 |
| Looking good on the campaign trail |
Actually, I'm not sure whether or not Hillary Clinton made the pantsuit popular with senior executives at the State Department or elsewhere. But I do know that our current SecState is my sartorial role model due to his frequent wear of the classic New England barn coat.
Do yourselves a favor this winter, gentlemen. Lose the stodgy wool topcoat and get a practical and stylishly masculine barn coat. Go ahead, wear it to the office on snowy days. You know you want to.
 |
| Looks like Pakistan |
It will work over a suit and tie, as John Kerry has shown on many occasions. It works even better for business casual. With khakis, it is perfect for TDYs.
 |
| State fair in Iowa? |
A word of caution: unless you're Prince Charles, don't do the Barbour-style English waxed cotton jacket. They seem to be gaining acceptance among Americans as alternatives to raincoats, but they don't work in cold weather.
Forget the country squire look, and go the full LL Bean: heavy canvas fabric, corduroy collar, big patch pockets, and a wool lining. For extra utility, a game pouch.
You'll thank me. Or Kerry.
40 comments:
Carhartt!
Carhartt will work. It checks all the boxes: sandstone duck fabric, blanket lining, corduroy collar, and big pockets.
J.Crew also makes one, but I reject it out of hand as effete. And there are expensive leather look-alike barn coats (probably what Kerry wears, actually), which I also exclude from consideration.
Other than for those, you really can't go wrong.
Great post TSB! I get all my Carhart stuff from my next door neighbor when he gets a new one. Still waiting for a barn coat cause those things must last forever! gwb
TSB: Funny you should have a pic of Kerry in Pakistan. My sources have just sent me a video of the results of his diplomatic efforts.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_PzMSw6jZo
TSB: Amb. Paet has once again been intercepted talking on the phone! gwb
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-03-05/behind-kiev-snipers-it-was-somebody-new-coaltion-stunning-new-leak-reveals-truth
My mistake TSB: It was Kathryn Ashton and the Estonian foreign minister. Press conference to follow. It will be great to hear what Sec State Barncoat has to say after he talks with Lavrov.
gwb
TSB: How come Kerry didn't congratulate Putin on this? gwb
http://www.zerohedge.com/contributed/2014-03-05/putin%E2%80%99s-peace-prize
Oh, I'm sure Putin has a swelled head already. No sense adding to his egotism.
So they also approved the NSA
Keith is really pumped about this! (speaking of swelled heads) gwb
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-03-05/nsa-chief-pushes-legislation-stifle-first-amendment
TSB: Rachel's documentary was a big nothing burger with a bit of ketsup.
Imagine me falling for an over-promise! gwb
TSB: After a week of high level telephone negotiations failed the President has rushed to Homestead AFB, Fla to beef up the US military response to the Russian invasion. Just today a US Navy destroyer arrived on the scene and 12 troops and some F-16's landed in Poland in case all-out war breaks out. (These may seem like small things but that's our strategy!) I have had to resort to these sort of things in the past at Burger King so I know how effective they can be. gwb
Such attire only works in political and economic sections of State, and above all on the 7th floor. Consular types are too involved peddling visas and the admin types are either engaged in a frantic search for raincoats or some sort of invisibility cloak. As for the SY types, well they love the SF bath house look.
Anonymous,
Thanks again for your comment. I see barn coats and such on people who are much less rarified than the seventh floor types, so I think alternative attire may be spreading.
You mention "SY" types. I'm old enough to know who that refers to, but it hasn't been SY since about 1985. The current generation of security people have never even heard the term.
TSB; James: Is this it? gwb
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cf7iSF5cJug
I was wearing my Barbour (and later Barbour knock-offs) at least 20 years ago at Embassy London. PD types can carry it off at least as well as SecStates.
John,
Thanks for your comment. Barbours (or, better yet, a less expensive knock-off) would be more appropriate than LL Bean in London, I agree. And, as a PD guy, you were doing sartorial cross-cultural outreach. Maybe the Commercial Officers wore American brands?
TSB: Cool duds! I got that all wrong about Obama and WWIII. Turns out he just called Putin and surrendered before heading to Florida for some golf. gwb (I didn't know Putin and Gerhardt Schroeder built a gas pipeline straight into Germany that must not be disrupted.)
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Central_Asia/CEN-01-070314.html
GWB: Well, you know, Russia needs to sell its oil and gas, and Europe - including Ukraine - needs to buy oil and gas. Ukraine needs to export its farm products, and Russia needs to buy food. There is a basis for peaceful relations there, if everybody would just simmer down now.
Yes TSB, absolutely reasonable to say say that but now that we know that we paid $5 billion for regime change and now get to pay for the bailout to install a new set of oligarchs makes us look like a dying
empire that did it for the bankers.
gwb
TSB: Good article by Juan C. about how Obama has been secretely trying to get outfrom under the neocons he installed as his FP team. I like this because it explains to me why I could never figure out what our policy was. I guess we'll have to wait for the memoir when he will say he wishes he wasn't such a chicken.
gwb http://www.juancole.com/2014/03/neoconservatives-comeback-ukraine.html
PS: Good news for James. Obama doesn't like Kerry either and keeps pulling the rug on him. gwb
GWB: If Obama doesn't like something about our foreign policy - whatever that may be - maybe he should talk to whoever is in change in the White House.
" Obama doesn't like Kerry either and keeps pulling the rug on him"
Kerry is starting to realize why he was hired in the first place.
TSB;James: Ok, let's just assume that somebody doesn't like the Chi-coms and decides to hurt them by blowing up an airliner.
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-03-10/stolen-passport-passenger-missing-malaysian-airlines-jet-identified
It seems to me the question on everyone's mind should be what is to keep anyone from doing the same thing on one of these flights coming to the US? I heard it was illegal for the airlines to check the interpol database of stolen passports... the government has to do it. Then I heard hardly anyone bothers to do it because there are lots of reasons to use a stolen passport. (like maybe our govt does it all the time?) Is it time for somebody to start asking some questions? gwb (Ok Clapper.. you go first.)
GWB: You'd be surprised how many people use stolen passports. Terrorist activity is actually a small percentage of their usage.
James: Did you beat 78 this weekend?
gwb
GWB:
"James: Did you beat 78 this weekend? "
Nah, a couple of weeks ago an operator dropped a rebar cage on the fingers of my left hand. Deep lacerations, fingernail loss and all that, so I just started swinging a club again. Got to wear a latex glove (it seems flying blood is a distraction to other players), but I'm back around 80, 81 or so from the blues. Bonus, if I don't strike the ball almost perfectly I get a super shock right to my damaged fingers. So I REALLY working on good impact.
Ouch James!! That is really graphic
and bloody reportage on your part. I can feel that pain. DiFi is howling about being a neutered watchdog but she can't even get a majority of her committee to support her. Looks like she is headed towards a 'Deep State'
of anguish. Best wishes for rapid recovery! gwb
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/feinstein-cia-searched-intelligence-committee-computers/2014/03/11/982cbc2c-a923-11e3-8599-ce7295b6851c_story.html
Ms Feinstein, discovering reality can be a b-tch!
Thanks for the thoughts. I'm getting back in the pink fairly quickly. I miss taking money from young guys. It's a lot of fun and sooo easy!
Ok Guys: I figured out what happened to the missing airliner. The transponder quit because there was cracking around the antenna causing catastrophic airframe failure. Everybody died in a few minutes but the plane kept flying on the last heading the pilots put it on til it ran out of fuel. (Boeing put out a warning about this recently.) gwb
TSB: I know you are thinking how did he figure out the the missing airliner mystery? I go right to the propaganda. The 777 may have a great safety record but the latest AD says check for cracks from salt water corrosion. We are still waiting to hear if Malaysian Air checked for those cracks. gwb
GWB: That cause makes more sense to me than UFO abductions or other leading theories!
TSB: I've never heard of Asians being abducted..They probably don't believe in it. But this Kerry and McCain action doesn't seem to be calming things down yet. I hope they don't have send in Biden gwb
TSB: I have come to the conclusion that I have committed some grievous sin and incurred your displeasure. How else to explain you leaving the pictures of Kerry up for an eternity. Day after day I must steel myself to gaze upon his visage. Have you no pity man!
James: I apologize for the Kerry wallpaper. I've been traveling for two of the past three weeks, and haven't had the time to invest in putting together a new post. Really, I do need to put up something new! Heading back home tomorrow, so Kerry's image should be replaced soon.
In a small half forgotten and semi lit church a little candle of thanks is now burning.
James: Why the long face? gwb
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-03-14/krimea-kerry-caption-contest
Gwb: "James: Why the long face?"
Thank you GWB, I believe that may be the first time I've ever laughed upon seeing Kerry's face.
Andnow let the caption contest begin!
Kerry thinking: I'd rather be back with my wife. Or, "This isn't all that much fun".
There you go TSB! James is warming up to the Kerry visage. Take the weekend off and enjoy yourself! gwb
Noooooooooooh! Et tu GWB!
Post a Comment