When I was finishing up graduate school

[Lydia Leftcoast]

I looked around at the academic job scene and decided that I needed to consider alternative careers.

Given my interest in politics and foreign languages and cultures, one career that appealed to me was that of Foreign Service Officer. I took the Foreign Service exam, passed it, and was invited to Boston for an interview. Although the fact that I would not necessarily be assigned to a country that I had some knowledge of did bother me, the academic job market looked bleak, so I was glad when the interview seemed to go well.

However, while waiting for the results, I talked to some fellow students who had grown up with parents in the Foreign Service. One thing they told me really gave me pause. They affirmed what was in the information for potential recruits: that Foreign Service Officers (FSOs) were required to advocate the current foreign policy of the U.S., no matter what it was. In fact, one young man told me that his father had resigned because of his inability to support the Vietnam War.

"You have to support it even in private conversations with outsiders?"

"Yes."

"Even if you're personally opposed?"

"Yes."

"Even if the person you're talking to gives you unassailable reasons for opposing U.S. foreign policy?"

"Yes."

"How are you supposed to respond in such a case?"

"Just keep repeating the policy or change the subject."

This really bothered me, so when I received the letter from the State Department telling me that the last obstacle to my becoming an FSO was getting a physical at the nearest military base, I regretfully withdrew my application.

What is the point of this post?

If you can't guess why I'm posting this, think about it for a while.

[mike_c]

1. good on 'ya....

:patriot:

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

2. This is why I quit being a defense attorney.

Turns out you have to defend those crazy sickos, even if you think they're guilty.

[Cleita]

7. It is your job and those sickos have a right to counsel, however, if I were

a lawyer, I think I would prefer to be a prosecutor and try to put the sickos in prison.

[Cant trust em]

9. As a prosecutor, you probably wind up putting innocent people in jail

but I'd bet that you don't wind up being on that side of the coin as often as a defense attorney would.

[Cleita]

14. Maybe. I would try to be just, but maybe that's why I'm not a lawyer

although I was attracted to the profession at one time and I had no aspirations to be a trial lawyer. It would stick in my craw to have to defend the guilty as well as a defense lawyer.

[Hepburn]

13. Speaking as a retired lawyer...

...the biggest pieces of shit in the criminal justice system are the prosecutors. The most dishonest fuckers I ever encountered. Frankly...a lot of criminals are a better class of person.

[Cleita]

15. That's a broad brush. Surely, across the country, they can't all be that

evil. However, I'm sure a lot of minorities were disproportionately sent up the river with higher sentences than middle class white people. Look at the criminals that are still on TeeVee every day enjoying the money they made while in office stealing from the poor and middle classes and starting wars on lies. Yet no one is even investigating them let alone prosecuting them. Yep, some fucked up justice system we have.

[Hepburn]

22. If you consider "federal," as across the country...

...these bastards are probably worse than the locals.

JMHO

[Cleita]

17. btw, the most despicable lawyers I have had to deal with on the job

were the ambulance chasers, when I worked for doctors who were dealing with worker's comp and accident and other types of catastrophic events where insurance and other kinds of compensation were involved.

[The Magistrate]

19. Hear Hear, Ma'am

"Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely."

[leftstreet]

21. +1

:applause:

[truedelphi]

3. K & R and thank you for withdrawing your app.

It sort of shows why we are in the situation we are in - the State Department keeps the personnel that support our endless for profit wars.

Then we wonder why it is that Kissinger is running the show with regards to our policies in Russia.

We are a nation that is so out of the loop when it comes to allowing for real democracy. We should all be flying the flag at half mast

[RandomThoughts]

4. Is that why so much of the media backed Bush's run up to Iraq war?

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

5. Resignation.

Always an option.

[jody]

6. Your position is no different than military personnel except you could resign but military could be

court martialed if they expressed beliefs contrary to the Commander in Chief.

[Cant trust em]

8. as an FSO, you are the representative of a policy, not a policymaker

I think you made the right decision if toeing that line would be difficult.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

10. Eventually someone will get what I'm getting at

:-)

[EFerrari]

11. Were we invaded by the State Department while I was at lunch?

[Lydia Leftcoast]

12. Read the OP again

especially the bolded part. :-)

[conscious evolution]

18. standard dis/misinformation tactics

It does not matter which way the trebuchet is facing when its time to catapult the propoganda.

[Lars39]

16. lol

:thumbsup:

[Lydia Leftcoast]

20. By George, I think he's got it!

:7

[Lars39]

23. hehe

Expect the chorus of "On Little Ol' DU?" any time now. :D