Marc Shiman http://www.marcshiman.com Personal Blog posterous.com Wed, 09 Nov 2011 16:15:54 -0800 Mitt Romney is Forest Gump http://www.marcshiman.com/mitt-romney-is-forest-gump http://www.marcshiman.com/mitt-romney-is-forest-gump How must it feel to be Mitt Romney? His inability to inspire conservatives to embrace him must be intensely frustrating. This is the nerd who asks a pretty girl to the prom, and gets a response that if the following three guys don't ask, THEN she'll go with the nerd.

If you've seen Forest Gump, then you'll remember that Forest was in love with Jenny. Forest is Mitt, Jenny is conservatives. Forest was good for Jenny. Everytime we checked in on her, she was dating a musician, dating a biker, whatever - anyone but Forest. As much as she knew Forest was good for her, she ran after every flavor of the day.

Even after Forest and Jenny had sex (and conceived), Jenny took off for God-knows-where.

Well, eventually Jenny realized it was time to come home to Forest.

And then she died in his bed.

What does that mean? I don't know.

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]]> http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/eESUuOaNrP Marc Shiman Marc Marc Shiman Wed, 19 Oct 2011 08:30:49 -0700 If I Were to Die Tomorrow... http://www.marcshiman.com/if-i-were-to-die-tomorrow http://www.marcshiman.com/if-i-were-to-die-tomorrow I recently attended a national conference that had one excellent keynote address after the next. However, I took issue with one of the comments that a speaker made regarding the way you view your life.

The event happened a day after the death of Steve Jobs, and understandably it was on everyone's mind. The speaker referred to a suggestion I've heard many many times - wake up in the morning, and ask yourself what you would do differently if you knew that this was to be the last day of your life.

Coming on the heels of remembering the life of an extraordinary man, the message is clear - take a look at yourself in the mirror and change something. If you aren't living an extraordinary life now, you need to get on with getting on with things.

I really do understand the pursuit of excellence, but our society heaps a lot of unhappiness on  people by helping them to understand what they aren't. I read a lot of self-help articles, and one gets hammered with this sort of advice in MBA school and through professional motivational speakers.

I believe something different - it takes a lot of work and introspection to truly appreciate what we are, what we contribute to our society, and to take great satisfaction in that. This doesn't suggest one doesn't strive to improve. But I think drawing a deeper, soulful look at what we often overlook - our impact on all of those around us - would ultimately lead to much greater satisfaction, happiness, and frankly increased motivation.

If I were to die tomorrow, it would be a damn shame. But I feel good about what I do, and I wouldn't do a thing differently.

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]]> http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/eESUuOaNrP Marc Shiman Marc Marc Shiman Sun, 11 Sep 2011 07:35:43 -0700 Where is THIS in the management books? http://www.marcshiman.com/where-is-this-in-the-management-books http://www.marcshiman.com/where-is-this-in-the-management-books I bet Tom Peters doesn't have these problems.

Its a Sunday morning here in Gaithersburg, Maryland and today I was to have an important phone call with a new, large potential client from Doha, Qatar. This project is intended to break new ground in our company and establish ourselves as important players in a new market. The phone call was to include my boss, and most of our client's Directors.

Sunday is the ideal time for me. Yes, 7:30am is early, but not for me - I love the mornings. The rest of the house was asleep, and just in case I asked my family not to disturb this call.

Someone forgot to tell the cat and dog.

At 7:15, I was all dressed in shirt, tie, and jacket (and jeans) and making sure I was online, skype working, etc. Winston, our cat, wandered in. Usually he wants a nice back rub and he'll leave me alone.

Not today. Today he wanted to play. He was bouncing around the office, jumping in and out of the carpet, and thumping around on the floor. I couldn't complete see him and but it made me smile. Its now 7:25

All of the ruckus coming from the cat woke up the dog. The dog needs to start his day with a backrub too, and can get pretty insistent about this. But instead, he decided to play with the cat. This eventually came around the desk where my Skype call was underway. Now 7:35

It turns out the source of all of this energy came from the fact that the cat brought me a gift - a live bird from outside. While my client is making points about sectoral studies and SWOT analysis, my cat is chasing after a bird and my dog is chasing the cat. Then the dog got the sent of the bird, and chased it under my desk. It was at this point that the dog wanted his ear scratched and the cat decided to kill the feather duster again.

Sufficiently excited, the dog started killing all of my wife's shoes again by shaking them violently in his mouth. That's when the bird disappeared behind my desk. All of this in my office.

This must be some sort of test of my ability to concentrate.

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]]> http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/eESUuOaNrP Marc Shiman Marc Marc Shiman Sat, 23 Jul 2011 05:29:33 -0700 AMC TV Show "The Killing" Season One - A Review http://www.marcshiman.com/amc-tv-show-the-killing-season-one-a-review http://www.marcshiman.com/amc-tv-show-the-killing-season-one-a-review I just got done watching "The Killing", a show that aired this spring
on AMC. I downloaded the season on Itunes, and provide a spoiler to
this review - I'm glad I did. There was a lot to like, and a lot I
think they could have done much better.

Its a homicide detective show, spread over a season - no longer
groundbreaking stuff. There's some sort of effort to have twists and
turns, but a lot of them felt contrived. I don't know that you need to
shock your audiences to tell a great story - see the Wire for great
storytelling of what is often the inevitable. (The police hook onto a
drug gang, by the end the police arrest the drug gang. Surprise!)

One thing I loved about the show was a hidden commentary that ran
throughout (until it was clumsily mangled in an effort to have a
surprise finish) - and that was family; more importantly losing
family. The theme meshed well with the dark rainy setting that was
supposedly Seattle (it doesn't rain like that, it mists usually in
Seattle).

Of course, we have our grieving family and we watch the toll the death
of their 17 year old daughter takes on them. We have two detectives,
each of them is losing family (or contemplating family they never
had). We have a "family" of politicians coming and going; and here and
there we get a glimpse of another dysfunctional family from time to
time. We got hints of a crime family, and a Somali community as well.

What I thoroughly enjoyed was the de-layering of the two detectives
and the father of the grieving family; the producers gave hints that
there was real depth to the problems these characters faced, and that
these problems were deeply rooted. The only great mysteries left
behind in this show (to me) were not "who killed Rosie Larson?"; but
the very mysteries that brought mainly three characters to where they
are today.

As further illustration that the plot (or the lack of a good one) was
not central to my opinion of the show, I felt the most compelling
episode by far was the one in which the two detectives drive around
the whole show looking for her son. That episode was an exquisite
plunge into the depths of human frailty and closets of skeletons.

I felt the acting was pleasantly understated which I much prefer. I
didn't like the female lead detective all that much, I loved the male
detective, and I had mixed emotions about the family. I just wish the
other characters could have been interesting enough to judge the
acting.

What I didn't like: unfortunately quite a bit:

1) The politicians were sooooo stereotypical, flat, lifeless, and
uni-dimensional. We spent enough time with them to get to know them -
and there was nothing there to know. In the final episode, the mayoral
candidate finally sheds some light on the mystery of his deceased wife
- and promptly kills the mystery, or at least the desire to know
whether there was a mystery. Blah

2) The Muslim terrorist angle was so gratuitous and unnecessary. It
was plain silly.

3) There were a lot of complaints about the continuous closeups of the
murdered girl's mother. Way too much time was spent on her, were the
complaints. I think she did an interesting job as an actress, but the
problem was it never went anywhere. It more looked like a graph of a
heartbeat than a character's arc. She was grieving when it started,
she was grieving when it ended. I'm not saying she shouldn't be,
but.... ooo kaaaa - we get it already

4) The final episode brought happy little endings to deep interesting
stories. Blah.

5) Virtually anyone that wasn't one of the detectives or the father
was simply uninteresting and stereotypical. I understand the problems
caused by the Wire to have developed some 30+ characters and the toll
that takes on the viewers, but seriously I could have handled a bit
more, particularly as slowly as they chose to develop the main
characters

My understanding is that there will be a second season. The good - I
would imagine we will learn more about our protagonists; the bad, we
have to continue this "Who killed Rosie Larson?" through a bunch more
contrived twists and turns until virtually every character introduced
on the show is a suspect at one point or another.

I will be there to watch the second season - but the show better have
its "A" game on. If you have the time to watch the first season I'd
encourage you to buy it and do it.

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]]> http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/eESUuOaNrP Marc Shiman Marc Marc Shiman Wed, 22 Jun 2011 07:12:49 -0700 Alternative Fronts http://www.marcshiman.com/alternative-fronts http://www.marcshiman.com/alternative-fronts
I have, like everyone else, versions of my resume in Microsoft Word 2007 (.docx), Microsoft Word 2003 (.doc) for the technically challenged, .pdf format, and .txt if I need to upload it somewhere. But I recently saw a resume done completely in flash and it inspired me to look at alternatives to the standard.

I did a Google search on Flash Resume, and a few sites came up, nothing overwhelming. However there were two that I liked. One is called VisualCV. It looks an awful lot like a paper format which doesn't entirely excite me. Its got some neat feature on it to allow you to add on a few things you couldn't to a paper resume. I've done about half of it so far (its slow) and I'll probably finish it up. I'd be surprised if it gets much use. You can see it here. or the not too intuitive http://www.visualcv/nye43d0

The other thing I found - and this didn't come off the search, someone recommended it. Its at http://about.me. This is GORGEOUS done right, and you can randomly flip through profiles (and feel green with envy) at what someone who knows something about graphic design can do with this. I think this is the perfect front page for an electronic resume, and while it inhabits a different space than your cv up in the cloud or wherever, I absolutely love the combination of simplicity and potential beauty. I made my page at the much more intuitive http://about.me/marcshiman.

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]]> http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/eESUuOaNrP Marc Shiman Marc Marc Shiman Thu, 16 Jun 2011 21:49:00 -0700 Foreign Assistance to Afghanistan Evalulation http://www.marcshiman.com/57134278 http://www.marcshiman.com/57134278

I just spent the morning reading something that theoretically took 2 years to research and write. I find that a little hard to believe. The report frequently cites newspapers for its quantified facts and reports "conversations with officials" as fact. Stated differently, I now better understand Administrator Shah's dissatisfied with the current state of evaluations.  

Besides lacking any specificity, this thing is just full of contradictions. It sure looks to me like it took the evaluators two years to find the supporting information for the Senators' pre-conceived notions. Some of the contradictions are a bit laughable. 

Sustainability:

- "According to the World Bank, an estimated 97 percent of Afghanistan's gross domestic product (GDP) is derived from spending related to the international military and donor community presence"

and then

- "Focus on Sustainability."....The Afghan Government must have sufficient technical capability and funding to cover operation and maintenance costs after a project is completed.

If the foreign community is outspending the whole rest of the Afghan GDP by a factor of 32 times, the notion that somehow Afghan Government revenues are going to rise by a factor of say, 2000% over the next couple of years in order to take over these projects is pure science fiction. Ain't never gonna happen. There is no "sustainability" when foreign governments pump billions of dollars into poor countries. (The report actually used the word "Pump")

I don't mean to be simple-minded - but handing out money isn't usually a sustainable activity. It can't be made sustainable. "Sustainable" and "winning the hearts and minds" have no business being in the same zip code, never mind the same report.

Composition of Spending

- "After 10 years and roughly $18.8 billion in foreign aid..."

- "The US strategy is focused on building the capacity of the Afghan Institutions to deliver basic services. The State Department and USAID are currently spending approximately $1.25 billion currently on such efforts"

- "The State Department and USAID are spending approximately $320 million a month on foreign aid in Afghanistan...."

- "Roughly 80 percent of USAID's resources are being spent in Afghanistan's restive south and east. Most of the funds in Afghanistan's south and east are being used for short-term stabilization programs..."

These numbers don't add up well at all - but what bothers me is this - The US strategy is capacity building. But the vast sum of our resources is going elsewhere. That's just poor strategy execution. The rest of the money goes "to winning (buying) the hearts and minds of the Afghan people"

And Mr. Afghanistan Assistance Evaluator - how is our strategy doing? How well have we built the capacity of the Afghan Government? I can't seem to find this in your report. Is the problem that the Washington Post hasn't done this research for you yet? If you really want to effectively evaluate a program, you MUST ask whether or not we are achieving our strategy. Or am I missing something?

Its the Contractors Fault

- "By contracting with US and international contractors at western prices (the "primes") donor funds can be lost to corruption.....

against

The third most corrupt country in the world, trailing only Somalia and Myanmar is Afghanistan - Transparency International.

Apparently the Foreign Relations Committee feels that if US contractors were a country, they would be more corrupt than Afghanistan. Better to just deposit billions of tax-payer dollars in Afghanistan Government bank accounts and hope for the best, I guess. The Kabul Bank is cited for "massive fraud" (syphoning off 5% of the nation's GDP for shareholders). But it was Deloitte's fault for not reporting it! Better we put billions (that is billions with a "B") through institutions like the Kabul Bank than through companies like Deloitte given the comparison of the two offenses, concludes our Foreign Relations Committee. 

Yes, our government wants to put Billions with a "B" of taxpayer's dollars through the third most corrupt country's budget (something we completely lost control of once done) rather than run it through American contractors because the contractors are difficult to manage. 

My Recommendations

The report has some of its own recommendations - here are mine

1) If your strategy is to build the capacity of the government, then use the money for THAT. 

2) Once you decide to focus on capacity building, measure that. This report makes absolutely no effort to measure the effectiveness of the US Strategy in Afghanistan.

3) Winning (Buying) the hearts and minds doesn't work. Stop it. If France came over to a poor community in the USA and handed out food, medicines, and Fiats would everyone suddenly become French?

4) Trust the people who have been doing this for 50 years. We have made mistakes over the years, but we've learned. I can't say this for all of the actors in Afghanistan, and I certainly can't say this for the newly formed, very corrupt Afghan Government.

 

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]]> http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/eESUuOaNrP Marc Shiman Marc Marc Shiman Thu, 16 Jun 2011 21:32:21 -0700 Shame on the Foreign Relations Committee http://www.marcshiman.com/shame-on-the-foreign-relations-committee http://www.marcshiman.com/shame-on-the-foreign-relations-committee
USAID and its implementing partners have lost over 370 personnel in Afghanistan over the last 7 years

Administrator Rajiv Shah, Ninth Annual Princeton Colloquium to address ‘‘Rethinking U.S. Foreign Aid and Policy,’’ Woodrow Wilson School, Princeton University, April 9, 2011.

Turkish: We've lost Gorgeous George.
Brick Top: Well, where'd ya lose him? He's ain't a set of car keys, is he?

From the movie "Snatch", 2000

Buried deep in a footnote in The Foreign Relations' Committee's evaluation of foreign assistance in Iraq is the fact that 370 people lost their lives defending the principles of the United States through peaceful interventions. As one who works in the same profession in another country that puts me at risk of "getting lost" on a daily basis, The Foreign Relations Committee's evaluation of foreign assistance in Iraq is deeply offensive. 

Let me begin by paying tribute to my fallen colleagues - a tribute our Senate has never even thought of paying - by suggesting these heroes' without guns contributions will never be forgotten by the small community of us that invest our lives in our neighbors' development to the benefit of the United States of America. Not a single one of these 370 lives came home in a flag-draped coffin; not a single one received a hero's welcome; none of us go on NBC during a football game to call our families over Thanksgiving. 

If it were just the single wording of "...lost over 370 personnel" that was wrong with this report, this post would not be necessary. But the audacity of this Committee mentions this figure in the context of a report in which they refer to the contractors that employee these people as essentially more corrupt than the Afghan government (ranked the 3rd most corrupt country in the world behind Myanmar and Somalia), and describe many of the experts themselves as "expensive", "difficult to supervise", and "believing their allegiance is to the Afghan Ministry rather than the US Government". 

At one point, this report cites the following editorial content from the Washington Post "There are a thousand Defense Department personnel for every one USAID employee around the world....inadequate civilian capacity means more American soldiers deployed and, regrettably, more dead and wounded". May 3, 2011.

So... what are we saying here? There should be more civilians deployed so they can die rather than our soldiers? Shall we deploy more unarmed and under-protected civilians in danger zones so that we get our armed and armored soldiers out of harm's way?

Senator Kerry, how can you and your senatorial colleagues have the bare audacity to bury AID worker's collective sacrifice to our country in a footnote in the same report you chastise them? This is frankly insensitivity of the grossest sort. 

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]]> http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/eESUuOaNrP Marc Shiman Marc Marc Shiman Fri, 27 May 2011 05:55:58 -0700 New Phrase: "Capacity Construction" http://www.marcshiman.com/new-phrase-capacity-construction http://www.marcshiman.com/new-phrase-capacity-construction
I've been thinking (despite the inherent dangers) and I feel that we should look at a new phrase: "Capacity Construction". We have long used the phrase "Capacity Building", but to me that doesn't describe what we really want to do. "Building" suggests to me showing up, putting some blocks on top and going home. "Construction" suggests building to a plan with a vision and a conclusion.

Whether I like it or not, the final two months of the Tatweer Project will come down to writing, writing, and more writing. Of course, its a project that demands it, and there is so much to be learned from it. Its actually a really great time for reflection, but reflection without writing it down anywhere is somewhat useless.

So as I'm going through all that we achieved in this giant capacity building project, I thought about the nature of projects that contain capacity building components - usually add-ons to some other activity that ensures sustainability. You build some schools, you teach other people to build schools. You open new agriculture markets, you show people how to open agriculture markets. Your main objective isn't to build capacity, and it isn't a clearly articulated portion of a larger overall plan to build capacity. 

Tatweer had a blueprint for capacity construction. Delivering a training class was done as part of a much larger scheme to get a Ministry to function on its own. We were in the capacity construction business.

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]]> http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/eESUuOaNrP Marc Shiman Marc Marc Shiman Sat, 14 May 2011 00:43:52 -0700 A path of Illusion http://www.marcshiman.com/a-path-of-illusion http://www.marcshiman.com/a-path-of-illusion
Illusion

I found a bunch of paths to write about, and this is one of my favorite.

Obviously, the fall colors are stunning. The mountains ahead are breathtaking. It seems as if you can see forever as the day is clear.

The path is quite rocky though. If you have ever walked on such a path, you'll know that you have to move carefully so as not to injure yourself. You have to concentrate on the path and look down as you walk. You can stop to admire the scenery, but when you are moving you have to be careful.

You know where this path is going. Its headed for the mountains. Even though it seems you can see the mountains, they still remain a little mystical. You know when you reach them - and climb them - you can look down at the valley and all its magic and colors. Its hard not to have a sense of anticipation as you prepare yourself for the climb. The power of the mountains!  

This is a way of lot of people choose to lead their lives. They live in a world of beauty all around them, but aspire for more. They choose a hard scrabble path to reach greater heights, and have to ignore the magic that is their journey. The golden grass set against the fiery red leaves are your children growing up, your spouse succeeding professionally, and just the wonderment of being alive. 

To the left of the path is a slope downward, deeper into the valley. Its a sharp slope, something difficult to climb out of. We consciously fight the urge to stay on the path, imagining that those mountains are inaccessible from the floor of the valley. Clearly some people choose to leave the rocky path and choose to immerse themselves in the beauty that is all around them - you can see that from the two houses in the valley. These could be the metaphors for the retired stockbrokers - turned - innkeepers, 

The power and the majesty of the mountains entices many to stay on the hard journey to the top. While you can see where you are headed, its still something of a mystery. However, as you get closer, the colors begin to fade. and the greyness takes over. If you get so far as to scale the hills into the mountains, you have to look back to see what life you've just lived. 

Most literature suggests that you should live life in one of two places - either look ahead at your goals and live life for the future. Others suggest you look down at your feet and live for the present. I believe in the beauty of the journey. 

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]]> http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/eESUuOaNrP Marc Shiman Marc Marc Shiman Wed, 11 May 2011 11:07:55 -0700 I gotta get this off my chest - The Value of a College Degree http://www.marcshiman.com/i-gotta-get-this-off-my-chest-the-value-of-a http://www.marcshiman.com/i-gotta-get-this-off-my-chest-the-value-of-a Over on LinkedIn.com, there's a group formed by a blog called Resumes Not Required. A question - a loaded question - was posed asking whether the reader would hire someone without a college degree. The implication was that since several dot com multi-billionaires don't have college degrees, that college is overrated.

There are a whole host of things that irritate me about this post and the rest of the dialog.  Suffice it to say you can go to the board yourself and find all of my rantings and ravings. 

But here's what is really bothering me: This is part of a trend in the United States that really bothers me. The George W. Bush / Sarah Palin "Plain Talk", make fun of the northeastern democrats with the big college degrees is a really scary trend in our country. While we struggle daily with our national competitiveness, some of our nations leaders (yes, I shuddered a bit at the thought), suggest that an education is not only unnecessary, but its a bad thing - something that makes it difficult for one to have a simple view of things.

This is so wrong on so many levels. One of the things that set our country apart in the 18th and 19th century from European powers at the time was the innovation of the state school - a institute of higher education designed to ensure that a university education was not only for the elite and that the masses now had access to lead the same lives of intellectual pursuits and leadership.

As I work in developing countries, I meet thousands of 20-somethings that would have loved to get an education in one of our state schools (never mind the Ivy League). And here I am in a thread arguing that even though Halle Berry got rich without a college degree, there is still value to the education universities provide! 

Repeatedly, posters discuss the skills you learn in college and how they don't lead to improved performance on the job. YOU DON"T LEARN SKILLS IN COLLEGE. You don't learn Microsoft Outlook, you read Shaw. You don't learn to fill out DHL customs forms, you study comparative religion. You don't study French, you study French literature. You build a foundation for a deeper, richer life. 

I fear this national trend. Really. 

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]]> http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/eESUuOaNrP Marc Shiman Marc Marc Shiman Mon, 09 May 2011 18:33:08 -0700 I'm not sure why its necessary for the USG to continue to release details of the assault that killed Bin Laden http://www.marcshiman.com/im-not-sure-why-its-necessary-for-the-usg-to http://www.marcshiman.com/im-not-sure-why-its-necessary-for-the-usg-to
The latest news story in the NY Times gives details of how the Seal Team was prepared to fight its way out of Pakistan if necessary. Why is it important to share these details with the public? Yes, I like to be informed, but is there a point at which publicly releasing intentions is counterproductive in our need for diplomacy?

It would seem that we will have quite a bit of diplomacy to do in order to reach some sort of working relationship with Pakistan (a must - we can't abandon a nuclear power, we can't abandon our only land access to Afghanistan, and we can't abandon hundreds of millions of impoverished people). It would seem that releasing alternative plans and intentions would be counterproductive; moreso that those plans never had to be carried out. 

You want to give facts? Fine. We stormed the compound. We lost a helicopter. We tried to take Bin Laden prisoner (well...). And we shot him. How much more detail is necessary? Even if the public wants it (and I admit, I watch it on TV), the public can do without it.

Well, there is a plan; I feel confident that our administration does all things for a reason. I just don't get it.

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]]> http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/eESUuOaNrP Marc Shiman Marc Marc Shiman Sat, 07 May 2011 01:56:38 -0700 Looking Back - Just got done reading... http://www.marcshiman.com/looking-back-just-got-done-reading http://www.marcshiman.com/looking-back-just-got-done-reading
Back when I arrived in Baghdad, we were discouraged (greatly) from maintaining any sort of blog. I sent letters to friends, and stored them under the heading of "Journal". I decided to reopen some of them, and I think they are worthy of being published now. This one comes at the end of September, 2008 as a letter to a friend:

I just got done reading War Journal by Richard Engel who was (is?) a correspondent with NBC news for 5 years. The book takes place from 2003 before the war started to early 2008. Obviously, the stuff he had in there in early 2008 feels like it rings closely with what I know. The book takes the reader through the deterioration of the sectarian violence, the mismanagement of the war effort, and other stuff that I guess is newsworthy.

My work isn't newsworthy. Except for the fact I'm one of the contractors; making three times as much money as I would at home (quote from the book, not necessarily accurate) in my khaki and olive green clothes, with backpacks and Oakley wraparound sunglasses. According to the book, I am the corporations feeding off of the US Government's war kitty. I am the opportunist.

Anyway, what happened was that after I read the book, I went back to Amazon to find some other books that help explain to me the events that got us from 2003 to where I am now here in Iraq. And I found a list of books that suggest I'm part of the problem. Or that I am, in fact, the problem if you look at it as we were President Bush's objective all the time - the rich American firms looking to swim in the profits that inevitably follow the conquering of a rich oil country.

Richard Engel left Iraq sometime after the surge in mid 2007 and returned in early 2008. What he saw (and described) was my reality - the guys at the airport in Amman lined up to get into Iraq. The security situation improved, although still a little dangerous.

I say its all about "me", even though the target is usually the mercenaries that are protecting us that catch all the wrath of the writers. But I do feel like I'm part of a bigger system. I also feel like I am actually doing something. Changing something. Being part of some history.

My role isn't something that anyone wants to read about though, or report on. Who cares that we are building a Human Resources Directorate within the Ministry of Agriculture? (My contribution, so far, has been to help the people who are doing the work think of their activities as parts of systems and not collections of tasks - thats a whole other story I think). Does anyone care that our Energy team has helped the Ministry of Electricity budget to buy $900 million of fire safety equipment for next year? How about that the Ministry of Health has completed a 5 year strategic plan that takes into account the input of their regional offices around the country?

You know, I've always been a little numb to the impact of my work on a country. I don't really allow myself to enjoy the thoughts that perhaps all this "system" building I do is making any sort of impact on the lives of ordinary people. I think its folly to think that way. I'm always part of a much larger picture, and slowly over time we overcome layers upon layers of apathy and inertia to make things a little bit better each time. My efforts are 2 years of my time out of 25 years of thousands of people's time. I typically feel joy in helping build the skills of the young person working alongside of me much more than I allow myself to think that I'm having a larger impact.

But I allowed myself to wander a little bit here in Iraq. My goodness, look at the scale of this project. Look at where we were coming from (in some cases, absolutely zero). Look what we can do! And then I find a list of books on Amazon that say that I'm a failed part of a Bush conspiracy to channel US funds into greedy corporations and underachieving mercenary cowboys looking to profit from a destroyed state.
I'm overstating it for sure. But I feel a book coming from me (not the first time I've said this). I don't know if its a book that a lot of people would want to actually read, but it sure feels like a book I want to write. As I write this I don't even know what this book is going to say. But I feel there is something different that needs to be said.

I stopped reading - the interesting stuff was very polarized, and the very dry stuff - was very dry. At the time of arriving here, I had a flood of all sorts of emotions. As I read this, I remember vividly how I felt. I don't really feel that way as strongly as then.

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]]> http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/eESUuOaNrP Marc Shiman Marc Marc Shiman Thu, 05 May 2011 01:12:00 -0700 Coming Home, Teaching at GW, and other stuff http://www.marcshiman.com/coming-home-teaching-at-gw-and-other-stuff http://www.marcshiman.com/coming-home-teaching-at-gw-and-other-stuff

I tweeted recently that when I get home I would be teaching at George Washington University. Tweeting doesn't really allow me to fully explain what is going on and a few people have asked. 

On July 29th, I board aComing Home plane bound for Dulles Airport in Washington DC and, depending on my route, arrive that evening at home in Gaithersburg, Maryland. My departure date is 3 years to the day of my arrival in Baghdad. It has been an amazing three years, and its been a professional revelation. Personally, however, its taken a toll. Home is the goal and the destination right now; it overrides all other interests and desires I have.

But a guy's got to earn a living, and so as the pages of the calender turns (err... as the screens of the months on Outlook flip by) I need to figure out what I'm going to do professionally to keep me engaged and energized as I am now. The transition will be difficult; right now, I'm pretty much dedicated to work exclusively - there isn't much else to do. When I get home, there's an adjustment to be made as work will have to share a finite space in my consciousness with family and health. 

I think a lot of people haven't fared well at this transition - at least that's one way of explaining why so many people that leave here with the same proclomation never to return, show up months later for a new 2-year assignment. Its my intention to fight this urge. On July 29th, its goodbye Iraq, and while I may return on short term assignments to meet my company's needs, my focus will be to ultimately go elsewhere.

Fortunately for me, Management Systems International offered me a staff position before I came to Iraq, and for this I am now especially grateful. I know that when I get home, I have a professional family to return to, a shared goal to pursue, and a place in which to do it. After 3 years of having very few options, narrowing the number of choices I have to make is more important to me than it might be at any other time. I still need to carve out my place inside MSI, but I think its the right place. That matters. A lot.

But there's more - I need to re-engage professionally with the development community while home in the United States. That means rejoining associations,  participating in my Washington alumni events, and just getting out and about. These are the things I only dreamed of in Baghdad (or did via Skype; its not the same thing).

One of those things is teaching. A friend of mine, Wade Channell from USAID, will be teaching a course in Enterprise Development in the developing country context I think to a Masters Degree program. I have graciously invited myself to assist him with this course in the hopes that I can build a relationship with the school and possibly have a course of my own some day. I'm really excited about this. 

There's so much I want to do! 

 

via ScribeFire

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]]> http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/eESUuOaNrP Marc Shiman Marc Marc Shiman Tue, 12 Apr 2011 00:18:55 -0700 A Forest Path http://www.marcshiman.com/a-forest-path http://www.marcshiman.com/a-forest-path

The Forest PathI love paths. I love the metaphor they serve for our lives and our futures.  Its possible to equate almost any image of a path to a life that someone will lead. 

In this path, there are boundaries - none insurmountable, but clearly there's an easier option to continue forward. You can choose to climb the fence on your left - perhaps the equivalent of quitting your job and moving to a foreign country. Climbing the fence will be difficult but not impossible. Crossing the river leads to all sorts of unknown opportunities (new paths) - again a metaphor for giving up your current (safe) career path for the unknown bounty.

Generally speaking, unless your foreign country of choice is Afghanistan, the likelihood is that you won't die from climbing that fence and crossing that river. You may come out wet (and broke), but you will know what is on the other side of that river. For some - continuing down the current path without knowing what is being missed is intolerable.  Others may simple say "what river?"

On the left is a hill. It would appear that the ambitious would be able to climb that hill before reaching the tree with the exposed roots. In your life, are you faced with the option of continuing down your current lifes' path, or taking a difficult route leading upwards? I imagine that at the top of that hill on the left, there is a clearing where the sun shines. I think a lot of people have chosen to climb that hill to bask in the glow of the sun. 

Its definitely much easier to carry on forward, isn't it? Down the road aways (is that months from now in your life? Years from now?) the path begins to kink. It goes off to the left a bit, then comes back to the right - then turns left again...

And disappears.

Does this mean the path ends? Does it fork? Does it carry on? It almost appears through the trees that the endpoint is a lake or body of water. Does this path get you there?

There is an easy path to life. You can usually keep on going doing the things you do well. But the outcome will always be unknown. The small kinks that are coming up are not a big deal, although they are a little disconcerting because its difficult to tell what happens. But when the path turns altogether and you can't see where your life is going - its both terrifying and exciting at the same time.

What is the uncertainty to you? Do you dread it? Or are you eager to find out what's up around the bend?

One other thing. Its easy to get fixated on the path and where it goes. Alternatively, you can get embroiled thinking about your choices and whether you should climb that hill. While you are on this path though - don't forget to look at the exposed roots of that tree just up on the left. Its fascinating. I think we spend too much time thinking about the end or choosing our path, and not enough time thinking about what is along the path itself. Thats the journey

via ScribeFire

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]]> http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/eESUuOaNrP Marc Shiman Marc Marc Shiman Sat, 14 Nov 2009 04:53:49 -0800 SutterInk: D-GIRL DEATH WISHES http://www.marcshiman.com/sutterink-d-girl-death-wishes-0 http://www.marcshiman.com/sutterink-d-girl-death-wishes-0

D-GIRL DEATH WISHES

3:22 AM Posted by Kurt Sutter



I'm clearly an outspoken guy.  Just my nature.  I have a big personality.  I can either fill up a room or suck the life out of it.  Honestly, it's all ego.  I just assume people need to hear what I have to say.  It's becoming clear to me that other than my family (and they have to listen to me) and a handful of people on Twitter, Blogger and Facebook, most people don't need to hear what I have to say.  In fact my reps and network would kinda wish I'd just shut the fuck up.

One thing I've realized over the years is that I do best when I follow my gut.  So far, it's served me well.  In life and in my work.  I've never made a career choice based on a career choice.  It's always been about the project.  I stayed on The Shield for seven seasons because in my opinion there was no better show on TV.  I created Sons not because there was a demand for an outlaw motorcycle show, but because I loved the world.  I take on movie projects because they excite me not because they advance me.  

But my gut-following often leads me into a thrusting closed-fist.  My lawyer has a saying -- Don't wound anything you can't kill.  Sound advice.  I'm trying to take it to heart.  At the moment, my world is littered with the bloody and the pissed.  My recent blog posts have created a flurry of fan mail (writers) and hate mail (network executives).  I'm used to getting death threats.  I'm averaging three or four a season, usually from schizoid inmates who demand a piece of my paycheck because the Virgin Mother whispered the idea for SOA to them in a dream.  But this is the first time terminal harm was tossed at me from a 130 pound, lipstick-wielding, Chanel-wearing, development executive.  Quite honestly, she was much more frightening than the inmates.  And I must admit, very sexy, in a -- I'll-fuck-your-brains-out-then-bash-your-brains-in kinda way.  She stopped me today as I was getting off my Harley outside a Starbucks in Burbank and asked me if I was Kurt Sutter.  She was too old to be a friend of my daughter's and too young to be anyone I ever dated.  I assumed she was a fan.  I was wrong.  She was a development executive at a network.  She wished me dead.  Literally.  Said I was a dick and she hoped I crashed and died on my Harley.  My first thought was, maybe I did date her.  She's fucking crazy enough.  That was my main dating criteria before I met Katey.  Then she mentioned my blog.  Now I understood.  Apparently some bigger websites picked up excerpts of my previous blog and my "why network dramas suck" diatribe went far and wide.  The following was roughly my conversation with this lovely young woman. 

KS: What was wrong with the blog?
DG: You're an asshole.  Job is hard enough without arrogant pricks like you shouting bullshit from your fucking mountain top.  Shows a hit.  Big fucking deal.  You'll be crawling back to us when it's not.
KS: You didn't answer my question.
DG: Everyone I work with is smart, well-educated and very story-savvy.  We know how to do our jobs.  Shit you said was general and ridiculous.  You've never even developed at a network.  How the fuck would you know?
KS: Where's the proof?
DG: What?
KS: Your proof that you're smart, well-educated, story --
DG: Fuck you.
KS: I'm serious.  I want to believe you.  You're probably right.  Name something on your schedule that you're proud of.  That's original.  Smart.  Great stories. 
(She names two shows)
KS: First of all, I agree with you,  (show 1) is original and interesting.  So why are you pulling it off the air?
DG: It's not canceled.
KS: Of course it is.  It's been yanked from the schedule and replaced with reruns.
(Silence)
KS: And (show 2)... c'mon, you were just honest enough to wish me dead and you're gonna stand there and tell me you're proud of that piece of shit.
(More silence.  Then --)
DG: We've got shows in development that I'm very proud of.  Original.  Smart.
KS: That's great.  Then get 'em made.  I fucking dare you --
(She glares)
KS: I dare you to prove me a dick.  Get those shows you love made.  Fight for them.  Don't let anyone turn them into dreck.
DG: (Dripping sarcasm) Yeah, okay.  I'll do my best.
KS: I have no doubt.
(Silence)
KS: Can I buy you a coffee?
DG: Fuck you.
(She walks away)
KS: Did we ever date?
(She almost smiles) 

My point for bringing up this conversation is the very reason why I blog.  I think it's necessary for people to stir the fucking pot.  Too many talented people in this town are content collecting a big fucking paycheck, hooking their fucking collar to the leash and getting in the fucking tow-line.  People care less and less about originality.  I see it happening all the time.  Writers and directors whom I respect, taking big juicy overall deals, getting turned into machines churning out shit they wouldn't have even watched five years prior.  I get it, we all want the brass fucking ring, but at what cost?  So what if I ruffle a few feathers, if I get one person thinking, questioning the system, then maybe I've said something worthwhile.

Or maybe I should just shut the fuck up.

Either way, I just hope I stay alive long enough to witness the change or lack there of.

via sutterink.blogspot.com

Sorry about all the F*** bombs in this post, but man I liked it.

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]]> http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/eESUuOaNrP Marc Shiman Marc Marc Shiman Tue, 07 Jul 2009 03:52:35 -0700 Factors That Influence Heart Rate During Outdoor Trainin - General - Improve Performance - Training Articles - Training With Polar - Polar Electro - USA http://www.marcshiman.com/factors-that-influence-heart-rate-during-outd http://www.marcshiman.com/factors-that-influence-heart-rate-during-outd

Factors that Influence Heart Rate during Outdoor Training

In addition to exercise intensity and your level of aerobic fitness, the following factors affect your heart rate during outdoor training :

Activity. Heart rate can change across activities, due to different muscle mass involved, level of experience and technical proficiency. Running typically elicits the highest maximum heart rate during a stress test, whereas cycling and paddling maximum heart rates can be 10-15 beats lower during a similar test. This means that you may need to adjust your training heart rate intensities by 5-10 beats for activities other than running.

Heat and Humidity. Temperature and humidity will influence your heart rate. As the environment gets warmer and more humid, heart rate will gradually increase throughout your activity, even if your pace doesn't change. This is due to your "air-conditioning" and level of hydration. You produce a lot of energy in the form of heat when you move and this heat needs to be dissipated, typically via sweating. Humidity reduces the effectiveness of sweating, resulting in an increase in body temperature, and thus an increase in heart rate. Even if the humidity is low, heart rate will still be elevated, due the extra work the heart must do to help cool your body. It's not uncommon for heart rates to be 5-10 beats above normal ranges in these conditions. Use your heart rate combined with perceived exertion and subjective feeling to set an appropriate pace.

Hydration. Failing to stay hydrated can result in an increase in heart rate, as your blood volume decreases and your body runs low on the fluids needed to maintain body temperature. Dehydration can occur in cold as well as hot environments. If you notice your heart rate increasing with no change in pace or other variables, then increase your fluid intake.

Altitude. The lower air pressure at altitude means there is less pressure to drive oxygen into your lungs. Less pressure means your heart has to work harder to deliver enough oxygen to your working muscles. The result is a higher heart rate at a given pace. Fortunately, your body adapts to higher altitude in several days to 2 weeks, but if you're only at altitude briefly, you'll need to slow your pace to keep your heart rate in the proper range. It also takes longer to recover from a hard effort at altitude, so rest periods may need to be longer.

Fuel. Your body is always using a combination of carbohydrates, fats and proteins for energy production. As the exercise intensity increases, you burn more carbohydrates and less fat (protein metabolism is always fairly small). Even at low intensities, you need some carbohydrate to burn fats (fats burn in the flame of carbohydrate). What does this have to do with heart rate? If you start to run low on carbohydrate, it will become difficult to maintain your pace at a given heart rate. Your perceived exertion and subjective feeling will increase, but your heart rate will be falling. This is informally called "bonking" and can be remedied by eating foods high in carbohydrate. As a rule of thumb, always bring along some form of ingestible energy on any outing lasting more than 2 hours.

via polarusa.com

I'm a big fan of building up the strength of your heart. Many people differentiate between "aerobics" and "resistance training", but I'm a firm believer that the heart is a muscle just as your bicep is, and it must be trained

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]]> http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/eESUuOaNrP Marc Shiman Marc Marc Shiman Tue, 07 Jul 2009 01:14:50 -0700 Shut Up, Mark Sanford | The Daily Show | Comedy Central http://www.marcshiman.com/shut-up-mark-sanford-the-daily-show-comedy-ce http://www.marcshiman.com/shut-up-mark-sanford-the-daily-show-comedy-ce
via thedailyshow.com

Hysterical

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]]> http://posterous.com/images/profile/missing-user-75.png http://posterous.com/users/eESUuOaNrP Marc Shiman Marc Marc Shiman