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Beacon Hill man looks likely to assume post in Washington in January
By adamg on Mon, 11/23/2020 - 2:12pm
President-Elect Joe Biden has tabbed Louisburg Square's own John Kerry for a new post: Special presidential envoy for climate.
Kerry, you may recall, has some experience in Washington.
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Comments
Nothing at State?
Good.
Uh...those posts are
Uh...those posts are generally at State?
Special presidential envoy
who is coming up with these roles?
Answer
People who fully comprehend the vastness of the problem of climate change, the urgency, and the need for coordinated action.
Unlike Trump, who just names extreme xenophobic racists as "advisors" and women he wants to fondle regularly as "advisors".
Preach Swirly Preach
Amen
For that one, Obama. His
For that one, Obama. His successor then dissolved the role.
Some are created by the Executive Branch, others are created by Congress.
Based on wikipedia, Obama
Based on wikipedia, Obama apparently created the role at the beginning of 2009 and after two years he dissolved the role, probably because the role is mere window dressing, with all the authority over everything being held by the Secretaries of Energy, Environment, Interior, and Transportation.
stop saying “window dressing”
who cares what the title is? it’s really not that complicated - kerry has experience with climate diplomacy and it’s a good thing that he’ll be involved in any capacity going forward.
I don't know where you are
I don't know where you are looking on Wikipedia but the climate post was left vacant in 2017 according to this page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ambassadors_of_the_United_States#Special_E...
Todd Stern definitely held the position into 2016, which is more than 2 years after 2009.
"Based on"
He's using artistic license, like Longfellow did when he wrote Paul Revere's Ride. In other words, he's telling it the way he thinks it ought to be.
Haha Special Envoy for Climate
Interesting choice. What does Kerry own, 6 houses, a private jet and a yacht.
We need another person from Brookline in Washington
The world would be a much better place had Dukakis won in '88.
Pfft
He would have tried to overturn the 21st Amendment.
Remember: Joe Biden couldn't beat him, but suddenly, he's America's pick for President.
If by "suddenly" you mean "32
If by "suddenly" you mean "32 years later" then... what? Dukakis wanted to bring Prohibition back? Are you sure about that?
I'd like to see someone with
I'd like to see someone with scientific credentials and not as wealthy, old, and white become the next Climate Czar.
Kerry and climate change
He has some bit of background in it - he was the Secretary of State who actually signed the Paris climate accord.
It's a diplomatic job in large measure
You ain't wrong, but at the same time the job is as much about diplomacy as it is about science; the heavy lifting will be convincing other nations that we're trustworthy. In this regard age and experience are worth something.
Retreads
That's how to fix things.
Succesful Diplomats, you mean
The very rational and internationally lauded Iran nuclear deal and the, well, better than nothing Paris Agreement were both at least partially thanks to John Kerry.
"Who among us" could deny that the world would be a much safer place if we rejoin those agreements post haste.
He should get Bob Dole for some bipartisanship
Bob Dole knows how to get things done and Bob Dole knows how to work with the senate and Bob Dole isn't busy.
-Bob Dole
Ah, thanks to John "A Bad
Ah, thanks to John "A Bad Deal is Better Than No Deal" Kerry.
Uh, yeah
That's often the case with deals. You need to go in to any negotiation knowing what the alternative outcomes might be for both sides and how important it is to avoid them. Turns out, a deal which seems "bad" is often better than the status quo — and just *wishing* you had a better one doesn't actually get it for you.
Trump was a “Washington
Trump was a “Washington outsider”. And after 4 years of him the country is a disaster and an international joke. Experience is a good thing.
Cry harder, Wingnut.
Cry harder, Wingnut.
Speaking of wingnuts?
Did Fish inevitably die of Covid, get banned or get assigned a new posting job by his bosses in the Kremlin? He's been blessedly absent over the last few weeks.
Vladimir reassigned him
to Georgia.
Close
I think Vlad's more into meddling in Armenia these days.
Coming out of retirement?
Retreads are actually quite efficient:
https://www.treadwright.com/blogs/treadwright-blog/how-do-retread-tires-...
So, how quickly did Howie
So, how quickly did Howie Carr dust off his John Kerry environmental file? Make jokes about the yacht, the bike, the sailboard, the "Flying Squirrel"... and hey - since some of the jokes are over water, gotta joke about offshore windfarms and Ted Kennedy car crashes (gotta plug the crappy book, don'tchaknow...)
...at the same time, he'll be complaining that Biden didn't pick Gore for environment so he could use all the old mansion, private jet to environmental summits, and carbon credit jokes.
Time for the old madlib style
Time for the old madlib style columns to be rerun.
reporting for duty
head of hydrant security
Marty Walsh
Commissioner of Winds and Tides
John Kerry
Last time I voted Democrat in a presidential election. First full year I lived here. I always thought he was a bitch for not walking the few blocks from his house to Copley to address his supporters the night he lost.
Sweet misogyny, bro.
There are plenty of non-gendered insults that one could deploy to express your 16-years-long dissatisfaction with Kerry.
Fun fact about words
They evolve and have different meanings over time.
Fun fact - it’s a sexist slur.
Femininity is encoded in the word bitch and does not decouple from the word just because you pretend it does. Everyone knows it as an insult to women or a way to emasculate/feminize a man.
It’s a sexist slur. Not a good look.
Fine
He's a beeotch. I like that word better anyway.
And
...you're a person who uses a sexist and misogynist term, doubles down, and then tries to use a cutesy deflection as a get out of jail free card, and if that doesn't make you a sexist and misogynist, well you sure stink like one.
weird justification?
if anything the evolution of language is exactly why bitch as a pejorative has fallen out of the lexicon.
and i will say it’s pretty interesting that you generally censor profanity in your comments but didn’t have a problem using bitch in this context.
The history of (expletive)
Gaffin asked me circa 2009 to stop swearing in comments, so I started using (expletive) for the harder four-letter words. Believe me, I pepper (expletive) quite frequently into spoken communication.
He also said that I can't post "erotic literature" or attack somebody based on their nationality (on which I've evolved anyway.)
Believe me, I pepper
Don't worry, we all know you're a tough guy.
And dictionaries continue to record older and obsolete
meanings of words, marking them as such. The issue I think you're missing is that social norms around a word can also evolve, as the society of speakers of a language recognize a particular usage as ignorant, offensive, bigoted, etc. I've been guilty of being out of step on certain words and amended my prose when corrected. Learning is good.
Mark Twain's characters freely used the n-word in his novels in a way that most white speakers would now recognize as offensive, disparaging, a slur. You can continue to use words any way that you choose, and some people will understand your intent, but that won't necessarily save you from the social opprobrium or dismissal as a Neanderthal for not keeping up with newer connotations. It's generally not flattering to be thought of Grampa Caveman. Be Best!
He was going to Swift-boat
He was going to Swift-boat log-flume it downhill from Louisburg Square, but they couldn't find the hydrant wrench.
I always thought he was a
Apparently you've forgotten that the election wasn't decided "the night he lost." Ohio was still up in the air.
I was set up and plugged in and ready to play with a band that was supposed to play a victory/consolation party for Kerry volunteers at one of those Boylston Place clubs on election night. The election wasn't called one way or the other and we didn't get to play and the club cleared out early.
I don't remember how soon after that Ohio was decided, but I don't think any of Kerry's supporters were still hanging out at Copley Square by then.
John Forbes Kerry, the other
John Forbes Kerry, the other white meat.
That sounds like an excellent choice.
That sounds like an excellent choice, since John F. Kerry has a good record on the environment.