US Foreign Policy 3.0: We're The Mets of International Diplomacy

[rufus]

Xi or Putin? He is in cahoots with both.

Ukraine. We give them weapons, they give us dirt on Hunter Biden.

That's how this **** works.

[Kepler]

Ukraine. We give them weapons, they give us dirt on Hunter Biden.

That's how this **** works.

And it would have worked, too, if it weren't for you meddling INTERPOLS.

[dxmnkd316]

Blinken and Biden seem to have handled this perfectly. Putin was obviously probing, trying to either provoke a stupid response so he could rally round the flag back home, or a Munich non-response in which he could have his cake, or stoke the US Right to undercut Biden for spite and thus weaken us further, but we seem to have side-stepped all of that.

Funny what happens when you let the professionals and career experts do your negotiating.

ANd given what the prior administration did to Foggy Bottom over those four years, it's nothing short of miraculous.

(Sure it could all go tlts up and we could all be incinerated by the end of next month, but we'll cross that bridge when we get there)

[Kepler]

ANd given what the prior administration did to Foggy Bottom over those four years, it's nothing short of miraculous.

(Sure it could all go tlts up and we could all be incinerated by the end of next month, but we'll cross that bridge when we get there)

I think it's partly because DOS simply had their own foreign policy while the howler monkeys were defecating in the White House. I guarantee as soon as the Republican politicals left the room, the DOS careers would turn to their international peers and side eye whatever "INORITE" is in French or German. That is certainly the way it was in defense and the IC.

Conservatives are okay for a laugh on teevee, and their daughters do their low-self-esteem best on the pole (and, after, on the pole), but you wouldn't allow them access to actual governance, that would be insane.

[FadeToBlack&Gold]

Poots now has three choices:

1. He can stand down after all his bluster and look like a craven fool, or
2. He can invade and risk a decent chance of embarrassing The Bear on the world stage, or
3. He has to backchannel a proposal to NATO that both sides figure out how to walk away in a manner that they can each issue press releases declaring victory

[dxmnkd316]

I think it's partly because DOS simply had their own foreign policy while the howler monkeys were defecating in the White House. I guarantee as soon as the Republican politicals left the room, the DOS careers would turn to their international peers and side eye whatever "INORITE" is in French or German. That is certainly the way it was in defense and the IC.

Conservatives are okay for a laugh on teevee, and their daughters do their low-self-esteem best on the pole (and, after, on the pole), but you wouldn't allow them access to actual governance, that would be insane.

Don't disagree. But I thought I read that they saw a huge exodus from the career diplomats, et. al. during the reign of terror. There are any number of articles that say even in the first year it was north of 10-12% of the total workforce.

Actually, I took a look and it appears almost all of the attrition was in civil service. Based on #s from State, it looks like we're finally back to 12/31/16 #s for CS employees. Foreign service didn't really tank like CS. Wondering if that's because most of the FS positions are tied to foreign posts at embassies, which aren't really created or removed. No idea.

[Kepler]

Don't disagree. But I thought I read that they saw a huge exodus from the career diplomats, et. al. during the reign of terror. There are any number of articles that say even in the first year it was north of 10-12% of the total workforce.

Actually, I took a look and it appears almost all of the attrition was in civil service. Based on #s from State, it looks like we're finally back to 12/31/16 #s for CS employees. Foreign service didn't really tank like CS. Wondering if that's because most of the FS positions are tied to foreign posts at embassies, which aren't really created or removed. No idea.

TBH I think a lot of that was really old folks who said "I'm not going to deal with this Nazi garbage for the next 4-8 years, I have a house on the Vineyard." I didn't say this but it's not the worst thing in the world that they left.

This happens in government a lot. When the Dems are in charge our best stay because they have sane leadership which stays out of their way and lets them ply their trade as SMEs. When the Nazis come, the ones who can escape do, rather than waste their time working for a fascist regime. If the Dems were always in charge the work would be too intellectually and morally fulfilling to leave.

[burd]

TBH I think a lot of that was really old folks who said "I'm not going to deal with this Nazi garbage for the next 4-8 years, I have a house on the Vineyard." I didn't say this but it's not the worst thing in the world that they left.

This happens in government a lot. When the Dems are in charge our best stay because they have sane leadership which stays out of their way and lets them ply their trade as SMEs. When the Nazis come, the ones who can escape do, rather than waste their time working for a fascist regime. If the Dems were always in charge the work would be too intellectually and morally fulfilling to.

My brother spent the last 12 or so years of his career in the foreign service, the last 3 in administration in DC. When Dubya was elected for a second time, he was in the Delhi embassy and described how low the morale became among long time FS professionals, not only because diplomacy had been abandoned but also because the American people stood for it. A lot of people got out at that point, I guess. He expressed regret that a lot of these people had served under both R and D administrations and had a lot of experience and skill to bring to the table but just did not want to be part of it any longer.

[rufus]

Poots now has three choices:

1. He can stand down after all his bluster and look like a craven fool, or
2. He can invade and risk a decent chance of embarrassing The Bear on the world stage, or
3. He has to backchannel a proposal to NATO that both sides figure out how to walk away in a manner that they can each issue press releases declaring victory

Or he can keep doing what he's been doing, but just never take that ultimate step. Keep up the rhetoric, the badmouthing of the West, the act for the benefit of his people.

[Kepler]

Or he can keep doing what he's been doing, but just never take that ultimate step. Keep up the rhetoric, the badmouthing of the West, the act for the benefit of his people.

What DPRK has been doing for 50 years.

[rufus]

I was gonna say, just like Kim in NK, but decided to leave it out.

[dxmnkd316]

This is pretty... I'm out of words

whatever it is, this is bad, even for fox
https://twitter.com/acyn/status/1484...045090816?s=21

[Kepler]

This is pretty... I'm out of words

whatever it is, this is bad, even for fox
https://twitter.com/acyn/status/1484...045090816?s=21

They own Dump, the NRA, and OAN. Who says they don't own Fox too?

Remember: all conservatives ever do is project.

[Drew S.]

This is the type of reason Ukraine kicking off is so scary: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/20/u...-isis-dam.html

Very easy for someone to screw up.

[Kepler]

This is the type of reason Ukraine kicking off is so scary: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/20/u...-isis-dam.html

Very easy for someone to screw up.

They didn't screw up. It wasn't a mistake.