Truthout foundup 8/9

Truthout's Christopher Kuttruff interviews Congressman John Sarbanes; Russian bombs fall on towns, Georgia declares "state of war"; Paul Krugman on how the Republican "party of ideas" has become the "party of stupid"; military commanders in matters of war and peace; sport as potential agent of change and bearer of the neo-liberal torch; and more... Browse our continually updating front page at http://www.truthout.org

t r u t h o u t 08.09

Kuttruff Interview With Congressman John Sarbanes
http://www.truthout.org/article/interview-with-congressman-john-sarbanes
Truthout's Christopher Kuttruff interviews Congressman John Sarbanes on the presidential election, domestic policy and his experiences as a freshman member of Congress.

Georgia Declares "State of War" as Russian Bombs Fall
http://www.truthout.org/article/georgia-declares-state-war-russian-bombs-fall
Agence France-Presse reports: "Russian warplanes on Saturday carried out bombing raids across Georgia, reportedly leaving scores dead, as a conflict over control of South Ossetia widened well beyond the breakaway region. Georgia's president declared 'a state of war' and the United States led international calls for Russia to halt its military assault. But Russia's President Dmitry Medvedev said his country would 'force the Georgian side into peace' and accused Georgia of causing thousands of 'victims'."

Lawrence J. Korb Military Leaders Make Weak Advisers
http://www.truthout.org/article/military-leaders-make-weak-advisers
Lawrence J. Korb writes for The Washington Independent: "Over the past 18 months, anyone proposing any policy for extricating the United States from the Iraqi quagmire has been told by critics that the proposal should be vetted by Gen. David Petraeus, who took command of the U.S. forces in Iraq in February 2007. For example, Sen. John McCain, the presumptive Republican candidate, criticized his Democratic rival, Sen. Barack Obama, for revealing his plan to end the war in Iraq before sitting down with Petraeus. The assumption behind this line of thought is that political leaders should defer to the military commanders when it comes to issues of war and peace, especially in the middle of a war."

Roger Levermore The Double-Edged Sword of Sport and Political
http://www.truthout.org/article/the-double-edged-sword-sport-and-political-protest
Roger Levermore writes for Foreign Policy in Focus: "The potential for sport to be used in an effective manner for political protest is growing as sport gains greater prominence on the international stage. Increased political and commercial interest in mega sporting events - like the Olympics - is testament to that, as is the dramatic rise in the attempt to use of sport to further social development initiatives, particularly in low-income countries."

FOCUS The New York Times Identifying the Anthrax Killer
http://www.truthout.org/article/identifying-anthrax-killer
The New York Times writes: "The F.B.I. seems convinced that it has finally solved the long-festering case of who mailed the anthrax letters that killed five people in 2001. Yet its description of the evidence pointing to a mentally disturbed Army bioweapons expert as the sole culprit leaves us uncertain about whether investigators have pulled off a brilliant coup after a bumbling start, or are prematurely declaring victory, despite a lack of hard, incontrovertible proof."