Thomas P.M. Barnett :: Weblog

I listened to both John Pomfret of the Post, whose work I think is consistently superb, and Robert Ross from Boston, who's also been a favorite China-watcher of mine, and I really didn't have much trouble with what they were saying, except that they were sort of aimlessly playing into Lydon's bits about "oil wars" and "laughing all the way to the bank."

So, needless to say, I was eager to get on and shake things up a bit, which I felt I did. When Pomfret straw-manned me on the 5th Generation supposedly taking on American "values" when they got their education here (ooh! He called it "rich!" How East Coasty!), I was very impressed that Lydon called him to task on the misrepresentation.

I feel like I've been on with Lydon before and liked it, but anyway, I did like being on with him very much this time. He's a consistent prompter, just lefty enough to push the subject, but seemingly very open-minded and adept on air. I knew I would confound things a bit by being the Pentagon guy arguing for strategic alliance, but that was fun.

My only regret? Not blowing Ross's bit about this huge U.S. military build-up in Asia (hell, it's just the U.S. Navy in retreat from its own growing strategic irrelevance in the Long War, and the Taiwan Straits is their preferred hiding place) and China's "big" build-up (oy! we'll spend more on R&D alone for that bomber/fighter Ross referred to than China spends on its entire military in one year!), but better to be gracious and emphasize . . . the future worth creating versus retreading all the old fears of the generation of current leadership on both sides that painfully need to leave the stage and pronto.

Was cool you could either listen on NPR, the web, or on XM (in both my new cars now, and I must admit, I like it--especially the comedy channel).

Sean: keep an eye out for an archive to link to via the blog and media page.

All in all, a great chance to warm up a bit on media speaking. Felt like getting back in the game, so to speak, after a wearying August (not yet over). Also fun because this was first time I did it from my office, now completed (the Bowflex was tail-end Charley).

If you listened closely, you might hear me waving off oldest daughter who walked in, and then holding the glass French doors shut on my two-year-old (BTW, Chinese) daughter, who loves to walk in unannounced and start yapping at high pitches at the most inopportune moments. Luckily, she was dissuaded.

But those were the two moments my sentences slowed and wandered a bit.

Ah, the dangers of the work-at-home grand strategist.

Oh, and I must plead ignorance that Lydon was going to have me "running" Enterra Solutions, which I guess is technically correct (along with others, and far less than several key players). I gave them the director title, but he was obviously reaching a bit there for the right words and came up with that instead.

Still, he pronounced it correctly, and isn't it cool for a show to so naturally include the Washington Post, Harvard's Fairbanks Center, and little ol' Enterra Solu-what?!?!

Let me be so bold to assume this is the first appearance for Enterra on either NPR/PRI or XM.

Profile, baby. Working the company profile.