My reptilian brain is involuntarily deducing a kind of bawdlerized Heisenberg principle regarding unfolding history. We can’t know what’s *really* going on because our attempts to perceive it themselves alter it. It’s not just the fog of war, or information war, or even just exhaustion from wading through propaganda. It’s not even the feedback loop between reportage and miltary ops. It’s something that feels random and chaotic to me.

What do we make of this apparent tendency of the Russians to step up operational tempo in the hours before sundown? Is it actually the case, or is it that Western journalists have to file something? Is it the Russians playing to the journalists’ deadlines?
Has it become their favorite diversion to direct our attention to Gori to cover other developments? (Enter and then leave Gori – raids on Senaki) Now we learn the Russians re-enterd Gori and may be on the road to Tblisi. And we have reports from Debka that Russia will launch amphibious assault on Ajaria and retake the base at Batumi.
Are the Russians playing the media, or adapting to it, or even playing to it?

Are Russian casualties heavy or light? Are they exercising impressive tactical discipline or is the Argentine Star correct that Russian troops are looting Georgian villages. Are both true?