TBLPOD10nov2016

Mish leaves Odessa, draft back, Sandra out, Trump, Karasin on visas, NATO exercise, Burchaladzes party exits, PM mets Serzh chats with Biden, German Def Min says EU Army, Pankisi volunteer killed, Zugdidi arrest, three Chinese arrested, German dies in Svaneti, car inspection in a year, Batumi Iliachevsk back, H and M in Galaria, wine export up, Ajara factory, Chinese Kutaisi metal plant, Italian salon leaves, Food Panda, olives, ads down, movie school, theater awards, Kobakhidze speaker maybe, Beselia legal committee, Avar female genital mutilation, Vogue Tbilisi streets, EAAG podcast, 44 ships, Abkhaz residency, McClain party, Japan rugby, Radarami Oil and Honey, new Metro map

One thought on “TBLPOD10nov2016

  1. The MEME this week is a video about the presidential elect Donald Trump. He’s the winner and we all need to make our peace with it, but according to this video, he bears a striking resemblance to a certain muppet-like character from an obscure 1990s TV show.
    Link: http://bit.ly/2fEQvUI

    THINGS TO READ

    Michael Cecire writes for Business New Europe about Misha’s decision to step down from his position in Odessa. What’s next for the former reformer and international celebrity politician? Probably politics on the national stage in Ukraine. It might be difficult for him given his weak power base there, however.
    Link: http://bit.ly/2eVI9Xm

    Giorgi Lomsadze writes in EurasiaNet about the National Movement’s struggle for a new identity and role after it got pummeled at the ballot box last month. The party is torn between keeping its old hands around, notably Misha, or building a new image by focusing on the party’s fresher faces.
    Link: http://bit.ly/2fnJSFA

    EurasiaNet also has a piece about this year’s meeting of the Valdai Discussion Club in Sochi, an annual meeting of Russian officials and wonks from around the world. At the meeting Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov blamed NATO expansion for spoiling any chance at unity between Russia and the West. Putin blamed US unilateralism in general.
    Link: http://bit.ly/2fEKgjJ

    An investigative report by the Institute for War and Peace Reporting found that some members of the Avars, an ethnic minority community in Eastern Georgia, are forcing young women to undergo genital mutilation. According to the report, some locals say it’s an Islamic practice and they have the right to freedom of religion under the Georgian constitution, just as they have the right to practice male circumcision. The authorities pledged to investigate the practice.
    Link: http://bit.ly/2fAasvI

    Social Science in the Caucasus looks at foreign TV news consumption. They found that people in ethnic minority areas and people in urban settlements other than Tbilisi were most likely to watch foreign new channels, and that these channels are usually in Russian. But contrary to what many expect, they found no connection between watching foreign news channels and specific voting behaviors.
    Link: http://bit.ly/2fEPMVQ

    Our Santa Barbara correspondent Jonathan Kulick tipped us off about a piece Vogue is running about the best street styles spotted at Tbilisi fashion week, for men and women but mostly for women.
    Link: http://bit.ly/2eNiDWy

    The European Alumni Association in Georgia is publishing weekly podcasts in Georgian about Europe. Their second podcast was published on November 7, 2016 which focused on the pressing issues of the EU and Georgia, such as: negotiations on the Georgia’s visa liberalization issues, refugee camps in France, Russia’s cyber-attacks on Europe, the Paris agreement on climate change, the planned cultural events in Europe, and EU Studies Fair 2017. PAUSE In general, EAAG promotes European values and supports Georgia’s integration with the EU. Fans of the EAAG podcast can listen on the radio station “Rioni” every Monday, at 2:30 o’clock, from November 14, 2016, or go to the Facebook page, European Alumni Association Georgia.
    Link: http://bit.ly/2fUaJ0m

    Real Clear Politics has a map breaking down the US Presidential election results as well as the results for the Senate, House, and gubernatorial races.
    Link: http://bit.ly/2eNguKI

    Giorgi Lomsadze previews Donald Trump’s possible Caucasus policy. Putin sent a telegram over to congratulate The Donald, and nationalist firebrand Vladimir Zhirinovsky seems ecstatic. Certainly Georgia’s leaders were hoping for a Clinton victory. It also looks like a sign the US is weak and divided and no longer has the interest or moral authority to project a big profile internationally, including in the Caucasus.
    Link: http://bit.ly/2em44uq

    EurasiaNet also has a piece on Russia’s reaction to the election result. It’s generally positive, although some people, including Gennady Zyuganov of the Communist Party, still think the US is an aggressor by nature and it doesn’t depend on who’s in power.
    Link: http://bit.ly/2fAatzy

    Politico writes about the international relations fallout of the Trump victory. US allies around the world are scrambling to develop game plans for dealing with the President Elect. Mostly they’re concerned with his lack of knowledge about foreign policy issues, something that he apparently takes pride in. His unpredictability and disdain for existing alliance systems are also a concern, particularly to US allies in Europe.
    Link: http://bit.ly/2fAaXWD

    The New Yorker has a piece about Trump supporters hiding in plain sight. Those who say they don’t know a single Trump supporter are probably mistaken; Trump voters live all over the country and are friends, neighbors, and colleagues.
    Link: http://bit.ly/2elYTL3

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