So many people use conflict and its victims as political instruments, with little thought given to how these decisions, words, and rhetoric powerful impact the personal lives and families of thousands.  This has certainly been true in the Russia-Georgian war over South Ossetia, where ethnically diverse villages were scattered and intermingled like salt and pepper, rather than the clean division of borders we are often shown on the news maps.  This article in Time Magazine is commendable in that they take a look at the enormous human toll paid by families who had the misfortune to be located on the dividing line.

Izolde Bagayeva, 55, sits on a bench next to Fatima and talks about her family in Tbilisi. “When we talk on the phone, all we talk about is family. We never talk about politics because we don’t want to argue,” she says. “Just a few days ago I spoke to my aunt and she told me, ‘You know, we’re never going to see each other again.'” Bagayeva’s eyes well up with tears, but, like so many in South Ossetia, she feels the sacrifice is one worth making: “We want a better situation at the border, but we also want our own country. For us, there is no road back. We want our independence.”