Daily Archives: June 5, 2013

Officially In: Douglas E. Lute from the WH to NATO

June 5, 2013 By in Ambassadors, Nominations, Officially In, Political Appointees Tags: , , , , ,

— By Domani Spero

On May 23, President Obama announced his intent to nominate Douglas E. Lute as the United States Permanent Representative on the Council of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. The WH released the following brief bio:

Douglas E. Lute is Deputy Assistant to the President and Coordinator for South Asia on the White House National Security Staff.  He retired from active duty in the United States Army as a Lieutenant General in 2010, after 35 years of service.  From 2007 to 2009, he was Assistant to the President and Deputy National Security Advisor for Iraq and Afghanistan.  From 2006 to 2007, he was Director of Operations (J3) on the Joint Staff.  Previously, from 2004 to 2006, he was Director of Operations for the United States Central Command.  General Lute’s previous positions include Deputy Director of Operations for the United States European Command in Stuttgart, Germany; Assistant Division Commander in the 1st Infantry Division in Schweinfurt, Germany; Commander of U.S. Forces in Kosovo; and Commander of the Second Cavalry Regiment.

He received a B.S. from the United States Military Academy at West Point and an M.P.A. from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.

If confirmed, General Lute would succeed Ivo Daalder who has been the U.S. Permanent Representative on the Council of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization since May 2009. Previous occupants of this position includes Victoria Nuland, R. Nicholas Burns, Donald Rumsfeld, and William Henry Draper, Jr. who served as the first U.S. Ambassador to NATO in Paris.

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Related item:

President Obama Announces More Key Administration Posts May 23, 2013


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Officially In: Ambassador James F. Entwistle from the Democratic Republic of the Congo to Nigeria

June 5, 2013 By in Ambassadors, FSOs, Nominations, Officially In Tags: , , , ,

—By Domani Spero

On May 23, President Obama announced his intent to nominate James F. Entwistle as the next  Ambassador to the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The WH released the following brief bio:

Ambassador James F. Entwistle, a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, Class of Minister-Counselor, is the U.S. Ambassador to the Democratic Republic of the Congo.  From 2007 to 2010, he was Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Bangkok, Thailand.  His previous roles overseas include Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Colombo, Sri Lanka from 2003 to 2006, Counselor for Political Affairs at the U.S. Embassy in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia from 1999 to 2003, and Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Bangui, Central African Republic from 1994 to 1995.  His roles in Washington include Management Analyst in the Department of State’s Bureau of Consular Affairs from 1997 to 1999 and Desk Officer for Zimbabwe and Botswana in the Department of State’s Office of Southern African Affairs in 1996.

Ambassador Entwistle received a B.A. from Davidson College in North Carolina.

 

Ambassador Entwistle  was Ambassador Eric G. John‘s DCM in Bangkok when the OIG inspected the mission in 2010. Below is the an excerpt on the DCM:

The heads of agencies have access to the Ambassador whenever they need to discuss emergent issues, but they view the DCM as being in charge of day-to-day operations. They appreciate the DCM’s operational effectiveness, strong communica­ tion skills, and knowledge of the wide array of U.S.-Thai cooperative operations the embassy supports.
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The OIG team noted that the rating officer for the majority of ELOs was several months late in preparing one evaluation and tardy in completing several others. The management counselor and the DCM were unaware of this situation for several months, and the EER review panel did not take note. The rating officer in question was also delinquent in getting ratings to employees in time for them to conduct the 10-day review, as required by 3 FAH-1 H-2819.1-1 b.
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The OIG team also identified a weakness in the consular section and confirmed that neither the visa chief nor the DCM had conducted the requisite adjudication reviews of nonimmigrant visa issuances and refusals.

If confirmed, Ambassador Entwistle would succeed career diplomat, Terence McCulley who was appointed US Ambassador to Abuja in 2010. This also means that the Nigerian scammers would need to update their 419 tricks.  See US Mission Nigeria: Yo! The scammers are current with the news, now uses the name of new US Ambassador to Abuja, Terence P. McCulley for bait.

(z_z)

 

 

Related items:

President Obama Announces More Key Administration Posts | May 23, 2013

OIG Report No. ISP-I-11-03A – Inspection of Embassy Bangkok and CG Chiang Mai, Thailand | November 2010

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Telephone Scam: Infected Computer? But…But…I Live in a Tent and Don’t Have a Computer

June 5, 2013 By in Funnies, Hall of Shame, Scams, Technology and Work Tags: , ,

—By Domani Spero

The Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3®) released its 2012 report recently.  Here’s one of the scams described:

In a twist to the pop-up scareware scheme, victims began receiving telephone calls from individuals allegedly claiming to be from legitimate well-known software companies. The victims of these calls were advised malware had been detected on their computers and posed an impending threat. The fraudsters tried to instill a feeling of urgency so victims would take immediate action and log on to their computers. Once the victims logged in, the fraudsters directed them to the utility area of the computers, where they appeared to demonstrate how the computers were infected. The fraudsters offered to rid the computers of the malware for fees ranging from $49 to $450. When the victims agreed to pay the fees, they were directed to a website where they entered a code or downloaded a software program that allowed the fraudsters remote access to their computers.

These folks are actually quite persistent.  The first time I got this call, the caller spoke in heavily accented English. I told the person politely that I have difficulty understanding what he was saying. The person connected me to his supervisor who was no better at it. Finally they gave up on me since I was dumb and dumber and they had to repeat half a dozen times their explanation of what’s a malware. That was fun!

Another time, I scolded the caller for implying that my computer is some sort of ET who can call “home.” That was not even fun and a waste of time since they interrupted my favorite chore of laundry making.

Now when these folks call, I just tell them I live in a tent and do not own a computer.  You can hear their minds literally crash.  Oh, and they haven’t called since.

(^-^)V

 

 

 

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