The Foreign Service Journal, June 2016

10 JUNE 2016 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL Take AFSA With You! Change your address online, visit us at www.afsa.org/ address Or Send changes to: AFSAMembership Department 2101 E Street NW Washington, DC 20037 Moving? Unfortunately such projects are no longer supported by the U.S. government, which is a huge mistake. We still have the best university system in the world, and we are the first-choice destination for international students around the globe. This would be a much wiser use of our limited development funding than the current “flavor of the month” approach, which varies from administration to administration. Tibor Nagy Ambassador, retired Lubbock, Texas Learning from Northern Ireland Having spent nearly a quarter of my career dealing with Northern Ireland at one level or another, I read Andrew Sens’ excellent article with great interest (“Eth- nic and Sectarian Conflict—Two Core Issues,” April FSJ ). Given our current political environ- ment and the many cleavages in our society, I could not help but reflect on how the two central concepts of the Good Friday Agreements might be applied here at home. Goodness knows, our polity could use a generous dose of parity of esteem and equal application of the law. Jack Binns Ambassador, retired Tucson, Arizona Remembering Ed Dillery Steve Honley’s April Appreciation of Ed Dillery was superb. The Foreign Service is loaded with fine people, distinguished people of all manner. To my mind Ed Dil- lery was the ultimate gentleman—profes- sionally, socially, in tennis or over a bowl of Vietnamese pho. Ed took time to understand people, their behavior, their attitudes, their rationale. Of a strong analytical bent, Ed showed no harshness or hatred of anyone. At his most extreme, he showed a certain level of chagrin. Ed was a wonderful addition to the State Department, continuing well into his retirement years. He was one of the finest gentlemen I have known. Douglas Watson FSO, retired Arlington, Virginia Remembering Jonita Whitaker Very occasionally in life you meet an individual whose personality combines lightning and sunshine. Jonita Whitaker was such a person. Jonita’s personal dynamismwas compelling; she had vision and the energy to carry complex projects to completion. And she did so with an infectious enthusi- asm that engaged colleagues and all those with whom she interacted. Consequently, news of her abrupt death on April 7 struck like an unexpected solar eclipse. I first met Jonita when she assumed directorship of the Bureau of Political- Military Affairs’ Office of the Coordinator of the Foreign Policy Advisor Program (PM/POLAD) in June 2008. For many years, PM/POLAD had seemed to me a tranquil, semi-backwater focused on providing senior FSOs to senior U.S. military commanders in Wash- ington and overseas. Its directors were normally senior male political officers, sometimes on brief bridge-equivalent assignments and sometimes on their “tombstone” tour in Washington. Jonita was very different: not male, not a political officer, neither a pol-mil specialist nor someone with military cre- dentials, and not a “Europeanist” NATO hand, Arabist or East Asian expert.