The Foreign Service Journal, May 2008

umnist for Babble and a blogger for Psychology Today . His Wordlustitude ( http://wordlust.blogspot.com ) is, as he describes it, “a growing dictionary of ephemeral words, also known as nonce or stunt words.” The blog also features links to a variety of language- related sites and blogs. Double Tongued Dictionary ’s ( www.doubletongued.org ) found- er and editor, Grant Barnett, is an American lexicographer, editor of The Official Dictionary of Unofficial English (McGraw-Hill, 2006) and the co-host of public radio’s weekly show on language, “A Way with Words.” Though his first goal for the online dictionary is to inform and entertain, he also aims to “cover carefully the lending and borrowing between English and other languages” — an aspect of language development of special interest to global nomads. Professional dictionary editors consider many of these sites frivolous, but they clearly have their value. “They fill a gap tracking the words that didn’t make it into the last edition of a mainstream dictionary and are perhaps too soon for the next edi- tion,” says Australian linguistics ex- pert Dr. Ruth Wajnryb. And don’t forget the assistance such sites can render in helping you keep up with your teenager’s vocabu- lary. By the way, nanoblahblah means “nonsensical minutiae” and whale tail is the term for “the upper part of a G- string that appears above hipster jeans when the wearer bends over.” — Susan Brady Maitra, Senior Editor Cuba: Change in the Offing? Fidel Castro’s announcement on Feb. 19 that he was retiring, followed by brother Raul Castro’s official des- ignation as head of state on Feb. 24, set off a wave of speculation about what to expect next from the island republic. Cuba’s dogged persistence in the face of a 50-year-old U.S. boy- cott was severely undercut by the 1991 collapse of the USSR and loss of extensive economic support. The first high-level foreign repre- sentative received by the new Cuban president was the Vatican’s secretary of state. Afterwards, for the first time in a decade, state television broadcast a mass in Havana’s Cathedral Square attended by thousands. At the same time, at the United Nations, Cuba’s foreign minister fulfilled his govern- ment’s promise to sign two important treaties: the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights ( www.msn bc.msn.com/id/23397572/ ) . The European Union seized the occasion to press ahead for improved relations. The E.U.’s chief develop- ment officer, Louis Michel, was dis- patched to meet with Foreign Mini- ster Felipe Perez Roque, the first high-level visit by a European official since 2005. The European Commis- 12 F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L / M A Y 2 0 0 8 C Y B E R N O T E S 50 Years Ago... The desk officer no longer serves as a “little despot,” making policy on the cables. More and more consideration must be given to the wishes of other areas and bureaus within the department, to the conflicting interests of other departments, and to the coordinating agencies like the National Security Council and the Operations Coordinating Board. — Robert E. Elder, “Country Desk Officer: Low Man on the Totem Pole (Part I),” FSJ , May 1958