wretchard:

The Soviet Union collapsed after the discreditation of the planners, and that was the result of the nuclear mess in the Ukraine. I have a copy of Iurii Shcherbak’s book, “Chernobyl” which documents the forward thrust toward building an unworkable reactor built in the wrong place, and constructed in contempt of common sense and public safety. People demanded answers from all levels of government. When bureaucrats resisted, CP Premier Gorbachev announced policy demands favoring “openness” and “restructioning” (of the planning system, to rationalize same). Glasnost and Perestroika led to criticism of the Soviet system itself, and finally its demise. American policy followed Gorbachev initiatives. Under the Brezhnev/Andropov governments, Reagan’s space based anti-missile scheme was nothing but a ploy to get START results. And it worked. Bush’s ABM plan is a scheme that will reverse START gains, and create a new arms race. Nobody wants it; the scheme proceeds because it is not in Bush’s nature to retract his fixations. Why do it? Simple revenge. Bush has used American power to punish any people whose governments refused to participate in his nation-building follies.

Someone has to be brain dead to think that re-nuclearizing Europe can sustain popular support, given invocable memories of Chernobyl. And Europeans are subjecting Saakashvili to the scrutiny that the American media won’t touch.

You don’t like contradictions. Saakashvili is your hero, and he is a war criminal. He lies because he was told to lie by unscrupulous Mutt-Republicans who feed on deceit. Hero or villian?

http://www.new.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=1019825981431&oid=22347223862

Three hours before his murderous attack on civilians, he promised “autonomy” to South Ossetia. You see how he blamed the Russians for his murder/cleansing campaign, and used his controlled press forum to concoct Human Rights Watch accession to his lies. Real hero. Real good pal for McCain and his Machiavellian aide.