What Caught My Eye Today

Georgia - There were few signs Russia was following the terms of a cease-fire to end the short war, which has driven tensions between Russia and the West to some of their highest levels since the breakup of the Soviet Union. Russia said it had begun withdrawing from the conflict zone in Georgia, but it held fast to key positions and sent some of its troops in the opposite direction — closer to the Georgian capital. Now, now. Let's not be to quick to judge the Russians just yet. I'm sure there is a logical explanation for everything. You know how unreliable those Google Maps can be.

Pakistan - Can we pick heads of state to buddy up with or what? Pervez Musharraf resigned as the president of Pakistan, avoiding a power struggle with rivals vowing to impeach him that would have deepened the country's political crisis. Atta boy, Pervez. Way to go out with your head held high. His exit leaves the politicians who pushed out the stalwart U.S. ally to face the Islamic militants and economic problems gnawing at this nuclear-armed nation. Kind of gives you a warm and fuzzy knowing that 'everything is everything' for a government in shambles which, oh by the way, has a bunch of nukes. Underlining how the West has already moved on, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice offered "deep gratitude" for Musharraf's decision to join the U.S.-led fight against extremists following the September 11 attacks, saying he "served as a good ally of the United States." But she was careful to signal strong support for the civilian government that pushed him aside. "We believe that respect for the democratic and constitutional processes in that country is fundamental to Pakistan's future and its fight against terrorism," Rice said. And that my friends is how you through an ally under the bus when said ally can no longer provide any benefit to you.

California - Don't have enough social consciousness in your life. Not to worry. California has loads to spare. California's highest court barred doctors from invoking their religious beliefs as a reason to deny treatment to gays and lesbians, ruling that state law prohibiting sexual orientation discrimination extends to the medical profession. I'm still stuck on the fact that the State Supreme Court had to pass a ruling on this in the first place. The court wrote that two Christian fertility doctors who refused to artificially inseminate a lesbian have neither a free speech right nor a religious exemption from the state's law, which "imposes on business establishments certain antidiscrimination obligations." As you can imagine, this case drew some rather impassioned support for both the plaintiff and the defendants. The American Civil Rights Union supported the Christian doctors, siding with the Islamic Medical Association of North America, the Christian Medical & Dental Associations and anti-abortion groups. The American Civil Liberties Union, California Attorney General Jerry Brown, the National Health Law Program and the Gay and Lesbian Medical Association filed papers backing the plaintiff. So riddle me this...what exactly is the difference between a 'civil right' and a 'civil liberty'? At the risk of stating the obvious, the ACRU tends to defend more conservative positions while the ACLU hangs out at the other end of the social spectrum. And I bet you were under the delusion that rights and liberties were basically the same thing.

China - You may want to sit down and take a deep breath before reading this next item. Chinese authorities have not approved any of the 77 applications they received from people who wanted to hold protests during the Beijing Olympics, state media reported. Shocking, ain't it? 74 of the applications were withdrawn because the problems "were properly addressed by relevant authorities or departments through consultations," said a spokesman for the Public Security Bureau. Sure they were. Two other applications were suspended because they did not provide sufficient information and one was rejected because it violated laws against demonstrations and protests. In July, China said protests would be allowed in three parks far from games venues. Applications with detailed paperwork must be filed five days in advance and protests must not harm "national, social and collective interests." A response would be provided 48 hours before the requested rally time. I think the issue here isn't so much with the process, which to be fair seems reasonable. No, I think the issue is that someone may be delusional enough to think that this process would ever be followed.