November 9

"Security has become an all-devouring American God stiffened by righteousness, stripped of judgment, armed with technology. This deity knows no bounds, brooks no dissent."

--New York Times columnist Roger Cohen; image from

VIDEOS

(a) Raw Video: Gibbs Nearly Pulls Obama From Meeting: During President Barack Obama's trip to India, Press Secretary Robert Gibbs threatened to pull Obama out of bilateral talks with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh because three U.S. reporters were blocked from covering the meeting. (Nov. 8) (The Associated Press)

(b) North Korean Anti-U.S. propaganda cartoon

PUBLIC DIPLOMACY

In India, Obama downplays Chicago ties to terror - Chuck Goudie, abclocal.go.com: "During his three-day state visit to India, President Barack Obama and India's prime minister, Manmohan Singh, found it necessary to discuss the criminal case against a man currently held in Chicago. David Headley, also known as Daood Gilani, is from the North Side.


Currently locked up at the MCC-Chicago, Headley has pleaded guilty to helping plot the terror attack on Mumbai, India in which 168 people were left dead two years ago this month. Headley had been working for Pakistani terrorists, and in a private meeting Monday with India's prime minister, Obama found himself having to explain what the U.S. government knew and when. Behind the pageantry and beyond the public diplomacy, the president had to explain how Headley was working as an American informant at the same time he was scouting attack sites for the Mumbai massacre." Headley images from

Soft Power of Art: Lifelong Cultural Commitment Pays Diplomatic Dividends - Wendy Luers, Washington Diplomat: "Time and again, cultural diplomacy offers a way to interact with people all over the world, underscoring that the United States is a multidimensional power, known as much for its artistic, intellectual and political freedom, as for its economic, military and political might.


As members of the diplomatic corps as well as political appointees, it is not only a privilege but also our obligation to present a holistic image of the United States — one that showcases our fundamental respect for pluralistic beliefs, diversity and world culture." Wendy Luers is president emerita of the Foundation for Art and Preservation in Embassies. She is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the Women’s Foreign Policy Group. She is married to William H. Luers, president of the United Nations Association of the United States of America, former president of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and former U.S. ambassador to Czechoslovakia (1983-86) and Venezuela (1978-82). Re jazz concerts in Prague during the Cold war, mentioned in Ms. Luers' article, see also John Brown, "Sanity Rally and Cold-War Public Diplomacy," Huffington Post. Image from

RP Local Government Officials participate in American Council of Young Political Leaders Program; Meet with Philippine Embassy officers - Access Philippine Atlanta: "Nine (9) local government officials from the Philippines travelled to the United States to participate in the exchange program organized by the American Council of Young Political Leaders (ACYPL).


The ACYPL exchange program, supported by the U.S. Department of State Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, exposes young political leaders to the policy and decision making process and political and electoral dynamics in different countries with the end in view of strengthening leadership and public diplomacy skills and fostering mutual understanding." Image from article

Republicans, Democrats, and a Chinese scapegoat [Today Online] - Wandering China: "According to US media reports, 250 ads targeting China were aired in just under half of the 100 competitive districts, such as in Pennsylvania. This is the single biggest threat to Chinese public diplomacy; and peace between the world’s most important bilateral relationship."

The time for coordinated and professional Israeli public diplomacy action is now - The View from Israel: "The time for coordinated and professional Israeli public diplomacy action is now - They say that public diplomacy is too important to be left to politicans. In Israel's case we have seen politicians, with poor English skills but with big egos, damage Israel's cause by placing themselves in front of Western TV cameras, or in front of hostile audiences. Sending these people to fight Israel's case is like sending soldiers on to the deck of the Mavi Maramara flotilla ship armed with paintball guns. It's a disaster waiting to happen.


The time has come for the formation of a major non-governmental public diplomacy institute in Israel. It should be apolitical. It should have government backing but with no political interference. It will be a lobbying force not only to the Israeli Government but to governments worldwide. It should consult and coordinate with the Israeli Government and other authorities, including the military. This public diplomacy institute (PDI) should be well funded to become a powerful and united voice for Israel." Image from

Croatia, Serbia Urged to Drop Genocide Cases, But Onus Likely on Croatia - isaintel.com: "As a new wave of unprecedented public diplomacy surges through Croatia and Serbia, the International community is urging the two countries to maintain the momentum gathered in recent weeks and drop the mutual genocide lawsuits they have filed against each other at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague."

BBC World Service budget bad news update - Kim Andrew Elliott reporting on International Broadcasting

Conducting election the US way - Laolu Afolabi, Nigerian Tribune: "To ensure election was free and fair in Nigeria, the United States government said it had no preferred candidate and had not declared support for the candidacy of any of the presidential aspirants. In an interview with the Nigerian Tribune in Washington DC, the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Public Diplomacy, Bureau of African Affairs, Mr Bruce Wharton, said the United States government had not declared its endorsement for the candidacy of any of the aspirants."

Students honored for world affairs projects - The Daily Beacon (University of Texas): "Students who received the W.K. McClure Scholarships for the Study of World Affairs during 2009 and 2010 were honored last week at a symposium where they displayed their work. ... By college, the current McClure Scholars and their projects [include]: College of Arts and Sciences: Anne Buckle (undergraduate), 'Understanding Diplomacy in Western Europe: An Exploration of How the U.S. Department of State Uses Public Diplomacy as a Foreign Policy Tool to Construct Personal and Political Relations in France.'” Below image from


Students push for divestment at university - Jared Servantez, Daily Trojan: "USC’s campus has recently become the scene of a growing movement by pro-Palestine supporters speaking out against what they see as illegal occupation of territory and discriminatory practices by the Israeli government. The movement, known internationally as the 'Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions' movement, aims to achieve sanctions or other official action against Israel. Activists hope to achieve this by means of boycotting certain Israeli institutions and stopping business in — or divesting from — companies that are involved in the occupation of what BDS supporters say is Palestinian territory. ... 'From a rational view, the divestment actions being attempted at the moment are thinly veiled anti-Semitism,' said Melamed [Shanel Melamed president of SC Students for Israel], a senior majoring in international relations and public diplomacy. 'A divestment campaign is not a form of negotiation, conversation, dialogue or understanding. It’s very much a radical stance that says, ‘We don’t even want to talk with you, we don’t want to negotiate with you, we don’t want to meet in the middle with you and we just don’t want you around.’”

RELATED ITEMS

First Lady’s Dance Moves Woo Indian Crowds - Heather Timmons, New York Times: While President Obama is wooing India with promises of increased trade and United Nations clout, his wife’s charm offensive has included serial hugs and a talent for Indian dance. The combination has been an unexpected success. An Indian public and news media that were lukewarm before the official three-day visit began on Saturday have since become exuberant Michelle Obama fans. “Dancing Queen Rocks India,” The Times of India, the world’s largest-circulation English language newspaper, trumpeted on its front page Monday.


Mrs. Obama “demonstrated she could swing to desi beats with the best of them,” the paper said, referring to Indian beats. It lavished praise on her “matkas and jhatkas,” or dance moves involving swaying hips. Carefully planned events have enabled Mrs. Obama to interact casually with children, albeit near a scrum of photographers and reporters. She offered advice about staying in school, shook a tambourine and encouraged a group of pig-tailed girls to believe in “women power.” Image from

The President's Indonesia Opportunity: It isn't enough to declare that we aren't at war with Islam, as true as that is - Pail Wolfowitz, Wall Street Journal: The president's visit is an opportunity to cement a closer relationship with an ally in the fight against Islamist extremism.

Obama to Visit a Nation That Knew Him as Barry - Norimitsu Onishi, New York Times: Jakarta regards Mr. Obama as a local boy made good, and he remains extremely popular throughout Indonesia.


But his last-minute postponements of three previously planned visits here have clearly sapped the enthusiasm surrounding his homecoming, even among his most ardent supporters. Image: "Good Luck, Barry!" the shout gave birth to Indonesia's Obama Fan Club established by the childhood friends and alumni of the Democrat party's presidential candidate from

The bashing of American exceptionalism: Leftists mocking those who believe in the greatness of the U.S. is nothing new. But their bizarre insistence that it's an artifact of right-wing jingoism and xenophobia certainly isn't helping Obama - Jonah Goldberg, latimes.com: The position of the Americans is therefore quite exceptional," wrote Alexis de Tocqueville in "Democracy in America," "and it may be believed that no democratic people will ever be placed in a similar one." Ever since, historians have argued that America's lack of a feudal past, its Puritan roots, the realism of its revolutionary ambitions and many other ingredients contributed to America's status as the "first new nation," to borrow a phrase from Seymour Martin Lipset, who spent his life writing about American exceptionalism. Ultimately, it's not that liberals don't believe in American exceptionalism so much as they believe it is holding America back, which might explain why they're lashing out at the people who want to keep it exceptional.

Will the Tea Party shift American foreign policy? - Michael Gerson, Washington Post: Even without a developed Tea Party foreign policy, the center of gravity on Capitol Hill is likely to shift in a Jacksonian direction. Historian Walter Russell Mead describes this potent, populist foreign policy tradition as "an instinct rather than an ideology." Today's Jacksonians believe in a strong military, assertively employed to defend American interests. They are skeptical of international law and international institutions, which are viewed as threats to American sovereignty and freedom of action.


Jacksonians are generally dismissive of idealistic global objectives, such as a world free from nuclear weapons. Instead, they are heavily armed realists, convinced that America operates in an irredeemably hostile world. In particular, according to Mead, Jacksonians believe in wars that end with the unconditional surrender of an enemy, instead of "multilateral, limited warfare or peacekeeping operations." The Jacksonian ascendancy on Capitol Hill is likely to mean resistance to foreign assistance spending as well as undermining engagement with the United Nations.But the largest test case will be Afghanistan. Jacksonians like to win wars. But if Obama appears reluctant, they could easily turn against a war the president does not seem determined to win. Image from

The dangers of an imperial presidency: Despite the Republican Party's new strength in Congress, the presidency still wields enormous power. The U.S. needs reforms that will reinvigorate America's tradition of checks and balances - Bruce Ackerman, latimes.com: Forty years ago, historian Arthur Schlesinger famously warned Americans about the dangers of an imperial presidency. These imperial dynamics


have accelerated in the recent past. The challenge is to develop a broad range of pragmatic reforms that will reinvigorate America's constitutional tradition of checks and balances — and make them a key element of the next political agenda. If this reform effort fails, past presidential misadventures during Watergate, Iran-Contra and the "war on terror" may only serve as prologue to more terrible abuses of presidential power in the generation ahead. Image from

Mass Deception: Moral Panic and the U.S. War on Iraq by Scott Bonn - PRNewswire: The new book, Mass Deception, by criminologist Scott Bonn, incriminates the Bush administration for its use of propaganda to demonize Arabs/Muslims after 9/11 and for creating a moral panic in the U.S. that manufactured public support for the Iraq war. Dr. Bonn argues that former president Bush and his administration committed war crimes in Iraq.

Trove of "Degenerate" Artworks Thought Destroyed by Nazis Is Unearthed in Berlin - Kate Deimling, Artinfo: During recent construction on a subway line near Berlin's city hall, workers unearthed 11 sculptures that were once condemned by the Nazis as "degenerate." Ten of the works will be shown in Berlin's Neues Museum starting tomorrow. Several of the sculptures were featured in Nazi minister of propaganda Joseph Goebbels's 1937 exhibition of "Entartete Kunst" or "Degenerate Art," which traveled around Germany and Austria displaying hundreds of artworks condemned by the Third Reich as an affront to its nationalist ideology and Aryan ideals.


Image from article: Edwin Scharff's "Portrait of Anni Mewes," 1921

AMERICANA

"In the spring of 1844, Henry David Thoreau, the great naturalist of New England, set fire to half the forest outside Fair Haven while trying to fry some fish. The blaze sent animals running for cover, scorched the fields of farmers, and fuelled town gossip for months. Thoreau felt remorse, but not much. Was he not doing nature's work by burning the wood before lightning inevitably struck? Was he not more intimate with the trees than anyone in Massachusetts? (He had to guide one farmer through an escape route on the man's own property.) 'To be sure, I felt a little ashamed', he wrote in his journal, but after weighing the matter carefully, he only felt bad for the fish. The episode sealed his decision to move into a hut he built for himself on Walden Pond."


--Thomas Meany, Times Literary Supplement (November 5, 2010), p. 3;
Walden Pond image image from