This video shows succintly why Africa (specifically West Africa) needs maritime security. The livelyhood and future of many of these poor countries such as Sierra Leone are literally being robbed on a daily basis.
This is just one reason programs such as APS (Africa Partnership Station) have the capability to be a transformative force in Africa.
Deadly Catch from Environmental Justice Foundation on Vimeo.
Monday, June 28, 2010
Poet of the Week from Nigeria: Niyi Osundare
Poet of the Week from Nigeria: Niyi Osundare
Osundare was born in Nigeria in 1947, and studied at the Universities of Ibadan, Leeds and York (Canada). Today he is a Professor of English at Universities of New Orleans and Ibadan. A very political poet and a dedicated campaigner for human rights, his award-winning Selected Poems were published by Heinemann in 1992.
I SING OF CHANGE
W.B. Yeats"Sing on: somewhere, at some new moon, We’ll learn that sleeping is not death, Hearing the whole earth change its tune.”
- I sing
- of the beauty of Athens
- without its slaves
- Of a world free
- of kings and queens
- and other remnants
- of an arbitrary past
- Of earth
- with no sharp north
- or deep south
- without blind curtains
- or iron walls
- Of the end
- of warlords and armouries
- and prisons of hate and fear
- Of deserts treeing
- and fruiting
- after the quickening rains
- Of the sun radiating ignorance
- and stars informing
- nights of unknowing
- I sing of a world reshaped
FUUO Past Poets of the Week:
http://fuuo.blogspot.com/2012/05/african-poets-of-week-compilation.html
http://fuuo.blogspot.com/2012/05/african-poets-of-week-compilation.html
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Diplomat's Daily Quotable- L
Diplomat's Daily Quotable:
Leaders, incompetent enemy: "When the enemy is poorly led, finish him off fast. Do not give him time to discover more competent leadership by the process of elimination."
The above quote is in honor of Karate Kid-- 'put him in a bodybag Johnny!'
Leadership, essence of: "All fo the great leaders have had one characteristic in common: it was the willingness to confront unequivocally the major anxiety of their people in their time. This, and not much else, is the essence of leadership." -John Kenneth Galbraith
Galbraith was an influential intellectual as well as an Ambassador to India under Kennedy. He received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1946 from President Truman and from President Clinton in 2000.
Leaders, incompetent enemy: "When the enemy is poorly led, finish him off fast. Do not give him time to discover more competent leadership by the process of elimination."
The above quote is in honor of Karate Kid-- 'put him in a bodybag Johnny!'
Leadership, essence of: "All fo the great leaders have had one characteristic in common: it was the willingness to confront unequivocally the major anxiety of their people in their time. This, and not much else, is the essence of leadership." -John Kenneth Galbraith
Galbraith was an influential intellectual as well as an Ambassador to India under Kennedy. He received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1946 from President Truman and from President Clinton in 2000.
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
The Law of the Navy in their entirety
I thought today was as good as time as any for a throwback posting of the Laws of the Navy. I am pretty sure MIDN Buxton, Schulz or maybe Potts had me write these out 50 times at some point during Plebe Summer.
THE LAWS OF THE NAVY
by Adm. R. A. Hopwood, Royal Navy
Now these are the laws of the Navy,
Unwritten and varied they be;
And he who is wise will observe them,
Going down in his ship to the sea.
As naught may outrun the destroyer,
So it is with the law and its grip,
For the strength of a ship is the Service,
And the strength of the Service the ship.
Take heed what you say of your seniors,
Be your words spoken softly or plain,
Let a bird of the air tell the matter,
And so shall ye hear it again.
If you labour from morn until even,
And meet with reproof for your toil,
'Tis well, that the gun may be humbled
The compressor must check the recoil.
On the strength of one link in the cable,
Dependeth the might of the chain.
Who knows when thou may'st be tested?
So live that thou bearest the strain!
When a ship that is tired returneth,
With the signs of the seas showing plain;
Men place her in dock for a season,
And her speed she reneweth again.
So shall ye, if perchance ye grow weary,
In the uttermost parts of the sea,
Pray for leave, for the good of the Service,
As much and as oft as may be.
Count not upon certain promotion
But rather to gain it aspire;
Though the sightline may end on the target
There cometh perchance the miss-fire.
Can'st follow the track of the dolphin?
Or tell where the sea swallows roam?
Where Leviathan taketh his pastime?
What ocean he calleth his own?
So it is with the words of the rulers,
And the orders these words shall convey;
Every law is naught beside this one:
Thou shalt not criticise, but Obey.
Say the wise: How may I know their purpose?
Then acts without wherefore or why.
Stays the fool but one moment to question,
And the chance of his life passes by.
If ye win through an African jungle,
Unmentioned at home in the press,
Heed it not. No man seeth the piston,
But it driveth the ship none the less.
Do they growl? it is well. Be thou silent,
If the work goeth forward amain.
Lo! the gun throws the shot to a hair's breadth
And shouteth, yet none shall complain.
Do they growl, and the work be retarded?
It is ill, be whatever their rank.
The half-loaded gun also shouteth,
But can she pierce target with blank?
Doth the paintwork make war with the funnels
And the deck to the cannons complain?
Nay, they know that some soap and fresh water
Unites them as brothers again.
So ye, being heads of departments,
Do you growl with a smile on your lip,
Lest ye strive and in anger be parted,
And lessen the might of your ship.
Dost deem that thy vessel needs gilding,
And the dockyard forbears to supply?
Put thy hand in thy pocket and gild her --
There are those who have risen thereby.
Dost think in a moment of anger
'Tis well with thy seniors to fight?
They prosper, who burn in the morning,
The letters they wrote overnight.
For many are shelved and forgotten,
With nothing to thank for their fate,
But that on a half sheet of foolscap
A fool "Had the honour to state."
Should the fairway be crowded with shipping
Beating homeward the harbour to win,
It is meet that lest any should suffer,
The steamers pass cautiously in.
So thou, when thou nearest promotion,
And the peak that is gilded is nigh,
Give heed to words and thine actions,
Lest others be wearied thereby.
It is ill for the winners to worry,
Take thy fate as it comes, with a smile,
And when thou art safe in the harbour
They may envy, but will not revile.
Uncharted the rocks that surround thee,
Take heed that the channels thou learn,
Lest thy name serve to buoy for another
That shoal the "Court-Martial Return".
Though a Harveyised belt may protect her
The ship bears the scar on her side;'
'Tis well if the Court should acquit thee --
But 'twere best had'st thou never been tried.
MORAL
As the wave washes clear at the hawse pipe,
Washes aft, and is lost in the wake;
So shalt thou drop astern all unheeded
Such time as these laws ye forsake.
Take heed in your manner of speaking
That the language ye use may be sound,
In the list of the words of your choosing
"Impossible" may not be found.
Now these are the Laws of the Navy,
And many and mighty are they.
But the hull and the deck and the keel
And the truck of the law is -- OBEY.
THE LAWS OF THE NAVY
by Adm. R. A. Hopwood, Royal Navy
Now these are the laws of the Navy,
Unwritten and varied they be;
And he who is wise will observe them,
Going down in his ship to the sea.
As naught may outrun the destroyer,
So it is with the law and its grip,
For the strength of a ship is the Service,
And the strength of the Service the ship.
Take heed what you say of your seniors,
Be your words spoken softly or plain,
Let a bird of the air tell the matter,
And so shall ye hear it again.
If you labour from morn until even,
And meet with reproof for your toil,
'Tis well, that the gun may be humbled
The compressor must check the recoil.
On the strength of one link in the cable,
Dependeth the might of the chain.
Who knows when thou may'st be tested?
So live that thou bearest the strain!
When a ship that is tired returneth,
With the signs of the seas showing plain;
Men place her in dock for a season,
And her speed she reneweth again.
So shall ye, if perchance ye grow weary,
In the uttermost parts of the sea,
Pray for leave, for the good of the Service,
As much and as oft as may be.
Count not upon certain promotion
But rather to gain it aspire;
Though the sightline may end on the target
There cometh perchance the miss-fire.
Can'st follow the track of the dolphin?
Or tell where the sea swallows roam?
Where Leviathan taketh his pastime?
What ocean he calleth his own?
So it is with the words of the rulers,
And the orders these words shall convey;
Every law is naught beside this one:
Thou shalt not criticise, but Obey.
Say the wise: How may I know their purpose?
Then acts without wherefore or why.
Stays the fool but one moment to question,
And the chance of his life passes by.
If ye win through an African jungle,
Unmentioned at home in the press,
Heed it not. No man seeth the piston,
But it driveth the ship none the less.
Do they growl? it is well. Be thou silent,
If the work goeth forward amain.
Lo! the gun throws the shot to a hair's breadth
And shouteth, yet none shall complain.
Do they growl, and the work be retarded?
It is ill, be whatever their rank.
The half-loaded gun also shouteth,
But can she pierce target with blank?
Doth the paintwork make war with the funnels
And the deck to the cannons complain?
Nay, they know that some soap and fresh water
Unites them as brothers again.
So ye, being heads of departments,
Do you growl with a smile on your lip,
Lest ye strive and in anger be parted,
And lessen the might of your ship.
Dost deem that thy vessel needs gilding,
And the dockyard forbears to supply?
Put thy hand in thy pocket and gild her --
There are those who have risen thereby.
Dost think in a moment of anger
'Tis well with thy seniors to fight?
They prosper, who burn in the morning,
The letters they wrote overnight.
For many are shelved and forgotten,
With nothing to thank for their fate,
But that on a half sheet of foolscap
A fool "Had the honour to state."
Should the fairway be crowded with shipping
Beating homeward the harbour to win,
It is meet that lest any should suffer,
The steamers pass cautiously in.
So thou, when thou nearest promotion,
And the peak that is gilded is nigh,
Give heed to words and thine actions,
Lest others be wearied thereby.
It is ill for the winners to worry,
Take thy fate as it comes, with a smile,
And when thou art safe in the harbour
They may envy, but will not revile.
Uncharted the rocks that surround thee,
Take heed that the channels thou learn,
Lest thy name serve to buoy for another
That shoal the "Court-Martial Return".
Though a Harveyised belt may protect her
The ship bears the scar on her side;'
'Tis well if the Court should acquit thee --
But 'twere best had'st thou never been tried.
MORAL
As the wave washes clear at the hawse pipe,
Washes aft, and is lost in the wake;
So shalt thou drop astern all unheeded
Such time as these laws ye forsake.
Take heed in your manner of speaking
That the language ye use may be sound,
In the list of the words of your choosing
"Impossible" may not be found.
Now these are the Laws of the Navy,
And many and mighty are they.
But the hull and the deck and the keel
And the truck of the law is -- OBEY.
The Third Law of the Navy
One would think that General McChrystal (and his staff) would show more restraint when they knew what they said would most likely be published. I think this speaks to the type of Command Climate/Culture he allowed to permeate and exist.
It would be unfathomable for me to think of saying the same things to a reporter about my current (or any past) bosses/skippers/commodores. It's something an inexperienced ensign, midshipman, or junior enlisted might do. But for a 4-star and his staff to think that type of behavior is not only acceptable but funny--that's worrisome to me.
And for those who say, cut him some slack-these guys are the warfighters-with the boots on the ground-putting their lives at risk everyday-we couldn't know unless we were there fighting--I say those are BS excuses. Just because you are in combat doesn't mean ALL order and discipline go totally out the window...ESPECIALLY in front of a reporter.
It would be unfathomable for me to think of saying the same things to a reporter about my current (or any past) bosses/skippers/commodores. It's something an inexperienced ensign, midshipman, or junior enlisted might do. But for a 4-star and his staff to think that type of behavior is not only acceptable but funny--that's worrisome to me.
And for those who say, cut him some slack-these guys are the warfighters-with the boots on the ground-putting their lives at risk everyday-we couldn't know unless we were there fighting--I say those are BS excuses. Just because you are in combat doesn't mean ALL order and discipline go totally out the window...ESPECIALLY in front of a reporter.
Diplomat's Dictionary Daily Quotables- K
Knowledge: "[An ambassador] must be an indefatigable reader, else he is sure to fail, as a soldier who should be indfferent to physical exercise." -Bishop Germonius, 1627
Knowledge of foreign nations: "The temper, qualities, and limitations of many a man can be divined on short acquaintance; those of a nation need longer contact." -J.J. Jusserand, 1924
Knowledge of foreign nations: "The temper, qualities, and limitations of many a man can be divined on short acquaintance; those of a nation need longer contact." -J.J. Jusserand, 1924
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Diplomat's Dictionary Daily Quotable
Jokes: "Most jokes entertain through plays on words, double entendres, the clever alteration of clichés, anecdotes embellishing individual or group stereotypes, or surprise twists to apparently familiar stories...
So it is a rare joke that translates effectively across a linguistic or cultural divide. That is why interpreters generally wince when speakers being to tell one."
Jokes, friendship: "Shared laughter is a step toward friendship."
Justice, charity: "Charity is no substitute for justice withheld." -St. Augustine.
So it is a rare joke that translates effectively across a linguistic or cultural divide. That is why interpreters generally wince when speakers being to tell one."
Jokes, friendship: "Shared laughter is a step toward friendship."
Justice, charity: "Charity is no substitute for justice withheld." -St. Augustine.
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