Harvard don't normally give out Professorships to fools, this bloke realy seems to know where the Afghan situation is going, unlike our leaders. And still finds time to do a load of charity work, keep up the good work , I say. Without people like Stewart and Yon we would know FA of whats going on

Originally Posted by smallbrownprivates

Good to know as an ex FCO man he keeps flying the Sir Humphrey flag of incomprehensible diction, deeply retro analytical discourse, strategically rational debate and deft obfuscation......

and ex-Black Watch Officer.....

Just finished reading his book, the places in between, an account of his walk from Herat to Kabul. Highly recommend it to anyone with an interest in Afg.

Fergusson was interviewed on R4 this morning calling for a military pull out and talks with Taliban leadership. Interesting times.

Originally Posted by alfred_the_great

Originally Posted by smallbrownprivates

Good to know as an ex FCO man he keeps flying the Sir Humphrey flag of incomprehensible diction, deeply retro analytical discourse, strategically rational debate and deft obfuscation......

and ex-Black Watch Officer.....

Could still have been a BW officer if his SSLC had gone better.

Ah, was he on SSLC - I wonder why his career only lasted a small amount of time.

OTOH, got to admire a man who wears a Saville Row suit in the middle of market in Kabul!

An elderly ex-colleague o mine who was in Baghdad during the CPA time always referred to him as " Young Rory" .

Well, whether or not you see him in the TE Lawrence mould as 'relenteless self-promoter' , he has some interesting things to say about the current Western imbroglio (ooh, uses foreign words....another wannabe Prof is it? There's suspect for you...) in Afghan.

Came across this in the 'Latest reports' thread featuring Young Rory...or the Hon Member for Penrith as we should now refer to him ?
If you are interested in what British Forces are doing there, try listening 'Without Prejudice' ....


LINKY

I thought he was on a Gap Year commission?

Er.....I know the new software is causing a few glitches.....but I'm pretty sure that Hon Mem's Gap Year commission was in about 1998....are you by any chance posting from the heady euphoria of a New Labour Government ? If so, here's an EXCELLENT tip.....put your money on Spain to win the world cup in 2010.....
Here y'go:

SOURCE

Rory Stewart OBE DUniv served briefly as an officer in the British Army (the Black Watch), and was educated at Balliol College, Oxford, studying history and PPE (Politics, Philosophy and Economics). He joined the British Diplomatic Service, and served in the British Embassy in Indonesia and, in the wake of the Kosovo campaign, as the British Representative in Montenegro.From 2000-2002 he walked on foot across Pakistan, Iran, Afghanistan, India and Nepal, a journey of 6000 miles. His walk across Afghanistan shortly after the US invasion is described in his award winning book, The Places in Between, a New York Times bestseller, translated into ten languages.

In 2003, he became coalition Deputy Governor of two provinces in the Marsh Arab region of Southern Iraq (Maysan and Dhi Qar). His second book, The Prince of the Marshes and Other Occupational Hazards of a Year in Iraq, outlines his experiences as deputy governor shortly after coalition forces entered Iraq, and describes his efforts to lead development projects and establish a functional government.

I think that Blondie was referring to Alfred's and SBP's comments regarding his SSLC!!

Originally Posted by Dilfor

Not quite sure what the demonstration of his undoubted knowledge of grammar ('concessive subjunctive'?) at the end serves to prove (other than he is reet clever and probably dead posh), but his comment:

The new UK strategy for Afghanistan is described as

International . . . regional . . . joint civilian-military . . . co-ordinated . . . long-term . . . focused on developing capacity . . . an approach that combines respect for sovereignty and local values with respect for international standards of democracy, legitimate and accountable government, and human rights; a hard-headed approach: setting clear and realistic objectives with clear metrics of success.

This is not a plan: it is a description of what we have not got]

is spot on.

Yes that's obviously a wish list constructed for domestic political purposes. Sadly I'm sure more important chaps than Rory think it's a fine plan and that having magicked it into Powerpoint believe there's even a wisp of coherent strategic thinking behind it.