[2] The summits were not meant to be linked formally with wider international institutions; and in fact, a mild rebellion against the stiff formality of other international meetings was a part of the genesis of cooperation between France's president Valéry Giscard d'Estaing and West Germany's chancellor Helmut Schmidt as they conceived the initial summit of the Group of Six (G6) in 1975.

[3] The G8 summits during the 21st-century have inspired widespread debates, protests and demonstrations; and the two- or three-day event becomes more than the sum of its parts, elevating the participants, the issues and the venue as focal points for anarchists, anticapitalists and domestic terrorists.

As a practical matter, the summit was also conceived as an opportunity for its members to give each other mutual encouragement in the face of difficult economic decisions.

The National Guard soldiers also patrolled on foot, searching for weapons and explosives and watching for known "domestic terrorist" groups and the so-called black bloc protesters.

Also, National Guard soldiers found several stockpiles of materials that the protest groups intended to use in a "sleeping dragon" maneuvers as well as bats with nails driven through them and piles of rocks and bricks.

Then several protesters wearing all black clothing were confronted by National Guard soldiers in riot gear and then arrested by police after they congregated in front of the Starbucks and The Gap stores and began shouting antiglobalization slogans.

The following day, a group of around 100 protesters began congregating near the gates of a chemical plant, until they were directed by security to leave by.

A few protesters wanted to continue their march, but they were blocked from entering Sea Island by a security fence and the same National Guard troops who were handing out water.

The protests were considerably smaller than past G8 Summits, owing in large part to the overwhelming military and police presence.

[19] The summit planning committee contracted with a Georgia-based wireless communication provider for 450 handsets and service to be used during the run up to the international event.

The handsets were deployed to coordinate operations, logistics, transportation, and other critical aspects of the preparations for the summit.