Το περασμένο Σάββατο ήταν ημέρα κινηματογράφου και, έχωντας πρόσφατα δει τους Τρείς Πιθήκους, μια σαφώς υπερτιμημένη, πλην όμως αρκετά καλή ταινία, επισκεφθήκαμε τον Δαναό για την προβολή του ‘Βάλς με τον Μπασίρ’, μια από τις λίγες ταινίες που αξίζει να δείτε στους ελληνικούς κινηματογράφους αυτή την εποχή.

Το ‘βαλς’ επιχειρεί μια ιδιαίτερα πρωτότυπη προσέγγιση ενός τρομακτικά δύσκολου θέματος, μέσα από ένα απαιτητικό μέσο και απευθυνόμενη — κυρίως — σε ένα προβληματισμένο, εαν όχι σκεπτικό κοινό. Πραγματεύεται την ‘επέμβαση’ του Ισραήλ στον Λιβανέζικο εμφύλιο στις αρχές της δεκαετίας του 1980 και συγκεκριμένα τις σφαγές στους παλαιστινιακούς καταυλισμούς στη Ṣabrā και τη Shātīlā από τους ‘φαλαγγίτες’ χριστιανούς λιβανέζους. Σφαγές που έγιναν με την έμμεση αποδοχή/ανοχή (εαν όχι ενθάρρυνση) των Ισραηλινών και που απασχόλησαν τόσο την Κνεσσέτ όσο και τη διεθνή κοινότητα.
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I had no intention of writing anything about the conflict in South Ossetia, but it turns out it escalated much faster — and to a higher degree — than I (or anyone for that matter) expected. So much that for most of the mainstream media — and a couple of blogs I’m following — it totally overshadowed the massively promoted Olympics in Beijing.

The Russian involvement is certain to cause further escalation and I fear that no matter how international pressure might push towards a speedy cease-fire, the damage and cost (human or otherwise) is going to be huge for everyone involved. Long term instability in the region in the coming months (or even years) cannot be ruled out with any certainty.

What’s very interesting are the backstage politics: the timing of the attacks, the Russian intervention, Georgian expectations and reactions, the reaction of the West.

In an interview to CNN, Saakashvili, the Georgian president claimed that Russia had been planning the attack and building towards it through provocations and skirmishes for a while now. The idea he’s putting forward is that the combination of last February’s unilateral declaration of independence by Kossovo and its subsequent recognition by most of the West, the fact that it’s August (a time of year when most people are either on holidays), the ongoing Olympics in China and the upcoming US elections would make it easier for the Russians to use military force in order to occupy South Ossetia and strengthen the military capability of the separatists — an undoubted catalyst towards full autonomy. All this makes sense, but on the other hand, many of the same reasons could be why Georgia might risk attacking S.Ossetia itself: if Georgian military action in South Ossetia went unnoticed and unchallenged, they could, in theory, ‘resolve’ the issue and create a regional precedent that would certainly make Abkhazia’s efforts for independence much harder.

With both sides playing the propaganda game and accusing each other of provocations and aggression, it is impossible to discern what is really happening in the area; the stakes are too high for both Russia and Georgia, although from the look of things it wouldn’t be in Georgian interests to initiate a full-scale military operation in the region, so either they gambled (foolishly and at a huge risk) or they were attacked by Russia as Saakashvili claims. Still, no matter who started the conflict, I’m afraid that today’s escalation through the Russian use of bombers within Georgian territory — as reported by many western media — as well as the incursion of more than 150 Russian tanks in South Ossetia means that the point of no return before full-scale war is near.

Update: A Fist Full Of Euros has a more comprehensive account of what’s happening. Worth a read.

In 2000 I visited what is probably one of the most interesting attractions for geeky history buffs in the UK: Bletchley Park.

Even back when I visited it, the Park was in a dismal state, badly preserved, run down — definitely far from what it should be, given both the fact that sixty years ago it was a British Government secret installation and its immense importance in World War II — and all that in a country whose culture even today is still fundamentally affected (I’d dare say defined) by the two World Wars. Today, about 8 years since my visit to Bletchley Park, I read at Bruce Schneier’s blog that it may close in a few years due to lack of funds. Having grown up in Hellas, a country with a long history and thousands of ancient sites all over the country, I always thought that the dismal state of Hellenic antiquities was due to the country’s deeply rooted nepotism, corruption, stupidity, indifference and total incapacity for efficient, constructive work. While the British government has quite frequently showed that it’s not far from the Hellenic one, one would expect that they’d care more to preserve a small-ish park and a Victorian mansion.

If you appreciate 20th century history and/or cryptography and are visiting the UK (or, better yet, live there), pay a visit to Bletchley Park. The tour may be somewhat indifferent to many, the park itself may be run down, but you’d be seeing first hand the place where Enigma was systematically deciphered during the war and — through your purchase of a ticket and or other souvernirs or donations — will help preserve a piece of modern history. Finally for all those interesting in computing, Bletchley Park hosts a small, and seemingly uninteresting computer museum; this is nothing like some of its counterparts in the U.S.. Nevertheless it has a unique exhibit that’s bound to thrill every computer scientist, programmer, engineer or geek visiting it: a working replica of Colossus.

For more information about the Park go to their page here or visit its Wikipedia entry.

The Israeli-Palæstinian conflict is now more than sixty years old. It’s clear to all, but the most extreme nationalists (of both involved nations) or naïve idealists (globally) that the only viable solution, at least for the coming decades, would be a two-state division of what is currently Israel and its occupied territories. That is the plan. It would have been pretty straightforward to implement. But it doesn’t happen. Extremists on both sides make sure it doesn’t. Israel invokes the right to self-defence when attacking large parts of the Palæstinian (and now Lebanese) population and arab militants find excuses to launch their small and medium sized rockets to Israeli cities. Yet Israel and the arab extremists are not the sole parties to blame for their excessive actions over the past twenty years. It’s largely the fault of the U.N. and the international community that stands by while countless resolutions condemning both Israel’s actions get torpedoed by the U.S., generations of children on both sides grow among dead relatives and destruction, terrorist attacks continue in Israel fuelling religious extremism and nationalism. And there we go again.
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