By John Hogue

Friends, Chinese criticism about my last bulletin “Olympian Smog” will have to wait until next week.

A new Cold War between the West and Russia may have started six days ago, because the Georgian President Saakashvilli attacked the breakaway province of South Ossetia, reaping a military whirlwind of a Russian air, land and sea invasion.

Russian forces occupy central Georgia, cutting the country in half. Russian tanks now stand watch alongside the strategic Caspian pipeline passing crude oil exports west from Azerbaijan through Georgia to fuel Europe and many Western nations.

Things are so bad in Georgia that it took two days for the Americanpresident to pull himself away to make a public comment after having athoroughly enjoyable time on bleachers whooping it up for US athletesat the Beijing Olympics.

The man who unilaterally invaded Iraq in 2003, hummed and hawed,laboring to brick and mortar a jumble of words together in “deep” reflection that would not collapse under the pressure of his legendarysyntax-tacky delivery. Translated into English, President Bush tried tosay something like: when the world comes together in peace to have anOlympics it is not the time to invade another country.

At the very least, the Russian counter-attack caught US and Western politicians with their “rants” down.

You know when a crisis is bad when Bush delays his customary month-longsummer vacation in August to stay a few more days in Washington DCafter partying at the Olympics to monitor events in Georgia. He is in ahurry to get to his Texas dude ranch so today he tossed threats atRussian Prime Minister Putin and President Medvedev, such as seekingRussias expulsion from the World Trade Organization and membership inthe Western economic superpower club, the G8, for spooking up anotherCold War.

I predict he cannot make good that threat, because a Russian combatboot presses the pipeline fueling enough G8 members who will voteotherwise.

This crisis gives Nostradamus watchers the first clear and presentchance to start the clock ticking on Nostradamusforeseen countdown tothermonuclear war between America and Russia.

Here in brief review are the prophecies. I have inserted my comments in brackets to swiftly introduce my interpretation.

“One day the two great leaders will become (divided) friends. Theirgreat power will be seen to increase. The new land [America?] will beat the height of its power.” ([Century-Volume] 2 Q 89)

“And when shall the lords be two in number, victorious in the northagainst the Eastern ones [Islamic terrorists?], there shall be a greatnoise and warlike tumult that all the East shall quake for fear ofthose two brothers of the North who are not yet brothers…they will bevictorious against the Easterners.” (Epistle to Henry II)

“Great disagreement and discord in order to obtain lands [i.e., theBalkans, Central Asian and Arab oil fields, and Israeli-Palestiniandisputes over the Holy Land and now Georgia]. Kingdoms given to menincapable of prudence. Then for the great brothers [US and Russia?]death and dissention.” (2 Q94)

“The rule left to two [Russian and America?]. They will hold it for avery short time. Three years and seven months having passed, they willgo to war. Their two vassals rebel against them. The victor is born onAmerican soil.” (4 Q95)

“The two will not remain allied for long: within 13 years they willgive in to Barbary [Libyan-Arab/Middle Eastern terrorist] power. There will be such a loss on both sides, that one [perhaps America inthis case] will bless the bark of Peter and the cape of the pope.” (5 Q78)

Nostradamus in the 16th century wrote riddles that implied the US andSoviet Union would end their Cold War in peace. He said they wouldbecome “friends” that are “halved” or “divided.” Thus, they arefriendly brothers who are “not yet brothers.”

It is implied that a Middle Eastern source will undermine thisembryonic friendship of America and the Russian Federation that emergedafter the fall of the Soviet Union. Either within three years and sevenmonths or in 13 years after the pseudo-friendship breaks up, they wouldgo to war, perhaps have that dreaded nuclear exchange; yet, “Americh”– the word Nostradamus uses in 4 Q95 for America — would bevictorious.

The peace that would follow would be that of a cemetery. Nostradamus inhis Epistle writings describes a world depopulated by two-thirds.

Nostradamus gives us the length of two possible countdowns toRusso-American Armageddon but no apparent hint as to when we shouldstart counting.

Has events in Georgia started that countdown, or did it start a few days before hostilities in the Caucasus began?

It has gone almost unnoticed by the mainstream US press that thelargest buildup of US Navy ships since the Persian Gulf War (1991) nowconverges on the Persian Gulf. It includes two supercarrier strikegroups and several Marine expeditionary battle groups. It would seemthat an attack either by Israeli or US forces on Iran, a Russian ally,is imminent. That is why the Russians made a move a few days after theUS fleet sailed for the Persian Gulf, capitalizing on sufferinsaakashvillis blunder, to occupy a US ally, Georgia.

The chess table is set. Is this just a war “game” or the real show? Time and events will tell if the game clock is running.

John Hogue (13 August 2008)