Daily Archives: February 16, 2018

Senate Confirms Joel Danies (Gabon) and Peter Vrooman (Rwanda)

February 16, 2018 By in AF |Africa, Ambassadors, Confirmations, Foreign Service, FSOs, U.S. Senate Tags: , , , ,

Posted: 1:03 am ET

 

On February 15, the U.S. Senate confirmed the following career nominees to be U.S. Ambassadors to Gabon and to Rwanda:

Executive Calendar #617 – Joel Danies, of Maryland, a Career Member of the Senior Foreign Service, Class of Counselor, to be Ambassador of the United States of America to the Gabonese Republic, and to serve concurrently as Ambassador to the Democratic Republic of Sao Tome and Principe.

Executive Calendar #667 – Peter Hendrick Vrooman, of New York, a Career Member of the Senior Foreign Service, Class of Counselor, to be Ambassador of the United States of America to the Republic of Rwanda.

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US Embassy Cuba: New Mechanism For Brain Injury From an “Exposure of Unknown Origin”

February 16, 2018 By in Diplomatic Attacks, Foreign Service, MEDical, Realities of the FS, Spectacular, State Department, Technology and Work, U.S. Missions, WHA|Western Hemisphere Tags: , , , , , , , ,

Posted: 12:39 am ET

 

The University of Pennsylvania’s Center for Brain Injury and Repair was selected to coordinate the evaluation, treatment and rehabilitation of 21 government personnel (11 women and 10 men) identified by the State Department and evaluated an average of 203 days following exposure to reported sound (described as “buzzing,” “grinding  metal,” “piercing squeals” or “humming”) and sensory phenomena (described as pressure-like or vibrating and likened to air “baffling” inside a moving car with the windows partially rolled down) at the US Embassy in Havana, Cuba in late 2016.

“It’s like a concussion without a concussion.”

“Of the 21 individuals assessed at Penn, 17 reported cognitive or behavioral problems such as difficulty remembering, concentrating, or both. “It’s not that any patient can’t do a given task, but it requires way more effort,” said coauthor Randel Swanson, DO, PhD, a brain injury rehabilitation specialist at the University of Pennsylvania’s Center for Brain Injury and Repair. “They don’t have as much cognitive reserve.”

The author and his coauthors signed a nondisclosure agreement with the State Department, “so they cannot discuss whether they know more about what happened in Havana than has already been made public.”

The study concludes that “The unique circumstances of these patients and the clinical manifestations detailed in this report raise concern about a new mechanism for possible acquired brain injury from an exposure of unknown origin.”

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Tillerson Meets Erdoğan in Ankara With Turkish Foreign Minister as Interpreter

February 16, 2018 By in Diplomatic Life, Foreign Service, Media, Realities of the FS, Rex Tillerson, Secretary of State, U.S. Missions Tags: , , , ,

Posted: 12:35 am ET

 

AND NOW THIS, from people paying attention:

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