Quote Originally Posted by MASON View Post
If we do not listen we should not be surprized at inadequate results.

The DOS guys are saying (though admittedly in a whine) that the lack of security is affecting their performance and staff quality. And if you want better work from them someone needs to address at least some of these issues. Commitment, Cash, and Good People is more likely to get better results. Hardly a unique sentiment in American government service.

Finding people who will actually do all they can with all that they have in difficult circumstances is an unfortunately rare commodity.
Superb point, Mason. But I do think there is a lot of selectivity on which of the "some of these issues" need to get addressed. Maybe some of the ones you're thinking about. Certainly not some of the ones you are likely to hear from high on the wish list of many of the whiners.

The lack of security is affecting EVERYONE'S performance. But we do have the chicken and the egg issue where a lot of things that the non-military departments are "responsible" for are essential to the presence of enough security. It is not a military horse bringing up the security cart. Foreign "Service" and Government "Service" need to have a little more Service, and a little less sense of Entitlement in them.

I do not go completely for the "get hard and stop your snivelling" line. There is a certain special privilege of suffering and roughing it that comes along with the military. I do not think the pol/econ guys should be manning the MG team in their off duty hours. But I can not tolerate the self-righteous sense of entitlement that comes with most OCONUS government employees, Foreign Service and otherwise. They can sure as hell bunk up as in Tom's Kigali example.

While there are examples to the contrary on either end, I think the expectations that many of us have of the good NGOs should hold more sway for our expectations of our non-military government. We are less likely to fault MSF, CARE or Red Cross for pulling out of a hairy security situation, I think in part because when they do roll back in they're willing to take a few incoming rounds, be alone and unafraid, do their good work, and most significantly to rough it a bit. You know, without putting in a work request to the GSO to have the refirgerator shelves adjusted, or an absurd COLA and snivelling about the drapes on a 60 day tour with a 50% differential/hazard pay.