Last night, I stopped by the Round Robin Bar for a drink or two after work. There I found Shaughnessy, of the State Department Pakistan Desk, drinking – well, drinking like an Irishman trying to drown his sorrows, actually. “Things at Foggy Bottom getting to you?” I inquired as I took a seat on the… Continue reading Pakistan President Zardari Yodels for Immunity
Tag: diplomacy
Assange, Assad, Manning, Wikileaks, VEPCO, PEPCO – and Nuts
Friday of last week, two million people in the Washington DC metro area lost electrical power. As I write this, eight days later, half a million still have none. Oh, and by the way, the temperature every day in between has been around 100 degrees Fahrenheit. That’s the ambient, dry-bulb, actual temperature, not including humidity.… Continue reading Assange, Assad, Manning, Wikileaks, VEPCO, PEPCO – and Nuts
Greeks Fear the New Drachma Won’t Be Worth a Continental
Another working Saturday ended rather late today, at six, culminating in a consultation with Dr. Vilaremetaftia Kolodaktilo, Principal Secondary Assistant Mattachine Attaché for High Culture at the Greek Embassy here in Washington. His usual concern over the years has been the return of Greek antiquities from places like the Getty Museum to their rightful situations… Continue reading Greeks Fear the New Drachma Won’t Be Worth a Continental
Bo Xilai and Bo Guagua – Beaux Yeux or Bo Zeux?
He began calling early Thursday, trying to get a telephone consultation appointment, but I was booked solid. Since we were working this weekend, Gretchen finally managed to fit him in on Saturday afternoon. Bo: Hello? Tom Collins? Tom: Yes. Bo: This is Bo Guagua. How are you? Tom: Fine, thanks. And you? Bo: I’ve been… Continue reading Bo Xilai and Bo Guagua – Beaux Yeux or Bo Zeux?
Don’t Cry for Oil, Argentina
I didn’t go in to the office this morning, and eagerly anticipated a quiet Saturday at home in Great Falls, Virginia with my girlfriend Cerise and my cat Twinkle. We had, however, just finished a tasty late winter Tidewater lunch of shad roe with chard and roasted red fingerling potatoes when my POTS land line… Continue reading Don’t Cry for Oil, Argentina