Saturday, September 7, 2013

September 7



“Hermaphroditism. Cloning. External fertilization. Self fertilization. Courtship and copulation. Fission. Fusion. Cannibalism. You name it, jellyfish [are] ‘doing it.’”  Image from

--Jellyfish expert Lisa-ann Gershwin, as cited in The New York Review of Books

"[B]irds do it, bees do it/Even educated fleas do it/Let's do it, let's fall in love."

--Cole Porter

ANNOUNCEMENT

Trio of EdCult Awards Completed [:] "The Roth Endowment, a memorial to FSO Lois Roth (1931-86), has added a third annual award in State's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) to two others, this one for the best performance by an forign employee (FSN) in an embassy cultural office. It bears the name of the late Gill Jacot-Guillarmod, a much admired staffer in South Africa, whom Lois knew. The first award, selected by an ECA committee, was given in ECA last June to Cultural Specialist George Beukes, serving in Windhoek (Namibia). The award completes the Endowment's trio of prizes for the people of cultural diplomacy, joining the Roth Award for FSOs and the Ilchman-Richardson Award for domestic-support staff, with stipends of $1500 each. The goal: to lift morale and promote professionalism in the dedicated staff without whom cultural diplomacy cannot function. To endow this award permanently, the Endowment has set up an earmarked cuff-account to receive donations. To jump-start, we dipped into our holdings, encouraged by five early contributions and pledges totaling $6600. Endowing this annual award will require an additional $23,000 by 2019. At the outset, we need help in two ways: first, suggestions of potential donors; and second, early contribution to the fund. For donors, we want to compile a list of US foreign-service veterans of South Africa, or others like US educators or business-people who may have known Gill. For gifts, we will accept any amount. Those interested may soon visit our updated website; meanwhile we can send information quickly by mail on request. Donors will be kept informed over time by the site and annual reports on progress and laureates. The Roth Endowment is registered with IRS as a 501(c)3 charity (www.rothendowment.org). Mail address, Roth Endowment c/o Arndt, 1870 Wyoming Ave. NW, DC 20009." Via Doctor Richard Arndt by email.

PUBLIC DIPLOMACY IN THE NEWS

US-Brazil: Why can't we be friends? It's been a rocky road for the two biggest economies in the Americas. Now with allegations of US spying on Brazil's president, things are not looking up - globalpost.com: "The United States' relationship with Brazil is on the rocks after more National Security Agency revelations, this time that Washington spied on President Dilma Rousseff. ... Brazil ... has many shared interests with the US. But despite polite public diplomacy, there have been plenty of ups and downs. ... Unlike some Latin American nations, Brazil has a strong recent record on media freedom. Yet there was one notorious exception to that rule, which did cause friction with the US — in 2004, when New York Times correspondent Larry Rohter accused former President Lula of being a drunk.


Brazil revoked his visa, and then relented after receiving an 'apology' from the reporter. Whether Rohter’s reporting was accurate or not, threatening to boot him out of the country was hardly the behavior fitting of a democracy that advocates the kind of media freedom championed by the US." Image from article, with caption: US President Barack Obama kisses hello Brazil's President Dilma Rousseff as they arrive for a photo during the G20 summit in Saint Petersburg.

US Embassy Beirut and US Consulate Adana (Turkey) Now on Departure Orders for Non-Emergency Staff and Family Members – Domani Spero, DiploPundit: The State Department ... issued a new Travel Warning for Lebanon urging American citizens to avoid travel to the country and announcing the departure non-emergency personnel and family members from Embassy Beirut. ... ['] The Fulbright and the English Language Fellow programs that provided grants to U.S. scholars to live and work in Lebanon during the academic year remain suspended because of the security situation and the increased possibility of attacks against U.S. citizens in Lebanon.[']"

Casey, the dirt boys and the grey material - "In mid-June 1955, Australia’s external affairs minister, Richard Casey, wrote to Britain’s defence minister, Selwyn Lloyd, seeking background information about a certain colonel he had run across during the second world war. The man Casey was checking on was Dudley Wrangel Clarke, a theatrical, charismatic and unconventional officer, whom Malcolm Muggeridge would describe as 'a sharp little man with bright, quick eyes.' - Today, they [Clarke's] form the core of Australia’s public diplomacy effort, such as it exists. With a couple of notable exceptions, virtually every Southeast Asian political leader and many journalists have visited Australia courtesy of the government. Similar schemes exist for performing artists. Ironically, since Clarke thought that Hollywood was so dominant in the 'theatre wars.'"

RELATED ITEMS

A Death in the Family: USAID's first known war-zone-related suicide raises troubling questions about whether America is doing enough to assist its relief workers - Gordon Lubold, Foreign Policy: On Aug. 15, the U.S. Agency for International Development announced that one of its employees had died suddenly. The agency didn't mention that Michael C. Dempsey, a senior field program officer assigned as the leader of a civilian assistance team in eastern Afghanistan, killed himself four days earlier while home on extended medical leave.
Via

Obama’s push for a Syria strike depends on many factors other than presidential eloquence - Dan Balz, Washington Post: If presidents have far less power to persuade that is popularly assumed, and if the default position of a war-weary nation is to oppose what is seen as a potentially risky intervention in Syria, and if many Republican lawmakers are steadfastly against almost anything Obama proposes, the larger question about presidential leadership in this case is why Obama chose the course he took. Certainly his argument that there are constitutional reasons to seek congressional approval for military action is valid. But If the key to leadership is less the power to persuade and more the capacity to understand the conditions that exist and to exploit them when they are favorable, then Obama’s sudden move to throw the decision to Congress appears all the more risky.

Can Mr. Obama Avoid Mission Creep? - Editorial, New York Times: President Obama is scheduled to address the nation Tuesday on his plans for using military force in Syria. He will have a hard time persuading a skeptical Congress and an equally skeptical American public. As the president contemplates striking Syria, the public deserves to understand more fully what “limited” military action actually means.

On Syria Vote, Trust, but Verify - Alan Grayson, New York Times: "My position is simple: if the administration wants me to vote for war, on this occasion or on any other, then I need to know all the facts. And I’m not the only one who feels that way. Alan Grayson, a Democratic representative from Florida, is a member of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs."

Just a little bit of war against Syria - Kathleen Parker, washingtonpost.com: Our ponderous slog toward non-war is scaring all the wrong people.

Islamic fundamentalists benefit from Obama's foreign policy - James Richard Edwards, Washington Post: President Obama’s foreign policy decisions in Egypt, Libya and his current desire to start a war in Syria, continue to further the interests of Islamic fundamentalists. Syria, Libya and Egypt were three of the very few remaining secular governments in the Mideast, prior to US interventions. Due to consequences flowing from Obama’s actions, all three will soon be governed by totalitarian Islamic fundamentalists.

On Syria, a weak strike is better than none - Frederick W. Kagan, Washington Post: The president created this sour choice between an inadequate strike and no strike. It is a choice between a bad option and a less bad option. The less bad option is to strike now and continue to push for more robust action as necessary in the future. That decision demands the support of those who are serious about the outcome in Syria and maintaining U.S. credibility.

Send Assad a message he will understand - Robert M. Danin, Washington Post: if the Obama administration wants to send a message to Assad that he accurately understands, the United States must provide not only a credible response to his recent use of chemical weapons but also make him believe that response is part of a larger strategy to compel him to stop slaughtering his own people — by any means. Such an approach would require a U.S. commitment to doing more than limited strikes against facilities related to chemical weapons. But it is the only message Assad will understand.

AMERICANA


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ONE MORE QUOTATION FOR THE DAY

"Canned information."

--A distinguished American diplomat (and the father of this blog's compiler), referring to some U.S. media during his epoch

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