Wednesday, December 2, 2015

House Oversight Committee Hearing on New London Embassy

The Crystal Fortress, in architectural vision












The New London Embassy construction project has come in for criticism from the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee before, and it will again on Tuesday, December 8, at 10 AM. Watch this space for live video: Review of the New London Embassy Project.

While you're waiting please enjoy Embassy London's weekly photos of the construction site, and let your inner architect be inspired by the designer's vision:
[The State Department] wanted to pursue a new paradigm in embassy design, termed Design Excellence, which emphasizes the role of architecture in diplomacy. This new model seeks buildings that represent the ideals of the American government—giving priority to transparency, openness, and equality, and drawing on the best of American architecture, engineering, technology, art, and culture.

Here's hoping my good friends in Overseas Buildings Operations will send their first string to handle the Committee. Which means Ambassador Will Moser. I really don't think that OBO's Director and her Deputy Director in Charge of Design Excellence are up to handling the hostile questioning that is likely to come to them.

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21 comments:

  1. AnonymousDecember 3, 2015 at 6:35 PM

    https://www.rt.com/usa/324670-pentagon-luxury-villas-aghanistan/

    TSB: Hey! These business people were from DC. They like to feel at home when they travel. Besides, $150 million is peanuts compared to the money they were going to make. gwb

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnonymousDecember 4, 2015 at 3:12 AM

    TSB:It looks like not everyone is rolling over for our favorite autocrat in Turkey. We might need to send in someone like Abedin to help them 're-organize' their financial ministry before the UN declares the Erdogan family criminals. gwb

    http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2015-12-03/isis-oil-plot-thickens-turkish-mp-has-evidence-erdogans-son-law-involved-illegal-cru

    ReplyDelete
  3. AnonymousDecember 4, 2015 at 8:45 AM

    TSB: Ok, now you have lots of 'facts'. Ready to make any conclusions?? gwb

    ReplyDelete
  4. TSBDecember 4, 2015 at 10:09 AM

    GWB: Those DOD guesthouses in Kabul sound pretty nice. A good bump up from living in a trailer on the embassy grounds, for sure.

    ReplyDelete
  5. AnonymousDecember 4, 2015 at 1:16 PM

    TSB: The C-Span Journal subject today was "Are you afraid of mass shootings?" The answer was overwhelmingly yes, divided between arm everyone and eliminate all the guns. Meanwhile, I notice that Friday morning in Cairo 14 people were burned to death in a hotel bar by a Molotov cocktail. (no survivors, no witnesses)

    Stalin got rid of millions, including most of the Bolsheviks while maintaining the reputation as a humanitarian democrat by western notables. Then he killed most of those who did the killing for him. It looks to me like since the Tsars one revolution just leads to another and stealing the people's scarce food is always part of the equation. gwb

    ReplyDelete
  6. AnonymousDecember 5, 2015 at 2:03 AM

    TSB: The 'experts' all seem to agree. This one's a 'game changer'! Yes,I'm talking about Denver's young quarterback who studied under the great satan,I mean,Payton Manning but left before getting his degree at AT&T. gwb

    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3346618/ISIS-loyalist-woman-San-Bernardino-massacre-linked-Pakistan-s-notorious-radical-cleric-mosque-known-center-fundamentalists.html

    (should be a good article this week by Pepe on this)

    ReplyDelete
  7. AnonymousDecember 5, 2015 at 4:51 PM

    TSB: From the situation room at CNN:
    Obama to address nation over threats

    Looks like Obama is about to get out his pen again.
    gwb

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  8. AnonymousDecember 6, 2015 at 7:01 AM

    TSB: Re: Russian warship passes through Bosphorus as soldier on board carries missile... this week in Pennsylvania police were called to a possible domestic disturbance where a man was heard yelling repeatedly "I'm going to kill you", throwing furniture screaming etc only to find the guy was trying to kill a spider. Everyone is armed and ready to shoot! gwb

    ReplyDelete
  9. AnonymousDecember 6, 2015 at 10:34 AM

    TSB: Jimmy Carter says cancer gone: newspaper report... This is just what we needed. A miracle that could not only save Christmas but also stop climate change. gwb

    ReplyDelete
  10. AnonymousDecember 6, 2015 at 1:48 PM

    SHOCK: 72 'Homeland Security' Employees on Terrorist Watch List...

    TSB: I'm thinkin maybe Jeh Johnson is makin a list and checkin it twice? gwb

    ReplyDelete
  11. TSBDecember 6, 2015 at 5:41 PM

    All that watchlisting is done by the National Counterterrorism Center. According to the news media, at least 700,000 people are on or another of their lists, but almost half of them have no known affiliation with any terrorist group. Here's the leaked watch list criteria:

    https://theintercept.com/document/2014/08/05/directorate-terrorist-identities-dti-strategic-accomplishments-2013/

    Anyone could end up being listed - you, me, or TSA employees.

    ReplyDelete
  12. AnonymousDecember 6, 2015 at 7:46 PM

    Thanks TSB! I haven't played "It's A Wild World" since the last time we were warned about contacting revolutionary types on the net. gwb (Wow! A 65 nation coalition to fight ISIS..Is Uzbekistan in there?) gwb

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y8pvXLVu8Yk&list=PL311A0E9A2112081F

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  13. AnonymousDecember 6, 2015 at 10:27 PM

    TSB: I am going with this account. I heard this woman's account on CBS the 1st time and the "we know their was a woman"response. Police issued weapons?? Maybe from a nearby facility? FBI already there ready to take over?? This one has false flag all over it.
    gwb
    http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2015-12-06/san-bernardino-attack-eye-witness-three-tall-white-men-did-it

    ReplyDelete
  14. JamesDecember 7, 2015 at 2:11 AM

    TSB: A list with loose to poor criteria, compiled in semi-secrecy for action solely by executive decision is bad bad business.

    ReplyDelete
  15. TSBDecember 7, 2015 at 7:18 AM

    GWB: That's a big reach even for a conspiracy theory. The survivors had worked with Forook for years, and had given a baby shower for his wife six months ago. I believe them when they say they recognized him doing the shooting.

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  16. AnonymousDecember 7, 2015 at 7:43 AM

    TSB: New photos of the actual shooters! gwb

    https://www.flickr.com/photos/expd/23265339770/in/dateposted-public/

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  17. AnonymousDecember 7, 2015 at 9:07 AM

    TSB: President Obama is denying that he won yesterday's election in Venezuela but Trump tweeted that this would be the perfect job for Hillary. gwb

    https://twitter.com/SputnikInt/status/673815014424219648/photo/1

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  18. AnonymousDecember 7, 2015 at 12:30 PM

    TSB:Daily News Conference: Still no witness who saw a 90 lb woman with a big guy. No indication they have any video showing the shooters. The guy might have seen his friend Farook but he has no idea who was with him. I'm betting all this pipe bomb stuff came over on a C-130 or from an FBI lab. gwb

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  19. AnonymousDecember 8, 2015 at 2:01 PM

    TSB: If you have seen a 'JEB!' tv ad you know how great they are. Well, this week they have rolled out a new 15 MINUTE tv ad to try to boost his ratings. I saw a link to the 'trailer' for it somewhere and that was enough to get me laughing pretty good.

    This CNN debate on thursday should rock. I don't know what the focus is supposed to be but since it's CNN I'm thinking they might provide each candidate with one of these and let them go at it. gwb

    http://bit.ly/1Qu4jhu

    ReplyDelete
  20. AnonymousDecember 9, 2015 at 4:31 AM

    TSB: I listened to about 20 minutes of that hearing. I don't think they broke any glass. If you can't test it without installing it you install it. gwb

    Did you see that the Taliban broke into Kandahar air base and held the place for 5 hours? 1st time ever.

    ReplyDelete
  21. AnonymousDecember 9, 2015 at 8:26 AM

    TSB: John Kerry is complaining today that Trump is making his job of fighting ISIS a lot more difficult. Indeed!! Abadi added a new problem for Kerry today. gwb

    http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2015-12-09/iraq-seeks-cancel-security-agreement-us-will-invite-russia-fight-isis

    the Iraqi parliament's Security and Defense Committee is calling for the review and cancellation of Baghdad’s security agreement with the US. (and for Putin's help to expel these foreign forces)
    I'm still looking for the Taliban to link up with ISIS in Afghanistan next year and Putin replace the US in Iraq.

    ReplyDelete