What We Need Now Is Leadership

Vice President Dick Cheney attacked John Kerry. He said that John Kerry "lacks deeply held convictions." Today Kerry shot back. He said, "That's not completely true."

Jay Leno, author of the above quote, is hardly the first comedian to rib Senator Kerry for straddling the fence or waffling. In this Al Jazeera interview, Kerry demonstrates his ongoing ability to see both sides of an issue, although accusations of waffling may be unjust. Regarding the Taliban, Kerry argues that schools, education, development and dialogue are central to improvement. He emphasizes the importance of talking with Taliban fighters and helping Afghanistan to create a more effective government, but dances around the issue of current military operations there. Ultimately, his is a message that promotes open dialogue and empowering the people. Despite over 1,200 views (at the time of this posting), the video's comments feature has been disabled, making it difficult to determine how Kerry's message has been received.

Kerry, as mentioned in this blog, has advocated for revamped public diplomacy in the country, arguing that negative attitudes about our country are caused by "honest disagreements with our policies and our actions" as well as "misrepresentations of our goals, values and motives targeted at those prepared to believe the worst about us."

Few would argue that U.S. goals, values and motives have been misrepresented in Afghanistan, and that U.S. efforts to reframe the story have been countered by opposing views. But how can the United States hope to set the record straight when our nation's representatives call for dialogue and shortly thereafter launch a major offensive? Kerry explains the seeming incongruity with the deftness of a seasoned politician. But the people influenced by the military's actions likely outnumber the people who have been exposed to U.S. information efforts, and it's easy to believe that the military's presence in Afghanistan will continue to generate conflicting, and frequently negative, responses in the region until our policy, action and communication align more simply.

Oh, the Weather Outside...

Well, ICkateers, it's snowing in Washington, D.C., which means snowballs are flying, police are packing, and my cozy little ivory tower is frosted over and bitterly cold. It's the perfect day to be anywhere that's not an attic bedroom, and a quick scan of the Washington Post's Weekend Section revealed a fabulous article by the illustrious Michael O'Sullivan on the cultural film offerings available in D.C.

Many of these film series are organized by embassies and cultural centers, a service the United States offers abroad--although not as much as it once did. Like many aspects of modern U.S. diplomacy, cultural outreach programs decreased (as did their funding) in the wake of the Cold War. John Kerry addressed the situation in a February 2009 report titled "U.S. Public Diplomacy--Time to Get Back in the Game," in which he laments the disappearance of the American Centers of yore.

American Centers, for the noncognoscenti, were libraries of sorts that offered book clubs and lectures and civic youth programs and cultural series and English lessons to foreign publics until a trifecta of events conspired to bring about their demise. The end of the Cold War, the information revolution and the mollification of Senator Jesse Helmes led the U.S. Information Agency to be absorbed, like an extra in The Blob, by the State Department. American Centers were gradually shuttered, shrunk and otherwise underfunded until the attacks on the Twin Towers and the Pentagon convinced Congress that cultural outreach might have more value than previously assumed.

In subsequent years, the United States has stepped up public and cultural diplomacy efforts once again, but progress is slow and hindered by lack of vision, leadership and resources. This is not to suggest that U.S. public and cultural diplomacy is ineffective or unnecessary, rather that there is a general consensus on the need for reform. The catch is that the consensus is strong among people with the skills to effect reform, but weaker among people with the ability to lead the charge. There's plenty of snow on the hill. What's needed is a few kids with mittens* to set the ball in motion.

Fortunately for D.C. residents and Beltway outliers, our town is hopping with options for the foreign film enthusiast, and I encourage you to check out the article and take full advantage. Alas, I've got too much reading this weekend to join you. Eat some popcorn for me! I'll be bundling up in my tauntaun sleeping bag until the weather turns.


* A totally irrelevant aside: Why does a google search for "congressional mittens" turn up more pictures of Mitt Romney than any other U.S. politicians? Can anyone help?