Google News Has Russian Army Invading Savannah, GA

theodp writes "If you checked out Google-wannabe Cuil, you learned that mapping search results to relevant images isn't a trivial task. But even Big Dog Google isn't immune to embarrassing graphics gaffes. Readers of Google News were shown that Russian troops are thrusting into the outskirts of Savannah, Georgia, thanks to the Google Maps graphic accompanying a story about Russian incursions into Georgia — the nation-state in the Caucasus, not the Caucasian-pride-ridden state in the southern US. Yahoo! Answers also had some fun with the GA-Georgia mix-up — 'I live in georegia but i dont see rusia no where not even sound but they says theres tanks should i be worrie' (Google cache) — before a spoilsport deleted the question."

Comments

Re:What's so funny about an illegal war?

[loonycyborg]

Where's the outrage against genocide of Ossetian people attempted by Georgia's "military"?

Editorializing in summary?

[HockeyPuck]

Caucasian-pride-ridden state in the southern U.S

I am actually quite amazed that /. would put such an inflamatory phrase like that into a summary. By using the word "ridden" are you implying that being proud of your race is a bad trait? I do believe that while we are at the olympics, many people are 'proud' of their country, heritage or race. However, in light of the olympics, this is a positive thing as we cheer in the name of sport and friendly competition. The usage in the summary, gives the impression that all Georgian's are Klansman. One should note that Georgia has a higher percentage of African Americans (29%) than the US average http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/13000.html, and I'm sure they are proud of being from Georgia.

Why not describe other countries that are predominantly Caucasian such as Sweden, or Ireland in the same manner?

Other uses that you should try:

Arab-pride-ridden (Iraq)
Jewish-price-ridden (Israel)
Linux-pride-ridden (./)

Pay Attention (Offtopic)

[copponex]

First of all, let's remember that the Georgians and the Russians have been provoking each other for years over this issue. They have both violated the ceasefire and it will probably be a while before we know who violated the ceasefire lines first.

You lament the invasion, and similarly George Bush stated, "Georgia is a sovereign nation, and its territorial integrity must be respected... We have urged an immediate halt to the violence and a stand-down by all troops. We call for the end of the Russian bombings." Mr Putin expressed similar reservations about Iraq in April 2003:

...Mr Putin elaborated... when he warned of the perils of undermining sovereign nations and diplomacy in the "export of capitalist, democratic revolution".

"If we allow ourselves to do that, the world will end up on a slippery slope toward an endless series of military conflicts. We cannot allow that to happen."

Be sure to watch the media over the next few days - you'll see pictures of dead and wounded, buildings destroyed, and many other realities of war. Now ask yourself why you don't see any of those images from Iraq. Ask why we saw silhouetted shots of helicopters and long views of nighttime explosions instead of what was really happening on the ground.

We can see on both sides that morality is of little importance. Unfortunately, since we have taken Iraq unilaterally, Russia is free to take Georgia unilaterally, and any other province they can get away with. All they have to do is claim that their national security is threatened, which is a more grounded claim. Georgia is on the Russian border, not thousands of miles away, and they are dealing with their own problems in Chechnya.

It is time to give real power to the UN and the ICC in order to avoid more death and destruction. Unless states submit themselves to a common rule of international law, there will never be a chance for peace.

Re:Pay Attention (Offtopic)

[Timothy Brownawell]

Unless states submit themselves to a common rule of international law, there will never be a chance for peace.

And if the do, you suddenly have a chance to force your morality (drug war, no sex before you're 18, etc) or business model (overbearing "IP" crap) on the entire world, thru a group of rulers who have approximately no connection to reality (because reality is local and everywhere). And there still won't be peace.

Dear theodp: You're a bigot.

[halivar]

the Caucasian-pride-ridden state in the southern U.S.

You sir, do not have a clue.

I have lived in Georgia for 14 eyars, having previously spent time in Wisconsin and Pennsylvania. I can tell you that both northern states are by far-and-away more racist than Georgia. In 14 years, not once (NOT ONCE -- for emphasis) have I heard a white person use the N-word, while in both Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, I witnessed not only frequent use of the word, but also blind, entrenched bigotry. Never have I seen whites and minorities live more harmoniously that in Georgia (the ghettoization of minorities in northern cities is NOT "harmony").

While there are white supremacists in Georgia (whom I have never met), I think it's safe to say they are a complete minority. Meanwhile, your own bigotry is available for all to see in the summary.