Later in the afternoon, around 5:30, four Russian tanks rattled past the Russian checkpoint at Igoeti and drove in the direction of Tbilisi. Soldiers were piled on top, cradling Kalashnikov rifles.A word to the wise. When someone in a tank orders you to move your car, and all you're armed with is a 9mm pea-shooter, it's always a wise idea to move your car. These Georgians seem to be about as bright as your average chunk of granite...As they drove past, one old man, Koba Gurnashvili, stepped into the street and yelled at the them: "Where do you think you're going!" One of the soldiers yelled back: "To Tbilisi!"
But they did not, instead turning up a side road leading to a village near the border with South Ossetia. At an intersection blocked by Georgian police cars, the Russian commander climbed off his tank and began arguing with the Georgian police officers.
The Russian officer said that he had orders to move up the road; the Georgian said that he had orders to remain on the road and asked to call his superiors for guidance. The Russian said: "You have three minutes to move your cars."
The two argued for a few minutes longer. Then the police stepped away from the cars, stony-faced, taking the keys with them. The commander ordered his tank to drive forward, and it smashed aside the cars and kept going.
A Georgian policeman looked at the dusty tanks passing, took off his hat and spat at the ground.
-- Badtux the Mildly Amused Penguin
going well isnt it over there?
ReplyDeletei am watching the 16 year old chinese gymnasts -- how about bad tux, the age guessing penguin
I can see why the poor sucker left his car there. Imagine going back to your well-armed and probably very nationalistic boss cop. Your car is intact, after he's given you an order that NO ONE SHALL PASS!
ReplyDeleteThe fact that you moved your police car asisde, and preserved it in one piece will get you in trouble. But if it gets smashed all to crap, you can say "Hey boss, I followed orders, but I was outgunned."
In a bureaucracy, displaying common sense is punishable, even when it's the sensible choice. Obeying orders, however stupid, is what's expected. That explains why the Heimat Seicherheit goons at the airport act as stupidly as they do.
And Tux, I shoulda figured you'd know Bageant. The trouble for me with commenting on such a smartfella's blog is that I can't tell you anything you don't already know, except for Australia trivia. And I hate for the information flow to be just one-way.