Georgian Anger Builds in Gori

wall street journal ^ | 8-20-08 | YAROSLAV TROFIMOV

[MarMema]

"You are in the wrong. Why are you here, taking away our land? This is Georgian land, not Russian," 78-year-old Guram Psuturi harangued a Russian soldier he encountered on the city's main square, dominated by a giant statue of the Gori-born Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin. "When are you going to leave here?" shouted an old woman nearby.

The soldier, who declined to give his name but said he hails from Chechnya, itself the target of Russian military might in the past, responded with an embarrassed smile. "How can I know when we leave? This is all up to the governments -- we simple soldiers are slaves and do what we're told," he said before getting into his truck and driving away.

[MarMema]

An organized demonstration against the occupation happened Wednesday at the Russian military checkpoint on the main highway between Gori and capital city Tbilisi. About a hundred protesters -- most of whom drove down from Tbilisi -- walked past Russian soldiers while holding Georgian flags and waving banners that proclaimed "Georgia is not a Russian colony" in Russian. The Russian troops -- aware that three more military checkpoints are located farther up the road -- didn't interfere.

[MarMema]

With apologies to anyone I missed on the ping, and posted to show that the Georgians have tremendous courage.

[MarMema]

As this article states, they are BETWEEN Gori and Tbilisi.
Look at a map to see that they are way into Georgia and calling it a checkpoint.

[Jeff Head]

I know. These are their current checkpoints.

They are unwarrented and not a part of the cease-fire agreement.

But if they do what the Russian leadership said about the 18 checkpoints that are in line with the cease fire, then they will fall back to those proposed checkpoints around Ossetia when (if ever) they do pull back. That's what they are saying.

Now we will see if they do it and honor their commitment.

[Jeff Head]

This is what the Russians are saying today about the 18 checkpoints...HERE.

[ANGGAPO]

Putin has studied the German design for WW2. I doubt if the Russians intend to fall back even while they say they are. I suspect they are hoping for an attack my Georgia to start the push to take the country.

[Righter-than-Rush]

>>Now we will see if they do it and honor their commitment. >>

LOLOLOL BWAHAHAHHHAHHH!!! Thanks for the moment of hilarity.

[dfwgator]

encountered on the city's main square, dominated by a giant statue of the Gori-born Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin.

I'm sorry, I've lost any sympathy I had for the residents of Gori, after realizing they still had up a statue in honor of that monster.

[Jeff Head]

Yea...I forgot my [/dripping sarcasm] tag...but I figured everyone here knew anyway.

[wolficatZ]

How many of these will fit inside a C-17?

[Brilliant]

I would watch my back if I were a Russian in Georgia.

[MarMema]

It’s a tourist attraction. He was born there and his original home was also there for touring.

[Sun]

“we simple soldiers are slaves and do what we’re told,” he said before getting into his truck and driving away.”

Wow.

[TigersEye]

I guess you won't mind if they bomb and pillage Seattle too.

[ChinaThreat]

We have very precise munitions available....lol! Is this really in Seattle? I was there in June and didn’t see it.

[dfwgator]

So why don’t they put a statue of Hitler in Vienna?

[TigersEye]

It really is in Seattle. I have been there once but I’m not real familiar with the city. So, I can’t tell you exactly where it is. If I obtain the coordinates I will forward them to you. ;^)

[Clemenza]

Well, Seattle has a statue of Lenin, without any sense of irony.

[21twelve]

The statue is in the Fremont area - just north of downtown Seattle. Every once in awhile I need to go there on business. Typical University style liberal neighborhood with VWs with Impeach Bush bumper stickers.

I get the irony of the statue - in front of a restaurant and other stores and businesses that all are selling things, etc. to the liberal commie loving idiots. All in the name of a profit! Gotta love it as they sip on their $4.50 lattes. I like it that “Lenin” has to watch all of the freedoms that we have (including folks having signs and leaflets saying nasty things about the nation’s president!)

I believe that the previous owner also got the statue for that reason (to show how capitalism beat the the commies), but for some reason was not able to keep it due to funding, no place to display it or whatever.

[MarMema]

In Gori, every hour or so, a Russian military truck motored up to the Stalin statue, in front of the Georgian provincial government building, its windows blown out by Russian bombs. Guns casually slung over their shoulders, the soldiers took turns photographing each other in front of the most famous landmark of the conquered city.

There was no mistaking the hatred in the eyes of a group of Georgian men who stood nearby, chain-smoking as they watched Russian soldiers take their snapshots. "The Russians have shown their true face to the world. For me, the word 'Russian' will now be forever associated with the word 'murderer,' " snapped 52-year-old teacher Zurab Kareli.