The Foreign Service Journal, January 2008

Service. I am not complaining; in- deed, I have the utmost respect and admiration for most of them. They did not accept the president’s nom- ination because they cared about me or my colleagues; they did so to assist the president in implementing his policies. Of more concern is the fact that department management is often inept. How many times have we heard that “State Department man- agement is an oxymoron”? Unfortun- ately, when lives are on the line, that is no longer a joke. If we are to be forced into a war zone, unarmed and with very little training or preparation, and with extremely limited resources to deal with potential calamities and trage- dies, we have a right to ask who cares, to demand more from management. Mr. Croddy’s questions about “Who will take care of us?” and “Who will raise our kids?” may not have been well-articulated, but I know exactly what he means. The military and Veterans Admini- stration, despite many problems, have come a long way from Jane Fonda’s “Coming Home,” but the Foreign Service has done nothing I know of to provide any assistance. And, as David Passage points out in his Speaking Out column in the November FSJ , we don’t even provide the same prepara- tion to FSOs going to Iraq that we did for those going to Vietnam. Without pointing fingers, it is safe to say that neither the administration nor Congress has adequately support- ed the department with the resources it needs for Iraq or anywhere else. It appears as though neither elected branch of government gives a hoot about the Foreign Service. And the American public hardly even recog- nizes our existence or role in Iraq. In baseball, three strikes and you’re out. Of course, as events unfolded, all the consternation was unnecessary. In typical fashion, the Foreign Ser- vice rose to the challenge and filled the 48 remaining positions in Bagh- dad with volunteers, again proving that we are prepared to make the same sacrifices as our colleagues in uniform. I hope that lesson is not lost on management. Robert Downey FSO, retired Abuja, Nigeria J A N U A R Y 2 0 0 8 / F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L 25 L E T T E R S