This is an audio clip of an extensive discussion with Brian Lehrer on WNYC National Public Radio today about Barack Obama’s options in Afghanistan. I am pleased and applaud President Obama for requiring his advisers to come to him with plans including serious “exit strategies.

I interviewed former UK Ambassador to the United States Sir Christopher Meyer on his new book Getting Our Way: Five Hundred Years Of International Diplomacy. I have begun the book — and it’s a terrific review of five centuries of the world’s big moments and how competitive statecraft in very difficult circumstances turned out.

This is a priceless exchange between journalist “Matt” and State Department spokesman Ian Kelly. Who is Matt? Terrific job on his part — not so terrific on George Mitchell’s team’s part. . . Daily Press Briefings : Daily Press Briefing – November 17 Tue, 17 Nov 2009 14:29:30 -0600 http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/dpb/2009/nov/132024.

Not a regular topic on the blog, but I really do love wildlife — and being out in “it”. Although 600,000 others have seen this spell-binding video of National Geographic Paul Nicklen’s encounter with a leopard seal, I had not seen it. I have watched it a half dozen times now.

In an apparent effort to dumb down the concept of Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) for its readership, The Economist developed what it calls the “Big Mac Index.

This is a guest note by Flynt Leverett and Hillary Mann Leverett. Flynt directs the New America Foundation/Iran Project and is a former Senior Director of Middle East Affairs at the National Security Council. Hillary is chairman of Stratega, a political risk consultancy. They are co-publishers of the new blog, The Race for Iran.

Senate Foreign Relations Committee Ranking Member Richard Lugar (R-IN) and House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Howard Berman (D-CA) have jointly written a compelling case to end the travel ban for all Americans desiring to go to Cuba.

I just published an article at The Daily Beast on White House Counsel Gregory Craig’s resignation. For the record, I am an admirer of Greg Craig’s.

(Digital Globe-ISIS photo of Qom facility and tunnel entrances; courtesy ISIS) The Institute for Science and International Security has just posted the just released IAEA reports on both Iran and Syria.

This is a guest note from Richard Vague’s Delancey Place which ran on 16 November 2009.