Dateline: 55th Annual Worldwide Conference of the Civil Affairs Association, Hilton North Raleigh, 19-20 June 2004
At the beginning of June I got a rather desperate call from the Civil Affairs Association: they were looking for a replacement keynote speaker for their end-of-conference awards dinner down in Raleigh NC the night of the 19th. Being desperate myself for personal leave days (looking ahead to our lengthy trip across China in search of Vonne Mei Ling), I said yes because I figured I’d pick up a couple of comp days while helping out a very worthy organization. The CAA represents military officers from all over the world who engage in sys admin-style ops in countries following either war or some humanitarian disaster. The organization goes way back to the seminal experience of civil affairs officers in both postwar Europe and Japan (they actually followed en masse very closely on the heels of the D-Day invasion force).
I had to sked my flights on Saturday pretty tight so as to be able to coach my son’s last baseball game and MC the end-of-season party, but I was able to catch a 2pm flight out of Providence and routing through BWI to Raleigh, arriving just in time to set up in the ballroom, slip on my tuxedo, and make the opening salad of the meal. The crowd was about 250, with CA officers from every service, plus a serious contingent of them from allied militaries (first time I’ve seen a senior German officer ever, and I must say they still favor the light grey uniforms reminiscent of the Confederacy). The dinner with awards following dragged on until 9pm, so my talk plus Q&A went until 10:15. I was taking questions from people off-line after the event broke up until about 11:30. Then it was time for room service.
It was one of my better performances, despite the late hours, primarily because my allergies were pretty much gone for the day. But I think the biggest reason was because I had a crowd so receptive to the basic notion of Sys Admin work—that and the fact that it was such a diverse audience in terms of every service being represented (so the jokes about individual services got big laughs). Afterwards people seemed awfully pumped up, despite the late hour, so I felt like I’d really ended the conference on a big note. Plus, I got to sign a bunch of books people brought with them, and I was made an Honorary Member of the U.S. Army Civil Affairs Corps (do these guys engage in PR or what!).
Oh, and they gave me one of those nifty command medallions that I like so much.
Did that make up for the fact that this was a non-paying gig that took me away from my family for an entire weekend so I got to spend Father’s Day just like my birthday—typing away on the floor at Baltimore-Washington Airport? No. What made up for that were all the stories I heard from the reconstruction effort in Iraq following the war. A lot of these guys had done serious time there, after Afghanistan, after Bosnia, after Somalia and Haiti—these guys get around. Not the kind of stories you repeat, but I felt awfully privileged to hear them—especially when offered in support of my ideas and the “good work you’re doing in spreading this message!” I expect future invites from a variety of military institutions around the country and the world as a result of this talk, and I look forward to them all.
If it’s fun to wage this battle one briefing room at a time, it’s even more fun to wage it one ballroom-full-of-officers-from-all-over-the-world at a time.
The catch from my weekend reading:
Remembering our past when we look to beheadings in the Gulf
“Acting on Threat, Saudi Group Kills Captive American: After Beheading, Militant Leader Is Reported Slain by Police,” by Neil MacFarquhar, New York Times, 19 June, p. A1.
Around the dial on future Middle East scenario pathways
“It’s a Dirty Job, But They Do It, Secretly, in Iraq,” by James Glanz, NYT, 19 June, p. A1.
"Pressure Builds on Key Pillar of Saudi Rule," by David B. Ottaway, Washington Post, 8 June, p. A18.
"U.S. Wary as Iran Works to Increase Influence in Iraq," by Robin Wright, WP, 12 June, p. A16.
"Kurds Advancing to Reclaim Land in Northern Iraq: Arab Settlers Displaced: Americans Fear Growing Migration Could Spark More Ethnic Strife," by Dexter Filkins, NYT, 20 June, p. A1.
"The Suburban Lure Of the West Bank," by Greg Myre, NYT, 20 June, p. WK3.
| Permalink |
