Arnaud Bertrand
@rnaudbertrand.bsky.social
Entrepreneur. Previously HouseTrip (sold to TripAdvisor), now https://MeAndQi.com
Hard to compete with that, especially given the U.S. system where key diplomatic posts are often filled by political appointees who get the job because they've donated to the president's campaign...
December 3, 2024 at 5:07 AM
Hard to compete with that, especially given the U.S. system where key diplomatic posts are often filled by political appointees who get the job because they've donated to the president's campaign...
This extensive language training produces diplomats with absolutely exceptional linguistic capabilities, drawn from among China's very best students.
December 3, 2024 at 5:07 AM
This extensive language training produces diplomats with absolutely exceptional linguistic capabilities, drawn from among China's very best students.
BFSU for instance teaches all "the official languages of the 183 countries that have established diplomatic relations with China" (including such niche languages as Sango, Tok Pisin, Niuean or Tetum which I bet none of you have even heard of 😅, list available here: en.bfsu.edu.cn/overview.html).
Overview
en.bfsu.edu.cn
December 3, 2024 at 5:07 AM
BFSU for instance teaches all "the official languages of the 183 countries that have established diplomatic relations with China" (including such niche languages as Sango, Tok Pisin, Niuean or Tetum which I bet none of you have even heard of 😅, list available here: en.bfsu.edu.cn/overview.html).
Something not many people know about: China's diplomatic training institutions - particularly China Foreign Affairs University and Beijing Foreign Studies University - rank among the nation's most elite schools and have very stringent language requirements.
December 3, 2024 at 5:07 AM
Something not many people know about: China's diplomatic training institutions - particularly China Foreign Affairs University and Beijing Foreign Studies University - rank among the nation's most elite schools and have very stringent language requirements.
Chomsky and Robinson would win hands down. I wouldn’t have written that last sentence when I began my career 40 years ago. I’ve been paying attention, however, and my thinking has evolved as the evidence has piled up."
December 3, 2024 at 5:05 AM
Chomsky and Robinson would win hands down. I wouldn’t have written that last sentence when I began my career 40 years ago. I’ve been paying attention, however, and my thinking has evolved as the evidence has piled up."
Walt concludes: "If I were asked whether a student would learn more about U.S. foreign policy by reading [Chomsky's] book or by reading a collection of the essays that current and former U.S. officials occasionally write in journals such as Foreign Affairs or the Atlantic...
December 3, 2024 at 5:05 AM
Walt concludes: "If I were asked whether a student would learn more about U.S. foreign policy by reading [Chomsky's] book or by reading a collection of the essays that current and former U.S. officials occasionally write in journals such as Foreign Affairs or the Atlantic...
Walt writes that US government efforts are "aided by a generally compliant media, which repeats government talking points uncritically and only rarely questions the official narrative."
December 3, 2024 at 5:05 AM
Walt writes that US government efforts are "aided by a generally compliant media, which repeats government talking points uncritically and only rarely questions the official narrative."
Walt also agrees with Chomsky that this is enabled by a massive brainwashing campaign by a US government that "works overtime to 'manufacture consent' by classifying information, prosecuting leakers, lying to the public, and refusing to be held accountable even when things go wrong".
December 3, 2024 at 5:05 AM
Walt also agrees with Chomsky that this is enabled by a massive brainwashing campaign by a US government that "works overtime to 'manufacture consent' by classifying information, prosecuting leakers, lying to the public, and refusing to be held accountable even when things go wrong".
As he explains, all of US history proves the contrary, from the genocide the country was founded upon, to the fact it intervened militarily "to thwart democratic processes in many countries, and waged or backed wars that killed millions of people in Indochina, Latin America, and the Middle East."
December 3, 2024 at 5:05 AM
As he explains, all of US history proves the contrary, from the genocide the country was founded upon, to the fact it intervened militarily "to thwart democratic processes in many countries, and waged or backed wars that killed millions of people in Indochina, Latin America, and the Middle East."
Walt agrees with Chomsky that "the claim that U.S. foreign policy is guided by the lofty ideals of democracy, freedom, the rule of law, human rights" is "nonsense".
December 3, 2024 at 5:05 AM
Walt agrees with Chomsky that "the claim that U.S. foreign policy is guided by the lofty ideals of democracy, freedom, the rule of law, human rights" is "nonsense".
All in all, it's obvious that this 'Department of Government Efficiency' isn't about making government more efficient - it's about making it friendlier to corporate interests while leaving the military-industrial complex comfortably untouched.
For that purpose it might be quite efficient indeed...
For that purpose it might be quite efficient indeed...
November 26, 2024 at 2:05 AM
All in all, it's obvious that this 'Department of Government Efficiency' isn't about making government more efficient - it's about making it friendlier to corporate interests while leaving the military-industrial complex comfortably untouched.
For that purpose it might be quite efficient indeed...
For that purpose it might be quite efficient indeed...
Funny how a department focused on 'efficiency' ignores the largest, most expensive, least auditable, and most destructive part of the government...
November 26, 2024 at 2:05 AM
Funny how a department focused on 'efficiency' ignores the largest, most expensive, least auditable, and most destructive part of the government...
And most cynical of all, if they actually wanted to cut spending and headcount, what they should focus on is what represents the lion's share of both: the defense and national security apparatus. It constitutes 70%-80% of all federal employees but no, they decide to focus on the other 20%-30%...
November 26, 2024 at 2:05 AM
And most cynical of all, if they actually wanted to cut spending and headcount, what they should focus on is what represents the lion's share of both: the defense and national security apparatus. It constitutes 70%-80% of all federal employees but no, they decide to focus on the other 20%-30%...
So to summarize it all, here we have an initiative that's pretty much exactly what you'd expect when you put billionaires in charge of "government efficiency": you end up with less oversight of corporate America and zero effort to make the government work better, just make it work less.
November 26, 2024 at 2:05 AM
So to summarize it all, here we have an initiative that's pretty much exactly what you'd expect when you put billionaires in charge of "government efficiency": you end up with less oversight of corporate America and zero effort to make the government work better, just make it work less.
Which explains why, despite mentioning that 'The Pentagon recently failed its seventh consecutive audit' of its $800+ billion budget, they don't actually plan to target it. Apparently, failing seven audits in a row is fine as long as it's authorized...
November 26, 2024 at 2:05 AM
Which explains why, despite mentioning that 'The Pentagon recently failed its seventh consecutive audit' of its $800+ billion budget, they don't actually plan to target it. Apparently, failing seven audits in a row is fine as long as it's authorized...
...excludes defense and national security spending, since these are specifically authorized by Congress each year through the National Defense Authorization Act.
November 26, 2024 at 2:05 AM
...excludes defense and national security spending, since these are specifically authorized by Congress each year through the National Defense Authorization Act.
Funny how these "unauthorized" expenditures neatly align with traditional Republican political targets...
More seriously, what's most interesting is what you exclude when you focus on "the $500 billion plus in annual federal expenditures that are unauthorized by Congress": by definition this...
More seriously, what's most interesting is what you exclude when you focus on "the $500 billion plus in annual federal expenditures that are unauthorized by Congress": by definition this...
November 26, 2024 at 2:05 AM
Funny how these "unauthorized" expenditures neatly align with traditional Republican political targets...
More seriously, what's most interesting is what you exclude when you focus on "the $500 billion plus in annual federal expenditures that are unauthorized by Congress": by definition this...
More seriously, what's most interesting is what you exclude when you focus on "the $500 billion plus in annual federal expenditures that are unauthorized by Congress": by definition this...
The examples they give are: "$535 million a year to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and $1.5 billion for grants to international organizations to nearly $300 million to progressive groups like Planned Parenthood."
November 26, 2024 at 2:05 AM
The examples they give are: "$535 million a year to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and $1.5 billion for grants to international organizations to nearly $300 million to progressive groups like Planned Parenthood."
3) Cut spending by targeting what they call 'unauthorized' expenditures
They write they'll "take aim at the $500 billion plus in annual federal expenditures that are unauthorized by Congress or being used in ways that Congress never intended".
They write they'll "take aim at the $500 billion plus in annual federal expenditures that are unauthorized by Congress or being used in ways that Congress never intended".
November 26, 2024 at 2:05 AM
3) Cut spending by targeting what they call 'unauthorized' expenditures
They write they'll "take aim at the $500 billion plus in annual federal expenditures that are unauthorized by Congress or being used in ways that Congress never intended".
They write they'll "take aim at the $500 billion plus in annual federal expenditures that are unauthorized by Congress or being used in ways that Congress never intended".
Cynically they write that one way they'll go about firing all these people is by "relocating federal agencies out of the Washington area" and "requiring federal employees to come to the office five days a week" which "would result in a wave of voluntary terminations that we welcome".
November 26, 2024 at 2:05 AM
Cynically they write that one way they'll go about firing all these people is by "relocating federal agencies out of the Washington area" and "requiring federal employees to come to the office five days a week" which "would result in a wave of voluntary terminations that we welcome".
2) Fire masses of federal employees
Their logic is beautiful in its simplicity: since they're eliminating regulations, they'll need fewer people to enforce them! That's what they write: "drastic reduction in federal regulations provides sound industrial logic for mass head-count reductions".
Their logic is beautiful in its simplicity: since they're eliminating regulations, they'll need fewer people to enforce them! That's what they write: "drastic reduction in federal regulations provides sound industrial logic for mass head-count reductions".
November 26, 2024 at 2:05 AM
2) Fire masses of federal employees
Their logic is beautiful in its simplicity: since they're eliminating regulations, they'll need fewer people to enforce them! That's what they write: "drastic reduction in federal regulations provides sound industrial logic for mass head-count reductions".
Their logic is beautiful in its simplicity: since they're eliminating regulations, they'll need fewer people to enforce them! That's what they write: "drastic reduction in federal regulations provides sound industrial logic for mass head-count reductions".
So when they say they'll use these cases as their "North Star" for reform, it's pretty clear which sector they'll be gunning for first: environmental protection rules that challenge corporations...
November 26, 2024 at 2:05 AM
So when they say they'll use these cases as their "North Star" for reform, it's pretty clear which sector they'll be gunning for first: environmental protection rules that challenge corporations...