A Christian View of Non-Proliferation

Thanks to PBS’s newsweekly site for the interesting blog discussion on religion & international affairs, raising an interesting question about whether a non-proliferation policy stance should be inherently Christian?

The Two Futures Project (2FP) is a movement of American Christians for the abolition of all nuclear weapons. We believe that we face two futures and one choice: a world without nuclear weapons or a world ruined by them. We support the multilateral, global, irreversible, and verifiable elimination of nuclear weapons, as a biblically-grounded mandate and as a contemporary security imperative.

Our change strategy is based around the creation of a nonpartisan, conscience-driven, enduring majority of Americans who are committed to a nuclear weapons-free world. By joining together with one voice of Christian conscience, we seek to encourage and enable our national leaders to make the complete elimination of nuclear weapons the organizing principle of American nuclear weapons policy. We join in this work to the glory of God.

via About 2FP « Two Futures Project.

 

The man behind Canada’s poppy pins – The Globe and Mail

For the Palmer Lecture its time to read up on 11 November, the U.S.’s northern neighbor, and a red flower:

The poppy has been a symbol of remembrance in Canada since the early 1920s, derived from Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae’s poem, In Flanders Fields.

via The man behind Canada’s poppy pins – The Globe and Mail.

Diplomatic Memo – Budget Fights Are Brewing at the United Nations – NYTimes.com

Its hard to argue with $2473/page—and not thing the UN a wasteful place.  Still, look at how many languages the EU must include?  And remember: multilateralism isn’t for sissies.

It is budget season at the United Nations, and that is just one of several fights brewing. The two-month period of intense haggling is expected to be especially heated this year within the innocuous-sounding “Fifth Committee” that handles the crucial money decisions.

First, some major donors are demanding that Brazil, Russia, India and China absorb a larger share of the organization’s costs to reflect their new economic weight. Those countries, however, are having none of it.

Then comes the widespread frustration that Secretary General Ban Ki-moon presented a two-year regular budget of about $4.89 billion. At first glance, that seems to be a mere 0.5 percent increase over current spending — except an annex of nebulous “add-ons” is likely to push the number to at least $5.4 billion, a leap of more than 12 percent, which many members argue is unsustainable.

via Diplomatic Memo – Budget Fights Are Brewing at the United Nations – NYTimes.com.

Berlin Comes Back Together–20 Years Ago

We commemorated a major Cold War event last week with the Berlin Seminar at BYU.  Fred Kaplan explains why Berlin mattered.   Meanwhile, please share your favorite insight from the 20 year anniversary across the punditsphere or news:

The fall of the Berlin Wall did destroy borders between countries, at least physically. Millions of people who had been raised in communist Eastern Europe had for the first time in their lives the possibility to see the West. But the idea of borders, mental or physical, across Europe, was not eradicated.“The West had preoccupied our imagination for so long,” said Ivan Krastev, chairman of the Center for Liberal Strategies in Sofia. “We had talked about destroying the borders. It was about the physical act of crossing. No constraints.”

via Barriers May Crumble, but Psychological Borders Remain – Special Report – NYTimes.com.

And more:

• Travel update from TimeOut Berlin
• Newseum interactive site
• A comparison of images and text by NYT
• How the wall coming down was a big misunderstanding

   

  

   

  via Slate

Afghan strategy rollout imminent | The Cable

Reliable sources tell The Cable that the review has entered its final stages, with Defense Secretary Robert Gates and National Security Advisor Jim Jones now taking the lead and putting on the final touches.

And the administration sent a team to Brussels this week to consult with all 43 member nations of the International Security Assistance Force, including all 28 NATO nations.

“Their trip will serve to both brief allies on where our efforts stand and to hear their comments and questions about the review,” said Michael Hammer, spokesman for the National Security Council.

via Afghan strategy rollout imminent | The Cable.

Views on what the US needs to do?  (This only counts if you respond prior to the official announcement):

Diplomatic Memo – With Mideast Talks Stalled, U.S. Struggles for Temporary Fix – NYTimes.com

Now, in the latest acknowledgment that its policy has failed, at least for the moment, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton has begun setting the stage for a new phase of Middle East diplomacy, with a more modest goal. She is trying to get the parties talking at any level to avoid a dangerous vacuum until a Plan B emerges. But the United States is not giving up. The administration’s special envoy for the Middle East, George J. Mitchell, met again with Mr. Abbas in Jordan on Monday, and with King Abdullah II. In Marrakesh,Mrs. Clinton tried to convince skeptical Arab foreign ministers of the value of Israel’s proposal.

via Diplomatic Memo – With Mideast Talks Stalled, U.S. Struggles for Temporary Fix – NYTimes.com.

Analyzing the Gay Rights Coalition

One way to look at the policy debate over gay rights is from the perspective of the movement strategy.  Building a coalition of support for a position requires forging consensus among differeing views.  Some partners opt for more aggressive stands; others may prefer to use incremental or subtle approaches.  When a group faces a crisis or defeat, that is when the coalition can face fracture or transition.  (Perhaps this is what is happening with the movement that hit a zenith with California Prop 8 and now a critical deflation in Maine–a libertarian state with little Mormon or African American influence to blame.)

Tuesday’s defeat is also likely to further splinter a movement that has been debating the best tactics for success. Some prominent gay politicians last month skipped a gay rights march in Washington, questioning its purpose, which emboldened some of the younger advocates at the march to call for a new generation of leaders. Now, many will argue that that approach is not enough. Some are already pressing for more aggressive tactics, like speeding up a ballot measure to reverse California’s ban on same-sex marriage next year, instead of taking more time to build support.

via News Analysis – Gay Rights Rebuke May Change Approach – NYTimes.com.

U.S. Diplomat Meets Myanmar’s Top Dissident and Urges Junta to Work With Her – NYTimes.com

After a two-hour meeting on Wednesday with the leader of the country’s beleaguered democracy movement, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, Mr. Campbell urged the government to allow her “more frequent interactions” with members of her party, the National League for Democracy, which won elections in 1990 that were ignored by the ruling generals.

Mrs. Aung San Suu Kyi has been held under house arrest for 14 of the past 20 years and is allowed only infrequent meetings with anyone outside her home. Mr. Campbell is the most senior American representative she has met since 1995.

via U.S. Diplomat Meets Myanmar’s Top Dissident and Urges Junta to Work With Her – NYTimes.com.

How To Work A Room

Ready for the reception?  Dressed up, name tag, and scanning the room…now what?

To avoid being tongue-tied when you try to start a conversation with someone you don’t know, prepare a self-introduction that is clear, interesting, and well delivered. What you say about yourself will depend on the nature of the event, but in any case, it shouldn’t take longer than 8-10 seconds. Although practicing your introduction might at first seem silly and artificial, it will eventually help you make an introduction that sounds natural, confident, and smooth. Here are a few examples:

* “Hi, my name is Catherine Lee. I’m glad to have this chance to meet you and learn how a psychology major can break into the pharmaceutical industry.” [Employer Information Session]

* “Good morning, I’m Bryan Sampson, a former summer intern at your Los Angeles branch.” [Career Fair]

* “Hello, my name is Jessica Garcia. I’m a junior rhetoric major looking to find out what it’s like working in public relations and marketing.” [Career Speed Dating Event]

via Career Center Article – Networking Tips: How to Work a Room.

Next, time your interactions so you don’t end up spending too much or too little time with your first group of people:

…do a general scan of the room. Most likely you will see that people have broken off into clumps, or small groups. If there is anyone there that you know, go greet that person first. That will break the ice for you, and give you a comfort zone to start from. If this person does not then introduce you to others in the group, you should go ahead and introduce yourself, saying something like, “I don’t believe we’ve met before. I’m [name].” Or, “Hi, I’m [name]. It’s a pleasure to meet you.” If someone looks familiar and you can’t remember their name, it’s absolutely perfectly all right to say, “I’m so sorry, I feel certain that we’ve met before, but I’m rotten with names.” Very few people will be offended that you could not remember their name, since 99.9% of the people in the world have a similarly lousy memory for names. The important thing–to them–is that you recognized them.

via Networking 201: How to “work a room”.

Finally, when you’re ready to move to level 2, here are some of the more intermediate skills to master:

• Never ask point-blank Yes/No pre-qual questions. It shows a lack of profiling ability. Don’ts: “So are you a member?” or “Did you study at HBS?” Dos: “Have I seen you @ similar industry events” or “Did you go to school in the boston area?”
• Be a Weed. Weeds grow and foster entire impromptu communities. Friendship with you is like a gateway drug. Be the one that gets added via Facebook, LinkedIn, MySpace, Orkut, Friendster, MySpace, Ryze. (I say MySpace twice cuz its the biggest.)
• Work the Room’s Fringes. a) Wallflowers can be broken branches but could be an “amiable ambush”- another dude looking to charm you.
• Run the Point. Point guards don’t score (plus who wants to score in a room full of dudes). Good point guards pass, meaning they set aside their own agenda (shy, sausage-ing, turtling) and make intros.

via How to Work The Room 4.0: Getting “Man-Charm”.

The book of the hour on the topic–if you really want to go head over heels into this subject is Never Eat Lunch Alone.  Schmooze on!

Two Professors, One Valuable Lesson: How to Respectfully Disagree – Commentary – The Chronicle of Higher Education

Would you take a course from the Odd Couple—two profs with entirely different approaches, ideas, and temperaments?  Does this further the ideal of teaching effective communication, especially when disagreement in part of the equation?

We could not be more different. Mel Seesholtz has a reputation for criticizing the dogma-based sociopolitical agenda of organized religion; Bryan Polk is the chaplain at Abington College. Mel is a James Joyce scholar; Bryan prefers to study Neolithic stone circles in England. Although we both teach English classes, Mel focuses on literature and courses on science, technology, and society; Bryan teaches religious studies and mythology. Mel is a laid-back facilitator of classroom discussions; Bryan is a more formal lecturer. Mel is a vegetarian (heading toward vegan); Bryan is a gourmet cook who enjoys virtually every kind of meat. …

But our version of team-teaching is expensive. Do its benefits outweigh its costs? Aside from students liking the approach, clearly it has helped them understand how to disagree without becoming inconsiderate, ranting bloviators. Based on student feedback and evaluations, campus administrators have agreed to continue the course for at least another year, and in response to student requests, we are writing a textbook that presents the material in a framework reflecting the modeling goals that inspired the course.

via Two Professors, One Valuable Lesson: How to Respectfully Disagree – Commentary – The Chronicle of Higher Education.