherlands and North Korea’s Won Ok
Im each won their respective bronze medal matches and will share
the award.

Bischof, who finished 23rd at the world championships last year,
defeated Korea’s Kim Jaebum to earn the surprise gold medal for the
Germans in the 73-81kg category.

Brazil’s Tiago Camilo and Roman Gontiuk of the Ukraine will share
the bronze medal.

RUSSIANS WIN GRECO-ROMAN GOLD

Beijing, China (Sports Network) – Russia’s Nazyr Mankiev and Islam-Beka
Albiev both won gold in Greco-Roman wrestling on Tuesday.

Mankiev, 23, defeated Rovshan Bayramov on points to win the 55kg
weight class after also beating the 21-year-old from Azerbaijan in
the repechage of last year’s world championships.

Roman Amoyan of Armenia and Korea’s Park Eun-Chul shared the bronze
medal at 55kg.

The 19-year-old Albiev beat Azerbaijan’s Vitaliy Rahimov, 23, to win
the 60kg class, while Nurbakyt Tengizbayev of Kazakhstan and Ruslan
Tiumenbaev of Kyrgyzstan shared bronze.

OLYMPIC WOMEN’S MARATHON CHAMP WON’T DEFEND

Beijing, China (Sports Network) – Japan’s Mizuki Noguchi will not
defend her Olympic marathon title from 2004, deciding not to run in
this year’s event because of injuries.

Noguchi informed the Japanese Track and Field Federation that she
would be unable to participate in Sunday’s race because of groin and
left thigh problems.

Four years ago in Athens, Noguchi captured the gold medal with a time
of two hours, 26 minutes and 20 seconds, beating Kenya’s Catherine
Ndereba by just 12 seconds.

CROATIA POUNDS BRAZIL IN MEN’S HANDBALL

Beijing, China (Sports Network) – The Croatian men’s handball team
cruised to any easy victory over Brazil in group play Tuesday at the
Beijing Olympics.

Croatia, the defending gold medalists, handed the Brazilians a 33-14
setback to improve to 2-0 in Group A. Mirza Dzomba scored seven goals
on seven shots in the victory.

Next up for the reigning champions will be Thursday’s matchup with
France, which is also 2-0 after posting a 33-19 win over China on
Tuesday. Spain beat Poland, 30-29, in the remaining contest in Group A.

In Group B, Russia edged Egypt, 28-27, Korea downed Denmark, 31-30,
and Israel defeated Germany, 33-29.

BACH/MALAYTHONG ADVANCE IN BADMINTON

Beijing, China (Sports Network) – Howard Bach and Bob Malaythong
became the first American team to advance to an Olympic quarterfinals
in badminton, defeating the South African team of Chris and Roelof
Dednam 21-10, 21-6 Tuesday morning at the Beijing University of
Technology Gymnasium.

The next opponent for the American duo will be the No. 2-seeded
Chinese team of Cai Yun and Fu Haifeng on Wednesday.

In singles play, Bao Chunlai of China earned a quarterfinal berth
with a 21-11, 19-21, 21-13 triumph over Poland’s Przemyslaw Wacha.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

SCRAMBLE FOR RESOURCES IS DESTABILISING THE WORLD

Socialistworker.co.uk
12 August 2008
UK

Caucasus conflict

This article should be read after: Â" Bloody cost of the new world
order

The global system of competition between rival power blocs has
transformed the Caucasus – with its myriad of ethnic and historic
rivalries – into a surrogate test of will between the US and Russia.

But the region also has strategic value, which has placed it at the
centre of conflicts between superpowers in the past.

On Georgia’s southern borders lie Turkey and Armenia, a close ally
of Iran. To the east is oil-rich Azerbaijan.

Georgia also lies on a key route between Russia and Central Asia.

If it became a full Nato member, with the increase in Western backing
that would bring, it would pose a direct threat to Russia.

Western control of the region is important for reasons of both strategy
and valuable resources.

The country is crucial for a variety of oil and gas pipeline
projects. The Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) oil pipeline started operations
in May 2005.

It runs from the Caspian Sea through Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey,
ending up on Turkey’s Mediterranean port of Ceyhan.

Another oil pipeline runs from Azerbaijan to Supsa on Georgia’s Black
Sea coastline. A third project – the Nabucco pipeline – is planned
to run through Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey and on to Central Europe
and Austria.

Russia dominates supply of oil and gas to many countries in Central
Asia and Eastern Europe. But none of these new pipelines runs through
Russia or countries in Russia’s sphere of influence.

Consequently they act to tip the balance of forces in the region away
from Russia and towards rival powers in the West.

In a world dominated by competition between imperial blocs, such shifts
can destabilise whole regions – and ultimately plunge them into war.

The following should be read alongside this article: Â" Bloody cost
of the new world order Â" War is result of imperial game Â" Deepening
unease with US strategy Â" Ossetia – a history of division and war

–Boundary_(ID_stSOdf7OnAWn/AopME75xw)–

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

A PROJECT OF THE INSTITUTE FOR POLICY STUDIES
By John Feffer

World Beat
August 12, 2008

Empires die hard. The war that broke out last week between Russia
and Georgia is a terrifying reminder that the disintegration of the
Soviet Union is far from over.

Seventeen years ago, it looked as though that region might escape the
worst consequences of imperial collapse. After all, the Baltic states
achieved their independence with relatively little bloodshed. Ukraine
and Russia – despite serious disagreements over oil, the Black Sea
fleet, and minority rights – more or less managed to sort out their
differences peacefully. Elsewhere, however, struggles over borders,
political control, and resources convulsed the former Soviet Union,
and the body count rivaled the horrors taking place in Yugoslavia.

Even before the Soviet Union’s official collapse, Armenia
and Azerbaijan began fighting over the disputed territory of
Nagorno-Karabakh. Tens of thousands died in the civil war that began
in 1992 in the Central Asian state of Tajikistan. Tens of thousands
more died in the conflict between the Russian federation and the
break-away province of Chechnya. In a war pitting Russian-backed
separatists in Transdniestra against the new Moldovan government,
another 1,000 people died. The former Soviet Union was on the verge
of splitting into hundreds of bloody pieces.

Georgia, a small country bordering the Black Sea and sandwiched
between Russia and Turkey, wasn’t immune to this violence. Two
regions bordering Russia – Abkhazia and South Ossetia – declared
independence in the 1990s. Thousands died in the two conflicts, which
pitted Russian-backed separatists against the Georgian government, and
both regions managed to achieve de facto independence. But there’s an
important difference between the two struggles. Abkhazian separatists
engaged in large-scale ethnic cleansing to make their parastate,
which previously had a plurality of Georgians, more ethnically
pure. South Ossetia, meanwhile, remains a diverse region with some
villages aligned with the separatists and others with Tbilisi.

In the latest violence, which broke out just as the Olympics were
getting under way in Beijing, Georgian military forces launched an
offensive to regain control of South Ossetia. Russia struck back with
an air offensive that has forced the Georgian military to retreat
but at the cost of at least 2,000 lives, many of them civilians.

Russia, and particularly its dour Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, has
emerged as the chief villain in this drama. International leaders
have condemned Moscow for its attacks. According to the new Cold
War narrative that has begun to take shape, Russia is attempting to
recapture some of the glory of the Soviet empire through economic
pressure, political arm-twisting, and, when all else fails, military
means. Dying empires are bad enough. States that try to turn back
the clock, like Germany or Hungary or Turkey after World War I,
can be even worse.

Beware of this updated version of the black-and-white Cold War
picture. While the new Russia has indeed done some terrible things
– particularly in Chechnya – it has also played an important
role in diminishing some of the worst aspects of the post-Soviet
violence. After the mid-1990s, this region had become a patchwork
of ceasefires and "frozen" conflicts, thanks in part to Russia. It
helped mediate the end of the civil war in Tajikistan. It has been
involved in mediating the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. In the third of
Georgia’s separatist struggles – in Ajaria – Russia helped to mitigate
the conflict by agreeing to close its military base (albeit after
some international pressure). Russian peacekeepers in pro-Russian
breakaway regions – Transdniestra, Abkhazia, and South Ossetia – are
clearly not neutral third parties, but they have also contributed to
keeping the peace.

Yes, Russia’s response to Georgia’s attack is unjustifiable. It acted
unilaterally and with disproportionate force. But this isn’t old-style
Soviet arrogance. Nor is it an attempt to reconstitute the Soviet
empire. Rather, Russia is simply following the lead of the world’s
only superpower in pursuing its national interest at gunpoint. Unlike
the United States, though, Russia confines its operations to its
"near abroad" rather than attempting to project power in far-off lands.

Georgia, meanwhile, is far from the good guy in this drama. From the
Bush administration’s point of view, Georgia gets a free pass because
it sent a contingent of troops to Iraq and has been eager to join
NATO. But the central government has been intolerant and aggressive in
dealing with minority groups and populations. The current government
of Mikheil Saakashvili cracked down hard on peaceful demonstrations
last November. And Tbilisi’s most recent attempt to reabsorb South
Ossetia – something even Serbia has not done with Kosovo – was the
proximate cause of the current violence.

The breakup of Yugoslavia is over, with the rather peaceful secession
of Kosovo. The dissolution of the Soviet Union, however, is still
with us, in all the hot and cold wars that continue along ethnic and
political fault lines in the region. U.S. policies designed to contain
Russia – through NATO expansion or the construction of missile defense
– only exacerbate the problems. When will the Cold War die-hards in
the United States decide to work with Russia rather than against it
in order to finally bury the ghosts of the Soviet Union and bring
peace to that great swath of Eurasia?

Protest-free Olympics?

Beijing has worked hard to make its Olympics protest-free. A
brief unfurling of Tibetan flags before the opening ceremony and a
five-person, ten-minute pro-Tibet protest at Tiananmen Square have
been the only signs of dissent.

As part of our strategic focus on sports and foreign policy, Foreign
Policy In Focus contributor Roger Levermore looks at how the Olympics
have been a staging ground for political protests, particularly
since 1968 and the well-known fist-raising at the Mexico Olympics. He
concludes in The Double-Edged Sword of Sport and Political Protest that
"in all likelihood, the effectiveness of the protests surrounding
the 2008 Olympics in China will be short-term and fade away in the
memory. The Chinese government and International Olympic Committee
(IOC) will heavily censor bottom-up protest (which is less likely to
be covered by the mainstream media in any event unless it comes in
the form of a terrorist attack). And state-led protests (which does
interest the media more) inevitably wither in the face of the growing
commercial and political importance of China."

FPIF contributor Shasha Zou reviews a new book that looks at the
political context of the Rome Olympics of 1960 and its echoes in the
Beijing Olympics of today. In 1960, she writes in Rome vs. Beijing,
"The two competing superpowers used the Olympics as a battleground
for propaganda, viewing each medal won, whistle blown, and smatter of
spectator applause as a symbol of their superiority." China, similarly,
is hoping that its staging of and performance in the Olympics will
demonstrate its own ascendance to the top ranks of world leadership.

In 1998, the Baltimore Orioles and Cuba’s national baseball team
split two games in a historic effort at sports diplomacy. With more
reasonable leadership in Washington, this might have been the beginning
of a rapprochement between the two countries. But as FPIF contributor
Saul Landau points out, nothing of the sort took place. "The games did
not, as we know, lead to Washington’s lifting of its embargo or travel
ban," he writes in Baseball – Big and Little. "Baseball diplomacy
led to the defection in 2002 of Cuba’s star pitcher, Jose Contreras,
who had held the Orioles to two runs in nine innings. But instead of
joining the O’s, he signed with the New York Yankees for millions of
dollars. Even in the 21st century, Dollar Diplomacy still functions."

The World and Food

The food crisis continues, and the international community has not
managed to marshal sufficient resources to tackle the problem. As
FPIF contributor Sophia Murphy writes, food aid contributions have
plummeted to only about one-third of 1999 levels, and the UN reports
that countries have offered less than half of what is needed for just
the most severely affected countries.

At the same time, she writes in Food Aid Emergency, the system of
food aid need serious reform so that the food sent to recipient
countries helps their economies rather than wrecks them: "The only
sensible response to the mounting numbers of emergencies is to match
emergency donations, dollar for dollar or better, with investments in
the long-term capacity of agriculture to provide us with the food,
feed, and fiber we need. These longer-term investments must go to
publicly held food reserves, investment in sustainable technologies,
vast improvements in water management, investment in roads, storage,
communications, and other infrastructure."

The institutions of the international community have not done any
better than the individual nation-states in addressing the food
crisis. These institutions like the World Bank and the World Trade
Organization (WTO), argues FPIF contributor Alexandra Spieldoch
in The Food Crisis and Global Institutions, "are still focused on
investment and growth in agriculture based on privatization schemes,
deregulation, and trade facilitation. This is exactly the approach
that has contributed to many of the problems we are seeing today in
the food system; it’s likely that this approach will worsen rather
than ease the crisis."

Down for the Count (Dracula)

Meanwhile, international institutions like the WTO are facing crises
of their own. FPIF contributors Walden Bello and Mary Lou Malig point
out in The Dracula Round that the WTO has been facing a number of
near-death experiences. "Like the good Count of Transylvania, the
World Trade Organization’s Doha Round of negotiations has died more
than once," they write. "It first collapsed during the WTO ministerial
meeting held in Cancun in September 2003. After apparently coming
back from the dead, many observers thought it passed away a second
time during the so-called Group of Four meeting in Potsdam in June
2007 — only to come back yet again from the dead. Now the question is
whether the unraveling of the most recent ‘mini-ministerial’ gathering
in Geneva was the silver stake that pierced the trade round’s heart,
rendering Doha dead forever."

For a look at what might emerge as an alternative to Dracula’s Doha,
check out Abbas Jaffer’s review of FPIF contributor Mark Engler’s new
book on globalization. It’s part of our new feature – FPIF Picks –
that gives you short reviews of the best foreign policy books, films,
and music.

Mexico and Iran

Mexico is the third-largest supplier of oil to the United States
(after Canada and Saudi Arabia). So the United States is very
interested in the future of the Mexican oil industry, particularly
the opportunities that open up for foreign investment if the complex
is privatized. As FPIF contributor Manuel Perez-Rocha explains in
Mexico’s Oil Referendum, the debate on privatization is increasingly
taking place in a regional context. The North American Security and
Prosperity Partnership (SPP) – an effort by the leaders of Canada,
the United States, and Mexico to bump NAFTA up a notch – definitely
has oil on its agenda. "One of the SPP’s core projects is the creation
of an integrated ‘regional energy market’ in order to guarantee the
supply of oil to the market that uses it most – the United States. The
SPP has proven to be a great help to oil companies for the grab of
Mexico’s reserves," Perez-Rocha writes.

Are Iran and the United States on the brink of détente? After the
July 19 meeting between Iranian, European, and U.S. negotiators, the
optimists and the pessimists were evenly divided. FPIF contributor
William O. Beeman doesn’t seem much in the way of movement forward. "So
little happened at the July 19 meeting, it could hardly be called
a diplomatic encounter," he writes in The Iranian Chess Game
Continues. "In fact, Iran has been pursuing a productive diplomatic
course. Rather than responding to deadlines and ultimatums, Iran has
steadily put forward proposals for resolving its differences with
the European and American governments over its nuclear energy program."

New Schedule

Mondays, we’ve been told, are a bad day for newsletters. Inboxes
are crowded with email, there’s less time to read, and folks are in
a post-weekend slump. So, with this issue of World Beat, we’ll be
switching to a Tuesday publication schedule.

Links

Human Rights Watch, "Overview of Human
Rights Issues in Georgia," World Report 2008;
georgi17743.htm

Voice of America, "Police Quash Olympic
Protests in Beijing, Hong Kong," August 9, 2008;
a8.cfm

Roger Levermore, "The Double-Edged Sword of Sport and Political
Protest," Foreign Policy In Focus ();
There are some signs that the ever-globalized mass media is helping
to portray sport-led political protest to a large audience, yet the
effectiveness of the protests surrounding the 2008 Olympics in China
will quickly fade away.

Shasha Zou, "Rome vs. Beijing: Olympics that Change the World,"
Foreign Policy In Focus (); David
Maraniss’ latest book, Rome 1960: The Olympics that Changed the World,
demonstrates how Beijing 2008 is simply another chapter in the quest
for separation between sports and state.

Saul Landau, "Baseball – Big and Little: Its Role in U.S.-Cuba
Relations," Foreign Policy In Focus ();
Perhaps young athletes from New England and Alabama can bring down
the level of government irrationality on U.S.-Cuba policy a peg or two.

Sophia Murphy, "Food Aid Emergency," Foreign Policy In Focus
(); The food price crisis has made
demand more acute and supplies even scarcer, but it hasn’t really
changed the underlying problems with food aid as a response to hunger.

Alexandra Spieldoch, "The Food Crisis and Global Institutions,"
Foreign Policy In Focus (); Can
global institutions and governments, in the midst of a food crisis,
finally get it right?

Walden Bello and Mary Lou Malig, "The Dracula Round," Foreign Policy
In Focus (); Will the WTO’s Doha
talks come back from the dead?

Abbas Jaffer, "A Third Way: Globalization from Below," Foreign Policy
In Focus (); According to Mark Engler,
the future of globalization is in question. Will the fight between
"imperial globalization" and "corporate globalization" lead to the
rise of democratic globalization?"

Manuel Perez-Rocha, "Mexico’s Oil Referendum," Foreign Policy
In Focus (); Opposition parties
organized a non-binding referendum to fight government efforts to
gut a constitutional ban on private investment in the oil industry.

William O. Beeman, "The Iranian Chess Game Continues," Foreign Policy
In Focus (); Diplomacy between Iran
and the United States has entered the opening gambit stage and Iran
appears to be winning at this point.

–Boundary_(ID_tvYdqz/Hh2yXbUOuUCZI3g)–

ZIONIST PROXY GEORGIA – MAY DEATH BE UPON YOU ZIONISM !!!!!!!
By Ali Abunimah

Cleveland Indy Media
Aug. 12, 2008 at 12:26 PM
OH

Tel Aviv to Tbilisi: Israel’s role in the Russia-Georgia war Tel Aviv
to Tbilisi:

Israel’s role in theRussia-Georgia war Tel Aviv to Tbilisi: Israel’s
role in the Russia-Georgia war Ali Abunimah, The Electronic Intifada,
12 August 2008 html
[] Israelis wave both Georgian and Israeli flags as they chant
anti-Russian slogans during a demonstration outside the Russian embassy
in Tel Aviv, 11 August. (Gali Tibbon/AFP/Getty Images) From the moment
Georgia launched a surprise attack on the tiny breakaway region of
South Ossetia last week, prompting a fierce Russian counterattack,
Israel has been trying to distance itself from the conflict. This is
understandable: with Georgian forces on the retreat, large numbers of
civilians killed and injured, and Russia’s fury unabated, Israel’s
deep involvement is severely embarrassing. The collapse of the
Georgian offensive represents not only a disaster for that country
and its US-backed leaders, but another blow to the myth of Israel’s
military prestige and prowess. Worse, Israel fears that Russia
could retaliate by stepping up its military assistance to Israel’s
adversaries including Iran. "Israel is following with great concern
the developments in South Ossetia and Abkhazia and hopes the violence
will end," its foreign ministry said, adding with uncharacteristic
doveishness, "Israel recognizes the territorial integrity of
Georgia and calls for a peaceful solution." Tbilisi’s top diplomat
in Tel Aviv complained about the lackluster Israeli response to his
country’s predicament and perhaps overestimating Israeli influence,
called for Israeli "diplomatic pressure on Moscow." Just like Israel,
the diplomat said, Georgia is fighting a war on "terrorism." Israeli
officials politely told the Georgians that "the address for that type
of pressure was Washington" (Herb Keinon, "Tbilisi wants Israel to
pressure Russia," The Jerusalem Post, 11 August 2008). While Israel
was keen to downplay its role, Georgia perhaps hoped that flattery
might draw Israel further in. Georgian minister Temur Yakobashvili —
whom the Israeli daily Haaretz stressed was Jewish — told Israeli
army radio that "Israel should be proud of its military which trained
Georgian soldiers." Yakobashvili claimed rather implausibly, according
to Haaretz, that "a small group of Georgian soldiers were able to
wipe out an entire Russian military division, thanks to the Israeli
training" ("Georgian minister tells Israel Radio: Thanks to Israeli
training, we’re fending off Russian military," Haaretz, 11 August
2008). Since 2000, Israel has sold hundreds of millions of dollars in
arms and combat training to Georgia. Weapons included guns, ammunition,
shells, tactical missile systems, antiaircraft systems, automatic
turrets for armored vehicles, electronic equipment and remotely
piloted aircraft. These sales were authorized by the Israeli defense
ministry (Arie Egozi, "War in Georgia: The Israeli connection," Ynet,
10 August 2008). Training also involved officers from Israel’s Shin
Bet secret service — which has for decades carried out extrajudicial
executions and torture of Palestinians in the occupied territories
— the Israeli police, and the country’s major arms companies Elbit
and Rafael. The Tel Aviv-Tbilisi military axis appears to have been
cemented at the highest levels, and according to YNet, "The fact that
Georgia’s defense minister, Davit Kezerashvili, is a former Israeli
who is fluent in Hebrew contributed to this cooperation." Others
involved in the brisk arms trade included former Israeli minister and
Tel Aviv mayor Roni Milo as well as several senior Israeli military
officers. The key liaison was Reserve Brigadier General Gal Hirsch who
commanded Israeli forces on the border with Lebanon during the July
2006 Second Lebanon War. (Yossi Melman, "Georgia Violence – A frozen
alliance," Haaretz, 10 August 2008). He resigned from the army after
the Winograd commission severely criticized Israel’s conduct of its
war against Lebanon and an internal Israeli army investigation blamed
Hirsch for the seizure of two soldiers by Hizballah. According to one
of the Israeli combat trainers, an officer in an "elite" Israel army
unit, Hirsch and colleagues would sometimes personally supervise
the training of Georgian forces which included "house-to-house
fighting." The training was carried out through several "private"
companies with close links to the Israeli military. As the violence
raged in Georgia, the trainer was desperately trying to contact
his former Georgian students on the battlefront via mobile phone:
the Israelis wanted to know whether the Georgians had "internalized
Israeli military technique and if the special reconnaissance forces
have chalked up any successes" (Jonathan Lis and Moti Katz, "IDF
vets who trained Georgia troops say war with Russia is no surprise,"
Haaretz, 11 August 2008). Yet on the ground, the Israeli-trained
Georgian forces, perhaps unsurprisingly overwhelmed by the Russians,
have done little to redeem the image of Israel’s military following
its defeat by Hizballah’s in July-August 2006. The question remains
as to why Israel was involved in the first place. There are several
reasons. The first is simply economic opportunism: for years,
especially since the 11 September 2001 attacks, arms exports and
"security expertise" have been one of Israel’s growth industries. But
the close Israeli involvement in a region Russia considers to be of
vital interest suggests that Israel might have been acting as part of
the broader US scheme to encircle Russia and contain its reemerging
power. Since the end of the Cold War, the US has been steadily
encroaching on Russia’s borders and expanding NATO in a manner the
Kremlin considers highly provocative. Shortly after coming into office,
the Bush Administration tore up the Anti-Ballistic Missile treaty and,
like the Clinton administration, adopted former Soviet satellite
states as its own, using them to base an anti-missile system Russia
views as a threat. In addition to their "global war on terror,"
hawks in Washington have recently been talking up a new Cold War with
Russia. Georgia was an eager volunteer in this effort and has learned
quickly the correct rhetoric: one Georgian minister claimed that
"every bomb that falls on our heads is an attack on democracy, on the
European Union and on America." Georgia has been trying to join NATO,
and sent 2,000 soldiers to help the US occupy Iraq. It may have hoped
that once war started this loyalty would be rewarded with the kind of
round-the-clock airlift of weapons that Israel receives from the US
during its wars. Instead so far the US only helped airlift the Georgian
troops from Iraq back to the beleaguered home front. By helping
Georgia, Israel may have been doing its part to duplicate its own
experience in assisting the eastward expansion of the "Euro-Atlantic"
empire. While supporting Georgia was certainly risky for Israel, given
the possible Russian reaction, it has a compelling reason to intervene
in a region that is heavily contested by global powers. Israel
must constantly reinvent itself as an "asset" to American power
if it is to maintain the US support that ensures its survival as a
settler-colonial enclave in the Middle East. It is a familiar role;
in the 1970s and 1980s, at the behest of Washington, Israel helped
South Africa’s apartheid regime fight Soviet-supported insurgencies
in South African-occupied Namibia and Angola, and it trained
right-wing US-allied death squads fighting left-wing governments and
movements in Central America. After 2001, Israel marketed itself as
an expert on combating "Islamic terrorism." Venezuelan president
Hugo Chavez recently denounced Colombia – long one of the largest
recipients of US military aid after Israel — as the "Israel of Latin
America." Georgia’s government, to the detriment of its people, may
have tried to play the role of the "Israel of the Caucasus" — a loyal
servant of US ambitions in that region — and lost the gamble. Playing
with empires is dangerous for a small country. As for Israel itself,
with the Bush Doctrine having failed to give birth to the "new Middle
East" that the US needs to maintain its power in the region against
growing resistance, an ever more desperate and rogue Israel must look
for opportunities to prove its worth elsewhere. That is a dangerous and
scary thing. Co-founder of The Electronic Intifada, Ali Abunimah is
author of < 8.shtml>One
Country: A Bold Proposal to End the Israeli- Palestinian Impasse
(Metropolitan Books, 2006).

****************************************** ********************************
rpunch.org/walberg08122008.htmlAugust 12, 2008 How
the U.S. Invited a War in South Ossetia War a la Carte By ERIC WALBERG
Last week, Georgia launched a major military offensive against the
rebel province South Ossetia, just hours after President Mikheil
Saakashvili had announced a unilateral ceasefire. Close to 1,500
have been killed, Russian officials say. Thirty thousand refugees,
mostly women and children, streamed across the border into the North
Ossetian capital Vladikavkaz in Russia. The timing ? and subterfuge
? suggest the unscrupulous Saakashvili was counting on surprise. ?Most
decision makers have gone for the holidays,? he said in an interview
with CNN. ?Brilliant moment to attack a small country.? Apparently
he was referring to Russia invading Georgia, despite the fact that
it was Georgia which had just launched a full-scale invasion of
the ?small country? South Ossetia, while Russian Prime Minister
Vladimir Putin was in Beijing for the Olympics. Twenty-seven Russian
peacekeepers and troops have been killed and 150 wounded so far, many
when their barracks were shelled by Georgian forces at the start of the
invasion. Georgian State Minister for Reintegration Temur Yakobashvili
rushed to announce that their mini-blitzkreig had destroyed ten
Russian combat planes (Russia says two) and that Georgian troops were
in full control of the capital Tskhinvali. Russia?s Defense Ministry
denounced the Georgian attack as a ?dirty adventure.? From Beijing,
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said, ?It is regrettable that
on the day before the opening of the Olympic Games, the Georgian
authorities have undertaken aggressive actions in South Ossetia.? He
later added, ?War has started.? Russian President Dmitry Medvedev vowed
that Moscow will protect Russian citizens ? most South Ossetians hold
Russian passports. The offensive prompted Moscow to send in 150 tanks,
to launch air strikes on nearby Gori and military sites, and to order
warships to Georgia?s Black Sea coast. Georgia?s national security
council declared a state of war with Russia and a full military
mobilization. US military planes are already flying Georgia?s 2,000
troops in Iraq ? the third-largest force after the United States
and Britain ? back to confront the Russians. By Sunday, despite
early claims of victory, Georgian troops had retreated from South
Ossetia, leaving diplomatic rubble behind which will be very hard
to clear. Truth is stranger than fiction in Georgia. The writing has
been on the wall for months. Georgian President Saakashvili?s fawning
over Western leaders at the ?emergency? NATO meeting in April and
his pre-election anti-Russian bluster in May made it clear to all
that Georgia is the more-than-willing canary in the Eastern mine
shaft. The Georgian attack on South Ossetia?s capital Tskhinvali
? I repeat ? just hours after Saakashvili declared a cease-fire,
looks very much like an attempt to reincorporate the rebel province
into Georgia unilaterally. But whoever is advising the brash young
president ignores the postscript ? no pasaran! South Ossetia has
been independent for 16 years and is not likely to drape flowers
on invading Georgia tanks. It also just happens to have Russia as
patron. The aftershocks of this wild gamble by Saakashvili are just
beginning. This is Russia?s most serious altercation with a foreign
country since the collapse of the Soviet Union and could escalate into
an all-out war engulfing much of the Caucasus region. Russian warships
are not planning to block shipments of oil from Georgia?s Black Sea
port of Poti, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Grigory Karasin said
on Sunday, but reserve the right to search ships coming to and from
it. Another source naval source said, ?The crews are assigned the
task to not allow arms and military hardware supplies to reach Georgia
by sea.? The Russians have already sunk a Georgian missile boat that
was trying to attack Russian ships. Upping the ante, Ukraine said it
reserved the right to bar Russian warships from returning to their
nominally Ukrainian ? formerly Russian ? base of Sevastopol , on the
Crimean peninsula. On Saturday, Russia accused Ukraine of ?arming the
Georgians to the teeth.? Georgia?s other separatist region, Abkhazia,
was mobilizing its forces for a push into the Kodori Gorge, the only
part of Abkhazia controlled by Georgia. ?No dialogue is possible
with the current Georgian leadership,? said Abkhazia?s President
Sergei Bagapsh. ?They are state criminals who must be tried for
the crimes committed in South Ossetia, the genocide of the Ossetian
people.? Britain has ordered its nationals to leave Georgia. British
charity worker Sian Davis said, ?It?s really, really quiet, eerily
quiet. Everyone was either at home or had packed up and moved out of
the city. People are really, really scared. People are panicking.? So
far the more than 2,000 US nationals in this tiny but strategic country
are mostly staying put. This is yet another made-in-the-USA war. US
President George W Bush loudly supported Georgia?s request to join
NATO in April, much to the consternation of European leaders. NATO
promised to send advisers in December. Not losing any time, the US
sent more than 1,000 US Marines and soldiers to the Vaziani military
base on the South Ossetian border in July ?to teach combat skills
to Georgian troops.? The UN Security Council failed to reach an
agreement on the current crisis after three emergency meetings. A
Russian-drafted statement that called on Georgia and the separatists
to ?renounce the use of force? was vetoed by the US, UK and France. To
dispel any conceivable doubt, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice
said Friday: ?We call on Russia to cease attacks on Georgia by
aircraft and missiles, respect Georgia?s territorial integrity,
and withdraw its ground combat forces from Georgian soil.? But it?s
also yet another made-in-Israel war. A thousand military advisers
from Israeli security firms have been training the country?s armed
forces and were deeply involved in the Georgian army?s preparations
to attack and capture the capital of South Ossetia, according to the
Israeli web site Debkafiles which has close links with the regime?s
intelligence and military sources. Haaretz reported that Yakobashvili
told Army Radio ? in Hebrew, ? Israel should be proud of its military
which trained Georgian soldiers.? ?We killed 60 Russian soldiers
just yesterday,? he boasted on Monday. ?The Russians have lost more
than 50 tanks, and we have shot down 11 of their planes. They have
enormous damage in terms of manpower.? He warned that the Russians
would try and open another battlefront in Abkhazia and denied reports
that the Georgian army was retreating. ?The Georgian forces are not
retreating. We move our military according to security needs.? Israelis
are active in real estate, tourism, gaming, military manufacturing
and security consulting in Georgia, including former Tel Aviv mayor
Roni Milo and Likudite and gambling operator Reuven Gavrieli. ?The
Russians don’t look kindly on the military cooperation of Israeli
firms with the Georgian army, and as far as I know, Israelis doing
security consulting left Georgia in the past few days because of the
events there,? the former Israeli ambassador to Georgia and Armenia,
Baruch Ben Neria, said yesterday. Since his posting, Ben Neria has
represented Rafael Advanced Defense Systems in Georgia . By Sunday,
Putin was in Vladikavkaz and said it is unlikely South Ossetia
will ever be reintegrated into Georgia. There are really only two
possible scenarios to end the conflict: a long-term stalemate or
Russian annexation of South Ossetia. The former is beginning to
look pretty good, and Saakashvili is probably already ruing his
rash move. The Georgian president is clearly hoping he can suck
the US into the conflict. Alexander Lomaya, secretary of Georgia?s
National Security Council, said only Western intervention could
prevent all-out war. But it is very unlikely Bush will risk WWIII
over this scrap of craggy mountain. When US puppets get out of line,
like a certain Saddam Hussein, they are easily abandoned. Saakashvili
would be wise to recall the fate of the first post-Soviet Georgian
president, Zviad Gamsakhurdia, also a darling of the US (in 1978 US
Congress nominated him for the Nobel Peace Prize). He rode to victory
on a wave of nationalism in 1990, declaring independence for Georgia
and officially recognizing the ?Chechen Republic of Ichkeria?. But
South Ossetia wanted no part of the fiery Gamsakhurdia?s chauvinistic
vision and declared its own ?independence?. Engulfed by a wave of
disgust a short two years later, abandoned by his US friends, he
fled to his beloved Ichkeria. He snuck back into western Georgia,
looking for support in restive Abkhazia, but his uprising collapsed,
prompting Abkhazia to secede. Gamsakhurdia died in 1993, leaving
the two secessionist provinces as a legacy, and was buried in
Chechnya. Saakashvili rehabilitated him in 2004 and had his
remains interred in Mtatsminda Pantheon with other Georgian
?heroes?. Truth really is stranger than fiction in Georgia. Now
the burning question is: will history repeat itself? Eric
Walberg writes for Al-Ahram Weekly. You can reach him
at< ;

ZIONIST PROXY GEORGIA

by ALI ABUNIMAH Tuesday, Aug. 12, 2008 at 12:26 PM

MAY DEATH BE UPON YOU ZIONISM !!!!!!!

Tel Aviv to Tbilisi: Israel’s role in the Russia-Georgia war
Tel Aviv to Tbilisi: Israel’s role in theRussia-Georgia war
Tel Aviv to Tbilisi: Israel’s role in the Russia-Georgia
war Ali Abunimah, The Electronic Intifada, 12 August
2008 e9756.shtml [] Israelis wave
both Georgian and Israeli flags as they chant anti-Russian slogans
during a demonstration outside the Russian embassy in Tel Aviv, 11
August. (Gali Tibbon/AFP/Getty Images) From the moment Georgia launched
a surprise attack on the tiny breakaway region of South Ossetia last
week, prompting a fierce Russian counterattack, Israel has been trying
to distance itself from the conflict. This is understandable: with
Georgian forces on the retreat, large numbers of civilians killed
and injured, and Russia’s fury unabated, Israel’s deep involvement
is severely embarrassing. The collapse of the Georgian offensive
represents not only a disaster for that country and its US-backed
leaders, but another blow to the myth of Israel’s military prestige
and prowess. Worse, Israel fears that Russia could retaliate by
stepping up its military assistance to Israel’s adversaries including
Iran. "Israel is following with great concern the developments in
South Ossetia and Abkhazia and hopes the violence will end," its
foreign ministry said, adding with uncharacteristic doveishness,
"Israel recognizes the territorial integrity of Georgia and calls for
a peaceful solution." Tbilisi’s top diplomat in Tel Aviv complained
about the lackluster Israeli response to his country’s predicament
and perhaps overestimating Israeli influence, called for Israeli
"diplomatic pressure on Moscow." Just like Israel, the diplomat said,
Georgia is fighting a war on "terrorism." Israeli officials politely
told the Georgians that "the address for that type of pressure
was Washington" (Herb Keinon, "Tbilisi wants Israel to pressure
Russia," The Jerusalem Post, 11 August 2008). While Israel was keen
to downplay its role, Georgia perhaps hoped that flattery might draw
Israel further in. Georgian minister Temur Yakobashvili — whom the
Israeli daily Haaretz stressed was Jewish — told Israeli army radio
that "Israel should be proud of its military which trained Georgian
soldiers." Yakobashvili claimed rather implausibly, according to
Haaretz, that "a small group of Georgian soldiers were able to wipe out
an entire Russian military division, thanks to the Israeli training"
("Georgian minister tells Israel Radio: Thanks to Israeli training,
we’re fending off Russian military," Haaretz, 11 August 2008). Since
2000, Israel has sold hundreds of millions of dollars in arms and
combat training to Georgia. Weapons included guns, ammunition,
shells, tactical missile systems, antiaircraft systems, automatic
turrets for armored vehicles, electronic equipment and remotely
piloted aircraft. These sales were authorized by the Israeli defense
ministry (Arie Egozi, "War in Georgia: The Israeli connection," Ynet,
10 August 2008). Training also involved officers from Israel’s Shin
Bet secret service — which has for decades carried out extrajudicial
executions and torture of Palestinians in the occupied territories
— the Israeli police, and the country’s major arms companies Elbit
and Rafael. The Tel Aviv-Tbilisi military axis appears to have been
cemented at the highest levels, and according to YNet, "The fact that
Georgia’s defense minister, Davit Kezerashvili, is a former Israeli
who is fluent in Hebrew contributed to this cooperation." Others
involved in the brisk arms trade included former Israeli minister and
Tel Aviv mayor Roni Milo as well as several senior Israeli military
officers. The key liaison was Reserve Brigadier General Gal Hirsch who
commanded Israeli forces on the border with Lebanon during the July
2006 Second Lebanon War. (Yossi Melman, "Georgia Violence – A frozen
alliance," Haaretz, 10 August 2008). He resigned from the army after
the Winograd commission severely criticized Israel’s conduct of its
war against Lebanon and an internal Israeli army investigation blamed
Hirsch for the seizure of two soldiers by Hizballah. According to one
of the Israeli combat trainers, an officer in an "elite" Israel army
unit, Hirsch and colleagues would sometimes personally supervise
the training of Georgian forces which included "house-to-house
fighting." The training was carried out through several "private"
companies with close links to the Israeli military. As the violence
raged in Georgia, the trainer was desperately trying to contact his
former Georgian students on the battlefront via mobile phone: the
Israelis wanted to know whether the Georgians had "internalized Israeli
military technique and if the special reconnaissance forces have
chalked up any successes" (Jonathan Lis and Moti Katz, "IDF vets who
trained Georgia troops say war with Russia is no surprise," Haaretz,
11 August 2008). Yet on the ground, the Israeli-trained Georgian
forces, perhaps unsurprisingly overwhelmed by the Russians, have done
little to redeem the image of Israel’s military following its defeat
by Hizballah’s in July-August 2006. The question remains as to why
Israel was involved in the first place. There are several reasons. The
first is simply economic opportunism: for years, especially since
the 11 September 2001 attacks, arms exports and "security expertise"
have been one of Israel’s growth industries. But the close Israeli
involvement in a region Russia considers to be of vital interest
suggests that Israel might have been acting as part of the broader US
scheme to encircle Russia and contain its reemerging power. Since the
end of the Cold War, the US has been steadily encroaching on Russia’s
borders and expanding NATO in a manner the Kremlin considers highly
provocative. Shortly after coming into office, the Bush Administration
tore up the Anti-Ballistic Missile treaty and, like the Clinton
administration, adopted former Soviet satellite states as its own,
using them to base an anti-missile system Russia views as a threat. In
addition to their "global war on terror," hawks in Washington have
recently been talking up a new Cold War with Russia. Georgia was an
eager volunteer in this effort and has learned quickly the correct
rhetoric: one Georgian minister claimed that "every bomb that falls
on our heads is an attack on democracy, on the European Union and on
America." Georgia has been trying to join NATO, and sent 2,000 soldiers
to help the US occupy Iraq. It may have hoped that once war started
this loyalty would be rewarded with the kind of round-the-clock airlift
of weapons that Israel receives from the US during its wars. Instead
so far the US only helped airlift the Georgian troops from Iraq back
to the beleaguered home front. By helping Georgia, Israel may have
been doing its part to duplicate its own experience in assisting the
eastward expansion of the "Euro-Atlantic" empire. While supporting
Georgia was certainly risky for Israel, given the possible Russian
reaction, it has a compelling reason to intervene in a region that is
heavily contested by global powers. Israel must constantly reinvent
itself as an "asset" to American power if it is to maintain the
US support that ensures its survival as a settler-colonial enclave
in the Middle East. It is a familiar role; in the 1970s and 1980s,
at the behest of Washington, Israel helped South Africa’s apartheid
regime fight Soviet-supported insurgencies in South African-occupied
Namibia and Angola, and it trained right-wing US-allied death squads
fighting left-wing governments and movements in Central America. After
2001, Israel marketed itself as an expert on combating "Islamic
terrorism." Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez recently denounced
Colombia – long one of the largest recipients of US military aid after
Israel — as the "Israel of Latin America." Georgia’s government, to
the detriment of its people, may have tried to play the role of the
"Israel of the Caucasus" — a loyal servant of US ambitions in that
region — and lost the gamble. Playing with empires is dangerous
for a small country. As for Israel itself, with the Bush Doctrine
having failed to give birth to the "new Middle East" that the
US needs to maintain its power in the region against growing
resistance, an ever more desperate and rogue Israel must look for
opportunities to prove its worth elsewhere. That is a dangerous and
scary thing. Co-founder of The Electronic Intifada, Ali Abunimah is
author of < 8.shtml>One
Country: A Bold Proposal to End the Israeli- Palestinian Impasse
(Metropolitan Books, 2006).

****************************************** ********************************
rpunch.org/walberg08122008.htmlAugust 12, 2008 How
the U.S. Invited a War in South Ossetia War a la Carte By ERIC WALBERG
Last week, Georgia launched a major military offensive against the
rebel province South Ossetia, just hours after President Mikheil
Saakashvili had announced a unilateral ceasefire. Close to 1,500
have been killed, Russian officials say. Thirty thousand refugees,
mostly women and children, streamed across the border into the North
Ossetian capital Vladikavkaz in Russia. The timing ? and subterfuge
? suggest the unscrupulous Saakashvili was counting on surprise. ?Most
decision makers have gone for the holidays,? he said in an interview
with CNN. ?Brilliant moment to attack a small country.? Apparently
he was referring to Russia invading Georgia, despite the fact that
it was Georgia which had just launched a full-scale invasion of
the ?small country? South Ossetia, while Russian Prime Minister
Vladimir Putin was in Beijing for the Olympics. Twenty-seven Russian
peacekeepers and troops have been killed and 150 wounded so far, many
when their barracks were shelled by Georgian forces at the start of the
invasion. Georgian State Minister for Reintegration Temur Yakobashvili
rushed to announce that their mini-blitzkreig had destroyed ten
Russian combat planes (Russia says two) and that Georgian troops were
in full control of the capital Tskhinvali. Russia?s Defense Ministry
denounced the Georgian attack as a ?dirty adventure.? From Beijing,
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said, ?It is regrettable that
on the day before the opening of the Olympic Games, the Georgian
authorities have undertaken aggressive actions in South Ossetia.? He
later added, ?War has started.? Russian President Dmitry Medvedev vowed
that Moscow will protect Russian citizens ? most South Ossetians hold
Russian passports. The offensive prompted Moscow to send in 150 tanks,
to launch air strikes on nearby Gori and military sites, and to order
warships to Georgia?s Black Sea coast. Georgia?s national security
council declared a state of war with Russia and a full military
mobilization. US military planes are already flying Georgia?s 2,000
troops in Iraq ? the third-largest force after the United States
and Britain ? back to confront the Russians. By Sunday, despite
early claims of victory, Georgian troops had retreated from South
Ossetia, leaving diplomatic rubble behind which will be very hard
to clear. Truth is stranger than fiction in Georgia. The writing has
been on the wall for months. Georgian President Saakashvili?s fawning
over Western leaders at the ?emergency? NATO meeting in April and
his pre-election anti-Russian bluster in May made it clear to all
that Georgia is the more-than-willing canary in the Eastern mine
shaft. The Georgian attack on South Ossetia?s capital Tskhinvali
? I repeat ? just hours after Saakashvili declared a cease-fire,
looks very much like an attempt to reincorporate the rebel province
into Georgia unilaterally. But whoever is advising the brash young
president ignores the postscript ? no pasaran! South Ossetia has
been independent for 16 years and is not likely to drape flowers
on invading Georgia tanks. It also just happens to have Russia as
patron. The aftershocks of this wild gamble by Saakashvili are just
beginning. This is Russia?s most serious altercation with a foreign
country since the collapse of the Soviet Union and could escalate
into an all-out war engulfing much of the Caucasus region. Russian
warships are not planning to block shipments of oil from Georgia?s
Black Sea port of Poti, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Grigory Karasin
said on Sunday, but reserve the right to search ships coming to and
from it. Another source naval source said, ?The crews are assigned
the task to not allow arms and military hardware supplies to reach
Georgia by sea.? The Russians have already sunk a Georgian missile
boat that was trying to attack Russian ships. Upping the ante, Ukraine
said it reserved the right to bar Russian warships from returning to
their nominally Ukrainian ? formerly Russian ? base of Sevastopol ,
on the Crimean peninsula. On Saturday, Russia accused Ukraine of
?arming the Georgians to the teeth.? Georgia?s other separatist
region, Abkhazia, was mobilizing its forces for a push into the
Kodori Gorge, the only part of Abkhazia controlled by Georgia. ?No
dialogue is possible with the current Georgian leadership,? said
Abkhazia?s President Sergei Bagapsh. ?They are state criminals who
must be tried for the crimes committed in South Ossetia, the genocide
of the Ossetian people.? Britain has ordered its nationals to leave
Georgia. British charity worker Sian Davis said, ?It?s really, really
quiet, eerily quiet.

Everyone was either at home or had packed up and moved out of the
city. People are really, really scared. People are panicking.? So far
the more than 2,000 US nationals in this tiny but strategic country
are mostly staying put. This is yet another made-in-the-USA war. US
President George W Bush loudly supported Georgia?s request to join
NATO in April, much to the consternation of European leaders. NATO
promised to send advisers in December. Not losing any time, the US
sent more than 1,000 US Marines and soldiers to the Vaziani military
base on the South Ossetian border in July ?to teach combat skills
to Georgian troops.? The UN Security Council failed to reach an
agreement on the current crisis after three emergency meetings. A
Russian-drafted statement that called on Georgia and the separatists
to ?renounce the use of force? was vetoed by the US, UK and France. To
dispel any conceivable doubt, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said
Friday: ?We call on Russia to cease attacks on Georgia by aircraft and
missiles, respect Georgia?s territorial integrity, and withdraw its
ground combat forces from Georgian soil.? But it?s also yet another
made-in-Israel war. A thousand military advisers from Israeli security
firms have been training the country?s armed forces and were deeply
involved in the Georgian army?s preparations to attack and capture
the capital of South Ossetia, according to the Israeli web site
Debkafiles which has close links with the regime?s intelligence and
military sources. Haaretz reported that Yakobashvili told Army Radio
? in Hebrew, ? Israel should be proud of its military which trained
Georgian soldiers.? ?We killed 60 Russian soldiers just yesterday,? he
boasted on Monday. ?The Russians have lost more than 50 tanks, and
we have shot down 11 of their planes. They have enormous damage in
terms of manpower.? He warned that the Russians would try and open
another battlefront in Abkhazia and denied reports that the Georgian
army was retreating. ?The Georgian forces are not retreating. We move
our military according to security needs.? Israelis are active in real
estate, tourism, gaming, military manufacturing and security consulting
in Georgia, including former Tel Aviv mayor Roni Milo and Likudite
and gambling operator Reuven Gavrieli. ?The Russians don’t look
kindly on the military cooperation of Israeli firms with the Georgian
army, and as far as I know, Israelis doing security consulting left
Georgia in the past few days because of the events there,? the former
Israeli ambassador to Georgia and Armenia, Baruch Ben Neria, said
yesterday. Since his posting, Ben Neria has represented Rafael Advanced
Defense Systems in Georgia . By Sunday, Putin was in Vladikavkaz
and said it is unlikely South Ossetia will ever be reintegrated
into Georgia. There are really only two possible scenarios to end
the conflict: a long-term stalemate or Russian annexation of South
Ossetia. The former is beginning to look pretty good, and Saakashvili
is probably already ruing his rash move. The Georgian president is
clearly hoping he can suck the US into the conflict. Alexander Lomaya,
secretary of Georgia?s National Security Council, said only Western
intervention could prevent all-out war. But it is very unlikely
Bush will risk WWIII over this scrap of craggy mountain. When US
puppets get out of line, like a certain Saddam Hussein, they are
easily abandoned. Saakashvili would be wise to recall the fate of
the first post-Soviet Georgian president, Zviad Gamsakhurdia, also a
darling of the US (in 1978 US Congress nominated him for the Nobel
Peace Prize). He rode to victory on a wave of nationalism in 1990,
declaring independence for Georgia and officially recognizing the
?Chechen Republic of Ichkeria?. But South Ossetia wanted no part of
the fiery Gamsakhurdia?s chauvinistic vision and declared its own
?independence?. Engulfed by a wave of disgust a short two years later,
abandoned by his US friends, he fled to his beloved Ichkeria. He snuck
back into western Georgia, looking for support in restive Abkhazia,
but his uprising collapsed, prompting Abkhazia to secede. Gamsakhurdia
died in 1993, leaving the two secessionist provinces as a legacy,
and was buried in Chechnya. Saakashvili rehabilitated him in 2004 and
had his remains interred in Mtatsminda Pantheon with other Georgian
?heroes?. Truth really is stranger than fiction in Georgia. Now the
burning question is: will history repeat itself?

WRESTLING STAYS IN THE RUSSIAN FAMILY

InTheNews.co.uk
Tuesday, 12 Aug 2008 18:36
UK

Russia takes its first medals Printer friendly version Countries
from the former Soviet Union swept the medals board in today’s two
wrestling finals.

Russia’s Islam-Beka Albiev won the gold medal for the Greco-Roman
60kg wrestling class while compatriot Nazyr Makiev emerged on top in
the 55kg class.

Mankiev said: "I am very proud of my country although it is not an
easy time for the Russian wrestling delegation, but we are a very
strong team."

The silver medals went to Rovshan Bayramov of Azerbaijan for the 55kg
class and Roman Amoyan of Armenia in the 60kg competition respectively.

"This is the first gold medal for Russia. I feel very good about it,"
Mankiev said.

"I am very proud of my country although it is not an easy time for
the Russian wrestling delegation, but we are a very strong team."

Albiev said his win made him feel "nothing but peace".

"I should pay my thanks to my coach and the head coach of the Russian
wrestling delegation.

"I especially want to appreciate people who gave me support and
encouragement in front of the television back home. Of course, I want
to say thank you to my parents."

MUSIC WITHOUT FRONTIERS
By Ed Emery

Le Monde Diplomatique
August 2008
France

A cross-culture celebration

For Londoners, Turkey is now no longer a mysterious presence at the
edge of Europe but almost a familiar cultural identity. An audience
at a Stoke Newington Green (north London) concert of the music
group Nihavend had a chance to listen to Turkish and Ottoman music
celebrating Istanbul one night when, outside in the streets of Stoke
Newington (home to a large Turkish community), there was tension. It
was resolved as the concertgoers emerged into a pandemonium of honking
car horns and waving Turkish flags: Turkey had just beaten the Czech
Republic in the Euro 2008 football tournament.

Down the road at the Arcola Theatre, the Orient Express festival was
under way, its aim to support the people of the Sulukule (Water Tower)
quarter of Istanbul, whose houses are about to be demolished to make
way for urban development along the shores of the Golden Horn. In 2010
Istanbul will be European Capital of Culture, and slum clearance –
at least in the tourist zones – is high on the agenda. But Sulukule
is home to a long-standing Roma community (1). Historically it has
been a focus of popular musical culture, where Istanbuliots like
to go for a good night out. So political and cultural activists are
organising to resist the clearance, and globalised diaspora politics
makes it unsurprising to find the campaigning to save Sulukule has
spread to north London.

Hybridisation, promiscuous influences and high-speed global transfers
are now marks of the international music trade. Music is one the prime
vehicles for the politics of cultural identity, which has exercised
the minds of ethnomusicologists during the past 20 years. The Arcola
Theatre festival included a concert of Greek and Turkish songs,
by the SOAS Rebetiko Band, a 45-strong Greek and Turkish ensemble
created out of ethnomusicology seminars at London University’s School
of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS). Rebetiko is an urban blues
built around the bouzouki. It developed in the 1920s and 1930s in
the port cities of mainland Greece, among Greek communities uprooted
from Turkey in the population exchanges after the Treaty of Lausanne
(1923). Its lyrics are about drugs, prison, death and unrequited love,
and its characteristic dances are the hasapiko and the zeibekiko.

I play baglama (2) in the band. When we started it four years ago we
were mainly Greeks or of Greek descent (Anglo-Greeks, Cypriots). Then
we were joined by a Turkish violinist, Cahit Baylav, and two woman
singers from Istanbul, Cigdem Aslan and Ivi Dermanci, all with an
interest in Greek music. The Greeks would launch into one of their
songs, and the Turks would say: "We know that song: it’s one of
ours!" Through research, we began to uncover a huge area of shared
musical culture, a music without frontiers in which Greeks and Turks
had a common interest. We now perform these songs (such as Apo xeno
topo (From a foreign land), Uskudar, and the prison/hashish song
Yedikule) in both Greek and Turkish versions (3).

Discovering a shared heritage An earlier generation, accustomed to
nationalism and the bitter memories of war, would have found these
celebrations of shared culture unsettling. But in Greece there are
now groups that perform Ottoman music alongside Byzantine music, and
in Turkey it is normal to hear rebetiko playing loudly from record
shops all along Istanbul’s Istiklal Caddesi. Many of the young from
both countries find it exhilarating to discover, share and celebrate
their common musical heritage.

Some would still oppose these musical sharings. In 1936 the Greek
dictator Metaxas banned rebetiko, which he thought degenerate and
tainted by Orientalism. Instead he imposed a culture of Hellenism
and western classical music. Rebetiko was also banned in Turkey, by
Ataturk, who thought it excessively Byzantine (even though Ataturk had
a record by Roza Eskenazi, the Istanbul-born icon of Greek rebetiko,
in his collection) (4). In the 1990s the battles over music continued,
with the Turkish government wrestling with the huge popularity
of its own orientalising music – Arabesk, a music associated with
migrants from Turkey’s East, with depressive lyrics, transvestite and
trans-sexual singers and Arab-style musical treatments. In February
2007 the post-Islamist AKP government banned access to YouTube, so
we haven’t been able to share the video of our concert with musical
colleagues in Turkey.

Golden view: looking across the Golden Horn from Persembe Pazar,through
the window of a holed ferryboat grounded on the foreshore © Ed Edmery
As a cross-culture celebration we have a plan to take our band to
Istanbul and Athens this October. Our repertoire includes music from
Greek, Turkish, Arabic and Jewish traditions, and we will perform
these with Greek and Turkish musicians, in the spirit of music without
frontiers. Five concerts are planned, as well as seminars in Istanbul,
Athens and Hydra in which Greek and Turkish researchers will explore
the shared cultural roots of the music.

In 2004 I made a personal pilgrimage to Istanbul. The Greek side of
my family once had tobacco factories in Moscow and Pontos, and my
uncle died here of typhus in the early 1920s after the Bolsheviks had
expropriated my tobacco merchant grandfather and the family fled to
Salonika. I was fascinated by the photographs of the ship chandlery
area of the city – Kalafat (caulking), otherwise known as Persembe
Pazar (Thursday market) – as I had seen it in the photographs of the
famous Turkish-Armenian photographer Ara Guler.

My idea was that this was a multicultural maritime community with a
history dating back to the origins of the city (Byzantines, Venetians,
Genoese and others). Here I would find amazing stories and characters,
and perhaps some interesting songs. It lies immediately below the
streets housing famous music shops where every instrument known to
Anatolia can be bought – drums, baglamadhes, cymbals, flutes, reed
clarions – and where the dervishes still whirl.

A maritime village Almost none of my Istanbul friends knew about this
place, although it sits right next to the Galata Bridge on the Golden
Horn and has one of the finest views of the cityscape. Any who did know
the place refused to go there, claiming that it was full of thieves
and junkies. What I found was an extraordinary community of merchants
and artisans, people of many cultural origins (Turks, Greeks, Kurds,
Armenians, Jews) who live and work together in harmony. A maritime
village right at the heart of the city, built around a small mosque,
for the trades necessary to maintain minor shipping.

My friends’ fear was unwarranted. I was able to interview and
photograph (5) a Turkish frogman on his diving boat; Captain Ali
Baba, owner of the ramshackle ferryboat that crosses from Karaköy
to Eminonu; a Greek purveyor of steel and brass rods; a Greek seller
of ships’ thermometers; a Turkish cay maker who serves tea out of a
cubby hole in the wall of the old Venetian prison. Cats stretch in
the sun, the call to prayer echoes from the mosques across the Horn,
merchants slumber in hammocks slung between the trees on the green,
men and women fish with rods from the shoreline and cook their catch
on small open fires, a sesame-bread seller calls his wares. They all
agree that this is a piece (indeed peace) of heaven on earth.

Within Persembe Pazar lies another treasure, the Rustem Pasha Han
(merchant caravan warehouse and inn). The encyclopaedic Strolling
Through Istanbul by Hillary Sumner-Boyd and John Freely devotes
a few lines to it. Designed by the famous architect Sinan for the
Grand Vezir Rustem Pasha c.1550, it is grand enough, though humble
compared with some of the greater caravanserais. It has been a prison
(with the sleeping quarters turned into cells) and a lead works. But
beyond the forbidding rusting iron door you find a peaceable working
world in an august architecture overhung with trailing vines. It,
too, houses a harmonious microcosmic community of metalworking and
engineering workshops – Turks, Greeks, Kurds and Armenians.

Rigas Hacisavas, an Istanbul Greek, was full of the stories of
Persembe Pazar. His mother was an engineer who introduced the first
motorised dustcart into Istanbul. He was devoted to gambling on the
Stock Exchange, and was the first man to introduce into Istanbul
the North Sea mackerel which has become the fish part of balık ekmek
(fish and bread) sold from barbecue boats at the waterside. As I filmed
him (6), Rigas told me that this area is about to be cleared as part
of the urban redevelopment and parkification of the Golden Horn. In
1958 (under the Menderes government) and in the 1980s (under Mayor
Dalan) swathes of it had been demolished. This clearance will be a
sad loss for Istanbul, and for the world. What will be lost is not
only the community but an amazing hardware market where you can buy
everything from a quarter-inch brass rod to a 6-foot propeller. Where
else could you see a man splicing a one-inch steel hawser? Or making
a steel spring on an antique machine that creaks and groans with the
effort? Or turning threaded brass spigots on a lathe?

There is no campaign to save Persembe Pazar, though we may mourn its
passing. When our Rebetiko Band travels in October, we will perform
a small multicultural lunchtime concert for the workers of Rustem
Pasha Han. Come and join us. The venue is unique (7).

–Boundary_(ID_XvI1jmPq2ynMKji+bqC1Lw)–

HOUSTON-BASED MISSIONARIES ESCAPE WAR-TORN GEORGIA

MyFox Houston
12 Aug 2008, 12:06 PM CDT
TX

A group of five teachers are lucky to have evacuated from the
war-torn republic of Georgia when they did and are very happy to be
on Houston soil.

The group arrived at Bush Intercontinental Airport on Monday night,
much to the relief of their families.

They had been visiting Georgia on a church mission to teach English
when Russia invaded the country.

The group quickly made flight arrangements, but even that became more
of an adventure than they expected.

One member of the group, Ethan Collins, said they had already boarded
a passenger jet for a flight out of Georgia when Russian bombs began
falling close to the airport.

The airline made the passengers quickly get off the plane and announced
the flight was canceled.

The airline had a change of heart after a few hours and allowed
passengers to board again. This time the plane was able to take
off safely.

The missionaries believe they may have been on the last passenger
jet out of Georgia.

Collins said two other members of the group had already flown out of
Georgia on Saturday, but there are four other missionaries in their
group who boarded a US State Department convoy evacuating Americans to
Armenia. That group is expected to fly back to Houston in a few days.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

UPDATE 1-SOCCER-WIT GEORGIA TO PLAY VIENNA IN ONE-OFF UEFA TIE

Reuters.uk
Tue Aug 12, 2008
UK

GENEVA, Aug 12 (Reuters) – The UEFA Cup tie between WIT Georgia
and Austria Vienna will be a one-off match on Aug. 28 because the
Georgian club cannot field a team for the first leg on Thursday due
to the conflict in its country, UEFA said.

"As WIT are not in a position to organise a safe and secure venue in
Georgia nor to play at an alternative venue on 14 August, UEFA has
decided to cancel the first leg and play the tie as a one-off match
on 28 August in Vienna," UEFA said in a statement on Tuesday.

"UEFA will contact the clubs and national associations concerned in
due time to communicate the rules applicable to this single match."

Earlier on Tuesday, European soccer’s governing body had said it was
moving the opening leg from Tbilisi to the Turkish city of Rize after
failing to gain the "necessary guarantees" from Armenia or Azerbaijan
to stage the match.

Georgia launched an attack last week in an attempt to regain
control over the pro-Russian province of South Ossetia. Russian
forces responded by sending in troops and conducting air strikes,
with hundreds of civilians being killed.

(Writing by Darren Ennis in Brussels; Editing by Tony Jimenez and
Ken Ferris)

GEORGIA TO WITHDRAW FROM THE COMMONWEALTH OF INDEPENDENT STATES

CNN International
August 12, 2008

Georgia to leave alliance of ex-Soviet states

TBILISI, Georgia (CNN) — Georgia’s president said Tuesday his nation
would withdraw from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS),
an alliance of former Soviet republics.

Mikheil Saakashvili told reporters his government made the move in
consultation with parliament and that it would be a departure from
links to the old Soviet Union.

The president said the strikes against his country have been conducted
by people who want to restore the Soviet Union. By leaving the CIS,
he said, "we are giving final adios to the Soviet Union."

Saakashvili said the CIS "has totally failed as an international
organization" and it "basically could not do anything to prevent this
tragedy from happening," a reference to the conflict between Russia
and Georgia that began last week. Watch Georgia’s reaction to halt
in fighting "

The CIS was created in 1991 and has included Georgia, Russia,
Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova,
Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Ukraine.

CHINA EQUALS BEST RESULTS IN OLYMPIC WEIGHTLIFTING
By Sportswriter Xu Zheng

Xinhua

2008-08-12 23:43:57
China

BEIJING, Aug. 12 (Xinhua) — Liao Hui won the men’s 69kg title in the
weightlifting here on Tuesday and gave the host China the fifth gold
medal in the event at the Beijing Olympics.

The gold helped China equal the number of weightlifting Olympic
golds it won in Athens four years ago, and there are still six days
of competition to go.

China won five gold medals in Athens, which was the best result for
the world weightlifting powerhouse.

In women’s 63kg, DPR Korean lifter Pak Hyon Suk scored a narrow win,
bringing the first gold to her country at the Games.

Liao Hui won the mens’ 69kg division at 348kg, beating French Vencelas
Dabaya-Tientcheu by 10kgs who took the silver medal thanks to lighter
body weight. Tigran Martirosyan of Armenia came third.

The 20-year-old Liao, taking part in his second international events,
struggled in the snatch. He claimed 153kg first but only cleared it in
the second attempt. As Lee Baeyoung made the lift of 155kg in his third
attempt, Liao had to overcome 158kg and made it with a loud shout.

Then he jerked 185kg on his second attempt to maintain the lead,
but Dabaya-Tientcheu responded with 187kg in his first lift. After
Liao finished 190kg in his final attempt, Dabaya-Tientcheu had to
lift more than 197kg, which is a world record weight.

Vencelas failed twice at 197kg, giving Liao his first Olympic gold.

Shi Zhiyong, who won the title of men’s 62kg in Athens and changed
to 69kg division after that, lifted 152kg in the snatch and quit the
competition before the clean and jerk battle.

"Shi hurt his waist before the clean and jerk event and have to quit
the competition," said Chen Wenbin, head coach of China’s men’s team.

Before Liao, China had swept all the four gold medals in the events
that the Chinese weightlifter took part.

Early on Tuesday, Pak Hyon Suk totaled 241kg to beat Kazakhstan’s
rookie lifter Irina Nekrassova, who lifted 240kg in total, in the
women’s 63kg class. The bronze went to Lu Ying-Chi of Chinese Taipei,
who cleared a total of 231kg.

Russian medal hopeful Svetlana Tsarukaeva, runner-up of the 2007 world
championships, dropped off competition due to three failed attempts
in snatch, the event turned out to be an one-to-one fight between
Pak, bronze medalist of 2007 world championships, and 20-year-old
Nekrassova.

Nekrassova lifted 110kg in snatch and Pak snatched 106kg.

Pak tried to catch up with Nekrassova in clean and jerk by trying
135kg in her first two attempts, but failed. Nekrassova succeeded
the first attempt of 130kg, but failed in the last two for 135kg.

The 23-year-old Pak, in her do-or-die last try, seized the chance and
made it, grabbing the gold from Nekrassova, who could not help crying.

"Although the athletes before me didn’t perform well, I did my best,"
said Pak, noting that the gold is the biggest present for the 60-year
anniversary of the founding of DPR Korea.