Someone wrote the script for Beslan

Reasonable people do not have problems dealing with Russians. Chechens are universally hated even by surrounding muslims and a big part of that probably has to do with the chechen industry of kidnapping for ransom and torturing the kidnap victims, and you read about this sort of thing even in Lermontov's writings from the 1830s. I notice also that many of the place names in Chechnya are Mongol words and names (e.g. 'Alkhan Yurt'), indicating that while Chechens might not be Mongols, they were probably all too happy to work for the Golden Horde and Crimean Tartars when those guys ran southern Russia.

The modern fued with Russia is probably over oil. Stalin had the chechens safely stashed away in Central Asia and Siberia where they could do no harm and then somebody got soft and let them come back and, apparently, now they want to simply walk away from Russia with oil resources which Russians undoubtedly figure belong to all of Russia. In other words, other than for the sacrafice of something like 20 million Russians in WW-II, the holder in due course of all that oil would have been good old Uncle Adolf, and the chechens would have been converted into lampshades.

My guess is that Gospadin Putin is either going to build an electrified barbed-wire fence around Chechnya and let the idiots rot, or ressurect Stalin's idea and move them to some place where they can practice their terrorism and kidnapping on polar bears and seals.

We will survive.

Unfortunately you must now teach your kids how to survive.

Short but sweet as I'm hurricane exhausted.

The first seconds of an abduction/hostage situation are crucial. Duck, hide, run, look for a way out if possible. One on one abduction: kick, bite scream. go limp, run etc. Do not get in the car.

Mass abduction: If you're caught cooperate but ALWAYS look for an out. Once you're a prisoner its hard. If you're running - zig-zag, look for the closest cover and keep going.

What I told my kids - any additional advice is appreciated.

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