The 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing got off to a roaring start on Friday with the ancient city hosting what has to be the most amazing opening ceremony of all time. The spectacle seemed to put aside the numerous differences and political problems regarding China's international image, as the world was privy to an incredible visual feast of awe inspiring choreography, interlaced with images and technical artistry by 15,000 performers all under the stewardship of the celebrated veteran film director Zhang Yimou.

The opening went by without any major incident, or protest in mainland China but sadly, the closing firework display was over shadowed by another use of gunpowder and explosives of a very different nature. Some 3,641 miles away to the west, the simmering dispute over the rights over Southern Ossetia, a region in the sovereign country of Georgia, came to a head as Russian air assaults were quickly followed by Russian tanks crossing into the troubled region and rolled deep into Georgian territory.

According to reports, the capital city of Tskhinvali in South Ossetia was attacked by Georgian forces on Thursday. The shelling was authorized by the countries pro-NATO President, Mikheil Saakashvili. Russia's President Dimitry Medvedev and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, sitting just a few seats away from President Bush during the opening ceremonies, responded with immediate and lethal retaliation.

Since the Georgian attack on Tskhinvali on Thursday, the subsequent 'liberation'  and Russian invasion of Georgia on Friday has in essence, cut the former soviet state in half with the war extending deep into Georgian territory. Georgia's other breakaway region of Abkhazia announced a full military mobilization, saying they have sent 1,000 troops to drive Georgian forces from their only remaining stronghold in the Kodori Gorge.

In the war in cyberspace Civil.ge, Georgia's main new site, has also been under constant Russian attack. Authorities have switched their operations to one of Google's Blogspot domains, to try and keep information about the situation regarding the war flowing. It is believed that the Russian hackers will have greater problems locking up or blocking Google's infrastructure.

NATO and Western governments have called for an immediate cease fire, which so far seems to have been ignored by Russian forces.

Meanwhile, neighboring Estonia — once the victim of Russian-based hackers — is now hosting Georgia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs website. And "in a historic first, Estonia is sending cyber defense advisors to Georgia," Network World observes.

Attacks are taking place around the clock as the Russians are reportedly bombing Georgia's telecommunications infrastructure — including cellphone towers. "It's still very difficult to get a call anywhere around the country right now," according to an NPR reporter.