I'll be honest, before I came to Aberdeen, I was nervous about graduate school. For example, postgraduate programs in the States require applicants to take the GRE or other entrance examinations. I never took nor studied for anything of the sort, so even though I thought I'd be able to do alright, I was still concerned that I might not be able to perform to the level necessary to succeed.
I mentioned some of my solid work previously. As of Wednesday, here's the tally of how I've done so far.
Strategic Intelligence Tutorial Presentation: Non-graded, but I was told by both E and some of my classmates that I did well. My topic was Intelligence Agencies of the World.
Strategic Theory "In-Class Essay" (Mid-Term Exam): I tied for the highest score in the class with an 18/20. My essay discussed changes in the conduct of war between 1815 (the end of the Napoleonic Wars) and 1914 (the beginning of World War I.
Strategic Theory Team Presentation: CN Odin and I finished our slide deck and memorandum for this requirement a full five days early, and we were both quite pleased with both. We presented Wednesday, and scored 19/20 - the highest score in the class. We discussed requirements for success in modern counterinsurgency campaigns, and used the Algerian War and the Dhofar Rebellion as contrasting examples. The Director recommended that we turn it into a formal paper and submit it to the Small Wars Journal.
So, that leaves final exams in January. I would have liked to have gotten more reading done during the rest of the semester, but I'll try to get another couple of books completed in the next few weeks. As it turns out, I've performed very well this first semester, which will hopefully be an indicator of my performance over the course of the entire year.
The University of Aberdeen has bestowed upon its distinguished social science postgraduates a hallowed chamber of enlightenment and learning: the Strategic Operations Center. Actually, the room is called the postgraduate study room, but because most of its occupants on any given day are Strategic Studies (or Strategic Studies and International Law) students, I opined that we should start calling it the "SOC" (pronounced "sock"): the Strategic Operations Center. With the help of CN Warden, it's starting to stick!
Located in the bowels of the Edward Wright Building annex(e?), the SOC has become our de facto social and intellectual hub. It boasts ten desks, eight computers, a bookshelf, a bunch of coat hooks, a couple of non-functioning telephones, and a set of drawers we can't get into. As you can see from the pictures, we've elected to customize the place and really lay claim to it. In addition to calling it the SOC, we've added a laminated world map, which we've marked with those little tabs you can put on book pages; and we also got a folding map of the Middle East and North Africa (though whoever designed it put North Africa on the opposite side, so that part of the map is pretty much worthless). The Director bequeathed to us a map of Africa, and there's a folding road map of Oman on order - once it arrives, the Middle East map may move to above CN Warden's turf so that I can put the new one up above my own turf.
I also contributed the Wyoming flag, CN Sister has stated an intent to bring a couple of her own flags, and CN Ness has stated his intent to bring in a North Korean flag - I'm starting to get the impression that he has some sort of odd fixation on North Korea, but in this particular group, it works.
At any rate, on any given day, and particularly before exams or essay deadlines, you could walk into the SOC to find as many as eight Strategists working on one thing or another. The computers are ancient and prone to temporary freezes, and the heating ranges from inadequate to completely non-functional, but we make a good go of it. It's also common to run into our Anthropologist cousins in the hallway. I've become fond of walking through a gaggle of them and saying "Look, a group of anthropologists in their natural habitat!", which tends to get a few grins.
As we get into dissertation time, we expect to spend hours upon hours upon hours burning the midnight oil to get our dissertations sorted out.
As part of the Remembrance Day observances, the Chaplaincy Center sponsored a visit by Terry Waite CBE. Mr. Waite has spent his life working in conflict resolution with a focus on hostage negotiation. While working as an advisor to the Archbishop of Canterbury in the 1980's, Mr. Waite was taken hostage in Beirut by Hezbollah and spent nearly five years in solitary confinement. He spoke at the Remembrance Day service in the King's College Chapel, later that evening in King's Quad, and again the next day in King's Quad. I attended both events in King's Quad, got a copy of his book Taken on Trust autographed, and had my picture taken with him.
Before the second event, I also had the chance to speak with him briefly, and during the Q&A period I asked him to provide his thoughts on hostage rescue missions by military and law enforcement personnel. Given my credentials, my occupation, and the training I received prior to my time in the Middle East (which included mentions of his experience and what he did to keep his morale up), it was really a special opportunity for me.
Normally a larger group, this year's intake consists of thirteen students from seven countries. In this first semester, we're taught by two Scottish instructors.
The Director: I began corresponding with The Director back in August of 2010, and have been in touch with him every few months since then. The man knows strategy, the man knows history, and he's just an overall outstanding guy. His enthusiasm and expertise are central to the strength of the program, and I'm thrilled to be studying under his expert guidance.
E: E is a PhD and intelligence enthusiast. His research expertise is in microstates and intelligence, and he teaches security and intelligence courses to third year undergraduates. This is the first year he's teaching a postgraduate class in Strategic Studies. One of the hallmarks of E's lectures is his ability to illustrate concepts with entertaining anecdotes from the history of intelligence operations - the current class favorite being the story of the missing Soviet suitcase nukes. E is also a fan of Rangers F.C., and thinks that cricket isn't a sport, but rather, "dancing". His unhealthy obsession with Iceland is akin to my unhealthy obsessions with Orkney and Oman, so I'm not in a position to be judgmental.
This year's program has fewer students than usual. Most students are involved in the MSc in Strategic Studies, with a minority involved in the MSC in Strategic Studies - International Law (SS-IL). There are nine of us in the former program, and four in the latter, and the courses overlap by one course this semester (Strategic Theory), and several elective courses next semester.
CN Warden: Warden is from near Newcastle, in Northern England. He did his undergraduate studies at Aberdeen, so beyond benefiting from his general friendly demeanor, I've also benefited from his knowledge of the area.
CN GBU-16: GBU-16 is Italian, and an SS-IL student who also completed undergraduate study at Aberdeen.
CN Homeboy: Homeboy is an Aberdonian, born, raised, and educated. He's keenly interested in politics, a staunch Scottish nationalist, and extremely critical of Red Clydeside.
CN Ness: Reminiscent of one of the best sketches in SNL history, Ness isn't actually from Inverness, but he's from near Inverness. Like Homeboy, he's also keenly interested in politics.
CN Odin: Odin is Norwegian, the oldest student in the class, and the only member other than me with any overseas/topical experience. His major interests are intelligence and counterinsurgency.
CN Black Sheep: Black Sheep is from a small town on England's east coast, in the area "that looks like a face". He's also keenly interested in politics, both domestic and international. He's quite fond of spending time alone.
CN Sister: Sister is the only other American in the program, so we seem to get on well. She's interested in the Middle East, comfortable in extremely cold weather, apparently good with horses, and drives the largest vehicle of anyone in the program (when she's not driving the Model A she restored herself). Sister also completed her undergraduate studies at Aberdeen.
CN Slapshot: Slapshot is Canadian, and enjoys alcohol and travel. He has some experience working in Canada's diplomatic corps, which allowed him to attend some events in Washington, DC.
CN Templar: Templar is from Tanzania, and is so named for his fascination with the Knights Templar, the Roman Catholic Church, and the concept of the Roman Catholic Church as the earliest and most widespread intelligence apparatus in the world. Behind his back, Templar is universally lauded for bringing an extra-Eurocentric viewpoint to the class, which we all find extremely valuable.
CN Vlad: Vlad is Romanian, and an SS-IL student. He told me himself that he's "from Transylvania, where Dracula is from". He completed his undergraduate studies at Aberdeen, and based on my limited experience, he's very Romanian. He's also never met a pint he didn't like!
CN Chatti: Chatti is half Irish and half German, and one of the SS-IL folks. He and I have had a couple of excellent, cordial disagreemnts in class, and we non-SS-IL types have been pleased to have him participate as a member of our social group.
There's one other guy from the SS-IL program, but none of us have really had much exposure to him for one reason or another, so he doesn't have a code name and isn't really worthy of mention yet. In the event that I get to know him a bit better, I'll write more about him.
Overall, it's a very cordial group, we all seem to get on very well, and I'm thrilled at the opportunity to study and socialize with them.
The big political question in Scotland at the moment is the question of Scottish nationalism, or alternately phrased, Scottish independence. There are several prominent schools on the issue, with the most vocal seeming to be those pushing for Scottish independence, which is to say, actually becoming a political entity entirely independent of the United Kingdom. Others advocate for home rule, which is more autonomy in Holyrood (Edinburgh) without secession from the United Kingdom. Still others favor the status quo of having some degree of governance from Holyrood, and administration from Westminster (London) for more strategic matters.
The zeal for independence seems to be associated with the rise of the Scottish National Party (SNP), which currently enjoys a small majority in the Scottish Parliament, but that's a majority against six other parties who share the remainder of the seats. According to Wikipedia, the undisputed and infallible source of all knowledge, the 1995 film Braveheart may have contributed to Scottish nationalist sentiment, though the Proclaimers song at the top of this post dates back to 1988, so there are some among the Scots who have supported independence for much longer.
Of course, for anyone who's seen Braveheart, a question arises: if William Wallace and Robert the Bruce won Scottish independence in 1328, then how did Scotland come to be part of the United Kingdom? YouTube's CGPGrey does a good job of explaining a very complex series of historical events in this video.
As CGPGrey points out, the Scots have maintained cultural independence since the unification of Great Britain, and their nationalist sentiment endures to this day. (CGPGrey also does a fantastic job of explaining the difference between Great Britain and the United Kingdom, and a variety of other things, in this video.) At any rate, a referendum has been planned for 2014, at which point the Scots will be asked either one question, or two, these being variations of the following:
1) Should Scotland secede from the United Kingdom? 2) Should more powers be devolved from Westminster to Holyrood?
I should preface my own thoughts on the subject by saying that I hate when ignorant non-Americans opine about American politics. I've had to endure this quite a lot lately in the wake of the recent U.S. General Election, and let me tell you, as much as I love my friends from across the pond, the vast majority of them are ignorant as muck when it comes to American politics. As such, I feel it necessary to acknowledge that I'm an outsider looking in, and I don't claim to have all of the information or all of the answers.
That disclaimer having been entered into the record, I have a hard time taking the concept of Scottish independence seriously. I'll outline some of my thoughts in a scheme that I learned from my AP US History teacher all the way back in 1997: ESP, or Economic, Political, and Social.
Economic: The basic economic concept driving Scottish independence is the idea that, according to some literature that was shoved in my hand the other day, Scotland pays 9.6% of the taxes in the United Kingdom, but only receives 9.3% of the benefit. I'm not sure how they came to the 9.3%, and I'm positive that there are both Nationalists and Unionists much more intelligent, and far more invested in the matter, than I; that having been said, it seems like the Scottish Nationalists are carefully picking and choosing their facts to get to that figure.
The big ace in the hole of the Scottish Nationalists seems to be oil, along the lines of the economies of Scandinavia. It seems obvious that basing one's goals of independence on oil in 2012 is a remarkably poor plan for the long term. I can't help but assume that the Scottish Nationalists are also downplaying the various economic benefits that Scotland currently gains from being part of the United Kingdom. (For example, as much as I love Scotland, I have a hard time envisioning a situation whereby I would have come here for school if it hadn't been part of the United Kingdom.) If I were a Scottish voter, I would question whether the numbers the SNP is pushing actually add up.
Political: First, let's look at local politics. As CGP Grey points out in the linked (not embedded) video, Scots join the Northern Irish and Welsh in having local parliaments, something the English don't enjoy. Furthermore, the Scottish Nationalist position seems to forget that Scots have recently and traditionally enjoyed plenty of representation in the British government: for example, the previous Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, was Scottish, and I believe that former Chief of the Defence Staff Jock Stirrup was as well. The point being that the notion that the Scots are somehow marginalized in British politics seems questionable. At the very worst, Scotland enjoys better representation within the United Kingdom proper than many American states enjoy in Congress.
I feel like the case for Scottish independence really falls apart on the international scene. Scotland currently enjoys the United Kingdom's membership in the European Union, NATO, the Commonwealth of Nations, the United Nations, and a number of other international organizations. There was some recent malfeasance on the part of the SNP, who claimed that they'd been told that Scotland would be grandfathered into the EU, only for officials at the EU to refute those claims. This doesn't really lend the SNP much credibility with respect to their actual plans to govern Scotland, or for being honest and trustworthy among their constituents.
I've also heard rumors that Scotland would also expect for two British warships to be given to Scotland upon its theoretical secession, which seems unlikely. This brings me to defense policy: I don't think the SNP actually has one. I think that their expectation is that Scots will no longer have to fight in England's wars, and like Ireland and Sweden, they'll be able to enjoy the benefits of NATO without being members or putting any actual skin into the game. Again, Scotland currently enjoys a great deal of support and legitimacy as part of the United Kingdom that it would theoretically lose if it were to secede. As selective as the SNP seems to be with its economic and domestic political facts, its potential foreign policy seems even more poorly conceived.
Social: Scotland already has a distinct society and culture, as evidenced by the fact that we Americans are so fond of Scottish heritage events such as highland games and Scottish festivals. I can't imagine any social or cultural gain for Scotland from secession, and plenty of drawbacks from no longer being included within the United Kingdom.
Basically, as I've probably insinuated by now, I don't get the impression that the concept of Scottish independence has been particularly well thought out, or that it benefits from much intellectual rigor. It seems as if a bunch of Scots have been stirred up with a sort of arbitrary nationalist sentiment. I also have it on good authority from a very smart guy with a bird's eye view of the situation that, really, this is largely a ploy by the SNP to demand more authority from Westminster. Whether that's because they're ardent Scottish nationalists, cheap political opportunists, or some combination thereof, I don't know. At the risk of sounding flippant and/or arrogant, the whole thing seems remarkably silly to me. Then again, I'm not an expert on the situation, there are smarter people than I on both sides of the issue, and I have very little skin in the game (though moreso than a couple of months ago), so I'm reticent to be anywhere near as obnoxious as some of those aforementioned brethren have been with respect to American politics. (Seriously, most of them are totally clueless, and it's painful to hear them open their ignorant mouths and vomit forth their ignorance at me.)
It's a big, complicated issue, and it seems to come up more often than I'm really comfortable with, so I thought I'd bring those of you who aren't here in Scotland up to speed on it as best I can.
I'll spare everyone a recitation of the great feats of Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener. He's a major figure in the history of the British Empire, was highly regarded in his time, and is one of few British figures of his day to still enjoy widespread notoriety to this day. Earl Kitchener perished on 5 June 1916 off the west coast of Orkney after the ship conveying him on a diplomatic mission to Russia hit a German mine and sank.
A couple of years ago, I learned of the Kitchener Memorial at Marwick Head on the west coast of the Orkney Mainland. I resolved to go see it! After getting some directions from some construction workers who were working on what I think was a hostel, I piloted my intrepid chariot to go see it. Unfortunately, I only got as far as here. Since it was colossally muddy out, I decided that I'd made the effort, and I extricated the intrepid chariot from the muddy road I'd driven up. I later learned from Gray 1 and Gray 2 that there is, in fact, a path, but I expect that I would have been so hideously caked in mud by the time I'd gotten to the memorial and back that the whole thing would have been a fool's errand. To prove that I'd made the effort, I got a couple of pictures of the tower from a distance...
... and I finished it out with a great picture of the Orkney landscape, stretching out across the Orkney coastline toward the Bay of Skaill. I'd seen Skara Brae back in '04 and didn't feel the need to repeat it, so I drove past Skara Brae and back toward Kirkwall. I passed the Ring of Brodgar (to be discussed later) and Maeshowe, and I'm pretty sure that it was on that particular drive back to my digs that I heard that Olly Murs song from The Songs That Remind You 3. It was the end of a fantastic first full day in Orkney.
After two months, I've found that I carry the MOAB 10 almost every day. The biggest drawback of the MOAB 10 is that it doesn't have enough room to carry my laptop, which is why I bought the Messenger Bag in the first place. It would have been ideal to get something that was a hybrid between the two, with the agility of the MOAB 10 and the laptop space of the Messenger Bag, but 5.11 doesn't really make one, and I tend to like military-inspired bags because of their versatility. That said, they both have their drawbacks. The Messenger Bag doesn't have much room for anything but a laptop, and it would benefit from some expandability, like the Israeli paratrooper bag. I've had three or four of these Israeli satchels, and they're fantastic. For all of the MOAB 10's agility, its various compartments and pouches lack the expansion space to be really effective. It's a great bag, and so far I've used it for both everyday school carry and occasional travel (all I took to Edinburgh was the MOAB 10), but it would be tough to use it for more than an overnight, and that's packing really light.
Last week, I got some items from home that I'd packed before I left, and it included a super old Eddie Bauer backpack that I received from some family friends in 2000 as a high school graduation gift, and used for my five years as an undergrad. It's about as basic as you can get for a backpack, with a big main compartment, a small compartment on the cover, and a couple of mesh side pouches. It also has the virtue of not making me look like I'm geared up for a not-so-covert insertion into Tamanrasset.
The other item in my cache of stuff was a little number I picked up on my way back to the States from the Middle East back in March: a Hydration Bladder Carrier by Voodoo Tactical. It's designed to be a CamelBak, but it's a great light size to carry a couple of books, maybe a Kindle Fire, or even some Arabic flash cards. I remember being bummed that I hadn't packed it to bring with me, so I'm glad that I actually did pack it and just forgot about it until it arrived.
So... Uh... That's how I carry my stuff around so that my hands are able to do things like fish in my pockets for my bus pass or fumble with the controls to my Walkman.
As everyone in the West knows, November 11th is the day we remember the end of The Great War. In the States, we call it Veterans' Day, and in the United Kingdom it's Remembrance Day. In the United Kingdom, the weeks leading up to Remembrance Day see a lot of the population wearing poppies on their shirts or jackets. These can be procured with a donation to the Poppy Appeal, which supports the efforts of the Royal British Legion.
When Gus and I were touring campus on that Sunday morning, we observed the Remembrance Day service of the Army, Navy, and Air Force cadets outside the King's College Chapel. It reminded me of the Joint Service Review ceremonies that I participated in when I was a midshipman in Naval ROTC Unit as an undergrad, many moons ago. Here are some of the pictures that I snapped.
Also impressive was the bagpipe and drum band that provided the military music for the event. It was a great way to observe Veterans'/Remembrance Day.
