Tonight at the Russian Embassy, I was fortunate enough to attend a celebration of the time-honored Eastern Slavic holiday of Maslenitsa.

Ма́сленица is the Russian equivalent to Mardi Gras. As one of the last big days before what the Russian Orthodox call "Clean Monday" as the start of the Great Lent (an austere time of prayer, reflection, abstinence, fasting, and a general time of great spiritual meditation), Maslenitsa is the Fat Tuesday of the Eastern Orthodox world. Although the Great Lent starts later, Maslenitsa has roots in pre-Christian Slavic mythology, representing the end of winter and the approach of spring.

One of the clearest symbols of the Maslenitsa celebration is the omnipresence of blini. Blini are thin, pan-fried Russian pancakes (very similar to crepes), and for Maslenitsa they are traditionally served with sour cream, pickled herring and salmon, and of course caviar. All of these things: meat, fish, dairy, are prohibited to the Orthodox faithful after Lent begins. I had the privilege to take part in a veritable feast of baked Russian dumplings known as pirozhki (or pierogi) stuffed with mushrooms and beef and cabbage, Beef Stroganov, mushroom casserole, and scads of delicious blini.

I even got to meet an exceptionally kind and affable woman who is the currently-appointed Cultural Attaché of the Russian Federation. The Russian Ambassador to the United States was also in attendance and made some brief but interesting remarks that commemorated this most ancient and venerable holiday. Once again, I had a blast, and saw a very human face of a society that isn't typically understood in the United States (an old Cold War habit, no doubt).

Fact of the Day: In terms of overall number of immigrants attracted, Russia attracts the second-most immigrants of any country in the entire world second only to the United States. An interesting fact to think about in terms of how this would affect diversity and culture.

So, for a change of pace from the usual bad news and frankly rather hysterical anti-Russian sentiment in American media and elsewhere (even here, on a site where most people really don't seem to give a toss about politics), I thought I'd attend an outing at a local Russian cultural organization that was hosting a fantastic evening of ballroom dancing, dinner, and festivities. Given that this organization actually works in conjunction with the Russian government (and thus carries its explicit endorsement) and is designed to promote cultural understanding and sympathy between Russian and American students.

The event was, as I fully expected, a charming showcase of Russia as what it truly is: "a cultural superpower" (to paraphrase a quote I once heard from a professor) with a rich heritage and an ingrained tradition of hospitality. Myself and my companion had an absolutely wonderful time with their delicious, free food (lamb meatballs, boiled potatoes with dill, and a copious amount of a wonderful, savory Russian mushroom casserole), followed by a night of dancing and festivities.

Perhaps one of my favorite Soviet-era compositions ever, the Masquerade Waltz by Aram Khachaturian (who was an Armenian, not a Russian) was played at this ball:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YCoLUMURunQ

As someone with a deep and abiding interest in history and politics, I feel as if sometimes one must take a break from both things to enjoy the proper festivities of a party and to partake in the customs of another culture, for it is these pleasantries that are just as important in defining a culture and its nature as the latest political events and such. I had an absolutely stellar time, and to anyone who reads this, I would highly encourage you: go out to Russian restaurants or to a Russian Orthodox Church, somewhere where the rich cultural heritage of the Russian people and others can be illustrated in a way that is free of the hysterical and one-sided overtones of modern newscasting.

Posting this from a boarding lounge in Amsterdam shortly before I head out to Cape Town.

So excited!

So, for around two weeks during my university's winter break, I am going to Cape Town, South Africa for an educational trip regarding racial identity and political development in South Africa after the end of Apartheid. Cape Town is apparently known for being a gorgeous city and a major showcase of the cultural diversity of South Africa. I am really looking forward to it, and all of the educational experiences that are sure to follow .

If anyone among my watchers has experience in travel to that part of the world, I would love to hear any tips or tricks from an insider's account.

Well this sounds fun, and I am bored in any case, so I may as well give it a go.

BRITISH
[x] You drink a lot of tea.
[x] You know what a brolly is.
[] Deal or No Deal has taken over your life.
[] You wanted Ben to win X Factor.
[x] You use the word "bugger" or the phrase "bloody hell."
[x] Fish and chips are yummy.
[x] You can eat a Full English Breakfast.
[] You dislike Emos almost as much as you dislike Chavs.
[x] It's football.... Not soccer!


AUSTRALIAN
[] You wear flip-flops all year.
[] You call flip-flops "thongs" not flip-flops.
[x] You love a backyard barbie.
[x] You know a barbie is not a doll.
[x] You love the beach. (Grew up near one, I adore the beach!)
[x] Sometimes you swear without realizing. (I try my best not to, but yes!)
[] You're a sports fanatic. (Not even remotely)
[] You are tanned.
[] You're a bit of a bogan.


ITALIAN
[] Your last name ends in a vowel.
[x] Your grandmother makes her own sauces.
[x] You know how a real meatball tastes.
[x] You know Italian songs. (Bella Ciao!)
[] You have dark hair and dark eye color.
[x] You speak some Italian.
[] You are under 5'10''
[] Pizza/spaghetti is the best foods in the world.
[x] You talk with your hands.


SPANISH
[x] You say 'member' instead of remember.
[] You speak Spanish or some.
[x] You like tacos. (Wow, seriously? That's Mexican, not Spanish from Spain)
[] YoU TyPe LiKe ThIs On YoUr CoMpUtEr
[] You are dark skinned.
[x] You know what a Puta is.
[x] You talk fast occasionally.
[x] You have had highlights or have dyed your hair.
[x] You know what platanos are. (Also not Spanish... from the Caribbean portions of the Spanish-speaking world)


RUSSIAN
[x] You say villain as: Vee-lon. (If I want to!)
[x] You have more than one vodka bottle in your house.
[] You know the difference between channel 1 and RTVI.
[x] You know of somebody named Natasha. (Several)
[x] You don't get cold easily. (30 degrees Farenheit and I'm still in a t-shirt so... yeah)
[x] You get into contests all the time. (Games on Steam totally count as contests)
[x] You can easily make do with the cold weather.
[x] You can speak some Russian. (Damn straight)
[] You love listening to techno


POLISH
[x] Your parents let you drink.
[] You know what a pizda is.
[] You have Pierogi at least once a week. (I wish I did, but it's not pierogi it's pirozhki)
[] People always ask to see your "kielbasa" checking if you're Polish.
[] People randomly call you their best friend.
[] You have made/know what pisanki are.
[] You laughed when Poland beat the USA in the 2002 World Cup


IRISH
[] You think beer is the best.
[x] You have a bad temper. (From time to time)
[] Your last name starts with a Mc, Murph, O', Fitz or ends with ay, on, un, an, in, ry, ly, y.
[x] You have blue or green eyes.
[x] You like the colour green. (So long as it isn't orange)
[] You have been to a St. Patty's day party.
[] You have a family member from Ireland.
[x] You have/had red hair. (Sorta! Facial hair has a reddish tinge)
[] You have/had freckles.


ASIAN
[] You have slanty/small eyes.
[x] You like rice a lot
[] You are good at math. (Oh please don't make me do it!)
[] You have played the piano.
[] You have family from Asia
[] You laugh sometimes covering your mouth.
[] Most people think you're Chinese
[] You call hurricanes typhoons.
[] You go to Baulko.


GERMAN
[x] You like bread. (Aside from people who literally cannot eat bread, why would one dislike one of the most common sources of carbohydrates in the world?)
[x] You think American Chocolate is good. (Some, I'm exceptionally wary of any generalization of "all wine from X is bad" or something like that)
[x] You speak some German
[] You know what Schnitzel is.
[] You hate it when stupid people call you a Nazi. (Never been called a Nazi that I know of.)
[x] You went to Pre-school.
[] You're under 5'4".
[] You have been to Germany


CANADIAN
[] You like to ride 4 wheelers.
[] You love beer.
[x] You say eh.
[x] You know what poutine is. (Disgusting!)
[x] You speak some French.
[] You love Tim Horton's.
[] At one point you lived in a farm house.
[] You watch(ed) Degrassi.


FRENCH
[x] You like French toast.
[x] You love wine.
[x] You speak a little or are fluent in French. (Emphasis on a little)
[x] You have eaten a snail.
[x] You like fashion.
[x] You have been to France.
[x] You are either a Catholic, a Muslim, a Protestant or a Jew.


AMERICAN
[x] You like fast food. (Depends on the place...)
[] You call football football and soccer soccer...
[x] You can trace your ancestery back to Ellis Island... (Some of it...)
[x] You watch way too much TV
[] You are obsessed with the royal wedding
[] You have a dog
[] You have a cushy job
[] You were sad when Steve Jobs died


NORWEGIAN
[] You know what lefse is.
[] You can speak some Norwegian.
[] You love trolls.
[] You know what lutefisk is.
[x] You have been whale hunting/seeing.
[x] Food made with potatoes and flour rule.
[] Fish is a huge part of your diet.
[x]You have blue or green eyes and have blonde or brown hair.
[x] You know how to fish or have fished before.


BELGIAN
[] You grow some small vegetables in the yard.
[x] You like french fries.
[x] You think Belgian chocolate rules. (Any chocolate, but I'll take it in a pinch)
[] You know that the official best beer in the world is Belgian.
[] You speak both Dutch and French.
[x] You like Belgian waffles.
[] You call a pub or bar a café.
[] You fully realize and acknowledge that your football team sucks.
[] You drive/own a French or German car.
[x] You have a lot of comments on your government.


DUTCH
[] You like the color orange.
[] You are a football enthusiast.
[] You often go to 'coffee shops'.
[] You know what is meant by 'coffee shops'.
[x] You tend to overreact and show your emotions.
[x] You have a cheerful nature.
[] You like the sea.
[] You are good at building handiwork projects.
[] You tend to favour the megalomania.


ARAB
[] You say "3ngleezy" instead of "english".
[] You laugh at other accents, especially Egyptian
[] You beckon at things with your forehead or eyes.
[] You like seafood, especially fish, more than any other type of food.
[] You are tanned.
[] You have black hair.
[] Your last name starts with "Al" or "bin"
[x] You like showing off, especially with new cars and clothes.
[] You dislike reading.


RESUME:
British 6/9
Australian 4/9
Italian 5/9
Spanish 6/9
Russian 7/9 (I was SURE this was going to be a 9/9)
Polish 1/7
Irish 4/9
Asian 1/9
German 4/8
Canadian 3/8
French 7/7
American 3/8
Norwegian 4/9
Belgian 4/10
Dutch 2/9
Arab 1/9

Well I'm Franco-Russian, imagine that!

Well I know 500 is far more clean of a number than 600, but I figure I ought to commemorate 600 watches anyway ^^, I really appreciate all of them since I take it as an endorsement of all those wonderful things and wonderful artists that I like to commission.

Just thought I would drop by and extend my sincere thanks for each and every watch I have received ^^.

From today until the 18th of June, I will be visiting Western Europe (briefly France but the most of the trip will be spent in the British Isles). Somewhat needless to say, I will still have access to a mobile device as well as to a laptop, though my connection will be somewhat dependent upon finding wi-fi hotspots and the like to avoid data-roaming charges. So I will still be about, albeit fairly intermittently compared to my usual. There might be a bit of turnaround time with regard to notes and such.

In any case, I aim to have lots of fun (I am one of those terribly cliche people who loves the Tudors, but I also want to study the Plantagenets and the Victorian Era), and I hope everyone else carries on in a good sort of way as well ^^.

Today is the anniversary of the surrender of Nazi Germany to the Soviet Union: the nation that far and away lost the most people of any country in Europe to defeat the menace of Nazi fascism. 27 million Soviet citizens died and countless millions more were wounded, rendered homeless or destitute, or even put into concentration camps or forced labor programs by the Nazi state.

In the midst of a bad time in relations between much of the former Soviet Union and the West, perhaps now is a decent time to look back at what happened when mutual differences were set aside and when cooperation for a common cause was made the priority.

To those who died to bring an end to Nazism, and to those who lived to tell their story.

Man they were great! Highlights include Swan Lake, the exhibitions of Russian history, and appearances by major world leaders: Ban Ki-moon, Secretary-General of the United Nations, Xi Jinping, President of the People's Republic of China, and of course, Vladimir Putin.

All in all, it was a spectacular event, and we should all strive to take to heart the message of Thomas Bach, the President of the International Olympic Committee, when he called upon everyone, everywhere, to honor the spirit of internationalism as embodied by the Olympics, and, to paraphrase, to break down the barriers between peoples and instead strive for harmony.

Sochi Olympics, 7:30 PM EST, on NBC.

Get pumped, get excited, and be there or be square .

So, just because it's been something I've been meaning to do for a good long while, I finally got around to making myself a Weasyl account:

https://www.weasyl.com/~orenthes

These aren't the droids you're looking for, you can go about your business, move along.

So, I've been itching to see this flick ever since it came out, and especially ever since Nelson Mandela, or "Madiba", as he was affectionately known, died.

I found it to be a very interesting and ultimately quite fair portrayal of an extraordinarily complex, flawed man who ultimately oversaw the peaceful end to one of the most oppressive regimes in African history and a smooth tradition to democracy in its aftermath. Along the way, we are given insight into the life of a passionate man who transitions from an ambitious young lawyer to the leader of an embryonic African National Congress. Years of frustration and repeated attempts at nonviolent resistance to Apartheid and its pre-1948 precursors ultimately culminate in the extremely violent (but all too tragically accurate) recreation of the 1960 Sharpeville Massacre of peaceful protesters boycotting the pass system: an internal passport network that heavily regulated and restricted the movement of blacks within South Africa, which served the political purpose of controlling the movement of the black population while also fulfilling the economic purpose of deliberately keeping South African blacks in a status of economic inequality and dependence upon the Apartheid regime. It was the bloodletting at Sharpeville that ultimately polarized the struggle between the African National Congress and the South African government. It was also one of the major pivotal moments in the shift in tactics of the ANC from passive resistance to violent struggle.

The issue of the validity of violent resistance (albeit to a regime that is also extremely violent) is one of the consistent themes of the film. The ANC raids lead by Mandela primarily take place against unmanned factories and installations in the evening (presumably to provide night cover, in addition to avoid causing civilian casualties) seem to be the film's portrait of "good" violent resistance, whereas the more hardline attitude of all-out war taken by Winnie Mandela and her supporters (including a brief but horrific nod to the punishment killings of police informants) seems to be the portrayal of "bad" violent resistance. It sets up an interesting dilemma, but the morally grey areas that lurk between these two extremes rarely seem to be explored. However, I temper the criticism I do have of this film with the acknowledgement that this is first and foremost a biography of Nelson Mandela, and that the film has to condense decades of history and the very complex figure that was Nelson Mandela into something that is the length of a feature film. So, in that aspect, while I have some complaints about the general direction of the film, I ultimately found that this was a very fitting tribute to Nelson Mandela and one that did fundamentally understood the conflicts he had to face as a man who had to fight an unjust system, yet who also had to assure that the struggle he fought would not ultimately destroy everything he had hoped to create.

Pros: Adequately conveyed Nelson Mandela's pivotal role in South Africa's decades-long, ongoing journey towards racial equality without shying away from his own role in the use of violent resistance and the more militant wing of the anti-Apartheid movement (most notably exemplified by his own wife, Winnie Mandela), solid acting, and most major figures in the story of Nelson Mandela got to tell what needed to be told.

Cons: Suffered from the somewhat inevitable "Hollywood treatment" that accentuated the myth over the man, the role of South African whites in ending Apartheid was generally glossed over, but condensing decades of history into a feature film assured that this happened to a lot of the great untold stories of Apartheid in South Africa. The film's question of whether or not violence is justified seems mostly superficial.

And lo and behold, another year older.

This is acceptable to me.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-25249520

May he rest in peace.

He was born in oppression, and died in freedom, one of the most violent and reprehensible regimes in history ended with surprising peace thanks to him. This was the magnitude of the change he wrought upon South Africa, and the entire world.

Celebrating over 200 years of democracy. Let's all remember how fortunate we are while we go out and have a good time with good friends and good food.

Two National Anthems: One is self-explanatory, the other represents the nation without whose help we could never have triumphed in the war, Vive la France! Vive la Liberte!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jAYPN-1Yjt0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=laWIjgWDesE

Here it be: http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/...../#cid:34057440

By  CorkyOrkyII

Details Here:

http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/4675573/

 CorkyOrkyII is doing a raffle. Rules are simple, preds only, provide a reference sheet, and of course, create an advertisement journal such as I am doing here.

So I decided on the blunt and direct means of saying that yes, today is indeed my birthday.

So, being that I find it interesting to look back on what has come to pass, I thought I'd look at some interesting historical events that happened on what turns out to have been my birthday and some famous people with whom I share this day. ^^I thought they were silly as well as intriguing and I hope y'all do as well. Just a few little things:

1897: Zululand in South Africa is annexed as a province of what was then called the Cape Colony and is today part of South Africa.

1906: The Iranian Constitutional Revolution overthrows the last Shah of the Afghan-descended Qajar Dynasty and instates the rule of the constitutional monarchy under the Pahlavi Dynasty (the last, and to this date final royal line in Iran).

1911: Sun Yat-Sen, perhaps one of the most influential figures in modern Chinese history is elected the first president of the Republic of China.

1918: John Edgar Hoover decides to start calling himself "J. Edgar".

1922: The Treaty of the Creation of the Soviet Union is approved establishing the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.

And in 2010, a real world milestone, China reached an internet population of 450 million.

And well, I suppose that's all I've got for now, I am hoping this is to be a fun, eventful day as well as a time to try and improve myself and get more stuff done.

Cheers everyone,

Orenthes

 SamanthaFeline is doing free art, do come and get some!

http://www.cnn.com/2012/08/06/world/meast/syria-unrest/index.html

For those of you who are keeping tabs on Syria this is a big event, it's the largest defection of a Syrian government official to date, and perhaps a sign that the age of the Syrian Ba'ath Party is finally coming to a close.

A Quick Summary:

Syria is a country with a long history, it has long been a center of human civilization, and Damascus in particular has been a strong center of Islamic civilization as it was the capital of the Abbasid Caliphate. Like Lebanon, Syria's colorful history and strategic location has made it the home of a large amount of non-Sunni, non-Arab (sometimes both non-Sunni and non-Arab) minorities, in a way not unlike its more ill-fated neighbor, Lebanon.

While no conqueror ever stayed in Syria forever, Syria's fragmented society and the quarrels amongst its peoples often made it rather simple for those who knew how to exploit Syria's issues in their favor by playing a game of divide-and-conquer. Perhaps the most adept at this were the French, who inherited Syria as a Mandate after the First World War immediately following the collapse of the Ottoman Empire. The boundaries of what is today the nation of Syria were drawn at that time, not particularly with respect to pre-existing ethnic/religious/cultural divides, but more to suit the desires of European colonial interests, this was not the first occurrence of such a thing, a cursory glance at a map of Africa, as well as the history of many African states after independence, will often reveal a history of conflicts that erupted after independence that owed their origins to the machinations of colonialism. Syria as we know it, like Nigeria or the Congo, was created with French ambitions in the Middle East in mind, as the divisions of the Middle East between France and Britain were worked out by the Sykes-Picot Agreement during the First World War.

When Syria gained independence from France shortly after the Second World War, things for much of its early post-independence history were... problematic, it was divided, unstable, and lots of ethnic and religious infighting occurred. Syrians to this day fear a return to the instability and chaos of the post-independence era. This basically continued on-and-off until 1970 when an army officer by the name of Hafez Al-Assad orchestrated a coup and seized power in Syria.

It bears mentioning that Hafez Al-Assad, along with his family (including, of course, his son and now President of Syria, Bashar Al-Assad), was of the Alawite sect of Islam, it is a minority sect of the Twelver Shia branch of Islam, now being both Shia as well as Alawi is somewhat of a handicap in a predominantly Sunni part of the Muslim world (the vast, vast majority of the Arab world is Sunni, with some exceptions like Bahrain and Iraq), the Alawis are a historically unpopular sect, however, because of French colonial rule, the Alawis were able to gain power by collaborating with French rule by serving in the military, something most Sunni Syrians chose not to do. Therefore the post-independence political climate in Syria was one in which the Alawites were primed to be major power brokers. Hafez Al-Assad taking power in 1970 was the culmination of this trend towards Alawi dominance of Syrian politics.

So Assad coming to power was basically a time from which Syrian politics would begin to drastically change. Without going into a complex and highly-confusing analysis of the internal workings of the Syrian Ba'ath Party I'm simply going to say this: the Ba'athists of Syria, and later of Iraq, were a group that created a regime that espoused Arab nationalism, socialism, and sought to emulate the totalitarian regimes of Hitler and Stalin, they were primarily secular and used ethnicity as opposed to faith to unite people behind their vision. In Syria, a land of many mixed faiths, this particular brand of nationalism was very appealing, and what's more, it provided cohesion at a time in Syria's history where there really wasn't much of it. That's why Hafez Al-Assad and his family, to whom he entrusted various government positions to shore up his own power base, was able to basically be given by the Syrian people the absolute control that he wielded. In effect, the contract was unspoken: the Syrian people traded freedom and social openness for the stability provided by Hafez Al-Assad's rule.

Fast forward, nine years later, to the Iranian Revolution, the Shah's regime has fallen, and a fundamentalist Islamic regime has arisen in the stead of the Pahlavi Dynasty. For a lot of the Middle East, this changed things dramatically, before Iran's revolution, the trend in the Middle East was pretty overwhelmingly in favor of secularization and Westernization, Egypt's president, Anwar Sadat, had opened up Egypt to trade with the West and Egypt's economy was growing at an explosive rate. Traditionally the leader of the Arab world in culture and other trends, it seemed as if these notions of secularization were going to be the way to go. Iran's revolution effectively threw that out the window, it had been proven suddenly, and violently, that Islamist governments could and did succeed in the Middle East, because regardless of Iran's traditionally aloof nature with regards to the Arab world, it was a major power in the Middle East and if it set trends, the rest of the Middle East would emulate them. For secular regimes like Al-Assad's secular Arab socialist republic, this was something that would put Syria on the defensive against fundamentalism.

The Iranian Revolution had pretty immediate consequences for Syria with regards to the Syrian Muslim Brotherhood, a predominantly Sunni organization spurred to action by the success of Iran's revolution. The Syrian Muslim Brotherhood began an uprising against the Syrian government. For a few years, the Syrian Muslim Brotherhood ran a campaign of attacks against government buildings and officials: bombings, assassinations, bread-and-butter terror attacks designed to weaken the image of the government and prove that they could not adequately enforce their will, paving the way for Islamist takeover.

The response of the Syrian government was to crack down on the uprisings with maximum brutality, particularly the center of the uprising, in the small Syrian town of Hama. In 1982, the Syrian military surrounded the city, and for the better part of several days shelled the city with artillery. And this isn't an operation with strictly military targets either, this is whole residential areas and apartment complexes. After whole areas of Hama were effectively leveled to ruins with artillery, Assad sent bulldozers in and basically razed flat several of Hama's ruined buildings, other buildings were allowed to stand and Hama was made to serve as a reminder that the Assad regime would brook no resistance, nor have any mercy on those who dared to challenge it. Hama is the single most violent massacre in the history of the modern Middle East and is believed to have killed anywhere from 10,000-40,000 people.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hama_massacre

The Hama Massacre effectively ended the uprising against the government of Hafez Al-Assad, and it also represented the last episode of serious, widespread unrest against the Syrian government until today.

Now about thirty years after Hama we're seeing the house that Hafez built starting to fall apart. The way I see it, Syria is getting very close to the endgame, the opposition has momentum and the government is on the defensive, the Free Syrian Army which started the game as an inexperienced crowd fighting the much more well-equipped and organized Syrian military. The FSA however, has its ranks swollen with a large group of defector Syrian officers who can bring their skills and leadership over to the FSA. The FSA has also, in a huge, huge step away from months before, starting to strike into Aleppo and Damascus, the largest cities in Syria, and Damascus being the capital. Latakia, a major Syrian port city and also the stronghold of the Assads is also seeing rather continuous fighting.

At the same time however, I cannot make a final call on how the chips are going to fall, for all intents and purposes, the Syrian government has taken a lot of hits lately, especially now with this latest defection of the prime minister, however, we also have to remember that the Viet Cong during the Tet Offensive looked to be unstoppable: striking out all across South Vietnam at US installations and interests everywhere. From a morale standpoint, the Viet Cong won by convincing the US public that an insurgency the United States supposedly had on the ropes was still going strong. From a military standpoint the Viet Cong took such a beating during the Tet Offensive that they never played a significant role for the rest of the war and the North Vietnamese Army took over from there.

I'm more worried about what Post-Assad Syria is going to look like if that comes to pass, we're seeing a lot of Sunni Arabs in the opposition, and I really am worried that this is a coalition united by a mutual foe that may well fragment as soon as the common enemy has been defeated.

Here's hoping, for the people of Syria, for honor, for freedom.

The artist  Tigress is doing a free art raffle! Spread the word! And be sure to enter the contest to win a free headshot!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bu9GX1noA2w

This is from a Cossack orchestra as the title says. The Cossacks were a warrior people emerging from parts of Ukraine and once were integral parts of the military of the Russian Empire, during the Russian Civil War many (but not all) Cossacks sided with the Whites and the Soviet government destroyed the Cossacks as a political entity with a harsh and ruthless campaign known as decossackization. Later some Cossacks, including a famous group known as the Lienz Cossacks as they were settled in Lienz, Austria for a brief period, would join the side of Nazi Germany during the Second World War in the Soviet Union, after the end of the war with Germany, many of those who had served alongside the Nazis were repatriated by the Western Allies to the Soviet Union to be tried for treason (the end result of that generally was execution or a sentence in the gulag), shame on those who collaborated but one cannot help but mourn the sad fate of a people who once had so much being reduced to so little. They exist in Russia today, but they are not what they once were. It is sad that their vibrant and beautiful culture was so violently crushed.

-My little story of the day.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BvnJ.....ure=plpp_video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MCuqR4Jz9DU

Here's a dance and a song for those who enjoy the Cossack music.