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USAID: THE URGE TO MERGE ■ WHAT’S COOKIN’ OVERSEAS ■ FS BLOGS, 2009

$3.50 / NOVEMBER 2009 OREIGN ERVICE FJ O U R N A L STHE MAGAZINE FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS PROFESSIONALS

IN THEIR OWN WRITE Books by Foreign Service Authors C1-C4_FSJ_1109_COV:proof 10/3/09 9:10 PM Page C2 01-16_FSJ_1109_FRO:first 10/15/09 3:55 PM Page 1 01-16_FSJ_1109_FRO:first 10/15/09 3:55 PM Page 2 01-16_FSJ_1109_FRO:first 10/15/09 3:55 PM Page 3

OREIGN ERVICE FJ O U R N A L S CONTENTS November 2009 Volume 86, No. 11

C OVER S TORY

IN THEIR OWN WRITE: BOOKS BY FOREIGN SERVICE AUTHORS / 17 Our annual compilation of recent books by Foreign Service authors celebrates the FS community’s wealth of literary talent. By Susan Maitra

F EATURE

THE FS BLOGOSPHERE IN 2009 / 43 Foreign Service blogging has boundless potential to promote U.S. soft power, foster the expression of dissent and build connections Cover and inside illustration within the FS community. by Phil Wrigglesworth By Mark Hay

AFSA NEWS PRESIDENT’S VIEWS / 5 Rebranding the Foreign Service MARC GROSSMAN DELIVERS ADAIR LECTURE / 49 By Susan R. Johnson FIRST CALL FOR AFSA DISSENT AWARDS / 49 SPEAKING OUT / 11 Merge USAID Fully into State NEWS BRIEFS AND AGGELER / 50 By Raymond Malley VP STATE: AN OUNCE OF PREVENTION / 51

FS KNOW-HOW / 15 VP RETIREE: HEARING FROM YOU / 52 Coping with Dietary Restrictions Overseas SURVIVOR ANNUITY ELECTIONS / 53 By Kelly Armstrong VP FCS: CULTIVATING KEY ALLIES / 54 EFLECTIONS R / 72 SHARON PAPP: CELEBRATING 17 YEARS AT AFSA / 55 Discovering Yasukuni By James B. Angell CHANGES TO OVERSEAS PAY AND BENEFITS / 56

FROM INTERN TO FSO / 56 CYBERNOTES / 6 RIDGWAY SCHOLARSHIP / 57 MARKETPLACE / 10 ELDERHOSTEL BECOMES EXPLORITAS / 57 BOOKS / 61 CLASSIFIEDS / 59 IN MEMORY / 65 INDEX TO ADVERTISERS / 70

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OREIGN ERVICE FJ O U R N A L S

Editor STEVEN ALAN HONLEY Senior Editor SUSAN B. MAITRA Associate Editor SHAWN DORMAN AFSA News Editor FRANCESCA KELLY Ad & Circulation Manager ED MILTENBERGER Art Director CARYN SUKO SMITH Editorial Intern AMANDA ANDERSON Advertising Intern LOTTE REIJMER

EDITORIAL BOARD TED WILKINSON Chairman MAY G. BAPTISTA JOSEPH BRUNS STEPHEN W. B UCK JULIE GIANELLONI CONNOR JEFF GIAUQUE MARY E. GLANTZ D. IAN HOPPER GEORGE JONES LYNN W. R OCHE RIMA J. VYDMANTAS

THE MAGAZINE FOR FOREIGN QUESTIONS? Not sure whom to contact? AFFAIRS PROFESSIONALS Foreign Service Journal (ISSN 0146-3543), 2101 E Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20037-2990 is LETTERS TO MEMBERSHIP published monthly with a combined July-August THE EDITOR For changes of address and other issue by the American Foreign Service Associa- tion (AFSA), a private, nonprofit organization. Printed letters may be edited for questions about AFSA membership, Material appearing herein represents the opin- space. E-mail to [email protected] or e-mail [email protected]. ions of the writers and does not necessarily rep- resent the views of the Journal, the Editorial mail to FSJ, 2101 E Street NW, Board or AFSA. Writer queries and submissions FasTrax Washington DC 20037. ADVERTISING are invited, preferably by e-mail. Journal sub- scription: AFSA members – $13 included in an- For details about placing either nual dues; others – $40. For foreign surface mail, E-CLASSIFIEDS a display or classifed ad, add $18 per year; foreign airmail, $36 per year. Periodical postage paid at Washington, D.C., and www.afsa.org/classifieds e-mail [email protected], at additional mailing offices. Indexed by Public [email protected]. Affairs Information Services (PAIS). The Journal FSJ is not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts, photos or illustrations. Advertising inquiries are COPYRIGHTS & invited. The appearance of advertisements herein does not imply the endorsement of the REPRINTS services or goods offered. To obtain permission to reproduce TELEPHONE: (202) 338-4045 FAX: (202) 338-8244 or (202) 338-6820 FSJ material, e-mail E-MAIL: [email protected] [email protected]. WEB: www.afsa.org; www.fsjournal.org © American Foreign Service Association, 2009. Printed in the U.S.A. Send address changes to: ONLINE AFSA www.afsa.org Attn: Address Change 2101 E Street N.W. www.fsjournal.org Washington DC 20037-2990 Printed on 50-percent recycled paper, of which 10 percent is post-consumer waste.

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PRESIDENT’S VIEWS Rebranding the Foreign Service BY SUSAN R. JOHNSON

There is much talk about cerned with “managing” the public attention on the real Foreign the weaknesses of the State portfolios of fat-cat contrac- Service. Department: its eclipse by an tors than bringing about real A second important initiative would ascendant Defense Depart- change on the ground. be the construction of a public memo- ment, a longstanding lack of If we want buy-in from rial to the hundreds of and money and people to do the the American people and development workers who have given job, confusion over what the their elected representatives, their lives in service to their country. job is, low morale, inadequate training, we need to foster greater appreciation Since the earliest days of our nation, increased politicization, decreasing pro- of the dangers and sacrifices that con- 231 civilian employees of the State De- fessionalism… The list goes on. front thousands of dedicated Foreign partment and the other foreign affairs Articles, investigations and reports Service members — whether from agencies have died in the line of duty. abound analyzing the problems and State, USAID, FCS, FAS or IBB — Two-thirds of them — 160, including proposing fixes, yet no clear path for- and their families each day in every cor- seven — have been killed ward has been identified, much less ner of the globe. since 1948, most in terrorist attacks. agreed upon. Many compare the huge Toward that end, here are two sim- The AFSA Memorial Plaques in the investment that we have made in our ple proposals, the first of which would C Street lobby of the State Department, armed forces with the paltry funding for cost almost nothing. Both would be established in 1933, already bear elo- our civilian diplomatic and develop- highly effective means to rebrand the quent witness to the sacrifices of these ment agencies, and point to the need to Foreign Service. brave individuals. But that location also devote significant resources to rebuild One place to start is in the speeches keeps them from achieving the visibil- these neglected institutions. and testimony of the Secretary of State ity they deserve. All of us support such efforts, of and the top political leadership, both in An outside memorial near State, ac- course. Yet it is strange how little has the White House and Congress. We cessible to the public, would not only been said about the need for public regularly hear our president and elect- pay fitting tribute to this honor roll, but recognition and appreciation of those ed representatives and senators from would also help inform and educate the who wield the instruments of soft both parties publicly acknowledge the American public about the nation’s power. Indeed, their image remains service of our military colleagues, as . It would remind all sadly out of focus and out of date. well as the sacrifices their families who see it that there are thousands of It is time to transform the archaic make. That is as it should be, but could unarmed federal employees around the public perception of the as a not the following words be added to world dedicated to promoting peace striped pants-wearing cookie pusher such plaudits: “and that of our diplo- and development through civilized dis- hanging out at official receptions, and matic and civilian personnel deployed course and compromise, rather than the demeaning stereotype of the abroad”? through violence and coercion. USAID bureaucrat who is more con- Regular high-level recognition of all I welcome your thoughts on the pros the ways in which civilian employees of and cons of these two suggestions, and Susan R. Johnson is the president of the foreign affairs agencies contribute to ways to implement them. Please e-mail American Foreign Service Association. our national security would help focus me at [email protected]. ■

NOVEMBER 2009/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 5 01-16_FSJ_1109_FRO:first 10/15/09 3:55 PM Page 6

CYBERNOTES

Story Not Available in China programs and rooms of party employ- Advocates of Internet freedom won hose who used to chastise ees trolling the Internet for sensitive a substantial victory on Aug. 13, when TAmerica for acting alone in the content, the censorship operation is a China’s Ministry of Industry and Infor- world cannot now stand by and massive entity and difficult to follow. mation Technology scrapped its long wait for America to solve But certain sites are dedicated to track- delayed and heavily contested Green the world’s problems alone. ing stories about it (www.newser. Dam Youth Escort program (www. We have sought — in word and com/tag/24612/1/great-firewall-of- washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/con deed — a new era of engage- china.html?utm_source=ssp&utm_ tent/article/2009/08/16/AR2009081 ment with the world. Now is the medium=cpc&utm_campaign=tag). 601697.html). time for all of us to take our share To learn more about the Great Fire- This program, introduced as man- of responsibility for a global wall and see which sites have been datory pornography filter software on response to global challenges. blocked, go to http://greatfirewallof all new computers sold in China, — President Barack Obama, china.org. To learn what is being done blocks political content as well as U.N. General Assembly, to evade censorship within China, visit pornography. It could enable Beijing Sept. 23, www.whitehouse.gov www.internetfreedom.org. to install a censor on every new com- For a transcript of the Sept. 10 puter in the nation. hearing on China’s media and infor- Although the major U.S. computer was only operational on Internet Ex- mation controls sponsored by the U.S.- vendors in China did not challenge plorer, not on Firefox or Google China Economic and Security Review Green Dam, a host of other technology Chrome. Moreover, flaws in the soft- Commission, go to www.uscc.gov. companies and lobbies openly opposed ware would have exposed personal the project and pushed the Obama ad- data to Internet spammers, potentially Do-It-Yourself Project ministration to decry it (www.mercu turning the entire Chinese computer Goes Wrong for State rynews.com/breakingnews/ci_1258 system into the world’s largest junk A long-awaited Government Ac- 0793?nclick_check=1). mailer (www.washingtonpost.com/ countability Office report analyzing the The discontinuation of China’s wp-dyn/content/article/2009/07/ 2005-2006 restructuring of the Non- mandate that Green Dam be included 06/AR2009070603305.html?nav=r proliferation, Arms Control, and Veri- on all new computers was lauded as a ss_opinions). fication and Compliance Bureaus of sign of the success of the global outcry Despite such flaws, Green Dam the State Department was released on and corporate conscience in altering will nonetheless be installed in all In- July 15 (www.wtop2.com/index.php Chinese policy. American pressure ternet cafés and on university comput- ?nid=15&sid=1721196). may not be behind the decision to re- ers in China. The restructuring aimed to consoli- duce the project scope, however. Green Dam is just one brick in Bei- date the three bureaus into two in an Rather, practical concerns and fail- jing’s wider Internet censorship pro- effort to eliminate overlap, thin top- ures may have precluded its nation- gram, popularly known as the Great heavy management, and better address wide release. The filter, for instance, Firewall of China. Comprised of filter arms and nuclear issues in the post-9/11

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C YBERNOTES

world. But the GAO found that State What was the most/least effective for- matic tool. “We have 180 ambassadors failed to meet its own goals. eign policy move by the Bush adminis- in this town, and everyone’s competing Though the number of offices and tration? The results revealed striking for the attention of a very small group senior executives were cut, overall ex- similarities between the concerns of of individuals,” says Subasinghe. “This ecutive staff numbers increased, while foreign ambassadors and American is one way for the ambassadors to ex- overlap and poor matching of workload voters, as well as a hopeful perspective press their opinions and get them to staff size persisted. The GAO sus- on the new U.S. administration (www. heard without being attributed.” pects that the bulk of continued over- washingtondiplomat.com/August% For more information, visit APCO’s lap is due to a failure to define bureau 202009/a6_08_09.html). press page at www.apcoworlwide. roles or follow established procedures Of the 184 ambassadors receiving a com. in their mergers. The GAO itself had copy of the poll, 27 completed it, for a created a report outlining standard response rate of 15 percent — re- The Great African Blame Game procedure for such actions in 2002 spectable for a first effort. APCO says Acting State Department Inspector (www.gao.gov/new.items/d03669.p that the response rate by region closely General Harold Geisel has come df); but few, if any, of the steps out- mirrored the overall response rate. under attack from many at State over lined were employed by State. There is no way to know whether or his August report on State’s Bureau of Inspectors saw little hope for im- not the response rate was shared African Affairs (http://thecable.fore proving the agencies in their current through all levels of development, in- ignpolicy.com/category/topic/aids). incarnations, favoring a return to the come or several other important fac- The report acknowledges that AF faces drawing board. The report recom- tors, however. Neither does APCO substantial pressures and has insuffi- mends that State either fully overhaul define what it considers to constitute a cient resources. But it describes the bur- the process and create two new and region of the world. eau, especially under previous manage- separate arms control and nonprolifer- Bill Dalbec, senior vice president of ment, as woefully inadequate and some- ation agencies, or gradually pursue or- APCO Insight (APCO Worldwide’s times downright incompetent. ganizational changes within the existing opinion research branch), acknowl- The harsh language directed to- agency structure. edges that the survey was not all that it ward past officials and operations has The full report is available at www. could have been, but hopes it will be- left some department Africa hands gao.gov/products/GAO-09-738. come an annual event. feeling persecuted by Geisel. One for- Devinda Subasinghe, Sri Lankan mer senior State official complained to New Poll Shows Diplomats ambassador to the United States from Foreign Policy that the report is “a Are People, Too 2002 to 2005 and a member of APCO’s massive slam” against Jendayi Frazer, A new opinion poll, whose comple- international advisory council, sees the the former Bush administration assis- tion was announced Aug. 19, could poll as a potentially powerful diplo- tant secretary for African affairs. change the way high-level is done in Washington, D.C. The poll, ti- tled “Washington in the Eyes of the In- 50 Years Ago... ternational Community,” was conduct- ow best to organize the State Department and the American ed by The Washington Diplomat and HForeign Service is a problem which is still open. It will APCO Worldwide, a global communi- come to the fore, from time to time, for one or more reasons, such as these: cations consultancy. It sought to assess New developments or increased complexities in international relations will the views of foreign diplomats serving make it necessary to streamline the current organization; the inauguration in Washington on issues of importance of new programs will necessitate a decision as to how they shall be adminis- to the United States and the world. tered; and new brooms, arriving in the department, will find ways of sweeping Survey questions focused on broad corners which have suffered previously from neglect. issues: What are the top three global — William Gerber, “Organizational Reform since World War II,” challenges? Where should the Obama November 1959 FSJ. administration focus its attention?

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C YBERNOTES

The report is based on an evalua- AF.” Geisel caps off this criticism by official. The one-day visit was for meet- tion done between April 20 and June recommending that AFRICOM take ings with embassy staff, a U.S.-Asian 5, 2009. Until May 7, when Obama over some of State’s duties if it fails to business council and Sen. James Webb, administration nominee Johnnie Car- better manage its portfolio. D-Va. According to the State Depart- son was sworn in, AF was led by acting The report concludes with a series ment, Win did not meet with adminis- Assistant Secretary Philip Carter III. of 19 recommendations (http://oig.sta tration officials. But a thaw in the While the report criticizes former te.gov/documents/organization/ bilateral relationship and a search for management, its harshest language 127270.pdf). The bureau will have to new approaches are clearly under way. was reserved for long-term institu- produce regular reports on its progress A month before, on Aug. 14, Sen. tional failures. Geisel dismisses the bu- for the Office of the Inspector Gen- Webb had been in Rangoon (also reau’s program as eral, the first of which was completed known as Yangon), where he negoti- “failed.” And he pins the blame for at the end of August. ated the release of Virginia citizen John content-poor Mission Strategic and Bu- Follow updates and reports on this Yettaw, who had just been sentenced to reau Strategic Plans on sheer “procras- topic at OIG’s Web site (http://oig. seven years in prison for illegally visiting tination […] or poor understanding of state.gov). democratic opposition leader Aung San performance measurement on the part Suu Kyi. Webb was the first American of missions and other officers.” Burma Back in the News political leader in 10 years to visit the The report also criticizes AF’s ap- On Sept. 18, Maj. Gen. Nyan Win, country and the first ever to meet junta proach toward relations with the Unit- foreign minister of Burma (also known leader General Than Shwe. ed States Africa Command, claiming as Myanmar), arrived in Washington — Upon his return, Sen. Webb wrote that AFRICOM is “misunderstood at the first time in nine years that permis- an op-ed for the New York Times argu- best, if not resented and challenged by sion to do so was granted to a Burmese ing that the U.S. cannot afford to ignore Burma and advocating a change in ap- proach. Webb criticized the sanctions Site of the Month: www.freerice.com policy and asserted that reopening Help end world hunger and expand your education, all from your office chair, doors to the West would allow the with www.freerice.com. This simple and elegant site challenges users to pick the Burmese people to escape their current miserable economic status (www. right word, identify the right country and otherwise test themselves on a variety of nytimes.com/2009/08/26/opinion/ subjects. For each correct answer, the revenue generated by ads on the page pay 26webb.html). for 10 grains of rice to be donated to the United Nations World Food Program. In a story on the Nyan Win visit, This may not seem like a substantial donation (it takes approximately 19,200 Washington Post writer John Pomfret grains of rice per day to feed one person), but the game is addictive and most users reports that U.S. policy toward Burma find themselves donating over a thousand grains in one round. With thousands has been under review for nine months playing at any moment around the world, the site is able to donate about 50 million and the results are expected soon grains of rice every day — and more than 67 billion grains since its inception in Oc- (www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/ tober 2007, feeding millions of people in 75 countries. content/article/2009/09/22/AR2009 While freerice.com would be commendable even for its primary function and 092202911.html). achievements, the site is notable for its additional resources. The site offers detailed According to Pomfret, sanctions information and links to further resources on the current state of world hunger and may not be lifted, but they won’t be campaigns against it. tightened, either. And more humani- Until March 2009, freerice.com was operated and owned by John Breen, but he tarian aid may be channeled to the has since donated the site to the United Nations World Food Program and enlisted country, as well. Bolder moves, like a the support of the Berkman Center for Internet and Society at . resumption of military-to-military re- With this newfound support and an expanding range of subjects, freerice.com surely lations and counternarcotics coopera- has a bright future ahead of it. tion have also been under considera- tion, he says.

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C YBERNOTES

WWW.FSJOURNAL.ORG Meanwhile, the administration has nus.net/artman2/publish/Interna Click on the Marketplace tab on the marquee moved ahead to engage Rangoon offi- tional_3/No_Proof_of_Secret_Myn cially. In the context of the U.N. Gen- mar_Nuclear_Program.shtml). AFSPA eral Assembly gathering in September, And Beijing has expressed its displeas- afspa.org Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at- ure with Rangoon over continued fight- tended a meeting of the Group of ing with ethnic minorities in northern AKA Friends of Burma, established by U.N. Burma that has pushed thousands of stay-aka.com Secretary General Ban Ki-moon; and refugees into China (www.reuters. Assistant Secretary of State for East com/article/asiaCrisis/idUSPEK29 American Public University Asian and Pacific Affairs Kurt Camp- 1010). amu.apus.edu bell met Prime Minister Gen. Thein Journalist Brian McCartan con- Sein, the most senior official to attend cludes in a recent Asia Times article CIGNA Dental the UNGA since 1995. that dropping sanctions may slightly In late summer, in an apparent ef- ease the population’s suffering. But, he afspa.org fort to encourage the opening, the adds, the policy shift “would further en- Burmese government released some rich and entrench some of the region’s Clements International 119 political prisoners (out of an esti- most controversial business groups” clements.com mated 2,000). Back in June, however, (www.atimes.com/atimes/Southeast the junta again arrested and convicted _Asia/KH26Ae01.html). In 2008, Cort Furniture opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi on Transparency International ranked cort1.com security charges stemming from the in- Burma as the second-most corrupt na- cident in May involving Yettaw. She tion in the world (www.transparency. Diplomatic Auto. Sales was sentenced to an additional 18 org/news_room/in_focus/2008/cpi2 diplosales.com months of house arrest, ensuring that 008/cpi_2008_table). And some ana- she will not be involved in the election lysts point out the rampant corruption, Georgetown Suites campaign scheduled for next year. The along with ineffective governance, had www.georgetownsuites.com junta is clearly determined to avoid a hobbled the country even before the repeat of 1990, when Suu Kyi’s party, 1997 sanctions were imposed. the National League for Democracy, To follow these developments on- Hirshorn Company, The won a landslide victory. line, tune in to the voices of those in hirshorn.com Whether or not easing sanctions Burma working from the underground will have a positive effect is a subject of for democracy (www.burmablogg SDFCU continuing debate. Advocates argue ers.net/), the words of Burmese offi- sdfcu.org that without Western parties to trade cials (www.mewashingtondc.com/) with, Burmese businesses will be and the analysis of country experts Strategic Studies Quarterly forced into closer connections with (http://uscampaignforburma.org/, au.af.mil/au/ssq forces that are unresponsive to U.S. in- www.usip.org/countries-continents/ terests. Rangoon already deals mainly asia/myanmarburma). WJD with China, Russia and North Korea. And for background on the sanctions, wjdpm.com But the country also trades with India visit the Council on Foreign Relations and South Korea, and its ties with less Web site (www.cfr.org/publication/ democratic trading partners are not 14385/understanding_myanmar.ht ironclad. ml?breadcrumb=%2Fregion%2F2 A recent report from the Australian 97%2Fburmamyanmar). ■ Strategic Policy Institute, for instance, When contacting an advertiser, kindly dispells fears of a Burmese nuclear pro- This edition of Cybernotes was com- mention the Foreign Service Journal. gram aided by North Korea (www.oc piled by Editorial Intern Mark Hay.

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SPEAKING OUT Merge USAID Fully into State

BY RAYMOND MALLEY

n recent years the American for- refugees and educational exchanges, eign policy establishment and in- Just when we most and manages U.S. contributions to de- Iformed public opinion have again need an effective velopment programs of the United Na- come to realize the key importance of apparatus to deliver tions. bilateral economic development assis- The Department of Defense de- tance — foreign aid — in foreign pol- foreign aid, USAID is votes increasing attention and re- icy. grossly underfunded sources in many countries to activities Development assistance is “soft and understaffed. that used to be the responsibility of power.” It fills an essential role not  USAID, such as community develop- only in attaining international political ment, roads, schools and clinics. This objectives and dealing with global trend has reached the point that Army poverty, but also in addressing the officers these days often talk and act growing challenges of humanitarian over who is in charge. Much time is like USAID mission directors. crises, failed states, terrorism, disease, spent both in Washington and the field Meanwhile, many Cabinet agencies climate change and a host of additional attempting coordination, yet recipient — Treasury, Justice, Labor, Agriculture problems. As such, it is one of “the governments and other aid donors re- and Health & Human Services, among three Ds” of foreign policy — diplo- main confused. These inefficiencies others — have created their own de- macy, development and defense. waste a significant portion of our an- velopment assistance offices. In addi- Yet just when we most need an ef- nual bilateral assistance budget. tion, Treasury manages relations with fective apparatus to deliver bilateral Contrary to popular belief, the U.S. multilateral financial institutions such development assistance, the structure Agency for International Development as the World Bank, and administers we have remains grossly underfunded manages less than half of our annual debt relief for developing countries. and understaffed. While attention is development assistance budget. And Two other government agencies now (belatedly) being given to these even that figure includes food aid pro- were spawned in USAID, but later deficiencies, development is still a grammed in cooperation with State spun off: the Overseas Private Invest- “poor cousin” of diplomacy and de- and Agriculture. ment Corporation and the Trade and fense. The George W. Bush administra- Development Agency (which I once tion deliberately placed two massive briefly headed). Both assist American Too Many Aid Spigots new programs outside the purview of companies to invest in developing To be sure, many agencies and en- USAID, setting up the Millennium countries, using tools such as political tities provide and manage U.S. bilat- Challenge Corporation as a separate risk insurance, loan guarantees and eral economic development assistance. agency and placing the President’s feasibility studies. They also encour- But there are too many spigots, each Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief and age such countries to purchase goods with its own manager, staff and budget. several other new health initiatives in and services from the U.S. Finally, Frequently they compete for person- State. The department also has offices there is the Peace Corps, a develop- nel and projects, leading to disputes dealing with humanitarian crises, ment assistance agency that has always

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S PEAKING O UT

been outside USAID. able course. But politically, it is a non- very important resources. Instead, let In addition to all this proliferation, starter. The Obama administration us pass clear, strong legislation that and the resulting inefficiency, USAID would face the usual resistance to puts all U.S. assistance activities in de- itself is now in a sort of limbo: partly in- change from interested parties and veloping countries under the control side State and partly outside, “neither groups that profit from the existing in- and oversight of State. fish nor fowl.” Its core office responsi- efficiencies. So it would have to expend This approach may sound unwieldy, ble for policy, programming and the massive political capital and time to ef- but I can attest to the fact that it works. budget, the former Bureau for Pro- fect significant changes, and do so in When I served in Pakistan, the USAID gram and Policy Coordination, was the midst of battles concerning the mission wanted to assist the Pakistanis merged into State several years ago, more gripping national priorities on its in improving the safety of their coal and the USAID Administrator and plate. mines around Quetta. We contracted some staff are now physically located in Further, and possibly even more with the U.S. Bureau of Mines to pro- the department. Yet most other important, State not only controls most vide an expert team for several years to USAID units, including the geographic development assistance programs, but carry this out. This initiative suc- bureaus, field missions and the person- treats aid as a foreign policy matter. It ceeded, in large part because one of nel system offices, remain outside. addresses problems with money, and my project officers worked with the money is power. Now that State con- team, while the team director reported Fixing the Problem trols key portions of it, it is unlikely to me as well as to his superiors in There are those in Washington who ever to willingly give them up. Washington. advocate leaving this mess alone. After So if anything significant is to be State should also make efforts to all, in its staggered and ineffectual done to make the administration of take control of U.S. relations with the manner the current system still foreign aid more rational and efficient, multilateral financial institutions from “works.” At most, they favor tinkering we must go to the next best option: in- Treasury, although such attempts prob- at the margins, promoting the peren- corporating the rest of USAID, and as ably will not succeed. But at least the nial panacea of “more and better co- many of the other agencies and entities department can thereby step up its in- ordination” among the various spigots. mentioned above as possible, into fluence over Treasury’s activities in this But a wiser, more responsible State. This would entail the following area, as well as those related to debt re- course is to try to improve the existing steps: lief considerations. As for the Peace situation. One way is to merge the var- • Abolish the position of USAID Corps, it should remain outside State, ious entities into a large, revamped and Administrator and its staff; if for no other reason than to avoid the reinvigorated USAID, possibly with • Merge the geographic bureaus appearance of being tied to short-term another name. In other words, we with their State equivalents; political considerations. could recreate the powerful foreign as- • Merge USAID country missions sistance agency that existed from 1961 into the embassies; Development Objectives into the 1980s — the one that was al- • Make development assistance a Remain Important most on a par with State and DOD, re- separate State bureau and specialty, These recommendations will disap- ported to the White House, was led by taking advantage of the fact that State point some and be strongly opposed prominent Americans, continually at- already controls several aid spigots; and by others — in particular, those devel- tracted top talent, and played an es- • Lobby for legislation to incorpo- opment professionals, sometimes la- sential role in winning the Cold War. rate the Millennium Challenge Corpo- beled “purists,” who believe that This time it might even be made a ration and OPIC into the new bureau foreign assistance should be used only Cabinet department equal to State and as separate operating units. (The small for development purposes, not short- Defense, as is the case in the United TDA should be absorbed into OPIC, term political ends. Of course, many Kingdom and some other countries. as well.) of them are convinced that foreign as- For me, as for countless experts and At the same time, we should not try sistance is already controlled by State. groups who have studied the problem to eliminate the aid spigots of other de- Theirs is a longstanding argument. over the years, this would be the prefer- partments of government, which are Though well intended, it is neither re-

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alistic nor practical. Our bilateral diction or conflict between political assistance program has always served and development objectives, so in my U.S. political objectives, however short- We should not try to view the purists have exaggerated the sighted they may be, and will continue scope of the problem. to do so. Any administration will insist eliminate the aid spigots Those who want U.S. economic as- upon this, so there is no getting away sistance to be used only for develop- from it. of other departments of ment purposes without any political But that does not mean that the content should push for greater contri- program cannot also serve develop- government, which are butions to the programs of the multi- ment objectives. I have managed lateral entities like the World Bank, the large aid programs in countries of important resources. various regional banks and the United great political importance to the U.S. Nations. These institutions generally — Pakistan and the Democratic Re- do not have political objectives, and public of the Congo (formerly Zaire), Washington carries great weight in for example. The assistance we pro- alleviation projects: agricultural them. Yet only about a fourth or less vided to those countries at the time growth, health, roads, training, civic of total U.S. economic development was meant to help achieve political participation and the like. funds are channeled through them. objectives. But we used those re- This pattern has been repeated in Raising the multilateral percentage to sources to meet real development numerous countries; Egypt is a prime one-third or more of total assistance needs and carry out effective poverty example. Usually there is no contra- might be a realistic objective.

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Make Development Assistance professionals could reasonably aspire adoption and implementation of these a Separate Specialty to become ambassadors, while other recommendations a tall order. Still, Within State, I believe that devel- officers might become directors of bi- the case for action is compelling, and opment assistance should be made a lateral aid programs. This would boost the long-term advantages to U.S. for- separate cone (specialty), akin to exist- morale and performance across the eign policy are obvious. ■ ing generalist career tracks such as po- Foreign Service, and help recruit the litical, economic, public diplomacy and best people for the key work of eco- Raymond Malley, a retired Senior For- consular. USAID and other merged nomic development. eign Service officer, spent 23 years in agency professionals would become There is one other major advantage operational and management positions fully equal to their State colleagues, to merging USAID and other develop- with USAID, and performed numer- and able to take advantage of similar ment assistance spigots into State. It ous consulting assignments for the growth opportunities (which often is would increase their cumulative power agency thereafter. After retiring from not the case today). They would be ex- and ability to fight the turf battles that the Foreign Service, he pursued a sec- pected to spend part of their careers Washington agencies are always en- ond career as a senior executive with a outside their specialty, serving as an gaged in, especially vis-à-vis Defense large global Korean industrial manu- economic officer, for example. and Treasury in the case of foreign aid. facturing group. A resident of Han- As part of such an approach, politi- Our nation’s international and do- over, N.H., and McLean, Va., he now cal-cone FSOs and other generalists mestic problems, to say nothing of the teaches international affairs at the In- might spend tours as foreign aid pro- massively antagonistic nature of cur- stitute for Lifelong Education at Dart- gram officers. Senior development rent political and civil discourse, make mouth College.

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FS KNOW-HOW Coping With Dietary Restrictions Overseas

BY KELLY ARMSTRONG

ou’ve just gotten the news: One are available locally. Depending on of your family members has a Research, patience where you live, grocery stores, phar- Yserious food allergy or intoler- and creativity will macies or health food stores may even ance. If it’s just a matter of avoiding enable FS families to carry much of what you need. certain foods (say, peanuts), that is chal- make even major Ask around the embassy and expa- lenging enough. But what do you do dietary changes. triate community, as well. For exam- when entire segments of the diet — ple, a chance meeting at a friend’s soy, gluten, wheat, milk or eggs, for ex-  house led me to a gluten-free baker in ample — have to be cut out com- San Jose, Costa Rica. And a trip to the pletely? How can you possibly make drugstore in Zagreb revealed a source the changes required, especially while tine for obtaining those supplies. of cookies and crackers suitable for my living overseas? Fortunately, if you have an Internet family. When our middle child was 5 we connection and access to the unclassi- Finally, don’t forget to talk to your learned, largely by trial and error, that fied diplomatic pouch, then almost local doctor at post; he or she can give he and his little brother are unable to anything you could find in the United you excellent advice on how and where tolerate wheat and milk. Goodbye to States will be available to you. Ama- to obtain the many ingredients. I bread, cookies, cakes, crackers, noo- zon.com’s grocery section has a phe- learned from my doctor in Zagreb that dles, yogurt, ice cream, milk, cheese nomenal selection of items to suit gluten-free flour is actually available and pizza! I was sure my children almost any specialized diet, including through the larger pharmacies in Croa- would starve before I could learn what gluten-free, wheat-free, milk-free and tia, and can even be prescribed for chil- to feed them. soy-free products. It will ship to diplo- dren with celiac disease, who require a If you find yourself in a similar situ- matic pouch addresses; and with an gluten-free diet. ation, and overseas on the far side of “Amazon Prime” membership (which the world to boot, don’t panic. Read on will likely pay for itself in short order), Cook Fearlessly to find some practical nuts-and-bolts shipping is free. The Internet is your friend in information on how to start restructur- A little additional research will searching for ways to feed your family. ing your life. likely turn up online specialty or health Whatever your dietary needs, you can food stores that cater to your specific find blogs and discussion groups that Establish a requirements. If possible, set up sub- will address them, as well as cookbooks Secure Supply Line scriptions to items you need in bulk or and countless free recipes. Besides If you are the cook in a family like order frequently, so that you’ll always moral support, you’ll find suggestions ours, and find that your entire diet have those supplies on hand. you might never have thought of oth- needs to be rebuilt from the ground up, Online international forums such as erwise. I was having difficulty finding you will quickly learn that you need a those on Yahoo! can help you locate substitutions for milk in many of my lot of ingredients you might never have others with similar restrictions and find recipes until, by way of an Internet heard of before. The first and most im- local specialty stores. You’ll also want forum and a used book sale, I stum- portant thing to do is to establish a rou- to find out what specialty ingredients bled onto a cookbook that recom-

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mended using soy-based infant for- workspace. From start to finish, I can mula. have a loaf in the breadmaker in less Don’t be afraid to try new recipes, The Internet is your than five minutes. I also frequently make interesting substitutions or adapt bake some variety of muffins or ba- favorite recipes to new ingredients. friend in searching for nana bread, so I have a shorthand ver- This will require a bit of imagination, sion of those recipes written down and but sometimes the results are surpris- ways to feed your family. taped up inside my cabinet at my ingly good. Our family loves frittatas workspace. With everything within (an Italian egg dish rather like a crust- reach, I can get a pan of muffins into less quiche), but given our problems the oven and have the bowl washed in with dairy products, using milk and less time than it takes the oven to pre- cheese was completely out of the ques- heat. tion. In desperation one day, I instead Get Organized In the process of restructuring your added chicken stock to the eggs. The Radical dietary changes sometimes family’s diet, you may find yourself results were spectacular, and now I do require making from scratch many of spending a lot of time doing things the same with plain scrambled eggs. the foods you used to buy pre-pack- you never even thought of before. Even my picky eaters devour them. aged. If so, make sure you get the Whether it’s shopping for esoteric in- Get a good cookbook and go on a equipment you need. Internet forums gredients or baking something every culinary world tour! Many Asian dishes and specialty cookbooks are excellent day, you may quickly find that what use little or no dairy or wheat, making sources for tips on what others with was already a busy schedule can be- them perfect for a large number of al- similar problems have found useful. come overwhelming. But the good lergic or intolerant people. And histor- For instance, a gluten-free household news is that you will eventually settle ically, soy was unknown in the Middle will likely need both a breadmaker and into a new routine, especially if the East, making many dishes from that re- a heavy-duty mixer. Our wheat- and whole family pulls together. gion suitable for those who can’t ingest dairy-free household also uses a tortilla If finances allow, consider hiring that plant. maker and soymilk maker weekly, if extra help around the house, at least Be patient. Don’t forget that when not daily. for the first few months. Whether it’s implementing a new diet, it takes time Whatever you purchase, make sure a maid who comes in once a week to to find something all of you can live you get a product that will stand up to do the cleaning or a high school stu- with — especially if your house, like frequent use. Online product reviews dent who works off some community mine, is full of picky eaters. Talk to by satisfied, or dissatisfied, customers service hours as a mother’s helper, your doctor or pediatrician about the are an excellent way to judge whether every little bit helps. necessity for multivitamins, and inves- a product will be right for your family. The lifestyle changes that often tigate cookbooks like Jessica Seinfeld’s The tortilla maker I purchased was ac- come with a change in diet can be Deceptively Delicious. She provides tually panned in the reviews, but the huge. But with a little research, pa- practical, step-by-step instructions for reviewers’ stated needs were so differ- tience and willingness to try the un- ‘secretly’ introducing fruits and vegeta- ent from mine that I knew it would usual, you can make the transition bles into dishes; I find her ideas an ex- work perfectly for me. It turned out work. ■ cellent starting place for ways to round to be the best thing I could have pur- out our family’s nutrition. chased. Kelly Armstrong is a freelance writer, Most importantly, don’t be afraid to Once you’ve gotten the equipment Foreign Service spouse and former fail. There are bound to be meals that you need, make sure your kitchen is State Department employee who looked good in the cookbook but that organized to support the cooking you served in Frankfurt and Tel Aviv. She no one, not even the cook, wants to eat. do most frequently. I make bread has since lived in Jakarta, Frankfurt When I find I’ve prepared something about six times a week, so everything I and Zagreb, and currently resides in horrible, I happily throw it away and need, including the recipe, is either on San Jose with her husband and three mark the recipe out of my cookbook. the counter or in a basket under my children.

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F OCUS ON FS AUTHORS

IN THEIR OWN WRITE Phil Wrigglesworth

OUR ANNUAL COMPILATION OF RECENT BOOKS BY FOREIGN SERVICE AUTHORS CELEBRATES THE FS COMMUNITY’S WEALTH OF LITERARY TALENT.

he Foreign Service Journal is pleased to present our annual Foreign Service authors roundup, in plenty of time for holiday orders. This year, in conjunction with steps to upgrade the Journal’s online pres- ence, we are also proud to announce an expanded and updated online bookstore where you will find all of these books, as well as theT volumes that have been featured in these roundups over the years — and more (www.afsa.org/ads/books/). Here is an annotated list of some of the titles written or edited by Foreign Service personnel and family members in

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2008 and 2009. The roundup was assembled with the the values of the Scottish Enlightenment to the swampy help of editorial interns Elizabeth Swift, Mark Hay and backwater outpost that would become his home. Amanda Anderson. During his life on the Potomac, Thornton served as This year’s selection contains a number of high-qual- city commissioner and director of the patent office. He ity histories, a very strong policy and issues section, a va- and his wife were also central to the bourgeoning social riety of engaging and important memoirs, nine works of scene of the age, helping to create the networks and re- fiction and two striking and unusual coffee-table books. sources that served as the foundation for Washington’s As in the past few years, a significant portion of our titles first cultural and intellectual centers. Brown’s account of are self-published. the life of this extraordinary figure offers rich insights Our primary purpose in compiling this list is to cele- into the early vibrancy and evolution of the culture now brate the wealth of literary talent within the Foreign taken for granted as a fundamental part of Washington, Service community, and to give our readers the oppor- D.C. tunity to support colleagues by sampling their wares. Gordon S. Brown is a retired FSO and former am- Each entry contains full publication data along with a bassador. He served as General H. Norman Schwarz- short commentary. kopf’s political adviser during the Persian Gulf War and As has become our custom, we also include a selec- is the author of two previous books, Toussaint’s Clause: tion of books “of related interest” that were not written The Founding Fathers and the Haitian Revolution (Uni- by FS authors (see pp. 36-40). versity Press of Mississippi, 2005) and The Norman Con- While many of the titles are available from bookstores quest of Southern Italy and Sicily (McFarland, 2003). and other sources, we encourage you to use the AFSA Web site’s Marketplace Bookstore to place your orders. Lewis Coolidge and the Voyage The AFSA Bookstore listings are linked to Amazon and, of the Amethyst, 1806-1811 at no extra cost to you, each book sold there brings a Evabeth Miller Kienast and small bonus to AFSA. For the few books that cannot be John Phillip Felt, editors, ordered through Amazon, we have provided alternative The University of South links or, when the book is not available online, the nec- Carolina Press, 2009, $29.95, essary contact information. hardcover, 125 pages. But enough crass commercialism. On to the books! Lewis Coolidge, whose diaries — Susan Maitra, Senior Editor form the basis for this account of a 19th-century sailing expedition, was the nephew of Billy Dawes, the man who accompanied Paul Revere on his HISTORY historic midnight ride. Evabeth Kienast and John Felt have edited Coolidge’s diaries of the five-year voyage Incidental Architect: aboard the Amethyst, a ship with a mission to catch fur William Thornton and the Cultural Life seals in exchange for delicacies such as tea, porcelain of Early Washington, D.C., 1794-1828 and silk. For Coolidge, a highly literate Bostonian and Gordon S. Brown, Ohio University the great-great grandfather of John Felt, the trip was the Press, 2009, $49.95, hardcover, adventure of a lifetime. His diaries give a first-person 192 pages. perspective on the sealing trade and also provide Gordon Brown’s newest offering fills a vacuum in thoughtful commentary on U.S. maritime culture. scholarship on the early history of Washington, D.C. In The text is supplemented by 18 illustrations and a exploring the life of William Thornton, a leader and ar- survey by Felt on the “Old China trade” enterprise, as chetype of the early days on the Potomac, Brown fo- well as his account of Coolidge’s life following the voy- cuses less on the emerging politics and architecture of age. William N. Peterson, the Carl C. Cutler Curator at the nascent capital, and more on the intellectual and so- Mystic Seaport, calls it a “worthy companion to classic cial developments so integral to its character. sea narratives” that “sheds new light on the early Amer- Although Thornton famously designed the iconic ican maritime trade to the Far East.” Capitol Building at the heart of Washington, Brown A native of central Illinois, Evabeth Miller Kienast brings to light his greater, but more subtle, impact on (1912-2007) was a reporter and arts columnist from the capital. A student at Edinburgh, Thornton brought 1934 to 1959 for the Peoria Star, where she worked with

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Lewis Coolidge’s granddaughter, who first introduced matic re-evaluation of the man. Jay Taylor’s hefty biog- her to his maritime diary. Also an Illinois native, John raphy boils down this wealth of new information into a Phillip Felt served as an officer in the U.S. Navy and as nuanced, authoritative and often sympathetic account a Foreign Service officer with the State Department. of Chiang’s struggles. Now retired, he lives in Alexandria, Va. After rising to power following the death of Sun Yat- sen in 1925, Chiang waged 20 years of constant war — Troy, New York, and the first with warlords, then the Japanese and, finally, the Building of the USS Monitor Chinese Communists. Taylor reveals how Chiang, far Stephen H. Muller and Jennifer from squandering aid and losing to a manageable insur- A. Taylor, Hudson Mohawk gency, heroically endured heavy losses only to face a Industrial Gateway, 2009, $8.95, fresh and consolidated enemy, resulting in his expulsion paperback, 35 pages. to Taiwan and international ridicule. Yet Chiang perse- Wasting no space, this decep- vered, forging Taiwan into a wealthy nation and a model tively slim monograph on the first oceangoing U.S. iron- for Chinese democracy while the mainland underwent clad of the Civil War packs a great deal of information the Great Leap Forward. Taylor does not deny that into its 35 pages. While focusing primarily on the rela- these accomplishments were accompanied by substan- tionship between Troy industrialists John Griswold and tial blunders and brutality, but the figure he presents is John Winslow and Monitor designer John Ericsson that a complex, real man, not the two-dimensional scapegoat facilitated the warship’s construction, Muller and Taylor of popular accounts. also explore the history of ironclad development, design Jay Taylor served as an FSO in Hong Kong during and performance. In particular, they describe the Mon- the Cultural Revolution. He is the author of five books, itor’s arch-nemesis, the CSS Virginia (better known as including The Generalissimo’s Son: Chiang Ching-kuo the ex-USS Merrimac), and the standstill battle between and the Revolutions in China and Taiwan (Harvard Uni- the two behemoths at Hampton Roads in 1862. versity Press, 2000), and is a research associate at the Muller’s special interest is in industrial, Civil War and Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies at Harvard Uni- local history, and he focuses on the central part that versity. Troy, N.Y., and her industrialists played in supplying the iron plates for the ship’s hull and armor. Muller and The Impact of China and Russia Taylor’s work fills in the details of a monumental chap- on United States-Mongolian ter of American history that is still a point of pride for Political Relations in the Troy locals. Twentieth Century Stephen Muller served in the Foreign Service as an Alicia J. Campi and Ragchaa economic officer for 26 years until his retirement in Baason, The Edwin Mellen 2000. He moved to Troy in 2003, where he writes for Press, 2009, $139.95, hardcover, several electric utility industry newsletters. To purchase 572 pages. this monograph, contact Hudson Mohawk Industrial “This book is a much-needed contribution to the crit- Gateway, 1 East Industrial Drive, Troy NY 12190. ical area of Northeast Asian history — an account that has long been obscure,” declares China expert and The Generalissimo: Brigham Young University Professor Paul Hyer, adding Chiang Kai-Shek and the that it “promises to be the definitive study on the topic.” Struggle for Modern China Written by two former diplomats, this work is the first Jay Taylor, Harvard University in-depth analysis of the political relationship between Press, 2009, $35, hardcover, the United States and Mongolia. The study elucidates 736 pages. why, despite more than a hundred years of substantive Conventional history has view- interactions between the two countries, formal diplo- ed Chiang Kai-shek with consider- matic relations were not established until 1987. Begin- able disdain for his perceived ineptitude, corruption ning with the experiences of the earliest American and, most importantly, his loss of mainland China to the officials, missionaries and adventurers in Mongolia, the communists. Recently released documents, however, account continues through secret meetings in Peking including Chiang’s personal diary, have prompted a dra- and Urga, the opening and subsequent closing of the

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Kalgan , the establishment of informant net- Christian Filostrat, a retired FSO, served overseas in works, military reports, the Yalta Conference and nego- Senegal, Congo, Romania and Haiti. His last posting tiations in Tokyo. It includes the roles played along the was as diplomat-in-residence at Howard University from way to eventual diplomatic relations by Samuel Sokobin, 1999 to 2002. Currently living in , where he works Owen Lattimore, Edgar Snow and Mike Mansfield, to support the rights of minorites around the world, among others. Filostrat is also the author of a novel, The Beggars’ Pur- Alicia Campi, a former FSO, is president of the suit (see p. 32). Mongolia Society and the U.S.-Mongolia Advisory Group, and heads the Chinggis Khan Foundation. She South Carolina 1775 — is on the staff of the American Foreign Service Associ- A Crucible Year ation. A career diplomat, Ragchaa Baasan served as Edmund Alexander Bator, first secretary in the Mongolian Embassy in Washing- American History Imprints, ton, D.C., with to Mexico, from 1997 2009, $26.95, hardcover, to 2000. After retirement in 2001, she was a special re- 352 pages. searcher in the Department of Central Eurasian Stud- “This is a book that every ies at Indiana University. She is now a freelance American interested in the real consultant in Ulaanbaatar. story of the nation’s history should read,” says historian Thomas Fleming in his foreword to Negritude Agonistes: Assimilation South Carolina 1775. “With careful attention to seem- Against Nationality in the French- ingly minor details and the role that personality and self- Speaking Caribbean and Guyane interest play in unfolding events, Edmund Bator has told Christian Filostrat, Africana us in this account of the first year of the American Rev- Homestead Legacy Publishers, olution in South Carolina just how fragile and tentative 2008, $36.00, paperback, the enterprise was, beyond the borders of New Eng- 240 pages. land.” This account of the conse- Bator’s account chronicles the reaction in South Car- quences of the French coloniza- olina to the call of the First Continental Congress for tion of the Caribbean and Guyana gives a general the colonies to unite against Great Britain. “Low-coun- overview of the history and an analysis of the relation of try” leaders tended to lean toward the rebels, while forces and people in Haiti, Guyana, Guadeloupe and “back-country” leaders were less sure of the utility of Martinique. According to Filostrat, it is an effort to breaking ties with the motherland. Based primarily on come to grips with the differences between “Haitian- original sources, including letters and diaries of the in- ism” and “Negritude” in terms of the historical, so- dividuals involved, the book affords unique insights into ciopolitical and literary roots from which both arose. the difficult and turbulent political process in South Car- While Negritude Agonistes is certainly an accessible olina as the Revolutionary War got under way. and informative primer on French colonialism and re- Edmund Alexander Bator is a retired FSO, whose actions to French policies in the West Indies from the 25-year diplomatic career took him to Finland, Italy, Yu- 16th century to the 20th, the real meat of Filostrat’s work goslavia, Kuwait and Washington, D.C. After retiring, comes from his scholarship on the Negritude literary he became a guest lecturer on the Middle East at and political movement of the 1930s. In particular, the Oglethorpe University while continuing to pursue re- book includes excerpts from a previously missing issue of search in early American history and genealogy. L’Etudiant Noir Journal Mensuel de l’Association des Etudiants Martiniquais en (The Black Student Cold War Confrontations: U.S. Exhibitions Journal), in which Aimé Césaire first used the term and their Role in the Cultural Cold War Negritude. For years, scholars had doubted that the Jack Masey and Conway Lloyd Morgan, Lars Muller issue — Volume 1, Number 3 (May-June) — still ex- Publishers, 2008, $49.95, hardcover, 424 pages. isted. Filostrat also identifies some of the overlooked or In this book, Jack Masey and Conway Lloyd Morgan forgotten platforms of the movement in its early days, demonstrate the importance of world fairs and interna- and presents previously unpublished poetry by Léon tional exhibitions to the political, cultural and commer- Damas and an interview with Frantz Fanon’s widow. cial battles of the Cold War.

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Well-known American architects vibrancy in the region. This lack of community leads and designers, including R. Buck- to the development of ethnic- and religious-based na- minster Fuller, Charles and Ray tionalism, a divisive and harmful force. If the U.S. Eames, George Nelson, Peter Blake, seeks stability and the advancement of its own ideals in Ivan Chermayeff and Thomas Geis- these newborn states, he argues, it must lend a hand in mar, played major roles in designing the formation of an effective and inclusive civil society. the U.S. presence at important According to Simons, these nations’ Soviet heritage has world expositions. In 10 chapters left a “secret gift” of potentially strong state institutions devoted to particular fairs and types of exhibitions, the that should make the task easier. Building on this, authors present the contributions made by these and Washington should adopt a pragmatic and individual- other artists, architects and designers. ized policy toward each nation is needed. It may take The story of how each exhibit was put together and time, but American ideals and interests can still take the response it received is illustrated with fully restored hold in this strange, new frontier — if we are willing to photographs of the event. The text draws on Masey’s make the effort. recollections, recently declassified documents, unpub- Thomas W. Simons Jr. was a Foreign Service officer lished memoirs and photographs, interviews with sur- from 1963 to 1998. He served as ambassador to viving members of U.S. design teams and others. and to Pakistan and as coordinator of U.S. assistance to Jack Masey served with the United States Informa- the newly independent states of the former Soviet tion Agency from 1951 to 1979, spending many years Union. Amb. Simon is a visiting scholar at the Davis there as director of design. In 1979, he formed his own Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies and a lecturer design office that, in partnership with Chermayeff & in government at Harvard University. He is the author Geismar, designed the Ellis Island Immigration Mu- of three previous books, including Islam in a Globalizing seum and the Statue of Liberty Museum in New York World (Stanford Law and Politics, 2003). City. Conrad Lloyd Morgan is a senior lecturer at the University of Wales’s Newport School of Art, Media and From Nyet to Da: Design in Newport, R.I. He has published more than Understanding the New Russia 20 books on contemporary design, architecture and de- Yale Richmond, Nicholas sign history. Brealey Publishing, 2009, $24.95, paperback, 168 pages. For many, Russia remains an ISSUES & POLICY enigmatic political entity and mys- terious land. This book is for us. Eurasia’s New Frontiers: As Russia expert Marshall Gold- Young States, Old Societies, man says, it is the “ideal book for the foreigner who seeks Open Futures to understand why Russia is and is not just like other Eu- Thomas W. Simons Jr., Cornell ropean countries.” University Press, 2008, $25, Highly readable, From Nyet to Da addresses all as- hardcover, 177 pages. pects of Russian life, from interpersonal mores to geog- Since 1991, Americans have raphy, cultural issues, government institutions and generally ignored developments in negotiation tactics. Initially published in 1992, this fourth the 15 post-Soviet successor states. edition provides an updated look at the Russian charac- That such a strategically important region could be left ter and current geopolitical situation. It sheds light on to stagnate under partial or full-blown authoritarian the dynamics of traditional Russian culture in the frame- regimes with sickly civil societies is unacceptable to for- work of events such as the March 2008 elections and the mer Ambassador Thomas Simons. As he explains in his Georgian conflict of August 2008. book, the U.S. has the potential to drastically change “Whatever form of democracy emerges in Russia, his- the region for the better, with substantially less risk and tory tells us that it will be based on many of the same cost than was incurred during the Cold War. forces that have shaped Russia in the past — geography, Simons sees the ailing civil societies of post-Soviet religion, culture and governance. The new state will be nations as possibly the greatest challenge to stability and neither European nor Asian, but uniquely Russian,”

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Richmond wrote in the first edition. And, he says, this is last decade has helped drive a sea change in relations still true. between Washington and New Delhi. India has moved Yale Richmond, a retired Foreign Service officer with beyond its Cold War–era nonalignment and relative iso- USIA who served in , , Poland, Austria lation and now seeks a greater hand in global politics, and the Soviet Union, worked on U.S.-Soviet exchanges economics and security. But at the dawn of the second for more than 20 years, including a tour of duty as coun- decade of the new millennium, Ambassador Teresita C. selor for press and culture in Moscow. He is the author Schaffer observes, U.S.-Indian relations have grown of From Da to Yes: Understanding the East Europeans jumbled. While the two nations maintain strong ties, (Intercultural Press, 1995), Into Africa: Intercultural In- there are few global issues upon which they agree. sights (Intercultural Press, 1998), Practicing Public In the new era, India’s cooperation in the global is- Diplomacy: A Cold War Odyssey (Berghahn Books, sues of nuclear proliferation, climate change and inter- 2008) and Understanding the Americans: A Handbook national financial reforms will be vital to global stability. for Visitors to the United States (see p. 26). These, however, are exactly the issues on which the U.S. and India cannot find common ground. New Delhi re- India and the United States fuses to budge, traditionally valuing a foreign policy free in the 21st Century: of outside influence, while America, expecting to domi- Reinventing Partnership nate any partnership, presses onward to no avail. Teresita C. Schaffer, Center Amb. Schaffer presents a striking analysis of the for Strategic and International diplomatic gridlock and offers a path toward integrating Studies, 2009, $22.95, the conflicting bilateral and multilateral desires, sug- paperback, 264 pages. gesting that America adopt a candid policy of inclusion The emergence of India as an to draw India into global leadership councils. economic powerhouse over the Teresita C. Schaffer served in the Foreign Service for

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30 years, including as ambassador to Sri Lanka and Kashmir is a chronic foreign policy deputy assistant secretary of state for South Asia. Since challenge for America. 1998 she has directed the South Asia Program at the An issue created by the British Center for Strategic and International Studies. partition of the Indian subconti- nent in 1947, the Kashmir im- The Iranian Nuclear Crisis: broglio has engaged successive Avoiding Worst-Case Outcomes administrations in Washington for Mark Fitzpatrick, Routledge for three generations. Despite differ- the International Institute for ent levels and approaches to en- Strategic Studies, 2008, $16, gagement, no resolution has been reached, either by the paperback, 99 pages. two powers themselves or brokered by the international In this analysis of Iran’s nuclear community. Not even the acquisition of nuclear program, Mark Fitzpatrick probes weapons by Pakistan, turning the issue into a possible its relatively rapid development two-way nuclear conflict, was able to motivate either and offers suggestions of how to avoid the two worst- side to accept a comprehensive peace settlement. For- case outcomes: an Iran with an atomic bomb and a tunately, as Ambassador Howard Schaffer suggests in bombed Iran. this book, the Obama administration may be well placed Fitzpatrick reviews Western strategy over the years to explore new initiatives. aimed at denying Tehran nuclear weapons and wonders In his penetrating policy study, Amb. Schaffer cites whether or not Iran can, in fact, be kept non- new research and applies a wealth of insight based on weaponized. The “denial of supply” approach has been his own experience in the area to present a comprehen- ineffective in halting progress toward a nuclear weapons sive history of U.S. efforts to resolve the Kashmir dispute. capability. However, offering a fallback option that le- In a concluding chapter, he outlines fresh approaches to gitimizes enrichment in Iran is not the answer, Fitz- the problem. The book is part of the ADST-DACOR patrick concludes. Containment and deterrence, he Diplomats and Diplomacy Series. argues, are two possible strategies that may prove crit- Howard B. Schaffer served in the Foreign Service for ical in influencing Iran to stop short of building 36 years, concluding his career with an ambassadorial weapons. post in Bangladesh. Amb. Schaffer is the director of The author states: “A dual policy of engagement and studies at the Institute for the Study of Diplomacy at sanctions, with containment strategies targeted at lim- Georgetown University’s Walsh School of Foreign Serv- iting Iranian access to sensitive technologies and ma- ice and the author of two previous works, Chester terials, is still the best way to test possibilities for Bowles: New Dealer in the Cold War (Harvard Univer- Iranian cooperation while maintaining vigilance and sity Press, 1993) and : Global Trou- controls to limit the nuclear-proliferation threat. If en- bleshooter, Vietnam Hawk (Chapel Hill, 2003). gagement fails, the sanctions strategy maintains a basis for long-term containment.” Negotiating With Iran: Mark Fitzpatrick, a retired FSO, is a senior fellow Wrestling the Ghosts of History for nonproliferation at the International Institute for John W. Limbert, United States Strategic Studies and director of its Nonproliferation Institute of Peace Press, 2009, and Disarmanent Program. His 26-year diplomatic ca- $40, hardcover, 200 pages. reer included a stint as deputy assistant secretary for “A must-read for anyone who nonproliferation. hopes for (or fears) an American re-engagement with Iran. Su- The Limits of Influence: America’s Role in Kashmir perb focused Howard B. Schaffer, Brookings Institution Press, on lessons learned rather than festering grievances,” says 2009, $34.95, hardcover, 260 pages. Richard W. Buliet of Columbia University of Negotiat- Kashmir may have fallen out of popular media at- ing with Iran: Wrestling the Ghosts of History. “Lim- tention over the past few years, but it remains a diplo- bert is one of our few genuine Iran experts.” matic hot spot. A confusing issue and one that bristles This book is most timely. The Obama administra- with tension and periodic threats of nuclear retaliation, tion may be tentatively reaching out to Tehran, but

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what would happen if negotiations were to be initi- sor of international affairs at the U.S. Naval Academy. ated? How can they be conducted successfully? In a clear, methodical treatment of Iranian engage- The Next American Century: ment, Ambassador John Limbert throws light on the an- How the U.S. Can Thrive as swers to such questions. He presents four historical case Other Powers Rise studies of both success and failure to show enduring Nina Hachigian and Mona trends of Iranian thought, self-perception and behavior Sutphen, Simon & Schuster, germane to future negotiations: the Azerbaijani crisis of 2008, $26, hardcover, 368 pages. 1945-1947, the oil nationalization crisis of 1951-1953, In The Next American Century: the American Embassy hostage crisis of 1979-1981 and How the U.S. Can Thrive as Other the hostage crisis of 1985-1991. Powers Rise, two young foreign Based on what these analyses reveal, Amb. Limbert policy thinkers — “whose political coming-of-age was offers 14 principles to guide any American negotiating marked by the fall of the Berlin Wall, not the war in Viet- with an Iranian counterpart — whether the talks are po- nam,” as they note in the preface — collaborate on a litical, commercial or otherwise. In conclusion, he chal- compelling argument to abandon the “pure zero-sum lenges both Americans and Iranians to end decades of days of great power relations” in favor of a policy based mutually hostile mythmaking. on strategic collaboration. Nina Hachigian and Mona John W. Limbert, a retired Senior FSO, was ambas- Sutphen argue that instead of worrying about how and sador to Mauritania and deputy coordinator for coun- when the new, rising powers will diminish U.S. power, terterrorism. He received the highest honor of the State Washington should focus on how cooperation with these Department, the Distinguished Service Award, and the powers can further American security, ideology and Award for Valor after spending 14 months as a hostage prosperity. in Iran. A former AFSA president, he is now a profes- The avenue to a truly safer and more prosperous

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world runs through what Hachigian and Sutphen call “Down to the Wire,” published in the May-June 2005 the “pivotal powers” — China, the European Union, issue of Foreign Affairs, was one of the first to alert pol- India, Japan, Russia and the U.S. — nations that may icymakers to the decay in America’s Internet power. seek more influence and respect within the international system but are not direct military foes and are not trying Understanding the Americans: to usurp America’s role as a superpower. A Handbook for Visitors to Nina Hachigian is a senior vice president at the Cen- the United States ter for American Progress and a visiting fellow at Stan- Yale Richmond, Hippocrene ford University. Earlier, she was director for the Center Books, Inc., 2009, $14.95, of Asia-Pacific Policy and a senior political scientist at hardcover, 172 pages. the RAND Corporation. Mona Sutphen, a managing A slim but jam-packed volume, director at Stonebridge International, is a former FSO Understanding the Americans is a who served in Bangkok and Sarajevo, where she worked useful tome of cultural and histori- on implementation of the Dayton Peace Agreement. cal information intended to lessen any potentially awk- ward situation that may arise for foreigners visiting the Overtaken on the Information United States. Superhighway: How the U.S. In Richmond’s own words, he intends to “help you Lost Internet Leadership and understand America and the Americans, to avoid mak- What to Do About It ing mistakes and to make your trip a success.” He in- Thomas Bleha, BookSurge cludes idioms and expressions, recommended reading, Publishing, 2009, $15.95, a brief tutorial on partisan politics and a discourse on the paperback, 332 pages. differences between New York City and Washington, There is a good chance many D.C. He also offers practical information on how to ex- readers are viewing this article over tend your visa and a comprehensive list of national hol- a screen, perhaps wirelessly on a handheld device in a idays. moving vehicle. With all the newfangled speed and ac- Yale Richmond is a retired Foreign Service officer cessibility of the Internet, it may surprise many to know who served with the U.S. Information Agency in Ger- that, despite how rapidly American “wiredness” seems to many, Laos, Poland, Austria and the Soviet Union, re- be advancing, we have fallen since 2000 from the posi- tiring as a deputy assistant director for Europe. He is tion of global Internet leader to a middle-rung power. the author of numerous books on cross-cultural com- Bleha’s book examines the reasons for America’s fall and munications, including From Nyet to Da: Understanding the ways to restore our leadership. the New Russians (see p. 22). Regaining Internet supremacy, says Bleha, is of vital importance to America’s global standing. Increased World of Faith and Freedom: wiredness could increase productivity, economic growth Why International Religious and job creation, not to mention helping to provide so- Liberty is Vital to American lutions to such wide-ranging national issues as health National Security care, education, security and energy conservation. With Thomas F. Farr, Oxford so much potential, Bleha’s proposal — that America University Press, 2008, $29.95, seek to extend fiber broadband and ultrafast wireless na- hardcover, 384 pages. tionwide by 2016 — seems completely rational. In fact, By looking deeper into interna- Congress has funded a down payment on such networks, tional “trouble spots” that are ac- but that is only the beginning of a long process. With the companied by a religious component, Thomas R. Farr Federal Communications Commission tasked with pro- has constructed a cohesive argument discrediting the ex- ducing a new strategy for Internet expansion by early plicitly secular diplomacy that the U.S. has made it a 2010, this book has come along at the right time. point to employ. Thomas Bleha is a former Foreign Service officer and “The religious enterprise,” he argues, “could benefit Japan expert. A recipient of the Abe Fellowship, Bleha not only the individual but also the common good. Re- spent more than five years researching and writing ligion could sanction ideas of ordered liberty, justice and Overtaken on the Information Highway. His article, equality and, in short, become the very engine of a lib-

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eral political order.” Anecdotes illustrating the lack of Undrunk: A Skeptic’s Guide to AA religious freedom in countries such as Iraq, Afghanistan, A.J. Adams, Hazelden, 2009, Iran, and Pakistan support Farr’s main point that $14.95, paperback, 199 pages true religious freedom is a prerequisite for a stable, A.J. Adams recounts his first Al- durable democratic society. coholics Anonymous meeting as Farr draws an intriguing contrast between the reli- though it were his first day of jun- gious freedom promoted in the United States and what ior high — except for the part he calls a lack of awareness regarding this issue in U.S. about arriving drunk. The new foreign policy. He laments an “incomplete understand- faces, strange meeting place and ing of how to root liberal norms and institutions in highly seemingly closed cliques make him want to bolt out the religious societies” and calls for a reversal of what he door. Soon, however, he is surprised to find camaraderie, terms the “religion-avoidance syndrome” in American fun and enough motivation to return to the next meet- foreign policy. The book was reviewed in the Journal by ing. And he begins the process of dealing with his alco- David Jones (April 2009). holism, evolving from a cynic in denial to a transformed Thomas F. Farr is a visiting associate professor of re- husband and father. ligion and international affairs at Georgetown Univer- In Undrunk, Adams details his own experience using sity’s School of Foreign Service and a senior fellow at its the multifaceted Alcoholics Anonymous approach to re- Berkley Center for Religion, Peace and World Affairs. covery. He chronicles the rehabilitation process, in the Earlier, he taught at West Point and the U.S. Air Force process dismissing common misconceptions about the Academy. He served for seven years in the U.S. Army organization. From emotional outbursts to the extreme and for 21 years in the Foreign Service, and was the first measures employed to hide liquor, Adams jokes about director of the Office of International Religious Free- his struggles, providing readers brutally honest insights dom in the State Department. into life as an alcoholic. The lighter side of what is usu-

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ally considered a shameful existence is what sets this Secretary of State and former as- book apart from others in its genre. sistant secretary of Defense, about This book is not geared only to alcoholics. In addition The Other War: Winning and Los- to explaining the steps, traditions and history of AA, ing in Afghanistan, a volume in the Adams dedicates an entire chapter to the group’s lingo, ADST-DACOR Diplomats and which potential new members, friends and family could Diplomacy Series. find especially helpful. Ronald E. Neumann served as A.J. Adams, a former FSO, is a professional writer ambassador to Afghanistan from with more than a year in Alcoholics Anonymous. He 2005 to 2007. In this book, he re- writes under a pen name in deference to the traditional counts with candor and rich detail how “the other war” AA respect for privacy. unfolded during that critical period, shedding light on many heretofore unexamined details of operations, ten- The Efficacy of Pre-Departure sions and policy decisions. Cultural Orientation in Straightforward in describing failures as well as suc- Acculturation cesses, the book is must-reading, as much for students of Carla Nadeau, VDM Verlag international affairs who want to understand the reality Dr. Muller, 2008, $63, paper- of diplomatic policymaking and implementation in the back, 84 pages. field as for those who want to understand our nation’s Each year the U.S. resettles complex engagement in Afghanistan. thousands of refugees in its cities Ambassador Neumann’s insightful account is in- and towns. The stress of rapid and formed by 38 years of diplomatic experience, mostly in extreme cultural shifts is often daunting for refugees, the greater Middle East. Prior to his appointment as and managers of the refugee programs seek ways to pre- chief of mission in Kabul, Amb. Neumann served in pare them for more rapid and successful acculturation. Baghdad from February 2004 with the Coalition Provi- This study explores the effect of pre-departure cultural sional Authority and then as the embassy’s principal in- orientations for U.S.-bound refugees on their subse- terlocutor with the Multinational Command. A retired quent employment success. member of the Senior Foreign Service, he served pre- The author analyzed a sample of more than 15,000 viously as a deputy assistant secretary and as ambassador refugees from Sudan, Somalia and Liberia to test soci- to Bahrain (2001-2004) and to Algeria (1994-1997). ologist John Berry’s theory that ethnicity has no bearing Amb. Neumann is president of the American Academy on refugees’ experience of acculturation stress and suc- of Diplomacy and lives in Arlington, Va. cess and to explore his recommendation that orientation interventions should be made prior to the refugees’ de- Bangladesh and Pakistan: parture. The findings, presented in the form of clear in- Flirting with Failure in South Asia formation and statistics via a multitude of charts, tables William B. Milam, Hurst & Co. and graphs, are the basis for practical proposals for pol- and Columbia University Press, icymakers. 2009, $35, hardcover, Carla Nadeau, an FSO currently posted in Dakar, 256 pages. specializes in international displacement as a manager Bangladesh and Pakistan: Flirt- for the Department of State’s refugee programs in the ing with Failure in South Asia, the United States, Europe and Africa. She studied dis- 35th volume in the ADST-DACOR placed populations, political science and women’s stud- Diplomats and Diplomacy Series, makes an especially ies at The Catholic University of America, Howard timely contribution to the current debate on how best to University and the University of Connecticut. safeguard the stability of South Asia. The book traces the political, military, social and economic trajectories of The Other War: Winning and Losing in Afghanistan post-1971 Bangladesh and Pakistan. It is written by a Ronald E. Neumann, Potomac Books, 2009, $27.50, former ambassador to both countries with years of ex- hardcover, 256 pages. perience and profound empathy for both nations, who “Read this book and learn the lessons therein, or fail has closely monitored their evolution. in Afghanistan,” says Richard Armitage, former Deputy Ambassador William B. Milam takes a hard look at

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the realities of both countries, including the jihadi net- MEMOIRS works that threaten to turn Pakistan into an ideological state, and considers Islam’s influence on both societies. Danger Zones: A Diplomat’s He also examines Pakistan’s long-standing fear and hos- Fight for America’s Interests tility toward India. John Gunther Dean, “This brilliant comparative analysis, revealing the New Academia Publishing, 2009, inner workings of South Asia’s two most troubled states, $26, paperback, 240 pages. is a must-read for anyone interested in how and why John Gunther Dean’s life story they have evaded democratic governance,” says well- could launch a thousand Foreign known Pakistani journalist and Central Asia expert Service careers. This memoir re- Ahmed Rashid, the author of Descent into Chaos and counts his devout service to Amer- Taliban. ica’s best interests, even when following such a path Amb. William B. Milam, a senior policy scholar at the could be fraught with danger. His principled stances in Smithsonian’s Woodrow Wilson International Center for the midst of many heated controversies would suffice to Scholars, retired from the Foreign Service in 2001. He ensure his reputation around the world, but they also continues to take on temporary assignments for the led to his being ostracized and, ultimately, forced his res- State Department, most recently as chargé d’affaires at ignation from the Foreign Service. Embassy Tripoli (2007-2008). He was ambassador to Although born a German, Dean’s allegiance was to Bangladesh (1990-1993) and Pakistan (1998-2000), chief America from the day he set foot on U.S. soil in 1938 at of mission in Liberia (1995-1998), and deputy assistant the age of 12. After a stint in military intelligence dur- secretary of State for international finance and develop- ing World War II and graduation from Harvard Univer- ment (1985-1990). He writes a biweekly column for the sity, he joined the Foreign Service. Assigned in 1970 as Daily Times of Pakistan (www.dailytimes.com.pk). deputy to the commander of Military Region 1 for the

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Civil Operations and Revolutionary Development Sup- dealing with Southeast Asia Treaty Organization affairs. port program in Vietnam, Dean quickly gained an un- From 1958 to 1962, he was an economic officer in derstanding of the American military and experience Helsinki. After two years at Princeton University, he was working in a war zone. assigned in 1964 as desk officer for Denmark and Nor- A committed peacemaker, he brokered the deal that way at the State Department. To purchase this book, ended the war in Laos, and faced down an attempted contact him at 834 Lynnbrook Road, Nashville TN coup d’etat against the Souvanna Phouma government 37215. there in 1973. As ambassador in Cambodia, he was the last man out on April 12, 1975, before Khmer Rouge Jordan’s Jewish Drama Queen forces moved to take over the city. As ambassador to Lee-Alison Sibley, BookSurge Lebanon, where he was nearly assassinated in an am- Publishing, 2009, $18.99, bush, Dean reached out to all factions to promote the paperback, 332 pages. idea of one Lebanon. Danger Zones, part of the ADST A Jew walks into a school in Memoirs and Occasional Papers Series, is reviewed in Amman, Jordan, and asks for a job. this issue of the Journal (see p. 61). It sounds like the setup for a horri- During a distinguished 30-year Foreign Service ca- ble joke, but this is the story of Lee- reer, John Gunther Dean first served in , followed Alison Sibley. Uprooted and drop- by , Vietnam and Laos. He was U.S. ambassador to ped into a strange land, she recalls hardships familiar to Cambodia (1974-1975), Denmark (1975-1978), Lebanon many Foreign Service spouses. In Sibley’s case, she was (1978-1981), Thailand (1981-1985) and India (1985- determined to pursue her love of music and musical ed- 1989), after which he retired. He now lives in Paris. ucation and, through the experience, comes to under- stand how we may all find peace, even in difficult Foreign Service Family – Volume 3 circumstances. Rita and Eric Youngquist, In 1997, Lee-Alison Sibley’s FSO husband, George, Voyageur PublishingCo., 2008, took a post in Jordan, turning her and her teenage son $17, paperback, 432 pages. into a family-in-tow in a land antagonistic to their cul- This is the third and final in- ture. Undaunted, Sibley, an internationally renowned stallment in the memoir of Rita and soprano, became head of the Performing Arts Depart- Eric Youngquist’s Foreign Service ment of an elite Jordanian school in which the majority life. This chapter begins in 1962 as of instructors and students were Arabs. Her story of forg- the family moves to Princeton, ing relationships and then withstanding her “outing” as a N.J., where FSO Eric Youngquist pursued his master’s Jew is both intensely intimate and highly instructive for degree in public policy over two years. Thereafter, the any Foreign Service family member transplanted to a scene shifts to Washington, D.C., where he served as challenging post. desk officer for Denmark and Norway from 1963 to Lee-Alison Sibley holds a master’s degree in music 1967. While there, he attended night classes at The and education and has performed and taught music George Washington University Law School and served around the world. She was named the Rotary Club’s as editor of the law review. 2004 Woman of the Year in Kolkata, India. She lives in As in the first two volumes, the story of the family’s Great Falls, Va., is the mother of two sons, and seeks to experience is told largely through excerpts from the continue her mission of spreading music education late Rita Youngquist’s many letters to her parents. In worldwide. this volume, Rita focused most of her efforts on re- decorating their home, educating their children and Sweet Magnolias and English Lavender: working as a nursery school teacher for a local church, An Anglo-American Romance in additional to representational activities, as the cou- James O’Donald Mays, New Forest Leaves, 2008, $36, ple sought to maintain their family life through the paperback, 464 pages. changes imposed by the Foreign Service. While this memoir spans such perennially fascinat- Eric V. Youngquist served in Bangkok from 1955 to ing topics as life in the Deep South, conditions during 1957, first as vice , then as a commercial officer in World War II and Foreign Service life in Cold War–era the economic section, and later in the political section Europe, Mays’ story is, above all, a testament to the

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ability of love to withstand all odds Witness to a Changing World and flourish. This is not to dis- David D. Newsom, New count the other, numerous merits Academia Publishing, 2008, $28, of the memoir, including tales paperback, 388 pages. from officialdom and family life In Witness to a Changing that are well documented and 140 World, part of the ADST-DACOR excellent photographs. Diplomats and Diplomacy Series, James O’Donald Mays grew up the late Ambassador David New- on a cotton farm in Georgia and som describes three decades of served as the editor of a small-town weekly newspaper diplomatic experience during which he was often at the before the Army plucked him up and set him down in center of historic events. Southampton, England, to assist with preparations for The book, which Amb. Newsom completed in Jan- D-Day. There Mays met a Land Army girl, Mary, who uary 2008 at the age of 90, just prior to his death, is “a would soon become his wife (despite her father’s objec- terrific read,” wrote retired FSO Roscoe Suddarth in a tions). After the war, the pair returned to Georgia be- review for the Journal (September 2009). “Both per- fore Mays decided to go abroad once more to report on sonal and serious, it is a great admixture of sage obser- Robert Louis Stevenson’s travels in the Cevennes. vations and amusing anecdotes, including astute Soon after, Mays joined the Foreign Service and personal observations on many world figures. It also served in Israel, France and Finland. Upon retiring, the includes many delicious sketches illustrating Newsom’s couple relocated to England and settled into village life. superb comic sense.” Mays now runs a small publishing business, New Forest Perpetually “at the eye of the storm,” as the New Leaves. To purchase this book, go to www.newforest Yorker wrote of him in 1980, Amb. Newsom was in- leaves.com. volved in handling the Iranian Revolution and hostage

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crisis and the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, among cultural training, and the American International School many other foreign policy challenges. of Chennai. Earlier, she was international director of During a long and distinguished career, he served as very special arts at the John F. Kennedy Center in Wash- Lyndon Johnson’s ambassador to Libya, ’s ington, D.C. She lives in Bethesda, Md. ambassador to Indonesia and ’s ambassa- dor to the Philippines. He also served as assistant secre- tary of State for African affairs during the Nixon FICTION administration, and under secretary of political affairs during the Carter administration. The Beggars’ Pursuit After retiring, David Newsom was director of the In- Christian Filostrat, Africana stitute for the Study of Diplomacy at Georgetown Uni- Homestead Legacy Publishers, versity and also served as acting dean and professor of 2007, $36, hardcover, 336 pages. the School of Foreign Service. He was the author of sev- This novel, first of a projected eral books, including Diplomacy Under a Foreign Flag: trilogy, is full of detail, poetry and When Nations Break Relations (Georgetown University suspense — the perfect combina- Institute for the Study of Diplomacy, 1990) and The Im- tion for an international political perial Mantle: The United States, Decolonization and the thriller. Third World (Indiana University Press, 2001). Amb. Filostrat employs his expertise in African languages Newsom died on March 30, 2008. and cultures to craft a nuanced world so full of realism and humanity that one may lapse into thinking they are The Unofficial Diplomat: A Memoir reading artful nonfiction. This work provides a some- Joanne Grady Huskey, New times startlingly accurate (though with an understand- Academia/Scarith Books, 2009, able dash of artistic license) reflection of how American $22, hardcover, 208 pages. foreign policy is perceived and reacted to in certain un- On June 4, 1989, Joanne Grady stable, at times brutal parts of the world. Huskey was in Tiananmen Square, Set in the realm of Mobutu-era Zaire, the novel re- where she witnessed the horror of a volves around the betrayal and redemption of Zairian government attacking its own peo- Ambassador to the United States Molu Sakeseba. Bris- ple. On Aug. 7, 1998, she was in tling with plots and counterplots, the narrative captures the basement of Embassy Nairobi with her two small the venality and treachery of the opponents of democ- children when al-Qaida bombed the building. racy who seized power in some states in the post-colo- Unofficial Diplomat, part of the Association for Diplo- nial period. matic Studies and Training’s Memoirs and Occasional Pa- Christian Filostrat, a retired FSO, served in Sene- pers Series, is the memoir of an ordinary American who gal, Congo, Romania and Haiti. His last posting was as is married to a Foreign Service officer. Caught in ex- diplomat-in-residence at Howard University from 1999 traordinary circumstances, she was able to do some ex- to 2002. Currently living in Paris, where he works to traordinary things. In this book, she tells why living and support the rights of minorities around the world, working abroad is critical for Americans, and why she Filostrat is also the author of a nonfiction work, Negri- continues to do so, even in an increasingly complex and tude Agonistes (see p. 20). dangerous world. In addition to her experiences during the “Beijing Believe Me Spring” and, later, while helping Kenyan victims of the Nina Killham, Plume, 2009, $15, Embassy Nairobi bombing, Huskey recounts her time in paperback, 304 pages. Chennai, when India began to open up, and her work How does the son of a firm with disabled people in China, guided by Deng Xiao- atheist express his teenage rebel- ping’s son, Deng Pufang. lion? By befriending a gang of Joanne Grady Huskey, an actress and writer, has lived evangelical Christians and study- in Beijing, Chennai, Nairobi and Taiwan with her FSO ing the Bible, of course. Killham’s husband and their two children. She co-founded Global latest novel broaches the eternally Adjustments in India, a company that specializes in cross- sensitive topics of faith and estrangement, pain and

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love, through the humorous yet touching story of a 13- A Blondie Reader: year-old boy, his mother, an African pastor and unex- Old Wine in New Verses pected tragedy. James R. Wachob, Young Nic Delano is your typical wry, rebellious Authorsolutions, 2009, $10.99, teenager, save that his mother is a savvy and areligious paperback, 112 pages. astrophysicist. While a good chunk of his mind ob- This truly inventive humor book sesses over the discovery of sex and women, he also be- seeks to achieve an age-old goal — comes fascinated by the lives of his Christian friends. to build a better blonde joke. While At first Nic attempts to hide his newfound interest in not all of the jokes are new, their the Bible, but mother Lucy discovers the truth. Dis- presentation is unique and charming. A veteran of brief traught as she is, Lucy does not want to alienate Nic, so verse, Wachob skillfully conveys classic and newly she agrees to allow an African pastor named Dele to crafted humor through 105 short, memorable poems. live with them. Then tragedy strikes, revealing the Although the collection consists entirely of “dumb bonds of love and understanding that transcend reli- blonde” jokes, Wachob takes great pains to remove the gious strife and give Killham’s story its winning ten- groan-inducing stigma of that trite and dying style. He derness. asserts that his collection of jokes refer not to blondes The daughter of an FSO, Nina Killham lived abroad in general, but instead to a character, Blondie, “stand- until she was 16. She earned a B.A. in government from ing in for all naïve and guileless individuals — regard- the College of William and Mary and is the author of less of gender or hair color — with experiences that two previous novels, How to Cook a Tart (Bloomsbury others find amusing.” USA, 2003) and Mounting Desire (Bloomsbury USA, James R. Wachob has served in the U.S. military, the 2006). She lives in London, where she is writing her Foreign Service and academia, composing poetry at fourth novel. every stage of his career. Now retired and residing with

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his wife in Somerset, Md., Wachob continues to write Monroy presents the longing of verse for his parish newsletter and volunteers in a Wash- the displaced and distraught teen- ington, D.C., high school. He is also the author of Ba- ager with all the raw urgency of sics of Clause and Sentence Structure: A Handbook for youth. New and Experienced Writers (Vantage Press, 2007). After a lifetime of nomadism with her single, ex-hippie diplo- In the Distant Confines mat mother, Milagro (Mila) Mar- Nikolai N. Karazin, translated quez has settled in 1993 in with an introduction by Anthony Washington, D.C., for high school. W. Sariti, Authorhouse, 2008, She is a well-adjusted and successful youth — until a $20.49, paperback, 456 pages. sudden reassignment pitches Mila and her mother into A tale of the Wild, Wild East, the heart of Mexico City for Mila’s senior year. There Karazin’s first novel (published in she is swept up into the exclusive cliques of the rich and the Russian literary journal Delo famous at the International School of Mexico, quickly between 1872 and 1873) intro- descending into a life of clubs and drugs. All the while, duced Russians to their newly conquered and still rest- Mila pursues her search for identity — partially through less frontiers in Central Asia. With this work, translator a quest to find her mysterious, unknown father. par excellence Anthony Sariti becomes the “Karazin of Liza Monroy, the daughter of a Foreign Service of- America,” not only introducing the relatively unknown ficer, attended high school at an international school in Russian artist to the U.S., but bringing Central Asia to Mexico City. She has been previously published in the popular attention here, as well. New York Times, The L.A. Times Magazine, Newsweek Although the world Karazin depicts has changed in and The Village Voice. She is currently an MFA candi- many ways, his novel remains instructive. It offers an date at Columbia University, where she teaches essay enduring ethnographic portrait of the peoples and cul- writing. tures of the region and — though told with a sympa- thetic slant that views Russian and native alike with Translating Libya: equal sympathy, humanity and satire — a faithful de- The Modern Libyan Short Story piction of the depravity and racism of the czarist impe- Ethan Chorin, Saqi Books, 2008, rialists. $19.95, paperback, 238 pages. Karazin’s tale chronicles the fate of a Russian military In Translating Libya: The Mod- officer in Tashkent, Batogov, who has recently returned ern Libyan Short Story, author from the frontier wars with native nomadic peoples. Ethan Chorin presents 16 short With a loyal Uzbek companion, he navigates the stories translated from Arabic to drunken and licentious society of Russian exiles, op- English. Not merely entertaining portunists and megalomaniacal officials before he is diversions, the stories — with titles that mention impor- kidnapped by Kirghiz natives. tant cities and cultural landmarks — are the medium Anthony W. Sariti holds degrees in linguistics, his- through which Chorin allows his readers to delve deep tory and Chinese. He left a life of academia for a ca- into the culture of this North African country. reer in the Foreign Service in the 1970s, serving in The book is divided into sections of stories from the Yaounde, Kuala Lumpur, Tashkent, Beijing, East and east, south and west, reflecting the country’s cultural and West Berlin, Shanghai and Washington, D.C. Fluent geographical diversity, and includes short biographies of in many languages, he has previously translated a work the various writers. The tales trace the influence of the from Chinese and translated this work from the origi- ancient Romans, the Italian occupation and the current nal Russian. influx of foreign workers from Africa and further afield. In addition to social satires, love stories and fables, Mexican High Chorin also includes some of his own memoirs of living Liza Monroy, Spiegel & Grau, 2009, $14, paperback, in Tripoli. These aim to give readers a feel for the con- 352 pages. temporary reality of this rapidly urbanizing country that This novel not only captures the classic drama of the has been “off the beaten path” for a very long time. cusp of adulthood, but magnifies and revels in it. Ethan Chorin, a former FSO, served as commercial

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and economic attaché in Tripoli from 2004 to 2006, the cumstances surrounding his father’s suicide years ago. first to be stationed there since 1980. He has also served Pushed by his wife Mona to find out the truth of his in the United Arab Emirates. During the 2008 presi- family’s World War II struggles, Ted accepts a temporary dential race, Chorin was a member of the Obama cam- assignment that takes him to U.S. embassies throughout paign’s Middle East Policy Group. Eastern Europe. What follows is an adventure that moves from wonder and excitement to terror as the cou- Far Is the Moon of My Home ple is brought face to face with the dark secrets of a most Betsy Barnes, iUniverse, 2009, painful period in Czechosovakia’s past. $26.95, paperback, 506 pages. Betsey Barnes and her FSO husband, Harry, served in Ted Hlavacek escaped to the Bombay, Prague, Oberammergau, Katmandu, Buch- United States with his mother and arest, Moscow, New Delhi and Santiago. Her first novel, two brothers when he was 6 years Unforgiving Heights, was published by Penguin Books old, just before the Nazi invasion. in 2003. She and her husband live in Vermont. Though he was raised as a Catho- lic, his grandmother was Jewish, so Escapement no one in the family was safe. Jay Lake, Tor, 2008, $25.95, Now, in 1975, a recently married U.S. Foreign Serv- hardcover, 368 pages. ice doctor and jazz pianist, Ted is spending the Christ- Escapement — Jay Lake’s sec- mas holiday with his family in Boston when he receives ond offering of steampunk, the some alarming news from a cousin who lives in commu- term for science fiction set in the nist Czechoslovakia. Their grandmother’s death from a Victorian era — crosses the genres supposed heart attack in Prague may not have been what of alternative history, science fic- it seemed, and there is also speculation about the cir- Continued on page 41

NOVEMBER 2009/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 35 17-42_FSJ_1109_ITOW:firstlook 10/15/09 4:46 PM Page 36

OF RELATED INTEREST

Liberate and Leave: a child to be bilingual, however, has been clouded in Fatal Flaws in the Early myth and misconception. Strategy for Postwar Iraq Until now, that is. This book, written in simple lan- Don Eberly, Zenith Press, guage, makes raising a bilingual child an attainable goal 2009, $28, hardcover, for any family. Especially useful is a section describing 310 pages. common obstacles and solutions. Liberate and Leave is full of Naomi Steiner is a developmental-behavioral pedia- valuable lessons for diplomats, trician at Tufts Medical Center. An expert in methods soldiers and aid workers. In it, for teaching children multiple languages, she works with Don Eberly, an expert on civil many bilingual and multilingual families and is currently society and economic development who served as a sen- raising two multilingual children herself. Susan L. ior adviser to General Jay Garner and, later, to Ambas- Hayes is a writer and editor whose work has appeared in sador Paul Bremer during the earliest phases of the Iraq Parent & Child, Parenting, Woman’s Day and other operation, shows “how unprepared [the U.S.] was to publications. shoulder the burden of constructing a democracy.” Among other things, he cites the conflicting loyalties and China’s Rise: Challenges confused reporting systems at State and the Pentagon. and Opportunities A key change Eberly advocates for U.S. stabilization C. Fred Bergsten, Charles and reconstruction policy is to raise the priority of Freeman, Nicholas R. Lardy strengthening civil society. A premature rush to democ- and Derek J. Mitchell, racy — without first building broad multiethnic volun- Peterson Institute for tary associations that inculcate democratic habits — International Economics, actually sets back the goals of democratization, Eberly 2008, $13.95, paperback, 288 argues. In his view, that is one of the critical omissions pages. from the original plan for Iraq. The latest product of a col- Prior to his service in Iraq, Don Eberly was senior laboration between experts from the Center for Strate- counselor for international civil society at USAID. He gic and International Studies and the Peterson Institute is a consultant on economic development and recon- for International Economics explores U.S.-China rela- struction. tions, highlighting the fact that U.S. policy toward Bei- jing has not changed significantly over the past three Seven Steps to Raising decades. a Bilingual Child Eschewing such clichéd expressions as “contain- Naomi Steiner and Susan L. ment,” “isolation” and, for that matter, “engagement,” Hayes with a foreword by the four contributors strive to define a more nuanced Steven Parker, AMACOM, 2008, policy toward China. A competition today between the $14.95, paperback, two countries in education, science and productive ca- 224 pages. pacity is compared to the space race between the Soviet With the advent of globaliza- Union and the United States in the 1950s. “On bal- tion, a second, third or ump- ance,” the authors conclude, “China’s rise could turn out teenth language has become a nearly indispensible skill to be a good thing for the U.S.” in all walks of life. No wonder more parents than ever C. Fred Bergsten is director of the Peterson Insti- are choosing to raise their children to be bilingual. Re- tute. Chas Freeman, a retired FSO and former ambas- cent developments in cognitive neuroscience have re- sador, is director of the CSIS Freeman Chair in China vealed a wealth of information on how the brain learns Studies. Nicholas R. Lardy is a senior fellow at the Pe- a new language — and, as may be suspected, childhood terson Institute, and Derek J. Mitchell is a CSIS senior is the best time for such learning. The path to teaching fellow.

36 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/NOVEMBER 2009 17-42_FSJ_1109_ITOW:firstlook 10/15/09 4:46 PM Page 37

Honorable Survivor: also illuminates important aspects of Cold War history. Mao’s China, McCarthy’s Nicholas Thompson, a grandson of Paul Nitze, has America and the Persecution written articles for The New York Times and Washington of John S. Service Post and is a regular contributor to CNN. He is also an Lynne Joiner, Naval Institute editor at Wired magazine. Press, 2009, $37.95, hardcover, 450 pages. Adlai Stevenson’s The life of John S. Service Lasting Legacy was one of many unfortunate Edited by Alvin Liebling, firsts: the first analyst to predict with chapters by the rise of Mao and the Chinese Communists, the first Ambassadors George Bunn, diplomat to be laid upon the altar of McCarthyism, the Harlan Cleveland and first FSO arrested on espionage charges and the first James Goodby, Palgrave fired for disloyalty. Macmillan, 2009, $24.95, In 10 years of exhaustive research and with the aid of paperback, 272 pages. newly released personal papers and classified docu- This collection of essays is not ments, journalist Lynne Joiner has reconstructed Ser- so much a history as a nostalgic celebration of a man vice’s turbulent life. The result is a compelling tale of worth celebrating. loyalty under fire, great courage and resilience and, ul- Adlai Stevenson II played an influential role in the timately, redemption. creation of the modern world. He was essential to the Lynne Joiner is an award-winning broadcast journal- 1945 establishment of the United Nations and served as ist, news anchor and documentary filmmaker. Her work the U.S. permanent representative to the U.N. from has included assignments for CBS, NBC, ABC, CNN, 1961 to 1965. While serving as governor of Illinois, he NPR, Christian Science Monitor Radio, Newsweek and mounted two presidential campaigns, in 1952 and 1956, L.A. Times Magazine. and created the basis for modern nonproliferation struc- tures from 1963 to 1996. In this volume, Stevenson's The Hawk and the Dove: colleagues and family members give insight into his po- Paul Nitze, George Kennan, sitions on various policy issues, focusing especially on and the History of the political ethics, international cooperation and leadership, Cold War and nuclear nonproliferation. Nicholas Thompson, Editor Alvin Liebling, a retired administrative law Henry Holt and Company, judge, former Justice Department and Environmental 2009, $27.50, hardcover, Protection Agency attorney and Northwestern Univer- 403 pages. sity lecturer, lives with his wife in Chicago. Ambassador Like the United States and George Bunn was the first general counsel for the U.S. Russia during the Cold War era, Arms Control and Disarmament Agency and later Paul Nitze and George Kennan did not agree when it served as ambassador to the Geneva Disarmament Con- came to policy. Kennan, the “dove,” believed America ference. Ambassador Harlan Cleveland served as Pres- must end its dependence on nuclear weapons, whereas ident Lyndon Johnson’s to NATO and, earlier, as his counterpart, the hawkish Nitze, advocated rearma- assistant secretary of State for international organization ment. Despite this, they maintained a lasting friendship affairs. Retired Senior Foreign Service officer James throughout the Cold War and both played influential Goodby served as ambassador to Finland and vice chair- roles in policymaking. man of the U.S. delegation to the Strategic Arms Re- Their remarkable careers are certainly deserving of duction Talks. He is currently a senior fellow at the attention in their own right, but through the prism of Brookings Institute and a member of the Bipartisan Se- Nitze and Kennan’s lives, author Nicholas Thompson curity Group.

NOVEMBER 2009/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 37 17-42_FSJ_1109_ITOW:firstlook 10/15/09 4:46 PM Page 38

OF RELATED INTEREST

Human Rights, Perestroika, $4 billion has been thrown over 10 years. Yet most and the End of the Cold War Haitians still live on one dollar a day or less, and their Anatoly Adamishin and country does not show even nominal improvement. Richard Schifter, United States While the analysis and the solutions to this dilemma are Institute of Peace Press, 2009, complex and well-developed, the message is a simple $24.95, paperback, 356 pages. one: foreign aid will be ineffectual so long as the recip- This joint memoir brings ient government is so poorly organized and self-serving readers behind the scenes on that the money never reaches its citizens. both sides of the Cold War, as it A professor at the Heinz School of Public Policy and recounts the friendship between Management at Carnegie Mellon University in Aus- Assistant Secretary of State Richard Schifter and Soviet tralia, Terry F. Buss was previously director of interna- Deputy Foreign Minister Anatoly Adamishin, which tional programs at the National Academy of Public began in 1987 when the two first met to discuss human Administration. Adam Gardner is a graduate student of rights. Each author offers his own take on the same set public administration at the University of Southern Cal- of events in alternating chapters, and the result is a body ifornia. of practical insights into effective diplomacy between Edward J. Perkins served as ambassador to Liberia Russia and the United States that is still relevant today. and South Africa, ambassador to the United Nations and As Soviet specialist and retired FSO Jack Matlock ob- U.S. representative to the U.N. Security Council and serves, Adamishin and Schifter “provide valuable insight ambassador to Australia, retiring as a career minister in into negotiations that have received little attention as the U.S. Foreign Service in 1996. He is a professor compared to those on arms control and geopolitical is- emeritus of the School of International and Area Stud- sues.” ies at the University of Oklahoma. A career diplomat in the foreign ministry of both the Soviet Union and the Russian Federation, Anatoly Thomas Barclay, 1728-1793: Adamishin also served as ambassador to Italy and the Consul in France, Diplomat United Kingdom. Richard Schifter practiced law before in Barbary entering government service, where his appointments Priscilla H. Roberts and included service as assistant secretary of State for human Richard S. Roberts, Lehigh rights and humanitarian affairs, counselor in the Na- University Press, 2008, $62.50, tional Security Council and special adviser to the Secre- hardcover, 407 pages. tary of State. This is the first biography of Thomas Barclay, the first Amer- Haiti In the Balance: ican consul to serve abroad and Why Foreign Aid Has Failed also the first to successfully negotiate a treaty with an and What We Can Do About It Arab, African or Muslim nation. Priscilla and Richard Terry F. Buss and Adam Roberts tell the story of this Irish immigrant who moved Gardner, with an afterword to Philadelphia in the 1760s and became a successful by Ambassador Edward J. merchant, ship owner and political activist — especially Perkins, Brookings Institution within the Irish community. Barclay, whose friends in- Press, 2008, $28.95, paperback, cluded Benjamin Franklin, John Adams and Thomas 230 pages. Jefferson, moved to France in a consular capacity in Terry F. Buss and his associ- 1781. A man of many firsts, Barclay also became the ates at the National Academy of Public Administration first American diplomat to die in the service of the set out in this work to address the problems of foreign United States. aid by examining the case of Haiti. Haiti certainly ap- Priscilla and Richard Roberts lived, worked and pears to be a bottomless pit for U.S. aid, into which some raised a family in multiple countries for several

38 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/NOVEMBER 2009 17-42_FSJ_1109_ITOW:firstlook 10/15/09 4:46 PM Page 39

decades, including 11 years in North Africa. They ing President Bill Clinton’s first term. bring graduate degrees in library science and interna- In addition to assisting the efforts of Hungary, an tional relations and a facility with foreign languages to untested democracy, to gain entry into NATO, Ambas- their scholarly research. Their work corrects much sador and Mrs. Blinken’s challenges and accomplish- misinformation on the period, and offers a nuanced per- ments included providing restitution to Holocaust spective on an 18th-century subject that is still relevant survivors, dispelling perceptions of American cultural today. imperialism and establishing the country’s first mobile mammography program. Vera and the Ambassador: Donald Blinken, an investment banker, served as Escape and Return ambassador to Hungary from 1994 to 1997 and as sec- Vera and Donald Blinken, retary-general of the World Federation of United Na- SUNY Press, 2008, $24.95, tions Associations from 2000 to 2004. He is the author hardcover, 350 pages. of Wool Tariffs and American Policy (Public Affairs A uniquely informed, be- Press, 1948) and numerous articles on education and hind-the-scenes look at diplo- international affairs. Vera Blinken escaped from Hun- macy and international relations gary as a child with her mother as the Iron Curtain in post–Cold War Eastern Eu- came down. A 2002 recipient of Hungary’s Middle rope, this dual memoir alter- Cross, she is a member of the executive board of the nates between the viewpoints of the American ambassa- International Rescue Committee and a vice chairman dor to Hungary, Donald Blinken, and his wife, Vera, dur- of the Friends of Art and Preservation in Embassies.

NOVEMBER 2009/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 39 17-42_FSJ_1109_ITOW:firstlook 10/15/09 4:46 PM Page 40

OF RELATED INTEREST

North from Calcutta Asian Diplomacy: Duane Evans, Pecos Moon, The Foreign Ministries 2009, $24.95, hardcover, 348 of China, India, Japan, pages. Singapore and Thailand In this novel, Pakistani in- Kishan S. Rana, The Johns telligence officer Tarek Durani Hopkins University Press, is assigned to acquire blue- 2008, $29.95, paperback, prints of a famous dam in 268 pages. neighboring India. During his Through painstaking re- investigation, he learns of ter- search, Kishan S. Rana has rorist plans to destroy the dam and kill top officials at filled many gaps in our understanding of Asian diplo- its dedication. The dispute over the territory of Kash- macy. In the process, he crafts an authoritative com- mir between India and Pakistan, both nuclear-armed parative account of the diplomatic systems of five powers, means that the success or failure of his mis- prominent Asian nations: China, India, Japan, Singa- sion could be the difference between war and peace pore and Thailand. Ambassador Rana highlights the in the region. The details of Tarek’s clandestine work, shared and unique aspects of Asian diplomacy as his love affair with an Indian woman and his deter- he attempts to answer the question: what, exactly, is mination to break through the layers of deception sur- special about Asian diplomacy? This timely work will rounding his mission all make for an authentic and be of great interest to anyone working in the area gripping narrative. and seeking to understand Asia’s approach to foreign Duane Evans is a former CIA officer with field affairs. tours on four continents, including service as a station A career officer in the Indian Foreign Ministry, Kis- chief. He received the CIA’s Career Commendation han Rana served as ambassador to Algeria, Czecho- Medal and the Intelligence Star for valor. North from slovakia, Kenya, Mauritius and Germany. He was a Calcutta, inspired by Evans’ work in South Asia in public policy scholar at the Woodrow Wilson Center in 1995, is his first novel. 2005, where the bulk of this book was written.

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40 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/NOVEMBER 2009 17-42_FSJ_1109_ITOW:firstlook 10/15/09 4:46 PM Page 41

tion and fantasy. “Lively and thought-provoking,” says India, she is unfamiliar with the traditional language and Publishers Weekly in a starred review. “Lake effectively customs. As she struggles to uncover her past and move anneals steampunk with geo-mechanical magic in an al- forward into a better future, Green, along with two legorical matrix of empire-building and Victorian natural friends, plots to kill the duke by breaking the spell that science.” keeps him alive. Set in the early 19th century, this odd world is full of The quest of the fiercely independent Green in this everything from sorcery to British imperial intrigues and supernatural world offers a fresh take on the relationship mechanical men. For example, there is a 100-mile-high between gods and mortals. wall that runs along the equator. A giant brass ring holds the world in place, and the movements of the planets are governed by giant gears. COFFEE-TABLE BOOKS The narrative is driven by three intriguing charac- ters, who weave in and out of the plot and several sub- Shanghai Art Deco plots as they journey across an imaginative Earth, both Deke Erh and Tess separately and together, in a world-building adventure. Johnston, Old China The author’s travel experience, fertile imagination and Hand Press, 2006, $80, command of historical detail are obvious in the novel, hardcover, 320 pages. which takes place in Connecticut, Africa and England, During the 1930s, a as well as on “the Wall.” As John Clute wrote in the striking artistic and archi- Washington Post Book World, “Lake has configured his tectural movement swept world-dominating empires, one British, the other Chi- through Shanghai. This nese, with huge and devoted attention to the last detail.” new style, reflecting the excitement and optimism of a The son of retired FSO and former ambassador Joe civilization moving into the modern era, was Shanghai Lake, Jay Lake lives in Portland, Ore. He has written Art Deco — a style not dissimilar to its American cousin, more than 200 short stories, four collections and a chap- but with uniquely traditional Chinese motifs. Though in book, along with novels published by Tor Books, Night various states of disrepair and modification, these relics Shade Books and Fair Press. In 2004, he won the John of a brief, bright era of Shanghai’s history still dot the W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer. Lake has pub- landscape (mainly in the former French Concession and lished two other novels in this series: Mainspring (2007) International Settlement). and Green (2009). Photographer Deke Erh and researcher and archivist Tess Johnston have been collaborating for more than 15 Green years. Their first photographic collection documenting Jay Lake, Tor, 2009, $26.95, the Western presence in Old China’s architecture was hardcover, 368 pages. published in 1993. The present book, their thirteenth In Green, Lake shifts “from volume, contains nearly 1,000 photos of public buildings, steampunk to lush fantasy filled apartments, villas, furniture and other objects in the art with exotic locales and exquisite de- deco style. A beautiful collection and a fine coffee-table scriptions,” says Publishers Weekly. book, the work contains detailed background informa- Green is an exquisitely beautiful tion on the images in both English and Mandarin. woman in a mystical world, whose Tess Johnston retired from the U.S. consulate general first memory was when her peasant father sold her to an in Shanghai in 1996 to devote her time to editing, re- immortal noble, the Undying Duke. He takes her to a searching, writing and lecturing. She has spent almost far-away, European-like country, where she is considered 35 years in Asia on a variety of diplomatic assignments, a jewel amongst his collection of women in the Court of the past 25 in Shanghai. Deke Erh distinguished himself the Pomegranate Tree. There she learns the ways of a as one of the earliest freelance photographers in China. courtesan. The recipient of numerous awards, especially for his pho- The book has underlying themes of gender-politics, tography of architecture, he has pursued an abiding in- slavery and race. Green’s dark skin makes her stand out terest in historical research on Shanghai and other parts from the other women in the harem. Yet when she later of China. returns to her native country, which seems reminiscent of To purchase this book, e-mail tessjohnston@ssbg.

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com.cn or [email protected], or write to Old This well-researched nonfiction work on Levavasseur China Hand Research Service, 70 Dong Hu Lu, Bldg. 3, and his aeronautical creations features 50 pages of ex- Apt. 201, Shanghai 200031. quisite photographs. Author Stephen King also includes information about Levavasseur’s ace pilot, the French The Passion That aviation pioneer Hubert Latham, who flew the mono- Left the Ground: The plane Antoinette in competitions in Europe and the Remarkable Airplanes United States and who died tragically in Africa in 1912. of Léon Levavasseur Woven throughout the narrative is important histor- Stephen H. King, ical background on the French military’s attitude toward Word Association, 2007, aviation from 1910 and leading up to the outbreak of $24.95, paperback, World War I, for instance, and other issues affecting avi- 158 pages. ation in France during that period. Very few people alive A retired FSO, Stephen H. King has been interested remember the golden age of aviation, from approxi- in aviation since his youth as an Air Force brat. His mately 1903 through 1914. And, beyond the small world French-born wife is a distant cousin of Hubert Latham, of early-aviation historians, even fewer persons have ever and King’s first book, Windkiller (Word Association, heard of the Frenchman Léon Levavasseur. 2004), is based on Latham’s fascinating and turbulent Yet he is one of the truly great pioneers in the field of life as a world-class pilot. Though written as a novel to aviation. Not simply a pilot, he was a genius who de- showcase Latham’s mercurial and peculiar personality signed and built airplanes — beautiful, graceful, sublime and how it ultimately led him to depression and tragedy, airplanes, some of which were many years ahead of their Windkiller is rich in details of this early, groundbreak- time. One of his creations, the Antoinette monoplane, is ing period in aviation history. hailed by many as the most beautiful airplane ever built. Stephen H. King resides in Northern Virginia. ■

42 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/NOVEMBER 2009 43-48 FSJ_1109_FEA:ship 10/15/09 4:04 PM Page 43

THE FS BLOGOSPHERE IN 2009

FOREIGN SERVICE BLOGGING HAS BOUNDLESS POTENTIAL TO PROMOTE U.S. SOFT POWER, FOSTER THE EXPRESSION OF DISSENT AND BUILD CONNECTIONS WITHIN THE FS COMMUNITY.

BY MARK HAY

riting in the March 2008 edi- This rapid growth is all the more remarkable when one tion of the Foreign Service considers the above-average mortality rate for FS blogs. Journal (“Welcome to the FS Many of the blogs noted in last year’s compilation are no Blogosphere”), former edito- longer operational. Even during the time it took to prepare rial intern Marc Nielsen this article, several blogs under consideration died and were praised the community of For- replaced, and ultimately surpassed, by newborn or revived eign Service-affiliated individ- blogs. uals who maintain Web logs for This cycle of destruction and rebirth Wrepresenting “a profound generational fits the transience of an FS lifestyle, but shift in the way diplomats see themselves the blogs’ expanding readership speaks to and their work.” That community now The blogs’ expanding their utility for both the writers and the appears to be exhibiting the growth spurts wider community. Watching the longe- characteristic of adolescence, pointing to readership speaks vity trends also reveals quite a bit about a promising future. who within the Foreign Service blogs the In 2008, just five years after blogging to their utility for both most, what types of blogs endure and, on become a popular phenomenon, the both counts, why. Technorati blog tracker counted more the writers and the American diplomatic blogging activity than 70 million active sites — but just 60 still lags behind that in Russia, Israel and or so were run by active-duty Foreign wider community. Syria, where blogs by diplomats can be Service personnel. (In this article we con- found even at the ambassadorial level. sider only non-official FS sites.) Eighteen But the FS blogosphere is assured of its months later, that number has doubled. place and seems set for further growth. So, by even a conservative count, the FS blogosphere is grow- True, its effects on the nature of the Foreign Service com- ing at a faster rate than the blogosphere as a whole, which munity’s self-perception, tolerance for dissent and contri- now totals about 120 million sites. butions to literature are all unknown. But there is no doubt of its potential to promote U.S. soft power, foster the ex- Mark Hay, a student at Columbia University, is a former ed- pression of dissent and build connections within the FS itorial intern at the Journal. community.

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Organizing Principles ger spends between three and 10 Keeping up with Foreign Service hours a week working on their con- blogs is not as difficult as it might Even by a conservative tent, which may be more time than seem. For one thing, despite its global the Foreign Service employee already reach, the FS blogosphere is a rather count, the FS blogosphere juggling a job and a family can sacri- insular community. One FS blog typ- fice. ically links to others of similar focus, is growing at a faster rate The following sample of sites is particularly when dealing with the simply a snapshot of the FS blogo- most-read sites. Ultimately, the blog than the blogosphere sphere at this writing. Distinctions be- continuum leads the intrepid Internet tween types of blogs are somewhat user, in a remarkably Escheresque as a whole. blurred, as many span multiple genres; fashion, back to the site where he or but the categorizations have been she started. The catalog of major, en- made based on the content of the ma- during blogs below is divided into jority of the posts on any given site. three broad categories — FS mem- ships in transition and families abroad. Neither the Journal nor the author can bers’ journals, family-member ac- At the same time, they often offer so- vouch for the continued existence of counts and, finally, critical or analytical lutions to those problems. Generally any of them, although efforts have offerings. Within each, there are var- speaking, these blogs have a longer been made to note only vibrant and ious subsets. shelf life than those of Foreign Service enduring blogs. The largest category, accounting for members and tend to be updated For a complete list of FS blogs, more than 50 blogs, encompasses more regularly. with brief descriptions, go to www. those that act mainly as journals of an Curiously, however, this group of afsa.org/fsj/2009/cfm#Nov. FS member’s experiences at a post, blogs is eerily void of the voices of describing conditions, family, travels, youth. With children more wired than The Journal etc. Many of them last only two years ever before, it is surprising that there Changes and Colours (www.chan or so, until the author moves on. are so few blogs expressing their per- gesandcolours.blogspot.com) – The These writers feel little need for spectives. author of this blog presents a broad anonymity because they rarely voice The final category is a somewhat overview of her life in and the culture criticism of their posts (though they do amorphous group of 40 current blogs of Iceland, combining travel writing, sometimes gripe about furnishings, that, for lack of a better term, we’ll call social commentary and personal sto- traffic or an interminable Fourth of “critical.” Because many of these au- ries. Well-written and interspersed July celebration). thors speak out against or question with photos for effect, this blog offers While these accounts may seem of practices by the State Department or up insights on life as a diplomat. interest only to the writer’s family and the U.S. government, they frequently At Post (www.at-post.blogspot.com) friends, they often have wider appeal retain anonymity. – This is not a traditional journal blog (for instance, to FS bidders weighing Their flexible content, increased in two respects. First, there are few to the pros and cons of possible onward reader feedback, online discussion fo- no words. The stories of At Post are assignments). Many are well written rums and occasional use of multiple told through exceptional photographs and offer up detailed travelogues, bloggers to generate content all allow of the monumental and the mundane. amusing slice-of-life stories and other them a longer life than either of the And second, though a single person cultural/regional insights. other groupings. And as a bonus, edits and maintains the blog, it con- The second grouping, accounting many share how-to guides, tips and tains posts by Foreign Service mem- for approximately 30 of the currently tricks on surviving FS life. bers from all over the world, creating tracked blogs, are those written by These critical blogs have endured stark, compelling contrasts in loca- trailing family members. These blogs, the longest and garnered the most tions, styles and tones of photographs. as with those written by Foreign Serv- reader attention; but, oddly enough, 240 to 120 (www.240to120.com) – ice employees, focus on issues of daily they have the lowest rate of expansion. A rather simple but elegant blog, 240 life, travel and culture shock. How- This low rate of growth in the most to 120 tells the story of a Foreign Serv- ever, the accounts of spouses and part- rich and fascinating field of FS blog- ice specialist currently in Vladivostok, ners often take an introspective bent, ging is due, most likely, to the time along with commentaries on Russian shedding considerable light on the commitments required. Technorati society, embassy life, travel and all the challenges of FS marriages, relation- estimates that the average active blog- other run-of-the-mill details of any

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journal. What sets this blog apart is that while it started during a tour in CHANGE OF ADDRESS Australia, it is still going strong. FS youth typically have

Slices of Life the time and resources to Adventures in Good Countries Moving? (www.kakiser.blogspot.com) – This contribute their insights, blogger tells memorable stories: witty, direct and exaggerated to the point so their relative lack of where absurdity meets credibility. Take AFSA Her posts are brief, sharp commen- participation in blogging taries on bridging (or failing to bridge) the gap between Arab and American is puzzling. With You! culture and on dealing with the bi- zarre, maddening requests of Ameri- cans abroad. Change your address The Guatemala Holla (www.guate ically a training journal begins with the online at: mallaholla.blogspot.com) – This blog, blogger’s preparations to take the For- www.afsa.org/comment.cfm which started out chronicling the ex- eign Service Oral Test and stretches all perience of “a low-level American the way to the first tour. For the diplomat living in Guatemala,” is now prospective or curious diplomat, these Or focussed on his new assignment in blogs provide invaluable details on the Riga. The stories center on the steps along the path to a career in the Send change of address to: strange and unexpected beauties of Foreign Service. AFSA Membership Baltic and post-Soviet culture, relics Absentee Voter (www.absenteevot Department and art. If you have never considered er.blogspot.com) – This account spans 2101 E Street NW a trip to Latvia, this blog’s charming, the process from registration to con- Washington, DC 20037 romantic and often humorous tales, sular training and contains an excep- not to mention the beautiful photog- tional level of detail. The personal raphy, will provide some incentive to angle and palpable emotion make it a reconsider. far more engaging guide than most Red Licorice and Jujubes (www. other available resources. atexgal.blogspot.com) – Until recently, The Warpiper (www.thewarpiper. this blogger’s stories were meandering blogspot.com) – Warpiper (so named pieces of commentary on life abroad not out of belligerence, but a love of and comparative tales of the differ- bagpipes) differs greatly from most ences between Honduras and Amer- other training journals. It provides the ica — amusing, but not extraordinary. unique perspective of a second-career However, she has risen to the chal- FSO, who describes himself as a “For- lenge of reporting the buzz and tur- eign Service officer, former cop, gun moil surrounding the fate of ousted and bible clinger, player of the Great Honduran President Manuel Zelaya Highland Bagpipe, Southerner with a and is now producing fascinating sto- capital S, malt whisky drinker, and ries illuminating developments in the Tater’s Dad.” Honduran political firmament. Diplomatic Incidents (www.diplo maticincidents.blogspot.com) – Al- The Training Journal though similar in many ways to Ab- The rarest and most finite of all sentee Voter, Diplomatic Incidents journals, these blogs are worth read- offers a little more attitude. Blogger ing even when they have died (al- William “Bill” Torrance, the son of a though none of the ones listed here Marine aviator, is currently in training have), as they tell a definite tale. Typ- for an assignment to Mexico.

NOVEMBER 2009/FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 45 43-48 FSJ_1109_FEA:ship 10/15/09 4:04 PM Page 46

The Basics of Blogging

hinking of starting a blog? Here are some tips on how to dard count. Site Meter (www.sitemeter.com/), Stat Counter Tmake your contribution to the FS blogosphere. (www.statcounter.com/) and Web Stats (www.webstats. The prospective blogger first needs to decide which tem- motigo.com/) simply track readership, but ClustrMaps plate to use to create the site. An experienced Webhand may (www.clustrmaps.com/) can count both track the number of attempt to purchase his or her own visitors and display their locations domain, but there is little point in on a small map for all visitors to see. that given all of the free and easy al- Most sites also offer privacy op- ternatives. Some basic options in- tions. These usually center on pass- clude ever-popular www.blogspot. Any blog taking a word protection, meaning that no com, as well as www.livejournal. visitors may view the blog unless com, www.wordpress.com and the critical stance or making they send a request for access by e- more professionally-oriented www. mail to the blog’s author. The author typepad.com. Of all the current negative comments about then issues the requestor a pass- options, the author recommends word that gives access. Google’s Blogger (www.blogger. the Foreign Service Many blogs have moved to in- com) and the creation of a Google ac- corporate varied forms and levels of count. Google Blogger’s interface al- should consider using privacy, such as using locking for lows for an excellent tagging and a disclaimer. certain pictures, documents or other archiving system for an easy-to-use- links, or using separate passwords and-search site. for different parts of the blog. This Access to a Google account also type of privacy protection is some- offers users the ability to upload what rare, however, and is not part documents, audio, video, pictures, etc. and link them to their of most FS blog templates. blog, cutting down on the time it takes to manage multiple It used to be common practice to include a disclaimer on accounts for different types of hosting. FS blogs declaring that the views expressed are those of the If one chooses not to go this route, there are several other author only and do not represent the views of the Foreign free, reliable multimedia hosting sites available, including Flicker Service, the Department of State, the U.S. government or any (www.flicker.com) and DeviantArt (www.deviantart.com). other entity. Based on our sample, use of a disclaimer is no The concerned professional photographer, who seek to longer so prevalent. ensure rights to a photograph, should consider a Creative However, any blog taking a critical stance or making neg- Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.5 License, available ative comments about the Foreign at http://creativecommons.org/li- Service should consider using a dis- censes/by-sa/2.5/, to protect and claimer. The language may be track their content. something as simple as the above Another advantage of a Google example; but many bloggers resort account is the availability of multi- to cynical or humorous disclaimers. ple applications like site meters, Finally, if one seeks a wide au- which track visitors to one’s blog, dience, it is a good idea to plug into calendars, interactive maps and an the FS blogging community. List- ever-expanding host of peripheral ing links on the side of the page to programs to enhance the blogging other FS blogs will usually gain experience. the blog recognition within the As with pictures, though, other circle and, hopefully, help to boost free resources are available. Even for Google Blogger, at www.blogger.com, visitor numbers. site meters, there are several free has many advantages for the beginner. sites offering variations on the stan- — Mark Hay, Editorial Intern

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Trailing Spouses Trailing Spouses (www.trailing- Here one finds the other side of the spouses.blogspot.com) – This blog is an FS experience, as those who have Despite its global reach, essential source of information on been repeatedly relocated around the “coaching, teletrainings, e-learning & globe share their stories and their the FS blogosphere e-publishing for expatriate executives, struggles. The blogs, predominantly diplomats, accompanying spouses, and maintained by FS wives (although is a rather insular international or mobile entrepreneurs/ some husbands chime in, as well), ad- solopreneurs/infopreneurs.” dress issues of family life, displace- community. FS Tips and Tricks (www.sixpica. ment and employment with a light, com/blog) – The savants at this site sug- sometimes intimate tone. gest useful tactics for dealing with is- The Perlman Update (www.theperl sues ranging from taxes to entertain- manupdate.blogspot.com) – Updated family diplomat and his or her signifi- ment to technology. Almost anything frequently and written with an almost cant other. They represent the best of to make a Foreign Service career easier brutal honesty — “follow the chaos as both worlds, covering cultural insight or more enjoyable can be found here. we tell our tales of life abroad” — this and familial commentary alike, for the The Ausmerican (www.ausmerica. blog directly addresses some of the most complete picture of a Foreign com/blog) – Despite being somewhat hardest issues relating to Foreign Serv- Service life. less navigable than other how-to ice family life. But the author never The Mas Alla (www.themasalla.wo guides, The Ausmerican remains a displays undue angst and tempers her rdpress.com) – If you ever wondered useful tool for its efforts to aggregate views with a healthy dose of hope and a what additional challenges to expect sites of interest to expatriates and trail- fondness for the mundane. Her ability when raising a child in Caracas, look no ing spouses. Run by an Australian- to inject sass and emotion into a family further. Both parents offer up their born husband now living in Welling- letter is incredibly endearing. perspectives on their recurring diffi- ton, the site brims with ideas for mak- Diplomatic Baggage (www.diplo culties with parenting and managing ing the most of a life abroad. wife.wordpress.com) – This blog, sub- an FS relationship. titled “Misadventures of a Diplomat’s Masha and Jeremy Went to Afghani- Thoughtful Musings Young Wife,” concentrates on the stan (www.mashaandjeremy.blogspot. These typically address a recent challenges of FS family life at the be- com) – Masha and Jeremy’s story comes diplomatic event, statement from State ginning of an assignment. Inter- as close to an epic as most blogs ever or world issue, raising provocative spersed with ethnographic notes, it has can. Their tales cover being abroad to- questions through sharp commentary all the trappings of a rollicking tale of gether, being separated by international and then waiting for the FS fish to start endurance and adjustment, filled with borders, entering the Foreign Service, biting. They offer the best chance for natural drama. preparing for a first assignment and the development of innovative ideas Irreverence Abroad (www.cbenjam moving. The dynamism of their rela- and the raising of serious concerns. inhaag.wordpress.com) – One of the tionship is captivating and inspiring. Calling a Spade a Spade (www.xcall rare blogs by a trailing husband who is E-mail from the Embassy (www. ing-a-spade-a-spadex.blogspot.com) – now in Madrid, Irreverence Abroad emailfromtheembassy.blogspot.com/) As the author proudly declares, this does not differ greatly in style or basic – This blog features the touching sto- blog is a collection of “rants of a For- content from any of the other trailing ries of a Foreign Service couple expe- eign Service officer on the things that spouse blogs. Though the last posting riencing exasperation and worry in matter to you — and matter to you not was in March, this blog remains useful Beijing. The authors give excellent ex- at all.” Ever passionate and typically as a unique male perspective on the amples of, and subtle advice on, deal- poignant, skeptical yet hopeful, he similarities and differences between ing with displacement and relocation. speaks with the authority of an edu- trailing husbands and wives, and how cated, insider bleeding heart. they approach the challenges they en- How-To Guides The Hegemonist (www.thehegemon counter. These are among the most re- ist.com) – This blog covers interna- source-rich sites known to the Foreign tional diplomatic issues, often not very The Both-Spouses Approach Service, rivaling or even surpassing any diplomatically. When the anonymous Essentially a hybrid of the journal materials provided by the Associates of blogger addresses a topic directly re- and the trailing spouse formats, these the American Foreign Service World- lated to the Foreign Service, though, blogs create a dialogue between the wide, AFSA or even State. his coverage becomes detailed and nu-

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their content and increasing the inter- connections and credibility of the FS A hybrid of the journal blogosphere as a forum for dissent and discourse. and the trailing spouse The Skeptical Bureaucrat (www.sk epticalbureaucrat.blogspot.com) – formats, these blogs create This anonymous blogger specializes in providing a continual forum for dis- a dialogue between the cussion of diplomatic news that has fallen out of the headlines. He or she Let Us Hear family diplomat and their reacts promptly and responsibly to even the most uncouth respondent or From You significant other. absurd situation with equanimity, hum-  or and meticulousness that would be valuable traits in any news format. Send Your Letters to [email protected]. anced, sparking lively, informative dia- Retirees’ Reflections logue with his readers. The other subset of the critical blog All submissions are Political Fermentations (www.pol category, retiree reflections, does what subject to editorial review iticalfermentations.blogspot.com) – thoughtful musings do, except even and editing for length This author is one of the more outspo- more openly and bluntly. Their au- and grammar. ken dissenting voices in the FS blogos- thors draw on years of Foreign Service phere. Never repetitive, trite or dull, experience to provide a distanced, yet he intersperses recipes for (and stories educated, perspective. of his attempts at) brewing beer The World According to Bill Fisher throughout his musings, as the blog’s (www.billfisher.blogspot.com) – If one You Are Our name suggests. wants detailed, insightful analysis of major events in U.S. foreign affairs and Eyes & News with an FS Bent beyond, then look no further than In these news aggregators, discern- Fisher. His credentials, as he states Ears! ing bloggers cull the news for stories of them, are as follows: “managed eco- interest to diplomats and either pres- nomic development programs for the ent them unaltered or with a dash of U.S. State Department and the U.S. Dear Readers: insider commentary. Regardless of the Agency for International Development garnish and delivery, they are among in the Middle East, Latin America and In order to produce a high- the premier sources for pre-filtered elsewhere for the past 25 years. He quality product, the FSJ depends diplomatic news. served in the administration of Presi- on the revenue it earns from Reinventing Public Diplomacy dent John F. Kennedy.” advertising. You can help with this. (www.publicdiplomacy.blogspot.com) WhirledView (www.whirledview.ty – Mainly a news aggregate site, Rein- pepad.com) – This blog was co-created Please let us know the names venting Public Diplomacy passionately by Patricia Lee Sharpe, a writer and of companies that have provided advocates “a greater role for soft power former Foreign Service officer with 22 good service to you — a hotel, in protecting America’s national secu- years in public diplomacy in Asia, insurance company, auto dealership, or other concern. rity interests.” Africa and Latin America, and her col- DiploPundit (www.diplopundit.blog league Patricia Kushlis, an interna- A referral from our readers spot.com) – Whenever there is an tional affairs specialist in Europe, Asia, is the best entrée! amusing, engaging or important story the U.S., politics, public diplomacy and about the Foreign Service, DiploPun- national security. It offers a cultural Ed Miltenberger dit will catch it, comment on it and explanation and incisive analysis of cur- Advertising & Circulation Manager Tel: (202) 944-5507 provide several ways to follow it. The rent events. A resource-laden site, it is E-mail: [email protected] site does an excellent job of watching a great jumping-off point for further other critical FS blogs, commenting on investigations. ■

48 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/NOVEMBER 2009 49-60_FSJ_1109_AN:firstlook 10/15/09 3:25 PM Page 49

AFSAAmerican Foreign ServiceNEWS Association • November 2009

MARC GROSSMAN DELIVERS ADAIR LECTURE Is the Foreign Service Equipped to Face Challenges? BY FRANCESCA KELLY

he chapel was overflowing and the ser- mester Program; and AFSA’s Tom Switzer, mon was thought-provoking. That director of communications. Tmay not always be the case at every Also seated on the dais were former FSO place of worship, but when the preacher is a and former AFSA President Marshall Adair, former under secretary of State, Ambassa- founder and trustee of the Adair Memorial dor Marc Grossman, the congregation is Fund, and AFSA President Susan R. John- full of international affairs students, and the son. Professor Christian Maisch, academic “choir” is made up of academics and for- director of the Washington Semester Pro- mer ambassadors, folks are in for an inspir- gram and an assistant professor at the ing afternoon. School of International Service, coordi- The third annual Caroline and Ambas- nated the event. sador Charles Adair Lecture took place on Marc Grossman’s resumé alone was Sept. 2 at American University’s main probably enough to inspire the students in chapel, formally known as the Kay Spiritual attendance. Currently chairman of the Life Center. Amb. Grossman was featured, Cohen Group in Washington, D.C., during along with introductory speakers Amb. An- his Foreign Service career he served as am- thony Quainton, diplomat-in-residence at bassador to Turkey, assistant secretary for JENNIFER DURINA A.U.’s School of International Service; Amb. Marc Grossman speaks at American Uni- European affairs, under secretary for polit- David Brown, dean of the Washington Se- versity on Sept. 2. Continued on page 58

FIRST CALL FOR NOMINATIONS entry-level officer. Why not? Because there was not a A Challenge to Honor Dissent single nomination in either of these two categories. BY FRANCESCA KELLY In trying to determine the reason for this, one AFSA staffer astutely postu- n June 18, AFSA honored seven lated: “The entry-level officers are too members of the Foreign Service junior to rock the boat, and the senior Ocommunity for their extraordi- FSOs don’t want to jeopardize their po- nary work in the field, including three sition of power.” This may well be true. who were honored for their constructive And once we started thinking about it, dissent. These individuals serve as an we wanted to find out. inspiration to all members of the For- So AFSA is offering a challenge to the eign Service. FS community worldwide: Prove this However, two AFSA constructive dis- theory wrong. sent awards were not given out at the cer- Prove that when your conscience emony: the Herter Award for a senior calls upon you to do what is right, you

FSO, and the Harriman Award for an JOSH Continued on page 53

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A F S A AFSANEWSBRIEFS N E W AFSA Scholarship Make a Combined Federal S Application Deadline Campaign Gift and Support Is Feb. 6 AFSA, Too! High school seniors and college undergradu- Each fall the State Department kicks off the Combined ates who are children of Foreign Service employ- Federal Campaign for workplace charitable donations. ees (active-duty, retired and deceased) are Please designate #11759 and #10646 on your CFC pledge eligible to apply for one-time-only AFSA Academic/Art Merit Awards and card to support AFSA! need-based AFSA Financial Aid Scholarships. Awards range from $1,000 to The AFSA Scholarship Fund (CFC #11759) provides $3,500. The submission deadline is Feb. 6. For complete details, as well as need-based scholarships and merit awards to Foreign application forms, please visit www.afsa.org/scholar/ or contact Lori Dec at Service children to help meet their college expenses. [email protected], (202) 944-5504, or toll-free at (800) 704-2372, ext. 504. Unfortunately, grandchildren of Foreign Service retirees are not eligible for For more information, visit www.afsa.org/scholar/ these scholarships. CFC11759.cfm. The Fund for American Diplomacy (CFC #10646) educates the public (everyone from Congress to business Life in the Foreign Service leaders to students) on the importance of diplomacy and ■ BY BRIAN AGGELER a strong U.S. Foreign Service. To find out more, visit www.afsa.org/CFCFAD.cfm. AFSA Interns – Hail and Farewell AFSA welcomes new interns Amanda Anderson (editorial intern, from the University of Maryland at College Park), Lotte Reijmer (advertising intern, from Han University, Arn- hem, The Netherlands) and Jennifer Durina (public affairs intern, from The George Washington University), and bids a fond farewell to summer interns Mark Hay (editorial intern, from Columbia University), Tyson Halseth (advertising in- tern, from the University of California at Santa Barbara), Claire Halbrook (retiree intern, from the University of California at San Diego) and Chelsea Hollstein (public affairs intern, from GWU). We are fortunate to have such a hard- working, congenial group of interns at AFSA.

AFSA HEADQUARTERS: Staff: PRESIDENT: Susan R. Johnson Executive Director Ian Houston: [email protected] (202) 338-4045; Fax: (202) 338-6820 STATE VP: Daniel Hirsch Business Department STATE DEPARTMENT AFSA OFFICE: Controller Kalpna Srimal: [email protected] USAID VP: Francisco Zamora (202) 647-8160; Fax: (202) 647-0265 Accounting Assistant Cory Nishi: [email protected] FAS VP: Henry Schmick USAID AFSA OFFICE: Accounting and Administration Assistant Alicia Campi: [email protected] FCS VP: Keith Curtis (202) 712-1941; Fax: (202) 216-3710 Labor Management FCS AFSA OFFICE: General Counsel Sharon Papp: [email protected] RETIREE VP: Robert Houdek (202) 482-9088; Fax: (202) 482-9087 Labor Management Attorney Zlatana Badrich: [email protected] SECRETARY: F.A. “Tex” Harris Labor Management Specialist James Yorke: [email protected] AFSA WEB SITE: www.afsa.org TREASURER: Andrew Winter Grievance Attorney Neera Parikh: [email protected] FSJ: [email protected] Office Manager Christine Warren: [email protected] STATE REPS: Carleton Bulkin, Jorge Delfin, PRESIDENT: [email protected] USAID Senior Labor Management Adviser Douglas Broome: [email protected] Mary Glantz, Les Hickman, Joyce Namde, STATE VP: [email protected] Member Services Julia Stewart, Mike Unglesbee, Sharon White, RETIREE VP: [email protected] Member Services Director Janet Hedrick: [email protected] USAID VP: [email protected] Member Services Representative Michael Laiacona: [email protected] Teresa Yata FAS VP: [email protected] Web Site & Database Associate Geron Pleasant: [email protected] USAID REP: Michael Henning FCS VP: [email protected] Administrative Assistant Ana Lopez: [email protected] FCS REP: Rebecca Balogh Communications, Marketing and Outreach FAS REP: Melinda Sallyards Retiree Liaison Bonnie Brown: [email protected] AFSA News Director of Communications Thomas Switzer: [email protected] IBB REP: Al Pessin Editor Francesca Kelly: [email protected] Legislative Director Casey Frary: [email protected] RETIREE REPS: Executive Assistant to the President Austin Tracy: [email protected] (202) 338-4045, ext. 516; Janice Bay, Robert (Bill) Farrand, Scholarship Director Lori Dec: [email protected] Fax: (202) 338-8244 David Passage, Molly Williamson On the Web: Professional Issues Coordinator Barbara Berger: [email protected] Exploritas Administrator Bernard Alter: [email protected]

How to Contact Us: to Contact How www.afsa.org/fsj and www.fsjournal.org Marketing & Outreach Manager Asgeir Sigfusson: [email protected] Governing Board:

50 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/NOVEMBER 2009 49-60_FSJ_1109_AN:firstlook 10/15/09 3:25 PM Page 51

A F V.P. VOICE: STATE ■ BY DANIEL HIRSCH S A N E W An Ounce of Prevention S

he VP State column is often devoted to the big issues. partment. The department then acts as the secondary in- But part of my job is also to help our members avoid surer. Tproblems. Although AFSA’s Labor Management office It is not unusual for bills to go to the wrong place and to handles a broad variety of cases, many are related to shipping take considerable time to catch up to the employee. The first and transportation, medical bills, the Separate Maintenance claim for payment may come from the department months, Allowance and reporting of foreign contacts. These are areas or even years, after the event in the form of a notice to gar- in which the department is traditionally not very flexible, nish the employee’s wages. Members are advised to follow usually claiming (rightly or wrongly) when disputes arise that up immediately after medical treatment and to monitor the employees made poor decisions. I would like to examine status of billing to avoid nasty surprises. these common problems more closely in this column. Selection of a Virtual Separate Maintenance Allowance or Shipping and Transportation: Al- Involuntary SMA Location: Many though the department does most of employees have foreign-born spouses the work related to shipping and or, for other reasons, choose to AFSA is here to help transportation, responsibility for arrange for family members to reside compliance with the regulations ulti- resolve any disputes that might arise, outside the U.S. under Separate mately falls to the employee. Com- but the best protection Maintenance Allowance agreements. mon issues include disputes over In these situations, the employee billing for excess household effects is to anticipate problems must select a virtual SMA location weight and over unusual or prohibited before they occur. within the U.S. for the purpose of cal- routing (e.g., failure to comply with culating and receiving benefits. the Fly America Act), as well as issues Often this is the home leave address, related to travel accounting. but it could be anywhere in the U.S. We strongly encourage you to pack out on orders early Bear in mind that the selection of a virtual SMA location enough to obtain the accurate weight of household effects may obligate the employee to bear the costs for shipping and and storage before traveling. That way, overages can be ad- transportation to an onward assignment. Members are dressed before shipment and charges for excess weight strongly encouraged to explore all implications of selecting a avoided. Obtain in writing any advice related to the propri- particular location before declaring it as a virtual SMA site. ety of a given routing. You should also be aware that you Contact Reporting: The new Foreign Affairs Manual sec- might be held liable for transportation of goods that might tions (12 FAM 262 and 270) published in February, clarify not be considered legitimate household effects (such as contact reporting and other reporting requirements affect- wooden planks or ceramic tiles) and will be held liable for ing Foreign Service members, both overseas and domesti- shipment of prohibited items (such as ivory carvings). When cally. They also greatly expand the definition of contact and in doubt, check with post management and AFSA before the variety of situations that must be reported. Failure to shipping questionable items. comply with these requirements is a recurring reason for the With regard to records, note that vouchers and/or out- suspension and often revocation of security clearances. It is standing advances may be audited several years after travel incumbent on all Foreign Service members to familiarize has occurred. It is wise to retain copies of vouchers for at themselves with the rules and comply with them. As with least five years, or even longer, after traveling. other official documents, members would be wise to retain Paying for Medical Treatment: If you or a family member copies of all DS-1887 forms and other documents they pro- is treated at a hospital overseas or evacuated to the U.S. for vide in compliance with these requirements. One should medical treatment, do not confuse the absence of a bill with never assume that files in Washington will be complete. the absence of an obligation. When the department makes What should be small issues can quickly become big ones. the initial payment to the hospital, remember that you are AFSA is here to help resolve any disputes that might arise. required to submit any bill to your insurance company and But the best protection is to anticipate problems before they turn over what the insurance company pays you to the de- occur. ❏

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A F S V.P. VOICE: RETIREE ■ BY ROBERT HOUDEK A N Hearing From You E W have been pleased by the feedback that I’ve received from A good deal of retiree mail ex- S readers on a wide range of concerns. Folks want to know presses frustration with the WAE Ihow their grandchildren can apply for internships at State program, bemoaning the lack of or AFSA, about the confidentiality of medical clearance in- timely information about opportuni- formation required for overseas When Actually Employed as- ties and sketchy responses to inquiries. signments, and how to submit an article to the Foreign Service The regional bureaus control the pro- Journal. gram, and their performance is uneven. My predecessor, Bill During my 47 years as an AFSA member, I almost never Farrand, wrote a letter to Deputy Secretary Jacob Lew with a had occasion to call on the professional number of recommendations for fixes to staff for help, but now do so on almost a the program. AFSA President Susan R. daily basis in order to respond to your A good deal of mail expresses Johnson and State VP Daniel Hirsch will queries. AFSA staff members are re- frustration with the WAE program, be following up with Under Secretary for markably expert and well connected and Management Pat Kennedy and Director are probably the most valuable benefit bemoaning the lack of timely General Nancy Powell’s office. Our re- of your AFSA membership. Don’t hesi- information about opportunities tirees are a unique and valuable resource, tate to contact them! and the department needs their help The hot issue of the day is the dra- and sketchy responses to inquiries. more than ever, especially during this pe- matic rate increase in Office of Personnel riod of rebuilding. Management-sponsored long-term-care The initial response to the survey insurance. This has enraged a number of AFSA members AFSA sent out to retirees a few weeks ago has been excellent. who had signed up for coverage in response to an OPM so- If you have not yet replied, please do so now, as I would like licitation that offered attractive rates and a strong assurance to report on the results in my next column. You should have that they would remain stable. We will keep our members received the survey in the mail, accompanied by a stamped re- informed about OPM announcements regarding open sea- turn envelope; we would prefer, however, that you respond son requirements for affected enrollees and — in collabora- electronically, as it will greatly facilitate the tabulation and tion with other federal employee organizations — seek analysis of the data. Please go to www.zoomerang.com/ congressional hearings on the premium hikes. Survey/survey-intro.zgi?p=WEB229H983SUFX. ❏

AFSANEWSBRIEFS TRANSITION CENTER SCHEDULE OF COURSES for Attorney Holly Rich November-December 2009 Departing AFSA After two-and-a-half years as an attorney Nov. 2-3 MQ911 Security Overseas Seminar in AFSA’s labor management office, Holly Nov. 6 MQ950 High-Stress Assignment Outbrief Rich has accepted a position in the Civil Nov. 7 MQ115 Explaining America Rights Division of the Office of the General Nov. 13 MQ703 Post Options for Employment and Training Counsel at the Department of Health and Nov. 16-17 MQ911 Security Overseas Seminar Human Services. Her last day at AFSA was Nov. 30-Dec.1 MQ911 Security Overseas Seminar Aug. 28. Rich, says Executive Director Ian Dec. 4 MQ950 High-Stress Assignment Outbrief Houston, “was a terrific employee: kind, Dec. 5 MQ803 Realities of Foreign Service Life thoughtful and generous.” He adds, Dec. 7-10 RV101 Retirement Planning Seminar “She learned a complicated job very quickly Dec. 10-11 MQ107 English Teaching Seminar and showed an ability to go beyond what is Dec. 12 MQ116 and U.S. Representation Abroad asked of her.” Colleague James Yorke calls Dec. 14-15 MQ911 Security Overseas Seminar her “easily one of the best new lawyers Dec. 15-16 MQ104 Regulations, Allowances and Finances we’ve ever worked with.” Rich says her “wonderful” experience at AFSA has taught To register or for further information, e-mail the FSI Transition Center her the importance of “always working for at [email protected]. the ‘little guy.’” We wish her well.

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A F Survivor Annuity Elections S A BY BONNIE BROWN, RETIREE COORDINATOR N he right to a survivor annuity is a The regulations governing and the marriage ends after retirement, traditional benefit for Foreign the retiree cannot make a survivor elec- E TService retirees and spouses. It election of a survivor annuity tion for a new spouse upon remarriage. W permits retirees to make ongoing provi- can be complicated by death, S sion for their survivors, assures some After-Retirement Elections measure of financial security for surviv- divorce, former spouses and After retirement, a retiree in the old ing spouses and is the prerequisite for time requirements — so it is Foreign Service Retirement and Dis- spouses to continue federal health ben- ability System can elect a survivor ben- efits. It also recognizes the service given important for employees, efit for his or her new spouse within one by Foreign Service spouses overseas and retirees and spouses to year of remarriage. Retirees under the the difficulty these spouses have in con- understand when and how new Foreign Service pension system tinuing careers when abroad. must make this election within two The regulations governing election elections can be made. years of remarriage. This designation of a survivor annuity can be compli- should be made even if a former spouse cated by death, divorce, former spouses is entitled to full survivor benefits and and time requirements — so it is im- waive the survivor annuity in a nota- the new spouse could have no current portant for employees, retirees and rized spousal agreement (or if this was expectation of survivor benefits. If the spouses to understand when and how provided for in a divorce decree and rec- second election were made and the for- elections can be made and when infor- ognized by the Office of Retirement in mer spouse were to die, then the sur- mation about these life events should be its divorce determination letter). vivor benefit for the current spouse submitted to the department. A notarized election to waive the sur- would no longer be contingent. vivor benefit is irrevocable and cannot At-Retirement Elections be rescinded after retirement. Once the Conclusion At retirement, an election of maxi- election is made, it is almost impossible In order to make sound decisions mum survivor benefits for a current to overturn it regardless of circum- about survivor benefits, it is important spouse is automatic — unless the retiree stances — even if the spouse or former for retirees to talk to their counselors in obtains the consent of his or her spouse spouse was tricked into signing or did the Retirement Office upon any change to a lesser amount or to no survivor not fully understand the implications of in marital status — including the death benefits in a notarized spousal agree- what he or she was signing. (The Merit of a spouse or former spouse, divorce or ment. Similarly, at retirement an un- Service Protection Board recently held remarriage — and to submit certified married participant whose former in a split decision that a waiver signature copies of any court order. Also, former spouse qualifies for a survivor annuity forged by a retiring spouse invalidated a spouses should provide the Retirement may elect to make no provision for a spousal agreement.) Moreover, if at re- Office with a copy of any court order survivor annuity only if both the retir- tirement a married participant and his and inform that office of any remarriage ing spouse and former spouse agree to or her spouse waive the survivor annuity in a timely manner. ❏

Dissent • Continued from from 49 is the official dissent channel, which falls Iraq, and U.S. policy related to science, under the direct jurisdiction of the Sec- health, and avian influenza.” have the courage and fortitude to buck retary of State. Messages sent through Started more than 30 years ago, the the system, despite possible risk to your this “well-established mechanism,” says AFSA Constructive Dissent awards are career. Prove that when you witness a Edward J. Lacey, deputy director of the unique in the U.S. government. AFSA colleague’s constructive and courageous Office of Policy Planning (S/P), “require challenges all of its members to keep dissent, you will take the time to nomi- no pre-clearance with any officials. The these awards going strong. nate him or her for an AFSA dissent entire process is handled in such a fash- More detailed nomination proce- award. ion as to protect the confidentiality of dures will appear in the December issue The Herter, Harriman, Rivkin and the dissenting official to the greatest ex- of AFSA News, but you can get started Harris awards call for constructive dis- tent possible.” Since January of this year, right now by going to www.afsa.org/ sent “through the proper channels.” he notes, dissent messages have ad- awards/index.cfm, or by e-mailing Pro- One of these channels, though cer- dressed “such diverse policy issues as fessional Issues Coordinator Barbara tainly not the only way to voice dissent, trafficking in persons, foreign assistance, Berger at [email protected]. ❏

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A F S V.P. VOICE: FCS ■ BY KEITH CURTIS A N Cultivating Key Allies E W FSA opens doors. This week I had the pleasure of job. He told me that he has already S meeting first the noble senator from Maryland, Bar- made it a practice to meet with every A bara Mikulski, head of the Senate Appropriations senior commercial officer that comes Committee, and then our excellent under secretary-designee, through the department and that he Francisco Sanchez. It did not take much effort to explain has been impressed with our dedica- what our commercial officers do before eliciting the support tion and ability. He is the key to our of these leaders, who are sensitive to our issues. Their posi- future and to getting decent funding in FY 2011. His office tive response was largely because of their ex- has already passed to the Office of Manage- perience with our people in the field. ment and Budget the largest increase re- Senator Mikulski came to the meeting We are an organization of quest for us in the history of the despite a broken leg, and spoke clearly and International Trade Administration. If we elegantly about the urgent need for effective 24/7 public servants who, can navigate the many political hurdles legislation. In response to our concerns, she by nature, like to dig in ahead, we may restore our organization to a declared her support for FCS and our pub- position of strength. He is intelligent and lic service. She, more than anyone else, will and get things done. energetic and committed to making that determine our funding level for Fiscal Year happen. 2010 within the Appropriations Commit- Neither of these key meetings would tee. It is largely because of her team’s sup- have happened without the power of AFSA port that we have a chance of some significant additional and the AFSA political action committee. Take a closer look funding in the year ahead. at AFSA-PAC on the Web at www.afsa.org/pac.cfm. And, Under secretary-designee Francisco Sanchez likes to take even if you are unable to make a donation at this time, please his jacket off and roll up his sleeves. So I told him that we do your part by contacting your legislators (as private citi- are an organization of 24/7 public servants who, by nature, zens, of course; not as government representatives or on gov- like to dig in and get things done. For us there is nothing ernment time). more frustrating than not having the basic tools to do our Then keep your fingers crossed. ❏

AFSANEWSBRIEFS AFSA Post Reps — Are You Ready for Your Close-Up? Foreign Service Youth Foundation If you’re a busy AFSA representative who’s willing to be profiled in an upcoming issue of AFSA News, we’d like to hear from you. Tell us Launches New Web Site about yourself, your country of assignment and what you do for In celebration of its 20th year (1989-2009), the Foreign Serv- AFSA members at post. Contact AFSA News Editor Francesca Kelly ice Youth Foundation is pleased to announce the launch of its via e-mail at [email protected] — and be prepared to send a photo of new and improved Web site. Only the URL address remains the yourself, too. AFSA Members Overseas: Is your wonderful AFSA post rep too same (www.fsyf.org). shy to step forward? Please informally nominate your rep for an The new site has more content for parents and kids, and is AFSA News profile (see contact info above). Send us the name of easier to navigate. With pages dedicated to FSYF contests, activi- your AFSA rep and where you are, and we’ll do the rest. ties and newsletters, as well as more general information on re- entry to the U.S., there's something for everyone. We even have a Ten Years Ago in AFSA News ... U.S. history high school study page for those who are unable to From John Naland’s VP State column, AFSA News, November get American history courses overseas. 1999: When visiting the new Web site, please consider joining as a Last April, a study commissioned by the department and done paid member. A three-year family membership is only $30. by the consulting firm McKinsey & Company warned that State As a non-profit organization serving U.S. Foreign Service youth will find it increasingly difficult in the coming years to attract, de- around the globe, FSYF relies on corporate sponsors, individual velop, motivate and retain top talent. The reasons given include donors, membership dues, publications sales and program fees changing demographics in the job market, increasing mobility of for funding. Nonetheless, membership is not required to partici- the work force, and gaps in the department’s ability to meet em- pate in FSYF activities. ployee expectations. ❏

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A F PROFILES: HONORING AFSA’S LONG-TERM EMPLOYEES S A and AFSA staff and board members. N Sharon Papp: Working for Labor Management attorney Zlatana Badrich hails Sharon’s “keen intellect, E Members for 17 Years sharp sense of humor, superior work W ethic, unwavering integrity and very S real sense of empathy and humanity FSA General Counsel Sharon Papp breezed through that make her an ideal advocate.” her 10- and 15-year anniversaries at AFSA with hardly As a supervisor, says Badrich, AFSA General Counsel Aa glance back, typical of this hard-working yet modest “Sharon has translated all these quali- Sharon Papp. attorney. AFSA News caught up with her as she recently cel- ties and more into our daily working ebrated her 17th anniversary at AFSA. relationships, providing tremendous support to all of us in Born in New Jersey, Sharon spent most of her childhood the labor management office.” She continues, “Sharon works in Saudi Arabia, where her parents worked for the Arabian tirelessly on behalf of the AFSA membership. Her name American Oil Company. Sharon attended Vanderbilt Uni- brings trust and respect on both sides of the bargaining table, versity, followed by The George Washington and her honesty and forthrightness ensure University Law School. She possesses a level of that you know where you stand.” Sharon has always advocated for individ- Colleague James Yorke started working at uals. Before joining AFSA in 1992, she was institutional memory and AFSA in 1992, the same year as Sharon. employed by a small EEO/employment experience that few organiza- “Sharon's contributions to AFSA — and to plaintiff-side law firm in Dupont Circle. the Foreign Service — are so many, so im- Her work at AFSA is varied and interest- tions’ general counsels portant and so varied. She has gained the ing, with a large focus on discipline and se- can claim. deep respect of eight governing boards and curity clearance cases. She often represents all her colleagues in AFSA over the years, and employees in OIG and DS investigations. — Former AFSA-State the undying gratitude of the hundreds of She also liaises with AFSA’s vice presidents on VP Steve Kashkett clients she has helped.” collective bargaining and labor management Former AFSA State VP member Steve issues. Kashkett remembers, “During my four years at AFSA-State, “I get a great deal of satisfaction from representing em- I heard from countless members worldwide how Sharon had ployees facing disciplinary action. If an employee has done helped them with complex and often gut-wrenching prob- something wrong, the punishment must be appropriate to lems they had confronted in their careers. She possesses a the offense and consistent with that imposed upon other em- level of institutional memory and experience that few or- ployees,” comments Sharon. She adds, “Since I have been here ganizations’ general counsels can claim. For more than a for so long, I know what penalty, if any, the department im- decade-and-a-half, Sharon has been a superb champion on posed in similar cases five or 10 years ago.” This information behalf of the employees of the Foreign Service.” gives her clients a distinct advantage and often leads to re- Executive Director Ian Houston says, “Sharon’s long ex- duced penalties. perience has only sharpened her enthusiasm for her work.” While Sharon works with officers and specialists in all Houston, who is fond of the Scottish saying, “Whate’er thou cones and specialties, a large contingent of her clients are art, act well thy part,” believes that Sharon lives up to that diplomatic security agents. Finding DS issues particularly in- challenge. “AFSA is fortunate to have such a wonderful per- teresting, she explains, “I have represented agents before sub- son and colleague on our team.” committees of Congress, in FBI interviews, and before the Those who work with Sharon consider themselves fortu- State Department Accountability Review Board following the nate. Yorke continues, “Her strong convictions and sense of death of FS employees from terrorist incidents abroad. right and wrong, as well as a deep knowledge of the law, leave Some of her more interesting cases have included foreign- us in no doubt about where we should be going and what born spouses who needed security clearances in order to our priorities should be. But the added bonus is a sympa- work, numerous security clearance revocations, and institu- thetic and warmhearted personality that makes her a won- tional grievances on behalf of AFSA when the department vi- derful colleague, a real delight to work with, and a true olated the negotiated assignment rules. friend.” Sharon attributes her longevity at AFSA to the rewards of Sharon lives in Falls Church, Va., with husband Rick her efforts and the close working relationship she has with Philbin and their daughters Nicole, 15, and Andrea, 13. her colleagues and department counterparts. They share their lives with two mini-dachshunds, Mookie Sharon is extremely well regarded by colleagues, clients and Mia. ❏

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A F S Changes to Overseas Comparability Pay Former AFSA/TLG A and Same-Sex Partner Benefits Intern Now a N The following has been updated from an earlier cable by AFSA President Susan R. Johnson. Foreign Service E W Comparability Pay employees will also receive a locality ad- Officer S The State Department and USAID justment in January 2010, at the same BY LORI DEC, SCHOLARSHIP DIRECTOR have already moved to implement time as those located in Washington, Overseas Comparability Pay, and we D.C. However, phases 2 and 3 — to pro- s. Stacy Session, a former AFSA/ understand that all other foreign affairs vide 7.7-percent increases in both the Thursday Luncheon Group in- agencies, with the possible exception of ensuing two years — still require con- Mtern, is one of 98 individuals in IBB, have sufficient funds available to gressional authorization and funding. the 146th A-100 Foreign Service officer implement this for their members. We AFSA continues to work to ensure that class that began on June 22. Ms. Session urge them to do so without delay to the process stays on track. was a 2005 AFSA/TLG intern at the State avoid the possibility of unequal treat- Department’s Office of International ment of Foreign Service members from Domestic Partners Health Affairs in the Bureau of Oceans different agencies. We are working on The Foreign Affairs Manual entry on and International Environmental and ensuring that IBB is able to implement domestic partners (3 FAM 1600) came Scientific Affairs and a 2006 intern in the the measure as well. We still have into force for all foreign affairs agencies management office at Embassy Nairobi. ground to cover in achieving full imple- on July 30 with an effective, retroactive She recently became an AFSA member, mentation, but taking this first step for- date for the State Department of June as well. ward is historic and a milestone. 26. 14 FAM 511.3 has been changed to AFSA takes great satisfaction in the add the term “domestic partner as de- knowledge that our aggressive, creative fined in 3 FAM 1610” to the definition and unyielding advocacy has borne fruit of an eligible family member. Various in the form of additional resources to other changes to 3 FAM affecting over- you and your families. That was our seas employment, home leave, emer- goal all along — gency travel, etc., are serving and repre- now also in effect senting you. Noth- Allowances and benefits for all foreign affairs ing is more impor- calculated using basic pay, agencies covered by tant and basic to such as post allowance, the FAM.

AFSA that advanc- The Department DEC LORI ing your interests. danger pay and post differential of State Standard- Former TLG intern Stacy Session, now a Foreign Service officer. State 75056 from also should have been adjusted ized Regulations in- Under Secretary of corporating these Currently training in the public State for Manage- and paid accordingly. changes were pub- diplomacy cone at the Foreign Service ment Patrick Ken- lished in final form Institute, Ms. Session will depart for nedy spells out the on Aug. 30. How- Lagos in November, where she will procedure for the State Department, and ever, some changes may take a bit longer spend her first year in the political/eco- we expect that implementation by other to be published. Below is the Internet nomic section and second year in the agencies will follow a similar pattern. In link to view the new definition of a fam- consular section. essence, in the first phase, State FS-1s ily member in the DSSR: AFSA and TLG formed a partner- and below serving overseas should have http://aoprals.state.gov/content.asp? ship in 1996 to sponsor an African- seen a 7.7-percent increase in basic pay content_id=146&menu_id=81 American college student each summer. starting with pay period 17 on Sept. 10. We understand that all foreign affairs The program has inspired at least one As of this writing, we understand that agencies have agreed to the new FAM other former intern to stay in the for- other agencies may have implemented and DSSR provisions and, as of this eign policy world: the 1996 AFSA/TLG the raise a pay period or two later. writing, have begun implementing Intern, Mr. Stacy Williams, joined the Allowances and benefits calculated them. State Department’s Civil Service ranks using basic pay, such as post allowances, If you have additional questions on as a Presidential Management Intern in danger pay and post differential, also these issues, please feel free to contact 1997. He is currently an executive as- should have been adjusted and paid ac- AFSA Labor Management Specialist sistant in the Bureau of Western Hemi- cordingly. It is anticipated that eligible James Yorke at [email protected]. ❏ sphere Affairs. ❏

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A F member of the Foreign Service for 32 ing serving as president and later co- S Amb. Roz Ridgway years, from 1957 to 1989. Her diplo- chairman of the Atlantic Council and as A Establishes New matic career included postings as am- a trustee at the Brookings Institution, bassador to Finland (1977-1980) and the George C. Marshall Foundation and N AFSA Scholarship ambassador to the German Democratic the National Geographic Society. She Republic (1983-1985). As the assistant has served on the board of some of E n August, Ambassador Rozanne secretary of State for European and America’s largest corporations, includ- W Ridgway graciously established an Canadian affairs (1985-1989), she was ing Manpower, 3M and Boeing. She is S IAFSA scholarship in the lead negotiator at the married to Captain Theodore E. Dem- her name for Foreign five historic Reagan-Gor- ing, U.S. Coast Guard (Ret.). Service children attending bachev summits. She re- The Ambassador Rozanne L. (Roz) college or university. In ceived the Presidential Ridgway Perpetual Financial Aid Schol- addition, the Sara Lee Citizen’s Medal from Pres- arship will go into effect starting with Corporation has made a ident Reagan in recogni- the 2010-2011 academic year. very generous donation to tion of her service. For information on applying for a the Ambassador Ridgway Since her retirement scholarship or making a scholarship do- scholarship in gratitude from the Foreign Service, nation, please contact Lori Dec, AFSA for her service on its board Amb. Ridgway’s involve- Scholarship Director, at (202) 944-5504 of directors. ment in foreign affairs has or at [email protected], or visit www.afsa. Amb. Ridgway was a Amb. Rozanne L. (Roz) Ridgway. been unwavering, includ- org/scholar. ❏

NAME CHANGE TO BETTER REFLECT MISSION Elderhostel Becomes Exploritas BY ASGEIR SIGFUSSON, MARKETING AND OUTREACH MANAGER

n Oct. 1, a multiyear process un- AFSA has transi- dertaken by the national Elder- tioned to the new Ohostel organization came to an name for its upcom- end with the formal announcement of a ing programs, which new name. The name chosen to repre- include two March sent all future programs is Exploritas, events: one on the which is a combination of “explore” and Middle East, South “veritas,” the Latin word for truth. Asia and global ter- Since 1975, the organization has of- rorism; and another fered thousands of educational pro- that focuses on China grams across the globe to participants and East Asia. The

who are at least 55 years old. AFSA has JOSH AFSA programs will played a key role by offering programs continue to be ad- on foreign policy and the Foreign Serv- ministered by Bernie ice under the Elderhostel banner since Alter. More infor- 1996. Over that period, nearly 10,000 “elder” suggested that the average age of mation can be found at www.afsa. people have enrolled in AFSA’s pro- those enrolled was quite high and “hos- org/exploritas. grams, which take place in five locations tel” indicated that accommodations AFSA’s Exploritas programs are part around the country: Washington, D.C., were threadbare and uncomfortable. of our outreach efforts through the Tucson, Ariz., St. Petersburg, Fla., At- The organization hopes that the new Fund for American Diplomacy, which lanta, Ga., and Chautauqua, N.Y. branding will dispel such ideas. also sponsors the national high school The Elderhostel organization has The name “Elderhostel” has not van- essay contest, the AFSA awards, our mulled the pros and cons of the old ished completely, however. The corpo- speakers bureau, the memorial plaques, name for a number of years. Research rate part of the organization will retain the book Inside a U.S. Embassy, the Sin- found that the name discouraged poten- that name, and the new name will apply claire Language Awards and the AFSA- tial participants from joining, because only to the actual program offerings. TLG minority intern program. ❏

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A

F Lecture • Continued from page 49 S A ical affairs and director gen- eral of the Foreign Service. Earlier in his career he was as- N signed to posts ranging from E to Islamabad. W In his speech, “The Evolv- S ing World of Diplomacy: Challenges to the Foreign Service,” Amb. Grossman de- tailed the five challenges facing our country and the world: ex- tremism and terrorism; glob- alization; global economic imbalance; the environment; and nuclear proliferation. These are challenges that all JENNIFER DURINA Foreign Service members Marc Grossman (left) delivers Adair lecture while AFSA Communications Director Tom Switzer and A.U. Washington must confront today. Semester Program Dean David Brown (right) look on. He was quick to illustrate how these five challenges are intertwined. The recent economic cri- Foreign Service in good stead, while ment Review, he feels there’s still a gen- sis, for example, has called globaliza- others need to be changed in order to eralized aversion to strategic, long-term tion into question and led to calls for carry out the work of diplomacy effec- planning, and to taking proactive meas- protectionism. He is worried, he said, tively. He highlighted that: ures rather than being passive or reac- that “Americans will take the wrong • State Dept. culture is defined by pa- tive in the face of crises. message from Iraq and Afghanistan,” triotism and a commitment to serving • The system oscillates between re- consequently losing interest in pro- one’s country in a dangerous world. stricting information and disseminating moting pluralism. Related to that, he • There is a “crushing” lack of human information, and has not yet found an claims, is the widening gap across the and financial resources. “It’s important effective balance between the two. Actively promoting the profession in which he was so successful, Grossman encouraged the students in the audi- Does Amb. Grossman feel that today’s professional diplomats are ence to consider a Foreign Service ca- equipped to meet these challenges? His answer: “Not yet.” reer. And, he remains optimistic and enthusiastic about “all the opportunities you can see if you look around the world.” During a question-and-answer pe- world between those who benefit from to recognize that the FS is an overseas riod at the end of the talk, about a dozen globalization and those who do not. deployed force,” Amb. Grossman noted, international affairs students queried On the environmental question, he yet has no reserve personnel like the the ambassador on subjects ranging cited a “stunning” set of maps in Jared military. He advocates a personnel float from the role of the United Nations to Diamond’s Collapse (one of several to meet both emergency situations and what makes a good FSO (being “curi- books and studies Grossman refer- longer-term commitments. ous, smart, purposeful; and interested in enced in his talk) that demonstrate • Like other agencies, State has a mix making a case for the United States and how closely poor environmental con- of norms in organizational structure, in solving problems like human traf- ditions are aligned with unrest and in- some relevant, some outdated: “In ficking”). stability. today’s world, problems can’t be solved The Adair Memorial Lecture Series Does Amb. Grossman feel that by talking points. Insightful, creative on American Diplomacy is funded by a today’s professional diplomats are analysis and decision-making are re- perpetual gift from the Adair family to equipped to meet these challenges? His quired.” the Fund for American Diplomacy that answer: “Not yet.” He pointed to several • Although Grossman praised Secre- supports the Speakers Bureau, a key el- tenets of what he calls “State Depart- tary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton’s ement in AFSA’s national outreach pro- ment culture,” some of which stand the Quadrennial Diplomacy and Develop- gram. ❏

58 FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL/NOVEMBER 2009 49-60_FSJ_1109_AN:firstlook 10/15/09 3:25 PM Page 59

A F S A CLASSIFIEDS N E LEGAL SERVICES TAX & FINANCIAL SERVICES TEMPORARY HOUSING W

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A F S A CLASSIFIEDS N E W TEMPORARY HOUSING POSITION ANNOUNCEMENT SHOPPING S DC FURNISHED EXTENDED STAY in WARBURG CHAIR IN SELLING YOUR VEHICLE? Penn Quarter/Chinatown. The Lansburgh, INTERNATIONALRELATIONS BUYING A VEHICLE? 425 8th Street, NW. 1BR and 2BR apart- Simmons College, a private, nonsectar- Since 1979, Steve Hart has been assist- ments w/fully equipped kitchens, CAC & ian institution serving some 2,000 under- ing members of the Foreign Service with heat, high-speed Internet, digital cable TV graduate women and nearly 3,000 women their automotive needs. w/ HBO, fitness center w/indoor pool, resi- and men in graduate programs, seeks to fill AUTO BUYING SERVICE dent business center, 24-hour reception a two-to-three-year appointment to its BUYS and SELLS desk, full concierge service, secure parking Warburg Chair in International Relations ALL MAKES AND MODELS available, controlled-entry building, 30-day beginning in July 2010. The preferred can- Steve Hart, Auto Buying Service didate will have a distinguished record as a minimum stay. Walk to Metro, FBI, DOJ, 2971 Prosperity Ave, Fairfax, VA 22031 senior practitioner in international relations. EPA, IRS, DOE, DHH, U.S. Capitol. Rates Tel: (703) 849-0080. Fax: (703) 849-9248. He or she may have experience in such within government per diem. Discount for E-mail: [email protected] fields as diplomacy, international trade, de- Reduce your stress; use the best. government, diplomats. Visit our Web site velopment, international organizations or at: www.TheLansburgh.com or call the leas- international women’s issues. The suc- ing office at (888) 313-6240. cessful candidate will have been involved HOUSING IS AVAILABLE in a remod- with foreign policy formulation at a senior eled 4-unit townhouse, about a block and a level and should be familiar with pertinent U.S. policies. 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A Distinguished tional American withdrawal from Dean’s candor was Cambodia on April 12, 1975, including Diplomat Looks Back neither well received a heroic effort to airlift all U.S. person- nor publicly nel and friends to safety on ships. The Danger Zones: A Diplomat’s last American to leave, Dean cradled Fight for America’s Interests acknowledged. the mission’s flag in his arms as he John Gunther Dean, Vellum, 2009, stepped from the roof of the embassy $26, paperback, 240 pages.  onto a helicopter. Despite their previ- REVIEWED BY SYED AHMED MEER ous differences, in a 1977 farewell let- spent a year in Laos as chargé d’af- ter Sec. Kissinger praised the am- For this account of a highly eventful faires. There he single-handedly took bassador’s dignity in those difficult days. 40-year diplomatic career, retired Am- on the Laotian Air Force, standing on After a tour as ambassador to Den- bassador John Gunther Dean draws the tarmac and shouting into a mega- mark, Dean was selected by Pres. heavily upon the unpublished collec- phone to forestall a coup against the Carter as chief of mission in Lebanon, tion of reports and cables (many highly government of Prime Minister Sou- then gripped by civil war. At his con- classified) that he has donated to the vanna Phouma. firmation hearing, he made clear that Jimmy Carter Presidential Library. After leaving , Dean held he was completely neutral as far as the Taking a chronological approach, five consecutive ambassadorships: factions within Lebanon were con- Amb. Dean begins by recounting how Cambodia (1974-1975), Denmark cerned, and between Israel and the he used his German origins and lan- (1975-1978), Lebanon (1978-1981), Palestinians. Dean writes that despite guage skills to assist a U.S. Army intel- Thailand (1981-1985) and India (1985- his Jewish heritage, this even-handed ligence unit following World War II. 1989), where I had the honor to serve approach provoked allegations from He then describes his role in imple- with him as science counselor. He re- the Israeli press and government that menting the Marshall Plan during the tired from the Foreign Service 20 years he was “pro-Palestinian” and “anti-Is- early 1950s, and recalls serving in ago, settling in Paris. rael.” Africa, where he opened the first U.S. Informing Dean of his assignment Amb. Dean was particularly criti- embassies in Togo and Mali. to , Secretary of State cized for his reporting of Israeli viola- Dean played several key diplomatic Henry Kissinger said: “John, you’re tions of Lebanon’s borders. While roles during the Vietnam War. While going out there to be ambassador. You traveling with his family, he was nearly serving in Paris, he worked closely with size up the military situation and take assassinated in an ambush by terrorists visiting Senator Robert Kennedy, who control of it. I’ll take care of the diplo- using automatic rifles and antitank in 1967 received a peace signal from matic side.” The official U.S. goal was weapons. In his book, he airs his sus- Hanoi through the French Foreign to achieve a military solution, but the picions about the identities and spon- Office. From 1970 to 1972, he was facts on the ground soon convinced sors of his attackers. deputy director of the Civil Operations Dean that only a negotiated solution “Fatal Embrace,” the final chapter, and Revolutionary Development Sup- was feasible. Alas, that was not to be. discusses Dean’s tenure in India in the port program in Vietnam, and then Dean describes the highly emo- late 1980s, during which he developed

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an intimate and productive relation- ship with Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and his administration. With the Rus- sians departing Afghanistan, New Delhi expressed concern about Amer- ican and Pakistani support of the Afghan fundamentalists. As part of this dialogue, Gandhi’s principal secre- tary gave Dean a wealth of intelligence on Pakistani General Zia ul-Haq’s 1988 assassination. On that basis, Amb. Dean inform- ed Washington of his personal views on the Zia assassination and the im- portance of supporting a secular, neu- tral government in Kabul. But his candor was neither well received nor publicly acknowledged. Upon arriv- ing in Washington to present his con- cerns, Dean was informed that the department’s doctors had declared him psychologically unsound, and his med- ical clearance was revoked — a regret- table ending for a fine career of dedicated public service. Dean writes that his termination was due to his search for answers to the Zia affair. Action-packed and highly readable, Danger Zones is full of hard-won les- sons for today’s generation of diplo- matic practitioners from one of Ameri- ca’s most eminent ambassadors. Chief among them is the insight that what happened in Cambodia in the 1970s must not be allowed to recur in Pak- istan and Afghanistan. Moreover, In- dia’s arguments and interests there need to be understood in developing U.S. policy toward Kabul, just as much as we need to incorporate Pakistan’s strategic requirements.

Syed Ahmed Meer, a Senior Foreign Service officer from 1983 to 1999, served under Ambassadors Thomas Pickering, Harry Barnes, John Negro- ponte, Jim Jones and Steve Bosworth,

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as well as John Gunther Dean. He is currently president of Science Ambas- sadors, Inc., a nonprofit association in Potomac, Md., dedicated to sharing sci- entific wealth between nations.

Less Is More

The Power Problem: How American Military Dominance Makes Us Less Safe, Less Prosperous and Less Free Christopher A. Preble, Cornell University Press, 2009, $25, hardcover, 212 pages.

REVIEWED BY DAVID HOFFMAN

That’s the message of this important new study by Christopher A. Preble, foreign policy studies director at the Cato Institute in Washington, D.C. As he notes, “The problems that our troops are encountering in Iraq, Af- ghanistan and elsewhere are not new. They are connected to a deeper power problem: our insufficient attention to the need to prioritize when and whether we should intervene militar- ily. … Our military power has become a problem, and this problem is the basis for this book’s controversial ar- gument: We should reduce our mili- tary power in order to be more secure.” Preble recalls that nearly 200 years ago, John Quincy Adams proclaimed that America would not “go abroad in search of monsters to destroy.” Such restraint is in sharp contrast to the bravado of a later president, George W. Bush, who memorably told the Sunni and Shia forces resisting the U.S. mili- tary occupation of Iraq to “go ahead, make my day.” For Preble, who works at a libertar-

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ian think-tank instinctively wary of “big and would stand prepared to act — government” solutions — and coercive, pre-emptively, if necessary.” interventionist diplomacy, in particular Preble believes that As the author documents, Republi- — such hubris highlights the crucial cans and Democrats alike continue to challenge facing American policymak- conserving our armed believe in America’s duty to serve as ers today. “the linchpin of the international To see the full extent of the prob- forces for when they order,” even though this role requires lem, recall the wisdom of President “the forward deployment of the U.S. Dwight Eisenhower’s warning half a are really needed means military to the four corners of the century ago that America must beware globe.” of the perils posed by the “military-in- accepting limits on their That impulse continues to this day dustrial complex.” Then compare that in the Obama administration, which with the delusional unipolarity and ag- use otherwise. seems ready to double down on Bush’s gressive unilateralism of the group commitments in Afghanistan instead of James Mann profiled as “the Vulcans,” offering a cool reappraisal of our mis- the neoconservative elite once gathered sion there — one that might stress a around Vice President Dick Cheney. George H.W. Bush administration in limited national self-interest instead of The Vulcans, of course, produced the aftermath of the Persian Gulf War. preparations for another “surge.” the infamous first draft of the so-called That document “stipulated that the Just for the record, Preble is any- Defense Planning Guidance during the U.S. would be the global hegemon ... thing but anti-military. (In fact, he is a former commissioned officer in the U.S. Navy.) But he believes that con- serving our armed forces for when they are really needed means accepting lim- its on their use otherwise. That is one reason he has been resolutely critical of our whole Iraq misadventure from the beginning. Witness his earlier book, Exiting Iraq: Why the U.S. Must End the Military Occupation and Renew the War against al-Qaida (Cato Institute, 2004). Preble’s advice, like Pres. Eisen- hower’s 50 years ago, should be pon- dered by the entire U.S. national secur- ity team, poised as it is to take fateful steps to increase our military commit- ment in Afghanistan. ■

David Hoffman is a political and pub- lic policy consultant who has worked with the Nuclear Policy Research Insti- tute, the Howard Dean presidential campaign and James Webb’s senatorial campaign. He was also a senior leg- islative assistant to Rep. Edward J. Markey, D-Mass.

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IN MEMORY

Marleeta F. Basey, 66, a retired Michael Arne Codi, 88, a retired in learning languages and help from his Foreign Service secretary, died of can- Foreign Service officer with USAID, wife, a native Frenchwoman, Mr. Codi cer on Aug. 6, at her sister’s home in died on June 27 in Naples, Fla. He had could also get by in Turkish and Ger- Lincoln City, Ore. She was a resident been suffering from a stroke and Alz- man. His main interest and expertise of Albany, Ore. heimer’s disease. was helping small businesses grow in Marleeta Basey, known as “Marty,” Born in New York City in 1921, Mr. developing nations. He loved to travel, was born on July 15, 1943, in Toppen- Codi was attending the University of and took every opportunity to explore ish, Wash., the daughter of Newton California at Los Angeles when World countries neighboring his post of as- Eugene Basey and Marlea Fay Lowery. War II broke out. He joined the Navy signment with his family. She was valedictorian of her high and became a pilot, also spending some Upon returning to the United States school class in Waldport, Ore., gradu- time in the Coast Guard patrolling the at the end of 1969, he became involved ating in 1961, and went on to obtain a East Coast from above. After the war, with USAID’s American Schools and B.A. in international communications he went back to school on the GI Bill, Hospitals Abroad program, which took from Stanford University. She joined studying at Georgetown University’s him to the Far and Middle East, Cen- the Foreign Service in 1964. School of Foreign Service in Washing- tral America and back to Africa until During her career with the State ton, D.C. There he met Marguerite, 1973. All the friendships and connec- Department, Ms. Basey served in Paris, his wife of nearly 60 years. tions he made over the years helped Saigon, Beijing and in Belgium at the Mr. Codi began his diplomatic ca- him greatly with this program, and he Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers reer with the Department of State in enjoyed returning to many of the coun- Europe. During the Tet Offensive she 1950, with a posting to Germany during tries where he had once lived. spent the night lying on her apartment the Marshall Plan era. He served there After retiring from the Foreign floor with a Marine and M-16 on either with a group of young men who would Service in the mid-1970s, Mr. Codi side, dodging incoming rounds. She remain friends for many years and who worked with the International Eye once rode an East German motorcycle continued to get together for reunions Foundation until 1980, when he and through Yugoslavia so that she could well into their retirement. He was later Marguerite retired to Lewes, Del. write a story about it. posted to Turkey (twice), Lebanon and There he became involved in real es- Family and friends recall her love of to Cote d’Ivoire, where he served as re- tate, an interest he shared with his wife, cats and her ability to touch the hearts gional director of USAID for the who had been a realtor in Washington, of all who knew her. French-speaking West African coun- D.C., and who continued her career She is survived by her sister Shyr- tries for five years. He was awarded a with Coldwell Banker for many years. lene Norris of Gleneden Beach, Ore., medal of honor by Ivoirian President The couple loved Lewes and acquired and her brother Arthur Lowery of Houphouet-Boigny for his work there. several properties there, notably the Bend, Ore. Fluent in French, thanks to his ease Old Shoe Building, one of the oldest in

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I N M EMORY

town. Having always been interested Mr. Hoffman was a member of the moved to Tucson and, in 2002, reset- in oceans and marine life, Mr. Codi also Washingtonville Lutheran Church; the tled in Las Vegas, Nev. During their re- greatly enjoyed being a docent for the Danville Moose Lodge; the Frank Si- tirement, the Howatts continued to University of Delaware’s College of dler Post of the American Legion and travel extensively in Europe, the Mid- Marine Studies. the VFW Post, both of Danville. dle East and Asia. In 2003, the Codis moved to Naples, Surviving are his wife, the former Mr. Howatt was an award-winning Fla., for the warm weather and to be Dorothy C. Anderson, with whom he photographer and a published newspa- near their son, Alan, who cared for celebrated his 58th wedding anniver- per columnist. He maintained an avid them during the last five years of their sary on Jan. 6; a daughter, Ruth Mary interest in U.S. and world politics lives. Marguerite passed away in early (and husband Edward P. Spohn) of throughout his life, recently adding 2008 after a long fight with an infection. Lawrenceville, Ga.; a brother, Donald computers and the Internet to his field Mr. Codi is survived by his son, W. Hoffman (and wife Jeanne) of New of attention. Family and friends recall Alan, of Naples; his daughter, Suzanne, Port Ritchey, Fla.; a sister, Helen M. his quiet but sharp sense of humor with of Washington, D.C.; and four grand- Gerringer, of Danville; and several special fondness. children. nieces and nephews. He is survived by his wife, Edwina, of Las Vegas, Nev.; his sons, Kenyon   (and wife Pamela), also of Las Vegas, and Douglas (and wife Marlene) of San Charles O. Hoffman, 78, a retired Edward C. Howatt, 86, a retired Mateo, Calif.; and grandchildren Cas- Foreign Service specialist, died on July FSO, died on Sept. 14 in Henderson, sandra, Brittany and Trevor. Another 23 at the Geisinger Medical Center in Nev. son, Stephen, predeceased him on May Danville, Ga. He had been in failing Born Dec. 20, 1922, in Springfield, 13, 1971. health since April. Mass., Mr. Howatt was the son of W. Born in Derry Township, Ga., Mr. Harold Howatt and Mildred Howatt.  Hoffman was a 1948 graduate of Dan- He studied at American International ville High School. He served with the College, graduating in 1944 after a brief Janice Lyon Millar, 74, a retired U.S. Army from 1948 to 1952, working stint in the U.S. Army, and went on to FSO, died on June 11 in Paris from with the Army Security Agency during earn an MBA degree at the University complications of chronic lung disease. the Korean War and, following his dis- of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School in Mrs. Millar was born on Oct. 3, charge, from 1952 to 1956. 1945. He married Edwina, known as 1934, in Salt Lake City, Utah, to Bar- Mr. Hoffman joined the Foreign “Teddy,” his wife of 62 years, on Aug. 2, ney and Ruth Glanville Johnson. She Service in 1956. He traveled as a re- 1947, a year after they had met at the graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the gional communications electronic offi- wedding of a mutual friend. University of Utah in 1956, and cer, serving in Beirut (1956-1959); Lon- After working as an insurance agent, worked in New York City as a tour don (1959-1964); and Bangkok (1964- a department store executive and a jun- guide at the United Nations before at- 1968). From 1968 to 1975, he was as- ior college teacher, during which time tending Radcliffe and Georgetown signed to the Office of Communica- the couple lived in Springfield, Mass., University, where she earned a mas- tion’s Engineering Division, and from and Barrington, R.I., Mr. Howatt join- ter’s degree in economics. 1975 to 1980 he was posted to Bonn. ed the State Department in 1950 and During a 20-year career in the He was then assigned to the OC Se- they moved to Alexandria, Va. He Foreign Service, Mrs. Millar served curity Division in Washington, D.C., transferred to the Foreign Service in overseas first with the U.S. Agency for from 1980 until his retirement in 1981. 1956. More than 20 years of world International Development in Rabat, In 1982, Mr. Hoffman returned to Dan- travel followed, with assignments in and then as a diplomatic officer in ville and began a series of contract as- Cape Town, Lagos, Melbourne, Hel- Lagos and Paris. During tours at the signments for the Department of State sinki and New Delhi. State Department in Washington, at embassies and missions around the The Howatts retired to San Diego, D.C., she became an expert on the world. Calif., in 1973. After 20 years they Caribbean region. She also served as

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a desk officer for the International In Colorado Springs, Mrs. Millar sent to the National Jewish Hospital Energy Agency and later headed the served on the Colorado Springs in Denver, Colo., in support of re- State Department’s Office of Euro- Opera board and was president of the search for pulmonary diseases. pean Trade. In that capacity, she par- local World Affairs Council. A mem- ticipated in negotiations throughout ber of Theatreworks, Hausmusik and  Europe to introduce U.S. businesses The Pikes Peak Opera Society, she to those markets. was also an associate member of the Ann Heise Viles, 94, the former She was a founding member of the Cheyenne Mountain Country Club. wife of the late FSO John L. Viles, Women’s Action Organization at the She traveled widely during this time, died on Nov. 15, 2008, in Dallas, State Department and spearheaded loved entertaining, and cherished her Texas. the successful development of nurs- many friends on both sides of the At- Verle Ann was born to Will and ery and child-care services for State lantic. Emma Heise in Mt. Pleasant Town- Department staff. Mrs. Millar is survived by her ship, Minn., on Aug. 27, 1913, the sec- Mrs. Millar met her husband, the daughter, Anne Lyon League, M.D. ond of six children. She grew up on late John Y. Millar, “Jake,” also a diplo- (and husband Michael S. League) of the family’s dairy farm and, after mat, on a tennis court in Lagos. They Colorado Springs; two grandchildren, schooling in Lake City, moved to Min- married in 1972. The couple retired Katherine Anne and John “Jake” neapolis to work for the Chrysler Cor- to Colorado Springs, Colo., in 1995 to League; and a younger brother, poration and the Minneapolis Tribune. be near their daughter and grand- Thomas G. Johnson (and wife Sue). In 1944, she traveled to Paris with the daughter. Donations in her memory may be American Red Cross. Little did she

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realize that she had taken the first step The couple departed Saigon in 1975, were extraordinary. She could create of a worldwide odyssey that would two days prior to the rooftop evacuation a Thai feast or an authentic Middle span six decades. from the U.S. embassy. After retiring Eastern repast with the same ease as In 1946, she married U.S. Army Air to Dallas, they divorced in 1986. Mr. flipping a burger. Inquisitive and ad- Corps Captain John Viles in Munich. Viles died in 1998. venturous, she wasn’t content simply Mr. Viles joined the U.S. foreign aid Because of her security clearance to visit museums, ruins and temples. program at its inception in postwar and secretarial and organization skills, Rather, she explored every nook and Europe as the Marshall Plan, and re- Mrs. Viles was employed as a local hire cranny of her host nations. mained through its successive incar- by the State Department at the ma- Her most memorable experiences nations: Point Four, USOM, ICA and, jority of her husband’s posts — espe- included attending the Nuremberg finally in the 1960s, USAID. cially once their three daughters trials; exploring postwar Europe; ski- For the next 30 years, Ann Viles entered school. Yet she found time to ing the Alps; trekking over the Hi- accompanied her husband on diplo- play bridge, volunteer as a Girl Scout malayas from Nepal to India; travers- matic assignments in Austria, Germany, leader and participate in women’s ing Russia by rail; sailing the Amazon, France, Iran, Brazil, Nepal, Turkey, clubs and various post organizations, in a small boat, to Brazil’s interior jun- Greece and Vietnam. During Mr. Viles’ as well. gles; climbing the Great Wall of China unaccompanied tour in Yemen, she re- Family members recall that Mrs. and Machu Picchu; exploring Egypt’s mained in Falls Church, Va., and also Viles embraced the culture, language, pyramids; and combing the beaches of spent the first two years of his three- people and cuisine of every country in the South China Sea. year Saigon assignment in Bangkok. which she lived. Her culinary skills Retirement didn’t slow Mrs. Viles down. She traveled extensively in the U.S., Canada and Mexico and contin-

Statement of Ownership, Management and Circulation ued exploring the rest of the globe, vis- (required by 39 U.S.C. 3685) iting Egypt, Central and South Ameri- ca and the Far East, and revisiting Eu- 1) Publication Title: Foreign Service Journal 2) Publication No. 01463543 3) Filing Date: October 1, 2009 4) Issue Frequency: Monthly with July/August combined 5) Number of Issues Published Annu- rope. At 92, her final exotic journey ally: 11 6) Annual Subscription Price: $40.00 7) Complete Mailing Address of Known Office of Publica- was to the South Pacific and French tion: 2101 E Street NW, Washington, D.C. 20037-2990 8) Complete Mailing Address of Headquarters of General Business Officer of Publisher: 2101 E Street NW, Washington, D.C. 20037-2990 9) Full Name Polynesia. and Complete Mailing Address of Publisher, Editor and Senior Editor: Publisher: American Foreign Serv- Ann Viles was predeceased by her ice Association, 2101 E Street NW, Washington, D.C. 20037-2990; Editor: Steven Alan Honley, 2101 E Street NW, Washington, D.C. 20037-2990; Senior Editor: Susan B. Maitra, 2101 E Street NW, Washing- former husband and four siblings: Vi, ton, D.C. 20037-2990 10) Owner: American Foreign Service Association, 2101 E Street NW, Washing- Janice, Georgene and Bill. She is sur- ton, D.C. 20037-2990 11) Known Bondholders, Mortgages, and Other Security Holders Owning or Holding 1 Percent or More of Total Amount of Bonds, Mortgages or Other Securities: None 12) For Com- vived by her three daughters: Lyn (and pletion by Nonprofit Organizations Authorized to Mail at Special Rates: The Purpose, Function and Non- husband Bennie Bickers) of Dallas, profit Status of this Organization and the Exempt Status for Federal Income Tax Purposes: (1) Has not changed during preceding 12 months 13) Publication’s Name: Foreign Service Journal 14) Issue Date Texas; Patrice (and husband Tom for Circulation Data Below: September 2009 15) Extent and Nature of Circulation: Average Number of Perkins) of Kerrville, Texas; and Janna Copies of Each Issue During Preceding 12 months: A. Total Number of Copies: 16,047 B. Paid and/or (and husband Gary Zeigler) of Hick- Requested Circulation: (1) Sales Through Dealers and Carriers, Street Vendors and Counter Sales: 0 (2) Mail Subscription: 14,981 C. Total Paid and/or Requested Circulation: 14,981 D. Free Distribution by ory Creek, Texas; a brother, Roger Mail (Samples, Complimentary and Other Free): 684 E. Free Distribution Outside the Mail: 280 F. Total Heise (and wife Janice); a sister-in-law, Free Distribution: 964 G. Total Distribution: 15,945 H. Copies Not Distributed (1) Office Use, Leftovers and Spoiled: 102 (2) Returns from News Agents: 0 I. Total: 16,047 J. Percent Paid and/or Requested Lois Heise; and 19 nieces and neph- Circulation: 94% Actual Number of Copies of Single Issue Published Nearest to Filing Date: A. Total ews. ■ Number of Copies: 16,041 B. Paid and/or Requested Circulation: (1) Sales Through Dealers and Carri- ers, Street Vendors and Counter Sales: 0 (2) Mail Subscription: 15,104 C. Total Paid and/or Requested Circulation: 15,104 D. Free Distribution by Mail (Samples, Complimentary and Other Free): 540 E. Free E-mail your “In Memory” submission Distribution Outside the Mail: 350 F. Total Free Distribution: 890 G. Total Distribution: 15,994 H. Copies Not Distributed: (1) Office Use, Leftover, Spoiled: 47 (2) Returns from News Agents: 0 Total: 16,041 to the Foreign Service Journal Percent Paid and/or Requested Circulation: 94%. at [email protected], or I certify that the statements made by me above are correct and complete. fax it to (202) 338-8244. (signed) Susan B. Maitra, Senior Editor No photos, please.

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REFLECTIONS

Discovering Yasukuni

BY JAMES B. ANGELL

ollowing my early morning de- gret expressed in what they tried to livery of classified material to I was carried along achieve. FEmbassy Tokyo after an all- by a crowd of The final exhibits matter-of-factly night flight from Consulate General described the Thai-Burma railroad as Frankfurt, I set off on a circumnaviga- Japanese high school being constructed to assist in the liber- tion of the Imperial Palace. There I students taking ation of India and Burma from British caught a glimpse of a huge torii (the tra- copious notes on occupation, and displayed the effort ditional Japanese gate at the entrance through a large map detailing its vast to a sacred space) among tall trees to controversial events. scope. This caught my eye. the north. Intrigued, I set off through  Having been twice posted to Em- the Imperial Gardens and out the mas- bassy Bangkok, I had thoroughly ex- sive doors of the palace’s northern gate. plored this territory in the jungles of A Shinto shrine appeared to be at Thailand, where the Japanese had used the end of the long ceremonial boule- held a variety of intriguing statuary: one prisoners of war to build the “Death vard, and halfway down it a historic fig- of a confident kamikaze; one memori- Railway” made famous in the movie ure atop a pillar rose high above a crowd alizing Japan’s war widows; one each of “Bridge Over the River Kwai.” No- of onlookers. Reading the plaque at its a horse, dog and homing pigeon, cele- where here was there a mention of the base that described Omura Masujiro brating the role the animals played in 200,000 POW laborers or the fact that (1824-1869) as the father of the mod- Japan’s war efforts. Cannon from the more than half of them died there. ern Japanese Army, it dawned on me wars with China (1894-1895) and Rus- In the last hall, I was surprised to that I must be at the Yasukuni Shrine. sia (1904-1905) completed the pictur- find a black behemoth dominating the Over the years this site has become esque scene. space: it was the first steam locomotive infamous in the Western media. When- Inside the museum, I was carried to cross the bridge over the Kwai River. ever Japanese prime ministers make the along by a crowd of Japanese high Purchased from the Thai government obligatory visit to pay their respects to school students taking copious notes on (where it had been put into service after the spirits of Japan’s war dead, there is controversial events. Beginning with the war), the C5631-type steam engine an outcry that they are honoring war the national upheaval caused by Com- had been shipped home to Tokyo to criminals. (Never mind that Yasukuni modore Matthew Perry’s 1852 appear- memorialize Japan’s achievement. is not run by the state, is not a cemetery ance insisting upon open trade, the The serendipitous discovery in and there are no bodies buried there: it exhibits continued through the destruc- downtown Tokyo of this remnant of a is a place only for kamii — spirits). tion of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the tragic episode in South East Asian his- I strolled into the sacred grounds occupation at the end of World War II. tory made me think: If it is true that his- (haiden) shaded by cherry trees, the From the Russo-Japanese war on, tory is written by the victors, what does only Westerner there. I took off my Japan’s military exploits were framed as that mean for the vanquished? ■ baseball cap and sunglasses and ap- an attempt to emancipate Asian nations proached the shrine, standing with sev- from Western colonization. There was James B. Angell has served in Wash- eral elderly Japanese bowing in silence no propagandistic nationalism; victories ington, Seoul and Bangkok (twice). He toward its simple beauty. and defeats, along with the desperate is currently deputy regional diplomatic To the right was a regal-looking acts of kamikazes, were presented with courier director in Frankfurt, his sec- building called Yushukan. Its courtyard equivalent candor. There was also no re- ond tour there.

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