Internet Free Georgia -- Liveblogging the War

(The post title refers, awkwardly, to Radio Free Europe, in case it makes no sense to you.)

I read something quite remarkable today. It reminds me of something from Operation Urgent Fury (Grenada, 1983), or at least something of an urban legend from that Operation. It is said that an American artillery forward observer, unable to reach the artillery battery by radio, used a pay phone and an AT&T phone card to call Fort Sill to relay his instructions to adjust fire.

And now, on a much greater scale, the government of the besieged nation of Georgia, suffering under Russian bombs and tanks as well as a cyber attack that has shut down the government websites, has turned to Google's blogger to communicate with the outside world.

Follow this link, and refresh it often if you are following the conflict between the once and future Evil Empire and United States ally and almost-NATO member Georgia:

http://georgiamfa.blogspot.com/

Do you think the Sov--I mean, the Russians will try a cyber attack on Google now?

There's a link to another blog from Georgia, also hosted by Google:

http://russiangeorgianwar.blogspot.com/

This here blog is winding down

I love the website www.piratepundit.com

It's just a cool name for a website. Pirates, and pundits (or a pundit) in the same phrase/word. How cool.

There won't be much posting here though, since the main effort has migrated to the new CourtZero blog.

The latest from the ethics committee of St. Luke's

Do you remember Sun Hudson? I wrote an article about him a while back. More on that in a moment.

Meanwhile, there is this:

Quote:

life or death struggle is taking place at St. Luke’s Hospital, where doctors are planning to remove a woman from life support.

The patient is not brain dead, and according to her family, she wants to live.

KHOU-TV

Andrea Clark has been at St. Luke's since November.

They may be small in number, but the protesters said the bigger picture is the gravity of their message.

“They just say, ‘well she’s miserable.’ Well, to me that’s a quality of life decision that is up to her and her family,” Lanore Dixon said. “That is not a medical decision.”

Dixon is protesting on behalf of her sister Andrea Clark, a patient at St. Luke’s Hospital since November.

You can read the story and watch a video:
http://www.khou.com/topstories/stories/khou060423_ac_lifesupport.6341ba3c.html

That St. Luke's thing bothered me. Yup, that is the same hospital that decided to let Sun Hudson die.

Who is on that ethics committee?

More from what seems like an interesting blog (note especially the last sentence from this quote):

Quote:

For years I have been warning that bioethicists are getting their ducks in a row to permit them to refuse wanted life sustaining treatment that is removed because it keeps the patient alive, not because it doesn't provide medical benefit. These are value judgments, not medical determinations.

And now they are beginning to come. I commented about a futile care case in Michigan a few days ago, and here's another. I don't know enough about the facts of this case to opine completely, but this sure seems to be a futile care case in action. St. Luke's Hospital in Houston is going to unilaterally remove a woman from life support, even though her family wants her to continue to receive care. (It is as if Michael Schiavo and the Schindlers wanted Terri's care continued but the hospital said no.)

http://www.wesleyjsmith.com/blog/2006/04/medical-futility-on-march.html

Sopchoppy Worm Gruntin' Festival

Some days I miss North Florida desparately. I just thought that as many people as possible should know that the Sopchoppy (just south of Tallahassee) has a really cool worm festival.

Holy Prophet Games, Batman!

Apr. 3 - Iran tests what it says is the 'world's fastest' underwater missile - a weapon that can destroy any enemy warship

Iranian state television reported on Sunday that the country's armed forces had test-fired the missile in the Gulf during a week of the so-called 'Holy Prophet' war games.

Click here for footage of the rocket torpedo.

Today's visit from Men Without Hats

I miss those guys.

they said we could walk on water
they said we should knock on wood
we did none of these things and they said we could sing
so we sang about falling in love
they said that we were getting smarter
they said that we were something new
we were none of these things and they said we could sing
so we sang about twenty and two
we done all the wrong things
and all we done good

they said we were the new beginning
they said we were a brand new start
we were none of these thing and they said we could sing
so we sang about the state of the art
they said we were the second coming
they said we were a different breed
we were none of these things and they said we could sing
so we sang about the birds and the bees
bunch of do nothing that were down on your knees