The Foreign Service Journal, March 2004

selves had written and blessed. Our betrayal of the International Criminal Court was a shameful blot on American history and an unmistak- able sign that George W. Bush had rejected his father’s nobler vision. His populism was read by me as cow- ardice, but by the world as arrogance. After 9/11, though diplomacy became more vital than ever to American security, our reaction left little room for allies. The arrival of a new U.S. ambassador confirmed this change of attitude. He understood Greece as well as he thought he need- ed to, and showed himself adept at the contemptuous posturing that buys tennis dates with Defense Secretary Rumsfeld. The Path to War In the late summer of 2002 came the certainty that we had embarked on war with Iraq. The neoconservatives surfaced to reassure unhappy ordinary conservatives, for whom loyalty to allies meant something, that the U.N. is an organization by and for corrupt wimps, and that international legitima- cy is for sissies too squeamish to wield power. We liberals had no equivalent fiction to comfort us — history makes brutally clear the trajectory of power politics based on ignorance and con- tempt for foreigners. My draft Dissent Channel mes- sage seemed futile sent from Athens. I was not the type to instigate insur- rection. So I wrote myself off as a time-serving coward. Then Diplo- matic Security’s pink-slip crackdown saved me. I had been careless enough at times over my career: classified documents left in out-boxes, an unlocked safe or hard drive. But lies had been told about my commitment to security, and the injustice festered. My ambassador made clear that my fight to keep my security clearance was purely my own. In a moment of clarity — or wounded vanity, if you M A R C H 2 0 0 4 / F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L 15 S P E A K I N G O U T korman communities arlington CORPORATE SUITES arlington, va 880 north pollard street 866.korman.4 : kormancommunities.com live better. brand new luxury high rise : fully appointed one, one bed- room dens and two bedroom corporate suites : state of the art fitness and business centers : heated outdoor lap pool : custom made mahogany furniture : fully equipped kitchens : luxury towels and linens : soft, firm or hypoallergenic pil- low selection : weekday club breakfast serving Starbucks ® Coffee : afternoon Tazo ® Tea : digital premium cable and high speed internet : 27” and 20” sony wega tv and dvd : sony cd stereo : free local phone : on-site management, maintenance, housekeeping : concierge services : walking distance to ballston common mall, ballston and virginia square metro stops