March 10 Public Diplomacy Rewiew

"What the cold war made, the invasion of Iraq largely unmade."

--Columnist Ross Douthat, New York Times; see also; image from

VIDEO

Silenced: Civic Courage on Film, Coming Soon to a Theater Near You - Domani Spero, DiploPundit: "James Spione’s new film SILENCED follows a group of high-profile former feds who questioned official national security policy in post 9-11 America, and have endured harsh consequences. It features former NSA senior executive Tom Drake, former CIA officer John Kiriakou, former Justice Department lawyer Jesselyn Radack and former State Department diplomat Peter Van Buren."

PUBLIC DIPLOMACY

Is unexplained absence of Broadcasting Board of Governors interim chair due to alleged conflict of interest? - BBGWatcher, usgbroadcasts.com: "While the remaining members of the Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG) have been working hard in recent months on reforming U.S. international broadcasting after recent public criticism of the agency, long and unexplained absence of BBG Interim Presiding Governor Michael Lynton makes their job difficult and sometimes impossible, sources close to the federal bipartisan BBG board told BBG Watch. ... Above everything else, the BBG needs more members with international media freedom and human rights advocacy experience."

A world of shortwave jamming: China vs BBC, Iran vs Farda, Zimbabwe vs VOA, Vietnam vs RFA, Cuba vs WRMI - Kim Andrew Elliott reporting on International Broadcasting

Ministry of Foreign Affairs appointed the first goodwill ambassador for public diplomacy in Korea [Google translation:] - newswire.co.kr: "Seoul = - ( BUSINESS WIRE ) 2013 03 10 - the first in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade appointed public diplomacy goodwill ambassador (Goodwill Ambassador for Public Diplomacy) Ballina S ttemat Indonesian actress 3.11 (May) to 3.15 (Fri ※ Les Ballina S ttemat (Revalina S. Temat) ) between the Korea Foundation (KF) at the invitation of the visit to Korea is scheduled to aired in 2012, and Indonesia joint venture drama "I love you, I Love You" on the Indonesia side Actress role as the actor, in order to spread a positive image of Korea from abroad raise interest for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade and Minister of Foreign Affairs

from 2012 people to foreign famous artists or sports persons appointed Public Diplomacy for a term of two years as a Goodwill Ambassador and is this visit to appoint Status: Indonesia Actress Les Ballina S ttemat ('12 .9.6), Romanian violinist Alexandru Sat Metz Cuenca ('12 .10.3), ozone Brunei movie actor ('12 .10.9) les Ballina Goodwill Ambassador positive in the Southeast Asian region, including Indonesia, through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, 2nd Vice, and jasmine saenuri per clinic, Capt KBS Hallyu Promotion refurbished the instrument gimseonghan interview on Korea Image Enhancing and Goodwill Ambassador for the future of public diplomacy action plan will be discussed." Image from entry

Coalition deal near, Netanyahu thanks outgoing ministers Shas boycotts term’s final Cabinet meeting; 70-seat government set to be sworn in mid-week, but some disagreements remain - timesofisrael.com: "Netanyhau said that most of the policy principles for the next government had been agreed upon, and all that remained was to settle the matter of ministerial portfolios.

The prime minister said that representatives from his Likud-Beytenu, Yair Lapid’s Yesh Atid, and Naftali Bennett’s Jewish Home parties would meet on Sunday afternoon to try to push through a final agreement that is apparently snagged on which party will fill the education minister’s chair. ... One of the final sticking points appears to be a disagreement between the largely secular Yesh Atid and Jewish Home regarding an initiative to provide public transportation on Saturday. Another issue that’s holding up a deal is Bennett’s demand for the Public Diplomacy Ministry in addition to the position of industry, trade and labor minister." Image from article, with caption: Coalition deal near, Netanyahu thanks outgoing ministers. Image from entry

Israeli hasbara needs a focus - thejewishlife.com: "You all have probably heard the term hasbara so many times that even if you’re not Hebrew speakers, you know what it means. Basically, the term means public diplomacy aimed at changing public opinionin Israel’s favor. At the Shmuel Katz blog, David Isaac argues that it hasn’t changed much in the past 30 years, and that the biggest problem today is the lack of focus. While efforts by Isaac, See more here: Israeli hasbara needs a focus."

Media and Political Officer Job, Australian High Commission Islamabad Job 10 Mar - "Media & Political Officer Job, Australian High Commission Islamabad Job 10 Mar [.] The Australian High Commission in Islamabad is seeking applications for tiie position of Media and Political Officer to work in its political section. As part of a small team, the successful applicant will monitor domestic and international political developments, and prepare briefs and reporting. The successful applicant will liaise with local media and assist with the Australian High Commission’s public diplomacy program. A full description of the position and infonnation on how to apply can be found at www.pakistan.embassy.gov,au/isIm/aboutus.html"

Time for hawks to wake up - Jennifer Rubin, Washington Post - Jennifer Rubin, Washington Post: "[Republican] [h]awks have been remarkably inept lately in public diplomacy and in putting some fences around political theory. They have stopped making cogent arguments for some policies either because either there are none (really is there some justification for continuing to pump up the Muslim Brotherhood?) or because like other conservatives they are trapped in an echo chamber."

RELATED ITEMS

With Brand USA, a campaign to lure back foreign tourists — and their money - Kevin Sullivan, Washington Post: A record one billion people — one in seven on the planet — traveled to another country last year. So why aren’t more tourists coming to America? The United States has Hollywood, the Grand Canyon, the Statue of Liberty, Hawaiian surf, Maine lobsters, Florida beaches and the neon dreams of Las Vegas. We have Graceland, the Golden Gate Bridge, Disney World and the bright lights of Broadway. But as global travel and tourism has boomed to historic levels, tourism industry officials said the U.S. share of those visitors has shrunk by almost a third in the past decade. That’s partly because of increased U.S. security after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, but industry analysts say it’s also because China, Turkey and other nations have become huge tourist magnets. So the United States is now doing what once seemed profoundly unnecessary: shelling out millions of dollars to promote America as an international travel destination.

It’s an investment, U.S. officials said, in growing the economy and creating jobs in hotels, restaurants, stores and anywhere else where tourists spend money. “The more folks who visit America, the more Americans we get back to work,” President Obama said last year in announcing an executive order designed to increase visitors by marketing America abroad and cutting red tape for tourists seeking visas. The Obama administration, in partnership with the travel and tourism industry, is spending $150 million this year on its promotional effort. Part of it is a “Discover America” campaign that includes television commercials in nine nations, ads on the Tokyo subway, banners in London and Vancouver, Facebook pages in Portuguese and German, and Tweets about the charms of the Dakotas. U.S. officials also have added to staff and offices in China and Brazil to speed the visa process for millions of new visitors. Via ACP III on Facebook. Image from article,  with caption: Graeme Hunter Pictures/BRAND USA - A billboard from the Discover America campaign in Glasgow, Scotland.

Afghanistan Drone Strike Data No Longer Reported By U.S. Air Force - Reuters, Huffington Post: "With debate intensifying in the United States over the use of drone aircraft,  U.S. military said on Sunday that it had removed data about air strikes carried out by unmanned planes in Afghanistan from its monthly air power summaries.

U.S. Central Command, which oversees the Afghanistan war, said in a statement the data had been removed because it was "disproportionately focused" on the use of weapons by the remotely piloted aircraft as it was published only when strikes were carried out - which happened during only 3 percent of sorties. Most missions were for reconnaissance, it said." Image from entry

Susan Rice as national security adviser? U.N. ambassador said to be front-runner - Colum Lynch, Washington Post:

Susan E. Rice, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations who lost out in a bruising bid for the job of secretary of state, may have the last laugh. Rice has emerged as far and away the front-runner to succeed Thomas E. Donilon as President Obama’s national security adviser later this year, according to an administration official familiar with the president’s thinking. The job would place her at the nexus of foreign-policy decision making and allow her to rival the influence of Secretary of State John F. Kerry in shaping the president’s foreign policy. Image from article

The right approach to Afghanistan’s Kajaki Dam - Alex Thier, Washington, Letter to the Editor, Washington Post: In an Orwellian twist, the March 5 front-page article “Project’s key step is left to Afghans” suggested that the U.S. Agency for International Development’s recent agreement to fund the completion of the Kajaki Dam energy project in partnership with the Afghan energy utility is an abandonment of the effort. The opposite is true. After taking a hard look at the project and how it could be completed most cost-effectively and sustainably, we concluded that by working directly through the Afghan government’s national utility, DABS, we would leverage the increased capacity of the Afghans to take on responsibility for their own economic and social development. The writer is the assistant to the administrator for the Office of Afghanistan and Pakistan Affairs at the U.S. Agency for International Development.

Hugo Chavez — where Marx met Oprah. Review of ‘Comandante’ by Rory Carroll - Marie Arana, Washington Post: Firmly anti-American, fiercely populist, Chavez devoted his entire career to turning Venezuela upside down. For him, it was the darker races, the marginalized, the needy, who deserved the country’s riches.

Turkey at the crossroads: The country must find a balance between its Muslim identity and its Western affiliations - Soner Cagaptay, Los Angeles Times: From Washington's perspective, Turkey is at its best when it can engage in dialogue with all sides in the region's intractable conflicts. This is why Ankara would be well served to rebuild ties with Israel, so it can talk to both Israelis and Palestinians, as well as engage with the diverse elements of post-revolutionary Libya, Tunisia and Egypt. Ankara also needs to build ties with all groups in the Syrian opposition, not just the Muslim Brotherhood, if it wants to be a player in a post-Assad Syria. To complete its rise, Turkey needs to nurture a liberal political culture at home, ending the debilitating culture wars between the AKP's supporters and opponents.

AMERICANA

Share of Homes With Guns Shows 4-Decade Decline - Sabrina Tavernise and Robert Gebeloff, nytimes.com: The share of American households with guns has declined over the past four decades, a national survey shows, with some of the most surprising drops in the South and the Western mountain states, where guns are deeply embedded in the culture.

Obama jokes about press, GOP, and himself - David Jackson USA Today: Vice President Biden: "Look, it's no secret that my Vice President is still ambitious. But let's face it, his age is an issue. Just the other day, I had to take Joe aside and say, 'Joe, you are way too young to be the pope ... You can't do it. You got to mature a little bit.'"

MORE AMERICANA

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TIME MAGAZINE PROSE

"'Backward ran sentences until reeled the mind,' [The New Yorker’s Wolcott] Gibbs satirized. 'Where it all will end, knows God!'”

--Pundita Maureen Dowd

FRENCH-RUSSIAN RELATIONS

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GEORGIANA

From:  "The Amazons of the Caucasus, 1895"

LOVE 'EM DRONES

From Авиамоделист - Михаил Прехнер, 1934

ANCIENT HISTORY, A DECADE AGO  (from Common Dreams)

"To: Secretary of State Colin Powell

March 10, 2003

Dear Mr. Secretary:

I am joining my colleague John Brady Kiesling in submitting my resignation from the Foreign Service (effective immediately) because I cannot in good conscience support President Bush's war plans against Iraq.

The president has failed:

--To explain clearly why our brave men and women in uniform should be ready to sacrifice their lives in a war on Iraq at this time;

--To lay out the full ramifications of this war, including the extent of innocent civilian casualties;

--To specify the economic costs of the war for ordinary Americans;

--To clarify how the war would help rid the world of terror;

--To take international public opinion against the war into serious consideration.

Throughout the globe the United States is becoming associated with the unjustified use of force. The president's disregard for views in other nations, borne out by his neglect of public diplomacy, is giving birth to an anti-American century.

I joined the Foreign Service because I love our country. Respectfully, Mr. Secretary, I am now bringing this calling to a close, with a heavy heart but for the same reason that I embraced it.

Sincerely,

John H. Brown
Foreign Service Officer"; Image from

[No State Department replies were sent to this missive.]