The act of beheading has been used as a means for execution and retribution for millennia. The guillotine, which was originally welcomed as more humane, was used in France until 1977 (capital punishment was outlawed there in 1981). Sharia law in many Islamic countries determines the punishments for crimes, of which beheading is one. Saudi… Read More "The Grisly Tradition of Beheading"
Turning the Tables: An Interview with Stu Kennedy
In this interview with the Foreign Service Journal, Charles Stuart Kennedy talks about his Foreign Service career and pioneering work creating American diplomacy’s oral history program. On June 18, 2014, Stu was given the American Foreign Service Association’s (AFSA) Lifetime Contributions to American Diplomacy Award in recognition of his distinguished Foreign Service career and lifetime of public…
The Fight to Ratify the Panama Canal Treaty
Since Panama’s independence from Colombia in 1903, the Panama Canal had been a dramatic and ongoing point of discussion. The United States had engineered Panamanian independence from Colombia when it did not want to pay higher construction fees proposed by the Colombian and French companies building the canal; the new country then signed a treaty… Read More "The Fight to Ratify the Panama Canal Treaty"
Life Under Il Duce
Charismatic, admired, and feared, Benito Mussolini came to power in 1922, when he became the youngest Prime Minister in Italian history. After destroying all political opposition through his secret police and outlawing labor strikes, Mussolini and his fascist followers consolidated their power through a series of laws that transformed the nation into a one-party dictatorship. Within… Read More "Life Under Il Duce"
“A Recipe for Endless War” – The Rise of the Taliban
After conquering Kabul in April 1996, the Taliban established the ultra-conservative Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, enforcing a radical interpretation of Islamic law which severely curtailed individual social and religious freedoms, especially for women. Because of its radical policies, its massive violation of human rights, and abysmal failure to provide basic governmental services, the Taliban were… Read More "“A Recipe for Endless War” – The Rise of the Taliban"
“Military overreach cannot be offset by diplomatic incapacity”
2014 marks the 100th anniversary of the start of World War I, the devastating “war to end all wars.” While the world is a very different place than it was a century ago, retired Ambassador Chas W. Freeman notes that on the eve of WWI, nations began to conflate “military posturing with diplomacy, much as events…
Blessed — An Encounter with Mother Teresa
Born in Albania on August 26, 1910, Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu, later known as Mother Teresa, devoted the majority of her life to serving India as a teacher, nurse, missionary and head of a major charitable organization. After joining the Sisters of Loreto as a young woman, Sister Teresa traveled to India and worked as a… Read More "Blessed — An Encounter with Mother Teresa"
Breaking Chains: The Continual Fight Against Human Trafficking
In October 2000, 135 years after the Thirteenth Amendment officially abolished slavery within the United States, Congress declared that “as the 21st century begins, the degrading institution of slavery continues throughout the world.” These opening words to the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act embodied the United States’ growing awareness of modern slavery and… Read More "Breaking Chains: The Continual Fight Against Human Trafficking"
Dean Gooderham Acheson served as Secretary of State under President Truman from 1949-1953. Noting his enormous influence, historian Randall Woods described Acheson as “a primary architect” of the Cold War. A lifelong Democrat, he began his career in public service as a law clerk for Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis. He was appointed Under Secretary…
PTSD in the Foreign Service — The Embassy Beirut Bombing
In an unprecedented suicide attack on Americans, the U.S. Embassy in Beirut was bombed on April 18, 1983. The tragedy has been called the first terrorist attack by religious radicals on an American embassy. Seventeen Americans, including Foreign Service Officers and USAID workers, were killed in the blast while sixty-seven of their colleagues survived. In…