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All wars are civil wars because all men are brothers


The mysterious Jennifer makes one of her rare appearances in the Photo of the day bit, headlining with the banana-munching Henry. They are catching a few winter's rays checking out a book while Ezra concentrates on his sit ups, chin-ups and crunches in the next room. I think that he's preparing for a tilt at Ultimate Fighting, but he's keeping his cards close to his chest.

Seeing the littlest bloke in the house prepare so diligently, I cast some thoughts over some of the nasty business currently going on in the Caucuses. The present position of Georgia reminds me of a fellow that I used to go to school with (some years ago now). A hot blooded fellow, little more than five foot tall, he spoke a good game. Easily led, on occasion a number of older colleagues would manage to convince him that he could 'take down' some of the bigger, nastier lads (I'm talking about dudes with attitudes and runs on the board).

Naturally, he would choose the patented little bloke move of "whack above the ear from behind" to start things off, and then would promptly be pummeled into a bloody pulp in quick time. Although such spectacles attracted a crowd at my school, it was generally an uneasy one who knew that a small bloke with pluck had little chance against a bruiser with form.

He generally fought like a tiger, but there are only so many blows that a fellow can take. Eventually the white flag would rise and hand offered to call it a day. Only, this bloke didn't seem to grasp the concept that dictates that if you attempt the old king hit on the big bloke, but fail, there is a fair chance he's going to want to extract a bit of revenge the old fashioned way.

Of course, many chose to admire this guy's grit and determination to take on the challenge (particularly those who felt under the thumb of the biggun), but I must admit to shaking my head at the foolishness of such an endevour. The point is to avoid going the knuckle (especially when you are the weaker one), think your way around whatever your problem is rather than give the bigger fellow an excuse to whack you one (or ten).

I am certain that Mikheil Saakashvili didn't go to Parklands High with the fellow that I've been thinking about. If he did, he would have surely learned that lesson that his actions appear to confirm that he has not.

Comments

Julie said…
Interesting perspective in your post. Forced me to go off and read about it. Had only heard rants from a brother and a son on the topic prior to just now!

It may just be that your your Mikheil is playing one side off agin the other. There would appear to be many fingers int pie - including NATO fingers and the dreaded US State Dept fingers. Not to say that Vlad-the-lad comes up smelling of roses. Things are rarely what they seem. Things are never what either side contends. The South Ossetians declare independence from Georgia. They have been supported by no-one. Young Mikheil is hardly a follower of democratic practices. Always be suspicious of anyone who is elected by 96% of the electorate and who vows to bring back into the fold wayward territories.

'Tis a mosh-pit ...
Anonymous said…
Enjoyed this analogy. Brings this world event a little closer to reality.
Kris McCracken said…
There have been some shocking ‘experts’ on the TV in the past week, betraying an awful lack of knowledge around the issue. They can’t seem to get out of a Cold War analysis, which will hold them back somewhat!
Neva said…
How nice that Jen is able to get some reading done with a newborn!

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