New Diplomatic Avenue Emerges, in 140-Character Bursts – NYTimes.com

Twitter diplomacy takes off at the #UNGA:

At the height of the diplomatic negotiations last week over a United Nations Security Council resolution that would require Syria to turn over its stockpile of chemical weapons, the American ambassador to the United Nations, Samantha Power, used Twitter to pre-empt criticism of the measure as lacking teeth because it had no automatic enforcement provision.

via New Diplomatic Avenue Emerges, in 140-Character Bursts – NYTimes.com.

Who else to follow?

• @AmbassadorPower
• @LyallGrant
• @PanakajPachuari
• @HassanRouhani
• @StateDept

 

Rival Factions in Strike Underscore the Fissures in Post-Chávez Venezuela – NYTimes.com

Chavez is gone and his successor struggles to maintain the same control that was once exerted:

The strikers’ main demand is that the government-owned company, the Orinoco Steelworks, also known as Sidor, pay millions of dollars in bonuses and other benefits they say were wrongly calculated.

And despite the charges of outside meddling, the scene here on Friday was quintessential Venezuela — unruly and loud, with lots of shouting and little or no listening. Yet it might never have occurred under Mr. Maduro’s predecessor and mentor, the charismatic socialist Hugo Chávez, who led the country for 14 years until his death in March.

via Rival Factions in Strike Underscore the Fissures in Post-Chávez Venezuela – NYTimes.com.

Policy Options on Global Carbon?

How can you solve the problem of a shared, common interest in reducing global carbon?

The idea he was defending was that scientists should specify a worldwide cap on global emissions of greenhouse gases — “a carbon cap” — that would apply if countries were serious about staying below an internationally agreed upper limit on global warming. It was just a single paragraph, but it had huge implications, and everyone in the room knew it. If it were adopted, it would make starkly clear how far the world remains from having any meaningful policy to tackle climate change.

“It was inconveniently simple,” Dr. Knutti would say a few days later.

via How to Slice a Global Carbon Pie? – NYTimes.com.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change attempts a solution–with negotation on language and paragraphs rampant–as we would expect for such a diplomatic policymaking exercise.

Why Lawyers Become Bad Leaders – CHE

As Deborah Rhode observes, lawyers rank low in terms of perception as being honest and ethical, yet make up a majority of US presidents and half of Congress. Does the study of the law result in bad leaders?

There is also a mismatch between the traits associated with leaders and those associated with lawyers. Although what constitutes effective leadership depends on context, certain qualities are rated as important across an array of situations. The best-documented characteristics cluster in five categories: vision, values (integrity, honesty, an ethic of service), personal skills (self-awareness, self-control), interpersonal skills (social awareness, empathy, persuasion), and technical competence (knowledge, preparation, judgment).

Not all of those qualities are characteristic of lawyers. For example, they tend to be above average in their skepticism, competitiveness, autonomy, sense of urgency, and orientation to achievement. Skepticism, the tendency to be argumentative, cynical, and judgmental, can get in the way of what President George H.W. Bush famously dismissed as the \”vision thing.\” The need to \”get things done\” urgently can lead to impatience, intolerance, and a failure to listen. Competitiveness and desires for autonomy and achievement can make lawyers self-absorbed, controlling, and combative.

Lawyers also rank lower than the general population in interpersonal sensitivity and resilience­—their difficulty in accepting criticism. Lacking \”soft\” interpersonal skills, they tend to devalue them and see no reason to acquire them.

Another problem arises from what researchers call the \”paradox of power.\” Individuals reach top positions because of a need for personal achievement, so they often don\’t focus on helping others achieve. If left unchecked, the ambition, self-confidence, and self-centeredness that often propel lawyers to leadership roles may sabotage their performance once they get there.

via Why Lawyers Become Bad Leaders – The Chronicle Review – The Chronicle of Higher Education.