So yeah, sinecure ambassadorships have been handed out by nearly every Adiministration in the history of the nation. But they are posts like the ambassadorship of Bermuda, where everyone knows what the deal is and it doesn't matter. It placates a well-heeled donor while simultaneously getting them out of the way, and from that standpoint it's important to American politics.

But no President is crazy enough to nominate a donor ro a strategically important post. Western civilization is losing the hearts and minds of eastern Europe, who are perceiving that being under Russia's wing is better than being under its thumb (although the latter will happen eventually), and no help will be forthcoming from the West. Russia, for its part, is bound and determined to reconstruct the Soviet Union ahd have another Cold War, one that it thinks it can win this time, due to Western decadance. And the President wants to drop a diligent-idiot donor into the middle of that?

I'll try and look on the bright side here. Maybe the neo fascist dictator of Hungary is a huge "Bold and the Beautiful" fan, so the producer talking to him, and flying in the stars of the show will help U.S. Hungary relations?

It would be different if it were say, the Seychelles or perhaps the Maldives. Or even Bahamas, Aruba, or Trinidad and Tobago.

Those are relatively cush jobs: you go, you be nice to the locals, you keep your embassy running smoothly, you host some nice parties, and you almost never have to deal with thorny problems that could turn into international incidents.

I haven't followed Thailand closely, but apparently our ambassador there is...considered a joke by the Thais.

"George Bush had a 36 percent rate, compared with Clinton's 29 percent rate of appointees who weren't career diplomats."

You can be well qualified, and still not be a career diplomat. That isn't the problem.

I am a little bit suspicious of career diplomats as they often have the liberal hive mindset.

Caroline Kennedy as ambassador to Japan is another joke.

...sinecure ambassadorships have been handed out by nearly every Adiministration in the history of the nation. But they are posts like the ambassadorship of Bermuda, where everyone knows what the deal is and it doesn't matter. It placates a well-heeled donor while simultaneously getting them out of the way, and from that standpoint it's important to American politics.

But no President is crazy enough to nominate a donor to a strategically important post.

~ Posted by: Cousin Dave at December 3, 2014 6:46 AM

This president is not a serious person. Having never run anything, he has no frame of reference for his actions, and so thinks in terms of games, simulations, and academic theories.

He doesn't really understand global politics. To him, it's the game of Diplomacy, not the game of diplomacy.

Ever watch a television show or movie where someone goes into the office and you wonder if any of the writers ever worked in an office in their lives because the scene plays like a 12-year-old's fantasy of what work must be like? That's Obama, writing scenes for situations he can't understand and in which he has no experience.

Karl followed up by asking:

But where does the president get that confidence from? I mean, in her confirmation hearing she couldn't even name a single strategic interest the U.S. had with Hungary?

A recap of the strategic interest question:

At her confirmation hearing… McCain asked Bell...: "What are our strategic interests in Hungary?"

She gave the following ... answer: "Well, we have our strategic interests, in terms of what are our key priorities in Hungary, I think our key priorities are to improve upon, as I mentioned, the security relationship and also the law enforcement and to promote business opportunities, increase trade...."

McCain interrupted her: "I’d like to ask again what our strategic interests in Hungary are."

"Our strategic interests are to work collaboratively as NATO allies, to work to promote and protect the security, both -- for both countries and for, and for the world, to continue working together on the cause of human rights around the world, to build that side of our relationship while also maintaining and pursuing some difficult conversations that might be necessary in the coming years."

==============================

Barbara Boxer defended the choice of Bell:

"You would think this is the first time that any president nominated someone that's a political appointee. Just because somebody is a producer of a very popular show, that doesn't disqualify them."

"It's ridiculous," Boxer said on the Senate floor in response to McCain. "I could point out people you supported, senator, who perhaps didn't work at all, so let's be clear here. She's an intelligent woman. She knows how to be successful. She'll do a good job and she'll do very well I think in this position because I know her well and she knows how to make friends and she's not angry."

Barbara Boxer is such an ass. Donna Hicks is an international conflict resolution specialist I respect -- and reference in "Good Manners For Nice People Who Sometimes Say F*ck". If you look at what she has to say on dignity -- our sense that we are valued and are being treated that way by others -- you see that there is actual expertise involved here.

Also, I can't remember the term for this from psychology, but it describes how the know-nothings are often the most convinced that they know something.

[note: assholish autoplay]

In Chrome:

Go to chrome://settings/content
Scroll down to Plug-ins
Select Click to play

Say goodby to autostart.

Hey, thanks Steve!

Dunning-Kruger effect.

Dunning-Kruger effect

Green tomato salsa.

Maybe the neo fascist dictator of Hungary is a huge "Bold and the Beautiful" fan, so the producer talking to him, and flying in the stars of the show will help U.S. Hungary relations?

Actually, B&B (not to be confused with Y&R, also developed by the Bell family) is very popular in Europe. The dictator of Hungary might well be a huge fan. But that doesn't mean he'll take her seriously. I am probably the only person who comments on this site who follows Soap Opera Digest on Facebook, and when I saw a blurb come through about this, I thought "this must be something happening for a day on one of the Bell soaps, right?" But no! Evidently the President has watched one too many soap episodes in which someone with no qualifications or experience is given a powerful position in order to drive the story…

Amy - I think you can find the answer to your question by starting with Kruger & Dunning, Unskilled and Unaware of It: How Difficulties in Recognizing One's Own Incompetence Lead to Inflated Self-Assessments, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 1999, Vol. 77, No. 6, 1121-1134, and looking at works citing it. I believe the paper is available on-line.

Great article on the Koch brothers, if you like articles on how big money gets itself into politics.

This one focuses a lot on how the bros made their dough in the first place.