Talk:Colin Powell

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-link to the DoS site for the remarks with the foreign minister is broken, please fix.

Did General Powell serve in South Korea in the late 1970s? If not, then there are errors in the article. For example, the article states: "As a young Colonel serving in South Korea, for example, Powell was very close to General Henry "Gunfighter" Emerson." But under Dates of rank, it states he did not make colonel until 1976. The DMV would be a possible place to serve following the Vietnam conflict, but the article should be more clear on this point. Another issue is the matter of highest ranking. Since my ancestors are only most remotely from Africa, I will not claim whether the General is or is not an African American. I wonder about the office that garnered him this claim. Doesn't the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff outrank the Secretary of State? Perhaps it should say "civilian government official" or "civil government official". -Acjelen 04:53, 5 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Powell served as a battalion commander in South Korea for a year, from 1973 to 1974, at which stage his rank was Lieutenant Colonel (a rank for which the correct term of address is still "Colonel"). Still, I'll modify the line to make it a bit clearer for most readers. As for the highest ranking issue, senior civilian government officials always outrank military officers, including the JCS. That's part of the principle of civilian oversight of the military. — Impi 11:16, 5 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

an african american from jamaica?? is this a joke?

battalion commander equals rank of captain or major.. in Vietnam you said he was a major. a Lieutenant Colonel outranks a Major.. how is this possible? in Korea was a LtColonel and in vietnam .. 10 years later was a Major???

In case this is not clear to anyone else, he served as a LTC under occupation in the country of Korea after the Vietnam war. He was not involved in the korean conflict. Leppy 04:32, 20 April 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I have a problem with this sentance:

He appeared on the networks that were broadcasting New Year's Eve specials and talked about this honor, as well as being a native of New York City, ABC, CNN, [8] and Fox News Channel.

Does this mean that he is also a native of ABC,CNN and the Fox News Channel? Because those are networks, not locations.RiseRobotRise 18:34, 25 April 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I can't believe how good this article is, given the number of contributors. On the WMD thing at the security council, I recall a documentary in which Powell himself stated that, in order to fix responsibility for the intelligence he was about to rely upon in his presentation, he made sure that George Tenet was seated directly behind him. Assuming the recollection is accurate, then it does demonstrate quite a devious and compromised way of thinking, perhaps confirming the qualities shown by him in the My Lai and Jenin episodes.--shtove 20:20, 7 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]

At the time I write this, the following sentences are in the Powell article:-

Powell's great asset was his tremendous popularity among the American people. However, over the course of his tenure he traveled less than any other U.S. Secretary of State in 30 years, which may have contributed to the declining image of the United States abroad.

I raise a couple of points. Firstly, there needs to be substantial evidence that it was Powell's decision to travel less that caused this, given so many other very significant events, namely September 11 and the Iraq war.

Also, are we talking of popularity with the world's citizens (the sentence before talks about popularity with the American people) or popularity with other world leaders? I can understand an unwillingness to travel may be a setback diplomatically, but, until further evidence is produced, I am willing to believe that many people not in the US, much prefer Colin Powell's dovish doctrine to that of President Bush.

I am not saying that Powell has not contributed to America's loss of popularity, but I think there needs to be some evidence presented if the article is to say this.

(For the record, I live in the UK)

--Philipdw 21:41, 17 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]

His possible role is summed up nicely in this msnbc piece:

{...} on a long Bush trip to Africa, Fleischer and Bartlett prompted clusters of reporters to look into the bureaucratic origins of the Wilson trip. How did the spin doctors know to cast that lure? One possible explanation: some aides may have read the State Department intel memo, which Powell had brought with him aboard Air Force One. [1]

Anyone know if he plans on running for President, or Vice President in '08?

It is stated that the Lord Lyon's Heraldic authority was asked to devise his heraldic acheivement because of his Scottish Ancestry. Whilst his ancestry may be in part Scottish (Powell is in fact a Welsh surname), this would have no bearing on the Lord Lyon's involvement. It is customary for the arms of Commonwealth subjects to be granted through the Scottish Heraldic Authority - this would hav been the case even if Powell's father lived in England now, and would be the case for any Commonwealth subjects - except Canadians who now have their own College of Arms. I have amended the text int he article accordingly.