Confucian Economics at Work in Korean Unification

October 2007 Volume 8 No. 1 The Newspaper of the Johns Hopkins University Nitze School of Advanced International Studies

In its fifth year, the latest

incarnation of SAIS’ bidding system

continues to cause controversy, as

have each of its predecessors.

Introduced at the behest of

students, bidding was conceived as a

fair way of allocating the scarce

resource of spaces in limited enroll-

ment courses. The system provides

each student a chance to prioritize

how much each class is worth to

them, both relative to other classes

and relative to other students’ prefer-

ences. To the system’s credit it is cer-

tainly more equitable than a “first-

come-first-serve” system, and pro-

vides SAIS-ers with a unique, hands-

on market experience.

Alexander Schratz, who

heads the Academic Committee on

the SGA, says “I believe that the bid-

ding system in general is probably the

fairest and certainly the most efficient

system to allocate slots in oversub-

scribed classes if demand for a class

exceeds the cap in place substantially

and ad-hoc arrangements between the

administration, students and the pro-

fessor cannot be made.”

Yet despite these advantages

and continued attempts to improve

the system, bidding remains cumber-

some, complicated, and frustrating

for many SAIS students.

The latest innovation in the

system is early bidding for all over-

subscribed courses. Originally, all

bidding took place in one round after

the week-long drop/add “shopping”

period. Over time, a preliminary

round of bidding was introduced for

the required international economics

courses: Micro, Macro, Trade, and

Monetary. This semester, for the first

time, students bid once on all over-

subscribed courses during the prelim-

inary round (along with the interna-

tional economics courses), and a sec-

ond time for classes that became

oversubscribed during drop /add.

The difficulty of first round

bidding is that students must evaluate

the worth of classes they’ve never

attended, taught by professors they

never met. Both professors and stu-

dents see the clear benefit of gauging

classes in person before having to

commit time or points to them – that

is the whole purpose of the add/drop

shopping period.

Conversely, by the second

round of bidding, students have

already invested time and effort in

their classes and purchased books.

The prospect of being dropped from a

course after investing some 10 hours

of reading in it is unsavory, especial-

ly given that the student must enter a

new course burdened by a presum-

able 10 hour backlog of reading rela-

tive to their new classmates.

Losing BidNew bidding system causes

problems, frustration By Niv Elis

Dean Harrington says students can use the bidding system to theiradvantage if they plan well and bid wisely.

There’s a bench in the Nitze courtyard. You

may have seen it. It has a tiny brass plaque on it that

whispers to the world how some class some year gen-

erously gave SAIS students some place to sit and

smoke. Not to denigrate the time and effort that went

into that gift, but we can do better.

Last year the Class of 2007 made a bold

attempt to break the mold. They eyed our peer schools

with both a hint of admiration and jealousy. SAIS,

though generous, seems to assist its students so little

through endowments compared to the presidential

nomenclature of schools. The funds are in the millions;

the fact that Kennedy and Woodrow Wilson out per-

form us seven fold is no mean feat – perhaps it should

be something to stir our competitive side.

From the reverse side, alumni participation at

these schools has historically been significantly better.

Yes, we can be proud that alums who typically partici-

pated from SAIS (11%) were more numerous than

those of Georgetown (5%) or even SIPA (6%). Yet, we

can also be inspired by our intellectual cousins at

Fletcher who annually reach a class participation rate

of nearly a third. Again, I think we can do even better.

The Sisyphean task was perhaps too much for

our esteemed Gift Committee predecessors to take on

when they did: just three months before graduating.

Kudos to them, though: they excelled in their task,

blowing Fletcher out of the water with 50% of SAIS-

ers getting involved.

Their efforts teach us one thing: don’t be

fooled. It’s not the money that forms the most daunting

task. The revered target of $100,000 is attainable over

a period of some years and, once there, sustainable.

Human capital is much, much more difficult

to come by. Asking students for money is easy. They

are all around you. They sit next to you in the cafeteria;

one hopes they must at some point walk through the

Nitze entrance. Finding the people to do this, to entreat

cash-strapped individuals to part ways with jealously-

guarded sums of their already scarce spending money,

is the problem. In other words, recruitment is the trick.

The Class Gift Committee will probably need

around ten to twenty volunteers to help with direction,

management, promotion and fundraising. Who will

these fearless characters be? Once the class has gradu-

ated, the gift must be tended to like a fattening lamb.

Who will be our humble shepherd, ready to continue

the solicitation of more money from the government

officials, academics, bankers and journalists that we

will have become?

More importantly, it’s not just recruitment to

the Class Gift Committee, but also recruitment to the

cause. Inspiring our class to even care about the gift is

an obvious pre-requisite. Yet how do you persuade peo-

ple to contribute to a cause that verges on the abstract

in their minds. What are we giving? A scholarship? A

SAIS Fullof GiftedStudents?

How you canhelp leave a

positive legacy atSAIS

By Chris Forster

Also inside, the Observer responds to Ahmadinejad’s appearance

at Columbia, current Bologna students and returnees reveal the

secrets of the BC, and we get to know the new Associate Dean of

Finance

In This Issue:

Diversions 2

SAIS Abroad 4

New Faculty 6

Summer Vacations 7

Lecture Notes 9

Op-Ed 10

Dean John Harrington,

Associate Dean of Academic Affairs

at SAIS and avid supporter of the bid-

ding system, suggests that students

should have an academic plan worked

out ahead of time and use the

add/drop shopping period to visit a

number of back-up classes. Students

complain, however, that crafting such

a plan is difficult with imperfect

information regarding what courses

will be offered, when, and by whom

over their SAIS careers.

According to David

Michaels, another member of the

SGA Academic Committee,

“Preparing for bidding is difficult

because there are a lot of uncertain-

continued on page 11

continued on page 3

October 2007 THE SAIS OBSERVER

LETTER FROM THE EDITORS

After having survived earthquakes in Peru, car

bombs and detentions in Lebanon, microeconomics in

preterm, and helicopter rides in the Himalayas, having

hitchhiked in Yemen, chased bulls in Spain, ridden on

one-lane mountainous roads in Armenia, run publicity

campaigns for NGOs, and managed the debts of devel-

oping countries, we appear to have made it safely to

Washington, DC. Some of us are back for round 2 and

some are arriving for the first time (sorry to tell you,

life is not necessarily less risky here).

While many of us may be having a tough time

readjusting to life in the classroom – the production

function curve just doesn’t have the same thrill it used

to – The SAIS Observer is back to get you revved up

for the academic year.

Not only do we hav some great content, as

always, but we’re also excited to present a talented

new batch of first years and Bologneses who are join-

ing our experienced crew of second years.

In this issue you’ll meet SAIS’ newest dean, get

pumped for the kick-off of our class gitf (led by the

omnipresent Chris Forster), you’ll hear Bologneses

past and present dish the dirt about life on SAIS’

European campus, you’ll take sides on a knock-down,

no-holds barred, free-for-all debate between Jess Stahl

and John Thorne on the subject of controversial speak-

ers at SAIS (which no doubt will inspire you to send a

letter to the editors voicing your opinion on the mat-

ter), and finally, you’ll hear a long-awaited plea for

sanity from none other than Nadav Davidai on (what

else?) free food and recycling.

Judging from this issue, and if we do say so our-

selves, this year is shaping up to be the best in TheSAIS Observer’s – and indeed SAIS’ – history. And

your ever humble editors can’t wait to lead you

through it.

The SAIS ObserverEditors-in-Chief

Alex Selim

Neil Shenai

Jessica Stahl

ContributorsEmma Ashburn

Alton Buland

Nadav Davidai

Niv Elis

Chris Forster

Dr. Patrick Maris

Sean McGowan

David Michaels

John Thorne

Nancy Tran

George Tzortzis

The SAIS Observer is a news monthly written, edited, and produced by

the students of the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies

(SAIS) of The Johns Hopkins University.

SAIS students, faculty and members of the administration at the

Washington, D.C. campus, Bologna campus, and the Hopkins-Nanjing

Center are encouraged to submit articles, letters to the editor, photo-

graphs, cartoons, and other items for consideration.

Material for consideration or inquiries may be submitted to :

[email protected].

The SAIS Observer is an approved SAIS student organization. Opinions

expressed in the SAIS Observer are not necessarily the views of the edi-

tors, SAIS, or the University.

The Observer welcomes accolades, denials, comments, critiques,

and hate mail at [email protected].

Photos:

Emma Ashburn

Dr. Patrick Maris

David Michaels

Jon Rosen

Kaveh Sardari

Illustrators:

Alex Bloom

Julien Deslangles

Diversions:Keep your eyes and ears open and contribute to the below

sections! Email us at [email protected] with submissions

“Why didn’t you

go to Bologna?”

– Every Bolognastudent to theirnew DC acquain-tances

The Ostrich

1300

1200

100

100

700

0

700

2305

1804

1391

208

Who’s having a good month, and whomight want to stick their heads in the sandand hope for better luck in March?

Winners LosersProfessor KeaneyBasking in his rave post-Cohen reviews(by the way, is anyone else sick of strat’sperpetual appearance on this page? Wehave other programs at this school!Canada Studies, your day will come!)

DC 2nd Years

That’s right, we know where N417 is,that the left door to Nitze is locked onweekends, and that coffee/cookiesmiraculously appear on Tuesday after-noon - Bow before our wisdom!

Rome Auditorium

Emerges from relative obscurity to playhost to Fukuyama’s oversized CNS (see,Canada Studies? If Rome Auditoriumcan work its way up, so can you)

The SAIS Observer

Damn straight it’s a winner!

SGA

Begging for first year rep candidatesundermines the illusion of power a lit-tle . . . Just sayin’

1st Years

How many times have you thought, “Ishould’ve gone to Georgetown” in thepast few weeks? Come on, admit it

BC Grads

If I hear you say “Ciao Bella” one moretime . . . ! (p.s. - reading Alton andGeorge’s article this month almost gotme to move you off the losers side . . .almost)

FacebookWhere are the faces? This year’s face-book gives the SAIS logo more than itsfair share of facetime

VerbatimWhat the SAIS

community has been saying

“To distract them we could just

bomb Cairo. Or Alexandria.”

– Anonymous SAIS student role-playing the US in a debate overwhether to get involved in the 1973Arab-Israeli war. He was on thecon side.

"I read everything on the syllabus before each class. I always

re-read my own stuff. And, of course, I like it immensely."

– Anonymous professor discussing his syllabus

“DC is not New

York. It’s not real.”

– Anonymous candi-date for first yearrep

Anonymous Student 1:

Where did you go this

summer?


Armenia


That's in Southeast,

right?

“Sorry I stole the plastic cups

from your party last night. I

just got a little klepto before I

left.”

– Anonymous SAIS student ona Sunday afternoon.

By theNumbers

Highest bid submitted forany class

Highest bid submitted forProfessor Takacs’ TradeTheory class

Clearing price forProfessor Takacs’ TradeTheory class

Total bid points remainingto someone who bid 1200points for Trade Theory

Highest bid submitted forProfessor Dokko’s Statsclass

Clearing price forProfessor Dokko’s Statsclass

Bid points lost by afore-mentioned highest bidder

Average hours worked inKorea in 2006, the highestin any OECD country(according to OECD stats)

Average hours worked inthe US in 2006

Average hours worked inthe Netherlands in 2006,the lowest in any OECDcountry

Required hours of classper year for a full-timeSAIS student

“I want to see

big, warm fuzzies

for everyone.”

– Anonymouscandidate forfirst year rep


It’s only the end of September, but your SGA has already been

hard at work!

The school year started with Orientation activities for 1st years

and returning 2nd year Bologna students. With the help of Jessica

Stahl, SGA organized a weekend of events, starting with a picnic that

sent the new students off on a scavenger hunt throughout DC. While

students were getting receipts from Fox and Hounds and a picture with

the security guard from Paul Wolfowitz’s former place of employment

(World Bank or SAIS, depending on the ingenuity of the students),

SGA was setting up a killer happy hour.

Orientation weekend also included various organized activities

such as an ultimate Frisbee game, soccer game, free National

Symphony Orchestra concert on the mall, mixers at Buffalo Billiards

and Local 16, and a “Dinner with 10 Strangers.”

One of the most consistent tasks of the SGA is to organize the

happy hours throughout the school year. Unlike the Pre-term happy

hours, students have to pay for drinks. But the bright side is profits of

SGA-hosted happy hours go back to students in the form of SAIS for-

mal and the graduation party. The profits of happy hours hosted by

SAIS clubs go directly to that club to finance their activities during this

academic year.

SGA also recently held an informational meeting for SAIS

clubs and their leaders. We presented information on the clubs’ budgets

and discussed the application process. We went over guidelines and

procedures for clubs, including reimbursements and room reservations.

The SGA is responsible for club financing and the regulations guiding

clubs.

Possibly the most important functions of the SGA are carried

out by its multitude of student committees: Academics, Facilities,

Social, Community Service, Financial Aid, and Class Gift. These com-

mittees are chaired by SGA members and other students to tackle

issues of concern to the student body. For example, the Academic com-

mittee is discussing bidding with Dean Harrington, the Community

Service committee will be organizing volunteer events, and the

Facilities committee is working to get better options in the vending

machines.

Your favorite committee may be the Social committee, headed

by Leela Ranmath and Jill Craig, which just organized the first annual

“Speed Friending” Event. The committee also has a number of other

events up its sleeves, including the annual Halloween Party and

International Dinner. See, not only do we care about your academics;

we are trying to help you find more friends.

We encourage more students to become involved in the com-

mittees, so if you are interested, email us at [email protected]. Currently

the SGA is also holding elections for first-year representatives. We

should have the two newly elected first-year reps by October 5.

Last but not least, SGA has been inundating your inboxes with

3 emails a week, which we know can seem overwhelming. But try to

read at least one of them since they contain information about weekly

events, how to reserve rooms, and other exciting tidbits.

As we say in our emails:

Sincerely, your friendly neighborhood SGA.

SGA MonthlyReport

The SGA checks in to tell us what

they’ve been up to in the past monthBy Nancy Tran, SGA President

You can contact the SGA at [email protected]

Bidding Warscontinued from page 1

ties in the schedule, and your options are contin-

gent upon the different outcomes in each round.”

Although the administration claims that

few students should have to even deal with bid-

ding, the numbers tell a different story. This

semester, 553 seats went to bid. Of these, only

311 seats were available, resulting in about 10%

of all seats being dropped. It is no exaggeration

to say that almost every student had at least one

class go to bid, and some 40% lost at least one

class this semester. Thankfully, most of these

losses occurred in round 1, with only 16 out of 74

students who bid in round two scrambling for

new seats during the second week of classes.

Harrington points out that increasing the

number of courses or sections of a course is not

really an option; SAIS professors’ job descrip-

tions only include teaching 4 courses a year, mak-

ing it difficult to open new sections of popular

classes.

One possible solution to the bidding-

twice phenomenon would be to secure the seats of

all registered students in limited enrollment class-

es after round 1, and only put additional seats up

for bid in the second round.

Another possibility would be to create a

2-3 day shopping period before the first round, in

which professors would give half-hour introduc-

tory classes for each course, allowing students a

risk-free environment in which to evaluate their

options.

Among the more contentious bidding

policy questions is why students must pay the full

amount they bid as opposed to the clearing price.

“It’s really stressful as a first year to

know you might spend all of your points on a

class with a really low clearing price,” says

Victoria Wilson.

Dean Harrington says that he has yet to

be convinced of how paying the clearing price

instead of the total bid amount might improve the

efficiency of the system. But as any pre-term stu-

dent could tell you, making each person pay

amounts greater than the clearing price (amounts

they admittedly volunteered to pay) robs students

of their “consumer surplus.”

As a result, students who bid too low are

upset that they lost the seat, students who bid at or

just above the clearing price are very happy, and

students who bid considerably above the clearing

price are frustrated at the price they paid (presum-

ably at the expense of future buying power)

instead of relishing in the attainment of the covet-

ed seat. Because the administration has no use for

the points it collects, the wasted consumer surplus

becomes dead weight loss, making the rule ineffi-

cient, as manifested in immense frustration.

Yet students themselves deserve a fair

share of the blame if the policy does not address

their needs. Student forums held in the past to

address bidding concerns were sparsely attended,

and the SGA Academic Committee has com-

mended the administration’s efforts to incorporate

student feedback.

“The administration, i.e. Dean

Harrington and Ms. Toussaint, have been very

receptive when we voiced the concerns…. We are

working closely with them to reverse the policy

of all bidding taking place before the first week of

classes,” says Schratz.

Another open meeting will be scheduled

in the near future, and miffed students ought to

take full advantage if they are dissatisfied.

As it were, some students are perfectly

happy with the current system. John O’Bryan

claims, “I liked it!” He adds, “But I didn’t get

burned by it.”

It appears that like Churchill’s famous

quip about Democracy, bidding is the worst sys-

tem except all the others. It does not have to be so.

Niv Elis is a 1st year MA candidate in ConflictManagement

The 2007-2008 SGA from left to right: Alex Schratz, Leela Ranmath, Nancy Tran, Jill Craig, Chris Meyer

Key Bidding Statistics:Total Courses Going to Bid in Round 1: 14Total Courses Going to Bid in Round 2: 4

Total Number of Seats: 2450Total Number of Seats Going to Bid: 533Total Number of Available Seats: 311

Highest Bid Submitted: 1300Highest Clearing Price: 807Lowest Clearing Price: 0

Classes for which Some Students who Bid theClearing Price Didn’t Get Into the Course: 3


Bolognese Sauced

Ciao!

You’ve seen him smoking in the

courtyard. You’ve seen her double cheek-

kissing in the hallway. You overhear them

criticizing the coffee in Starbucks in bad

Spanish. But it’s not bad Spanish – it’s

Italian. And it’s a dead

give-away that the

unshowered, tight-jeans

wearing, slick-hair

Mousse-illini next to you is

a SAIS Bologna student.

To understand the BC

Mafia (Bola Nostra), one

must know the city that

created this 5 o’clock shad-

owy clique.

The Italians call it

“Bologna the Red” because

of its terra cotta rooftops,

the hue of its famous meat

sauce, its historically left-

leaning politics (ViaStalingrado, anyone?), and

the precious shade of pink

Mike Beaton blushes after

two proseccos.

Although not

overrun by Ohio State

study abroaders like

Florence or literally sink-

ing under the weight of

Chinese tour groups like

Venice, Bologna boasts its

own notable landmarks:

The Due Torre;

what a magnificent sight!

Paired and cocked at such

an unlikely angle, these

Renaissance towers are the

ultimate architectural

prank: looking at them

means seeing double and

crooked at the same time,

so you’ll worry you’re

drunk. This being a

Thursday at SAIS BC, I

assure you, you are.

P i c t u r e s q u e

Piazza Magiorre is home to

the basilica of San

Petronio. This two-toned

cathedral has a marble base

with a clashing brick top

and is a monument to what

happens when you run out

of money halfway through

a project. On a completely

unrelated note, SAIS sec-

ond-year fellowships are

based on first semester

GPAs.

The monastery of

San Luca stands austerely

on a hilltop above the city.

The back-breaking climb

through the 666-arched portico to the top

is the perfect revenge for over-stayed vis-

itors who make you skip midterm review

sessions to play tour guide for them. A

new tradition this class invented was

“Sambuca at San Luca,” which is just as

terrible idea as it sounds.

Bologna’s grand porticos were

blessing and a curse: they added character

to the city and shielded us from harsh

wind and rain. On the other hand, they

prevented the elements from washing the

punk and bestia excrement from the side-

walks, giving Bologna its signature

ammoniac boutique.

The Università di Bologna is

Europe’s oldest university. Called

UNIBO by the populace and Alma Mater

Studorium by the college t-

shirt industry, it is more or

less completely ignored by

any SAISer. If you were to

make your reporter write

something about it, he

would guess that it was

founded in 584 BC by the

literate she-wolf who suck-

led Romulus, and has edu-

cated such notables as

Giovanni Cassini, Umberto

Eco, and Chef Boyardee.

Its mascot is the

Euromullet.

The Johns Hopkins

University SAIS Bologna

Center is apparently called

“The Johns” for short by

the locals, and given the

fact that the admissions

committee stuck 9

Jonathans in our class,

that’s not far off [one par-

ticular editor’s note: the

DC campus admitted all

the Alexs]. Alternately

derided by the Bolognese

as a CIA front or a trans-

planted frat house, this

building was infamous our

year for being home to

100% of Bologna’s

Nepalese population. Its

mascot is the Fightin’

Fukullamas.

Needless to say,

Bologna was like no place

any of the students were

from (except for the

Italians). We had a heck of

a time here, and we could-

n’t have had it anywhere

else. Grazie mille,

Bologna.

And ciao!*

*That’s no typo – it means

“hello” and “good-bye!”

Alton Buland is a 2ndyear MA candidate inStrategic Studies andGeorge Tzortzis is a 2ndyear MA candidate inInternational Policy.Both are Bologna Centergraduates

SAIS Abroad

Everything you wanted to knowabout the Bologna Center, but were

afraid to askBy Alton Buland and George Tzortzis

Fact and Fettuccine

A quick chart to help separate the tortellini of fact from the tortelloni of fiction of what really happened

in Bologna:

SAIS BC Rumor: All that Bologna students do is sit around and eat pasta.

SAIS BC Truth: Sometimes we eat risotto.

SAIS BC Rumor: The workload in Bologna was lighter.

SAIS BC Truth: False. The workload was the same, but everything in Italy takes twice as long

to do. For corporate finance homework, it would take forever to get your hands

on a financial calendar. You had to wait a fortnight for the merchant caravanning

it overland from the bustling port of Venice only to get news that his donkey died

mid-trip and now you need to pay a surcharge.

SAIS BC Rumor: Everyone in Bologna is best friends with each other.

SAIS BC Truth: 99.3% true; no one likes Mike Beaton.

SAIS BC Rumor: All Bologna students smoke.

SAIS BC Truth: Mostly true, but the Scandinavians dip “snoos,” a First World version of “qat.”

And for those of you who have not traveled abroad, the black-clad Eurotrash

chain smoker is an endangered speices – an unfortunate victim of smoking

bans slowly creeping over Europe like a health-conscious Black Plague.

SAIS BC Rumor: The Bologna Center lacked exciting speakers.

SAIS BC Truth: The Bologna Center proudly hosted the Italian President Napolitano, Prime

Minister Prodi, and the Mario Bros. (BC ’82). Unfortunately, we were not Metro

accessible to the Washington power elite (minus Luigi’s warp zone), so DC folks

win this round.

SAIS BC Rumor: Bologna students prefer to speak Italian.

SAIS BC Truth: We don’t prefer to speak Italian, it’s-a just-a that-a our-a Eng-a-lish has

become-a, how-you-a-say-a, accented in an offensively stereotypical way?

Ciao, ciao.

SAIS BC Rumor: Bologna students think DC kids are workaholics

SAIS BC Truth: You stopped reading this and went back to your Econometrics problem set four

rumors ago, didn’t you?

SAIS BC Rumor: Some Bologna students are actually CIA operatives and SAIS Bologna actual

ly got its start as a cover for spying on Italian Communists during the Cold War.

SAIS BC Truth: [redacted] [redacted]

SAIS BC Rumor: Bologna students already received a diploma.

SAIS BC Truth: This is true. We had a commencement and everything and received the 1-year

SAIS Bologna Center Certificate in International Studies (prized by collectors of

certificates and the gold stars one can affix to them the world over) in addition

to be intensively schooled in the arts of love.

SAIS BC Rumor: Italian girls are hotter?

SAIS BC Truth: Let’s just say one’s neck muscles are ripped thanks to all the reps done walk

ing to and from class. And they loved-a our-a acc-a-cents-a!

Mario’s now infamous campaign slogan was in fact coined at the SAIS Bologna

Center:

“I’m-a Mario. I’m-a gonna ween!”


Letter from Bologna

Since the final week

of August, we, The Bologna

Center class of 2008, have

gradually made our way from

more than 30 countries

around the world to the heart

of this ancient city, the capital

of Italy’s Emilia Romanga

Region in the fertile Po Valley

just northwest of the

Apennine Mountains. For

those of us arriving for pre-

term courses in Italian and

economics, the Bologna that

met us was eerily vacant, with

the bulk of the town’s 100,000

students yet to return from

their summer vacations.

After a couple of

lonely nights in local hotels,

things began to pick up fast.

We spent a particularly mem-

orable morning house-hunting

under the guidance of the

infamous Salvatore, who

helped the bulk of us end up

with roofs under which to set-

tle in for our nine-month stints

in Bologna. And who, more

impressively, fit our eight-

passenger van in places we’d

never imagined possible.

As the guidebooks

had promised, the Bologna we

now call home is the romantic

fusion of architectural rem-

nants of the Roman,

Medieval, and Papal eras. The

famed due torre, a pair of

angled, 12th century towers at

the city’s center, gives way to

a two-mile wide labyrinth of

narrow, arcaded streets, cen-

turies-old churches, palazzos,

and even a network of under-

ground canals.

Yet, there’s a grittier

side to Bologna too – one of

loud, speeding motorbikes,

graffiti-ridden storefronts, and

pollution, which becomes

strikingly evident. Most

remarkable are the ever-pres-

ent punkabestia, the loitering,

disaffected (and predominant-

ly middle class) “punks with

beasts,” whose wandering

canines are free to fertilize

city sidewalks, and eventually

the shoes of the unsuspecting

passerby.

While this caca dicane might not conjure up an

appetite for Italy’s culinary

riches, Bolognese cuisine is

nonetheless regarded the

country’s best, and luckily for

us SAIS-ers (particularly the

Americans who might other-

wise have lost their appetites

in recent months with the con-

tinued plunge of the dollar)

this scrumptiousness trickles

down to those even on a stu-

dent budget. A recent trip, for

instance, to a hole-in-the-wall

pizzeria yielded the six-euro

tortellini of a lifetime. And

though many of us may depart

next summer with espresso-

stained teeth and skin that has

slowly morphed into prosciut-to crudo, at least we know

we’re mangiamo bene. And drinking well,

too. The 11:00 curfew

imposed by the Center’s

founder and first director,

Grove Haines, has long since

made its way into the annals

of SAIS history. Still, the

Bologna center visionary (and

our pre-term econ professors)

would be relieved to know

that late-night conversation

still finds its way back to talk

begun in the classroom.

“Rough evening?

Some diminishing marginal

utility of that whiskey!”

Yes, we may be a

thirsty bunch, but also one

ready to tackle the reading

lists awaiting us at the start of

the first semester. Although, if

our experiences thus far are

any indication, we’ll have to

spend at least as much time

slogging through mundane

bureaucratic tasks as we do

hitting the books.

Take the local per-messi di soggiórno, the resi-

dence permits mandatory for

non-EU citizens. In addition

to a book-length application,

these jewels require two sepa-

rate payments at a cross-town

post office, a €14,62 stamp

from a tobacco shop, and

proof of Italian state health

insurance (though, rumors

that requirement had been

removed had many of us fly-

ing in with only our

Chickering from Hopkins).

When all that’s done, we’ll be

summoned to the Bologna

police station for fingerprint-

ing, more stamps, and for all

we know, a shaking out of our

pockets by local civil servant

X. Of course, as the turn-

around time on the permissi is

approximately eight months,

we’ll finally be residents just

as we’re ready to skip town.

As my survival

Italian teacher put it on a par-

ticularly brisk September

morning, “In Italia, la unicacosa che cambia rapidamenteè il tempo.” In Italy, the only

thing that changes quickly is

the weather.C’est la vie, I sup-

pose, or around these parts,

C’è la vita – one that promis-

es plenty of adventure as we

continue to explore our new

institution and the riches of

its, and our, host city.

Jon Rosen is a 1st year MAcandidate at the BolognaCenter

We follow a Bologna Center studentmonth-by-month as he experiences thechallenges and rewards of la vita bella

This month:First impressions of our new home

By Jon Rosen

HappyBirthdayNanjing

The President of Johns

Hopkins University, William Brody,

is speaking and there is the distinct

possibility I am the only person in

the auditorium straining to under-

stand. Standing at the lectern before

honored guests, including a former

U.S. Secretary of State, the current

Governor of Jiangsu Province, and a

former U.S. Ambassador to China,

President Brody is delivering a

speech in flawless Mandarin

Chinese. During the past year, possi-

bly feeling unchallenged by the task

of managing a world-renowned uni-

versity, Brody, who already holds

advanced degrees in both electrical

engineering and medicine, devoted

himself to the mastery of Chinese.

The occasion was the 20th

anniversary of the Hopkins Nanjing

Center (officially titled The Johns

Hopkins University – Nanjing

University Center for Chinese and

American Studies). The Center cele-

brated with a two-day event that

included alumni dinners, the dedica-

tion of a new building, musical per-

formances, an official ceremony, and

a gala.

The Johns Hopkins

University and Nanjing University

jointly established the Hopkins-

Nanjing Center in 1986. Its mission

was “to develop and train profession-

als to provide leadership in managing

successful bilateral and multilateral

relationships involving China and the

West in an increasingly complex

international environment.” This

objective is achieved by, among

other opportunities, offering course-

work on contemporary China in

Chinese to non-native speakers and,

conversely, offering coursework on

issues of the United States in English

for Chinese students.

Since opening, the

Hopkins-Nanjing Center has educat-

ed more than 1,700 Chinese and

American graduate students. A major

part of this year’s celebration was the

dedication of the $19 million Samuel

Pollard building, representing the

school’s continued expansion of its

mission and its ability to fulfill it.

According to Dean Jessica

Einhorn, “Nanjing University and

Johns Hopkins joined together to

engage as equal partners in the estab-

lishment of a joint center dedicated

to graduate education in US-China

relations, and through the worst and

the best of times, both great universi-

ties maintained that commitment to

one another and to open education.”

The culminating event of

the anniversary celebration was an

afternoon of speeches that began

with President Brody and ended in

the presentation of the Hopkins-

Nanjing Center Award for

Outstanding Contributions to

Cultural Understanding Between the

United States of America and the

People’s Republic of China to former

US Secretary of State Henry

Kissinger.

President Brody had the

crowd at “dajia hao” and subsequent

speeches maintained the momentum.

Brody was followed by an elaborate

and fascinating pas de deux in which

subsequent speakers displayed their

own mastery of a foreign tongue: the

Chinese of English and the

Americans of Chinese. Much to the

audience’s enjoyment this jovial

competition continued until the intro-

duction of the keynote speaker, turn-

ing the event into equal parts aca-

demic, entertainment and celebra-

tion.

The keynote speaker, Henry

A. Kissinger, former US Secretary of

State under two presidents, 1973

Nobel Peace Prize laureate and

SAIS Abroad

The view enjoyed by our colleagues in Bologna every day

continued on page 8

By Sean McGowan and Jessica Stahl

The Hopkins Nanjing Centercelebrates its 20th anniversary

in style


New Faculty

Judging from how vigorously

SAIS students defend their “well-rounded-

ness” when the topic of useful skills comes

up, it’s good to know that we have at least

one strong rope anchoring us to the

ground. The new Associate Dean for

Finance and Administration, Myron

Kunka, wants SAIS to run smoothly, and

sees the student, faculty, and alumni as

customers.

“Customer service is an impor-

tant part of the way we do business here at

SAIS,” he says, in a way that makes me

rest assured that the outlets in Rome 203

are going to start working again soon.

Dean Kunka’s first day of work at

SAIS was August 27, the Monday that

most of us Pre-termers were taking our

micro exams. Three days later he was at

orientation learning about his new envi-

ronment with the rest of us – although hegot to sit on the stage.

But for Dean Kunka, the transi-

tion was much quicker than most of ours.

“I retired from federal service on

August 22, had a retirement party, and

started work at SAIS five days later,” he

said.

His willingness not to take a

break reflects his strong commitment to

service. “I see SAIS as a continuation of

my career in public service,” he said. “It’s

not that different from what I was doing

before.”

And just what exactly was Dean

Kunka doing before? I had tried to do

some research into his background before

our chat, but I couldn’t come up with

much.

“I’ve spent the past 32 years at

the Department of Defense,” Dean Kunka

said. “Maybe that’s why you couldn’t find

anything.”

Dean Kunka went to DOD after

getting a master’s in public administration

from the University of Pittsburgh Graduate

School of Public and International Affairs,

and worked in various divisions at both the

Pentagon and Ft. Belvoir in Virginia. He

was the Associate Director of the Defense

Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) before

he retired. DTRA’s mandate is to defend

America against weapons of mass destruc-

tion.

“I have similar duties here at

SAIS as I did at DTRA. I see them both as

businesses.” When asked what struck him

most about the difference between DOD

and SAIS, he said, “Well, there are fewer

zeroes on the budget numbers here.” Good

point.

What exactly do his duties at

SAIS entail? “Finance, facilities and main-

tenance, IT functions, library, public

affairs, phones, HR – basically, most of

what’s non-academic here.” He mentioned

that he is spearheading a “business excel-

lence” campaign to prioritize and attack

whatever problem areas he finds.

When I asked him what classes he

would take here at SAIS, he smiled. “Oh,

there are so many.” But when I pressed

him, he admitted that he would love to take

some classes on Eastern Europe and

Russia.

At Defense, he worked with post-

Soviet states, and got to travel to various

countries over there. He also hinted that he

speaks a few words of Russian, but insist-

ed that his language ability was far below

what he wishes it were. His name, howev-

er, is Ukrainian: the u is pronounced some-

where between a regular and umlauted ü,

almost more like the o in corn or the

umlauted ö in köfte (those Turkish meat-

balls).

“People don’t usually get it

right,” he said.

But now when you see Dean

Kunka getting lunch in the cafeteria, which

he does most days, you can try.

Emma Ashburn is a 2nd year MA candi-date in China Studies

SAIS’ Newest DeanNew Associate Dean for Finance and Administration Myron Kunka

reveals his background, his philosophy on leadership, and the correct pronunciation of his last name

By Emma Ashburn

Dean Kunka settles into his new office

Welcome to the Neighborhood

New Deans:

Myron Kunka Associate Dean for Finance and Administration

Amir Pasic Associate Dean for Development and Alumni

Relations

New Faculty:

Mitchell Orenstein S. Richard Hirsch Associate Professor of European

Studies

Jae-Jung Suh Associate Professor of Korean Studies

Luis Marques Assistant Professor of International Economics

SAISLifeBy Julien Deslangles

“We believe the SAIS experience shouldbe more than just a formal education.” - Dean Bonnie Wilson


While We Were Away

Guns, Heat and Steel

This August, with preterm in full

swing, Micro TA Todd Greenwood made a

decision to ditch the office hours and prob-

lem sets for an opportunity to travel as an

election observer to Guatemala.

This election was a tense one for

the country, which saw over 50 people

killed in election-related violence in the

period leading up to the election. Conflict

stems from the remnants of a long civil

war that ended only ten years ago, and

from a de facto power structure in which

local politicians control government

largesse.

Amidst this atmosphere, Todd’s

job was to ensure that the elections pro-

ceeded as fairly as possible. Stationed in

Puerto Barrios, a municipality on the

Caribbean coast of Guatemala, he traveled

to election sites in advance of voting to

make sure they were prepared and

observed eight voting stations on the day

of the election.

Todd found that one of the major

concerns faced in being an election

observer is to ensure that the bystander

role does not turn into one of active partic-

ipant in the election process.

“We were allowed to give people

a ‘denouncement form’ if they saw some-

thing that was inappropriate, but we didn’t

want to proactively hand them because we

felt it would smack of imperialism,” says

Todd.

Despite the violence that unfold-

ed in some regions of the country, Todd

says he managed to avoid coming face to

face with the conflict. However, he did get

a taste of the gun culture that exists in

Guatemala.

“There were gunmen in front of

most stores, and many men on the street

carried guns on their sides. People were

always digging in their pants for their cell-

phones, and I half-expected one of them to

answer their gun instead by accident.”

Even without facing down vio-

lence, Todd says that his experience in

Guatemala was not an easy one.

“We were hit by the tail end of

hurricane Felix. I was in a hotel and woke

up the morning after the hurricane to see

my suitcase floating on the top of the

water. It was also really hot, I would wake

up in the middle of the night and look at

the thermometer and see that it was 34

degrees Celsius.”

Comparing the job of an election

observer to the TA position he had given

up, Todd says being an election observer

was the more difficult of the two.

“We were a bit more on edge, and

had a lot of responsibility.”

And Todd adds that if he had to

choose between Washington DC and

Guatemala in August, he would pick DC as

It all started when I got a text message from a

friend I met while doing an internship in Jakarta,

Indonesia this summer. She said a friend of hers worked

for a photo studio and they needed a white guy to do a

photo shoot. She asked if I was interested.

“Of course,” I said and she told me the address to

go to and said to bring clothes for sports.

I showed up at the studio not knowing what the

heck to expect – but I was pumped. They told me to put on

my shorts and T-shirt and then asked me my phone num-

ber, height, and weight. They took a few photos and then

asked me to act out a few scenes while they videotaped it.

There were two guys, the cameraman and the

director. There was no one else, so I just had to use my

imagination. The first thing they wanted me to do was just

a few facial expressions. They said to look ahead at the

door, and when they said so, I had to pretend the door was

opened and I saw something cool on the other side. Not

something really cool, just something moderately cool. So

I changed the image in my mind from a roomful of naked

women to Arthur’s Seat, a small mountain in Edinburgh,

Scotland. That seemed to do the trick.

The director tried to instruct me. He was trying to

get me to smile less but he was speaking bad English so I

couldn’t figure out if he wanted me to smile less or more.

After a few run-throughs I got it.

The next scene was me being received at the air-

port by some native girls presenting me with a traditional

cloth. I had to receive it with the appropriate facial expres-

sion. Who the hell knows what that is? I then had to look

around and see all the pretty Indonesian girls welcoming

me. My first look was apparently too excited. The director

told me I had to tone it down a bit and play the “cool for-

eigner.” I did it a few times and it was OK.

They asked me if I had any experience acting in

a commercial before. I told them no but I did serve as a

model for a Scotch Whisky company in Thailand. They

weren’t impressed. I then told them I was on a TV game

show in college. The director said, “Nickelodeon?!?” He

seemed excited by Nickelodeon. I said that it was a trivia

show. I wanted to explain that actually the show that I was

on, “History IQ,” was in fact hosted by Marc Summers

who previously hosted Nickelodeon’s “Double Dare.” But

I just didn’t really want to go into that kind of detail at that

time.

Then they asked me if I could play volleyball. I

said yeah, I like volleyball a lot. I asked them why and

they told me I was auditioning to play volleyball for a

commercial. Whoa, that’s pretty cool, I thought. I’ve

always wanted to play volleyball in a commercial. And

then I asked them what kind of commercial. The response

. . . “A cigarette commercial.” I had to laugh and share

with them how ironic I thought it was that exercise is

being advertised in a cigarette commercial. It is for

Sampoerna Cigarettes, owned by none other than Phillip

Morris. I paused for a moment to decide if I felt it was

morally right to act in a cigarette commercial, but then

decided that I was not yet at the point in my acting career

to be choosy. We proceeded.

They then handed me a volleyball and led me

outside. We went out back, through a dirt field filled with

garbage. There were also people selling a few things and

animals eating the garbage. Lovely. At one point it

smelled really, really bad . . . like old cheese and poop.

We finally arrived in an open grassy area without

too much garbage. They then filmed me in what was

essentially a one-man volleyball practice. The director

tossed me the ball repeatedly and I bumped it back to him.

Then I was instructed to set a few to him. Then he threw

the ball from side to side and instructed me to run after

them for the sets. I did pretty well at that . . . that is my

bread and butter move in volleyball. Then I had to serve a

few . . . first standing and then I offered to do some of the

running and jumping serves. Finally, the director tossed

the ball up in the air and I ran at it for a spike. That was

repeated a few times. At that point he told me to look a bit

more serious and angry, like I would in sports . . . he said

I looked too happy. What can I say? I was freaking happy!

Playing volleyball by myself in the middle of a dirty field

in Jakarta while trying to audition for a cigarette commer-

cial . . . who wouldn’t be happy in my position? I must

also add that the director was smoking the whole time (not

Sampoernas, I asked) and a pretty bad athlete. Several

times he placed the ball very poorly, especially for my

spikes. I looked at him like I expected better and he under-

stood.

When I was done another white guy had arrived

to do the same thing . . . my competition, I learned. I

Stardom in Indonesia?One student’s quest for international fame and

fortune as a star on the small screenBy David Michaels

Which face would sell more cigarettes?

Why TA Todd Greenwood left preterm toobserve Guatemala’s elections, and why you

should tooBy Observer Staff

continued on page 8

continued on page 8

“I paused for a moment. . . but then decided

that I was not yet at thepoint in my acting

career to be choosy.We proceeded.”

Nanjing Anniversaryauthor of much required reading at SAIS, addressed the

audience in a grand finale to the day’s speaking agenda.

Kissinger is best known for his landmark achievement in

paving the way for a reopening of US-Sino relations dur-

ing the Cold War, and possibly equally well known among

SAIS students for his scholarship in writing the seminal

work on diplomacy and world history entitled Diplomacy.

Dean Einhorn, who introduced Kissinger, said,

“Our students at this great school cannot relive history,

they can only learn it from books. And Henry Kissinger

the scholar has given generations of students the gift of

understanding international relations by truly understand-

ing statecraft.”

Kissinger expressed his gratitude for the chance

to speak at the Nanjing Center, and his gratitude to be

allowed to do so in English.

“I am very grateful for Jessica speaking in

English,” joked Kissinger, “because when the president of

Johns Hopkins speaks Chinese and the president of

Nanjing University speaks English with less of an accent

than I do, it was difficult to get up here – to get the courage

to address you.”

Kissinger talked about the importance of Sino-

American cooperation both in the past and in today’s

world, and how drastically the nature of relations has

changed since his first visit to China in the 1970s.

“If somebody had shown me a picture of a typi-

cal Chinese city today, filled with automobiles, with high-

ways going around it, with consumer goods, I would not

have believed it possible that this could be done in any

time period through which I could live,” said Kissinger.

“The idea that a day might come when people in the West

were worried about Chinese economic competition in

industrial and technological production – that was beyond

anyone’s imagination.”

According to Kissinger, the reemergence of

China as a world power

occurs today in a world in

which the strength of the

nation-state as an organiz-

ing entity is diminishing

and China and the US

remain as the last great

nation-states. These states

alone, says Kissinger, have

the power to demand sacri-

fices from their people for a

vision of a better future.

“In that sense, it is

no accident that the role of

China and the United States

in bringing about a better

and more peaceful world

has become even more cru-

cial than it was at the time that relationships were

opened,” Kissinger noted.

As a result, Kissinger says that there are many

areas in which the two countries could work together to

contribute to the “peace and progress” of the world. On

environmental degradation and nuclear proliferation he

predicted mutual and global benefits from greater cooper-

ation, saying that these problems can only be solved coop-

eratively.

“I’m glad to say that on the issue of the Korean

nuclear program, China and the United States have

worked together in an extraordinary fashion,” said

Kissinger. “And whatever progress has been achieved is to

the fact that both countries have analyzed the issues

together and been honest with each other and have moved

together step by step.”

He cautioned both sides not to push the other too

hard in achieving these goals and risk destroying the spir-

it of cooperation, and offered an admonishment to the

United States in its agenda of world reform.

“I sometimes point out to my American friends

that China has had many dynasties, many of which, indi-

vidually, have had a longer history than the entire United

States, and that therefore we sometimes should moderate

our enthusiasm to improve all of mankind, when we

remember that the Chinese were here for 3,000 years

before the United States was invented,” noted Kissinger.

Advising current students and future leaders

Kissinger offered a vision of change and the role great

leaders can play in creating it.

“All great achievements were an idea before they

became a reality,” he said. “All great leaders need, above

all, courage and character.”

Sean McGowan is a 2nd year MA candidate in ChinaStudies. Jessica Stahl is a 2nd year MA candidate inConflict Management and an editor of the Observer.


While We Were Away

Indonesiacontinued from page 7

watched him, and honestly, I’m a

much better volleyball player. His

bumps were below average, he set the

ball like he slaps a woman, and his

serves were pathetic . . . he hit a few

straight down and others out to the

side. I felt my chances were good.

We walked back through the

garbage field and into the office. I then

met a couple of higher-ups in the com-

pany and they told me they would let

me know in a few days. Once again,

they asked me if I played volleyball. I

reiterated that I do, and I like it very

much. It was one of my favorite sports

in high school gym class, I played in

the staff volleyball night every week at

the school I taught at in Thailand, and

spent a week playing beach volleyball

in the Dominican Republic in January.

You’re damn right I play volleyball.

And compared to the other white guy

I’m practically an Olympian (or what-

ever is the ultimate in international

volleyball competition).

Before I left, they gave me

the address of another place to go for

more photos . . . this one for a facial

skin product. So I got in a taxi and

went off to that office. Upon arrival, I

met a modeling agent in the waiting

room. She took my phone number and

gave me her card. I then went in for

my next photo shoot. It was simpler,

just photos from different angles. And

then they wanted me to take my shirt

off. I, of course, complied and allowed

them a few sexy shots. They took my

number, said they would get back to

me after reviewing the photos, and I

left, heading back to work at my sum-

mer internship at an international

insurance company.

Did they call me back? Did I

get to star as a volleyball player in a

cigarette commercial? Did I appear

on a Jakarta billboard advertising

facial cream?

You’ll have to wait until next

time, but it was a helluva start to my

summer vacation.

David Michaels is a 2nd year MA can-didate in SE Asia Studies

Guatemalacontinued from page 7

the nicer summer locale.

“You can drink the water and roving youth

gangs are less of a threat.”

The challenges may have been difficult, but

for Todd, the experience was not without its bene-

fits.

According to Todd, being an election

observer gave him the chance to participate in a key

moment in Guatemala’s history.

“Guatemala is making strides with democ-

racy,” he notes. “This was the first election where

voting stations were placed in the countryside. In

previous elections, the voting only occurred in

municipal centers, supposedly because the govern-

ment believed there was too much fraud in remote

locations.”

Todd points out that his experience is not

unique at SAIS.

“Three people from my class (‘07) and one

person from the class of ‘03 participated as

observers in this election.”

He says that it was the connections he

made at SAIS that helped him land the position.

So, was it worth it to ditch a decently-pay-

ing job and the relative cool and safety of DC for a

few weeks as an election observer in Guatemala?

Todd replies, as only a professional TA

could, “The marginal costs of skipping out on pre-

term were outweighed by the benefits.”

This article was contributed by SAIS Observer staff

Refreshments in Indonesia: David and pals enjoy coconut milk after a

long hike.

Staff, students and friends of the Hopkins Nanjing Center celebrate its 20th

anniversary with a gala party

Henry Kissinger at the Nanjing Center anniversary celebration

continued from page 5


Lecture Notes

As I was leaving Seoul in

the spring of 2000 after my

teaching tour with U.S. service

members in the Yongsan

Military Base and the

Demilitarized Zone (DMZ),

South Koreans were overjoyed

about the prospect of unifica-

tion of North and South Korea.

The volatile situation still

continues as the six-party nego-

tiators for the denuclearization

of North Korea are still forging

ahead, even with the alleged

revelation that North Korea is

involved in the Syrian nuclear

program.

While the global communi-

ty engaged in political reconcil-

iation and diplomacy, the power

of Confucian economics seems

to be increasingly at work.

What Confucian econom-

ics?

Long before the Korean

peninsula became a battle

ground for proxy ideological

war between major powers,

Korean people cherished a uni-

fied heritage bound by cultural

values and Confucian work

ethic. South Korean leaders

used and misused such

Confucian teachings – order,

authority, and the respect for

elders – for greater economic

prosperity while North Korea

bogged down with

Communism.

Connected by Train

In and outside classroom, I

felt South Korea’s economic

dynamism and enthusiasm –

my Korean students are eager to

learn and appreciate innovation

and modernity, especially the

Western life-style.

Their newly built high-

speed Gyeongbu rail, which

connects Busan and Seoul in

less than two hours, was inau-

gurated in 2005. It is Korea’s

national pride and a testament

to their technological advance-

ment, which is in parallel with

the super-speed French TGV

and the Japanese Shinkansen

bullet trains.

With the Gyeongbu rail-

way system, the Korean peo-

ples’ explicit ambition is to

ConfucianEconomics at

work in KoreanUnification

By Dr. Patrick Mendis

A North Korean soldier in the DMZ at Pan Mun Jom

A preview of a lecture to bepresented this month at

SAIS

make Busan similar to that of

Singapore and to create a gateway

to the global marketplace.

Most importantly, however, the

implicit motive is to link up North

and South Koreas as a “unified”

peninsula with common aspirations,

which are driven by economic

necessity and trading ambition.

The railway ends at the heavi-

ly-guarded Kaesong Industrial Park

in North Korea, just 40 miles north

of Seoul and six miles from the

DMZ.

Economic Strategy

This special economic zone in

Kaesong covers 25 square miles and

is run by Hyundai Asan, a division

of Hyundai. It is home to 500 South

Korean managers and 16,000 North

Korean Communist Party workers

in Kaesong, the ancient capital of

Korea. In addition, South Korea

already has projects in 27 of 206

cities and counties in North Korea.

The South Korean Ministry of

Unification plans to complete the

project by 2012, accommodating

2,000 companies and employing

700,000 North Koreans. This grand

strategy is already a de facto “unifi-

cation” of the two Koreas that South

Korean President Kim Dae-jung

and North Korean leader Kim Jong-

il agreed to establish in 2002 during

their first summit meeting in

Pyongyang.

The economic strategy for a

possible “unification” is gaining

momentum through direct road and

rail access to Seoul, Busan, and

Kaesong. The insulated North

Korea now has the capacity and

transportation network to export

and import products through South

Korea.

This comparative advantage is

continued on page 11

Iran bargains with the US over nukes likea salesman at a bazaar bargains over a car-pet, according to Karim Sadjadpour(9/19)

In Case You Missed ItBy Alex Bloom

“We should catch ter-rorists the same waywe used to catchpirates: with letters ofmarque and reprisal.” - Presidential candidateRon Paul (9/11)

In Case You Missed ItBy Alex Bloom


Op-Ed

When we thought about publishing a response to Iranian President Ahmadinejad’s appearance at SIPA, we didn’t anticipate our

subsequent complete inability to decide how we felt about it. So, hoping you prove slightly more decisive than we have, we

present our schizophrenic point-counterpoint response to the event.

In light of recent events at Columbia University, the SAIS Observer and

SAIS community would like to applaud SAIS on its continued unwilling-

ness to provide a platform for infamous world leaders. This is a great

opportunity to reiterate our long-held position that the university pulpit is

not the place for controversial global figures.

In fact, we at the Observer can not think of a situation less suited to the

presence of strong, relevant and divisive figures than an open forum

before a group of scholars and future leaders.

After all, how can you blindly criticize a person’s ideas once you’ve had

the chance to hear their logic? We’d be forced into the realm of informed

opinion, and obviously that’s just ludicrous.

The Observer therefore applauds SAIS in staunchly holding its ground

and inviting only shiny, happy people to speak at our university. In the

future we hope to have the opportunity to see many more administration

officials – speaking the party line, of course. Similarly, European and IO

diplomats make solid choices as well. And if we’re looking to mix it up

a bit, presidential candidates are an excellent addition to the repertoire.

Getting President Bush two years ago was a coup of massive proportions.

Just important enough to get us noticed, but no chance of anything truly

groundbreaking or (heaven forbid!) bleepworthy being said.

Of course, journalists and students, we believe that if you can’t predict

the speaker’s comments beforehand, they’re not worth hearing.

Otherwise, how could you plan your softball questions in advance?

This is also an argument about how SAIS can make the most of our large

tuition payments. We believe that if the best part of a lecture is not the

catered food you can steal afterwards, then all that food is just a huge

waste of our hard-earned money. And what bet-

ter way to ensure that the hummus is the most

memorable aspect of a conference than by mak-

ing sure that the conference itself is uncontrover-

sial?

So to SAIS we say, bravo on showing your

courage and commitment in the face of opposi-

tion. Other schools like Columbia may be invit-

ing major world figures to debate and be debated,

so that their controversial ideas are given a rare

public challenge, and so that future IR scholars

can come face to face with the newsmakers of

today. But at SAIS we stand strong and proud and

say, “Not on our soil!”

Thank you SAIS for your dedication to principle

on the important matter of keeping divisive fig-

ures out of our auditoriums. It is qualities such as

this strength of commitment that make us a con-

sistent choice as one of the top IR schools for

future policymakers and world leaders.

Jessica Stahl is a 2nd year MA candidate inConflict Management, and an editor of theObserver

In Praise ofModeration

By Jessica Stahl

Reaction to Ahmadinejad: ShouldSAIS Invite Controversial Figures to

Speak on Campus?

The SAIS Observer is pleased to announce:

An open invitation to genocidal maniacs, psychopathic dictators, and all

delusional persons lacking basic notions of human (or animal!) rights to

attend the first annual

Pan-National Idea Sharing Conference and Academic Debate Forum

(a.k.a. The “Let’s Just Go Ahead and Offend Everyone” Conference)

Do you ever find it difficult finding a soap-box from which to proselytize

your truly revolting ideas? Have you been banned from every other

respectable institution because you spoke your heinous ideas out loud?

Not to be outdone by other schools, Johns Hopkins SAIS is seeking gra-

tuitously controversial (and disgusting!) ideas to be aired out in the open!

We are excited to provide a platform for all fringe lunatic ideas so they

can appear to be legitimate in the eyes of the world media!

How many people do you think you can offend in fewer than 600 words?

We are accepting proposals for papers to be presented; the more people

you can offend, the better! There will also be several panels with speak-

ers debating topics so offensive that they cannot be written down nor spo-

ken aloud without riots breaking out.

Confirmed panelists include:

Kim Jong-Il

Michael Vick

Britney Spears

As well as the ghosts of Pol Pot and Walt Disney

The Pan-National Idea Sharing Conference and Academic Debate Forum

will be a marvelous exercise in stretching to the limits our constitutional

notions of “Free Speech.” If we are lucky, our

conference will cause violence somewhere in the

world, with SAIS Observer effigies burned and

embassies abandoned as a result! We will consid-

er our gathering a true success especially if we

can directly undermine American foreign policy

in a strategic part of the world!

Please note that at our conference we want to

encourage debate in an academic forum, and as

such, if you don’t have any questions, you’ll be

tazed, bro. Even if you do have questions, you’ll

probably still be tazed, bro!

Please submit your vile offensive crap to

[email protected]

John Thorne is a 1st year MA candidate inStrategic Studies

Calling AllControversy

By John Thorne

Should SAIS invite more controversial speakers to campus? We invite letters to the editor on thisquestion, or any other topic, at [email protected]


Op-Ed

a win-win situation for both countries: North Korean

Communist Party workers receive hard currency while

South Korean investors gain greater labor cost advan-

tage than competitive China, Vietnam, and other Asian

countries.

It is most likely that America is already connected

to North Korea commercially despite U.S. economic

sanctions and political isolation.

Future Prospects

Former South Korean President Kim Dae-jung

maintains vigorously that the Confucian culture is one

of the most enduring, if not the only, explanatory fac-

tors in their economic growth and rapid industrial

development. Most Koreans believe that cultural her-

itage should be the driving force that would unite them.

The Kaesong Industrial Park is more than a sym-

bolic economic driver. It is how China – another

Confucian neighbor – gained its economic power

before political freedom reigns. When North Koreans

have fed more and seen the greater dynamism of the

South, the rest seems to take its own course, with

Confucian characteristics.

Confucian order and authority are more like to

keep them in unity than democratic freedom and diplo-

macy would. The six-party negotiators understand the

complexity of globalization and the local response

from Confucian culture – a new “glocalization”

process is indeed at work as it should be.

A “unified” and “glocalized” Korea may have the

best of all worlds and may eventually find a peaceful

solution through Confucian economics.

Dr. Patrick Mendis is vice president of academicaffairs at the Osgood Center for International Studies.He will be speaking about the Korean economic coop-eration model based on his recent book, Glocalization:

The Human Side of Globalization as If the Washington

Consensus Mattered, at 6:45 p.m. on October 18 in theRome Auditorium. The book signing and public speak-ing program is sponsored by the Sejong Society, withthe U.S.-Korea Institute

Free Food,But Not Freeof Manners:

A SmallCaveat

The response to my article, published last fall (and

republished this summer) in this esteemed monthly, on how

to scam the world’s Greatest Advanced International Studies

School In The World out of its free food has been over-

whelming.

My article, in all modesty, must be ranked a close

second to Professor Fukuyama’s End of History as influential

works that have their origins at SAIS. Suddenly, all around

campus, the percentage of Tupperware yielding classmates

tripled. Event coordinators, numbed by the routine process of

ordering ‘x’ amount of sandwiches and ‘y’ amount of drinks,

suddenly found that their orders were not substantial enough

to satiate the crowds. RSVP limits began proliferating

throughout campus. And the treasure trove that is the 8th

floor of Rome was raided like the gold mines of Peru.

All of these, in my mind, are positive developments.

As my article said, go get yours (your tuition paid for it after

all) and don’t be ashamed. However, one caveat must be

attached to this. You should be ashamed if you suddenly for-

get all the rules of society that you have worked so diligent-

ly to master once the smell of free Cosi sandwiches, pizza, or

Beef and Broccoli fill your nostrils.

Free eats are available in abundance in Rome 806,

Nitze 507, or BOB 500. But they do not exist in a bubble.

Frankly, it is rude to enter an event, take your food, and then

leave while the speaker is in the middle (or even beginning)

of his lecture. I was appalled when I heard this was happen-

ing, and then at my own event saw some of my colleagues do

the same thing.

This was never my counsel. I advised that the good-

ies were yours to plunder at, typically, 2pm – that is, after the

event had ended. A rule that I did not make explicit – but real-

ly should not have had to – is that if you cannot wait and need

your eats fresh and hot, you should remain at the event until

its conclusion. It is needless to say that you should therefore

only bust out your Tupperware at the end of events, not the

beginning . . . .right?

And since my editors have graciously given me

room to write in this issue, let me use this space to admonish

you SAIS students for your terrible recycling record so far

this year (another important issue). Second years, you are all

undoubtedly returning from Third World countries where

people often throw their bottles into the streets or rivers

instead of the (nonexistent) recycling bins. Well, you’ll get

no sympathy from me, and even my editors won’t be spared

my wrath if they are caught red-handed.

Welcome back to SAIS – now demonstrate the

adaptability that will wow your future employers and throw

your bottles in the blue bins, not the white ones (and vice

versa – throwing your trash in recycling bins contaminates

that bin and ruins everyone else’s efforts!). First years, you

are all undoubtedly adjusting to life in DC, classes, etc. But a

recycling program does exist at SAIS, and it is a vastly

improved and logical system. Please take the five extra sec-

onds required to make this program work as well as it should.

In short, enjoy the good eats offered at SAIS with

due respect and etiquette, then recycle your free Snapple and

Aquafina bottles. Rant, over. Thanks for your time.

Nadav Davidai is a 2nd year MA candidate in Middle EastStudies, and a frequent Observer contributor

By Nadav Davidai

Class Giftcontinued from page 1summer fellowship? With so many books to read and

your own personal problems, why should you donate to

a fund that will never affect you? Getting half the

school to care about this last year proved that it is pos-

sible to engage the student body; but I think we can do

better.

Ever the optimist, I think most people proba-

bly will donate. It has to do with empathy. We’re all

human. We know what it’s like to be a poor student

struggling with DC prices and tuition bills. Even an

extra grand would ease the worry. So why not help alle-

viate the pain for someone else? Perform that most

human of acts: altruism? One that in our day we would

have appreciated?

Of course, a more energetic, direct and thus

American way to get people involved is to have the

debate start early. What do we want our Class Gift to

be? If you ponder for even two minutes you will have

invested time in it, so why not some money, too? If the

gift ends up being a scholarship, to whom should it go?

The financially constrained? The über-intelligent? To

minorities or foreign students? Don’t tell me this does-

n’t pique your curiosity, that you don’t want to have a

say in where your money goes.

Our class should have a debate as to what our

gift should be. My own inclination is toward a scholar-

ship. The more money that students get, the more they

can focus on the reason they’re at school in the first

place. There’d be no brass plaque to boast of our suc-

cess, but I’m happy living in relative anonymity

amongst the smoking community. Are you?

Chris Forster is a 2nd year MA candidate in StrategicStudies.To get involved with the committee contact Chris [email protected]

Alumni participation rates at SAIS and our competitor schools in 2005 and 2006. Our participation

rate beats those of some schools, but is much lower than those at Fletcher and the Woodrow Wilson

School

Korean Unificationcontinued from page 9

Golfing Confucian-style might still be a possibility

You should be ashamed if yousuddenly forget all the rules of

society that you have worked sodiligently to master once the

smell of free Cosi sandwiches,pizza, or Beef and Broccoli fill

your nostrils.


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Career Clubwishes to thank those who submitted to the

SAIS First Annual Summer Journalism Contest

Winners will be announced at the end of October

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Confucian Economics at Work in Korean Unification

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