Archive - November 2014

1
OIG releases its report on the Medical Care Nick Castle received prior to his death
2
George Packer (Togo 1982-83) and The Quiet German
3
New York Times:Report Faults Care of Peace Corps Volunteer
4
Review — OUTPOST by Chris Hill (Cameroon 1974-76)
5
New York Times reports on Inspector General’s Evaluation of Medical Care for PCV Nick Castle
6
Ron Singer (Nigeria 1964-67) Publishes in Transnational Literature
7
Sandra Storey (Thailand 1968-71) Publishes Poetry Collection
8
Peace Corps goes to Burma, also known as Myanmar
9
A Writer Writes: Red Dress Magic by Karel Amaranth
10
Review: In Manchuria by Michael Meyer (China 1995-97)
11
Subject of Laurence Leamer's (Nepal 1964-66) book indicted in disaster at coal mine
12
Review: Dancing with Gogos by Gary Cornelius (South Africa 2012-13)
13
Amazon and Hachette Resolve Dispute
14
The Peace Corps and America's Most Serendipitous Man: Harris Wofford
15
Mark Jacobs (Paraguay 1978-80) Publishes Three New Short Stories

OIG releases its report on the Medical Care Nick Castle received prior to his death

The Office of the Inspector General has released a report on its investigation of the medical care that PCV Nick Castle received while serving in China.  To read the report, here is the link: OIG Report on Medical Care of Castle We were able to obtain the actual report because the Office of the Inspector General has released the report to the public. We made a FOIA or Freedom of Information Request in order to get the report as soon as it was published.  The Summary of Findings is taken directly from the report. Here is a Summary of the Results from that report.  I converted the PDF into a word document, so it may be difficult to read.  The actually report is 32 pages long.  There is a Synopsis in the beginning of the report.  This Summary of Results begins on about page 30. Summary of Results During OIG’s . . .

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George Packer (Togo 1982-83) and The Quiet German

The current issue of The New Yorker (December1, 2014) carries a long, long piece by George Packer (Togo 1982-83) entitled “The Quiet German” that focuses on Angela Merkel, who Packer calls, “the most powerful woman in the world.” Packer, who has been a staff writer for magazine since 2003, last spring was an Axel Springer Fellow at the American Academy in Berlin. Merkel, who George writes, gives few interviews and almost always to German publications, and all anodyne, declined to speak to him. That said, this is a fascinating account of Merkel, and comes with a page of ‘head shots’ of the woman done by Herlinde Koelbl who has been photographing Merkel since 1991. Koelbl was one of many people that Packer interviewed for this article. Merkel might not have much to say, but she does, it seems, like to have her photo taken, though Packer reports Koelbl said, “Merkel . . .

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New York Times:Report Faults Care of Peace Corps Volunteer

Report Faults Care of Peace Corps Volunteer By Sheryl Gay Stolberg New York Times NOV. 24, 2014 WASHINGTON – A Peace Corps doctor caring for a gravely ill volunteer in China ignored a fellow physician’s warnings that the volunteer needed intravenous fluids “in 30 minutes or he is going to die,” and altered her notes about his treatment after submitting them to headquarters for review, according to a confidential report by the agency’s independent watchdog. In a detailed examination of the death of Nick Castle, a 23-year-old volunteer who was the subject of an article in The New York Times in July, the Peace Corps inspector general cited “cascading delays and failures in the treatment” of Mr. Castle as a factor in the death, and said the Peace Corps doctor, Jin Gao, had “failed to use prudent judgment.” Dr. Gao resigned in September and could not be reached for comment. . . .

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Review — OUTPOST by Chris Hill (Cameroon 1974-76)

Chris Hill (Cameroon 1974-76) begins his new book: Outpost: Life on the Frontlines of American Diplomacy by telling his favorite story, his account of how as a PCV in Cameroon he tried to overhaul a corrupt credit union only to have his efforts rejected, largely because he did not understand the community’s internal dynamics and culture. What happened was something like this, Chris discovered that one board of directors had stolen 60 percent of their members’ money. He reported this to the members, who promptly re-elected them because the board reflected carefully balanced tribal interests and it really didn’t matter to the members if the board directors ran a good credit union or not. Hill said the lesson was that “When something’s happened, it’s happened for a reason and you do your best to understand that reason. But don’t necessarily think you can change it.” In his book he then sums up, “Years later, . . .

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New York Times reports on Inspector General’s Evaluation of Medical Care for PCV Nick Castle

Nick Castle was a Peace Corps Volunteer serving in China. He died while under the care of the Peace Corps doctor. There has been much controversy over the medical treatment that Castle received. His family has filed suit against the Peace Corps, charging that his death was avoidable. The New York Times  published an article, “Trail of Medical Missteps in Peace Corps Death“, July 25, 2014, detailing the events leading up to Castle’s death. The Inspector General of the Peace Corps has now completed her evaluation of the care that PCV Castle received immediately before his death. That report has not been released to the public.The New York Times has published a new article, by Sheryl Gay Stolberg, following up on the earlier article. and does includes the statement that the Inspector General found ““cascading delays and failures in the treatment” of Mr. Castle. To read the entire NYTimes article, . . .

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Ron Singer (Nigeria 1964-67) Publishes in Transnational Literature

Ron Singer’s (Nigeria 1964-67) story “Their Countries of Origin”  is set in an imaginary central-African dictatorship and appears in the November issue of Transnational Literature, an academic e-journal from Flinders University, Perth, Australia. The theme is the response of American liberals to illiberal regimes around the world. Ron has written seven books and twice been nominated for Pushcart Prizes. His poetry, fiction, satire, journalism and operate (librettos) all can be found at www.ronsinger.net. Ron Singer’s 44-year teaching career began with the Peace Corps in Nigeria (1964-67). The author of seven books, Singer (www.ronsinger.net) trawls the genres: poetry, fiction, satire, journalism and opera (librettos). Among the venues where his work has appeared are Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, Evergreen Review, The Georgia Review, Grey Sparrow, Poets & Writers, and The Wall Street Journal.  Singer’s serial thriller, Geistmann, and his serial farce, The Parents We Deserve, can currently be read at jukepopserials.com.

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Sandra Storey (Thailand 1968-71) Publishes Poetry Collection

Sandra Storey’s (Thailand 1968-71) poems have been published in various literary magazines, including the New York Quarterly, Friction (UK) and New Millennium Writings.Two of her poems have been featured in installations at Boston City Hall. Storey, who spent her teenage and college years in Ohio and Indiana, is the formerly editor and publisher of two neighborhood newspapers in Boston, the Jamaica Plain Gazette and the Mission Hill Gazette. She is now a columnist for the Jamaica Plain newspaper. Sandra wrote poetry from 1980 to 1988 and resumed in 2004. In between, she co-authored a nonfiction book on public policy, Women in Citizen Advocacy. A member of Jamaica Pond Poets, a collaborative workshop, since 2005, she was given the “Community Champion Award” for 2014 by ESAC, a local nonprofit organization. Her first collection of poems, Every State has Its Own Light was selected in 2011 as one of twenty-five finalists from an international field . . .

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Peace Corps goes to Burma, also known as Myanmar

The Voice of American webpage has the following announcement: VOA News November 13, 2014 7:46 AM The United States has announced it will set up a Peace Corps program in Myanmar, also known as Burma. It is the latest way in which the U.S. has expanded cooperation with the long-isolated Southeast Asian country. A White House statement said there is no better way for the U.S. to demonstrate its commitment to Myanmar than through such “people-to-people connections at a grassroots level.” It says the first Peace Corps volunteers will arrive in Myanmar in late 2015 and will undergo three months of training before moving to their work sites for two years. The announcement coincides with a visit to Myanmar by U.S. President Barack Obama, who is attending a regional summit and meeting with the country’s leaders. During the visit, Mr. Obama has expressed concern that Myanmar is slowing, or even . . .

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A Writer Writes: Red Dress Magic by Karel Amaranth

A Writer Writes Red Dress Magic by Karel Amaranth Karel Amaranth is a family friend (she attended college with my wife) and has a Bachelors degree in English and Creative Writing, and a Master of Arts degree in Fine Arts and Art Therapy.  She completed a Masters degree in Public Health at New York Medical College writing her thesis on an innovative project to address maternal mortality. While not an RPCV (well, no one is perfect) she has been working for 3 years with the Rotary Club of Makindye in Kampala, Uganda as the co-founder of Holistic Care for Mothers.  She traveled to Uganda this past summer to visit health facilities and women’s groups  to assess the needs of the communities and assist in strategic planning with Rotary Clubs, health providers and government officials, including the King of Tororo.  Holistic Care for Mothers has distributed more than 10,000 birthing kits . . .

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Review: In Manchuria by Michael Meyer (China 1995-97)

In Manchuria: A Village Called Wasteland and the Transformation of Rural China by Michael Meyer (China 1995–97) Bloomsbury Press February 2015 384 pages Pre-order: $28.00 (Hardcover), $9.99 (Kindle) Reviewed by William Siegel (Ethiopia 1962-64) I’ve had an interest in literature about China since I discovered a volume of translated Chinese poems on my parent’s bookshelves. The book, a handsome hardbound edition in bright orange linen, had a picture on the front of a lone figure in flowing robes standing on a boat poling across a swift river. Inside was a poem by Li Po titled “The River Merchant’s Wife.” In the poem, as a nine or ten year old, I first found that words could evoke feelings such as the notion of longing. Michael Meyer’s absorbing second book about China (his first, The Last Days of Old Beijing, is one I’m looking forward to reading), brings us a fresh, inside . . .

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Subject of Laurence Leamer's (Nepal 1964-66) book indicted in disaster at coal mine

The main character in Laurence Leamer’s (Nepal 1964-66) book, The Price of Justice: A True Story of Greed and Corruption, Donald L. Blankenship, was indicted on four criminal counts by a federal grand jury yesterday in West Virginia. He was charged with widespread violations of safety rules and deceiving federal inspectors. 29 men died in 2010, the worst coal mine disaster in West Virginia in 40 years. In today’s New York Times, Senator Jay Rockefeller of West Virginia is quoted with saying, “As he [Blankenship] goes to trial, he will be treated far fairer and with more dignity than he ever treated the miners he employed. And, frankly, it’s more than he deserves.” The Price of Justice: A True Story of Greed and Corruption won the 2014 Paul Cowan Non-Fiction Award presented by Peace Corps Writers. [For those not familiar with early Peace Corps history, Jay Rockefeller, when he was . . .

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Review: Dancing with Gogos by Gary Cornelius (South Africa 2012-13)

Dancing with Gogos: A Peace Corps Memoir By Gary P. Cornelius Peace Corps Writers 280 pages 2014 $13.00 (paperback) Reviewed by Jack Allison (Malawi 1966-69) • Gary Cornelius has written an inviting Peace Corps memoir in minute detail, interspersed with cogent quotes and anecdotes, including entries from his blog posts. This is a fresh and refreshing saga, for Cornelius served from 2012 to 2013, and the book was published in 2014. Unfortunately, he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease which resulted in his early departure from South Africa with one year remaining on his term of service. Because this issue was introduced early on in the book, it created tension about what he would accomplish in one year after in-country training. Cornelius had wanted to join the Peace Corps for 40 years prior, even after two rejections due to pre-existing medical issues. He was also an older Volunteer — he was . . .

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Amazon and Hachette Resolve Dispute

By DAVID STREITFELDNOV. 13, 2014 New York Times Amazon and Hachette announced Thursday morning that they have resolved their differences and signed a new multiyear contract, bringing to an official end one of the most bitter publishing conflicts in recent years. Neither side gave details of the deal, but both pronounced themselves happy with the terms. Hachette gets the ability to set the prices on its e-books, which was a major battleground in the dispute. “This is great news for writers,” said Michael Pietsch, Hachette’s chief executive. “The new agreement will benefit Hachette authors for years to come. It gives Hachette enormous marketing capability with one of our most important bookselling partners.” An Amazon executive, David Naggar, said Amazon was “pleased with this new agreement as it includes specific financial incentives for Hachette to deliver lower prices, which we believe will be a great win for readers and authors alike.” The agreement . . .

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The Peace Corps and America's Most Serendipitous Man: Harris Wofford

The November 2014 special issue of the New Republic is their anniversary issue (One Hundred Years of Politics & The Arts) that features articles on America’s great and infamous, and has much to my delight (and to all of us who were with him in the Peace Corps in Ethiopia) an article written by Jason Zengerle, the senior editor at The New Republic entitled, “Wofford Was Here: The Twentieth Century’s most Serendipitous Man.” Spotting it today when the magazine arrived in the mail I thought: Well, it’s about time. There are two photographs, one of Harris with Kennedy on the White House lawn greeting PCVs training in Washington, D.C. in the summer of ’62. (Those PCVs just happen to be the Ethiopia I Volunteers) and another photograph of Harris and his wife Clare and Bill Clinton and Al Gore in the Oval Office. The article charts Wofford’s long life, some . . .

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Mark Jacobs (Paraguay 1978-80) Publishes Three New Short Stories

“Antidote,” in The Dr. T.J. Eckleburg Review (they also asked for an essay about writing the story, which he sent them); “A Lonely Man Talks to His Pig,” in Superstition Review; “Guinevere,” Chagrin River Review Mark Jacobs (Paraguay 1978-80) is a former U.S. Foreign Service officer who has published more than 100 stories in magazines including The Atlantic, The Southern Humanities Review, The Idaho Review, The Southern Review, and The Kenyon Review. His story “How Birds Communicate” won The Iowa Review fiction prize. His five books include A Handful of Kings, published by Simon and Shuster, and Stone Cowboy, by Soho Press, which won the Peace Corps Writers  Maria Thomas Award. His website can be found at http://www.markjacobsauthor.com.

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