Council Of Foreign Affairs Fellow To Discuss U.S. Strategy In Iraq

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WILLIAMSTOWN - Stephen D. Biddle, senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations and award-winning author of "Military Power: Explaining Victory and Defeat in Modern Battle" will give a talk titled "U.S. Strategy in Iraq: Past Present and Future" at Williams College. His talk is scheduled for Monday, Oct. 6, at 7:30 pm in Griffin Hall, room 3. The talk is free and open to the public.

Biddle held the Elihu Root Chair of Military Studies at the U.S. Army War College Strategic Studies Institute (SSI). Before joining the SSI in 2001, he was a member of the political science faculty at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

He has held research positions at the Institute for Defense Analyses in Alexandria, Virginia, Harvard University's Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, and the Kennedy School of Government's Office of National Security Programs.

Biddle served as U.S. Representative to the NATO Defense Research Group Study on Stable Defense, is presently a member of the Defense Department Senior Advisory Group on Homeland Defense, and is co-director of the Columbia University Summer Workshop on the Analysis of Military Operations and Strategy.

He has presented testimony before congressional committees on issues relating to Operation IRAQI FREEDOM, conventional net assessment, and European arms control.

At the U.S. Army War College, his research was awarded the Barchi, Rist, and Impact Prizes from the Military Operations Research Society, and he won the Army Superior Civilian Service Medal in 2003.

His published scholarly articles include "The 2006 Lebanon Campaign and the Future of Warfare: Implications for Army and Defense Policy" (2008), "American Grand Strategy After 9/11: An Assessment" and "Afghanistan and the Future of Warfare: Implications for Army and Defense Policy" (2002).

His work has been awarded the Arthur Ross Book Award Silver Medal, Council on Foreign Relations (2005); Huntington Prize, Harvard University (2005); Koopman Prize, Institute for Operations Research and Management Science (2005) and the Madigan Award, Army War College Foundation (2005).

He received his Ph.D. in public policy from Harvard University.

The evening's event is sponsored by the Stanley Kaplan Program in American Foreign Policy.
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Williamstown Board Opts to Negotiate with College on Water St. Lot

By Stephen DravisiBerkshires Staff

Newly elected board member Nate Budington, far left, participates in his first in-person meeting along with, from left, Matt Neely, Stephanie Boyd, Peter Beck, Shana Dixon and Town Manager Robert Menicocci.
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — The Select Board on Monday decided to enter into negotiations with Williams College on the sale of the vacant town-owned lot at 59 Water St.
 
But the board members made it clear that the college's proposal to acquire the lot is a starting point, not a final deal that the elected officials would accept.
 
"For the sake of continued conversation, I'm in favor of [awarding Williams the site], but if this process wasn't continued with the opportunity for further negotiation, I wouldn't vote to continue this," Peter Beck said. "I think that next step is necessary for us to get to a yes on this."
 
"I think there's wide agreement on that," Matthew Neely said just before the 5-0 vote to enter talks with the college.
 
Williams was the sole respondent to a town-issued request for proposals to develop the former town garage site, currently a dirt lot.
 
The college's stated intent is to build a new Facilities office and create up to 170 parking spaces at 59 Water Street. That use will allow the college to redevelop the current Facilities building site and parking lot as part of a reconception of the school's indoor athletic and recreation facilities.
 
Under the terms of the RFP, the college's proposal was subjected to review by an ad hoc advisory committee to the town manager, who brought the question to the Select Board. That board will have the final say on any purchase and sales agreement.
 
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