Sep 2010 TRADOC Senior Leader's Conference

[Tom Odom]

OE

This relates to the FAO question as you know quite well. The FBC obsession a mental blinder, one that is welded to Big Green's psyche.

Why in the devil do we need POLADs from State when we have FAOs who are better qualified, already green dipped, by the time they are qualified as 48s, defacto strategists?

Best
Tom

[Old Eagle]

The answer probably lies at several levels:

1. The Army is enamored with outsiders
2. There is also a liaison function between Army & State (which we've both done as Army guys, but their guy somehow has more street cred with our uniformed bosses)
3. It keeps State pregnant with the small wars issue

POLADs & PRTs also appear to be redefining how FSOs see their functions. I served with a coupla Vietnam Era CORDS grads who were very activist in their outlook on their role in the host nation. The following generation appeared to me to be much more constrained. They wanted to conduct structured meetings with appropriate officials and write cute cables back to feed the info monster in DC. I'm getting anecdotal evidence now that some of the POLAD & PRT FSOs are now buying back into the activist role.

That said, there is still a lot of irony in the fact that State hires vets right out of the service on short term bases to fill some of their deployed commitments. Where is the civilian expertise in that deal?

[Tom Odom]

The answer probably lies at several levels:

1. The Army is enamored with outsiders
2. There is also a liaison function between Army & State (which we've both done as Army guys, but their guy somehow has more street cred with our uniformed bosses)
3. It keeps State pregnant with the small wars issue

POLADs & PRTs also appear to be redefining how FSOs see their functions. I served with a coupla Vietnam Era CORDS grads who were very activist in their outlook on their role in the host nation. The following generation appeared to me to be much more constrained. They wanted to conduct structured meetings with appropriate officials and write cute cables back to feed the info monster in DC. I'm getting anecdotal evidence now that some of the POLAD & PRT FSOs are now buying back into the activist role.

That said, there is still a lot of irony in the fact that State hires vets right out of the service on short term bases to fill some of their deployed commitments. Where is the civilian expertise in that deal?

And that was what was happening across the board in Iraq in 2009 or they just didn't fill it (as in MND-B) so yours truly went.

I can't say on the activist aspects--I saw way too much bureaucratic thinking from PolMil in the embassy and OPA as a regional coordinator for PRTs.

Best
Tom